Chimera 2015 - Saturday Night Flagships
Al Shir-Ma
By Ellen Boucher, Dale Elvy and Sophie Melchior
This is the story of the town of Al Shir-Ma; a tale of great deeds, high adventure and deep sorrow, for the fate of Al Shir-Ma is the greatest mystery of all.
Deep within the sifting sands, Al Shir-Ma was the Sultan's great prize, an oasis for the parched, a refuge for the desperate and a blessing for the devout. Since time immemorial the town’s great fountain spilled fine, clear water for all. The people of Al Shir-Ma were wealthy, trading marvellous treasures with the great caravans and bartering lost secrets and mysteries with the fierce desert tribes. Merchants, scholars, magicians and nobles; all were welcome in Al Shir-Ma. Then, a great calamity was visited upon Al Shir-Ma. One fateful day the great fountain in the town square stopped flowing and the people of the town were struck by one tragedy after another.
But, of course, our tale is just beginning...
Set loosely within the fantasy world of 1001 Nights, Al-Shir Ma is a game for 66 players, with strong threads of political intrigue, magic, romance, duplicity and revenge running throughout the game. Successfully debuted at Kapcon 2011, coming to Auckland for the first time at Chimera 2015.
In the Halls of the Erlking
By Dave Agnew, Martin Clyde, Sarah Daymond and Philippa McLoughlin
The year is 1793, and Europe is at war. Far from the front, deep in a forest that never was and always will be, the affairs of mortal men seem all but forgotten as the Wild Hunt prepares to ride and the Erlking holds Court.
Later the horns will sound and the Hunt will ride forth. For now, they gather, in hope, in fear, in celebration. The torches are lit. The first blood has been spilled. The Halls of the Erlking have opened.
A brand new dark faerie tale game for 45 players.
Background
Traditionally, Chimera has had one epic sized game in the Saturday night spot, where the whole convention came together to play a game culminating in 2013 with "The Rose and the Dragon", he herculean 160 player theatreform, written by Ryan Paddy and his dedicated writing team, and arguably the larget theatreform game ever written worldwide. Last year, to reduce stress on writers, and to give players a chance to play big games from the past they may have missed, Chimera 2014 offered a choice of three awesome games in the Saturday night flagship space.
With the success of the multiple flagship model, Chimera is continuing it in 2015, with two great flagships available on the Saturday night. One of these is a brand new never-before-played game written specifically for this event by an enthusiastic team of veteran writers, while the other is a fantastic game from a stellar Wellington writing team, making its Auckland debut.
