Considering Spiritual Games

This Division – Spiritual Games revolve around polar concepts – a decision between two notional ideals.  When a spiritual game is played the Players choose the spiritual ideal that each wants to exemplify the Thesis – the Referee chooses another- not necessarily opposite – but situationally relevant ideal – the Antithesis.  Then each player ascribes a value – between 2 & 19 to their Thesis.  Thereafter during the encounter, the players must roll under their number in order to succeed, spiritually using their Thesis.  Meanwhile rolls over that number indicate that the Referee’s Antithesis is the succeeding factor.  If the number is rolled on the nose then chaotic things occur & there is a mingling of the ideals leading to a Synthesis – which brings the encounter to its conclusion. 

While the options for spiritual ideals are innumerable – the suggested poles are based upon the alignment system present throughout the game.  Situations may arise in which the suggested ideals aren’t the right fit, though, so any alterations to these divisions should be expected. 

       AUDACITY Daring, verve, cleverness & boldness            8             

       CREATION Invention, artistry, whimsy & vision 2            

       DEVOTION      Intensity, certainty, focus & faith      7            

       EMPATHY Kindness, compassion & civility                    1            

       HOSTILITY      Contempt, nerve, wrath & brutality  5           

       WHIMSY  Dreams, hopes, fantasy & mysticism 4     

       MASTERY Skill, talent, innate & learned                        3            

       NOBILITY Sincerity, courage & propriety                       6           

       POSSESSIONS   Material, gain & acquisitions             0           

       REALITY  Pragmatism, sense & caution                         9           

These provide some default options for players & referees to use during spiritual encounters.  If you are playing in a game where players tally their deeds or associate one or more of these virtues for some purpose – such as In The Ruins – the referee may indicate that the player’s number for each of these is equal to the number they have achieved in that virtue. 

An example of a spiritual encounter: 

The valiant knight Farsipal seeks a divine vision through prayerful meditation upon the ideal of Purity.  The Referee deigns to propose Insolence as the opposing ideal.  Farsipal gives his number as 8.  As he encounters mythopoetic concepts within his meditation he rolls to interact with them.  At the outset he is tested by the vision of his own dying mother, afflicted by plague commanding him to ‘curse god and die’.   Farsipal rolls & gets a 4.  He renounces this vision & adheres to purity & lifts the disease from his mother, beatifying her in her final moments, giving peace.  The redemption of his mother on her deathbed changes Farsipal’s number – it becomes 6-8. 

Thereafter Farsipal crosses a river of broken glass in aid of this he encounters the steel boatman – an armored steer that navigates the flow.  Farsipal attempts to lure the boatman to his side of the river.  Rolling again he gets a 12.  He is overcome by insolence and defiantly crosses the river insensible to the billion cuts he endures along the way.  These cuts become infested with the dross of the river & Farsipal’s number changes – it becomes 6-10. 

At the final segment of his vision-journey Farsipal comes to the court of the King Unbidden who grips his shoulders & leers in his face – the vile adversary tries to tempt Farsipal with illicit pleasures.  Farsipal rolls to confront this adversary & gets an 8.  He now has Insolent-Purity.  This gives him the wherewithal to overcome the wicked king unbidden through overwhelming force of personal agency.  Farsipal leaves the meditation having gained a greater sense of self & of his internal power.  The encounter is ended. 

Had Farsipal rolled an 8 on his first test – he would have gained no Purity nor any Defiance – but would have overcome the encounter & gained the experience.  However, because he gained both Purity & Insolence he comes through the experience, not unchanged – but with both ideals more firmly established within his character. 

Had he failed to have any purity – never rolling below his number, he would emerge from the experience far more Impudent but no less pure.

Pattern for Spiritual Games  –

&       The Encounter is initiated & declared as a spiritual encounter.

&       Players each declare the ideal with which they will encounter the divine

&       The Referee declares the ideal that they must struggle with

&       The Referee narrates the scene & prompts players for their actions

&       The Players take turns rolling their dice to determine how they narrate their own actions. 

&       As the spread of numbers increases based upon going over or under the number the players achieve Synthesis – as they do so they drop out of the encounter. 

&       When all players have achieved Synthesis the encounter ends & the referee disburses the consequences. 

Adjudicating Spiritual Games – A Guide for the Referee –

As with other encounters a spiritual encounter has no truly fixed outcome & as with other encounters a clear objective is in place when it is declared.  For this reason you’ll want to place your spiritual encounters into your stories where they’ll have some relevance to the plot or the schemes of the players – vague goals aren’t a great fit for spiritual encounters – but questions meant to disassemble the vagueness within the story do make for good encounters.  Examples –

&       What do we do next? 

&       Who is the real enemy in this situation?

&       Why is this *specific thing* happening? 

If the players want to engage with the divine it should be for a specific goal. 

&       Help to expel a diabolical presence

&       Vanquish or drive out a ghost

&       Gain a vital insight into the mind of god

The Rewards for this type of encounter are thus defined by the objectives of the players – since they know what they’re seeking they determine what success in the encounter looks like.

These types of encounter shouldn’t be merely narrative advancement though.  There are consequences – both good & bad for the player when they engage in these sorts of games.  The consequences largely derive from the events of the game rather than the final outcome – since the game continues until Synthesis occurs, this sort of game will always end with players getting something.  But what they get is colored by the Synthesis of Thesis & Antithesis. 

If Players have it all their way – rolling under their number & sticking to their Thesis – they are rewarded by having that Thesis reinforced – grant a boon based upon the thesis that triggers when the ideal comes up in other encounters. 

If Players are unlucky & the Antithesis is dominant in the game – then this should affect them.  If they champion goodness against evil & evil holds sway – then they should be tainted, overwhelmed by darkness & thwarted.  Let them suffer disillusion. 

If the Synthesis is easily arrived at – the players are consequently comfortable with the Thesis & Antithesis – they will see these as complimentary rather than adversarial. 

In all these cases the players agency is a bit under stress – since you’re putting thoughts into their character’s heads – since this isn’t always agreeable to players it should be stressed at the outset of a spiritual game that the consequences are often a change in perspective & personality. 

Specific Rewards -

Here are a few specific gifts that may be granted to a character based upon their interaction with the game: 

&       A new prayer or religious spell

&       An enhanced ability in specific circumstances i.e.: a blessing

&       Important or valuable information

&       Liberation from a curse or condition

&       Status within an organization i.e.: an anointing

&       Pacification of an adversary

&       Warding or sanctification of an area

&       Desecration or decommissioning of an area

&       Charming an object or infusing a relic with holy power

&       Access to prior lives or incarnations

&       A boon or wish from an immortal being

&       The ability to access other dimensions i.e.: transcendence

&       The rescue of a soul i.e.: resurrection

Player Acquired Modifications to this Game -

&       Firmly Held – your belief in a specific ideal allows you to use it in any spiritual game.  You need no other devotion.  7

&       Unwavering – You declare a range of numbers rather than a single number when you begin.  You declare one ideal for which this holds true when gaining the ability.  6

&       Open-Minded – You are amenable to the persuasion of the antithesis & can add a number to your rolls allowing you to explore Synthesis more easily.  1

&       Deep-Thinker – You may gain more than one reward & achieve Synthesis more than once in such a game – allowing you to continue beyond the ordinary ending.  3

&       Unquestioning – You can deduct a number from your roll when you play this game, helping you to cleave more closely to your spiritual core.  2

&       Holy-Place – You can reduce the size of the die when playing a spiritual game in a sanctified location.  9

&       Diabolical Presence – The die size increases when the encounter occurs in a place of strong antithetical power, but you can ignore this.  8

&       Relic of Virtues – You may sacrifice a possession to allow a reroll of the dice.  0

&       Witch-Hunter – If you roll your Thesis number or lower you can manifest the Antithesis & fight them physically. 5

&       Deep Lore – You always gain added information or a prayer when you gain Synthesis.  4