Interest? Stephen King Dark Tower-inspired 1-shot

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Nov 16, 2023 3:50 pm
Game System
The Black Tower Hack is a work-in-progress (WIP) hack of The Black Hack by Coffee All Night Games inspired by - and entirely legally totally distinct from - the universe written by Stephen King, particularly in King's The Dark Tower series.

The World
The world is a gonzo horror post-apocalyptic multi-universe western.

I played a one-shot of this system via video discord, run by Coffee All Night Games, and LOVED it. They are (more than) happy for us to run/play the game here, even though it's not officially published.

Something I particularly enjoy about the world, and the system, is that it's set in a world that is falling apart, that has "moved on" in the words of Stephen King. So things are all kinda warped, don't make a lot of sense, motives are obscure and shifting, the fourth wall is there to be broken, there is space to be inspired by and actively integrate narratives from all over the place. I find it liberating to be so free to pick and choose influences and inspiration, with less pressure to consistent as in other worlds - because, you know, "there are other worlds than these." (to quote King again)

The Story
You play as a ka-tet of Gunslingers - and as I expect many fans of The Dark Tower would hope, action kicks off as "the man in black fled across the desert, and the gunslinger[s] followed" (to slightly adapt the first sentence of The Gunslinger).

Who can Join?
Everyone - no expectation that anyone has any familiarity with the rules. AND based on my experience playing it, I think this is likely to work best with people who are fans of The Dark Tower. Would be looking for 4 or 5 players.

Technology
Coffee All Night Games has made a Character Keeper in Google Sheets - we'd use that for our character sheet. We'd use the GP character sheet just to have a character name and a portrait for posting in the GP forums.

We'll use The X Card and a Lines and Veils document as safety tools - particularly important for me given there are horror elements in the game.

Posting frequency
I expect I can keep up with maybe 5 posts a week.

It might be some weeks before I would start putting the forum and resources and recruitment thread together - but was excited by the idea so thought I'd post now.

Would aim to play a short adventure in the world - a one-shot that might last maybe 3-4 months here on GP.

Questions?
I love questions! (inspired by @SpiritualSocket's recent Interest post here... :) )
Nov 16, 2023 3:54 pm
Interesting. It's been years since I read The Dark Tower. I liked those books, but I don't think I remember enough about the setting to really do it justice in an rp. I should probably reread those at some point.
Nov 16, 2023 3:59 pm
I read them a while ago, and listened to the first couple of them to prep for the one-shot I played in. The mood I'd go for here would be very much based on The Gunslinger (the first, shortest) of the books. I liked the audio books.
Nov 16, 2023 4:02 pm
Child Rowland to the dark tower came….. How exciting! I’m certainly interested.
Nov 16, 2023 4:03 pm
I’m definitely interested!
Nov 16, 2023 4:51 pm
I would be interested.
I am a huge fan of Steve King books
Last edited November 16, 2023 5:04 pm
Nov 16, 2023 4:59 pm
I am interested. I have read 5 so far, but it's been a little while
Nov 16, 2023 6:38 pm
Ah, nice, seems like there's enough interest for me to invest some time in preparing it to run here :)
Nov 16, 2023 11:09 pm
Yes! I've read them all and the short stories. It's been awhile since I read them though. I would love to play if you have room!

Half the time I play a solo rpg it's using "We Deal in Lead" which is basically the Dark Tower (Cairn adjacent rules).

I haven't played the Black Hack, but I can always learn!
Last edited November 16, 2023 11:16 pm
Nov 16, 2023 11:42 pm
Wow, a game set in Mid-World and beyond would be something else! I would love to play if there ends up being room. I think it goes without saying that I'm a huge fan of The Dark Tower and all of King's work.

As for the Black Hack, I'm familiar but I've never played it. If it's like most OSR systems, it shouldn't be too hard to figure out.

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