A guest would best keep their secrets close to their chest. For amidst a gala of flowing gowns and mirthful laughter, silver tongues and darting eyes search to feast on the weak.
High Societea is a one shot TTRPG in which players embody scandalous characters, using catty banter and scrupulous wit to pry secrets from one another until all is laid bare.
I do not want people to be very agreeable, as it saves me the trouble of liking them a great deal.
The Table
High Societea is played by five to eight people, one of whom takes the role of the Host. An evening lasts some two to three hours.
The table will need a pair of D6 dice, a deck of aspiration cards, a supply of index cards on which to write secrets and discoveries, and a quantity of coin for the guests to carry, bestow, and be bought with.
The Evening
Chapter One • The Arrival
Roles, aspirations, stats and reputation, the persona each player wears, the safety conversation, and the five secrets every guest hands to the Host.
Chapter Two • The Gala
The party, the rounds and their dances, the offering of hands in marriage, and every way a guest may cut another down: attacks and retorts, faux pas, sold secrets, crafted rumors, and outbursts.
Chapter Three • The Dinner
The last three rounds, loose threads tied, and the final tally that names the evening’s winner.
Appendix • The Aspiration Deck
Four and twenty aspirations to draw from, from a turn about the room to the ruin of another guest.
Appendix • Discoveries
A house already furnished, with things to be found in every room.