Setting Up and Using Lists

This guide distills the essential steps for starting players using the Lists module within the official Mythic GME companion apps. The apps are designed to complement the Mythic GME 2e rulebook, streamlining mechanics and minimizing lookup friction.

1) The purpose of Lists

Lists are fundamental tools in Mythic GME 2e and act as a creative engine for your narrative.

• Tracking elements: The Threads list records your PC’s goals, missions, quests, or tasks. The Characters list tracks important NPCs and other active elements (factions, places, objects, etc.).
• Driving Random Events: Lists function as dynamic random tables. When a Random Event occurs, the system selects an entry from a list (e.g., which goal progresses or which character acts).
• Organized workspace: The app’s Lists module gives you a dedicated space to manage, reference, and update these elements as you play.

2) Getting started: seed your adventure

When beginning a new adventure, use the Lists module to establish your initial world state.

1. Add initial Threads: List the main goals you have in mind for your PC (e.g., “Find the lost artifact”).
2. Add initial Characters: Add important NPCs or other entities that can influence the adventure. This can include specific characters (e.g., “Mysterious sage”), groups, or even significant places/objects with agency (e.g., “Haunted manor”).

Tip: Keep names short and specific. You can expand details later in scene notes.

3) Managing and weighting Lists (Bookkeeping)

List management typically happens during end‑of‑scene Bookkeeping.

• Weighted entries: To reflect importance, you can add an additional entry for a Thread or Character that was highly relevant in the scene (up to 3 entries total for an element). This increases its chance of being selected in future Random Events.
• Remove elements: Remove Threads that are completed/abandoned or Characters that are no longer relevant.

The app’s Lists module makes these edits quick, and Random Events will automatically use your current list state.

4) Prepared adventures: the Adventure Features list

When using Mythic with a prepared (published) adventure, add a third list (or use instead of Threads): Adventure Features.

• Purpose: Track unique elements of the adventure that can become encounters or triggers (e.g., wandering monsters, staged visions, villain hit‑and‑run tactics, special disease/poison progressions).
• Relationship: A Feature can overlap with Characters (e.g., “Vampire Lord attacks” may coexist with “Vampire Lord” on Characters).
• Random Events integration: With prepared adventures, use the Prepared Adventure Event Focus table instead of the standard focus. If you roll “Adventure Feature” (e.g., 1–20 on d100 per that table), roll on your Adventure Features list to select the unique element the event concerns. Depending on the feature, you may or may not need further Meaning rolls.

Summary (lists you’ll use)

• Threads: Goals/missions/quests (always)
• Characters: Active NPCs/factions/places/objects/events (always)
• Adventure Features: Unique prepared‑adventure elements (only with prepared adventures)

All lists share the practical structure of up to 5 sections with 5 lines each (25 total). The app shows how many sections are active and uses that state when selecting randomly.

5) Using Lists in play

• Random selection: When a Random Event focuses on Threads/Characters (or Features in prepared play), the app selects an element automatically. This emulates rolling for a section and then a line on a paper list.
• “Choose” option: If a random pick hits an empty line, treat it as “Choose”. Use context to pick a sensible element from the list or roll again for a surprise.

Tips

• Keep your lists tidy: archive/remove what’s stale; add what matters now
• Use duplication (up to 3 entries) to nudge focus toward important elements
• Update lists during Bookkeeping so they reflect the last scene’s reality
• Pair lists with Scenes: reference lists in your scene notes so threads and actors remain visible in context

Related guides

See the Related Guides section at the bottom of this page.