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subplotkudzu) wrote2009-11-08 01:07 pm
Games Prospectus for the 2010 Season
Game Prospectus 2010
Next year I’m doing an open prospectus of 10 campaign ideas for 13+ people. Given the changes in venue and other life events I’m hoping to get two groups of 4-5 players. My goal is a pair of monthly 9 session campaigns over the course of 2010. I am asking that you only respond to the prospectus if you are willing to commit to that timetable. If you think your schedule is too erratic to make it, or the drive might be too far, please let me know that.
The potential player group is Rachel Rogers, Kristen Keegan, Stephen & Asha Shipman, Karen Bruce, David Bicking, Heather Tebbs, Jason Dressel, Rebecca Stevenson, Dave Twiddy, Tom Ladegard, Jim Cambias and Diane Kelly, with their daughter Emily welcome to participate if she has interest a campaign with her parents. I will try to accommodate married couples child care issues while putting people in games.
You have 20 points to split between the following 10 campaigns. If you give something a 0 it means that you would rather not play next year than play in this campaign. Scoring of 1+ plus means you are willing to ‘buy into’ the campaign concept; more points indicating greater interest. Each campaign has some color text, followed by a description of how I expect the campaign to run in terms of structure, feel and amount of initiative I expect the players to show in shaping the direction of the campaign.
01) Beyond Her Majesty’s Secret Service
As the Cold War rages on, the British Secret Service, known as M.I.6, fields a small cadre of highly skilled agents to defend the interests of the Empire and occasionally the safety of the world. In addition to the ever present Soviet threat they face criminal cartels, secret societies and the occasional megalomaniac with delusions of grandeur. The agent's weapons? Unbreakable wills, stunning charm, the genius of Q brand and license to kill.
This is intended to be a straight up James Bond campaign. I will be using several adventures that are tweaked versions of the movies as well as ideas from other sources. I want the game to cover several decades worth of activity (so that someone isn’t trying to take over the world every 2-3 years), so there will be time gaps between each “movie”. I expect each movie to take 2-3 sessions to complete.
To keep with the proper Bond movie idiom (and I am much more influenced by the movies than the books) the PCs will get an assignment, visit Q branch for equipment, do preliminary reconnaissance, and then be drawn into the thick of things. While Bond generally moves from there to angering the suspect over gambling, seducing the suspect’s paramour, avoiding at least one killing attempt, breaking into the suspect’s base, getting captured to have the villain explain his plan, escaping and ultimately victory (and, to be fair, the James Bond 007 RPG game mechanics are weighted to this plan), PC agents will be able to develop their own idiom… as long as it involves fight scenes and chase scenes.
02) An Invitation, Should You Choose To Accept It
Once a season the Baron Sarkozy of Paris
This is a Castle Falkenstein game with a Mission Impossible theme: For those not familiar with CFalk, it takes place in a world where all of the characters of late 19th century fiction overlap with the people of our own history, as well as being populated by faerie, dragons and sorcerers’ cabals. For those not familiar with Mission Impossible, these are a series of short “capers” where ideally the target never knows that he was played, and even if he does he has no idea who did it. I expect each such caper to take two sessions. (In the classic MI structure Mr. Phleps has already done all of the leg work and investigation prior to assembling plan, but I want to give you time to research and concoct your own cunning plan.)
To keep with the proper MI feel any actual gunplay (or combat where the odds are not stacked heavily in the players favor) indicates that something has gone seriously awry. To keep with the proper CFalk feel the characters should act as proper Victorian era individuals, with the emphasis on nobility, honor and civility that characterize the literature of the period.
03) The Zorcerer’s Apprentices
The land of Zo is ruled over by the beneficent but mysterious Zorcerer, who is never seen to leave the castle of his emerald fortress. This year he has selected a group of citizens from across the four realms to make a grad tour of Zo in his name and report back to him on their findings. These citizens so selected were apparently at random, with each laboring under a curse or burden that would apparently make the assigned task more difficult. But the Zorcerer works in mysterious ways, and one can only suspect that there is more here than meets the eye.
This is a fairy tale game using the Zorcerer of Zo setting and mechanics. The tone is upbeat, and nay darkness will be leavened either with humor or with the ultimate victory of all that is moral and just. Play will be episodic, with each session being the apprentices' entry into a new community facing a problem that they will resolve, and, we should aim for the resolution of all of the apprentices personal problems by campaign's end.
The ZoZ rules are very narrative and relatively easy (even if they might a little difficult to grasp by those used to a more realistic simulation). Characters can be anything in the Fairy Tale style – lonely princesses, neglected stepchildren with animal friends, talking animals (anthropomorphic or not), clockwork men, noble brigands, plucky tailors, lucky seventh sons, and so on. The only campaign rule is the inclusion of a curse or other background detail that must be overcome.
04) The Astounding Cases of Judge Li
That most worthy individual Judge Le has recently taken his seat in a distant province of China
This is a series of murder mysteries set in a decidedly non-Western venue, using the rules of the Chinese Mystery genre (which predates its European counterpart). To capture some aspects of this genre I am hoping to do a series of braided mysteries, where new mysteries will arise before old ones are resolved, which will add some complexity to sorting through the clues. Another feature of genre is a “Colombo” style structure where the reader/audience knows who the killer is and the enjoyment is in watching the detective’s battle of wits with the criminal. Again, I might try this, which should cut down on some aspects of clue confusion.
My current thought got system on this is GURPS 4E, to keep a high degree of ‘realism’ while at the same time allowing for characters to have things that are allowed in the Chinese mystery structure, like spirit communication, dream interpretation etc. One player will be the judge while the others are various lieutenants.
05) The Fourth Voyage of Captan Fasaad
Gather around this most humble storyteller to hear the ongoing adventures of the merchant/explorer Captain Fassad and the diverse crew of the Daud during the reign of Haroun Al-Rashid. Explore distant lands, get drawn into mysterious adventures, overcome fell sorcery, face Ray Harryhausen style monsters and occasionally even make a profit. Captain Fasaad has travelled across the Arabian seas, into deepest Africa and, to the Indian subcontinent and even the lands past that. Who knows where else the Daud might visit?
This is a continuation of two previous Captain Fasaad games, requiring only that Karen Bruce be present to play the title character (if anyone from the previous games is also in it they can carry old PCs along). This is a mostly light-hearted Fantasy game in the Arabian Nights style, with nested stories within stories. The moral rules of the Captan Fassad stories will continue – vows must be upheld, hospitality is required and mercy works.
This is in D&D 3E, with some modifications taken from the Conan d20 game to better emulate the light armor of the setting. Characters will begin play at about 7th level, and likely progress to 9th by the end of play – for those who don’t do D&D speak, they will spend their time as experienced adventurers rather than as novices or world-shakers.
06)Sudilitas – the Last City:
In the distant future a combination of radiation, environmental changes, and genetic manipulation has led to a time of punctured equilibrium gone mad: mutated humans and animals exist in dizzying diversity, with biological modifications and even psionic powers that might last but a generation. Human civilization has collapsed, recovered and collapsed again, littering the landscape with relics of technology from swords to molecular rearrangers, and other devices inexplicable or indescribable. The imperial instincts of Napoleon the Bear, who once brought peace via force of arms to an area that would takes weeks to ride across, ended with his recent death. Now his Ranks of the Fit are falling back, consolidating their holdings and leaving their more distant outposts to their own affairs. One of these is Sudilitas, a community that had become a center of industry and technology in the rugged, almost barbaric North. Can Sudilitas survive, even thrive without imperial backing, or will civilization once again fall on the great northern plains?
This is a Gamma World game where I’m trying to merge the settings more ‘wahoo’ aspects with a degree of social realism: yes, the players are mutated people, animals and plants, but many of them are unique, meaning that the only legacy they can leave behind are their ideas, works and culture. The tone of the campaign will depend on the character ideas – the characters can be part of the chaotic web of cruptical alliances that scramble for power, a technology gathering/trade expedition trying to secure Sudilitas’ diplomatic protections or a revision of Arthurian myth with the Ranks of the Fit as the Romans and the League of Genetic Purity as the Saxons (never mind any number of mutated non-sentient animals as monsters), or something else entirely
While I'm using the Gamma World setting, I am developing a new rule set, borrowing elements from all editions of Gamma World, Twilight 2000, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and Other Strangeness, the New Sun supplement for GURPS and Reign. It will be pretty simple, with the dice rolls determining not just if you succeeded in an action, but how and how much, combined with some Schtick elements to cover mutations.
07) Ghostbusters - Hartford of Darkness
“The franchise rights alone will make you rich beyond your wildest dreams.” The number of Chargeable Haunting Incidents in Connecticut is rising. Now is the time for an intrepid group of scientists, engineers, salesmen and just plain folks to buy into Ghost Busters International and take the Nutmeg State by storm! It won’t be easy, what with prying reporters, wary politicos and competition from the Warren Exorcist Group. Oh, and ghosts, whose frequency rates are disturbingly high, and rising. Could some unspeakable evil be menacing the Insurance City? It's unspeakable, so we won't say….
This is designed to feel like a Ghostbusters television show, where each session will be one case. The PCs are the owners, investors and technical staff of the GBI franchise.The underlying theme of the campaign is "Small Business Is Hell" (just like the theme of Buffy was "High School is Hell" - Buffy is a strong inspiration here for seasonal plotting), so the problems of each week will mirror, in a humorous way, the problems of keeping a small business running. Combat will be proton pack battles against ghosts and monsters, which much room for humorous collateral damage, but there will be equal parts research and gadgeteering to overcome problems and blarney to confuse competitors and keep clients.
The system is the Ghostbusters RPG, which is rules light. Inspiration is Ghostbusters (1, not 2; 2 never happened), the Real Ghostbusters cartoon and some of the funny episodes of X-Files. This is the third time I've put this on the prospectus, it should be clear by now that I'm not giving up on it!
08) At Play in the Fields of the Lord
Magic is the ability to rewrite the world to your will. Unfortunately, on the grand scheme you have to compete with the will of everyone else, and everyone else has been convinced that there is no wild magic left in the world. The Technocracy holds sway, and whatever good they did for humanity is now outweighed by the oppressive rigidity they now embrace. By their calculations, in a decade their control becomes absolute and the world is reduced to pure soulless clockwork precision. Can you representatives of scattered old and new magical traditions forge a new paradigm for humanity before it’s too late?
This is a Mage: The Ascension game where I'm presenting the default conflict brought front and center. We're dispensing with all the time of your PCs being lowly apprentices, and all the time of being on the run from the Technocracy, and opening things with the decision to band together and strike back. The method of striking back is up to you, but if this is selected I will be working up some detailed information on each magical tradition, what their operating rules are, things their elders think might work, and just for balance, what the world would look like if this tradition were in the Technocracy's shoes right now.
The base game engine for this is Storyteller (familiar to anyone who has played Vampire: the Masquerade and various other systems), where I'll be using a lot of default successes and minimal rolling. The characters should be flexible, powerful and all committed to working together (albeit with a little friction: possibly we could have one character who is on the knife's edge of either redemption or betrayal, but not one who will stymie the groups actions through obstructionism because that gets boring real quick). The plan should be audacious - there is no room for incrementalism! - and I'll pace the story to see it completed by year's end.
09) Mech and Matrimony
It is a truth universally acknowledged that a single man in possession of a good Mecha must be in want of a wife. Welcome to the world of Chancery, a colony world of the Earth Parliament. With the crash of hyperspace, Chancery developed into a cluster of powerful nation states that maintained their mecha (i.e. giant robots) and colonies under their gentle dominion. The greatest of the nation states is Albion, whose island home shields it from its continental rivals. Troynavant, most commonly known as "the Town", is Albion's political, industrial and financial center, which makes it the center of the world. There young women of eligible age strive to find husbands with suitable fortunes (and Mecha) to marry, while honing their skills in honor duels with other families and the occasional small colonial war.
This game's goal is getting married. Heroines hope for love, but must consider their status and limited options, or risk spinsterhood, penury or positions as a governess. The trick is finding a good husband and getting access to his family's giant robot (clearing the way for your younger sister or brother's wife to claim your family's). Mech & Matrimony has three themes: first is Obligation. Mech pilots hold the honor of their family line and are bound by a web of social restrictions, even in combat: if you reduce a sneering provocateur to smoking patch on the ground then you cost your family its mech, and therefore everything. Second is Sacrifice: pilots are expected to sacrifice things, perhaps even true love, for their family's fortune and honor. Finally, Suitors have Secrets. Our Heroines don't have past scandals (to be properly Austinian their disadvantage is that they are poor, and must avoid scandal). Few of their suitors, however, will be all that they appear to be. Discerning those with pride in the best sense from those who are the worst of libertines is the game's mystery aspect.
I am building a unique set of rules for this campaign, in some ways similar to those I built for Hufflepuff & Ravenclaw, with the added aspect of Scandal Points and the ability to sacrifice character aspects to avoid truly negative repercussions. There will be no rules for non-Mech combat, as that is something proper women just will not do. There will be rules for cutting remarks, gossip and other social combat. And, of course, for giant robot battles (which are intended on a certain level to give the players a stress outlet from all of the chafing social restrictions under which their characters suffer - though even Mech combat has firm social rules).
10) The Avignon Cache
In 1930 the eccentric millionaire film producer sent an expedition into the Amazon for unique footage required for an upcoming movie. The veracity of the recovered films is contested to this day.
That's all you get. OK, You also get that I'll be using the Basic Role-Playing system (which is the basis for Call of Cthulhu, though don't read too much into that), and that the PC group should consist of cameramen, technical experts, actors, scientists who are tagging along to explore the Amazon, rugged trail guides and perhaps the eccentric producer himself, should anyone care to play him (if not, he will not be present). The game will have horror elements, but also hopefully some sense of wonder. You will have significant ability to shape events within the context of a deep jungle expedition - i.e., no turning around and running home after session 2. The build up for the campaign will be a little slow, with the weird-o-meter clicking up some every session.
Game Prospectus 2010
Next year I’m doing an open prospectus of 10 campaign ideas for 13+ people. Given the changes in venue and other life events I’m hoping to get two groups of 4-5 players. My goal is a pair of monthly 9 session campaigns over the course of 2010. I am asking that you only respond to the prospectus if you are willing to commit to that timetable. If you think your schedule is too erratic to make it, or the drive might be too far, please let me know that.
The potential player group is Rachel Rogers, Kristen Keegan, Stephen & Asha Shipman, Karen Bruce, David Bicking, Heather Tebbs, Jason Dressel, Rebecca Stevenson, Dave Twiddy, Tom Ladegard, Jim Cambias and Diane Kelly, with their daughter Emily welcome to participate if she has interest a campaign with her parents. I will try to accommodate married couples child care issues while putting people in games.
You have 20 points to split between the following 10 campaigns. If you give something a 0 it means that you would rather not play next year than play in this campaign. Scoring of 1+ plus means you are willing to ‘buy into’ the campaign concept; more points indicating greater interest. Each campaign has some color text, followed by a description of how I expect the campaign to run in terms of structure, feel and amount of initiative I expect the players to show in shaping the direction of the campaign.
01) Beyond Her Majesty’s Secret Service
As the Cold War rages on, the British Secret Service, known as M.I.6, fields a small cadre of highly skilled agents to defend the interests of the Empire and occasionally the safety of the world. In addition to the ever present Soviet threat they face criminal cartels, secret societies and the occasional megalomaniac with delusions of grandeur. The agent's weapons? Unbreakable wills, stunning charm, the genius of Q brand and license to kill.
This is intended to be a straight up James Bond campaign. I will be using several adventures that are tweaked versions of the movies as well as ideas from other sources. I want the game to cover several decades worth of activity (so that someone isn’t trying to take over the world every 2-3 years), so there will be time gaps between each “movie”. I expect each movie to take 2-3 sessions to complete.
To keep with the proper Bond movie idiom (and I am much more influenced by the movies than the books) the PCs will get an assignment, visit Q branch for equipment, do preliminary reconnaissance, and then be drawn into the thick of things. While Bond generally moves from there to angering the suspect over gambling, seducing the suspect’s paramour, avoiding at least one killing attempt, breaking into the suspect’s base, getting captured to have the villain explain his plan, escaping and ultimately victory (and, to be fair, the James Bond 007 RPG game mechanics are weighted to this plan), PC agents will be able to develop their own idiom… as long as it involves fight scenes and chase scenes.
02) An Invitation, Should You Choose To Accept It
Once a season the Baron Sarkozy of
This is a Castle Falkenstein game with a Mission Impossible theme: For those not familiar with CFalk, it takes place in a world where all of the characters of late 19th century fiction overlap with the people of our own history, as well as being populated by faerie, dragons and sorcerers’ cabals. For those not familiar with Mission Impossible, these are a series of short “capers” where ideally the target never knows that he was played, and even if he does he has no idea who did it. I expect each such caper to take two sessions. (In the classic MI structure Mr. Phleps has already done all of the leg work and investigation prior to assembling plan, but I want to give you time to research and concoct your own cunning plan.)
To keep with the proper MI feel any actual gunplay (or combat where the odds are not stacked heavily in the players favor) indicates that something has gone seriously awry. To keep with the proper CFalk feel the characters should act as proper Victorian era individuals, with the emphasis on nobility, honor and civility that characterize the literature of the period.
03) The Zorcerer’s Apprentices
The land of Zo is ruled over by the beneficent but mysterious Zorcerer, who is never seen to leave the castle of his emerald fortress. This year he has selected a group of citizens from across the four realms to make a grad tour of Zo in his name and report back to him on their findings. These citizens so selected were apparently at random, with each laboring under a curse or burden that would apparently make the assigned task more difficult. But the Zorcerer works in mysterious ways, and one can only suspect that there is more here than meets the eye.
This is a fairy tale game using the Zorcerer of Zo setting and mechanics. The tone is upbeat, and nay darkness will be leavened either with humor or with the ultimate victory of all that is moral and just. Play will be episodic, with each session being the apprentices' entry into a new community facing a problem that they will resolve, and, we should aim for the resolution of all of the apprentices personal problems by campaign's end.
The ZoZ rules are very narrative and relatively easy (even if they might a little difficult to grasp by those used to a more realistic simulation). Characters can be anything in the Fairy Tale style – lonely princesses, neglected stepchildren with animal friends, talking animals (anthropomorphic or not), clockwork men, noble brigands, plucky tailors, lucky seventh sons, and so on. The only campaign rule is the inclusion of a curse or other background detail that must be overcome.
04) The Astounding Cases of Judge Li
That most worthy individual Judge Le has recently taken his seat in a distant
This is a series of murder mysteries set in a decidedly non-Western venue, using the rules of the Chinese Mystery genre (which predates its European counterpart). To capture some aspects of this genre I am hoping to do a series of braided mysteries, where new mysteries will arise before old ones are resolved, which will add some complexity to sorting through the clues. Another feature of genre is a “Colombo” style structure where the reader/audience knows who the killer is and the enjoyment is in watching the detective’s battle of wits with the criminal. Again, I might try this, which should cut down on some aspects of clue confusion.
My current thought got system on this is GURPS 4E, to keep a high degree of ‘realism’ while at the same time allowing for characters to have things that are allowed in the Chinese mystery structure, like spirit communication, dream interpretation etc. One player will be the judge while the others are various lieutenants.
05) The Fourth Voyage of Captan Fasaad
Gather around this most humble storyteller to hear the ongoing adventures of the merchant/explorer Captain Fassad and the diverse crew of the Daud during the reign of Haroun Al-Rashid. Explore distant lands, get drawn into mysterious adventures, overcome fell sorcery, face Ray Harryhausen style monsters and occasionally even make a profit. Captain Fasaad has travelled across the Arabian seas, into deepest
This is a continuation of two previous Captain Fasaad games, requiring only that Karen Bruce be present to play the title character (if anyone from the previous games is also in it they can carry old PCs along). This is a mostly light-hearted Fantasy game in the Arabian Nights style, with nested stories within stories. The moral rules of the Captan Fassad stories will continue – vows must be upheld, hospitality is required and mercy works.
This is in D&D 3E, with some modifications taken from the Conan d20 game to better emulate the light armor of the setting. Characters will begin play at about 7th level, and likely progress to 9th by the end of play – for those who don’t do D&D speak, they will spend their time as experienced adventurers rather than as novices or world-shakers.
06)Sudilitas – the Last City:
In the distant future a combination of radiation, environmental changes, and genetic manipulation has led to a time of punctured equilibrium gone mad: mutated humans and animals exist in dizzying diversity, with biological modifications and even psionic powers that might last but a generation. Human civilization has collapsed, recovered and collapsed again, littering the landscape with relics of technology from swords to molecular rearrangers, and other devices inexplicable or indescribable. The imperial instincts of Napoleon the Bear, who once brought peace via force of arms to an area that would takes weeks to ride across, ended with his recent death. Now his Ranks of the Fit are falling back, consolidating their holdings and leaving their more distant outposts to their own affairs. One of these is Sudilitas, a community that had become a center of industry and technology in the rugged, almost barbaric North. Can Sudilitas survive, even thrive without imperial backing, or will civilization once again fall on the great northern plains?
This is a Gamma World game where I’m trying to merge the settings more ‘wahoo’ aspects with a degree of social realism: yes, the players are mutated people, animals and plants, but many of them are unique, meaning that the only legacy they can leave behind are their ideas, works and culture. The tone of the campaign will depend on the character ideas – the characters can be part of the chaotic web of cruptical alliances that scramble for power, a technology gathering/trade expedition trying to secure Sudilitas’ diplomatic protections or a revision of Arthurian myth with the Ranks of the Fit as the Romans and the League of Genetic Purity as the Saxons (never mind any number of mutated non-sentient animals as monsters), or something else entirely
While I'm using the Gamma World setting, I am developing a new rule set, borrowing elements from all editions of Gamma World, Twilight 2000, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and Other Strangeness, the New Sun supplement for GURPS and Reign. It will be pretty simple, with the dice rolls determining not just if you succeeded in an action, but how and how much, combined with some Schtick elements to cover mutations.
07) Ghostbusters - Hartford of Darkness
“The franchise rights alone will make you rich beyond your wildest dreams.” The number of Chargeable Haunting Incidents in Connecticut is rising. Now is the time for an intrepid group of scientists, engineers, salesmen and just plain folks to buy into Ghost Busters International and take the Nutmeg State by storm! It won’t be easy, what with prying reporters, wary politicos and competition from the Warren Exorcist Group. Oh, and ghosts, whose frequency rates are disturbingly high, and rising. Could some unspeakable evil be menacing the Insurance City? It's unspeakable, so we won't say….
This is designed to feel like a Ghostbusters television show, where each session will be one case. The PCs are the owners, investors and technical staff of the GBI franchise.The underlying theme of the campaign is "Small Business Is Hell" (just like the theme of Buffy was "High School is Hell" - Buffy is a strong inspiration here for seasonal plotting), so the problems of each week will mirror, in a humorous way, the problems of keeping a small business running. Combat will be proton pack battles against ghosts and monsters, which much room for humorous collateral damage, but there will be equal parts research and gadgeteering to overcome problems and blarney to confuse competitors and keep clients.
The system is the Ghostbusters RPG, which is rules light. Inspiration is Ghostbusters (1, not 2; 2 never happened), the Real Ghostbusters cartoon and some of the funny episodes of X-Files. This is the third time I've put this on the prospectus, it should be clear by now that I'm not giving up on it!
08) At Play in the Fields of the Lord
Magic is the ability to rewrite the world to your will. Unfortunately, on the grand scheme you have to compete with the will of everyone else, and everyone else has been convinced that there is no wild magic left in the world. The Technocracy holds sway, and whatever good they did for humanity is now outweighed by the oppressive rigidity they now embrace. By their calculations, in a decade their control becomes absolute and the world is reduced to pure soulless clockwork precision. Can you representatives of scattered old and new magical traditions forge a new paradigm for humanity before it’s too late?
This is a Mage: The Ascension game where I'm presenting the default conflict brought front and center. We're dispensing with all the time of your PCs being lowly apprentices, and all the time of being on the run from the Technocracy, and opening things with the decision to band together and strike back. The method of striking back is up to you, but if this is selected I will be working up some detailed information on each magical tradition, what their operating rules are, things their elders think might work, and just for balance, what the world would look like if this tradition were in the Technocracy's shoes right now.
The base game engine for this is Storyteller (familiar to anyone who has played Vampire: the Masquerade and various other systems), where I'll be using a lot of default successes and minimal rolling. The characters should be flexible, powerful and all committed to working together (albeit with a little friction: possibly we could have one character who is on the knife's edge of either redemption or betrayal, but not one who will stymie the groups actions through obstructionism because that gets boring real quick). The plan should be audacious - there is no room for incrementalism! - and I'll pace the story to see it completed by year's end.
09) Mech and Matrimony
It is a truth universally acknowledged that a single man in possession of a good Mecha must be in want of a wife. Welcome to the world of Chancery, a colony world of the Earth Parliament. With the crash of hyperspace, Chancery developed into a cluster of powerful nation states that maintained their mecha (i.e. giant robots) and colonies under their gentle dominion. The greatest of the nation states is Albion, whose island home shields it from its continental rivals. Troynavant, most commonly known as "the Town", is Albion's political, industrial and financial center, which makes it the center of the world. There young women of eligible age strive to find husbands with suitable fortunes (and Mecha) to marry, while honing their skills in honor duels with other families and the occasional small colonial war.
This game's goal is getting married. Heroines hope for love, but must consider their status and limited options, or risk spinsterhood, penury or positions as a governess. The trick is finding a good husband and getting access to his family's giant robot (clearing the way for your younger sister or brother's wife to claim your family's). Mech & Matrimony has three themes: first is Obligation. Mech pilots hold the honor of their family line and are bound by a web of social restrictions, even in combat: if you reduce a sneering provocateur to smoking patch on the ground then you cost your family its mech, and therefore everything. Second is Sacrifice: pilots are expected to sacrifice things, perhaps even true love, for their family's fortune and honor. Finally, Suitors have Secrets. Our Heroines don't have past scandals (to be properly Austinian their disadvantage is that they are poor, and must avoid scandal). Few of their suitors, however, will be all that they appear to be. Discerning those with pride in the best sense from those who are the worst of libertines is the game's mystery aspect.
I am building a unique set of rules for this campaign, in some ways similar to those I built for Hufflepuff & Ravenclaw, with the added aspect of Scandal Points and the ability to sacrifice character aspects to avoid truly negative repercussions. There will be no rules for non-Mech combat, as that is something proper women just will not do. There will be rules for cutting remarks, gossip and other social combat. And, of course, for giant robot battles (which are intended on a certain level to give the players a stress outlet from all of the chafing social restrictions under which their characters suffer - though even Mech combat has firm social rules).
10) The Avignon Cache
In 1930 the eccentric millionaire film producer sent an expedition into the Amazon for unique footage required for an upcoming movie. The veracity of the recovered films is contested to this day.
That's all you get. OK, You also get that I'll be using the Basic Role-Playing system (which is the basis for Call of Cthulhu, though don't read too much into that), and that the PC group should consist of cameramen, technical experts, actors, scientists who are tagging along to explore the Amazon, rugged trail guides and perhaps the eccentric producer himself, should anyone care to play him (if not, he will not be present). The game will have horror elements, but also hopefully some sense of wonder. You will have significant ability to shape events within the context of a deep jungle expedition - i.e., no turning around and running home after session 2. The build up for the campaign will be a little slow, with the weird-o-meter clicking up some every session.
no subject
no subject
Out of curiosity, oh wombat, what about Sudalitas didn't appeal (or at least muted that appeal)?
no subject