"Trophy is a strongly collaborative storytelling game with horror themes throughout. It is about a group of treasure-hunters on a doomed expedition into a natural biome that doesn’t want them there. The game tells the story of the physical and mental descent of the treasure-hunters as they move deeper and deeper into their location. Their journey will ultimately bring them to ancient ruins that hold the treasure they seek, and the monstrous entities which now dwell there. This is not, however, a hopeful story of brave and daring adventurers slaying dragons and dragging bags of gold with them back to town. This is a horror story of entitled pillagers meeting tragic ends. It is very likely that all the treasure-hunters will die or — at best — be permanently scarred and haunted by their expedition. Can you trust your friends? Can you even still trust yourself? In this game, Trophy isn't the treasure you seek, but nature trying to take you as its trophy instead.
Trophy Dark is designed to be played as a oneshot with small groups of 2-3 player characters. Single oneshot adventures are called Incursions. Today's incursion is called Gift of the Sea, where the following lures in your characters...
Beyond the forest lies a jagged rocky coast where, for generations now, a small seaside village has observed the rites of Greentide. Each spring, as the first green shoots emerge, village elders weave sapling branches and seaweed into an effigy in the likeness of a young woman. The sculpture is filled with gifts before it is cast into the waves as an offering to the Queen of Tides, along with prayers for a bountiful catch and protection from storms.
This ancient tradition harkens back to an age when the ancestors would crown a young woman as the Tide Queen and offer her to the sea in sacrifice. Chieftains and princes would travel far to attend the ceremony, pledging gold, jewels, and the finest of crafts. To this day, local fisherman never leave shore without paying her their respects—for the tide, they say, must have its due.
Strange as the customs of an isolated village may be, it has not escaped the notice of keen treasure hunters such as yourselves that centuries of offerings and shipwrecks have left a great hoard of untouched riches beneath the waves. You know of the island offshore where the offerings are tipped overboard. You have heard rumors of a cove there, just visible at low tide. Superstitious villagers avoid it, but you know better than to believe their tales."
This game will be great if you like collaborative storytelling, horror We will build characters in session.
Characters will be created together. This can be done in mere minutes, assisted by random tables and dice rolls. As for gameplay, you don't need to know the system, but you do need to be comfortable with roleplaying, thinking on the spot/improv, and contributing to collaborative setting elements instead of just playing your character.
Players need to have played some RPGs.
Players will be learning this system together with the game runner.
Tone: Silly⚪⚪⚪⚪⚪ Serious
Combat: ⚪⚬⚬⚬⚬
Role Play: ⚪⚪⚪⚪⚪
Exploration: ⚪⚪⚪⚪⚪
This game will be played in room #1 of the TTRPG Pickup Con Discord Server. Spectators are welcome in the Discord room.
CW: This specific incursion can include Body Horror, Drowning, Human Sacrifice, Religion, Sharks, Shipwrecks, and Storms. In general: fear, paranoia, character death, high chances of other player characters betraying yours