Merryweather - It never was
Description by the author
Merryweather is a game about spending a year in a world not your own.
It is a game about consequences. It is a game about being roused from the waking life to find yourself in the dream.
The characters in Merryweather are a group of average high school students who find themselves trapped in a surreal, phantasmagorical version of their hometown after exploring an abandoned mansion called “The Ancient.” While exploring the attic of The Ancient they are faced with a horrible event that drives them to flee in mortal fear. The exact nature of this event is unknown at the start of the game, but will be developed during play. Eventually the game will build to a dramatic crescendo where the characters either overcome their anxieties and insecurities to face the source of what they saw in the heart of The Ancient, or they are defeated by they’re own fragile emotional states, laid low by fear of an adversary too great to conquer Storytelling and role playing is facilitated by a unique story framing device called “The Glass Skeleton” and a totally original conflict resolution/narration system that has players interact with a deck of standard playing cards and a special game calendar.
The players are able to alter this world by manipulating a deck of standard playing cards and a special calendar (included at end). The whole “campaign” lasts over the course of an in-game year played over the course of 4 sessions, each one representing both a season of the year and suit of cards (summer = hearts, fall = diamonds, winter = spades, spring = clubs).