Let’s Play Grok?! 2e Part 2: Bibliotheconomy
Let’s set up the game and play the first scene with Catarina Bluetear!
Here’s her character sheet again:
Although not necessary to play Grok, I’ll slap the Unfolding Machines GME into the game because I really like using them.
However, I’ll roll on Grok’s tables whenever possible. My main Oracle, for instance, will be the one in the book.
The oracle uses a d10 on the same table for Attribute checks. For biases (likely, unlikely, etc) we can either roll more d10s, or add/subtract a value. I prefer adding dice.
I also really like Grok’s Sparks table (Descriptor + Subject), so I’m using it whenever I can.
Scene 1
To get an idea of what’s happening and help stablish the scene, I’ll roll for some sparks:
Enlightening or Emboldening + Savant or Sentience
Oh, perfect! It ties directly into Catarina’s motivation.
She is reading some regulation tomes, expanding her knowledge and advancing her spirit toward ascension, when something happens.
I’ll use the Plot Unfolding Machine now:
Random Prompt: Endure a difficult complication
Complication: Delayed, blocked, or a detour
Ok, so this could be a physical, literal block, or something more abstract.
Is the block literal?
d10: 8 = Yes
Let’s say that while Catarina is deep in a trance studying a manual on interdimensional law, an encyclopedia suddenly becomes sentient. That’s not unusual in the living library.
With its newfound consciousness, it decides the library is too disorganized. It animates hundreds of heavy textbooks to construct a massive barricade across the archway, blocking the exit and trapping Catarina in the vault.
"Disorganized?" Catarina asked with outrage. Her left eye twitched a couple of times. "I’ve tended to this section myself using bibliotheconomy."
"Well, your witchery did not work," the encyclopedia replied.
"It’s not witchery, it’s the study and management of libraries. A science."
"Pfpfpfpfpfp." It tried to scoff, but its speaking apparatus was very different from a human’s.
Catarina looked up and around, checking the towering stacks blocking her path. The flying nimbus wouldn’t be able to go over them. Damaging the books was out of the question, even the temperamental encyclopedia.
"You give books a whole new meaning to ‘entitled.’ What do you want from me?"
"Organize them by flavor!," the encyclopedia demanded. "They should be filed according to the mood of the reader."
Catarina’s head cricked involuntarily, her mania acting up. "How am I supposed to know what every potential reader is feeling?"
"That’s not my problem. I am the one who is read!"
To hammer its point home, the encyclopedia hurls a leather-bound tome toward Catarina.
I’ll try to dodge it:
Physical (d4) check: 3 = No, but... (something else Beneficial happens)
d8 Benefit: 3 = Remove a Disadvantage
I’m not sure I have an explicit disadvantage here, so I’ll invert it and create an advantage!
The leather-bound tome hits Catarina in the stomach. She bends over with an ‘Oof.’ As she’s recovering, the tome flaps its pages in anger. It has also awakened, and it’s furious about being tossed about as if it were some awful romantasy debut.
It turns its spine toward the encyclopedia and charges! It’s enough to distract it and give me an opening.
Instead of going for Mental (d8), I’ll try Social (d6). Catarina attempts to audit the encyclopedia into submission by citing safety regulations and library norms until its pages curl in embarrassment.
With advantage, I’ll roll 2d6 and keep the highest:
Social (d6, Adv) check: 1, 3 > 3 = No, but...
Catarina’s fingers cracked as she adjusted her reading gloves and launched into a stern recital regarding fire hazards and unauthorized obstructions.
The encyclopedia’s pages flapped up and down as it scoffed again. "I’m a hardcover reference legend. Your petty safety codes do not apply to my high research!"
However, hundreds of other books complied. Terrified of being cited for safety violations, they started wiggling out of the stacks, making the barricade collapse.
Catarina picked up an index card glued to her robes, pulled out a pen from one of her many pockets, wrote on it, and stuck it onto the encyclopedia’s cover.
It read, ‘RECLASSIFIED: ABSURDIST FICTION.’
"How dare you, witch?!" the encyclopedia cried. Its pages deflated in shame.
"You are Under Revision," Catarina said. "Stack all the books in their previous arrangement using bibliotheconomy if you wish to restore your status."
"I have no idea what that is!"
"You’d better start reading."
How does the encyclopedia reacts?
Descriptor: Deceiving or Disguising
I decided to successfully conclude the scene even with a "No, but..." result, making the encyclopedia an enemy. Maybe a long-term villain, or the main antagonist of this arc.
By its reaction roll, we can see that it’s pretending to comply, biding its time to act again against the ruthless librarian on its way.
That should be fun!
Scene summary
A rebellious encyclopedia built a barricade of books in Vault 4, demanding that Catarina organize its content in an erratic way. Catarina cited safety regulations, causing the barrier to panic and collapse, then stuck a revision note to the encyclopedia, demoting it to Absurdist Fiction until it put the books back.
I think this is enough for a summary, right? That wraps up our first scene!
By the way, you don’t have to play like me. I enjoy writing fiction bits, dialogue, and other details to color the scene. However, something lean and simple, like bullet points, works just as well.
Grok’s author, Lester Burton, in one of the many fantastic designer’s footnotes peppered throughout the book, mentions that he prefers playing solo writing notes with mechanical consequences.
He found a middle ground between theater of the mind and journaling that works for him.
Most people playing solo, in my experience, default to bullet points or sparse notes too. So let’s do the next scene the way the author does it to showcase a different way to play.
Scene 2
1. Stablish the Scene
Random Prompt: Deal with a difficult Challenge
Challenge: Strength or power could help
Sparks: Protecting or Intoxicating + Aura or Automaton
The next day, as she makes the rounds on her flying nimbus, Catarina hears wailing. A 10-ton automated iron door in another section is crestfallen, reciting terrible poetry.
Its depressing aura is intoxicating nearby books. They’re plunging into the floor, bending their covers and creasing the corners of their pages. Some are damaging the spine!
2. Playing the scene
The easiest way to deal with it would be to open the door’s panel to access the mainframe and reset its emotional core.
However, Catarina doesn’t have the required tools or expertise (that’s how I’m interpreting ‘strength or power could help’). That would be a job for maintenance, and the automaton is nowhere to be seen.
Catarina casts Rite of Seeing Organ to check if she can find the source of the iron door’s anguish:
Mental (d8) check: 3 = No, but...
The spectral eye searches for it, but apparently can’t locate the source. Despite that, Catarina’s display of concern makes the door emotional. It shows appreciation for her efforts.
Catarina is uncomfortable with that break in protocol. She’s a librarian, not a technician, after all. But her job is to tend to the library, and isn’t the door a part of it as much as any book?
She pats its smooth, cold surface and tries to console it.
Social (d6, Adv) check: 3, 5 > 5 = Yes, but...
Catarina consoles the door until the spectral eye finally finds the source of its depression: there’s an awakened page with lame, angst-ridden poetry lodged in its gears. It infused the door with its emo sensitivities.
She wonders how it could have ended up there...
Catarina erases the poetry from the page by absorbing it with her Memory Magnet. She will archive it in its proper Vault.
The door returns to normal, but now resents Catarina. It enjoyed expressing its woes through bad poetry and living the life of a struggling artist. Now it’s once again just a struggling everyday tool.
She lost a potential friend, but that’s the life of a librarian. It’s not all fun and footnotes.
3. Scene summary
A 10-ton automated iron door fell into a deep, intoxicating depression, causing nearby books to plunge to the floor and damage their spines. Catarina discovered a page of bad poetry jammed into its gears. She restored the door to normal function, but the door now resents her for ending its brief career as a struggling artist.
Way leaner! I still overdid it a little because I can’t help myself.
Write as much as you want to have fun with it.
And honestly, this is a lot of damn fun. I’m having a blast with Catarina and the low-stakes misadventures in the library.
I think we’ll go outside next time!
Grok?! 2e is available on DrivethruRPG (digital only for now). Feel free to check out the free Quickstart!
Join the Gander Gaming Discord as well. Lester and the community are very welcoming.