A Garden of Pomegranates

You are members of a not-so-secret society of occultists known as the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn. As it turns out, there’s lots of metaphysical issues in turn-of-the-century Great Britain, and as the foremost scholars and practitioners of theurgy and magicks, it falls to you to preserve the integrity of this mortal coil—and hopefully get some fame and money in the process.

It can get pretty hairy out there, wrestling with spirits and demons to pay the rent, but somebody’s got to do it.

A Garden of Pomegranates is an occult-themed tabletop RPG for 3-5 players and a GM, and intended to be played in one session. A tarot deck is used for action resolution (instead of dice), as well as for NPC creation, and for producing surprising cosmic events.

Author(s): 
Game Type: 
Roleplaying Game
Collaborative Story
Crunch: 
2 - Focus/Imagination
Players: 
3-5
GM?: 
Yes
Free?: 
Yes
Excerpt: 

While a card’s rank determines whether you succeed or fail at your action, its suit will determine something about the nature of the outcome (whether success or failure). Refer to the following list of keywords for each suit, get a sense of each suit’s character, and tell the group what happens to your character based on the suit you drew. If you’re not sure, they may have suggestions!
• Wands. Fire. Creativity, action, movement, enthusiasm, adventure, confidence.
• Cups. Water. Emotions, moods, spirituality, subconscious, relationships.
• Swords. Air. Intellect, thought, reason, justice, truth, ethics.
• Disks. Earth. Practicality, security, material concerns, nature, bodies, wealth.

These keywords are left intentionally vague and uncertain. Be dramatic! Use one or more of the relevant keywords to concoct the best or worst situation you can think of for your character.