Page Budget
Layer 2 of the zine design. This is the table of contents with rough page counts. Every section must earn its pages. If a section needs more explanation than its page count allows, the design is too complex.
Target: 20–30 pages. ~21 pages of content with up to 9 pages of buffer for expansion.
| Pages | Section | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Introduction | Experience sketch — what playing this game looks and feels like |
| 2 | Game loop visual | One-page diagram of the full session arc (Job → Explore → Cook → Present) |
| 3–4 | Session 0 | Restaurant creation, character creation, calling backstory. Optional pre-play. |
| 5 | Character creation | Flip a card → suit = class, rank = personality. Draw yourself. |
| 6–8 | Job creation | What it is + 4 tables (client, event, location, urgency) |
| 9–11 | Exploration | What it is + tables (card flip → prompt) |
| 12–14 | Cooking | What it is + tables (card flip → component constraint) |
| 15–16 | Presentation | What it is + reaction table (card flip → client reaction) |
| 17–20 | Misc tables | Items/loot, encounter builder, ingredient generator |
| 21–22 | Example playthrough | A full session shown in action |
| 23 | Credits | |
| 24–30 | Buffer | Expansion room for any section that needs more space |
Notes
- Order may shift — misc tables may move before presentation (TBD at Layer 3)
- Misc tables page count is loose — 3 tables across 4 pages, exact split TBD
- Buffer is intentional — do not fill it speculatively; let sections expand naturally
Layer Status
- ✅ Layer 1 — Experience Sketch (complete, see
introduction.md) - ✅ Layer 2 — Page Budget (this document)
- ✅ Layer 3 — One paragraph per section (complete, see
layer-3.md) - ⬜ Layer 4 — Write the zine