They howl and grow claws
You're a queer group of friends, you're on one final vacation together, and there's a monster in the woods; 3-6 players.
https://mxkit.itch.io/they-howl
They howl and grow claws is my attempt at making a Belonging Outside Belonging game that's meant to be played as a one-shot, over the course of only one or two sessions. You play as a queer group of friends who've just graduated either high school or college, and are all about to move away to different places and go your separate ways. It's the last night of your last vacation together, to a cabin in the woods that you've all been to plenty of times before, absolutely love, and feel at home at! Except this time there's a monster.
The game is meant to be played in two halves: One outside, around the campfire/bonfire at sunset, and one after the characters have retreated inside the cabin to get away from said monster. The monster isn't actually dangerous, though; this game has no combat and no risk of death. By the end of the game, some or all of the characters may even wish to join it and become like it. Because this game was also my attempt at capturing that feeling of wanting to embrace feeling inhuman...
Play as one of six playbooks:
- The Fool, who is heading semi-blindly but optimistically off to the big city to follow their dreams
- The Empress, who is pooling resources with some other like-minded people and getting a cabin to homestead
- Strength, who is struggling with an injury, mental illness, or something that is holding them back, but persevering
- The Hanged Man, who is staying here at home because this is where they're needed, and they're okay with that
- The Devil, who is dropping everything to move long-distance and live with someone they love
- The World, who feels fulfilled by their graduation and is taking some time off for globetrotting
(This game was made for the belonging outside belonging jam; go and check out everyone else's games, too!)