Entry?: Merryweather [it never was]

[Kevin Allen]

These are my basic ideas, to be posted to and responded to by both myself and others. I'll use this as my workspace.

4x2 time
Each session is a season in a year (each also corrosponds to a suit of cards wich are used as an aleatoric for the games mechanics)

The game is all about how the course of a year affects a setting. The rule book will be 14 pages long; two pages of explanation about how the game works, and the rest of the book will be a wall calander. This calander describes the setting and is integral to the functionality of the game.

i'm probably going to use the first ingredient pack, but that remains to be seen.

Merryweather is the name of the suburban town the game takes place in

Characters are highschool students living in the town.

The game should have a mysterious and surreal atmosphere (imagine David Lynch wrote directed a humourless episode of "the adventures of pete and pete")

more to come.

[Kevin Allen]

In the town of Merryweather there is a lake, and in this lake there is an island, and on this island are the ruins of a great mansion, long abandoned. They call the place “The Ancient.” It is a right of passage among the local youth to dare each other to row out to The Ancient and spend a night inside the decaying clapboard palace.
Some say that no one has ever explored the whole of the house. Some say that the owner was a scientist, and his deceased “experiments” haunt the house. Some say that the bodies of missing children are hidden in the walls. And some say that at night there are lights shining through the attic windows, strange brightly colored lights. But most reasonable people discount these rumors as myth and don’t concern themselves with the goings on of dilapidated houses on remote little islands.
Some claim to have spent the night bravely; but more describe stories of ghosts and murderers that scared them away from the task. They call the place haunted, creepy, evil. But anyone brave enough to row to the island always reports the feeling of returning to a world very different then the one they left. “The Ancient changes you…” they say with a far off look in their eyes, “or maybe its everything else that changes.”

Opening fiction/setup:
It was a clear star blazed night when your friends helped you into the row boat. A soft wind joined you on the journey across the lake and for a moment in it’s gentle embrace you forgot about the town getting smaller behind you, about highschool, about your family, about money troubles, and the friendships too soft and thin to be pulled across black water to a simple island. As you all climbed the decaying wooden steps, as you each passed the threshold through the door fallen off its hinges, as you explored the ancient ancestor: friends whispering and laughing by flashlight; the scent of the girls’ soft hair mingles with stale parlor atmosphere; old floorboards creak under new shoes; and as a cool aluminum can kisses you full on the mouth and fills you with cheap amber beer understanding sinks in. You become keenly aware that these are the joyful memories of youth that you will carry in your coat pockets for the rest of you days.
And then you all climbed the stairs to the attic; and then you saw the rusty heart of The Ancient. The room contained only dust and a terrible machine long still long silent. There were gauges all over the apparatus, one caught your eye it was a counter, stuck at 365. Was this thing meant to mark a year? Your not sure who, maybe one of the girls, but someone leaned against a lever and the great steel trap began grinding, ovens lit aglow, a steady stream of sand began to fall from a vat high in the rafters into the burning forge, and that gage, that baleful counter reset itself to 1. The Ancient was awake. The Ancient had started it’s work.
You all ran from the house, and rowed for the shore and the town and the warm houses you expected on the other side. You didn’t know what you all had done, but you were sure you weren’t supposed to. Your friends hurried talk, full of fear and worry, the light din of oars cutting the lake water, and when you reached the shore you could see a thin line of smoke drifting from The Ancient’s chimney. A single question began nagging. Dread descends. What have you done?

What it’s about:
Merryweather [it never was] is a game about a year in a world not your own. It is a game about consequences. It is a game about being roused from the waking life to find yourself in the dream.

How the game is played:
Merryweather [it never was] picks up just as the player’s characters return from exploring an abandoned mansion called “The Ancient.” While exploring they inadvertently activated a strange machine, its purpouse is unknown at the start of the game, but will be developed through game play. The characters are a group of average high school students who find themselves exploring a totally surreal version of their hometown rife with weird characters and events.
The players alter this world by manipulating a deck of standard playing cards and a calendar. The whole “campaign” lasts over the course of an in-game year played over the course of 4 sessions, each one representing both a season of the year and suit of cards (summer = hearts, fall = diamonds, winter = spades, spring = clubs).

It is unknown exactly how the game is played, I’ve got a lot of schetchy ideas right now, and the calendar design/integration is going to be totally sweet (52 weeks, 52 cards in a deck, this mechanic was just waiting to be exploited). More to come later.

I'm not sure if its going to have a GM yet either.

Also, this is a very working title. It may end up just being “Merryweather,” “or just It never was.” Suggestions?

Lastly, I need to put more ingredients in this soup. Emotions will make the cut, but the third has yet to reveal itself to me.

[Lebrante]

[Joshua BishopRoby]

As far as titles go, I don't really like either Merryweather or It Never Was on their own. I do think they go well together, as they are so totally incongruous, and that incongruity is very intriguing. My totally ignorable advice is to use them as title and subtitle, like so:




To me, at least, that immediately gives me this creepy feeling, where I'm thinking, "what's this pleasant-sounding thing and... oh, what's it mean that it never was?"

Also, I'd ditch the machine, or make it very very implicit rather than plain and straightforward. It's much more interesting if something in the house or even the Ancient did this to the kids, rather than "there's a gizmo in the house that did it." Also, replays could make it different things in or about the house that affect the transformation.

I'm really looking forward to this one -- this could provide some awesome and very different roleplaying experiences!

[jwalton]

Dude, Are You Afraid of the Dark? the RPG. This sounds fantastic.

I like the calander approach. Definitely a cool way to handle the time requirement.

I really like "Merryweather," which reminds me of Meriwether Lewis of "Lewis & Clark," and just sounds like an old, out-of-date English name that nobody really has anymore. Perfect feel.

[chiefprimate]

Kevin
I love the use of four seasons as the time element. To me the the one element that is the most intreaging is the wierd machine. What dose it do? Who made it? Its aways good to have a variable that big. I wonder what we have here horror, sifi or who knows. The game apeals to me and feals like a game you have to negotiate not beat with a D20. Im glad your not giving all the secrets away. I may have told too much about my entry thus weakening the zing in future presentations.

By and Good Luck MS

[Chanticrow]

From the feeling your description invokes I'm reminded of Stephen King's IT where the children in the story are faced with some thing that alters their perception of how the world works, and at a later point in life have to revisit and deal with that thing. I get the feeling of the characters being almost isolated from the world because no one else can see or understand what they are dealing with, and while life seems to go on as normal in some respects they are certainly not dealing with anything ordinary.

I'm looking forward to seeing what you do with the calendar mechanic. Innovative potential, certainly.

[Kevin Allen]

interesting, the IT thing. thats not exactly what i'm going for with this. the rest of the world isn't ignorant, it is literally changed into a dream version of itself. Yeah yeah its the suburbs and at first glance nothing seems wrong but the strangeness develops and the whole town is involved. The kids have to live with this for a year.

So yeah, a bit like IT, but not totally. Thanks for the comment, glad you look forward to it.

How about this name: "Merryweather's Year."

has a bit more flow, keeps the town name (i love that name, i've been kicking it around for years), and (hopefully) retains some of the mystery.

[Joshua BishopRoby]

One Year in Merryweather?

(I still not [it never was].)

[Kevin Allen]

Merryweather

1.) What is your game about?**
The game is about discovery, both self and external. The game is an allegory about finding one’s direction in life. It is a game about living and dealing with mysterious events in a surreal suburban dreamscape. It is nominally about learning the secret truth in the setting.

2.) What do the characters do?**
They explore a dreamy version of their hometown, all the while encountering people that either assist them in finding their way or seeking to undermine them. The end goal is to return to the The Ancient with the know how to reverse their predicament.

3.) What do the players (including the GM if there is one) do?**
There is no GM. The players buy the right to narrate scenes in a very strict framework buy spending resources (in this case playing cards). They interact with a calendar that tells them what kind of story they can create. Players navigate this calendar creating the setting on the fly, inserting NPCs, props, and events.

4.) How does your setting (or lack thereof) reinforce what your game is about?
The setting is rife with mystery. Players explore the townscape to learn what they must do. The town is symbolic of a confused and chaotic life. The town itself is the main antagonist of the game.

5.) How does the Character Creation of your game reinforce what your game is about?
Character creation is very simple (for now at least). Players pick a suit they are going to play (exactly 4 players play this game), and a face card from that suit. These determine your emotional state and the season you are best suited for. These are touchstones for
the theme of discovery and navigation .

6.) What types of behaviors/styles of play does your game reward (and punish if necessary)?
Rewards/punishments have yet to be determined.

7.) How are behaviors and styles of play rewarded or punished in your game?
Rewards/punishments have yet to be determined.

8.) How are the responsibilities of narration and credibility divided in your game?
Everyone is expected to narrate. They purchase various amounts of time they are able to narrate within the framing of a 30min scene. Narration is ultimately credible, but non-narrating players may seek challenges within the scene and if successful get to narrate the results.

9.) What does your game do to command the players' attention, engagement, and participation? (i.e. What does the game do to make them care?)
The setting is completely engaging to the playgroup because the playgroup itself tailors the setting to their desires. Nothing happens in this game without at least one of the players deciding they want it to occur.

10.) What are the resolution mechanics of your game like?
Players spend the same resources they have for purchasing narration rights to call on challenges against NPCs and in game conflicts. Players do not have skills or attributes, they simply narrate what they want to do and if they are willing to spend more than their opponent they narrate results.

I do not feel very strongly about this. I want interface with the calendar at this stage. I will work more on this tomorrow, hopefully returning with a much more interesting solution.

11.) How do the resolution mechanics reinforce what your game is about?
Right now they barely do. They are a simple betting/spending economy. It doesn’t get me off.

12.) Do characters in your game advance? If so, how?
Characters are better suited to some seasons (read: one of 4 specific sessions) than others. They may shift in their emotions but within the constraints originally created during character creation. There is no XP system or new skill learning.

13.) How does the character advancement (or lack thereof) reinforce what your game is about?
The shifts in the character’s emotions and mood that occur during game-play are really the crux of the game. It is through role-playing created by these changes that the theme of the game is expressed.

14.) What sort of product or effect do you want your game to produce in or for the players?
I want the players to feel they are in a truly mysterious version of suburban America. I want them to feel suspicion, wonder, curiosity, and a bit of dread. I also want to get some keen character roleplaying as players filter their actions through my emotion mechanic.

15.) What areas of your game receive extra attention and color? Why?
I’ve focused on the setting above all else. It is through interesting setting that my theme will be delivered and the excitement of the game will be generated. Scene framing and set up will also be given some color, because it is such a “die by the rules” narration mechanic I feel that interesting meta devices will increase interest in the game and make it feel less railroady.

16.) Which part of your game are you most excited about or interested in? Why?
The calendar interface; I don’t know any game that does something like it. I think it will truly make the game stand out.

17.) Where does your game take the players that other games can’t, don’t, or won’t?
Surreal dreamscape settings are nothing new. I can’t think of any game that plays in the suburbs and takes itself seriously (WoD and Unknown Armies often end up there, but it isn’t exclusively suburban). Also as stated above the calendar interface it totally unique.

18.) What are your publishing goals for your game?
Game Chef competition, Cheap-o PDF download, Basement Xerox print (that doubles as a wall calendar!).

19.) Who is your target audience?
Game chef judges. Philosophy majors. Frustrated novelists. Fans of David Lynch, The Adventures of Pete & Pete, Eerie Indiana. People who explore abandoned buildings hoping to find exotic magic devices.

MY QUESTIONS:

Does character generation need more to it?
I haven't included Comitee or Glass and I need to; how/where?
I don't know how to reward my players. How?
I don't know how to punish my players. How?
My Conflict resolution sucks, i've got cards and a calendar, where next?