As the pounding of the drums quickened in tempo, the lines of frenzied dancers parted like a curtain, revealing the sacrificial victim struggling in his bonds on the rough-hewn stone altar.
The onlookers, crouched in the brush at the very edge of the firelight, reacted to the sight.
"Remarkable. Just look at all that color," said Professor Simworthy. "Of the ceremonial costumes, I mean."
"It's terrible!" said Nan, tears of outrage ruining the mascara she had applied so carefully just a few hours ago. "What would drive a normally peace-loving tribe to do such a thing?"
"They believe the sacrifice will placate the gods and bring fortune to the new king's reign," observed Professor Simworthy, as he noted the details of the scene: the carvings of the masks, the leering faces painted on the drums, the sharpness of the high priest's obsidian knife. "Not unlike the bottles of wine we break on the bow of a newly launched ship," he mused.
"Those aren't wine stains on that altar, Professor," growled Gary. "But I think we just might have the firepower to pull off a rescue."
"Oh, sure, go ahead and gun them all down," said Nan scornfully. "But tell me, if you do that, what makes you any more civilized than they are?"
The professor was silent for a moment, as if concentrating on mental calculations. "We must be realistic about the situation," he said at last. "The odds would be very much against us, if it came down to a fight."
"No problem, I like a challenge," growled Gary, reaching for his shotgun. "And don't worry, I have a plan. Get ready to back me up with those flares and firecrackers. You'll know what to do."
"Wait, Gary! Is it worth risking your life to save the man who tried to betray us?" cried Nan. But Gary was already striding boldly toward the feathered chieftain, bringing the drumbeats and the dancing to a suprised halt.
- Walt
So, what's that supposed to be? An example of congruent play? I suppose that this occured naturally as the result of the play of some system?
;-)
Nope, it's totally invented fiction. Mostly because I like the name "Professor Simworthy."
It's an exaggeration of what I believe is a pretty common technique in fiction. I could easily have written a similar scene using Kirk, McCoy, and Spock respectively. Might mean absolutely nothing as far as RPGs are concerned. Having characters with G-like, N-like, and S-like outlooks doesn't necessarily correspond to characters being played with G, N, or S agendas. The kind of play most likely to produce the above fiction as outcome would probably be Sim pastiche, with some kind of reward mechanism encouraging the players to play the characters' personalities that way -- bonus points or spotlight time every time Nan's character raises an emotional or moral question, for instance.
(Uh oh, Mike. Is Ron gonna come along and call us nerds again this year?)
Anyway, it's really fun to write. Anyone care to continue the story?
- Walt
Very amusing. With a little work, this could be a great introduction to GNS.
It also rings painfully true; my character was usually the one raising those moral/emotional questions while the other guys were sticking the fuses in the Molotov cocktails.
Danny
Confidence is high on Ron calling us nerds at some point.
Mike
Huh? G, N, S? Am I missing something.
*prepares self for bombardment*
Quote from: orbsmattHuh? G, N, S? Am I missing something.
*prepares self for bombardment*
What is that, some sort of troll? :-)
Mike
No, it's a slurring of "Guiness." But I don't see how the story relates to Guiness at all. Maybe that can be included in the next scene.