Field note · Responsible Play

Using the Clearing

How checkpoints, round caps, pauses and calm mode work together, and how to set them before you start.

Decide before you play

Limits work best when you set them at the start, while the decision is easy. Open the Clearing, pick a checkpoint and a round cap, and then play. Changing them later is allowed, but the version of you that set them calmly is usually right.

Checkpoints

A checkpoint stops the games at a set interval, every 15, 30, 45 or 60 minutes, and shows your session: minutes, rounds, dew staked, dew back and the net change. You choose Stop for now or Carry on. Stop for now closes the games for fifteen minutes and starts a fresh session afterwards.

Round caps

A cap counts rounds in a session: 25, 50 or 100. Five rounds before the cap you get a warning. At the cap the games close for a firm thirty minutes, and the next session starts from zero.

Pauses

Pause is in the header of every page. Fifteen minutes is a soft pause you can lift. One hour, a day, a week or thirty days are firm: they can be made longer but not shorter, even by you, on this browser. While a pause runs, reading, the Library and the Clearing stay open.

Calm mode

Calm mode removes movement and highlights from the games and puts a two-second gap between rounds. Many people find it makes sessions shorter without any other change.

Beyond this site

Our tools only work on this browser. If you are worried about gambling anywhere else, GAMSTOP blocks UK gambling sites and apps, Gamban blocks them on your devices, and most UK banks can block gambling payments. GamCare's National Gambling Helpline is free on 0808 8020 133, day and night.

Written by the Thornhallow team · last checked 11 November 2026