Super Secret Santa Party Game

Around this time of year, offices and families engage in an old tradition of secret gift-giving. These traditional games have widely varying rules, but there are some core similarities.

Usually, you're randomly assigned to give another person a gift. You may not know this person well, so you have to just investigate or guess at what they would like. As the receiver of said gift... Well, let's just say it's easy to get disappointed. This is so common, that a spin-off tradition called "white elephant" or "dirty santa" emerged wherein you're *not* supposed to consider what the receiver would actually like.

In either case, no one really gets something they actually want and you spend that time awkwardly chit-chatting while doing so. Honestly, it sucks as a play experience. Fortunately, a fellow named Brian Winkeler of Robot House Creative taught me the rules of a superior form of Secret Santa. I call it Super Secret Santa.

Stuff You Need

• 5-30 players who kinda sorta know each other
• One participant volunteers to be the Head Elf
• A prize (a gift certificate, a bottle of wine, or some other generally nice thing)

Preparations

• Each player sends the Head Elf a wishlist of three gifts under the price limit.
• The Head Elf anonymizes those lists.
• The Head Elf randomly assigns a list to each player.
• Each player then must purchase one of the gifts on his or her assigned list. Do not wrap the gift!
• The Head Elf prints prepares a list of numbered blank lines, enough for each player to get their own blank list.

The Party

• The Head Elf arranges a display of all the gifts with numbers beside each one.
• The Head Elf hands a blank list to each player as they arrive at the party.
• Amidst drinks and food, the Players spend the party figuring out who wished for which gift. Debate and subterfuge is encouraged!
• Later on in the party, the Head Elf then gathers all the players to one room.
• The Head Elf picks up each gift and asks "Who wished for ____?"
• The Players then shout their answers.
• The Head Elf reveals the correct answer, to groans and cheers from the crowd.
• The Player who guesses the most gifts correctly wins the prize.
• Ties are rare, but if they can be broken by correctly answering trivia questions about the Head Elf.

Tips
When you wish for a gift, don't wish for something generic like a bottle of wine or a gift card. It makes guessing really difficult and no fun. Instead, pick a gift that says something about your personality, possibly that the rest of the group didn't know about you. This can also throw off guesses and reveals who knows who best. Plus: Everyone gets something they want!

What's Your Excuse?! Party Game

This is a party game inspired by the classic game "I never..." or "Never have I ever..." The title comes from my ongoing Pitch Tag thread with Fred Hicks. While the original "I never..." is typically a drinking game, I'll leave it to you to add your own drinking rules. ;)


Stuff You Need
2 or more players. Best in large groups.
A pencil and paper to keep score.
A pencil and paper for each player.
A deck of What's Your Excuse?! cards. Prototypes shown below.




How to Play
The youngest player takes the first turn.

On your turn, draw a card. The card lists three "I never..." sentences such as "I never sky-dived from a zeppelin with a rabid wolverine because..." or "I never drove a monster truck in the circus because..." The easy sentence is usually shorter with more basic words. The medium sentence gets a little more specific. The hard sentence is longest, with more specific obscure terms.

Pick one sentence. Out loud to the rest of the group, make up an excuse for why you never did the thing mentioned. Do not actually say the highlighted words in the sentence. You can make up to three excuses.

For example, you're making an excuse for the sentence "I never sky-dived from a zeppelin with a rabid wolverine because..." You could say to the rest of the group "Because I'm afraid of heights." or "Because I never got my blimp pilot's license." or "Because I'm not good around violent mammals."

Now, the other players each write what they think the "I never..." statement is and reveal their guesses to the group all at once. The guesses must be in the form of an "I never..." sentence with three words or phrases highlighted.

For example, the other players guess: "I never hit a dog with a hot air balloon." "I never got rabies from a wolverine on a plane." and "I never sky-dived from a zeppelin with a mad dog."


Scoring
Each guesser scores points for guessing one, two or three of the highlighted words correctly, even if the exact order of their guess doesn't match your card.

You will also get points if anyone guesses one, two or three of the highlighted words correctly. Note: You only score points once for the same word even if multiple guessers get it correct.

Easy
Guessing one word correctly scores you and the guesser two points.
Guessing two words correctly scores you and the guesser three points.
Guessing three words correctly scores you and the guesser four points.

Med
Guessing one word correctly scores you and the guesser one points.
Guessing two words correctly scores you and the guesser three points.
Guessing three words correctly scores you and the guesser five points.

Hard
Guessing one word correctly scores you and the guesser zero points.
Guessing two words correctly scores you and the guesser four points.
Guessing three words correctly scores you and the guesser seven points.


End of the Game
When every player has had a turn, the game is over and the player with the most points wins.

Pitch Tag

This is a creativity game for two or more players inspired by word association exercises and writer jam sessions. You can play this game over any communication medium, including in-person, but I find it works best over email, forum or comment.

Stuff You Need:
2 or more players
If face-to-face, a pencil and paper.
If online, any email, forum or shared document.

Setup: Players agree on what they'll be pitching, whether it be story ideas, character ideas, plots, or inventions. Fred Hicks and I like to use Pitch Tag to generate ideas for new games.

Step 1: Come up with a title. When Fred and I play, we'll assume these will be the title of a new game.

Step 2: The next player pitches a thing with that title. When Fred and I play, we pitch games. We can describe the game as deeply as we prefer, whether it's mechanics, story, or influences. The point is to just generate ideas rapidly.

Step 3 and on...: That player then tosses back another title to the first player. Play continues in this way, with each player pitching games and then challenging the next player with a new title. Keep playing as long as you like. Here's an example of a Pitch Tag session between Fred Hicks and I as we generate new ideas for games.

***

Fred:
Small Wages

Daniel:
Small Wages
An InSpectres hack. Budget mercenaries for hire. Consistently win contracts because they're the lowest bidder, but are woefully inadequate for any mission. Nevertheless, they manage to succeed despite themselves. Game mechanics involve bidding to win contracts, but then trying not to go overbudget due to property damages, casualties, etc.

Your next challenge: Christmas Bonus

Fred:
Christmas Bonus
Board game. Players take on the roles of elves in Santa's sweat/workshop, engaging in a festive, holiday-themed cutthroat corporate melodrama in order to be the top elf and win the most coveted prize of all, the Christmas Bonus: a day off. Players can win by building the most toys, building the most complicated toy, and other ways besides; but watch out for the time-suck that is Reindeer Stable Duty -- and the reversals your coworkers will try to heap on you as they climb to victory. In this game of Christmas mayhem, it's all naughty -- no nice!

Your next challenge: There's No Time

Daniel:
There's No Time
An RPG adaptation of the film In Time. Players are rebels against a nigh-immortal oligarchy directly control the economy of citizens' expected lifespans. The rebels must coordinate and plan as best they can to use the time they have available. As mortality ticks away, there is the looming temptation to turn on each other for just a few more moments of life.

Your next challenge: Rafters

Fred:
Rafters
In the world of competitive raft-racing, it's not just about finishing first -- it's about finishing at all! A board game that follows the rough-and-tumble white-water rapids race-course through a canyon, each team is played by two or more players and must coordinate their actions (without communicating) to steer their rafts into the fastest, clearest currents to make it through the course and past the finish line at Camp Kanook. But watch out for the random hazard deck, which can drop trees, rocks, and waterfalls into your path with little warning!

Your next challenge: Gift Horse

Daniel:
[Hot damn. I can definitely design that as a streamlined, all-ages adaptation of Space Hulk Death Angel.]

Gift Horse
An Apples to Apples reskin. The big annual farm festival is coming soon. The horses trot around the ranch trying to figure out what to give all the other farm animals. Each player takes turns being a farm animal while the others take the roles of horses. The farm animal reveals an adjective card that describes the kind of gifts he wants (sweet, healthy, fun, etc.) The horses each have a hand of gift cards (carrots, sugar, toys, etc.) and secretly give one to the farm animal. The farm animal shuffles the gifts, reveals them and chooses one as his favorite. The horse whose gift was chosen gets the adjective card. The first horse to get five adjective cards wins.

Your next challenge: Jasmine Tea

Fred:
Jasmine Tea
A card game. Jasmine Tea is the name of the owner of a detective agency/fortune-teller business. You play her employees; clients come in, and you opt either to read their tea leaves or solve their case (all clients are looking for both). This divides the players into two teams (always two; you can't all do just one thing). Each team must work together to solve the mystery (match a set of symbols on the customer card from cards in their hands) or tell the fortune (reveal what cards the customer card is hiding underneath). Points scored are divided up among team members. The first to score ten points becomes employee of the month!

Your next challenge: OMG WTF BBQ

Daniel:
OMG WTF BBQ
Cooking competition card game. It's time for the craziest barbecue competition ever! You and the other players compete to grill up the craziest meats for hordes of picky eaters. Choose from a wide variety of meats and put together your best plate. Everything from beef to buffalo, frog legs to chicken gizzards. If it comes from an animal, it's going on a plate at the OMG WTF BBQ!

Your next challenge: Baba Yoga

Fred:
Baba Yoga
Baba Yoga is the twisted game of knotty witches. Each player has a set of cards showing various witch body parts contorted into odd positions -- positions achievable only by magic! Each round, a new position card is revealed and the race is on to put your cards together so that your witch matches the picture on the position card. Can you find the right contorted configuration in time? The quickest witch-twister wins!

Your next challenge: Are You My Boo?

Daniel:
Are You My Boo?
You're a ghost trying to scare away the tenants from a room of a haunted hotel. Build up the right combination of scary phenomena and chase away as many tenants as you can. Careful! Some phenomena actually attract thrill-seeking tenants! This is a card-and-dice game. The dice have different scary symbols on them. Each card depicts a different tenant and the things that scare or attract them. Play begins with each player having five tenants in front of them. Tenants move to the left or right each turn, depending on dice rolls. Players try to be the first to clear their room of all tenants.

Your next challenge: Peace Against Force

Fred:
Peace Against Force
A cooperative team-building game where the players try to overthrow a corrupt, militant regime through peaceful protest and activism. Plays a bit like Shadows Over Camelot: the "clock" moves forward inexorably, and your activism can't succeed in garnering the necessary media attention and/or sociopolitical change on every front, but if you pick your "battles" carefully, you can prevail. Instead of a "traitor", you instead have a temptation: the "radical activism" deck -- gets you cheap-at-first boosts on various fronts, but runs the risk of legal entanglements, compromised ideals, and more.

Your next challenge: So Much For That!

Daniel:
So Much For That!
Card game about building a road system. Each card has a road that either bends, branches, ends or goes in a straight line. Some roads have special features like inns, homes or shops. Players try to complete the most valuable roads and claim points. Cards can be played in an organic arrangement, not necessarily in a grid, so long as the road grows. As roads grow, you might get special sets of features on that road, like two inns or four shops. Roads with two- three- or four-of-a-kind are worth a lot of points to whoever can complete it. Any other feature on that road reduces its value. So, if you have four inns on a road and then place a shop there, the value of that road only counts as if you had three inns. In this way, you often have situations where you just say "So Much For That!" when a high-value road suddenly tanks. [Phew! That was a stretch.]

Your next challenge: The Double-Clicks

Fred:
The Double-Clicks
A family game. The Double-Clicks (originally Don Double and Cathy Clicks before their marriage, now plus kids Mouse and Pointer) are a family of browsers with a lot of shopping needs for the holidays and not a lot of time! Each round the family members draw a random set of shopping list items and must navigate the World Wide Web (represented as a board) to get it all ordered so it will be delivered in time for festivus. If you use too many moves to hit all your shopping goals, those gifts show up late, deducting points from your score. Who will be the season's swiftest shopper?

Your next challenge: Culture Shock

Daniel:
Culture Shock
Board game, looks like a giant petri dish. Components are assorted blob tokens in a variety of colors. Players try to form a line of their blobs from one edge of the petri dish to the other. If blobs of two colors ever come in contact, they get shocked and any contiguous groups are removed from the board. Players only score points for lines of blobs touching two sides of the petri dish. Players score one point for every blob in that contiguous group. That group is now shock-proof, so other blob tokens can now be placed on top of it without harm. That also means the group of tokens is out of play for the remainder of the game.

Your next challenge: Cloud City Urada

Fred:
Cloud City Urada
Cloud City Urada! Home to untold riches and hidden terrors. Each player takes on the role of a sky-pirate captain with a small fleet on the outskirts of Urada. You must evade your competitors (and the city's automated patrols) while sending scavenger parties into the city to return with plunder -- if they manage to return at all. Don't run out of crew, and don't get blown out of the sky, and you just might make it home to live like a king! Styled like an anime-that-never-was, of course.

Your next challenge: Designer Drug

Daniel:
Designer Drug
A card-drafting game a la 7 Wonders. Cards have a different ingredient on each one with indicated uses and possible side effects. Chemists compete to file new drug patents to win government contract. Each contract has a typographic themed code name. Contract: Helvetica asks you to create a drug that treats symptoms X, Y, Z without causing side effects A, B, C. Contract: Minion must treat symptoms J, K, L without causing side effects D, E, G. Several contracts are available at any one time. File a simple patent and claim an easy contract right away or try to build up a super-drug that covers multiple contracts at once.

Your next challenge: In Her Majesty's Psychic Service

Fred:
In Her Majesty's Psychic Service
A tight, focused-scenario, plays in a couple hours story-game a la Fiasco. Her Majesty has only one psychic spy in her service. Triple Naught. It's 000's job to ferret out the thought crime, the conspiratorial intent, the absence of respect, and exert a modicum of corrective pressure to the situation. But to do this, 000 has to get close to the problem. Go deep. Go dark. Triple Naught is so secret, even 000 doesn't know who he -- or she -- is. And there we have our scenario: a conspiracy, infiltrated by 000. And our question: who's the crown's inside man? It won't come out until the endgame, when every thought is compromised, when the knives are out...

Your next challenge: Good Gravy

***

As of this post, this particular session is still ongoing. As you can see, it takes you in unexpected directions and forces you to create in an unfamiliar space. I can easily pull two or three games out of this short session alone, which will occupy my design schedule for a month or two. It's a great exercise.

Bajjutsu Master

With this badge, you are a Bajjutsu Master. Compete against other bajjutsu masters in a contest of arcane powers! Ally yourself with a Bajjutsu clan or seek glory on your own! This game is perfect for when you and your friends are at conventions, concerts or other large gatherings.

» Download the print-and-play PDF. Once trimmed and folded, it fits into a standard clear convention badge holder. Bring it to your next game convention!
» Co-created with Josh Mannon
» Japanese translation by Andy Kitkowski
» Development Stage: Open Beta
» Development History
» Opening call and response by Ryan Macklin



SETUP
When badge-wearing Bajjutsu Masters wish to battle, they begin with the time-honored call: “Only one Bajjutsu Master shall stand!” Those who accept respond “And it shall be me!”

If you have more than two players, you'll play either a melee or a clan battle. In melee, all players act alone. In clan battle, players split into two opposing teams. On your badge, attach a clip to the 6 space of the HEALTH METER. Attach another clip to the 0 space of the CHARGE METER.


PLAY
Every turn, Bajjutsu Masters strike a pose at the same time. Everyone counts "Bah... Ju... Tsu!" and strikes their pose on the last syllable.

Attack
Arms up causes any opponent without crossed arms to loses 1 health, plus an amount of health equal to your charge. Afterwards, your charge returns to 0.

Block
Arms crossed prevents you from losing health this turn.

Charge
Arms down gains you 1 charge this turn.

You may not take the same pose three times in a row.


HEALTH AND WINNING
When a player loses all health, they're out of the game immediately. (Double KOs are possible!) In a melee, the last player with any health remaining wins! In a clan battle, the last team with any remaining players wins!


TECHNIQUES
You have a special technique available to you! It is noted on a small card you can place on the back of your badge. You may only have one technique during a single game, but you may use it as many times as the rules allow. You do not have to reveal the nature of your technique to your opponents until the first time you actually use it. A technique’s effects take place after normal effects are resolved. So, if you lose all health, whatever technique you planned to execute this turn does not happen.

Healing Wind Technique
Arms Up while you have any charge: Instead of doing damage, increase health of all allies by your charge plus 1, up to their full health. Your charge returns to 0. In a clan battle, you cannot heal yourself unless you're the only one left in your clan. In melee, you heal yourself instead.

Stubborn Tortoise Technique
Arms up or Arms down while you have any charge: When you are hit, you lose charge instead of health, until you run out of charge. Then, you lose health as normal.

Fire Form Technique
Arms Crossed while you have any charge: When you block any attacking opponent, the opponent loses an amount of health equal to your charge. Your charge returns to 0.

Void Spirit Technique
Arms Up while you have any charge: Instead of doing damage, all opponents lose 1 charge. If they spent this turn charging, they simply do not gain a charge. Your charge returns to 0.

Winding Viper Technique
Arms up while you have 3 Charge: Your attack only affects blocking opponents. All blocking opponents lose 1 health. Your charge returns to 0.


CLAN STYLES
Different Bajjutsu clans have their preferred opening stance. Each claims that theirs is the best at not telegraphing their intended action to an opponent. The Clan of Man suggests beginning with hands crossed behind your back. The Clan of Dan suggests you stand proudly with arms akimbo. Decide your preferred stance and choose your allies wisely.


HAND VARIANT
Instead of posing, you can use hand gestures. Cross your fingers to charge. Hold out a flat palm instead to block. Close your fist to attack.

You can even use your off-hand to keep track of health and charge. When your health meter is at 6, hold your hand so only your thumb and pinky are extended. That is "6." You can count your health down from there using your fingers.

Keep track of your charge by using your whole arm. When your charge is at "0," let your arm hang naturally. At "1," place your hand on your hip. At "2," place your hand on your stomach. At "3," place your hand on your heart.

By combining arm positions and hand gestures in this way, you can play Bajjutsu Master anywhere, any time.


ANDY K'S TRANSLATION NOTES
The word for "badge" (in this sense, not so much for military service badges and the like) is the English loanword Badge, written as bajji (バッジ). Ji is also the first "letter" of Jitsu/Jutsu (ジツ／ジュツ, or simply the kanji 術) so their combination was an inevitability. And the call to make it Bajjutsu over Bajji-Jujutsu has an epic historic precedent in everyday Japanese word-shortening: Pocket Monsters (the official title!) is "Pokemon", Harris Teeter (grocery store on the East Coast) is known by Japanese locals as "Hari-Chi", etc. The double language hat-tip/pun was too juicy to pass up on.


DISCUSSIONS
RPG.net: Bajjutsu Master as a parlor LARP mechanic
Story-Games: Become a Bajjutsu Master!


LICENSE
Bajjutsu Master by Josh Mannon and Daniel Solis is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License.

Stupor Market: The Phonetic Food Game

Here's a fun game for groups at a restaurant, especially if the players have been imbibing a little bit before the game starts.


Stuff You Need
3 or more players at a restaurant or bar.

A pen and two pieces of paper for each player. Leave the first sheet of paper blank. On your second sheet, write each other player's name.

A 30sec timer.


How to Play
All players do these steps together at the same time.

1. On the blank piece of paper, write the name of a food served at this restaurant. Write the food as cryptically and phonetically as you can, in all capitals. This can be a basic ingredient, like fruits and vegetables; or more complex foods, like appetizers, entrees, or side dishes. For example, "lettuce" could be "LAYDUS." "Sweet potato" could be "SWOT PERDERDER." "Chicken noodle soup" could be "CHALKING OODLE SAP."

2. When everyone is done writing, hold your paper up so everyone can see it. You should probably hold it up with your non-writing hand, you'll need your writing hand in a sec.

3. Start the timer.

4. Look at the other players' misspelled foods and try to decipher what they actually are. Write down your guesses on the second sheet of paper as fast as you can, next to the name of the player holding that word.

5. When the timer runs out, put your pen down.


How to Win
One at a time, each player says the actual name of their chosen food.

You score one point for every food you guessed correctly.

Double those points if some of the players guessed your food correctly. Not all the players, not none of the players, just some of the players.

After three rounds of play, the player with the most points wins.


Stupor Market for Couples
For couples at a restaurant, the rules are a little different and much more casual.

1. Each player writes a list of five misspelled foods served at the restaurant.

2. Each player hands the paper to his or her opponent.

3. Try to decipher as many of those foods as possible. Write your guess next to each item.

4. When the waiter speaks to either player, that round is over and each player scores points.

You score one point for every food you guess correctly. Double that if your opponent guessed some of yours correctly. Play as many rounds as you like, or until the waiter kicks you out.


Design Notes
At first, I was thinking about making this a commercial game, with a deck of food cards, a timer, and so forth. I might still do that, but for now I just wanted to get the game out there in a playable form.
» Here's the initial inspiration
» Here was the first playtest
» Here's how I made the title graphic