Models and cards
Use any miniatures you like. Each Character needs a Core card, a mod card, and a Loadout. NPC cards provide the opposition’s statistics and rules.
Mission brief
A city made from your collection
RUSS, the Russellmania UniversALL Skirmish System (you have to admit that is some genius branding right there!), is a solo-first miniatures engine. Potham Chronicles supplies the worlds that collide inside it. Core rules tell every model how to move, act, and fight; a selected mod adds its enemies, hazards, and personality.
Table and terrain
A generated mission recommends 24×24, 36×36, or 48×48 inches. Fill it with terrain that creates choices, alternate routes, and room for models to move.
Dice and markers
Bring a ruler, combat dice, a 
, a 
, objective counters, and markers for conditions, activation, NPC movement, and mission progress.
The fastest route is to generate a mission, prepare the named cards and Loadouts, and follow its setup. Players are equally free to write a mission from scratch. A custom mission only needs to say what goes on the table, what the Characters are trying to do, and how the story ends.
For help preparing Character files, equipment, Loadouts, NPCs, and the Dashboard, follow Your First Potham Chronicles Game. Return here when it is time to set the physical battlefield.
Set the scene
From empty table to Turn 1
A generated mission handles the hard choices. Read its sheet from top to bottom, treating any specific instruction as an override of these defaults.
Choose the chronicle
Select or generate a mission and choose the active mod or mods. Read its objective, timer, complication, victory, and failure text before placing anything.
Assemble the team
Choose the Characters and their Loadouts. A Leader is optional. If used, identify that Character now. For a normal custom mission, aim for starting NPC points close to the players’ total points.
Build the battlefield
Use the mission’s battlefield size and terrain theme. Agree which pieces are barriers, Difficult Terrain, cover, blocking, climbable, operable, or breakable. Preserve legal routes to every objective.
Mark the job
Establish the Deployment Edge or Area and any Escape Edge or Point. Place objective zones and counters exactly as the mission directs, including required spacing and access routes.
Prepare the pressure
Combine suitable Event cards from all active mods into one shuffled deck. Do the same separately for Supply cards. Duplicates may be included; leave out cards that do not fit this scenario.
Deploy the cast
Deploy Characters inside the mission’s area, then place starting NPCs using its counts and placement pattern. No NPC begins inside a Character’s Control Zone unless the mission explicitly says so.
Ready the table
Place condition, activation, movement, objective, ammo, and mod-specific markers within reach. Ready the dice, measuring tool, cards, Dashboard, and any reinforcement models.
Set the clocks
Set the turn counter to 1 and Danger to 0 unless a mod, mission, or campaign consequence says otherwise. Confirm the timer and end conditions. Begin Phase 1.
Core language
The rules beneath every world
When a mission, mod, card, or Special Rule contradicts Core, the more specific instruction wins. Otherwise, use the rules here.
Measure from the base
Measure movement along the path taken by the model’s base. Measure ranges and distances base-edge to base-edge. Models may not move through or overlap other models unless a rule permits it.
Base contact
Models are in base contact when their bases touch. Opposing models in base contact are engaged. A Character cannot voluntarily disengage unless a rule allows it.
Control Zone
Every model’s Core Control Zone extends 2 inches from its base edge. A model is inside a Control Zone when any part of its base enters that area. Some NPCs use a different mod-specific zone.
Line of sight
Line of sight exists when an unobstructed line can be drawn from any point of the attacker’s base to any point of the target’s base. Blocking Terrain—or a complete screen of models—prevents targeting.
Health and damage
Damage reduces current Health immediately. At 0 Health a model is KIA and removed unless a condition, mod, mission, or Special Rule gives a different result.
Dice quality
Combat dice improve in this order: 
→ 
→ 
→ 
→ 
→ 
. “Upgrade” moves right; “downgrade” moves left.
| Danger band | Core default | What to remember |
|---|---|---|
| Low | 0–3 | The default starting band. |
| Medium | 4–8 | Events and rules may become more severe. |
| High | 9–12 | Pressure is near its limit. |
| Critical | 13–18 | Reaching the mod maximum ends the game after the current turn. |
These numerical ranges are Core defaults. A mod may change every band and its maximum. If Danger reaches the active maximum, finish the turn and then end the game. If an effect would push Danger beyond that maximum, the mission fails immediately.
Stress Tolerance is rated Low, Medium, or High. At the start of a Character’s activation, compare the current Danger band with the Character’s Stress Tolerance. If Danger does not exceed Stress Tolerance, no Stress roll is made. If it does, roll the Stress Die before choosing actions.
Terrain briefing
Agree what the battlefield means
Before deployment, give each important feature one or more clear traits. A ruined wall might be a Barrier, Light Cover, and Breakable Terrain at the same time.
| Terrain | Core definition | Default effect |
|---|---|---|
| Open Ground | Clear, stable space with no meaningful obstruction. | Move normally; it grants no cover. |
| Barrier | A low wall, fence, barricade, or similar linear obstacle. | A model must Climb unless a route passes around it. It commonly provides Light Cover. |
| Difficult Terrain | A defined footprint such as rubble, woods, debris, or dense machinery. | Models may enter if their bases fit. Models halve their movement while moving through it; it provides the agreed cover when sight crosses the footprint. |
| Light Cover | Partial protection that obscures but does not fully hide the target. | Add one to the target’s Defense. |
| Heavy Cover | Substantial protection such as a vehicle, thick wall, or fortified position. | Add one to the target’s Defense. |
| Blocking Terrain | A solid feature through which models cannot see or normally move. | Blocks movement and line of sight. Move around it unless a rule grants another route. |
| Climbable Terrain | A feature a model can cross or ascend with a legal landing point. | During a Move, roll the . Success completes the climb; Blank ends movement at the obstacle. |
| Operable Terrain | A door, hatch, console, lift, switch, or similar interactive feature. | A model in base contact may use Open/Close or the action printed by the mission. |
| Breakable Terrain | A door, window, barrier, or object with an agreed Defense and result when broken. | A model in base contact may Smash it. The terrain or mission defines the Defense and what changes after success. |
The turn
Four phases. One tightening noose.
Complete every phase in order. Entering melee, making Noise, or gaining a condition does not jump the game ahead unless its rule explicitly says to resolve immediately.
01Action Phase
The team makes its move
Choose one Character that is not Activated. Make its Stress Check if required, resolve up to two actions, then mark it Activated. Repeat until every active Character has completed an activation.
Stress first
Compare the Danger band to Stress Tolerance before actions.
Two actions
The same action may be used twice unless prohibited.
Contact ends it
Entering enemy base contact immediately ends that activation.
02Event & NPC Movement
The world answers back
Resolve the active mod’s NPC movement in its stated order. Then draw one hidden Event, reveal it, apply any Danger change, resolve the entry matching the current Danger band, and discard it.
One Event
Draw only one, even with several mods active.
Mixed worlds
Active mod Event collections share one shuffled deck.
No early attacks
An NPC entering contact waits for Phase 3.
03Melee & Ranged Combat
Every engagement comes due
If any melee occurs anywhere on the table, increase Danger by 1 once for the phase. Resolve ordinary engagements, deferred Swarm attacks, and then any mod-specific NPC ranged attacks.
One at a time
Choose an unresolved engagement and finish it before continuing.
Swarm later
Multiple Swarm NPCs are deferred to their shared attack step.
Separate or finish
Continue until required opponents resolve or the engagement separates.
04End Phase
Survive what follows
Resolve ongoing condition damage, mod effects, card effects, and scenario instructions in their stated order. Check the mission result, clear expired effects and Activated markers, then prepare the next turn.
Conditions bite
Bleeding and mod conditions resolve now.
Check the mission
Victory wins a simultaneous victory/failure tie by default.
Clear the table
Remove temporary markers and advance the turn.
| Core action | What it does |
|---|---|
| Move | Move up to the Character’s Stealth, Walk, or Run value. Stealth is silent by default; Walk and Run create Noise. A Prone Character may only move at Stealth. |
| Aim | Add one to the Character’s next Shoot action during this activation. The benefit expires when the activation ends. |
| Shoot | Make a ranged attack with an equipped weapon against an eligible target in range and line of sight. |
| Reload | Remove Out of Ammo from a weapon when suitable ammunition is available. Ammunition is reusable unless One-Use or another rule consumes it. |
| Search | Interact with a searchable counter, objective, or terrain feature. The mission or mod defines what is found and how it is handled. |
| Stand Up | Remove Prone. Any remaining actions may then be used normally. |
| Regroup | Roll the . On Success, reduce Danger by 1. A stressed result or rule may prohibit the attempt. |
| Swap Items | Rearrange carried items or exchange them with a friendly Character inside the acting Character’s Control Zone. |
| Make Noise | Create Noise at the Character’s position. The active mod defines how its NPCs respond. |
| Open / Close | Operate a door, hatch, or eligible terrain feature while in base contact. |
| Repair | When no enemy contacts the object, roll the . Success repairs it as instructed; Blank has no effect. |
| Smash | Attack contacted Breakable Terrain while not engaged. Add one to the Melee attack roll. Beat its Defense to break it, then immediately create Noise. |
| Start Fire | Ignite contacted flammable terrain. Use one action with suitable Flaming equipment; otherwise use two actions. |
| Special Action | Follow the complete action printed by a Character, card, mission, mod, or Special Rule. |
Combat doctrine
Roll fast. Read the wreckage.
Ranged and melee attacks share one engine: build the attacker’s dice pool, build the defender’s pool, roll, and compare total Hits.
Win the roll
The attack succeeds only when Attack Hits exceed Defense Hits. Damage equals the difference. A tie causes no normal combat damage.
Criticals
Any number of Criticals on the successful side adds +1 total damage. Criticals do not stack unless a rule explicitly says otherwise.
Luck Roll
Once per Character per turn, when a needed tactical or RPG stat has no dice, the Character may attempt Luck. Roll the and one . Luck succeeds only on a Success and a Critical. On success, use the result plus any modifiers applicable to that roll. The attempt is spent even if it fails.
Out of Ammo
After a Shoot attack containing an attacking Critical—even if unsuccessful—roll the . On Blank, mark the weapon Out of Ammo until Reloaded.
Defend
When attacked, roll the model’s Defense dice as a free action. Defending does not spend one of its normal actions; apply the attack’s normal Defense and combat rules.
Melee attacker
A mod or Special Rule decides first. Otherwise, the model with the higher current total points, including equipment, attacks. On equal points, an NPC has Initiative over a Character.
Push Back
The loser moves 1 inch directly away and may slide along terrain. If blocked, move as far as possible. Contact with another enemy ends the Push Back early and creates a new engagement.
Melee tie
The defender is pushed back. If both sides attacked, push the lower-point model; on equal points, push the player Character. Neither side suffers normal combat damage.
Light Cover adds one ; Heavy Cover adds one . Apply cover when line of sight crosses the relevant terrain or an intervening model. If no line can reach the target at all, it cannot be attacked.
When more than one Swarm-enabled NPC engages the same Character, defer the entire engagement. Combine all participating NPC Melee dice, then add Swarm bonus dice using the best Melee die among them: +1 die for 2–3 NPCs, +2 for 4–5, or +3 for 6 or more. The Character defends once against the combined attack.
Core conditions
What the fight leaves behind
Use a marker or Dashboard counter for each active condition. Stackable conditions accumulate; non-stackable conditions are either present or absent.
| Condition | Effect | Removal |
|---|---|---|
| Activated | The Character has completed its activation and cannot activate again this turn. | Remove during final End Phase cleanup. |
| Bleeding Stackable | Suffer 1 damage per stack during the End Phase. | Remains until equipment or a rule removes it. |
| Stunned Stackable | Lose one action per stack during the next activation. If stacks exceed available actions, suffer 1 damage total; reaching 0 this way causes KO instead of KIA. | Remove resolved stacks at the End Phase specified by the effect. |
| Prone | The Character may only move at Stealth or Stand Up. It remains eligible for melee. | Spend one action to Stand Up or use an explicit rule. |
| KO’d | Remain Prone on the battlefield. Cannot act, maintain engagement, or normally be targeted. KO’d is not a casualty, but an entirely KO’d/KIA active team loses. | Only a rule that explicitly restores the model. |
Enemy dossiers
Choose what hunts you
Only use the dossier for an active mod. If several mods share the battlefield, follow each NPC type’s own timing while still drawing just one Event.
Zombos
10-inch Noise / AlarmBehavior
Zombos receive no actions. They move only when Control Zone Movement, Noise, Alarm, an Event, a scenario, or another rule instructs them.
Phase 1 flags
As a non-Infected Character moves, continuously check its complete Control Zone path. Flag every standing, unengaged Zombo that has not moved and is not otherwise prevented. One flag per Zombo; Hidden movement creates none.
Phase 2 movement
Resolve flagged Zombos separately. Recheck eligibility, then move toward the nearest Character currently in line of sight, measuring base-edge to base-edge. The player breaks target ties. Stop when blocked or in base contact. Clear every resolved flag.
Movement limit
A Zombo normally moves only once per turn from any source. Track each separately and clear movement tracking at the end of the turn.
Noise and Alarm
Noise immediately moves the nearest eligible Zombo within 10 inches toward the source. Alarm moves all eligible Zombos within 10 inches and increases Danger by 1. Movement is straight toward the source and stops when blocked.
Hidden
Hide requires base contact with suitable scenery and no enemy inside the Character’s Control Zone. Become Prone and Hidden. Hidden ends voluntarily, when the Character stands, or when an enemy enters base contact.
Resilient and Critical Vulnerability
Resilient sets a Zombo reduced to 0 Health Prone at 1 Health unless the winning attack included a Critical. It ignores further damage while Prone. During the End Phase, it stands on a Success. Critical Vulnerability causes KIA from a successful opposing Critical.
Bitten and Infected
After a damaging Zombo attack containing a Critical, roll the ; on Blank, gain one Bitten. During the End Phase roll once per Bitten stack. If any are Blank, remove all Bitten and become Infected. Infected causes 1 End Phase damage.
Death and reanimation
An Infected Character reduced to 0 remains Prone. During the Reanimation Check, Blank replaces the corpse with a Zombo; Success leaves it in place. Any attack may target the corpse; it rolls no Defense, and an attacking Critical removes it permanently.
Xenos
12-inch Noise / AlarmBehavior
Xenos receive no Character actions. They activate and move once during Phase 2, preferring a route that can reach melee.
Phase 1 flags
Character movement flags eligible Xenos along the complete Control Zone path using the same timing as Zombos. A flag remains if the Character continues away.
Phase 2 movement
Move flagged Xenos toward the nearest Character first, preferring base contact. Afterward, every eligible unflagged Xeno moves once at normal speed in a generated compass direction.
Movement and routes
Default movement is 6 inches normal and 12 inches Run. A Xeno uses a 3-inch route-selection Control Zone to choose a best-guess legal route and avoid obvious dead ends.
Wall-Crawler
Blocking terrain does not end movement and small or light cover imposes no movement penalty. The Xeno must still follow a legal physical route and cannot finish inside terrain.
Noise and Alarm
Noise draws the nearest eligible Xeno within 12 inches; Alarm draws all eligible Xenos within 12 inches and increases Danger by 1. A Xeno not in Character base contact may respond even after moving or attacking, but only once per turn to Noise or Alarm.
Ranged preference
Attempt to reach melee first. If that is impossible and the Xeno has a ranged attack, move to the closest legal attack position. Resolve its ranged attack after Swarm attacks in Phase 3; never target a Character engaged in melee.
Pounce, Spit, and Blood
Pounce always grants the Xeno Initiative in melee. Acid Spit has Range 3 and adds one unless the variant states a better die. A winning Xeno melee roll containing a Critical applies exactly one Acid.
Acid and Brood Release
Acid stacks; each stack causes 1 damage during Phase 4 and remains until removed. When Brood Release is KIA by an attack without a Critical, roll the . On Blank, immediately spawn the same Xeno type using NPC Spawn.
2038
3-inch AI-Bot Control ZoneBehavior
Each AI-Bot has two actions and one of four Primary Directive roles: Hunter, Sentry, Worker, or Patrol. Action 1 follows that directive; a second normal action uses a different Action Family unless an explicit rule permits otherwise.
Phase timing
Character movement can add Marked in Phase 1. NPC movement resolves in Phase 2. Melee and eligible NPC ranged attacks resolve in Phase 3. Phase 4 checks directive requirements and clears Marked.
Noise and Alarm
Noise adds one Marked if any AI-Bot Control Zone contains the Character and increases Danger by 1 only when a stack is added. Alarm adds one Marked per containing AI-Bot Control Zone and increases Danger by 1.
Reference
See the 2038 Quick Reference and complete combat flowchart for the 2038 rules.
End of the story
Know when the chronicle is over
Mission text always gets the final word. When several end conditions collide, resolve them in this order.
Immediate instruction
Resolve an explicit immediate victory or failure as soon as it triggers.
Danger breaks
An attempted increase beyond the active maximum causes immediate failure.
No team left
If every active Character is KIA or KO’d, the mission immediately fails.
Finish the turn
Otherwise reach the End Phase and check scenario, timer, and maximum-Danger results.
Ready to enter Potham?
Prepare the cards and Dashboard, generate a mission, then put the team on the table.