Introduction

Somewhere, there is a Mastermind...but that's for "Child's Play II".

The Rockhauser Home for Orphan Children (RHOC) is a dreary place. On purpose. A few miles away life is pretty good and extremely modern for the inhabitants of the shadow called Paranoid Techno Earth.

Dr. Emmanuel Odysseus Stevens heads a secret government project that studies strange dimension-hopping Aliens the government is convinced exist. Through hard work and technological marvels (i.e. collusion with a shadowy Mastermind) a collection of eight or so clones of various powerful "Aliens" are being studied at RHOC.

The "E" series has lasted the longest. Dr. Stevens is fascinated by the cut-throat competition he observes in these children. Technological problems caused various problems with the first several batches: the subjects tended to become nasty and uncontrollably violent, or moody and psychotic, or moody and suicidal, or worse yet, moody, psychotic, and suicidal at the same time.

Since these aliens are very powerful physically, extreme measures have been taken to assure the safety of the surrounding society. The building is set in an abandoned "brown zone" area of an industrial landscape near but not too close to the sea. Several platoons of heavily armed soldiers ring the facility.

For GMs wishing more detail about the shadow, it's a shadow Earth where England retained control of the American colonies, and the USA is now part of the Commonwealth. Technology is at about a 2020 level, although the technology used by Dr. Stevens project is much more advanced. The RHOC is somewhere on the east coast, in industrial New Jersey.

In this shadow, time passes about 5-10 times faster than in Amber.

On the fifth floor, a sophisticated surveillance operation keeps tabs on the subjects 24 hours a day. The staff is hand-picked from various intelligence agencies.

History

Series "A" produced only four nominally healthy subjects. Speed-grown to the age of 8, all four were dead within six months of being introduced to the artificial environment of RHOC. Improvements were made to RHOC's facility and training was improved.

Series "B" produced five healthy subjects. One, Bill, died of a massive brain hemorrhage in his sleep during an intense dream episode. The other four committed suicide, were put down by the staff, or had killed each other by the end of eight months.

Series "C" also produced five subjects. They lasted a year, during which time they managed to come within yards of escaping the facility. Once again, suicide and murder were the leading causes of death amongst the group - before the escape attempt, that is.

Series "D" was an outstanding success, producing seven subjects. They were put down as a group after the nearly perfect murder of the Instructor for Arts / Crafts, Laurence Hanks. It was decided that the all-male staff needed leavening, so Dr. Mary Kahane, a Psychiatrist specializing in criminal psychology, was brought in to take Hank's place.

By the time Series "E" was integrated into the RHOC environment, the study has been active for almost ten years. To date, the eight subjects of Series E have functioned as children normally do, albeit with outstanding achievement scores. This group has now achieved the longest post-natal record, and the study is now entering uncharted territory...

What's Really Going On

Dr. Stevens, tasked by his government with studying anomalies caused by shadow-walking Amberites, spent years hunting vague clues that petered out into inexplicable nothingness. Then one day he found evidence: blood left in a hotel room by someone who, it was absolutely established using security camera footage, walked out one door but did not come out the other side.

The blood proved to be human...almost. Intrigued by it's odd chemical properties, Dr. Stevens continued his search. Years later, he was no closer to an answer, and the source of his funding was tired of his excuses.

Then a shadowy figure approached him. This person did amazing things. He - or she? could lift a large-screen entertainment center over his head. His benefactor laid out an amazing scheme: he - or she? would provide genetic samples of various aliens to Dr. Stevens. Dr. Stevens, in turn, would use available technology - with a little help - to create clones of the "aliens."

Study the clones, said the stranger, and you will know us as best you can.

So Dr. Stevens did just that. Now, after ten years of active studies, he has amassed a huge amount of data about these "aliens." Yet he is left with more questions than when he started. There is no clue about the alien's ability to move, so it seems, between dimensions. There is no clue as to why the aliens are stronger, pound for pound, than regular human beings.

There is no clue as to why the aliens are so determinedly competitive, and so ready to cut throats: their own, others, it doesn't matter.

Storyline

See the section labeled "Action" for full details. In general, the kids will have a little tussle at first to help the players get to know each other, then the clues will begin to pile up that something odd is going on. Once the characters take some form of direct action the final scenes unfold: escape, murder, investigation, and... odd psychic happenings?

Clews

How to Use Clews

This list of clues contains subtle and not-so-subtle events, things the characters notice or find, and so on. The early "clews" should disturb the players and give them the feeling that something is...odd about the RHOC. Several things already are odd: misbehaving kids get sent to the infirmary? Why isn't there any traffic outside? How come no one in the "E" section knows their birthdays?

Working clews into the fabric of the game needs to be done with a subtle hand. As the players announce what their characters are doing, GMs should scan the list and find items that can be slipped in as part of the normal resolution of the player-initiated event.

For example, if Elias breaks into his Math instructor's desk to get the answers to the Big Exam so he can get a leg up on being King of the Classroom (Ellie is tough competition, after all!) and no one sees him do it... when he gets caught, the teacher (who has been filled in by the surveillance guys on the fifth floor) can drop a specific detail that could only be known to someone who saw Elias break open the desk.

In other words, the clue is there, but the GM didn't have to make up an event to introduce it, which makes the clue more effective (and more scary).

Each clue is labeled I, II, and/or III, and some are in italic text. The numbers refer to the phases (see "Action," later in the article), and clues in italics are key clues that will likely be the catalyst that sparks a move from one phase to another.

The Clews (In No Particular Order)

I: Funny Belly Buttons: All E-section kids have outies - other kids have innies.

I: Tough Guys: Male faculty are all brawny, young, fit, military looking.

I: Ghosts in the Attic: Unexplained creaks and thumps occasionally come from the 5th floor.

I: Freudian Slips: Staffers sometimes call the Proctor "Dr. Stevens".

I: Twonkies: Jet planes, digital watches, and vocabulary used by the staff reveal there is higher tech than 1930's level used in RHOC.

I: No Happy Endings: Although RHOC is an orphanage, no one is ever adopted.

I/II: Drugs: Misbehaving kids get sent to infirmary where they are tranked.

I/II: Power Surges: Unexplained electrical fluctuations occur in the RHOC building as equipment on 5th goes on/off.

I/II: Secret Files? There is a very locked cabinet in the Proctor's office.

I/II: Stranger: A man in a white coat is sometimes seen at night at top of stairwell smoking a cigarette. He is terrified of the E-series kids.

I/II: Fairy Tales: Stories read in class and related by the staff seem to revolve around "Evil Aliens who look like us being defeated by noble really human Heroes."

II: Military Rumors: Some other orphan insists that "soldiers live next door. I saw 'em!"

II: It's All a Haze: None of the E-series has any memories past 10-12 months ago.

II: Hidden Messages: Dots over letters in a PC's textbook spells out: "We killed Hanks but they saw us somehow. Soon we will be gone just like the others. If you can read this be careful. Watched always. Not like other kids. Remember us: Danny, Doug, Dagmar."

II: Enhanced: The E-series is stronger, faster, and smarter than the other kids; almost equal to adults in many ways.

II/III: Hidden Treasure: A toilet in the dorm bathroom has a secret compartment that conceals a home-made knife (a shiv), about seven meters of rope made from braided bedsheet, and a small piece of paper (see below), all in a plastic bag.

The note reads as follows. Side one: "Anne - let's sneak into the gym tonight. -Arthur" Side two: "C. - I told you there were others here before! This was stuck to my bed frame with gum! Hide it in the place, we'll show others Sat night."

II/III: Mess: One mattress in E-series dorm is stained with blood (see History. The blood is Bill's).

II/III: Restless Nights Various characters have dreams of horses, dreams of blood, dreams of pain, dreams of pleasure, etc. They are experiencing psychic leak-over from their adult equivalents.

III: Shaken Days: Proctor separates any child he learns has had a dream (via surveillance or however) and tells them they are "special," that they have "special powers," and how they can "help" the Proctor (see Action, Phase III).

III: Loose Lips: An idle comment overheard from an adult: "They aren't human, you know," in reference to characters.

Always make up clues as necessary (and take advantage of game events) to move the story along!

Action: Managing the Cyclone

While very self-contained (almost all the action takes place within one building), eight different players asking for attention all at the same time can result in a whirlwind of activity once things get rolling. GMs should manage this situation by funneling the characters together and having them work in teams as opposed to solo. Also, managing the clock is a very important method of weather control.

By keeping everyone close together time-wise, confusion can be kept to a minimum, and GMs can avoid some of the more vicious forms of headache that can arise from spreading ongoing action out over an entire day.

Phase I: Establishing Dominance

Why do Amberites compete? It's in their blood. Naturally, Amberite children are no different, even if they've been raised away from their endlessly scheming relatives. Phase I helps introduce the players to each other as characters (GMs should at least have the players introduce themselves as characters and describe themselves briefly).

The first real game day should be a day of tests, or perhaps the day before the "big exams." Go through the timetable on the Player Information hand-out and bring in as many pithy details as possible: mystery meat at dinner, a dodgeball game at recess, and so on.

As each segment of the day goes by, GMs should check their Data Grids and circle the conflicting "King" goals. While there is more class time than any other activity, GMs should be sure to give equal weight to the four activities. If only one character has expressed a desire to "rule" a particular realm, they get to be King of that area.

The fun begins when two or more characters vie for dominance. The strongest contenders for any one area will have expressed a lack of desire to compete in some other area and will also have taken the "Bad Kid" label. Starting position, however, is just that: GMs should let the players resolve who is dominant (and who falls where in the subsequent pecking order) by role-playing. One more time: rank in any one area is to be determined by role-playing.

This is an abbreviated form of an Amber characteristic auction, one that emphasizes role-playing. In a convention setting, moving as quickly as possible to role-playing is better than holding an auction. Of course, during all of this role-playing, various I and I/II "Clews" should be worked into the game.

As much game time should pass as necessary to accomplish the goals of Phase I: enough to give the players a good sense of their characters and their environment. A game week or two should be sufficient.

Phase II: Aha! A Mystery!

Phase II is characterized by a general search for information. By now the players have figured that something strange is going on. But what? As the search progresses, the characters should come across various tidbits that suggest they are being watched. Since the surveillance doesn't extend into the shower/toilet area or into the playground (there are cameras but no microphones), a bit of clever testing and deduction should reveal to the characters where they can go to have private chats.

Towards the end of Phase II, when dreams and more disturbing and clear information come to light, the players will begin contemplating various actions that might initiate Phase III.

Phase II might only take a few game days - perhaps as long as a game week - to complete.

Phase III: Conflict and Revelation

Once the children "act out," and/or at least one child has been isolated for the Proctor's Trump experiment (see below), Phase III has begun. The orphans may be under close arrest after being caught doing something (such as escaping) that reveals they know too much, or they may be under heightened scrutiny as they progress through their regular schedule.

This phase is characterized by direct action: sneaking around at night, trying to pick locks, trying to escape, and so on. It is fundamentally impossible for the children to escape, and it's most likely that the characters will end up in some kind of restraints before they are ultimately rescued.

One advantage to being caught and restrained, however, is that at that point, RHOC will be emptied of other children and the staff will stand down from their constant surveillance duties. The soldiers will remain on duty, of course, but inside RHOC, if the kids escape their bonds, they will have an opportunity to roam about and collect information, possibly taking on adults one at a time.

Proctor's Pictures

The Proctor has, unknown to the Mastermind, color photographs of Trump taken by surveillance cameras quite accidentally years ago when some random Amberite made a quick pass through the shadow. Through sophisticated computer modeling, he has determined that the Trump are representations of the clones he's working on in their original, adult form.

Once dreams come into the picture, the Proctor shows the images to the children (perhaps while they are strapped into gurneys in the infirmary after an unsuccessful escape attempt, perhaps as a special activity in the Proctor's office). He will try drugging them and showing them the pictures, but eventually give up and put the pictures away.

These images are the means of escape open to the children, as a successful Trump contact is possible between the orphan who is King of the Classroom (Psyche) and their genetic parent. In fact, a series B kid, Bill, managed such a contact but was killed by the Amberite he contacted - sometimes that's how Amberites react to strange Trump contacts!

Phase I, II, and III Recap

Generally speaking, during the first few weeks of game time the players get to know each other and the routine is established. In Phase II things get more serious as the characters put together a picture that suggests they are in danger: kids with names starting with A through D used to live where they live now, and they aren't around any more.

Once they do something outrageous enough to suggest they can't be left to run around loose, Dr. Stevens will confine them and try out his Trump experiments (it's also possible the kids will be super-sneaky and these experiments go on during the normal school routine). Ultimately the characters have to get their hands on the Trump and one of them has to contact their genetic parent (their Icon, of course!) so they can escape into Child's Play II, in which the orphans find themselves in Castle Amber!

Child's Play Part 1: Introduction
Child's Play Part 1: Plot
Child's Play Part 1: Hand-Outs