[noisms]

There are more things in heaven and earth, Horatio,
Than are dreamt of in your philosophy.

The Intro

Shonan may only be an hour from central Tokyo by train, but it is not how you imagined the suburbs of that metropolis to be. The towns that clutter the land between the hills and vast Sagami bay are lazy, sunswept and full of palm trees; the smell of the sea is everywhere. Surfers cycle through town with their boards strapped to their bikes; teenage boys skip school and ride the coastal highway on their mopeds with the girlfriends clinging on behind; the bars are full of men in Hawaiian shirts and women in bikinis; everybody wears flip-flops, even the postal workers. This is more like St. Ives or Santa Monica than what you might think of when you hear the words "near Tokyo".

But beneath the chic, beachside resort town surfer vibe, you sense something altogether different here. Dark shrines in hidden bamboo groves. Mysterious men in big gold-framed sunglasses on street corners talking Korean into mobile phones. Wind chimes making soft sounds in unknown locations in the middle of the night. Fortune-telling stalls outside train stations which never have any customers. 1000 yen bills floating by on the breeze in the early morning. You have a profound sense that under the surface here there are deep, unknown and unseen currents moving. Though what they are and what they mean, you have no clear idea.

But you intend to find out.

The Basics

The Bay of the Sun Tribe is an Unknown Armies game, set in the modern day, in the area of Japan known as Shonan. The players are foreign visitors - holidaymakers, exchange students, businesspeople, English teachers - who, for various reasons, become swept into the occult underground of contemporary seaside Japan.

I am looking for up to 4 players who can post descriptive and interesting pieces of grammatically correct prose once per day or so, and who are willing to take initiative in moving the game along. Prior knowledge of the Unknown Armies system is entirely unnecessary. It uses a very simple d10 based mechanic, and the game will emphasise creative role playing rather than mechanics.

The game will be relatively combat-lite. Unknown Armies is a game of investigation, speculation and exploration - of mental and physical space. It will explore themes that are somewhat dark.

Applications

Applications should consist of the following things:

• A basic character concept. Characters may be of any age and background, and of any nationality except Japanese. For now, don't bother to think of a reason why your character is in Japan.
• An Obsession. As the rulebook puts it: "You are a person who is turning away from the everyday to scratch deeper. You believe there are secrets that are worth learning. You are determined to discover them. You are not boring. You are an obsessed, passionate individual with a distinctive personality." Your obsession may be pleasure, it may be music, it may be Egyptian Antiques, it may be 9/11 truth theories, it may be religion. What gives your life meaning?
• A Fear Stimulus. What do you fear the most? Dogs? Fire? Victimization? Loneliness?
• A Rage Stimulus. What makes you lash out in blind fury? Child Abusers? Laziness? Foul language?
• A Noble Stimulus. What inspires you to be the best person you can be? A desire to protect the elderly? The bond of friendship? A love of entertainment?
• Finally, a Trigger Event. What is it that first made you think that things in this world might not be as they first appear? What got you thinking about the supernatural and the occult? From the rulebook: "Imagine it's a winter's night. You and the others have each come into a snowbound inn to escape the cold world beyond. A fire crackles. In this quiet space, over steaming mugs of hard cider, the bartender asks a simple question: What is the strangest thing you have ever experienced? Your answer may or may not have an impact on what happens during play.

I will take applications until June 20th, with a view to having a group of four players.