De Profundis Correspondence Game

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Russell of Los Angeles
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De Profundis Correspondence Game

Postby Russell of Los Angeles » Tue Jun 23, 2009 9:39 pm

Summary of Thread
page : general content
1 : intro and beginning
1-3 : first story arc
3-5 : discussion of first arc and rules
5 : beginning of second arc
6 : failure of second arc, more discussion


Hey all,

I found this review of a sort-of rpg called De Profundis. Inspired by Lovecraft, players describe their characters actions, thoughts, and experiences through letters, so it's called a correspondence game.

I was thinking we could play something like it here, but instead of a 1920's setting, we could play it in some kind of a Cantr-esque science/fantasy setting.

Basically, you write the notes/letters/journal entries for your character. Since direct character interaction can make things complex, it may work best if characters are physically separated from each other.

I found some suggested themes from a Livejournal game of De Profundis:

Possible seed ideas for your character's story (derived from a list in the De Profundis RPG):

The mythos around us. Take a Lovecraftian concept, and delve into it. The character is digging into a particular mystery, and the story evolves around that.

A mysterious event. Something strange happens, and it is the beginning of an ongoing nightmare of horror for the character.

Conspiracy theory. The character is searching for evidence to prove something, and they are interfered with by the powers that be.

Adventure. A description of an adventure, usually one in the past. Mysterious events, strange encounters, danger, fabulous wealth denied, etc.

Letters from our travels. The character is on a long expedition (or otherwise away from home) and is writing letters back.

Family tale. Family tales, ghost stories, and the like. This could be the old grandfather relating his past experiences, for instance, or a child gradually learning about an old family curse.

Landscape. This is a tourism approach, describing the mysterious place in which one lives. It is less story than atmosphere.


What we would have to do before playing is create or choose a setting to play in. I'm partial to some sort of SF. Solaris by Stanislav Lem, for example, is a style that could work for this. The correspondence would be by electronic-mail. ;)

What do you all think?
Last edited by Russell of Los Angeles on Mon Jul 13, 2009 3:46 am, edited 2 times in total.
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Dudel
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Postby Dudel » Tue Jun 23, 2009 10:12 pm

Pardon me for being slow but what EXACTLY would be the intention?

People take turns writing fake letters/emails/etc to each other about a fictional event?
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CN
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Postby CN » Tue Jun 23, 2009 10:16 pm

I'm down for that *nods*
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joo
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Postby joo » Tue Jun 23, 2009 10:19 pm

This has interesting trolling potential. I might play ;]
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Russell of Los Angeles
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Postby Russell of Los Angeles » Tue Jun 23, 2009 11:06 pm

Yay, a couple people are interested.

Dudel wrote:Pardon me for being slow but what EXACTLY would be the intention?

The intention is amusement.
People take turns writing fake letters/emails/etc to each other about a fictional event?

Basically, yes, but it is not limited to a single event. All correspondence would be posted publicly, even if it is addressed to a single character.

There is no moderator.

It's probably not a game for Dudels.

For perspective, take a look at this other alternative rpg, Lexicon.
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Rebma
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Postby Rebma » Tue Jun 23, 2009 11:20 pm

Russell of Los Angeles wrote:It's probably not a game for Dudels.
What we have here folks is a stereotypical case of Dudelism(not to be confused with Dudeisms). This is also referred to as the 'anti-Dudels'. For example:

Russel of Los Angeles doesn't think Dudel can play this sort of game. He's got a bad case of the anti-Dudels, and there's no cure in site.

Anyways..I would watch this game, maybe join in later if I came to understand it well enough.
kronos wrote:like a nice trim is totally fine. short, neat. I don't want to be fighting through the forests of fangorn and expecting treebeard to come and show me the way in
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joo
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Postby joo » Tue Jun 23, 2009 11:26 pm

Oh, so it wouldn't be PMs... well that might put a dampener on my plans...
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Russell of Los Angeles
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Postby Russell of Los Angeles » Tue Jun 23, 2009 11:42 pm

joo wrote:Oh, so it wouldn't be PMs... well that might put a dampener on my plans...

Yeah, all IG content should probably be public, to encourage collaboration, though I suppose there's nothing stopping you from some secret OOC collaboration.

I think the guiding principle would be that whatever gets referenced IG by more than one character becomes cannon for the setting. Take this comment on the Lexicon game:

Despite the fact that your peers are self-important, narrow-minded dunderheads, they are honest scholars. No matter how strained their interpretations are, their facts are accurate as historical research can make them. So if you cite an entry, you have to treat its factual content as true! (Though you can argue vociferously with the interpretation and introduce new facts that shade the interpretation.)

Of course, your character need not be a self-important scholar, but they key difference between this and our game here is that your character need not be telling the truth. However, you also can't rely on a written falsehood remaining false. If a described event that you may have intended as a total fabrication gets taken up and referenced by another character, then it becomes the de facto truth, with ample room for interpretation.

re: Dudelism
I'm ashamed. I did think twice about removing that comment. :p
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Dudel
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Postby Dudel » Wed Jun 24, 2009 6:07 pm

Well I'll be a monkey's uncle tied to a pepper tree, this sounds rather amusing indeed.

I'd like AT LEAST two in game (in character) "posts" before I could fully form the flow of what I may or may not do. This is because I am a responder more then a anything but I do like where this has the possibility of going.

As for the "Dudelism"... shit happens.
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Russell of Los Angeles
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Postby Russell of Los Angeles » Wed Jun 24, 2009 6:48 pm

Wow, great!

I'm working on an opening post for an SF setting.
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Genevieve
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Postby Genevieve » Wed Jun 24, 2009 7:06 pm

I like this idea, especially if it were in the Cantr world -- though of course we wouldn't be using our Cantr characters -- and could not reference things happening in Cantr either of course....however if it were in say a different city "undiscovered island" or something in Cantr and perhaps go from there with the same basic level of technology/clothing/etc. Might be an interesting thing. I don't know. Even if not cantr, I'd be interested in possibly trying it out.
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*Wiro
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Postby *Wiro » Wed Jun 24, 2009 7:14 pm

I'll join after watching for a bit I think.
Read about my characters by following this link.
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Russell of Los Angeles
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Postby Russell of Los Angeles » Thu Jun 25, 2009 8:44 am

I cooked up a little example of how a correspondence game might proceed. Since I've never played one, it's an experiment as well as a demo. A couple things that occur to me:

1) Build connections between characters, and play off of the plots presented. Otherwise, each player may as well just write their own story. That's fine too, of course, if that's what you want to do.

2) Be open-minded and flexible in how you expect the game to proceed.

Here's two notes between characters who are colonists on a newly terraformed planet:


Dear Dr. Ahkbar,
I found some strange crystals growing in the ventilation ducts of the botanical dome. When I scrape them away, they grow back. I have sent a sample over to your lab. Let me know what you think of them. Also, I took some corn from the seed bank. I think this is the year you will finally have that cornbread you've been asking for.
Your Pal,
Wallace

Wallace,
I looked at the sample you sent me. I am not sure what they are, but they are not what I would call crystals. They "escaped" storage, and I had to incinerate them along with half my lab. Take extreme caution in your handling of them. The maintenance of the botanical dome by you and your family is still a critical source of food, as the arable soil in our region is not expected meet our needs here for a couple more years. By the way, my sleep has not improved, and I am finding it hard to concentrate through the day. Do you have anything stronger than valerian root?
Dr. Ahkbar
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Dudel
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Postby Dudel » Thu Jun 25, 2009 5:34 pm

OH OH OH and THEN...

Urgent Message To Wallace

Do not put discovered "crystals" near artificial light. They grow exponentially and eventually become aware of location. The lab you sent them too was destroyed further as not all the "crystals" were destroyed. Quarantine all areas contaminated with said "crystal growth" and turn off all lights until notice is given. This may, and will, kill off many of the crops but it is a necessary risk you must take. We have code named this entity "Subject X".

Secretary of Space Defense


That how it works... or would I (the player) have a constant type of character? O.o
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Russell of Los Angeles
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Postby Russell of Los Angeles » Thu Jun 25, 2009 6:16 pm

Each player would start with one character that they write for, but could have a couple more after that. I think there'd have to be a limit to the total number, though, like 3 or 4?

Dear Diary,
I played some music for the crystals, and told them not to grow in the vent ducts anymore, but that if they wanted to they could grow a little bit in the savanna area. And it worked! Yay, peace.
Wallace

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