The Game of Mallor needs players!

From: "Brandon Van Every" <vanevery@blarg.net>

Date: Thu, 25 Jun 1998 00:00:00 +0000

Frequently Asked Questions about the Game of Mallor
Copyright 1998 by Brandon Van Every
E-mail: vanevery@blarg.net

1.  THE LACK OF RULES AND REGULATIONS
1.1  What kind of game is this?
1.2  Ok it's a role playing game, what's the genre?
1.3  What are the rules?
1.4  How do I lose the game?
1.5 Can I make any character I want?
1.6  Can I be any race I want?
1.7  What is the nature of magic?
1.8  What is the level of technology?
1.9  What is the nature of Godhood?
1.10  How frequently will e-mails be sent?
1.11  How long should e-mails be?

2. THE BACKSTORY
2.1  Who is Mallor?
2.2  Who is Bagua?
2.3  Who is Dimwit the Demented?
2.4  Who are the other players in the game?
2.5  What is "The Mind?"
2.6  What is the geography of The Land?

1. THE LACK OF RULES AND REGULATIONS

1.1  What kind of game is this?

The Game of Mallor is a free-form play-by-e-mail (PBEM) role playing game.
There is no rulebook, there is only the Game Master, Brandon Van Every, and
the various people playing the game.  The game starts when you e-mail me a
complete character description.  Then I write you into the story and present
you with a situation.  You are free to respond to the situation in any
manner that you like.  You can even skip ahead and claim that certain events
have occurred, i.e. you can partially author what is going to happen.  Then
you e-mail your reactions to me, I decide what actually happened, and I
e-mail you another situation.  We keep doing this ad infinitum.  The goal of
the game is mainly to tell a good story.  There may be puzzles in the game
and there will certainly be adversaries, but the primary goal is to live
within the story as you would want to.  You might say we are engaged in
collaborate myth-making.

1.2  Ok it's a role playing game, what's the genre?

It's a fantasy world, swords and sorcery with Zorkian overtones.  You could
play sci-fi characters, superheros, or characters from other historical
periods, but you will probably get the most out of the game if you stick to
fantasy.  If you land upon the planet as a space alien from another galaxy,
you'll be perceived and described as a "monster" even if you really are an
alien being, so the net effect of what you'll experience in the game is
mostly the same.  The game really isn't about crossovers between fantasy and
other genres, although the themes of magic, non-magic, science, technology,
Gods, and the nature of the soul are all explored in the game.

1.3  What are the rules?

There really aren't any.  You're free to do whatever you like in the world,
as are others, including how they interact with your character.  All I try
to do as Game Master is keep the world consistent, make all events "fair" in
some sense, and tell a story in the most powerful and compelling manner that
I can.  There's no such thing as a "too powerful" character or a "too weak"
character, there are no statistics, no dice rolls.  There isn't a "right"
kind of player for the game, I will take any player, literally any player.
Part of the reason I'm willing to do is, is I'm researching the
possibilities of storytelling for a commercial venture.  In a commercial
venture you can't pick your audience or assume a certain kind of player, so
I take all comers.

1.4  How do I lose the game?

You don't.  No matter what happens to you in this game, you never "lose."  I
might present you with situations which make you feel dejected, which
horrify you, or make you feel miserable.  All are for dramatic effect in
much the same way that a horror movie is for dramatic effect.  You don't
"lose" when you go to a horror movie, you simply experience it.  I'm not out
to kill people, be mean to them, or piss people off, I'm here to get a
reaction out of you and make you want to keep turning the page.  Even if
turning the page makes you more miserable.  The Game of Mallor is often a
comedy, but it is also a tragedy, and if I put you through a catharsis then
I have done my job.

1.5  Can I make any character I want?

Almost.  You can't be a servant of Mallor, as Mallor is an "adversary" and
has only one trusted servant, Bagua.  Of course, many players find
themselves serving Mallor in ways they didn't intend, mhwuuaahhaahaahah!!!!
But otherwise, you can be anything you want.  Doesn't matter how powerful or
weak, you can even be a God if you so desire.  Just bear in mind that
challenges always expand or contract to fit the powers of your character.
Powerful characters have powerful enemies and there's no such thing as being
more powerful than everybody else.  Mallor is just as capable of destroying
the entire universe as the next wizard or God on the block, even though he
is a mere man.

"No power too great, no failing too small.
The weakest one, the best of all.
Stick with your character through all your actions.
And so you'll have your satisfactions."

- Dimwit the Demented

1.6  Can I be any race I want?

Yes, and you're free to make up any race you want as well.  Describe the
race's culture and history and I'll drop them on the map somewhere.  That
said, if a race has already been fleshed out in the game then you'll need to
relate your version of the race to the extant race somehow.  Racial and
cultural variation is a reasonable excuse within limits, but I want to keep
some consistency regarding races so that when players learn something about
a race, their information will mostly apply.  However, it does not have to
completely apply.  Racism is a problem in this world, it is not a fully
enlightened or politically correct world.  It is like the real world, where
some people are multi-cultural and others are bigoted, hate-mongering, or
even genocidal.

Also, don't assume that just because you've heard a race has characteristics
X Y Z in every other fantasy game you've ever played and every book you've
ever read, that the race will be the same here.  I'm famous for subverting
people's commonly held assumptions about race.  For instance, Goblins are
not stupid vicious beings that need to be put to the sword.  They are master
builders and craftsmen, genetically related to both Dwarves and Giants.  Yet
bigoted people in some parts of the realm treat them exactly like the
legendary AD&D goblins that must be put to the sword.

1.7  What is the nature of magic?

In this universe, there isn't a spell for everything.  It's like academia,
lots of topics are covered, but not every field has experts in everything,
and there's a lot of ground unexplored. Wizards tend to specialize in a
particular kind of magic that they really understand.  There might be a few
"hack" wizards who know a little bit from here, a little bit from there, but
aren't really amazing at any one thing. Some wizards are more interested in
technique, some are interested in general theories and how one branch of
magic relates to another.  And of course there are plenty of charlatains who
don't really know a damn thing.

If you choose to play a wizardly character, you're free to invent your own
specialized variety of magic.  Just bear in mind that if you invent theories
of either mental control or the nature of the soul, Mallor and Brizzbane
have beaten you to the punch and so there's already a sense of "what works"
and
what doesn't.  Even these realms of magic/science are very open-ended, but I
as Game Master will judge according to what my own developing theories are,
as they are central to the story.  Similarly, if you specialize in a kind of
magic that other players have already invented, you'll run into whatever
theories are already extant about that kind of magic.  That's not to say you
can't/won't make new discoveries, just that you'll have to deal with
something that's already in place.  Whereas if you choose to elaborate upon
the nature of a previously unknown magic, you'll have the authorial freedom
to specify how it works.

Also, since this game is not about winning or losing, or minimizing or
maximizing your character to have the most potent powers possible, I'm not
going to tell you what kinds of magic are already known.  Mallor studies
mental control.  Borizzbane studied the soul, at least before his untimely
demise.  That's all you have to go on.  Finally, don't assume that magic is
"the way to go" as far as making a character, just because you get to make
up how it works.  *All* characters get to make up their own abilities,
backgrounds, and powers, it's not a special priveledge of the magicians.
And by that same token, all characters deal with the universe as it already
exists, and there is no better or worse way to exist.

1.8  What is the level of technology?

Approximately that of the Holy Roman Empire if it had been allowed to go on
for a few more centuries, and the Dark Ages had never happened.  The world
is pre-industrial but trickles of startling technological innovation are
here and there.  Primitive rockets exist in some places but there are no
firearms or cannons.  You might say technological development has been
sporadic, because there's so much magic about, that technology has not been
required to solve many kinds of problems.

1.9  What is the nature of Godhood?

You will have to play a God if you want to find that out.  You will find
that the relationships between magic, non-magic, science, the soul, and
belief are interesting and maybe not quite what you bargained for... it
would be unsafe to assume that Gods are all-powerful.

1.10  How frequently will e-mails be sent?

Barring my need to take care of real-world matters, I'll reply as frequently
as you reply.   I'm currently self-employed and pursuing this project as a
matter of commercial research. I have all the time in the world right now,
and I'm just going to keep adding players until I can't handle the capacity
anymore.  So if your replies aren't that frequent, that's fine for me as
I'll just add more players. If your replies are very frequent, that's fine
too because it means I'll be fleshing out the world faster, and that will
tie into what other players do.

1.11  How long should e-mails be?

Myself, I make my e-mails at least 3 paragraphs at a minimum, and often much
longer.  People are playing the game asynchronously, picking up and dropping
it as they deal with their lives in the real world.  Therefore, it's vitally
important that each e-mail be interesting, get the player back in the mood
of the game, and advance the story significantly.  Otherwise, if I didn't
make such an effort I'm sure you'd get bored.  You're free to answer back at
whatever length you like, but I'd suggest that more is better.  You can even
project actions into the future, outline contingent actions, or say that
"this and that happened to you."  When I get what you wrote, I'll decide
what actually happened to you and inform you so.  That way, you can
partially author the story, and you can move the action along faster if you
want it to go faster.

2.  THE BACKSTORY

2.1  Who is Mallor?

Mallor of Westmarch
Race: human
Sex: Male
Age: 30
Profession: so-called "Scientist"

Mallor was the black sheep of the noble Westmarch family.  At an early age
he displayed a profound introversion, avoided team sports, and refused to
learn to joust with a lance.  His incessant interest in books and the
pursuits of the Mind led his noble parents to throw up their hands and send
him to the Academy of Wizards at Borphee.  He quickly gained a reputation as
an iconoclast and an outcast, fervently arguing that although the
fundamental principles of Magic were effective in their own right, much
non-magical phenomena had been overlooked.  In an effort to persuade others
of his views, he concentrated exclusively upon the domains of Mind Control
and The Unity of Consciousness.  His detractors, sesasoned in the arts of
magic and anit-matic, were often flabbergasted to have Mallor's own words
put into their mouths as they debated him.  Declaring himself a "Scientist,"
not a Magician, Mallor quickly became despised by all but the most humble of
thaumaturlogical researchers.  Some say Mallor knew nothing of Magic and
therefore preferred to invent excuses.  Others say Mallor knew plenty of
magic, but was never as good at it as his peers, and so therefore sought
another way.

Mallor's arch-rival at the academy was a young wizard named Borizzbane, also
known to some as Borizzbane the Mendicant.  Borrizzbane carried out
experiments of the Soul, particularly near the time of death, a practice
which many in the Academy viewed as unethical.  Previously Borizzbane had
experimented upon condemned criminals and political prisoners, thereby
escaping the purvey of the authorities.  But he crossed the line when he
seized Bogua, the Academy's huge goblin janitor and handyman, as a subject
for one of his experiments.  Bogua was an immigrant to the land and racism
was rampant in the town council, so Borizzbane figured nobody would care.
While sneaking around trying to find ways to sabotage his rival's work,
Mallor chanced upon Borizzbane's secret laboratory, and saw Bogua about to
succumb to a ghastly torture.  Caught by surprise in the act, Borizzbane
unleashed a flurry of deadly magic.  But Mallor's mental discipline was
stronger and he was able to defend against the ill-planned onslaught.
Acting as much in hatred as self-defense, Mallor stole Borizzbane's mind for
a few moments and hurled him into one of his own torture devices.  Bogua was
eternally grateful, but Mallor feared there would be scandal over the hidden
laboratory, and questions as to why he had been there.  Mallor knew his poor
standing, Bogua would be regarded as scum, and it was their words against
the dead.  Accusations of murder were likely, and in fact, possibly
provable!  Fearing for their lives, Mallor and Bagua seized the most
important of Borizzbane's materials, set fire to the lab, and fled for a
distant corner of the land.

No one is sure where Mallor resides now, but it is believed he is still
alive and carrying out his research.  And even for his seeming unpopularity,
Mallor was not without his secret supporters and patrons.  Few wished to
openly extol the virtues of mind control in matters of combat, warfare,
commerce, and politics, but most understood the implications if Mallor was
correct.  It is rumored that Mallor and Bagua could have never escaped the
town upon their own, that they were assisted by a wealthy patron who is
screening them from reprisal.  It is not known for what purpose Mallor
continues to work; his closest former associates believe the man has lost
his sense of morality in his obsession to finish his research.  In any event
the hand of Mallor is popping up in many unexpected places.  From across the
land scattered reports are drifting in, of barroom fights that mysteriously
ended, wizards fried by their own magic missiles, huge public monuments
being constructed in the Sudentan by happy workers, and treaties being
signed by factions at war for decades.  Surely such a man as Mallor must
enjoy great wealth and power!  And surely such power concentrated in the
hands of one man is dangerous for the realm?

2.2  Who is Bagua?

Name: Bagua
Race: Goblin
Sex: Male
Age: 50
Profession(s): janitor, construction worker, cook

Bagua came to the Academy of Wizards at Borphee on a temporary assignment,
hoping to bring back money for his family in his native Nordentan.  He
stands 8 feet tall, 5 feet wide, weighs 1 metric ton, and even as Goblins go
is regarded as "big."  When he's not cooking or eating he likes to build
things, in order to keep in shape.  He carries no weapons as his meaty fists
could easily crush a knight in full armor with one blow.  He is a goblin of
few words and this has helped him keep out of trouble with racists.
Although truth be known, most are inclined to snigger at Bagua from afar,
not to his face.

Bagua is not afraid to use force, but beneath his imponderable goblin
exterior he is kind-hearted.  He sees himself as a family man defending his
loved ones against the evils of the world, and Mallor is now a part of that
family.  Despite his great debt to Mallor, his loyalty to his master is not
unthinking.  Bagua is particularly sensitive to the plight of prisoners,
having been one himself, and is always asking Mallor "When will we let this
one go?"  Mallor always replies "Don't worry, tomorrow he will either go, or
he will wish to stay."  And as it has always come to pass, sometimes in one
way or the other, Bagua has been satisfied.  Bagua knows that Mallor has
many ways to influence a captive's mind, but he also knows that mind control
has limits and nobody can be held against their will forever.  True belief,
after all, is the strongest mind control of all.

Owing to his tortures at the Academy, Bagua carries a deep and irrational
mistrust of nearly all wizards.  The genetic predisposition of goblins to
anti-magic probably helps: he's a walking hulk of magical deadzone.
Unsurprisingly, in goblin culture there are few wizards, and role models of
kind-hearted wizards simply do not exist.  Mallor and Bagua get along well
with regards to wizardly politics, as they share similar views about the
follies of wizardry.  Still, Mallor comes from a wizard background himself,
so some aspects of his work he simply doesn't talk about with Bagua.

2.3  Who is Dimwit the Demented?

Keep playing, you might run into him.  Dimwit describes himself thus:

Wearing jumpsuit of a jester,
Orange and green his coat of arms.
Funning those who would molest him
Cartwheeling clown, away from harm.
Raised by wizards as a child
Impatient student, learned but one trick.
When danger lurks or fighting's wild
Vanish with a limmerick.
Worldly wealth does matter not
Pockets of jester suit are bare
Food and merriment at any spot
Cavorting the world without a care.

In lands forgotten to the Mind
Aniada, home of egos sublime!
A pugnatious, nay pungent orc belayed me
His tavern candor quite betrayed me.
Never seeking him my harm
I spun the braggard my finest yarn:

There once was an angry young orc
    Whose servant denied him his pork.
    "Bring me my glass
    Or I'll kick yer ass!"
    So his servant stabbed his hand with a FORK.

With POOF! and gone, your servant fled
While pinned to table the orc long bled.

2.4  Who are the other players in the game?

I'm not going to tell you, you're just going to have to meet them.  There
could be one or one hundred real people playing the game, you'll have to
decide for yourself whom to trust.  Since I'm interested in commercial
ventures at some point in the future, I plan to take as many players as I
can possibly manage.  It'll keep me in good storytelling shape!

2.5  What is "The Mind?"

Curse the Mind, I wish I knew the answer to that!  Hint: compare the legend
of the Implementors in the classic Infocom text adventure "Enchanter."

2.6  What is the geography of the land?

It's not really that important right now.  I'll let you know where you are
and what's around when you enter the game.  One day when I'm feeling really
motivated, I'll draw up the obligatory map and put it on a webpage.

rec.games.pbm

The Game of Mallor needs players!

Referenced By