The World of Eco Mofos!!, by David Blandy and by me
The world of Eco Mofos!! is, based on the rulebook by David Blandy, a broken, miserable and dangerous world. There are pockets of solace, the Punks, that have villages and travel across the lands. There are towns of Wasters, Bandit fortresses, and Corpo facilities, that all seem like a depressing mess, ready for some weirdhope to deliver them from despair. And bringing weirdhope to the world is one of the main meanings of life as a Punk.
I've been writing for Eco Mofos!! for a few years now, and I've built my own continent with it (Continent Kimera). While things look bleak on that continent, I've always focused on the weirdhope and Punks a lot. Perhaps too much, I would say. Last January, I wrote a Punk Homestead every day for 20 days. These have been great small villages filled with ideas for the future. Things I wanted to expand on, that surfaced in this project are:
- Groves of Gaia; a copse of trees where wisps of Essence float at night and bless the land.
- Trade goods and experts; specialized goods that have to travel to be made into something valuable and useable by a master artisan.
- Communities that are not perfect; villages that "control/watch" each other a bit too much; villages that are so right in their fights, that they reject outsiders, or remake hierarchies.
But what struck me the most, is that I wrote a lot of villages that were just fine. They had their troubles and secrets, their dangers. But I almost never look at Corpos and do the same. Make 20 Corpo facilities would be a great challenge for me. The initial idea would be easy, but to make it interesting in a few words would be hard. I've been wanting to make a set of villains, but I've postponed that over and over.
And this is why: Honestly, why I write is to give a hopeful message to myself. I need to envision a world that is healing from all the terribleness humans did to it. I need that weirdhope going through my veins. The game is as much a therapy session to me, as a game, especially as I'm writing for it. And therefore, my game design is maybe a bit more positive leaning than others. And, that is okay.