Description
The Slow Knife is inspired by stories like The Count of Monte Cristo, where a simple death is too good for all those years the villains took from their victim. This isn’t a John Wick-style action flick, no—this is curt whispers over fine wine, jewelled masks of jade and bone, half-buried scandals and half-heard truths, and yes – sometimes – a quiet blade in the dark.
Tired of being a hero? Excellent. The Slow Knife calls for a cast of scheming bad guys (gender neutral). Rules-lite but heavy on world-building, The Slow Knife is delightfully setting agnostic – create your own or go classic with a literary-inspired background, a sci-fi future, or a magic-filled fantasy. Together, you and your fellow villains will define your Knife, the protagonist, and lay the groundwork for the horrible thing you did that ruined them. Then, over the course of four acts, time marches on.
Playing card draws create events that shape the villains’ lives, tangles of lies, scandals, backstabbing, riches, robbery, weird deals, and wild associations. Record it all on a pinboard, connecting characters, deeds, and motivations with red string. Delight in the theatrics. Study your ever-growing artifact of paranoia. All the while, the Knife is rising through society – you’ve wronged them deeply and they are coming for you. After all, spite truly makes the world go ’round.
- Requires a standard deck of playing cards as well as craft materials to make a physical representation of your game (a “red string board” – think yarn, a cork board, paper, and markers or go deluxe with photos, newspaper clippings, magazine scraps, tape, etc)
- Hardcover, full-color with dual ribbon bookmarks
