Getting Started
What Are BARs
BAR stands for Basic Artifact Resource — the basic unit of signal in the game. A BAR is a seed packet: compact, portable, and carrying the potential for action. Every charge you capture, every story you record, every invitation you extend — these are BARs.
BARs are not notes. Notes sit in a drawer. BARs circulate — they can be equipped in your hand, played onto quests, passed to other players through stewardship, or returned to the compost when their energy is spent.
The BAR Lifecycle
Create
Capture a charge. Something is alive in you — name it, give it a type, and release it into the system. This is the Wake Up move made tangible.
Charge
A BAR gains charge when it resonates — when others interact with it, when you attach it to a quest, when it surfaces during the 321 process. Charged BARs carry more weight in the economy.
Steward
Stewardship means carrying a BAR with intention. You refine it, connect it to quests, or pass it to someone who can carry it further. Stewardship is not ownership — it is responsibility.
Compost
When a BAR has given what it has to give, you return it to the fire. Composting is not deletion — it is completion. Untransformed composted BARs expire after a grace window, releasing any attached vibeulons.
BAR Types
Vibe
A felt impression — something you noticed, an energy shift, a mood. Vibes are the lightest BARs. They cost almost nothing to create and they seed everything else.
"The room went quiet when she said that. Something shifted."
Story
A narrative fragment with enough shape to carry meaning. Stories have characters, tension, and resolution (even partial). They are heavier than vibes and more durable.
"I tried to fix the fence alone. My neighbor showed up with tools. We finished in an hour."
Insight
A realization that changes how you see something. Insights often arrive after processing emotional charge — they are the yield of the Clean Up move.
"I kept saying I wanted feedback but I was actually afraid of being seen."
Reflection
A deliberate look backward. Reflections review what happened, what it meant, and what you carry forward. They close loops.
"After three weeks in the campaign, the thing I actually learned was how to ask for help."
Invitation
A BAR that calls someone else in. Invitations are social artifacts — they extend the game to another player or community. Creating one is a Show Up move.
"Come to the Thursday session. Bring something you made that you are not sure about."
How to create a BAR
You create a BAR whenever something feels charged — a moment of friction, clarity, surprise, or resonance. The Wake Up move is the act of noticing that charge. Creating the BAR is how you give it form.
Choose a type that fits. If you are unsure, start with Vibe — it is the lowest commitment and you can always upgrade later. Then decide: is this for your notebook (private) or your spellbook (public)?