[Astral] Table of Contents

Had an idea bomb go off for this game last night. After sifting through the debris, I realised I'd come up with most of the system that it needed. All that's needed now is to research enough hooks to allow people to develop the Setting on their own.

Astral - A game of Inner Exploration & Out-of-Body Experiences
by Stephen Hickey

1. Introduction

"To think of moving is to have moved."
Ramsay Campbell, The Parasite.

1.1 Hook: You play a person who has just discovered they can travel outside their body.
1.2 What do you do?
1.3 Origin Story: Why do people first go astral?

2. Creating a Character
2.1 Who are you?
2.2 The Character Sheet [1. Do up an entry for this next.]
2.3 The 4 Ratings [3. then consequences for each rating.]
...... 2.3.1 Attunement
...... 2.3.2 Focus
...... 2.3.3 Ethics
...... 2.3.4 Fear
2.4 The Basic Mechanic [2. then lay this out in back-to-basics detail.]
2.5 Character Change

3. Taking Action
3.1 Overview of the Process
3.2 Intent
3.3 Initiative
3.4 Execution
3.5 Effect

4. Setting
4.1 Our World
4.2 Abilities
4.3 Consequences
4.4 The Others

5. A Game Session
5.1 Unit of Play: The Journey
...... 5.1.1 Ad-libbed
...... 5.1.2 A Mission Structure [4. enter my notes on this.]
...... 5.1.3 Campaign Hooks
5.2 The Return to the Body

Designer's diary

Designer's Notes

Reading List

*Books
Bones of the Moon (19XX), Jonathan Carroll
The Parasite (1980), Ramsay Campbell
Passage (2001), Connie Willis [to read]
Transition: A peep through the Veil (1991), Violet Tasker
Way of the Peaceful Warrior, Dan Millman [to confirm]
What Dreams May Come (1978), Richard Matheson


*Films
Fear and loathing in Las Vegas (1998), Hunter S. Thompson & Terry Gilliam
The Sixth Sense (1999), M. Night Shyamalan
What Dreams May Come (1998), Ron Bass