The Electric State, Into the Dust 1 of 3
Back in February, I called on four travellers - Martin, Jon, Alex and Gareth to join me on a road trip into an alternate 90s dystopian landscape. The Electric State. It is now July, our Journey is at an end.
I was excited by this Kickstarter as it felt Free League were becoming the IP RPG provider of choice, with such fantastic games, who can complain? But I loved their original stuff like Coriolis and Tales from the Loop. The Electric State seemed to call back to that, sourcing the amazing artistic inspiration of Simon Stålenhag.
This was all before a Netflix movie was even on the horizon, of which I’ll avoid too much comment, only that for me, it didn’t inspire me the way the original art book and the RPG had.
The setting is comparable to the film Civil War, in that America has fought itself to near destruction. In parallel, it has become addicted to a sophisticated virtual reality, the Neuroscape, aka The Electric State, which has also been pivotal in the war, controlling massive military drones. Society is on the downward curve towards annihilation. This is also the 90s, an alternate 90s, but still, we have the familiar fashion and music with which we can wallow in nostalgia.
When you think of this RPG, think of Road Movies. Zombieland, Thelma & Louise, The Sure Thing. You can pretty much twist any genre into a road movie; it’s all about the “Why?”. Why is your PC going on a Journey? To find love, ah, it’s a Romcom Road Movie, to escape hordes of zombies, oh, it’s a Horror Road Movie.
Note that there are no real zombies in The Electric State, aside from those in thrall to their Neurocasters, or possibly some in the Neuroscape!
My favourite road series that I think best aligns with The Electric State is the late 70s, early 80s show The Incredible Hulk. Essentially, David Banner (forever Bill Bixby is immortalised in this role) goes from town to town trying to find a cure for his RAGE. Still, it is more about the people he meets, the bonds and relationships he forms, the situation he uncovers and his attempts to right wrongs. Even if he more often than not lays waste to the town in Hulk form, before making a sharp exit. “Sorry! I’ll get me coat…”
So, who are you and what do you do in The Electric State? For sure, you have a Dream (the carrot) and a Threat (the stick); these two elements keep you moving forward towards your shared Destination with the other travellers. Most games begin in Media Res. You are on the road, travelling across the landscape of war-torn America, listening to your Walkman or bantering with your fellow travellers. There is Tension in the air, not all of you get on all of the time, and some of you may actively dislike each other.
But the important point is you have a car, and this car is your only way to reach the Destination that you all share.
The GM throws in some random Encounters, think wandering monsters or some simple puzzles or even just a bit of an oddity to gawp at through the window.
Eventually, you reach the first Stop (adventure). A Blocker means you cannot continue until that Blocker is resolved, e.g. damage to your vehicle. So you get out and explore, meeting the locals, getting caught up in their schemes, delving into something deeper and usually more deadly. Hopefully, things get resolved and you high-tail it on to your next destination.
Now you have some downtime, time to resolve Tension with your fellow travellers, get back some Hope (the main currency for using as a buffer against mental traumas). Maybe Tension ramps up with another character. Did they leave you in the lurch? So, heal your wounds. Read some Chuck Palahniuk. Strum a few chords of Bittersweet Symphony. Listen to the static on your radio.
That’s it. Rinse and Repeat. Decide as a GM how many Stops you want before the Journey’s end. Throw in a couple of Encounters between each Stop.
It seems simple, but the Tension and Hope merry-go-round fleshes out the PCs’ personalities and leads to some interesting roleplaying scenes. In addition, PCs have a Countdown, as do the Stops; there is a timeline of increasing threats that bring together the travellers and a range of unpleasant, deranged, annoying and interesting NPCs.
Before you know it, as a GM, you are juggling multiple Countdowns, relationships, and in many cases, to overcome problems, you need to enter The Electric State, so you also have a foot in both reality and virtual reality.
Entering the Neuroscape is fraught with danger. Ever since Mode 6, the latest release, citizens of Pacifica and other new regions born of the war have found themselves becoming trapped, unable to unplug, caught in the addictive power of this tech. But if you want to find anything out, if you want to control technology or Drones, then the Neuroscape is the only way. Beware, just as in the real world, you can be attacked, become broken, it’s not always the dream you’ve been promised by Sentre.
In Part Two, I’ll take you through how our group did in the starter mini-campaign, Into the Dust. i.e. how this all comes together in play.
Then, in Part Three, I’ll wrap it up with what I thought about the system, setting and this scenario as a complete package.
I may even convince Alex to publish some of his character Nantz’s diaries.