My Life with Master
Encyclopedia
My Life with Master is an independently published
role-playing game
written by Paul Czege and published by Half Meme Press (it was first released at the 2003
Gen Con
gaming convention).
My Life with Master is a game about role-playing the servants or minions of an evil Master or Mistress.
The game is still in print (as of April 2008), and is available in printed book format or as a PDF file download from the publisher.
an country in the early 19th century. Players in the game portray the Igor
-like minions of an evil Master
(or Mistress) who preys on the nearby Townsfolk.
Like most role-playing games, there is a Gamemaster
(GM). In this case the GM plays the part of the Master. However, the GM and players together are supposed to "design" the Master, in terms of defining his "Wants", "Needs", "Aspect", and "Type". These traits have no explicit mechanical effect, but are used to define the desires and mannerisms of the Master and how he interacts with the Townsfolk and his minions. Masters have two game statistics
, "Fear" (a measure of his power over minions) and "Reason" (how much minions and Townsfolk can resist the Master's control over them).
In contrast, the Master's minions, the characters portrayed by the players, are defined (in terms of game statistics) by their levels of "Weariness" and "Self-loathing", and the connections of "Love" that they have (successfully or unsuccessfully) tried to make with the Townsfolk. Self-loathing is a measure of the power that a minion has to intimidate the Townsfolk, while Weariness limits their abilities to complete their tasks. Love allows minions to resist their Master and his demands on them.
Gameplay is generally resolved through a series of "scenes". A player describes what their minion is trying to do, be it carrying out their Master's wishes or trying to resist him, interacting with the Townsfolk, attempting an act of Love (which could result in increasing their "Love" trait, or increasing their "Self-loathing" if the attempt fails), etc. A series of dice
rolls are used to determine success or failure, and then the scene is played out according to that outcome.
Unlike other role-playing games that may have long campaigns
, My Life with Master games are typically designed to end after a small number of playing sessions. As one reviewer stated, My Life with Master "strives to tell a story, and stories have endings." Usually, a game culminates with the death of the Master at the hands of one (or more) of his minions. Sometimes, the Master dies because the Townsfolk are "sick of his predations" and "storm his domicile -- pitchforks in hand and torches aflame". Some or all of the players' characters might also meet their end in the hands of the Townsfolk, or the Master kills them as they try to resist his commands and suffer the consequences of their failure.
.
In addition, it also won the 2003 Out of the Box Award for Best Sui Generis RPG
and the 2003 Indie Roleplaying Game of the Year.
Steve Darlington, in his review, stated that "even if you never play this game, you will be smarter simply for having read it" since "it quickly becomes hard to distinguish [Czege's] choice of attributes from a high-level academic deconstruction of the character tropes in gothic horror films at a level which could easily be found on a college reading list." He also said that it is "one of the very few horror games that may actually need disclaimers, and maybe even safe words too" for its "darker subtext" about escaping from abusive relationships.
According to Heather Barnhorst "Czege writes with wit and doesn't fear to let his understanding of game theory shine through. Colin Theriot's illustrations evoke exactly the right mood for the setting and are enjoyable as stand-alone art."
Reviewer Matthew Pook warned that "Despite the simplicity of the [game] mechanics ... they are not as clearly written as they need to be ... The GM will need to make a close read of the otherwise well-written text to help grasp how the outcome of a scene will alter a minion's statistics." He concluded his review stating "although not going to be everyone's cup of tea, My Life With Master is the most interesting roleplaying game released this year [2003] and perhaps the most challenging."
Game designer Greg Costikyan
said that "My Life with Master works because Czege has chosen as the theme for his game a story genre (Gothic horror) that has a defined narrative arc: hubris and terror, followed by a fall" and that "It evokes emotions and feelings rare in games".
Indie role-playing game
An indie role-playing game is a role-playing game published outside of traditional, "mainstream" means. Varying definitions require that commercial, design, or conceptual elements of the game stay under the control of the creator, or that the game should just be produced outside of a corporate...
role-playing game
Role-playing game
A role-playing game is a game in which players assume the roles of characters in a fictional setting. Players take responsibility for acting out these roles within a narrative, either through literal acting, or through a process of structured decision-making or character development...
written by Paul Czege and published by Half Meme Press (it was first released at the 2003
2003 in games
This page lists board and card games, wargames, miniatures games, and table-top role-playing games published in 2003. For video and console games, see 2003 in video gaming.-Game awards given in 2003:*International Gamers Award: Hammer of the Scots...
Gen Con
Gen Con
Gen Con is one of the largest and most prominent annual gaming conventions in North America. It features traditional pen-and-paper, board, and card-style games, including role-playing games, miniatures wargames, board games, live action role-playing games, collectible card games, non-collectible...
gaming convention).
My Life with Master is a game about role-playing the servants or minions of an evil Master or Mistress.
The game is still in print (as of April 2008), and is available in printed book format or as a PDF file download from the publisher.
Gameplay
The prototypical setting of the role-playing game is in an unspecified Central EuropeCentral Europe
Central Europe or alternatively Middle Europe is a region of the European continent lying between the variously defined areas of Eastern and Western Europe...
an country in the early 19th century. Players in the game portray the Igor
Igor (fictional character)
Igor is the traditional stock character or cliché hunch-backed assistant or butler to many types of villain, such as Count Dracula or a mad scientist, familiar from many horror movies and horror movie parodies, the Frankenstein series and Van Helsing films in particular.-Origins:Dwight Frye's...
-like minions of an evil Master
Villain
A villain is an "evil" character in a story, whether a historical narrative or, especially, a work of fiction. The villain usually is the antagonist, the character who tends to have a negative effect on other characters...
(or Mistress) who preys on the nearby Townsfolk.
Like most role-playing games, there is a Gamemaster
Gamemaster
A gamemaster is a person who acts as an organizer, officiant for questions regarding rules, arbitrator, and moderator for a multiplayer game...
(GM). In this case the GM plays the part of the Master. However, the GM and players together are supposed to "design" the Master, in terms of defining his "Wants", "Needs", "Aspect", and "Type". These traits have no explicit mechanical effect, but are used to define the desires and mannerisms of the Master and how he interacts with the Townsfolk and his minions. Masters have two game statistics
Statistic (role-playing games)
A statistic in role-playing games is a piece of data which represents a particular aspect of a fictional character. That piece of data is usually a integer or, in some cases, a set of dice....
, "Fear" (a measure of his power over minions) and "Reason" (how much minions and Townsfolk can resist the Master's control over them).
In contrast, the Master's minions, the characters portrayed by the players, are defined (in terms of game statistics) by their levels of "Weariness" and "Self-loathing", and the connections of "Love" that they have (successfully or unsuccessfully) tried to make with the Townsfolk. Self-loathing is a measure of the power that a minion has to intimidate the Townsfolk, while Weariness limits their abilities to complete their tasks. Love allows minions to resist their Master and his demands on them.
Gameplay is generally resolved through a series of "scenes". A player describes what their minion is trying to do, be it carrying out their Master's wishes or trying to resist him, interacting with the Townsfolk, attempting an act of Love (which could result in increasing their "Love" trait, or increasing their "Self-loathing" if the attempt fails), etc. A series of dice
Dice
A die is a small throwable object with multiple resting positions, used for generating random numbers...
rolls are used to determine success or failure, and then the scene is played out according to that outcome.
Unlike other role-playing games that may have long campaigns
Campaign (role-playing games)
In role-playing games, a campaign is a continuing storyline or set of adventures, typically involving the same characters. The purpose of the continuing storyline is to introduce a further aspect into the game: that of development, improvement, and growth of the characters. In a campaign, a...
, My Life with Master games are typically designed to end after a small number of playing sessions. As one reviewer stated, My Life with Master "strives to tell a story, and stories have endings." Usually, a game culminates with the death of the Master at the hands of one (or more) of his minions. Sometimes, the Master dies because the Townsfolk are "sick of his predations" and "storm his domicile -- pitchforks in hand and torches aflame". Some or all of the players' characters might also meet their end in the hands of the Townsfolk, or the Master kills them as they try to resist his commands and suffer the consequences of their failure.
Critical reception
My Life with Master won the 2004 Diana Jones AwardDiana Jones Award
The Diana Jones Award is an annual award for "excellence in gaming". The award is unusual in two ways: first, it is not an award for a specific class of thing, but can be awarded to a person, product, publication, company, organization, event or trend – anything related to gaming; second, it does...
.
In addition, it also won the 2003 Out of the Box Award for Best Sui Generis RPG
and the 2003 Indie Roleplaying Game of the Year.
Steve Darlington, in his review, stated that "even if you never play this game, you will be smarter simply for having read it" since "it quickly becomes hard to distinguish [Czege's] choice of attributes from a high-level academic deconstruction of the character tropes in gothic horror films at a level which could easily be found on a college reading list." He also said that it is "one of the very few horror games that may actually need disclaimers, and maybe even safe words too" for its "darker subtext" about escaping from abusive relationships.
According to Heather Barnhorst "Czege writes with wit and doesn't fear to let his understanding of game theory shine through. Colin Theriot's illustrations evoke exactly the right mood for the setting and are enjoyable as stand-alone art."
Reviewer Matthew Pook warned that "Despite the simplicity of the [game] mechanics ... they are not as clearly written as they need to be ... The GM will need to make a close read of the otherwise well-written text to help grasp how the outcome of a scene will alter a minion's statistics." He concluded his review stating "although not going to be everyone's cup of tea, My Life With Master is the most interesting roleplaying game released this year [2003] and perhaps the most challenging."
Game designer Greg Costikyan
Greg Costikyan
Greg Costikyan, sometimes known under the pseudonym "Designer X" , is an American game designer and science fiction writer.Costikyan's career spans nearly all extant genres of gaming, including hex-based wargames, role-playing games, boardgames, card games, computer games, online games and mobile...
said that "My Life with Master works because Czege has chosen as the theme for his game a story genre (Gothic horror) that has a defined narrative arc: hubris and terror, followed by a fall" and that "It evokes emotions and feelings rare in games".
External links
- My Life with Master at Half Meme Press
- Review by game designer Greg Costikyan
- Half Meme Press Forum at The Forge, mostly concerned with MLwM