Created by

KYLE OTT
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 COLOR IMPACT
Black If it is black your character is motivated
by loss. This could be the loss of someone
close to you or a spiritual injury that makes
you a stranger to yourself. Whatever it is,
this loss has forced you into the lighthouse.
It is up to you to decide if the lighthouse is a
refuge from your pain or a way of avoiding
it entirely.
Red If the card pulled is red your character’s
purpose for being in the lighthouse is
passion. Either you are fleeing the results
of your passion or you have chosen to
distance yourself from that passion before it
consumes you.

The number of the card pulled indicates the role that some
aspect of your previous life played in causing you to come to the
lighthouse.
NUMBER IMPACT
A-5 Position - A title, career, or job. Some
aspect of your responsibilities in your
previous life played a role in you finding
your way to the lighthouse.
6-10 Family - Either the one you were born
into or the one you chose for yourself.
Those who you called kin played a role in
why you’re in the lighthouse now.
Face Cards Yourself - You are the main reason you
find yourself in the lighthouse. Perhaps this
is a reflection of your character or your
actions but no one is responsible for placing
you at the lighthouse but you.

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 The Creature The number of the card determines the nature of your Creature.

You have always dwelt in the ocean. You are a being born of the NUMBER IMPACT
tides and given strength by the constant ebb and flow of the waves. A-5 Alien - Your Creature is a being that
The lighthouse represents something foreign and strange to you, a looks like nothing the world above the
structure and concept that defies your working knowledge of the surface has ever seen. It would look more
world. at home on the moon than in the ocean.
The Creature is a character driven by a desire for the unknown. 6-10 Humanoid - You are most certainly not
They come from a black expanse of untold wonder and danger. human but you have many features that one
In the face of all they know, the lighthouse and its inhabitant offer would associate with being human.
something new, something they will go to great lengths to explore. Face Cards Amorphous - You are a formless being,
Determine your purpose for coming to the lighthouse: draw the or rather, you are a maelstrom of ever
top card of the deck. shifting flesh.

COLOR IMPACT Ask the following question to help you fill in the gaps of your
character:
Black If the card is black you are driven to
the lighthouse by desperation. Someone or • What fascinates your Creature most about the world
something forced you from the depths and above the waves? What would they like to accomplish at
like the ships it guides, you came to the the lighthouse?
lighthouse seeking safety and refuge. • How does the Keeper impact your views on the surface
Red If the card is red you are driven to the and those who dwell there?
lighthouse by curiosity. Something about the • What part of the sea do you bring up with you? How does
lighthouse made you want to explore it and this memento of home affect you?
so you did.
• What surprises you most about the surface? What about it
makes you want to stay?
Once both characters have been created remove the jokers
from the deck then shuffle all the cards used for character creation
back into the deck.

Variant Rule Playing with the Levithan: To use this variant rule
leave the jokers in the deck. When playing with this variant either
player can play a Joker on its own to add or resolve an element of
major conflict.

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 Playing the Cards
Playing matching sets of cards in You Have Always Lived In
The Lighthouse builds your story. Each set represents a new
element in the ever shifting lives of the Keeper and the Creature.
Every time you play a set of cards, remember what you add or
resolve should move the story forward.
PLAYED SET IMPACT
3 of the same Conflict- If you play a set of 3 cards of the same
color color, you are able to either start or resolve a conflict.
A conflict could be a disagreement between characters,
a physical struggle between Keeper and Creature, or
some other dangerous event that unfolds. Resolving
the conflict means describing or roleplaying how the
conflict ended and the consequences of that end.
2 or more Relationship- If you play a set with 2 or more
matching matching numbers you are able to add an element to
numbers the relationship between Keeper and Creature. This
could be a shared feeling, a piece of history between
you that has come to light, or a mutual goal made
apparent by recent events.
Important: As with anything pertaining to rela-
tionships between people, discuss with your partner
what kind of aspect you want to add to your shared
bond.
Run of four Cataclysm- If you play a run of four or more cards
cards you either begin or resolve a major event in the game.
Major events are things with an extreme impact on
the world of the game. These kinds of events include
something incredibly dangerous like massive storms,
the arrival of a military ship, or the onslaught of
another creature from under the waves.
Resolving a major event should feel cataclysmic
and important. Surviving the storm that almost de-
stroyed the entire island, managing to outwit and sink
an entire military vessel, or killing the equivalent of a
sea god are all fittingly epic for an event of this scale.
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 Variant Rules
While the rules above are how You Have Always Lived
In The Lighthouse is intended to play, throughout playtesting
interesting and compelling variant rules were used and developed
by some of our incredible friends and fans. When you feel up for
a challenge or simply want to experiment try these!
Building On Sets
In this version of the game players may add onto the sets
that have already been played. To do this a player only needs a
single card that would usually fit within the set. For example a
player could add a three to a set of matching threes.
When a player adds to an existing set they add or resolve the
element associated with that set. For example, if a player adds
on to a set of matching numbers they would add or resolve an
element to the relationship between Keeper and Creature.
Single Card
In this alternate game mode you do not play sets of cards but
instead play single cards to add or resolve elements from the
game. This allows players to jump into the action faster but there
is less mutual introspection.
When playing this game mode each kind of card means some-
thing different.
1-5 Add or resolve an aspect of the Keeper and
Creature’s relationship
6-10 Add or resolve a conflict
Face card Add or resolve a cataclysm
When playing this game mode the game ends after ten cards
have been played or after 6 cataclysms have been added or re-
solved.

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 One Final Word
Or, as always, two: thank you. Here at Desks and Dorks
we pride ourselves on creating games that allow people to tell
stories that matter. You Have Always Lived In The Lighthouse
represents a labor of love for every part of our team.
While our hard work has gone into shaping every inch of
this book, we could not do what we do without players like you.
Thank you for supporting independently published roleplaying
games and the endeavors of creatives everywhere. There is no
Desks and Dorks without you, so thank you.

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