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Things Speak • 2018 rpg
Josh Fox (Rabalias) • http://www.blackarmada.com
1-5 players. 2+ hours.
Follow a unique object as it's passed from person to person and discover what it sees on its journey.
When the rules say...
CHOOSE FROM TABLES: each secretly pick one item from one table, then all reveal. Roll d6 on any unselected table.
CONSIDER: discuss together then decide.
(1) Choose object attributes from these tables:
ROLE
Heirloom
Masterpiece
Treasure
Hallowed
Taboo
Political
TYPE
Weapon
Text
Art
Wearable
Alive
Tool
QUALITY
Modest
Elegant
Subtle
Dangerous
Tainted
Enchanting
Consider what the object is. Describe it on an index card.
(2) Take turns to ask someone a question about something that happened to, or around, the object.
After the question, choose scene attributes from these tables:
EMOTION
Love
Anger
Sadness
Joy
Hope
Worry
LOCATION
Busy
Natural
Lofty
Formal
Isolated
Cosy
PEOPLE
Authority
Rivalry
Play
Threat
Trust
Kindred
The answering player frames a scene to answer the question (location, time, cast, circumstances), assigns characters, and asks a question for the players to answer through the scene.
Scenes end when both questions are answered.
Summarise the scene on an index card. Keep them in chronological order.
When everyone has answered a question, consider where the object goes next.
Repeat (2).
Author Comments
This game was inspired by the Apocalypse World Move of the same name. I love the idea of hearing the words an object has heard spoken, feeling the emotions that have been felt near it.
The nature of the objects in this game is to be significant, but they can vary from grandiose objects that travel great distances to items that only matter to a few people. They’ll see interesting events, for sure.
The tables are a bit weird. I deliberately designed them to include broad yet specific terms, which are not mutually exclusive (though in some cases they may cause you to think for a while to come up with something). Because they’re selected secretly, you’ll all get a little bit of what you wanted, but the whole will be something you might not predict.
The timeline isn’t strictly necessary, but I think it will help preserve a sense of the object as having a history, which is what you’re really exploring here. It’s a bit like Microscope, a game I love.
