[arg_discuss] a new game - bear with me i love you and need your help

[Catherine Herdlick]

Hi All,

Catherine Herdlick here.  I drift in and out of reading this discussion list
- some of you might know me from the Come Out & Play Festival (I was one of
the committee people and dealt with all the volunteers) and others from
Gamelab (maybe a few just from IGDA).

ANYHOW, I'm getting ready to run my first solo game.  I haven't run a real
world game in awhile - last one was a Midnight Madness style game in NYC and
before that Capture the Flag games and variants.  I guess I'm making an ARG
this time around.  But I'm not so so so sure about that (cuz I'm not so so
so sure about wtf an ARG is).  In any event, I'd like - er I NEED - y'all's
help.

Here's the dealio - I'm taking a long bike ride across the country for the
next 2 months (really!) and and am taking advantage of the time away from
work to run this awesome (i hope) game that I've been thinking about for
nearly a year now in some form or another.  The game has nothing to do with
riding a bike, but it does have to do with traversing the country.

Taylor Garcia is about to lose her dear old Aunt Anna Ravelo.  Four teams
(er, family branches) will be helping Taylor unravel a mystery left behind
by Aunt Anna.  Taylor is going to visit some of Anna's old stomping grounds
in the wild west and the dirty south.  At each location, a piece of lore
will be offered by one of Anna's old friends (lore = puzzle, Taylor will
post relevant details to the internet).  When a team solves a piece of lore
(proving their wisdom), they'll be given a challenge - to go somewhere
(physically) - to prove their loyalty.  Once they've proven their loyalty,
they'll get a clue about the final mystery.   Teams get points for solving
lore (wisdom points) and meeting challenges (loyalty points).  Taylor hopes
that the team with the most points gets to the spot/location of the mystery
first/at the appropriate time because if a not-so-wise-or-loyal teams gets
there first, we all turn into ZOMBIES!!  If the wisest-most-loyal team gets
there, we're all FOREVER YOUNG.  Something like that - I'm still sorting
through how to frame the ending.  What will REALLY happen, though, is that
whoever shows up at the right place at the right time will get to help me
celebrate my birthday party in total awesomeness and style.

There are 10 puzzles - 10 challenges.  There are aboout 15 mystery clues
(I'll be giving those out mostly for meeting loyalty challenges but there
might be a few remote ways to earn the clues).  One finish line.

So....if anyone is still reading:
(1) Do you have any feedback?
(2) Any tips?
(3) Will you play?
(4) Will you make your friends play?
(5) How do I get people to play?
(6) Anything else??

I'm making a lot of it up as I go, while I ride.  So far, all that's public
is the pre-amble blog.  I'm trying to set the scene for players and also
myself.  I guess it's the main page for now.
http://deathandhonor.blogspot.com/   Oh yeah, the game will be called  LAWN
GAMES FOR LIFE.  I'm still teasing out how to explain why.  But I'm into the
name.

Lawn Games for Life loves you!

XO.Catherine