A Weekend in the Country
By Sandra d'Argeavel and David James
“A little sincerity is a dangerous thing my dear, and a great deal of it is absolutely fatal.”
To those of “the ton”, the upper social classes of London in 1895, the weekend at Pemberton Manor always signalled the end of the summer social season. To those lucky enough to be invited it meant that they had been accepted as one of the ton for the following Winter season. It was a graduation of sorts, celebrating which debutante's from the Spring Gala earlier in the year had proved themselves worthy and also who of the established had been able to avoid reputation-destroying scandals over the notoriously wild warmer months.
Each year it was to Pemberton Manor the ton looked for acceptance, and entertainment. It was on this weekend that marriage engagements were announced, carefully worded business deals finalised, and the baton of social leadership over the winter engagements held in the great city of London was passed to whomsoever had been able to prove themselves worthy to the Earl.
“Always forgive your enemies; nothing annoys them so much.”
By Sandra and David, "A Weekend in the Country", is a freeform for the top 22 of the ton, the social class that runs everything important to the London of Victorian England. A last chance to secure deals, avoid scandal, enhance one's standing and destroy one's social competitors before the cloak of winter is wrapped about the land.
Characters will be available for those who sign-up early to assist in costuming.
Please click here for a brief summary of the characters.
| What's the game again? | A 22 player game of polite society, scandal and intrigue in Victorian England |
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| Seriousness? | Light-hearted, with plenty of blushing and waving of fans |
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| Genre/Setting | Intrigue with a good dose of romance and scandal |
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| System | Systemless |
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| Movie Rating | MA |
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Bloodrunner
by Xole Karman and Andrew Smith
Twenty minutes into the future. The Enoch Towers building stands condemned in the rain. City Complex demolition machines stand by, waiting for the cops to end the gang war in the surrounding streets. There are rumours of an abandoned biochemical facility in there too: pity the planning records were erased in the Grid crash of '28.
The leaky old apartment complex is the final refuge of the Cainite vampires, who have learned, to their horror, their mastery of the night has passed. What good is supernatural strength and speed when even street lowlives sport combat cyberware? What good is supernatural stealth when inhuman AIs watch cameras that watch everybody? What good is supernatural mind control when all deals are done on the Grid and not face to face? And what do you feed on, when your prey's blood is poisoned with chemical pollution? That's why you need your Bloodrunner, your provedore of untainted vitae.
The eldest call it the End Times and plot to finish their undying rivalries before they are swept away. The ancillae look for the conspiracies that have targeted their final haven. And their neonate childer, the streetwise cyber-vampires, hunt for their next fix of sweet, sweet blood.
A freeform for 20 Masquerade vampires in a cyberpunk world. Costuming appreciated.
Character summaries are here.
| What’s the game again? | Gothic-punk vampires vs Cyberpunk freeform |
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| Seriousness | Middling–serious |
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| Genre/Setting | Vampire: the Masquerade + Cyberpunk (generic) |
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| System | Minds Eye Theatre (only if we have to) |
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| Movie rating | MA (supernatural, violence, politics, 90s techno-tribal fashion) |
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Gasteranthus Atratus Nobilis
by Stephen Justice and Kane Edwards
“Is it possible to mourn the loss of a loved one?
a friend?
a comrade?
an enemy?
We learn from loss, loss is a reminder;
of our limitations,
of our responsibilities,
of our potential.
We understood loss to be a given.
Something we could not escape, nor something we should escape.
That was until they came.
That was before they took even Loss from us.
So I ask you now; is it possible to mourn, not the loss of someone—
but rather to mourn the hole that we can only assume their passing has left behind?”
Eulogy by Astor for an Unknown Imperator
The Excrucians have struck a deadly blow to the forces of creation. An Imperator was killed, and its very existence removed from creation. No memory remains of the Imperator, no one remembers who he or she was, and no on remembers the allegiances that were held. Everything that the Imperator was is no more.
Except not everything is lost. Rare though it is, something does live on. The Nobilis of the Imperator have survived. Three powerful beings, representations of fundamental parts of creation have survived the passing of their god. Now they are orphans, their identities and memories shredded by the same loss that took their Imperator.
Lord Entropy has declared this will not stand. That the three are too vulnerable, and must be adopted by the very next day to keep them safe. So while the Imperators attend the funeral of one of their peers, they send their own Nobilis to the Orphan’s Ball, hosted by Scorn’s Noble Joktan on behalf of Lord Entropy. There the Nobilis are to mingle, to get to know the Orphans, and before the evening is out to convince at least one Orphan to leave with them.
Each Imperator wants the power that would come with adopting one of these Orphans, if not because they want to expand their own power and responsibility, but because they can’t let another faction gain a hold of such power. But one goal is never enough for the Nobilis. It is rare that so many of them gather in one place, and it is rare they have such an opportunity to plot, to play, and to betray one another.
It will be a night to remember.
…If it is not forgotten…
Gasteranthus Atratus Nobilis is a PVP Political LARP for 18 players.
| What’s the game again? | Nobilis PVP Political Freeform |
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| Seriousness | Serious |
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| Genre/Setting | Epic Urban Fantasy |
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| System | Simplified Nobilis system |
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| Movie rating | M |
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Star Trek: Crisis and Opportunity
by David Hollingworth and James Riley
It is 2373.
The Klingon Empire continues to prosecute war with the Cardassian Union, and the ceasefire with the Federation is in tatters. The Romulan Empire watches, waiting. Meanwhile, the Federation prepares for an unprecedented war, its analysts foreseeing conflict on a scale never before seen.
But in a sector of space known only as The Triangle, something miraculous has happened. A seemingly stable wormhole has appeared, in a system aligned to no major power. This single-star nation, poised in open space between the three great Beta Quadrant powers, now invites delegations to treat for access to the new wormhole.
Where it leads, no one yet knows, but the opportunities for trade, for defense, even for military advantage, are apparent to all. Klingon, Romulan, and Federation forces now gather, kept in check by diplomats, ambassadors, senators; traders and mercenaries gather, sniffing profit on the galactic winds; and in this meeting of Great Powers, who knows who, or what, lurks in the shadows…
Character summaries are here.
| What’s the game again? | A 40 player game of diplomacy, maneuver, and exploration, with maybe a little bit of giant space combat. |
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| Seriousness | Typical Star Trek level of seriousness. We all laugh at Riker sitting oddly in chairs, but we still take Star Trek very seriously. |
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| Genre/Setting | Military science fiction, with a dose of politics. |
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| System | Very light house system. |
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| Movie rating | M |
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The Day the Earth Stood Up
by Robbie Matthews, Barbara Kearins, Rod Kearins and Stuart Barrow
Galactic life follows a pattern. Race uplifts race which uplifts another race which, in the fullness of time, uplifts yet another race. All races know where they fit.
But now, the strange, weird, unpredictable and, admittedly, hot Terrans are petitioning for entry into the Grand Pangalactic Imperium of United Federated Species.
There is one question in the mind of every gentlesophont:
Who is responsible?
Other questions, important and otherwise, are:
- Do the Easter Island statues really resemble Uncle Bert?
- How much technological sophistication do you need to draw giant birds on the ground? Really?
- Who was the creative genius behind all those Scream movies?
- Can the Terrans even be trusted with their own planet?
- What have they done with Bigfoot?
- Why are they so adorably attractive?
- What's the deal with those pyramids, man?
A freeform for 20 sophonts, i.e. intelligent beings. More or less.
| What’s the game again? | David Brin’s Uplift series by way of Ancient Aliens |
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| Seriousness | On the funny side. |
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| Genre/setting | Sci-fi, coloured by some seriously dodgy history |
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| System | No system, exactly. Probably a lot of shouting. And an agenda, obviously. |
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| Rating | PG (some adolescent humour, probably) |
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