Tilts are a unified way of applying circumstances to both characters and scenes.
Tilts are mechanically similar to Conditions, but they affect characters and scenes in combat.
Out of combat, use Conditions instead.
Tilts provide a way of handling drugs, poisons, sickness, and environmental and weather effects, but only as they apply to combat. Out of combat, use the normal rules for these effects.
Tilts do not give characters Beats when they end, but the effects of a Tilt can very easily cause a Condition. For instance, a character in a fight gets a handful of road salt flung in his eyes and receives the Blinded Tilt. When combat ends, this shifts to the Blind Condition. Resolving this Condition will give the character a Beat. If the character enters combat again before the Condition is resolved, the Blinded Tilt applies again.
Tilts come in two forms: Personal and Environmental.
Personal Tilts only apply to one character and include ways in which that character can overcome the effect.
Environmental Tilts affect the whole scene, and offer ways for individual characters to mitigate their effects.