Nantucket Sleighride
or, the Moby Dick Roleplaying Game
A card based, gm-less game for 4 people.
Game Chef 2014/
Theme: No Book; Ingredients: Absorb, Wild, Glitter, Sickle.
META/
Theme: using a deck of cards for resolution and rule guides to be printed on cards.
Ingredients: Absorb (card mechanic); Wild (setting; sea); Glitter; Sickle (harpoon)
BETA
OUTLINE/
A story game of 4 acts, comprising of 3 scenes each. Players bid for role of Harpooneer and Navigator.
SET-UP/
1/2 standard deck of playing cards, insert both Jokers (whales) and shuffle.
Blind draw 4 (of 6) of the Act cards (setting), place face-down in row.
Deal Sailor (role) + Composure (color) to each player; final player picks from remaining.
Blind draw 3 (of 6) Epilogues and place after 4th Act.
BEGIN/
Each player submits Four Conflicts to the a communal pot.
Highest ranked sailor reads opening logbook entry by the captain.
Start Act 1.
PLAY/
Act 1, Reveal first setting card. Lowest ranked player reads card aloud and sets stage. He then
draws card from deck; makes first bid, playing at least one card from hand. Around Clockwise once to other players. Highest bid is the Harpooneer. Lowest bid is the Navigator. In the event of a tie, second player must play additional cards from hand to surpass original bid.
Harpooneer draws two Conflicts from pool; selects one; returns other; and sets the stage between players; the vice in question is the drive for the scene.
Navigator decides at any point in play which side will win, according to the unfolding narrative. Winner may bank a card; Loser draws a card from deck to hand.
Previous Loser starts next bid; using this same format for 2nd, 3rd and 4th Act.
…
THAR SHE BLOWS/
Jokers are “whale sightings”. Played any time, Whale Sightings immediately interrupt play. Scene ends without victor. All players immediately discard their hands. Entire discard pile shuffled; returned to top of deck; all players dealt new 3 card hand. Person that played the card, the Whale Spotter must draw from the captain’s speeches and read one.
ERRATA/
…
FIN/
At end of 4th Act, each player should add their banked cards. Highest has first choice of Epilogues. Last has their choice of remaining Epilogues.