The Treaty of Berlin: the rules

The Rules

This covers the rules for The Treaty of Berlin. The material below contains:

What you need before the game
Game setting
What kind of game is this, anyway?
Game schedule
Game rules
Guidelines for play

Before the game:

There are several things you must have before the game. If you don't get this material, please contact the game organizer as soon as possible.

Item:	Description:
The Questionnaire:	Those pesky and impertinent questions we asked you in order to figure out the best role for you. You did fill them out and send it back in, didn't you?
The Public Description:	A list of the characters in the game. It is entirely possible that one or more additional characters may show up unannounced.
The Rules:	This information. This is general information about the party. This includes guidelines based on previous experiences with murder mystery parties. It includes rules and suggestions you should consider carefully when thinking about (and playing) your character. This information is not confidential; please ask the Game Masters if you have any questions.
Miscellaneous Information:	There are many pages of miscellaneous material provided as background information, to give you some idea of the times. It may or may not contain clues of relevance to your goals.
Your Biography:	This is CONFIDENTIAL INFORMATION!!! This is all of the real details about who you are. This is who you are going to 'be' for the evening. Again, please read the rest of these pages before saying anything!
Guest List:	This is a list of the characters and who is playing them. Please read the rest of these pages before discussing anything!

Here is what you may get at the game:

Item:	Description:
Arrival Information:	Some of you may be in for a few last-minute surprises. If you are, this information will be brief.

Game Setting:

There are several important things you need to know about the game setting:

Item:	Description:
Date of the Party:	In game time, the party is Saturday, May 13th, 1989.
Location:	This is dependent on the game run. The exact boundaries of the game space will be explained in the game briefing at the game run.
Attendance:	This party is created around a scenario that is plotted very tightly. The absence of any character will cause a major upheaval in the plot that would be disastrous. Thus, if you are unable to attend for whatever reason, please contact the game organizers as soon as possible. This is extremely important. The game organizers will need to find a replacement for your character.
Costume:	A party of this sort would definitely be black tie. We'd like to make it as formal as possible. Men should wear tuxedos (preferred) or dark suits. Ladies, start looking for a long dress. Please try to do your best; it adds a lot to a game.
Questions:	If you have questions about any of the information in any of this material, please contact the game organizer. The game organizer will provide more direct methods of contact for each specific run.

What Kind of Game Is This, Anyway?

Your character sheet gives you a sketch of your character's history, their relationship with other characters, and their goals for the evening. You will be cooperating with some characters, and competing with others. Someone is bound to want the exact opposite of at least one of your goals.

You might need to sell some information, driving up the price by bargaining between the various people interested in your wares. You might want to ruin an old enemy, revealing their secrets in a manner designed to do the most damage. You might have to steal a valuable object, without anyone else catching you in the act, while others attempt to do the same. You might be someone else's accomplice, there to create a diversion for them, while they carry out some nefarious deed. Or, you might just be a killer, waiting for just the right time to put your deadly plan into action.

Remember that nothing in your character sheet is going to do you any good after the end of the game. While that doesn't mean you'd throw away your character's good name, you might as well let the information get out. The game is based on the transfer of information, so review your goals, choose your targets, and indulge in a little scathing repartee!

Please remember that other characters' goals are probably directly dependent on your goals. Their goals may be to work with you or against you; if you don't attempt to work on your goals, some players may not have as much to do. If your character is written to do loud, distractive things, then the plot probably depends on them. So - go out there and be loud and distractive!

Not every character has a reason to participate in the investigation. Some characters may even have good reason to try and derail those efforts.

Because the author of this game loves playing a part too much to not be part of the game, the game has been written to not need a full-time GM. The GMs for the game will be playing full-fledged characters. They have information you need, goals both for and against your character, and character things to do. Treat them just like any other character.

Agenda:

This is a rough schedule, to give you a little idea of what's going to happen. Don't plan on anything specific, because you won't have enough time, and there may be surprises!

Time:	Event:
Scheduled start time	Short game briefing and introductions. We'll go over the general ground rules and game spaces.
About three hours after game start	Dinner is served. Stay in character!
About seven hours after game start	Game Wrap is called. We'll stop and explain all in a debriefing.

During the party someone will be killed. Don't try and anticipate it! Just relax and don't worry about it! Remember, your character doesn't know that something is going to happen. (Unless you are the murderer or the victim.) The victim must play it as if they don't know their fate.

The victim will "come back" as Adjutant Inspector General Parker. He or she will be in charge of the murder investigation. The AIG will be in charge of the interrogation (more on this below). AIG Parker will be given some additional information in his or her packet.

Interrogation: Asking everyone what they know about the crime can be very time-consuming. We are going to try and streamline this process as much as possible. Please be brief. If you don't know anything, say so, BUT stay in character. If your character would rather cover his or her misdeeds than find the killer, by all means behave accordingly. "Winning" this role-playing game is a matter of personal definition. To some, it may mean finding the killer. To others, it means playing the character to the hilt and getting the evening's goals accomplished without letting your own skeletons out of the closet.

Debriefing: At a reasonable time, we will stop the action and bring everyone together. We will ask everyone to accuse the person or persons they believe committed the crime in-character, giving their reasons. The actual murderer will lie. When all of the votes are tallied, the killer will reveal himself or herself. Then, we will revealing the rest of the dirt.

Rules:

There aren't a lot of specific or complicated rules for this game:

Game Masters: The Game Masters will be called out by those organizing the game. Please feel free to ask them any questions. Please follow any instructions they may give you.

Combat: This game is GM-Sanctioned Mayhem Only! Security at the Embassy is tight and the situation is monitored very closely. It's not a place where anyone can simply run amuck. Besides, your character simply has too much class and panache to do something so gauche.

There will be no 'unofficial murders' until the 'official' murder has taken place.

You may have a great reason for "killing" another character. However, murder, even unpremeditated, is something that usually takes extraordinary circumstances. It's just not an option that a reasonable person even considers, let alone chooses. The repercussions, personal and political, of such an act, are extremely compelling reasons not to make such a choice. Murdering someone in the highly secure environment of the American Embassy is something that you're extremely unlikely to get away with.

Furthermore, we've worked very hard to set up a murder for those who want to play detective. It's a hard enough task without the confusion of a second, probably unrelated death.

There are no comeback characters other than the detective. If someone else dies, there is no one for them to play.

Therefore, we must ask that you not even consider doing someone in until after the 'official' murder takes place. Once this has happened, the GMs will entertain the possibility. In order for you to succeed, you must:

See a GM first. Even if you arrange with someone to murder them, it's going to fail if it's not cleared by the GMs.
Explain how you intend to do the foul deed. More importantly, you'd better have an absolutely compelling reason to do this. If you can provide this, we may allow you to carry out your plans. It is highly unlikely we will allow a secondary murder.

If you are given an OK, then the GMs will help you to arrange when and where to do the deed. That way, when the "body" is found, the investigator will be able to find out what's happened.

The 'TRUST ME' stamp: Some documents will be stamped with a special sign. This stamp means that the document is official. If it has instructions, YOU MUST FOLLOW THEM! If the stamp is on some piece of evidence, then the evidence is authentic.

This might suggest that something not stamped with a TRUST ME stamp is not official. Don't count on it. We can't (and won't) stamp everything. Some things, like money, are not practical to stamp.

All you can know is that if it has a TRUST ME stamp, then it is official. You can drive yourself crazy if you try to read anything more into something that isn't stamped.

The GMs, Asking for Help, Green Ribbons, and Metagaming: As you might guess, there are occasionally questions that you can't resolve. The usual urge is to stop what you're doing, find a GM and resolve the issue.

The other players may have the same urge.

Since the GMs are also playing characters, this can interrupt their play as well. Remember that there may be twenty or so characters and one very busy GM. What do you do?

Try to resolve the issue before play! Do your homework ahead of time! A lot of these questions can be answered up front. That's why we suggest you go back and read your character sheet so many times. It's also why we provide GM phone numbers.
Show up a little early and catch one of the GMs before play on the day of the scenario. Be forewarned that the GMs will be very busy with last minute details, so be patient.
Try to resolve the issue yourself. Go back to your character sheet and look carefully. You can do this on your own, without a GM. If you read your sheet again, you're likely to find the answer - or to find something that hints at the answer.
OK - this is something that needs a GM. Go find one. Catch their attention BUT DON'T INTERRUPT THEM! Give them a chance to complete whatever it is that they're doing.
The GMs will have green ribbons. Green ribbons are a strip of cloth that may be green. (They're called green ribbons for purely historical reasons. They may be any color.) If you see a GM holding up a strip of cloth, it means that they are in GM mode. They are not in character. In fact, consider them INVISIBLE! Anyone they are with is also considered in GM mode - it's not an interaction between characters - so don't jump to any conclusions based on a mysterious hushed conversation between characters.

If a GM has a green ribbon out, then you're going to have to wait. In fact, it may be a few minutes, and it may be something vital to the scenario. GO AWAY! Find another GM or wait for a few minutes.
When you finally get the attention of the GM, make it brief!

Other character sheets: NO PEEKING! It's not fair to look at other sheets. If you see one, don't look. In fact - if one is sitting face up somewhere, flip it over so no one else sees it.

Remember, you wouldn't want your secrets known by the wrong person. This means that you should take care with your sheets. Don't leave them where anyone can find them.

Guidelines:

Here are a few general rules and suggestions for participating in the mystery party:

Don't Panic! Don't worry if you make a minor mistake. Remember - everyone else is trying to role-play as well. If you make a minor mistake, simply say "I didn't say that" and go on. Don't worry about it. If someone says they didn't say something, do your best to forget it. If you make a big mistake, it probably means you didn't understand your character sheet.

Read your character sheet! There's a lot of facts that need to be learned. Dig into the sheet. There may be some important fact subtly hidden inside. (Would we do that to you? Trust us!) For every fact you find, think about all of the different possible interpretations. Try to link one fact to another. Ask the Game Masters about ambiguities and fill in the holes as soon as possible.

Read your character sheet AGAIN! Come up with a list of questions that your character would like to know the answers to. Figure out who you want to talk to and what you want to ask them. Remember that some of the characters may have reasons not to tell you about themselves. Are there other ways to find out the information? Who else might know the answers you need?

Yes, read your character sheet again: Picture your character in your mind. Ask yourself questions like "What would the character do if someone was murdered?", "How would the character react if so-and-so died?", and so on. You may want to model your character based on someone you know or read about. Remember, this is a night of role-playing. Use your character sheet as a guideline to shape your character to suit you (within reason!)

Read the sheet yet again: If there is something that you have to cover up, come up with rationalizations (or outright lies) that your character would come up with to clean up your past. This may require some additional props or research. Think more about your character's past. You may want to develop more details for the biography.

Reread the character sheet one more time: There are a lot of details in each of the character sheets, which you should know about. However, there is a lot of detail that isn't there. You'll have to fill it in, as necessary - but you should use the biography as a rough guideline. For example, if it doesn't say that you are a raving pyromaniac or a drag queen, then you probably aren't and shouldn't introduce it into your character. Use your judgment when you improvise.

KEEP QUIET! Do not discuss the confidential information in your "kit" with anyone beforehand. Even though it may be a great temptation, please don't start acting as your character before the party. In order for everything to work out, the relationships between the characters cannot change from those described in the biography before the action starts. Furthermore, there is a lot of detail in each biography that may be crucial to the "plot" of the evening. If you are living with or meet someone else in the scenario - don't peek or probe until the party starts. (This means you!)

NOTE: If there is a "set" scene (a planned fight or confrontation, for instance) that you are sure both you and the other player know about (we have told you in your sheet), you may get together with the other player and "rehearse" the scene. Just be careful not to let any of your personal information slip out during the rehearsal.

Don't worry that you've been typecast! Remember the old saying that "all characters are fictional". All of the characters in this scenario are exaggerated a bit. The character is not intended to be a reflection on you in any way. Just remember that everyone else is in the same situation. You've been cast in this part because we thought that you'd enjoy it and that you could bring something special to the role. The idea is to relax and have some fun with the part. If you are a nice person at heart and your character is a master of ultimate evil, take the chance to play-act the other side of life. (And vice-versa of course.)

Do some research: If your character has some skills or knowledge that you don't have, then learn something about the subject before the party. Don't be a druggie that doesn't know the names of drugs or a policeman who doesn't know the Miranda rights that must be read before an arrest. You don't have to be an expert for the party, but it's more fun if you sound like you know what you're doing. This is especially important in this scenario about geopolitics and world events. Some information is provided to make things easier, but you may want to scan the newspapers for a few weeks in order to see what's happening today. If you don't know where something is located, look for it in an atlas or on a world map.

Don't anticipate the crime: First and foremost, this is an opportunity to role-play. Don't try and second-guess the crime until after it happens. Remember, your character is not expecting murder at this party. (Unless you are the murderer! Your character sheet will tell you if you are the murderer. It will tell you if you are the victim. If it doesn't say anything, then you are an 'innocent bystander' Hah!)

Memorize your character sheet: There are a lot of people at the party. More than likely, you will know a few of them. You might not know anyone else. Learn the characters and your character's relationship to each of them. We will take Polaroid pictures of everyone (mug shots) and put them on a sheet with everyone's name. (Having been in a scenario with 31 other people and knowing only 3 of them by name, I discovered that not knowing anyone is actually a little easier to deal with. Don't try and learn real names. Just learn the character names.)

Pack the right things: Some of the biographies call for props. If you need one and can't get it, then let us know about it as soon as possible. If there are other things that you think you should have, then feel free to ask us about it.

ALL PROPS MUST BE FAKE! If you have to bring a prop gun, that's fine as long as it is obviously fake! If you have to bring prop drugs, that's fine as long as they are obviously fake. Remember, it must be clearly fake! Anything that is faked (a bag of oregano for 'pot', a secret spy doohickey, a hypodermic filled with some clear liquid, etc.) must be labeled with something that tells what it is. (This is in case you are searched or you decide to 'lose' something.) THERE WILL BE A SECURITY CHECK AT THE 'EMBASSY' DOOR. MOST ITEMS LIKE GUNS, BUGGING DEVICES AND EXPLOSIVES WILL BE 'DISCOVERED', SO DON'T TRY TO SNEAK THEM IN UNLESS IT IS CLEARED WITH THE GAME MASTERS FIRST! Some items are specifically mentioned in specific character sheets as being allowed. If you have any doubts, please ask first.

Play off of everyone else: It's easier to get into character by reacting to others in character, especially those who are stronger players. Try and pace your activities; you don't have to do everything in the first half-hour. Remember, everyone else has things they want to do as well. It might be better to let things develop for a while.

Keep your biography close by: You'll probably want to check it at some time. Go off by yourself and take a look. If you're in a crowd, simply say that you want to take a "Reality Check" and step away.

Keep your biography close by (part 2): Don't leave your character sheet lying around. If you see a character sheet sitting around, try not to read through it (unless it's your own!). It will really foul things up if the page saying "you are the murderer" is left face up on the couch for all to read. It's best if you keep it on you at all times.

Come in character; Stay in character: Please come completely in character - from props and histories to dress and attitude. It's OK to step out for an occasional "Reality Check" as needed. It's more fun when everyone stays in character as much as possible.

Don't worry about personal impressions: Everyone is playing a character. If there is someone you don't know or haven't met, don't worry. You probably won't have time to talk out of character during the party. Play it as if you knew them. Just play your character and let it all hang out! Remember, that if someone yells and screams at you, (hopefully) they are yelling at your character. Don't be offended. React as your character would.

Play nice: We're all friends here. If you don't know someone, assume they're a friend. If there's another player you don't particularly like in the game, assume they're a friend for the duration and play accordingly.

Don't drop out of the game: If you're not having fun, please see a GM. Don't just vanish! There are nineteen other players depending on you.

Don't talk to the players from another run: There have been several runs of this game. Trust me, they all run in very different directions. We may change some things between the games. Therefore, trying to glean information about your plots from other games is very likely going to give you incorrect ideas. Don't talk to the players from other runs until afterwards.

Most importantly: RELAX. Work with and off of the other characters. Have fun. Be creative.

Finally, don't forget your sense of humor. (...and read your character sheet again!)