Dream Askew gives us ruined buildings and wet tarps, nervous faces in the campire glow, strange new psychic powers, fierce queer love, and turbulent skies above a fledgling community, asking “What do you do next?”
Dream Apart gives us demons and wedding jesters; betrothals and pogroms; mystical ascensions and accusations of murder; the sounds of the shofar ringing through cramped and muddy streets, of cannon fire, of the wolf’s footfalls in the snowy pine forest; asking “What do you do next?”
This book contains two games of belonging outside belonging. Dream Askew explores the story of a queer enclave amid the collapse of civilization. Dream Apart explores the story of a Jewish shtetl in a fantastical version of nineteenth-century Eastern Europe.
Both games use a simple no dice, no masters system that puts the focus on relationships, community struggles, and player choice.
Build a community together, and then make trouble within it!
This full-colour book is organized into four chapters:
Playing the Dream
A thorough, beginner-friendly guide on how to play Dream Askew, Dream Apart, and other games of belonging outside belonging. Includes detailed running examples.
Dream Askew
Everything you need to play Dream Askew - the character roles, setting elements, enclave worksheet, design notes, a mediography, and a recipe to serve your friends before playing.
Dream Apart
Everything you need to play Dream Apart - the character roles, setting elements, shtetl worksheet, design notes, mediography, glossary, list of regional names, and a recipe for borsht.
Designing New Games
A step-by-step guide to designing your own games of belonging outside belonging, with wisdom on both the thematic and mechanical aspects of game design.
