The Unified Time Scale

Philosophy

Cerberus uses four nested time scales. The GM always announces the current scale and moves freely between them.

Four Scales

Tick (~2 seconds). Combat's atomic unit. Three ticks make one round. Track only actions and movement.

Scene (minutes or hours). The scale of roleplay, exploration, and infiltration. Do not count actions; prescribed chance rolls and Saves are enough. Most play occurs at this scale.

Day (and night). The scale of resources: spell-slot regeneration, healing, abilities used “per day,” and alchemical preparation. The Rest chapter operates at this scale.

Journey (days and weeks). The map scale. One day of walking covers about 20 to 30 miles depending on terrain. Play only events worthy of a scene at this scale; narrate the rest.

Action Durations in Ticks

Spells, feats, and items express their time cost with a label such as Standard or Swift, or in rounds. This table converts them to combat's common unit:

Label	Ticks
Swift (or Fast)	1 tick
Standard	2 ticks
Full	3 ticks (= 1 round)
1 round (1 turn)	3 ticks
2 rounds	6 ticks

Round = turn. Beyond the table, convert when necessary: 2 turns = 6 ticks, and 1 minute ≈ 30 ticks. As soon as combat ends, return to scene scale and stop counting.

Zooming In: Entering Tick Mode

Move to tick scale whenever priority becomes a question: an ambush, a duel, or a guard reaching for an alarm bell. If the situation requires a Reflex duel, play it in tick mode.

Zooming Out: Leaving Tick Mode

Return to scene scale once priority is no longer contested: the last enemy falls, the pursuers lose ground, or surrender is accepted. Outside conflict, stop counting ticks.

Moving Between Scales

Some actions begin at one scale and end at another. If an attack interrupts an hour-long ritual, the GM determines how far the ritual progressed, then zooms in. A potion simmering during travel becomes ready “at the evening camp,” not “in 5,400 ticks.” Conversion is always narrative, never arithmetic.

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