Running People's Glorious Revolutionary Adventure as Straight "...But some are more Red than others."Almost killed myself laughing on the freeway realizing the gimmick to make running People's Glorious Revolutionary Adventure as Straight believably yet still torturing them.
See, I like the
idea of PGRA; it has three really fundamental Straight notions trapped in there:
- To the Computer, the entire Complex is an experimental space.
- The Computer is in a schizophrenic war with itself, in part caused by High Programmers.
- That every single Clone in the experiment is Red, making them of equal clearance... but some are more Red than others.
I was thinking of different ways to make this interesting as a Straight adventure - some of which should be in there, like having every member of the group an undercover agent of IntSec to make it a spy circlejerk - but it was in thinking about
how the NPC clones 'still know clearances' but for some reason the players DON'T which is IMHO the first miss it has.
And it hit me. "What if it was like that dumb party game where you have your identity on a card taped to you so
you don't know it, and have to guess it from the questions people ask?" And there it was. All of the players can clearly see each
other's security clearance, but cannot see their own. And all security clearances are Red when spoken out loud, no matter what, so they can't tell each other...
And one of the PCs is UV. The very same UV who programmed the Computer to start this experiment.See, UV-Citizen was such a dedicated Communist that he wanted to create a sub-Complex, a single sector ruled peacefully by Communists to show the Computer that it really wasn't such a bad thing after all. Only problem is that the software he wrote dictated that everyone enter a new job, the same job they had when they were Red Clearance... and he was a
troubleshooter back then. Not realizing it would include HIM until the last moment before his memory was erased, he now subconsciously
hates the Commplex for robbing him of his rightful place at the top - and so he's a member of the NazCIA trying to overthrow it.
So, yeah, that's a bit of Classic there. Guy who created this sub-complex because he was a super traitor ends up being a super traitor TO the sub-complex. Hell, if he does a real good job it might be the only way he survives debriefing - forget being UV again. But it's also twisted enough to survive a Straight exposure too.
But what to do when the UV discovers his clearance? You can reign him in with the Commputer having automatically (and without announcing) granting brevet clearances regarding him to everyone who SHOULD be able to give him orders - including his Team Leader, as is standard. Also, everyone's reflec and weapons are just Red clearance, no fractional bullshit, which should makes backstabbing... interesting.
Now, that's backstory aside. Yeah, they all have different clearances, but the higher clearances should be assigned to the less important MBDs, and the lone real Red be made Team Leader. Bonus points to putting the UV in charge of Hygiene. And yes, they can PULL those clearance ranks to give orders, but...
Doing so is noted as treason by the Commputer, as it's against the Communist
theory as per the data it has. Even if it's something that HAS to be done to keep the Commplex running, it's still treasonous. This means that the competent ones giving orders are accumulating treason until they suddenly are executed and replaced by their clone, all under orders of the Commputer. Oh, and incompetence is ALSO rewarded with treason points... and all treason points also carry over to the debriefing. "You couldn't even obey my orders to be Communists properly; it fills me with sorrow but..."
And therein lies the Straight play of it - what makes communism worst than capitalism is how it treats ambition and skill as treasonous traits, worthy of suspicion at best and execution all too often. The revelation that Alpha Complex might actually be
worse under communism should make a few of your players shocked.
Having a glorious mural to the People's Revolution depicting dozens of clones (including them!) on the side of the main building, but each time they enter it another face is being erased out, might make them feel the right mood.
Wait, does that mean the UV player is shafted either way if he uses his UV clearance to help the NazCIA destroy the Commputer, or doesn't use it and works for the Commputer? Oh yes.
Now, what would a Commputer be worried about enough to send Smershoviks - er, Troubleshooters - to shoot? Here's a few ideas but I'd welcome more.
- Defectors from the real Complex (something like the BER/LIN Sector part of the adventure, but a bit more straight; at this point both Com and Comm-puter are on the same page, the sector must be quarantined.)
- NazCIA sabotage (a leaflet drop? Followed by something worthy of the worst PURGE terrorists?)
- Running the Harlequin part as something fairly straight, where the Commputer is so worried about a clown from the real Complex running around throwing cream pies it's willing to allow a reactor be destroyed?
- Infiltrating the Alpha Complex to spread propaganda - and when getting there the normal Computer orders them to destroy it, with both sets of orders being valid? This is where the Computer realizes things have gone wrong and tries to take over the Commputer subnode - but isn't strong enough.
- Trying to rescue the Commputer from Vulture Soldier strike squads? Ample opportunity to screw them over with their own actions just before the debriefing.
That's all I've got so far. I feel like this might be enough to cement the whole thing as a solid adventure, but I might be missing something.
Man, I kinda want to turn ALL of the old, really Zap adventures into Straight ones. Some of them might be interesting to twist around, like The Iceman Returneth (...and the old programmer fails in the end). Others? I fail to see how Creatures of the Nightcycle or Clones in Space could be made Straight (and at least decent).
Man. Nightcycle was actually my introduction to Paranoia, back when I was really irritated by Game: The Subtitle. That's... weird to think about.
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