Eight years ago I had an idea about doing an ensemble drama set in Ancient Greece. I did research and began conceptualising characters, conflicts and themes. I don’t recall if I got so far to send in a pitch for Fastaval but I did bounce around ideas with a few people. However I got stuck and put it in the drawer.
Now finally it is happening.
I have a number of ideas in my backlog. Some very raw, many developed to a certain stage. Either timing doesn’t work out or I get stuck on a detail. Maybe I wrote too much text that sent me out in a wrong direction. Maybe the pieces didn’t come together.
This time I had freed up my calendar after getting Gotlandia to the external playtest stage. I was hungry to get into a new project. Then it happened. It finally clicked. I found the key to unlock my game about Ancient Greece. The key was steampunk.
I also visited Athens and played Gargantuan by Troels Ken Petersen. And listened to Steam Powered Stories by The Cog is Dead. Inspiration comes from many places.
I’m in a productive writing stage right now. Half way through a first draft. Making good progress and having a good flow.
I have not yet signed it up for any conventions. Or set up a playtest. That will come. Maybe LinCon 2025. Maybe Viking Con next year. With a little luck, Slay Beyond Slay early December. It very appropriate for the theme. I have a good feeling that it will hold up.
Enough about process, let me share the teaser. Get in touch if you want to give feedback on an early draft. Or join a playtest.
The City
No man on earth is truly free, All are slaves of money or necessity. Public opinion or fear of prosecution forces each one, against his conscience, to conform.
Euripides
A father raises his newborn high with hope. His face turns dark in disappointment. Another girl. A gift for the mountain the midwife asks.
A young woman scans for white sails of a homebound ship. Her hand on her belly can no longer hide what is on her mind. When will you come she whispers to no one.
The face of a young man pressed hard into the arena sand. Tears of pain and shame sprout from his eyes. Yield he cries.
A mother sees the face of her dead son in a dream. Tomorrow the council will decide. Old men sending young men to die. I deserve to be heard she mutters.
Four people about to make decisions that will define who they are for the rest of their lives.
The City is a steampunk drama about the compromises we make to play the role given to us. Can we be truly free and pursue our own happiness if it shatters everything we have built around us?
4 players. One game master. 4 hours.