That Bitter Razor: a Game of Bad Directions and Blue Ruin

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That Bitter Razor

And the clock ticks out like a dripping faucet / Till you're full of rag water and bitters and blue ruin / And you spill out over the side to anyone who'll listen — Tom Waits

Art by Aleksander Rostov

The Furies

"What work/has fate assigned you, if not causing pain?" —  Aeschylus

Each player plays the Fury of another. Starting with the player who has the bleakest outlook and proceeding clockwise, each player chooses another player to act as their Fury, who will govern the outcomes of their character's actions. These outcomes will be determined in accordance with one or more of the Principles granted by the Fury's Face, an guiding aspect the Fury will choose secretly before they determine the outcome.

The Faces of the Furies


Drown-In-Tears

will make you alone forever 

cold and unloved

crying always


Principles

When determining outcomes choose one or more of the following
  1. Confirm their fears
  2. Punish them for what they're not
  3. Promise happiness, this time
  4. Force them to confront their own ugliness
  5. Show them what they're missing
  6. Push them towards perversions
Dramas
When responding to Dramatic Actions, choose one or more of the following
  1. A cruel betrayal
  2. A sudden death
  3. A pointless indignity
  4. An embarrassing mercy
  5. A shameful memory
  6. A sudden hope
  7. A cruel metaphor
  8. A scathing monologue
  9. A contrasting scene
  10. A doom spiral
  11. A bitter personification
  12. A moment of adoration

Burn-It-Down

will destroy what hurts you

and then you 

ash. ash. ash.


Principles

When determining outcomes choose one or more of the following

  1. Needle them
  2. Reward those who hurt them
  3. Show them no mercy
  4. Reward their brutality
  5. Let those they love see them at their worst
  6. Never let them feel safe
Dramas
When responding to Dramatic Actions, choose one or more of the following

    1. An unjust punishment
    2. An opportunity for vengeance
    3. A random slight
    4. A sudden escalation
    5. An unseen witness
    6. A taunting denial
    7. A rage-fueled delusion
    8. A sickening parallel
    9. A paranoid mania
    10. A violent power trip
    11. A gratuitously gory description
    12. A horrified plea

    In-Your-Brain

    will make a reality for you

    you will be king of it 

    and nothing else matters


    Principles

    When determining outcomes choose one or more of the following

    1. Drive home the pain of banality
    2. Stifle their impact
    3. Suggest patterns
    4. Show them the world's stupidity
    5. Make them feel misunderstood
    6. Give them a scapegoat
    Drama
    When responding to Dramatic Actions, choose one or more of the following
    1. A deific exultation
    2. A obvious omen
    3. A chain of mundane misfortune
    4. A sudden epiphany
    5. A naïve sycophant
    6. A chance to sneer 
    7. A beautiful dreamscape
    8. A miserable, useless awakening 
    9. A misread interaction
    10. A tantalizing figment
    11. A strange message
    12. An overheard threat


    Always-Be-Gold

    will surround you in endless splendor 

    and drown all your love in silk

    and bury you with your jewels


    Principles

    When determining outcomes choose one or more of the following

    1. Show them the peril of poverty
    2. Take away what they need
    3. Help to justify their greed
    4. Let them almost touch further opulence
    5. Let money buy them acclaim and adoration
    6. Put their relationships between them and their money
    Drama
    When responding to Dramatic Actions, choose one or more of the following
    1. A dizzying display of wealth
    2. A plea for charity
    3. A sudden health problem
    4. A lost asset
    5. A bad deal
    6. An incompetent subordinate
    7. A new fad
    8. A cruel chance for capital
    9. A showboating rival
    10. A parasitic friend
    11. A catalogue of beauties
    12. An opportunity that demands just a little more lucre

    Heavy-Heavy-Monkey

    will streamline your life 

    break it down to the simple science of needing some more

    and you’ll always need some more


    Principles

    When determining outcomes choose one or more of the following

    1. Give them easy access to vice
    2. Let indulgence ease their life
    3. Surround them with successful users
    4. Punish them for prudence 
    5. Dig them into debt
    6. Make withdrawal a living hell
    Drama
    When responding to Dramatic Actions, choose one or more of the following
    1. A debauched montage
    2. An overdosing acquaintance 
    3. A new product
    4. A party invite
    5. A barrage of stress
    6. A laced dose
    7. A worried friend
    8. A sudden bust
    9. A revelatory trip
    10. A blissful trance
    11. An unexpected shortage
    12. A desperate buyer

    Laughs-At-Pain

    will welcome hurt

    you will hate those weaker than yourself

    your suffering makes you worthy


    Principles

    When determining outcomes choose one or more of the following

    1. Punish them for the sins of others
    2. Let their suffering ease another's pain
    3. Show them the futility of fight and flight alike
    4. Reward them for endurance
    5. Dangle respite out of reach
    6. Make them dependent on those who hurt them
    Drama
    When responding to Dramatic Actions, choose one or more of the following
    1. A loved one lashing out
    2. A pitiful apology
    3. A pathetic display of weakness
    4. A whining victim
    5. A flagellant's relief 
    6. A destroyed comfort
    7. A righteous resolution
    8. A validating commiseration
    9. A sanctimonious delusion
    10. An end in sight
    11. A soothing touch
    12. A dreadful wait

    Characters

    "Man is nothing else but what he purposes, he exists only in so far as he realizes himself, he is therefore nothing else but the sum of his actions, nothing else but what his life is." — Jean-Paul Sartre

    Each player also controls a character. The player who feels most directionless goes first, then character discovery proceeds counterclockwise.

    To discover your character, roll 3 times on the Dramatic Action Table. Your character does these 3 actions frequently. They are not limited to these actions by any means, but these are the things around which your character has built an identity. 

    Remove the 3 actions you rolled from the Dramatic Action Table, and replace them with actions of your own creation. 

    Dramatic Actions

    When you want something dramatic to happen, do one of these things, then say "ENTER: [FACE] OR [FACE]." Your Fury will create Drama, wearing one of the two Faces you invited. 

    1. Toy With Your Rings 

    2. Watch the World Go By Out Your Window

    3. Sleeplessly Search For Answers

    4. Polish Your Gun

    5. Tinker With Your Car

    6. Hear Your Song On the Radio 

    7. Laugh and Smile Delightfully

    8. Hit a Target Dead Center 

    9. Think of an Old Lover

    10. Unpack a Picnic 

    11. Cut a Throat 

    12. Sing a Song Badly

    13. Consult a Map

    14. Buy a Strange Relic 

    15. Run Into an Old Friend 

    16. Find Something In A Pocket

    17. Tell a War Story

    18. Suck Up the Pain

    19. Tell a Lie

    20. Destroy Something Suddenly


    Play

    Hush, a wild violet / Hush, a band of gold / Hush, you're in a story / I heard somebody told 
     — Tom Waits

    Each player is responsible not only for their character, but for their character's perceptions. Describe the world around you and the characters that inhabit it as your character experiences them. Your Fury may, at any time, alter, complicate or introduce new elements to your character's perceptions. This includes taking control of non-player characters. Your Fury may determine that what your character experiences is false, but they cannot deny that your character experiences it. 

    When your character does something where the outcome is uncertain, do it.

    Then, ask your Fury what lies in store. Your Fury will secretly choose which Face they are wearing, and will decide the outcome in accordance with that Face's Principles.


    Your Fury has control over what happens to you, but you are not powerless. Here are the means by which you might wrest your destiny from your Fury's grip.

    Bargaining

    After your Fury describes the outcome of your action in accordance with their chosen Face's Principles, if you can name the Face your Fury has secretly chosen, you may Bargain with Fury.


    If your guess is correct, you may refute your Fury's chosen outcome by using the phrase "BUT ONLY IF" and suggesting some condition that must be met in order for the outcome to occur.


    Your Fury may add a condition of their own by using "BUT ONLY IF" in turn. You may then respond in kind, and this process continues until the two of you both agree to the outcome and seal your bargain by saying “SO IT WAS."


    If you cannot come to an accord, you may declare "YOU ASK TOO MUCH" to your Fury. If you do this, your Fury will alter their original outcome, and you must choose between that and their original offer. In this instance, you may not use "BUT ONLY IF" to amend either of the outcomes further.

    Dramatic Action

    When you want something dramatic to occur and wish to exert more agency over the result, you may take any Dramatic Action from either your characters 3 Dramatic Actions or from the Dramatic Action table.

    When you take a Dramatic Action, describe the action before using the phrase "ENTER" and naming the two Faces of Fury you are inviting to preside over the action. 

    Your Fury is now bound to do two things. First, they must choose from the two named Faces, and use that Face's Principles when determining the outcome of your action. Secondly, they must create Drama using one or more of the Drama entries of their chosen Face. 

    Paying the Price

    If you do not guess the Face your Fury wears, you may still attempt to seize your destiny and force your own chosen outcome by Paying the Price. Your Fury must grant this request, but will demand a cost. You may choose to Pay the Price and succeed in your chosen course of action, or agree to your Fury’s initial demands.


    Spiting The Furies


    In all cases, you may always choose to Spite your Fury and fail your action rather than accept the outcome your Fury has offered. Your Fury may punish you for failure, but it cannot kill you. The Furies can only ever offer death; it is up to you to choose it, which you may always do.

    Gambling With the Furies


    In all cases, rather than accepting your Fury's chosen outcome or paying the cost to secure your own, you may choose to Gamble with your Fury. Each side must declare what will happen should they win.

    By Gambling, you forfeit your right to choose your death, and your Fury may declare that you will die if you should lose. You and your Fury both roll a die, the higher number winning. The Furies win ties. 









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