Finely Marbled • 2019 rpg

You are lab-grown meat companies in a reasonably advanced future, seeking to impress the finicky customer.

( Table Setting )

The person who last ate meat is the Arbiter; if none, then whoever last read a cut of writing. The game begins as the Arbiter sits at a dining surface. Other players scavenge the environment for pieces of writing as raw material, or construct their own.

( Creation )

The Arbiter hungers. Players construct steaks by rendering writing with scissors into word clusters representing muscle, and infuse fat by kerning the gaps between. Serve on a mobile platter at the table when ready, in an orderly queue.

( Dining )

The Arbiter reads each steak out loud in the orientation they choose, along the grain. Take time to chew both sinew and silence. Feel the contour of the steak and the shape of words as they form in the mouth. Describe its floral and vegetal tasting notes, its tone and marbling, the literature it evokes. Steaks that satisfy the Arbiter's craving are kept at the table (all players are encouraged to consume for market research). Others are recycled to the creator.

The game ends when the Arbiter is sated with a full table of worthy cuts.