Difference between revisions of "Bomb The Lantern"

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|designer=[http://fire-hazard.net Gwyn Morfey]
 
|designer=[http://fire-hazard.net Gwyn Morfey]
 
|image=Fire_hazard_logo.png
 
|image=Fire_hazard_logo.png
|players=10-25
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|players=6 - (untested)
 
|stuff=A torch for each player. Boundary markers. A lantern and a box. "Bombs", which can be almost anything.
 
|stuff=A torch for each player. Boundary markers. A lantern and a box. "Bombs", which can be almost anything.
 
|crew=Two Safety Officers.
 
|crew=Two Safety Officers.
|preparation=10-30 minutes.
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|preparation=10 minutes.
|time=10-20 minutes.
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|time=10-15 minutes per round
 
|place=A large dark area with plenty of cover.
 
|place=A large dark area with plenty of cover.
 
|activities=Running, shouting, acting, sneaking, teamwork.
 
|activities=Running, shouting, acting, sneaking, teamwork.
|status=untested
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|status=tested
 
}}
 
}}
  
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Defenders cannot enter the marked boundaries, so they can't get too close to either the lantern or the bomb stash.
 
Defenders cannot enter the marked boundaries, so they can't get too close to either the lantern or the bomb stash.
  
A defender can 'tag' an attacker. The attacker must hand over the bomb if they are carrying one (taking it out of play), and return to the start point before attacking again.
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A defender can 'tag' an attacker. The attacker must hand over the bomb if they are carrying one (taking it out of play).
  
 
==Scoring==
 
==Scoring==
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Teams are not marked, may not know each other, and it's dark. Pretending to be on the other team ("don't worry - I've got this area covered" or "hey, I'm nearly there, give me the bomb!") is entirely legitimate.
 
Teams are not marked, may not know each other, and it's dark. Pretending to be on the other team ("don't worry - I've got this area covered" or "hey, I'm nearly there, give me the bomb!") is entirely legitimate.
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 +
Moving the bomb stash closer to the target (only one bomb at a time) is legitimate but risky, since defenders don't have a carry limit and can confiscate the whole thing if they find it.
  
 
==Rationale==
 
==Rationale==
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This is a variant of Storm The Lantern. It attempts to avoid either a positive feedback loop reinforcing the winning team (by having caught attackers become defenders), or player elimination (which is boring). By working to a fixed time/ammo count, it also attempts to avoid the possibility of very short games.
 
This is a variant of Storm The Lantern. It attempts to avoid either a positive feedback loop reinforcing the winning team (by having caught attackers become defenders), or player elimination (which is boring). By working to a fixed time/ammo count, it also attempts to avoid the possibility of very short games.
  
==Work To Do==
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==Variants==
How wide do the exclusion areas need to be? Do attackers really need to return to the start, or may they hang around (but now dis-armed)?
 
  
Given that this has the 'running away' mechanic, how do we stop people getting hurt?
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Tagging people is quite dangerous when they're running at speed in the dark. You can use giant inflatable swords to make this safer, although it also makes it harder to pretend that you're on the other team.
  
What ratio of players should there be? How many bombs do we start with? Do we make them all available at once?
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The 'freezeray' variant allows defenders to freeze attackers just by shining their torch on them. They still have to actually tap the attacker to make them drop their bomb.
  
 
==Game Reports==
 
==Game Reports==
Fire Hazard ran this at Hampstead Heath on October 10, with 9 players. It's great fun, but incredibly violent, and still needs some work.
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Fire Hazard has run this game twice. It's great fun, and not violent if you're using freezelights or inflatable swords, but still involves running full-speed with lights off.

Latest revision as of 09:05, 17 November 2009

Bomb The Lantern
Fire hazard logo.png
Designer: Gwyn Morfey
Year: unknown
Players: 6 - (untested)
Stuff required: A torch for each player. Boundary markers. A lantern and a box. "Bombs", which can be almost anything.
Crew required: Two Safety Officers.
Preparation: 10 minutes.
Time required: 10-15 minutes per round
Place required: A large dark area with plenty of cover.
Activities: Running, shouting, acting, sneaking, teamwork.
This is a tested game. It's been tested in real life, but needs a bit more polishing before it's fully playable.
Cc-by-nc.png
This game is made available under an Attribution-Noncommercial Creative Commons licence. (What does this mean?)

Setup

Put the lantern and box in the center of the play space, and mark a boundary around it at a radius of perhaps 10m.

Put a bomb stash at the edge of the play space and mark a boundary around it.

Split the players into 'attackers' and 'defenders', and brief them.

Start the timer and sound the air horn to start the game. When the timer expires, end the game.

Play

Attackers: Attackers aim to get their 'bombs' into the lantern box. Each player can carry only one bomb at a time, in their hands (not hidden in pockets). They can move freely.

Defenders: Defenders cannot enter the marked boundaries, so they can't get too close to either the lantern or the bomb stash.

A defender can 'tag' an attacker. The attacker must hand over the bomb if they are carrying one (taking it out of play).

Scoring

One point per bomb in the box. Presumably you'll then switch the teams around and play again, for comparison purposes.

Tricky Bits

Teams are not marked, may not know each other, and it's dark. Pretending to be on the other team ("don't worry - I've got this area covered" or "hey, I'm nearly there, give me the bomb!") is entirely legitimate.

Moving the bomb stash closer to the target (only one bomb at a time) is legitimate but risky, since defenders don't have a carry limit and can confiscate the whole thing if they find it.

Rationale

This is a variant of Storm The Lantern. It attempts to avoid either a positive feedback loop reinforcing the winning team (by having caught attackers become defenders), or player elimination (which is boring). By working to a fixed time/ammo count, it also attempts to avoid the possibility of very short games.

Variants

Tagging people is quite dangerous when they're running at speed in the dark. You can use giant inflatable swords to make this safer, although it also makes it harder to pretend that you're on the other team.

The 'freezeray' variant allows defenders to freeze attackers just by shining their torch on them. They still have to actually tap the attacker to make them drop their bomb.

Game Reports

Fire Hazard has run this game twice. It's great fun, and not violent if you're using freezelights or inflatable swords, but still involves running full-speed with lights off.