Welcome
Halcyon Aces is a classless, card-driven tabletop RPG built for anime-inspired fantasy adventure. In this game, a standard deck of playing cards replaces dice, your four stats map directly to the four suits, and every card you play drains your stamina—creating real, mounting tension as combat and exploration wear your character down.
The Core Fantasy
Halcyon Aces is designed for stories about bold heroes navigating a world of swords, sorcery, and spirits. The tone draws from classic JRPGs and anime: colorful characters with signature fighting styles, dramatic reversals, escalating stakes, and bonds forged through shared hardship.
There are no classes. Instead, you build your character from modular Trait Trees, signature Techniques, and minor Talents. A sword-swinging fire mage and a sharpshooter who heals allies are equally possible. Your combination of choices is your class.
Whether your table leans toward earnest heroism or morally gray intrigue, the system supports it.
What You Need to Play
- One standard 52-card deck per player (no jokers)
- Character sheet for each player
- Tokens or counters for tracking Vitality and status effects
- One GM deck for enemies and NPCs
That's it! Halcyon Aces is elegant and low-prep. Experienced GMs can improvise encounters on the fly, and new players can create characters in 15 minutes.
Core Principles
Each card you play leaves your deck thinner. High-stat characters draw more options, but burn through cards faster. Managing your deck is managing your character's endurance.
When your stat's suit matches the card you play, your character's power surges into the result. This is called Resonance—and chasing it is one of the game's core tensions.
Build what you want from Trait Trees, Techniques, and Talents. The system doesn't gatekeep—it rewards creative combinations.
How hard you hit depends on how cleanly you overcome the enemy's defense. Every point of your result that exceeds their Guard becomes damage—so even small advantages matter.
The Four Stats
Every character has four core stats, each tied to a playing card suit. These determine how many cards you draw when acting and whether you gain Resonance bonuses.
What Does a Session Look Like?
A typical session of Halcyon Aces runs two to four hours. The GM presents a scenario—a dungeon to delve, a mystery to solve, a battlefield to survive—and the players respond as their characters. When outcomes are uncertain, the GM calls for checks and the cards come out.
Combat uses a structured three-action turn economy with zones for positioning. Between fights, players explore, roleplay, and make decisions that shape the story.
The deck-as-resource mechanic means tension builds naturally. Early in a session, players have full decks and can afford to draw liberally. As encounters stack up and fatigue piles grow, every card played becomes a harder choice. Resting refills the deck, but time spent resting is time spent not moving forward. The rhythm of push-and-rest drives pacing without the GM needing to force it.
Next Steps
Ready to learn the system? Check out the Core Rules to understand how draws, resonance, and checks work. Then head to Character Creation to build your first hero!