The Triplets

We point to the boy in the flat cap. As the hooded child sighs, the boy throws his cups into the air; they disappear. Hopping effortlessly down from the tree, he examines us.

“You...” he muses. “What makes you happy? I wonder if what makes you happy makes other people happy, too?”

As he grins, we realise that our mouths have been sealed shut. We can no longer speak aloud.


The Challenge

The boy in the flat cap challenges the travellers to silently list their own favourite games and vices.

  • Set a timer for one minute.

  • Clockwise starting with the Reader, travellers take it in turns to silently mime any activity, game or past-time that brings people happiness. It could be anything from walking a dog to playing chess.

  • Meanwhile, the rest of the party tries to guess (aloud!) what the traveller is miming.

  • If a traveller calls out the correct answer, the mimer can call, “Correct!” The traveller to the mimer’s left then begins to mime, and play continues.

  • Travellers cannot ‘pass’ their turn, but they can change what they are miming.

  • If an activity is judged to not be one that brings many people (plural) happiness, it does not count towards the final guess count.

  • The game ends if any currently miming traveller speaks aloud or the timer expires.

Success. If the travellers guess eight mimes correctly before the end of the game, the Challenge is passed.

Failure. If the travellers guess seven or fewer mimes correctly, the Challenge is failed. 

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If the Challenge is passed, the last traveller to first guess a mime correctly wins the Bargain of The Triplets.

HELP FROM AN ITEM

If any traveller carries DICE and the Challenge is passed, they may claim the Bargain of the Triplets instead of the last correct guesser.

If the Challenge is failed, the party suffers the Curse of the Triplets. If this is the party's third Curse, click here.

  • When a spirit is displeased by the party, it will lay its Curse upon them. Curses have dire consequences. The more Curses a party gathers, the more lives will be claimed in the Heart of the Wood. Furthermore, if a party incurs three Curses, the Wood's spirits will reject them and they will be forced to flee for their lives, ending the game.

    When you incur a Curse, place it in a designated area of the table so that all travellers are aware of it.

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Suddenly, as if in response to a distant sound, the children’s gaze whips across the bog.

The girl tuts loudly. “Oh bother! Daddy’s seen that we snuck out. Let them go, before he comes and reaps their souls — or there will be no more games for any of us!”

The three children leap suddenly into the air. The colours of the Mire grow brighter — deeper — blurred. A fog descends, a cacophony of colour and —

We are standing on an island in the endless marsh. The world has returned to normal. The children are gone.