Entry Adin: Hegemony, a MMTRPG Experience

[Hobert Roward]

[Joshua BishopRoby]

[Hobert Roward]

[Rossum]

[Hobert Roward]

Sorry to ramble, just getting some of my thoughts in order. I've been writing up a storm (on page 13 or so now, and it looks like I'm not even 1/3 done!). Basically, I have time, sessions, etc worked out. Basically this game requires three groups of people in three physically different locations to play out three sessions each: And unlike Diplomacy (never played it, but read the rules online) the teams never meet face-to-face, rather communication is made through online channels in between sessions (just a play report of who talks to who).

Interestingly, there's not a lot of role-playing at all betweeen the teams, just Result Posting (how much the other teams spent Diplomacy, War, Espionage, Tech etc towards you). But within the teams, resolution is ALL role-playing. It feels a lot like Executive Decision, in that the players act out the roles of advisors, and the president picks one of the plans to deal with a crisis at the appointed time.

My only next problem is this: CARDS. LOTS OF CARDS. And I'm drawing a blank as to how to make cards (MS Word template?).

Basically, here's the elements that need to be put into cards:
1) Tech items that teams can spend research points to gain. (about 30?)
2) Starting faction gifts for your faction (I might bridge these and research points together). (about 10-20)
3) Starting Secret Goals for each of the Faction Officers (about 15)
4) Starting Secret Goals for the Faction Leader (just a few) (about 5)
5) CRISIS CARDS for the first session (there's only a few) (about 10-15)
6) CRISIS CARDS for all the other sessions (they're different than the first session cards, as the first session cards are generally weaker and not as dangerous). (about 20)

I *think* that's it, but I have a feeling I'm missing a card class, something like "other optional goals or secrets for the Faction Officers".

Anyway, that's 6 classes of cards, And a lot of cards.

Anyone know an easy way to make cards? I'd use the online MtG card generator, but it doesn't leave enough space for the text I need to put on them...

Oh, and here's a glimpse of how the sessions work:

Session One is setup, faction creation and details, then a mini-crisis which has to be averted, then a round of What To Do About The Other Factions.

Sesson Two and three each are in three parts: How to react against the other faction's moves towards you, then Crisis, then what to do against the other factions.

The last session is played only by the winning faction. That session is one BIG CRISIS (oh, forgot about those), and the session members are basically the same PLAYERS, but only the faction leader and the players whose characters achieved their goals the most are present: The two lowest players take the roles of the leaders of the other faction, and at the end of the last session, the winning faction leader decides the fate of the other factions.

The determining factor of faction vs faction is "Control". The faction gains Control points from other factions by effectively "attacking them" with a rock-scissors-paper method: Military, Foreign Relations, and Domestic Improvement. Other goals are Espionage, Research, and simply Saving Resources, but they don't "attack" the other factions like the first three.

During crises, and when dealing with other factions, the faction officers present differing solutions and recommendations. Through negotiation, discourse, comprimise, etc they put forth plans to the Faction Leader on What To Do: Namely, how many resource points and what kind to spend. The Faction Leader chooses the one that he finds best for the goals of the faction. Plus, the leader CANNOT make a plan of her own, she MUST choose one of the Officers' plans unchanged.

All in all, it's REALLY exciting. It's like Executive Decision, but it involves aliens and spaceshipt and doesn't rely on choose-your-own-adventure style "there are only 4 options, and these are their results" choices.

[Hobert Roward]

Oh, I think I may have a way around the cardmaking thing: Require every team to have a playing card deck, and have pulls from the deck make you consult a table, and the EVENT, TECH, etc is determined by that pull. THat might work, or at least I can offload MOST of the cards to that method.

I had some thoughts on using the Tarot deck instead (just the Major Arcana), but I figure that ALL groups have playing cards, and not all groups have Tarot cards.