Object

e.g. items, locations, vehicles

Definition

Objects are material things that can be seen and touched, such as a sword, a house or a spaceship.

• Each story told by a Lost & Found game focuses on a single Object.

• These stories are told from the perspective of that Object, and are often coloured by its influence.

• The Object cannot act alone, it needs to be used by an Agent.

• Objects are made by a Creator of some kind, defined at the start of each game.

• Objects are described by Traits.

• Objects are visualised through a Drawing.

• Each Object has a list of questions associated with it that players may choose to answer over the course of the game.

• Questions are addressed to 'you', meaning the Object.

Intention

The unusual viewpoint of the Object is what makes these stories distinct from most fiction. It allows players to create extended narratives over longer timescales than mortal perspectives would allow.

The Object questions provide an opportunity to explore the changing nature of the Object, its opinions & its place in the world—independently of any particular Agent or event.

However, there is also interplay between the potential of the Object to create change in the world and its inability to act alone—its power must be utilised by an Agent.

Example

In Artefact, you are telling the story of a magical item (Object) from its creation to destruction. The item (sword, boots, book) can't act alone—it must be seized by someone (Agents) and used. Its agency is limited, but it can influence its situation through magic, communication and force of will.

Each item has six questions associated with it, such as:

• Over time you gain a name or honorific. What is it and why?

• Of all the places you’ve seen on your travels, one stands out and you long to return. Where is it, and why?

• You are immortal; you do not grow old. What mortal preoccupation is most strange to you as one that cannot die?

Advice

Tangible, portable Objects are a natural fit for this system, but it could also work with something much larger such as a location (castle, space station, etc). It could also be adapted to work with something intangible (a virus, an idea, etc).

Be mindful of making Objects that are too capable of acting by themselves. The core of the Lost & Found system is the relationship between Objects and Agents, and this could be diminished if the Objects become independent.