Thank you for the questions! You are doing well in your understanding of the directions. I would make just a few tweaks to your play loop:
- If you get a complication on step 1 (Travel), roll on the Complications table right away to find out what it is so that you can have it in mind as you figure out what else is in the area (steps 2-4).
- On step 4, you can use the tables to add any NPCs you want. You are not limited to just NPCs mentioned in the Events & Secrets table.
- Add a step immediately after step 4 that says to resolve the Travel complication if there is one.
- Add a step after resolving the Travel complication that says to collect the document you were looking for if you added a face card to the map.
- Step 5 is the correct place for the Research action, but I would note that it is optional.
And the game is over when all 4 of your character’s Fatigue boxes are marked. That said, your familiar can take a point of Fatigue on your behalf, so you technically have 5 Fatigue to work with.
If you have any additional questions, please let me know. I’ve included game loop diagrams in a couple of my other games; I should really add one to this game as well!