Historical Setting

Colonisation

By the very nature of this game we cannot ignore the subject of colonisation and that it has been the cause of generations of trauma and death.  It was intentional to gain control over land and people through conquest and the promotion of imperialism, by eradicating others through violence, subjugation, or assimilation. As a result, millions people have suffered through colonisation.

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It must be recognised that those who significantly suffer are the native populations living in the area being colonised. The game is set on the borders between Massachusetts and Connecticut in the late 1600s, where a number of indigenous peoples found themselves under attack, displaced by having their homes, and their resources stripped away from them. These peoples included:

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• Massachuseuck (Massachusett)

• Wôpanâak (Wampanoag)

• Narragansett

• Nehântick (Niantic)

• Nipmuc

• Nauset

• Pennacook

• Pequot

 

To ignore the presence of these peoples in this game serves to further eradicate their existence in the history of North America, something that we are not comfortable promoting. As such, we have decided that in Brave New World LRP indigenous people are present in the game world, but will not be played by any non-indigenous player or crew member. Instead they will be present through references by NPCs, downtime write-ups, and other ‘off-screen’ attributes.

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Players cannot:

• Play an indigenous person

• Have encounters with indigenous people in their backstory

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In game, we are treating this absence as the various indigenous people in the area actively distrust and avoid new colonists. They have opted to interact with other western power colonies who have existed in the area far longer than Providence Hill (such as the French, Spanish, Portuguese, and Dutch). 

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As player characters based in Providence Hill you are aware that native peoples exist, however, they are just beyond your sphere of influence..

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Any insults about indigenous populations specifically featuring their physical features and cultural identity will not be tolerated. Slurs are not to be used under any circumstances.

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“Othering”

“The act of treating someone as though they are not part of a group and are different in some way” - Cambridge Dictionary

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A large part of witch trials throughout history focused on the aspect of ‘othering’; singling people out for their perceived differences from the collective. This will be a major theme throughout Brave New World and players will be expected to engage in this both via NPCs and other Players as part of the PvP system. 

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Please be aware of this when engaging in this game. Players are always encouraged to check in with each other when participating in direct ostracisation.

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Xenophobia

A significant aspect of Colonisation involved in large-part was xenophobia. By creating an “Us vs. Them” narrative, both within the colony and without, we hope to raise questions, interactions, thought-provoking stories for players to take away with them. In the game there will be a number of different colonies that are English, but other imperial powers such as the French, Dutch and Spanish will feature as well. By the antagonistic nature of the game, the “Us vs. Them” narrative will feature as part of the storyline and players should expect In-Game xenophobia to feature.

Any behaviour that deviates into direct racism and racist ideologies will not be tolerated.

 

See the ‘Racism’ note under Features of the period we will not engage with.

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Religious Intolerance

This game is about exploring religious hysteria and part of that comes from a communal belief system. As such, players must play a Puritan character (see the “Puritan” section of the Gamebook for further details).

 

NOTE: We do not wish to deny players from playing characters of different faiths if they are wishing to explore this aspect of history and storytelling. If choosing to do so: to do so: 

• You must inform the Game Team if you intend to play a character who is not a Puritan.

• As a non-Puritan, you will not be able to make use of your Family Ability (you will also not be affected by Family Abilities used against you).

• You understand that the nature of the game will explore aspects of religious intolerance and these scenarios may be targeted towards you depending on the gameplay.

 

By exploring religious hysteria, we cannot pretend that religious intolerance does not exist - this will be a theme that appears in the game. To ignore religious intolerance when religious hysteria is a big theme of this game only serves as a veneer for the topic of discussion. 

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There will be NPCs encountered who will have different beliefs to the player characters, and players will have to decide how to interact with these NPCs following the “wrong” faith. There will be aspects of play where characters who do not identify as Puritan may be treated differently, poorly, or even be condemned for their faith. 

 

Any religious intolerance that includes words or phrases that are -phobic to a particular faith, such as slurs, will not be tolerated in this game.Example of historical words and phrases that people may engage with:

• “Popery” 

• “Heathens”

• “Agents of the Devil”

• “Devil Worshippers”

• “Idolators”

• “Cursed Set”

• “Anti-Christian”

• “Strangers”

 

We ask players to choose phrases that are non-specific to other religions where possible and focus on the fact that a character is not Puritan rather than direct insults to another faith directly.

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Ostracisation

The use of declaring someone a ‘witch’ or ‘bewitched’ was generally used as a blanket term against anyone who behaved (or was perceived to behave) outside of the status quo. Our aim is to recognise and engage in the concept of others’ perception and interpretation of active behaviour rather than inert in hopes to avoid a player’s actual behaviour being called into question.

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For example; The player of John Mathers is shy, and therefore rarely talks, or if they do, it’s very quiet. This is not something that should be called out.

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Mathias Porter quivers dramatically and uncontrollably in the presence of a cross. This is active behaviour and can absolutely be called into question.

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If ever you are unsure, we ask you to drop OC and simply ask to be on the safe-side.

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Any accusations made towards another individual specifically featuring their physical features, inert behaviour, disabilities, etc. will not be tolerated. You will be asked to leave the game and banned from any future VP Events. 

 

Sexism & Gender

The Puritans had a very strict and defined concept of gender, believing that there were only two genders: male and female. While both were believed to be spiritually equal, women were generally considered weaker in their ability to fight against corruption, and as such were submissive to men.

However, Puritan women had very high literacy compared to the norm of the period and held strict domestic authority. This paradox is something we wish to explore in this game in a safe manner. For all intents and purposes, men and women characters should consider the other gender as strange and incapable of their full understanding.

 

The ‘status quo’ for citizens of Providence Hill should be treated as thus:

• Church & Community Meetings: Men and women sit on separate sides of the building. 

• Speaking & Opinions: In community meetings, everyone is able to speak and share opinions regardless of gender. However, if a spouse (regardless of gender) tells the other to be quiet and they are ignored, it is considered improper and the sign of a disloyal spouse.

• Marriage: While Puritans did not openly engage in sex-before-marriage, they did believe that a happy marriage filled with love and mutual respect of the other’s domain would lead to less adultery and immorality. 

• The Domain: Men and women were considered masters of their respective areas of expertise and domains.
  
  Women were seen as the final say in regards to the running of the hearth and home, the management of supplies such as food, clothing, firewood, and the health and well-being of their family. It would also extend to the organisation and handling of servants, education, charity, perception of the family on a domestic level and familial respect. These topics were generally deferred to the woman at all times, and for a man to overstep their bounds into the ‘woman’s domain’ was considered highly inappropriate.
  
  Men on the other hand were very much in charge of more external features and traditionally “higher thought” skills and areas such as politics, religion, higher-education and learning, commerce, trade, and management of either businesses or land. They were also primed for more martial and physical roles such as soldiering, hunting, hard-graft, carpentry and other artisanal crafts. They would also be deeply focused on how the family is perceived on a wider political level and how that will affect their own personal reputation. A woman may share her opinion on such matters, but the man has the final say in regards to his area of expertise.

 

General hard-work to ensure the success of the family was balanced by both genders.

Your character gender will be based on what they appear as. If you are dressed in masculine clothes, your character will be perceived as a man; if you are dressed in feminine clothes, your character will be perceived as a woman.

 

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NOTE: There were always outliers in any given situation - for example Bridget Bishop in Salem was a businesswoman and owned large amounts of land, she was financially independent and a widower. While this gave her a certain level of respect, it also made her a target for the witch hysteria of the Salem Witch Trials for engaging in an aspect of life that was ‘not her domain’.

 

We as Game Runners wish to allow players to tell their own stories with their characters and those who wish to play with elements of gender presentation to do so. For example, a player may wish to play a female character who engages in more traditionally masculine roles. The player can absolutely do this, however they must be aware that there will be elements of pushback in the game as they would be considered as acting “outside the bounds of their gender”. We hope these instances will provide interesting roleplay opportunities for players to engage with.

Please consider this when deciding how you wish for your character to engage with their respective gender role.

 

Features of the period the gamewill not engage with

• Slavery - we recognise that slavery and the slave trade was a practice present at this time but this will not be explored in this game. , however there may be an acknowledgement that during this time in history it is present.

• Racism - while xenophobia will be present in the game, we will not be playing on any aspects relating to present or perceived race, skin colour, or ethnic origin.
   

Features of the period that may be engaged with if there is consent

• Homophobia - some players may wish to engage with storylines focused on queer relationships, which may sometimes include homophobia. The plot and storylines of Brave New World will not feature elements of homophobia. The game will treat queer relationships as ‘unspoken about’. However, players who may wish to engage in storylines relating to queer history and homophobia can do so but only with consent from all parties involved. Direct and open homophobia without consent will not be tolerated.