This RPG item was a submission to the #Threeforged RPG Design Challenge. It was developed by three different designers in a randomized, anonymous fashion. For details, and for information on how the versions are structured, see the series RPGGeek entry here: #Threeforged RPG Design Challenge 2015. All of the entries are available here: #Threeforged RPG Design Challenge Winners and Everything Entry #159; Stage One: Mark Nau; Stage Two: Jay Treat; Stage Three: Steve Dee Stage Two Title: Superstitions
From the Introduction:
It Is Forbidden is a team-based story game of creating cultures – two separate cultures – while also roleplaying out the tragic consequences when the cultures mix. The cultures are built on a framework not based on what they produce or what they value, but what they forbid: their superstitions, bans, heresies and taboos. The things that are forbidden keep our deepest fears at bay, and reveal our darkest desires, and fear and desire make a society. The game is for 4 to 20 players. It does not require a GM. It takes about two hours to play one session, depending on how many players you have. The essence of the game players taking turns to add to a list of laws, customs and superstitions, things that are forbidden by their tribe. With each round, the importance of the laws and the consequences of breaking them escalates. At the end of the game, the two lists provide an insight into two separate cultures, and the scenes played out will provide a sense of how those cultures interact and conflicts that will emerge in that interaction. This information can then be used as a basis for further creative exploration, but it is the end point of this game.
