MUSE: 2026 Edition
The future of the MUSE Engine has finally arrived! After months of tinkering and listening to the stories you've been telling at your own tables, it's time to pull back the curtain on the 2026 Edition.
The biggest change you'll see is our new Success Threshold. We're moving away from 6s alone meaning success, 4s and 5s now count too. You're going to be succeeding more often, but there's a catch that keeps the tension high: 1s now subtract from your total successes.
To balance this surge in player power, we've introduced caps on Traits, Powers, and Talents to keep your growth meaningful. Plus, for the true legends out there, hitting a Trait score of 10 means you've Mastered it. Those successes now explode, opening the door for some absolutely massive wins.
We've also overhauled Life Points and Death. The Path Die is officially a thing of the past. Life Point gains are now flat and predictable, so your survival is a direct result of your growth rather than a lucky roll on a level-up. But don't get too comfortable, Combat is deadlier than ever! New Tribulations have been added, and our new Death Challenge mechanics turn those final moments into a high-stakes, back-and-forth struggle with the GM.
This is also the first edition of the MUSE rules to introduce full mechanics for Vehicles!
If you're reading this, this website's Core Rules and the Character Sheet App have been brought fully up to date for the 2026 Edition. For those who prefer a physical setup, the Printer Friendly PDF and updated character sheet will be released on May 15th.
Rebalancing
As we move to this next edition, we want to make sure your heroes don't get left behind, so we've put together this Rebalancing Guide to help bring your current characters up to speed (without requiring a complete re-roll). Before converting anything, it's important to make sure everyone at the table understands what changed:
| Mechanic | v1 | 2026 Edition |
|---|---|---|
| Success Threshold | Only a 6 counts as a success | 4s, 5s, and 6s count as successes, but 1s subtract a success (except on the Key Trait) |
| Burning/Bleeding Tribulation Damage | Bleeding: 1 LP / Burning: 1d4 | Bleeding: 1d6 / Burning: 1d6 |
| Challenges | Workshop Content | Added to Core Rules |
| Death | Roll d6 for Death Target, then roll Endurance vs. that target; die at -5 LP | Both player and GM roll Endurance as a Challenge; first to 3 wins/losses; instant death if LP drops below negative Endurance score |
| Dodge/Endure/Counter | Not explicitly codified | Fully codified defensive options |
| Healing Frequency | No explicit limit | Once per Round (in combat) / once per Scene (outside of combat) |
| Level Cap | No cap (post-30 everything becomes Opposing Rolls) | Level 40 cap |
| Leveling (Even Levels) | +2 Trait dice and +2 Powers | +2 Trait dice and +1 Power |
| Leveling (Odd Levels) | Gain a new Talent | Gain +2 Max LP and a new Talent |
| Max Life Points | No cap | 50 LP cap |
| Max Powers | No cap | 25 Powers cap |
| Max Talents | No cap | 20 Talents cap |
| NPC Stat Blocks | Lower numbers across the board | Adjusted upward |
| Overexertion Penalty Duration | Until next session or 1d4 days | Until next session or 1d6 days |
| Path Die | Varies by Path (d4, d6, d8), used for LP on level-up and multi-target rolls | Removed entirely. LP gains are now flat (+2 on odd levels); multi-target uses a flat 1d6 |
| Rejoining after Skipping Powers | Level 8 | Level 6 |
| Shared Combat | All characters can share turns | Enemies can only share turns with other enemies |
| Starting Powers | Not specified (Spellweaver gets +3) | 2 Powers baseline (Spellweaver gets +3 for 5 total) |
| Terminology | Rotations / Sequences | Rounds / Encounters |
| Trait Cap | None stated | 10 dice max per Trait (with Mastered Traits & Exploding Successes at 10) |
| Vehicles | Not present | Full vehicle rules included |
Step 1: Cap Trait Scores at 10
If any Trait exceeds 10, reduce it to 10. That Trait is now considered Mastered and gains Exploding Successes. Because the success threshold has shifted from "only 6s" to "4s, 5s, and 6s minus 1s," every die is roughly 3x more likely to produce a success than before.
Step 2: Recalculate Life Points
In the 2026 Edition, your Maximum Life Points come from three sources:
- Base LP: Every character starts with 3 Life Points, regardless of Path.
- Path LP Bonus: Your Path grants a flat bonus at character creation (see the table below).
- Odd-Level Gains: Every odd level (3, 5, 7, 9, 11, etc.) grants +2 Maximum Life Points. So you count how many odd levels you've passed through and multiply by 2.
| Path | v1 LP Bonus | 2026 LP Bonus |
|---|---|---|
| Artisan | 1 | 2 |
| Brute | 4 | 4 |
| Courier | 2 | 2 |
| Hunter | 3 | 3 |
| Nomad | 2 | 3 |
| Pathless | 2 | 3 |
| Performer | 1 | 2 |
| Shade | 3 | 3 |
| Spellweaver | 2 | 2 |
| Warrior | 3 | 3 |
As such, your new Max LP can be calculated as:
3 + Path LP Bonus + 2 x Your Odd Levels
Level 1 doesn't count because you don't "reach" Level 1. If your total still exceeds 50, set it to 50. Don't try to layer this on top of whatever your v1 LP was, calculate fresh using the formula above.
Step 3: Audit Powers
If your character has more than 25 Powers, reduce to 25. Choose which to keep based on what fits your character concept.
If your character has less than 25 Powers, reduce them to 2 (or 5 for Spellweavers) + the number of Even Levels your character has.
Step 4: Audit Talents
If your character has more than 20 Talents, reduce to 20. If your character has less than 20 Talents, reduce them to 1 x Your Odd Levels.
Some Starter Talents have also received minor updates:
| Path | Change |
|---|---|
| Nomad | "When making Endurance rolls to Endure, 1s no longer subtract from successes. You can also use your Survival score instead of Swiftness when determining your place in Initiative." |
| Shade | Now "once per Encounter" and "single Round" |
| Hunter | Now "once per Encounter" |
Step 5: Remove Path Die References
The Path Die (d4, d6, d8) no longer exists in 2026. Remove it from your character sheet. Where you previously rolled your Path Die for multi-target attacks or healing, you now roll 1d6 to determine how many targets you affect.
Step 6: Update Weapons & Armor
Weapons and Armor work identically between editions, but the 2026 Edition simplifies weapon range categories. Review your weapons against the updated table:
| Assigned Range | Examples |
|---|---|
| Close | Knives, Clubs, Staffs, Mauls, Swords, Improvised Weapons |
| Near | Short Bows, Shotguns, Pistols, Ray Guns, Grenades, Thrown Weapons |
| Far | Spears, Javelins, Long Bows, Rifles, Rocket Launchers |
Grenades and general Thrown Weapons have also been moved to Near. Adjust accordingly.
Step 6: Learn the New Defensive Options
v1 did not explicitly codify Dodge, Endure, and Counter as universal reactive options, but instead relegated them to Workshop content. In 2026, any attacked character (unless prevented by a Tribulation) must always be allowed to choose one:
- Dodge (Opposing Swiftness): on success, avoid all damage
- Endure (Opposing Endurance): on success, halve damage (rounded up)
- Counter (Opposing Might/Swiftness/Power): on success, redirect damage back; which can chain
GM Notes on NPCs
NPC stat blocks were adjusted upward in 2026 to account for the broader success range. If you have existing NPCs built under v1, update them to the new table:
| Danger Level | v1 Traits | 2026 Traits | v1 LP | 2026 LP |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Minor | All 3, one at 4 | All 4, one at 5 | 15 | 8 |
| Moderate | All 5, two at 6 | All 6, two at 7 | 30 | 20 |
| Serious | All 7, two at 8 | All 8, two at 9 | 60 | 40 |
| Deadly | All 9, three at 10 | All 9, three at 10 | 90 | 70 |