Revision as of 16:41, 26 March 2010

3-26-10 overhaul

Introduction

The Dreaming is a live game which is coordinated over a social networking site. Players portray a character who lives in a Dream World which looks, coincidentally, almost exactly like the real world. Your character is a member of the dream world's society. Places where you and your friends actually hang out can become special locations within the game world. You can choose to go adventuring with other characters and participate in the game's ongoing plotlines and politics. These adventures may involve live combat using foam boffer weapons. When you post pics, videos, or blog entries about your adventures to the social networking site, you earn points to customize your Dreamstone, a unique and personalized magic item.

Live Play

The Dreaming is played by meeting up in the real world. When you engage in live play, you'll adapt a persona called a character. When you enter the Dreaming, by putting on an arm band or game badge, you'll become that character.

Each character can own one territory, a spot in the world where players gather for live play. Much of your time will be spent hanging out in one of these territories with other characters. You can go on adventures, called Dream Walks, and fight monsters (who are portrayed by other players).

If you choose to go on adventures, or get in fights with other players, you may engage in combat using foam boffer weapons. Some characters can cast spells by throwing small props called spell packets. When you build a character, you will choose a class and pick a few skills. This determines which weapons you can use, what kinds of abilities you have, how much damage you can take, and what kind of tactics you will use in combat. If you die,

Combat is not necessary to play the Dreaming. The Dreaming has a society which has social and political elements. Players may band together to form dream countries which have their own rulers and laws.

If nobody is in your area, you can also play solo. You can earn points in the game by putting up surreal recruitment posters. Some plot lines involve using photography or installation art to blur the line between the waking world and the Dreaming.

The Aether

Live play is coordinated over a social networking site at http://dreamings.ning.com. The site works much like other familiar sites such as Facebook or MySpace. When you build your character, your choices about your race, class, and skills will be entered onto your profile. You can post status updates, photos, or other media. You can plan events and form groups. There is a community map which can help you find players in your area, or help them find you.

In-game, the Social Networking site represents a dream of the Internet, called the Aether. The photos and blog entries posted on the Aether are called the Archive, a collective memory accessible by anyone in the Dreaming.

Posting to the Archive is a form of collaborative storytelling. Plot lines are coordinated over the Aether. Things which happen in live play, (such as Dream Walks) can affect the game for everybody. Each plot has a wiki page which its coordinator edits based on archive posts relating to that plot.

Every character has a unique magic item called a dream stone. When you go on a Dream Walk and somebody posts about it in the archive, you gain a point of Resonance, which represents the awakening of your dream stone. You'll keep track of your own resonance in your character profile. Resonance can be spent to give your character special powers or properties.

for more information, see Dreaming Setting.

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What happens during the game?

To play the live game, you have to build a character using our game rules. Among other things, you will pick a race, a class, and a few skills. This gives you the ability to fight with boffer weapons, cast spells, or perform other game actions which can harm other characters.

The Dreaming is run on the honor system. Everybody has to keep track of their own skills and injuries. There are no referees to toss you out if you're not playing fairly. If you are caught cheating, or your play is otherwise disruptive, other players will avoid you or stop inviting you to their gatherings. It's possible for a local group to ban you from certain areas of the game.

While in-game, you will portray a character in the Dreaming. Unlike many LARPs, you do not have to wear a costume or talk in a funny accent - people in dreams look a lot like people in real life. Your character will make friends and enemies with other characters, and participate in ongoing stories and adventures. Much of the game's story is generated by other players.

What Happens During Games?

In many ways, the Dreaming is a social game. You might want to participate in politics, trying to sway public opinion about something. Players are free to create governments and attempt to rule over one another. Many would-be rulers are overthrown in violent coups. Each race has its own role within the dreaming society. You might be interested in participating in guilds or organizations, or just socializing with other characters.

In other ways, the Dreaming is a competitive game. Boffer combat is allowed in certain game areas. Characters can attack and kill one another. Death in the Dreaming is not permanent -- if someone is killed, their character merely "phases out" of the Dreaming for the night. While incapacitated in this way, you might have the opportunity to be summoned and play the game as a shade, a weak minion who does the bidding of his summoner.

Your character is a member of an imaginary dream society. People choose to become politicians, revolutionaries, philosophers, soldiers, whatever role they'd like in the Dream World. You are encouraged to help develop the Dreaming society through your actions - start a government, create laws, try to enforce those laws, try to destroy those laws... The world is created by your actions. How you relate to it is up to you.

Dream Walks

Dream Walks are special structured game activities. You might think of one as an adventure. (sometimes called a module) The Dreaming website houses a list of Dream Walks. Each Dream Walk has a "script", instructions for the adventure.

If you want to go on a Dream Walk, print out its script and gather up your party. You'll meet in an agreed upon local spot, like a park or a friend's house. You will use local geography as sites to have encounters, which are described in the script. Each encounter may involve different types of scenarios. They often involve combat, and physical or mental challenges. During Dream Walks, some players will turn into shades, hostile monsters which the others must fight off.

Every character has a unique magic item called a Dreamstone. By completing Dream Walks, you can awaken special properties of your Dreamstone. Over time, your Dreamstone will become more powerful.

In order for a Dream Walk to count, somebody must "archive" it. This means posting photos, videos, or blog entries about the adventure. This documentation is also a check against cheating. If you suspect someone has some power that they shouldn't have, you can easily check the website to see what they did to earn it.

For more information about Dreamstones and Resonance, see Rewards.

Territories

Generally, players will gather at an agreed on time/place. It is common to play in local parks, college campuses, or other relatively secluded spots where one can get into a boffer fight without accidentally hitting a bystander.

Certain areas are hotspots for the game and may be points for action or intrigue. A park, restaurant, or trail through the woods can have a special meaning to characters in the Dreaming. They may be able to take special actions there which affect the Dream Country or its residents.

The Dreaming takes place at locations chosen by players. By doing Dreamscaping Rituals, you can turn a location into an arena, performance hall, banquet hall, sanctuary, or several other types of areas. Combat may take place in areas designate by territory's owner.

Whoever creates a location may take ownership of it. Each player may own one territory at a time. The owner of a location is called a Warden, and is imbued with special powers they may use while there.

Players can challenge each other to take control of territory. Boffer fights, chess matches, foot races, and other types of challenges are allowed to contest a location. Though you may only own one location at a time, a group of people working together can take over large portions of the Dreaming.

See also: Territories

Combat

Combat takes place using foam boffer weapons and spell packets. Generally, characters can about five hits from a weapon before they lose consciousness. Some people have special attacks they can use with their boffer weapons.

Some characters can deliver ranged attacks or spells using spell packets. Spell packets are little pouches filled with birdseed that you throw at your target.

Combat is based on the honor system. You are expected to play fairly, only use what skills you have available, and die when you've run out of hit points.

Sometimes you will fight other players. On Dream Walks, you will generally fight shades - players who have temporarily become monsters.