Fern Gully Blood Opera

[mcdaldno]

So, I've got lots of cool ideas for my Game Chef game, but there's a big gaping hole at the centre of my design: what do the characters do? what provokes action?

In answering those questions, I need to avoid the parlour narration/wind-up toy pitfall, as this game treads dangerously close to that territory already.

I'll outline what I know I want so far, and maybe you can help me fill gaps!

You play members of the Faerie Court. Your kingdom is threatened by the approach of human machines, with their sawblades and belched smog. It's like Fern Gully, only it'll go in a grim blood opera direction.

At the start of play, each player is dealt three cards: a Role, a Power, a Fate.

The Roles include: Faerie Princess, Young Warrior, Betrayer of the Court, Hilarious Bat, etc.
Each Role comes with a permission attached to it, something you can bring into the narrative that others can't: The Hilarious Bat can make jokes (the other players can't), the Betrayer of the Court can introduce secrets (the other players can't), etc.

Powers is, like, you're the physical embodiment of that thing. You draw energy from it, and can do things with it, Nobilis-style. Powers include: Storm; Tree Spirits; Human Industry; Darkest Midnight; Brightest Day, etc.

Fates are attached to characters, but they aren't necessarily the character's goals. Instead, they're a potential fate of the kingdom, that will (potentially) be brought about by this character. They include: You save the kingdom; You doom the kingdom; Everyone dies; An amusing sequence of events averts disaster; The worthy are whisked away to safety, etc.

So, you get one of each of those things randomly dealt to you, with the Fate kept secret. That's your character. You might be a Hilarious Bat, the power of Darkest Midnight, and entangled with the fate "The worthy are whisked away to safety." You might be a Betrayer of the Court, the power of Tree Spirits, and entangled with the fate "You save the kingdom." Etc.

The game ends when only one Fate remains. That is the Fate of the kingdom.

How scenes work: I don't know.
How conflicts start: I don't know.
How conflicts are mediated: I don't know.