ABOVE US, THE CITY, SPIRE, STRETCHES INTO THE SKY. BENEATH US, THE CITY, HEART, STRETCHES INTO THE EARTH.
DOWN THROUGH DIRT AND ROCK AND WATER, DOWN INTO THE DEPTHS OF DARKNESS, DOWN INTO MADNESS AND SICKNESS, DOWN INTO SOMETHING ANCIENT AND OTHER…
THE HEART KNOWS WHAT YOU WANT, AND BY THE GODDESS, IT’LL GIVE IT TO YOU OR KILL YOU TRYING.
This is a game of HEART by Grant Howitt & Christopher Taylor. It takes the narrative-gaming Resistance system of their previous game Spire and rather than chart tales of revolution in the mile-high edifice where drow are subjugated by High Elves, it applies it to the infinite depths beneath it all and the delvers who lose (and find) themselves down there. In short: ever wanted to play a narrative RPG take on heart-of-darkness-as-dungeon-crawl where being a person full of bees is just one of the core classes? Then do we have the game for you .
This is the first three hour game . Attendance at all sessions is advantageous, but not required. You must RSVP to each session you wish to attend.
A space at the table is saved for Jon Grim. We will be playtesting his in development Heart app, which will be hosted on rollwithme.xyz. It seems really nifty.
Session 1: 2021-05-15T14:00:00Z → 2021-05-15T17:00:00Z https://gauntlet-hangouts.firebaseapp.com/event-detail/-MYCCcz-eLRfSmeHlRii
Session 2: 2021-05-22T14:00:00Z → [date=2021-05-15 time=18:00:00 timezone=“Europe/London” : https://gauntlet-hangouts.firebaseapp.com/event-detail/-MYCCsPjS0l1OAVmzeg3
Session 3: 2021-05-29T14:00:00Z → [date=2021-05-15 time=18:00:00 timezone=“Europe/London”: https://gauntlet-hangouts.firebaseapp.com/event-detail/-MYCD-ofMwouY0rOnXDl
Venue : Sessions will be recorded via Streamyard and posted on Youtube if everyone agrees its worthwhile.
Contact : Players will be contacted about a week before the game, where advance material will be mailed over. If no contact is heard from a player before 24 hours in the game it will be assumed they can’t make it, and their place will be offered up.
Concept : The manual says… . “This is a game set in the mad, shifting chasms and ruins known as the Heart. Groups of desperate people journey into it looking for something important: secrets, truth, absolution or sanctuary. They band together for protection and companionship as they move through dangerous, lawless lands in search of ‘havens’ – places of shelter, however impermanent, that offer respite from the Heart. You are those people: delvers.”
Aim: The manual says… “You will trek deep into the twisting nightmare world of the Heart. It will form itself around you, and you will scar patterns into its flesh as it changes you. If you come back, you will not be the same.”
Tone: The manual says… “Heart is a game of wonder, horror, tragedy and humanity in the face of inhumanity. Each player character is fundamentally doomed, as most of the high-level abilities kill the user when triggered. This isn’t a game about long-term exploration and growth. It’s about flawed, obsessive people making bad decisions and investigating a horrific undercity because they’re convinced that the answers they need might lie inside it.”
Subject Matter: The manual says… “Heart is a horror game,and as such,there are some unpleasant things in the text. (SThese include but are not limited to: violence,drug use,addiction,ghosts,unwanted bodily transformation,and monsters that used to be people.We can assure you that there is no rape or sexual assault in this game.”
The X-card will be in use, as will the Gauntlet Code of Conduct . We’ll run with Open Door, and Lines & Veils will be defined before the game.