White House/Political MUX

[BigDaddyAmin]

So, I've been keeping up with the election, watching reruns of West Wing, and the new season of House of Cards.

Was there ever a political/White House MUX? If so...what are the mechanical issues that would cause it not to work? (other than a complete lack of knowledge of the average MUSHer on US Government).

[ThatGuyThere]

I was a big fan of West Wing so I think the rp/game part of it could be a lot of fun.
But if this primary season has taught me anything it is that people will use just about any comment to try and start a political argument, so the thought of the probable OOC rants being tossed at one another by the players would have me definitely passing on a game like this til mid 2017 at the earliest.

[BigDaddyAmin]

I think it would be the point of the admins, or at least the players, to be mature and adults, to understand that this is a game.

Another idea would be to create an entirely fictional nation based off the United States.

[surreality]

Actually... a game using the mortal-only/non-supernatural CofD mechanics, including all of the social maneuvering rules, could be amusingly ideal for this.

A game set around a campaign between two fictional candidates (or several fictional candidates, winnowing down to an eventual two), and the maneuvering amongst their staff and supporters to get them elected, could be fascinating.

It could be run for X amount of time until the final election, then skip ahead X amount of time to the runup to the next, and so on, as various games have discussed in the past as an option.

[BigDaddyAmin]

If it is set in Washington DC, I'd play Potomac by Night.

[mietze]

For MUSH purposes, I wonder if a RL political game might be better if it was a parliamentary system? More pieces of the pie there, sorta.

[surreality]

It would be an interesting thing with absolutely none of the WoD-type elements, even. Just use the system since a lot of folks know it, and it has systems for scheming.

[bored]

What skills would I need for burying hookers in the New Mexico desert?

[Coin]

@bored said:

What skills would I need for burying hookers in the New Mexico desert?

Drive (for driving around the desert at night).
Stealth (for moving the body to and from your car without getting seen).
Athletics (for lifting the body and also for digging the hole).
Survival (for making sure you can weather the desert).
Subterfuge (for saying 'nope, I was at my mom's house all night').

[Sonder]

Yesssssssss! YES.

[Pyrephox]

If you use CoD, then I'd say replace the Aspirations with Skeletons (in the closet). Whenever someone finds out about a Skeleton and successfully uses it against you to get you to do something, gain a Beat. You can 'neutralize' a Skeleton by coming clean and declaring your sinful repentance through the media, but you don't gain a Beat for that, and you immediately have to choose another Skeleton.

[Coin]

@Pyrephox said:

If you use CoD, then I'd say replace the Aspirations with Skeletons (in the closet). Whenever someone finds out about a Skeleton and successfully uses it against you to get you to do something, gain a Beat. You can 'neutralize' a Skeleton by coming clean and declaring your sinful repentance through the media, but you don't gain a Beat for that, and you immediately have to choose another Skeleton.

This is an awesome suggestion.

[Arkandel]

The only real problem with this is that most players would need to know the ins and out of the bureaucratic system itself to do the concept justice. And most wouldn't.

It'd be kinda sorta like having an E.R. MUSH set at a hospital - if most characters need to know at least some basic things about medical practices but most players don't, it'll hit a wall really fast.

[faraday]

@Arkandel said:

The only real problem with this is that most players would need to know the ins and out of the bureaucratic system itself to do the concept justice. And most wouldn't.

It'd be kinda sorta like having an E.R. MUSH set at a hospital - if most characters need to know at least some basic things about medical practices but most players don't, it'll hit a wall really fast.

Military games manage okay despite most players not having the faintest idea about how the military really works. As long as your suspension of disbelief is set at an appropriate Hollywood type level, and you manage the purists who want to go around correcting everyone (guilty, your honor, but I've learned), it can be done.

[Pyrephox]

@faraday said:

@Arkandel said:

The only real problem with this is that most players would need to know the ins and out of the bureaucratic system itself to do the concept justice. And most wouldn't.

It'd be kinda sorta like having an E.R. MUSH set at a hospital - if most characters need to know at least some basic things about medical practices but most players don't, it'll hit a wall really fast.

Military games manage okay despite most players not having the faintest idea about how the military really works. As long as your suspension of disbelief is set at an appropriate Hollywood type level, and you manage the purists who want to go around correcting everyone (guilty, your honor, but I've learned), it can be done.

Yeah. The easiest way to overcome this is staff-side, with staff telling people how they want people to do various iconic cinematic political things - it's not so important that it be REALISTIC, as that it's a) interesting to do, and b) consistent from the start. So an explanation of how the staff wants people to use the systems is vital - how do I blackmail a rival? How do I leverage lobbyists? How do I change public opinion? Etc.

[Misadventure]

I want to see an Apocalypse Engine write up for the White House or similar.

[Derp]

As much as I would want to play this... I wouldn't. I would find my eye twitching at every third pose and going on 'oh my god that is not how that works' monologues, probably much to the annoyance of other players.

So while I encourage this, I'm also big enough to realize I'd be one of Those Players, and leave the rest of you to have your funtimes in peace.

[The_Supremes]

@Derp said:

As much as I would want to play this... I wouldn't. I would find my eye twitching at every third pose and going on 'oh my god that is not how that works' monologues, probably much to the annoyance of other players.

So while I encourage this, I'm also big enough to realize I'd be one of Those Players, and leave the rest of you to have your funtimes in peace.

I would also be one of Those Players, but I suspect my will to not at least give it a try would utterly fail about three months in. On the other hand, if it hadn't degenerated into a massive OOC shitstorm by then...

But yeah, pilots shouldn't attend movies about airplanes, etc.

[Derp]

@The_Supremes said:

But yeah, pilots shouldn't attend movies about airplanes, etc.

I have never heard this. But I'm officially stealing it. That is precisely how I need to tell my friends not to take me to politics things.

[Thenomain]

@Derp and @The_Supremes,

Have you ever hacked the Gibsons?! It's UNIX! I know this!

No movie should ever try to get technical for that reason.