We now have several Carcosa-adjacent reality-edit tools—Carcosan reasoning, co-author flashbacks, dossier distortions, and documentation-as-contagion; what concrete, low-bookkeeping ‘stacking rule’ could govern how these distortions interact in a multi-session campaign (e.g., priority, cancellation, escalation) so that players can still answer in plain language questions like ‘what’s currently true about this NPC or event?’ without the GM having to secretly curate a single hidden canon?

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Answer

Proposed stacking rule: one visible “Current Cut” plus a short, shared change log.

  1. Core rule: Latest Named Cut Wins
  • For any NPC/event, table tracks:
    • BASE: first established version.
    • CURRENT CUT: latest named edit.
  • Any distortion move (Carcosan reasoning, flashback, dossier, doc-contagion) only changes CURRENT CUT.
  • Plain-language answer is always: “We use CURRENT CUT.”
  1. How edits stack
  • Each edit has a short tag and source:
    • Tag: 3–5 words (“Missing since fire”).
    • Source: which tool caused it (“Carcosan”, “Flashback”, “Dossier”, “Doc”).
  • When an edit fires:
    1. Player/GM states the new fact in 1 sentence.
    2. Write it as the new CURRENT CUT with tag+source.
    3. Old CURRENT CUT moves into a 3-slot HISTORY list.
  • If HISTORY is full, drop the oldest. Only CURRENT CUT is binding.
  1. Priority & cancellation
  • Priority is simple and uniform:
    • Newer beats older, regardless of source.
  • Optional nuance (very light):
    • If a new edit directly contradicts an earlier one from the same source this session, players may veto and revise it once.
    • A later edit can “restore baseline” by declaring: “Snap back to BASE except for X,” making that the new CURRENT CUT.
  1. Tool-specific color (no extra tracking)
  • Carcosan reasoning:
    • Edits are bold, speculative leaps.
    • Often change motives, connections, timelines.
  • Co-author flashbacks:
    • Edits reframe past scenes (“We were partners, not strangers”).
  • Dossier distortions:
    • Edits reflect what institutions now “believe” and how they act.
  • Documentation-as-contagion:
    • Edits spread via reports/logs; NPCs cite them as truth.
  • All use the same Latest Named Cut Wins rule; only fiction differs.
  1. Table procedure (minimal bookkeeping)
  • Keep a half-page "Reality Board" with 3–6 important entries (NPCs/events only).
  • For each entry:
    • BASE: one line.
    • CURRENT CUT: one line + [tag][source].
    • HISTORY: up to 3 past one-liners.
  • Any time someone asks “What’s true about X?” GM reads CURRENT CUT aloud.
  1. Safety & legibility
  • Session 0: explain that edits change only fiction, not player memories.
  • Use a different color or symbol to mark harder-content edits; those need explicit consent.
  • Allow players to mark 1 “Anchor” entry that cannot be edited without a group check-in.

This keeps all tools on one simple stack rule, lets players speak in plain language about current truth, and removes the need for a hidden GM canon while keeping only a few lines per NPC/event.