The Marxist 'Stages of History' theory provides our plot outline.

We find our heroes rattling around in the back of a space transport, checking and rechecking their equipment ahead of a terrifying HALO jump.

Play as a "Hurry up and Wait" war story scene.  They are cargo, they need to kill time.   Encourage a round of cards for 'duty roster' stakes  Play on character's fear or impatience related aspects to have a character 'freak out' and get the other players to use empathy or rapport to talk them down.   Run through the Halo drill again (Revise the theory of a High Altitude Low Opening Jump to create advantage using Lore).  Get players to embellish something from the character background into a 'On my first mission ...' story.   Interrupt the story with the 'jump' light. 

The HALO jump is a challenge
  • A Will test at Great difficulty (teamwork bonuses apply) to leap from the transport.
  • An Athletics test at Great difficulty to deploy parachute.  Interpret failed rolls as is 'succeed with significant cost' results  (Costs being players get spread out and have to find each other, increased difficulties on landing).
  • A Physique test at Fair difficulty (modified by shifts on the athletics roll) to handle the landing - this is effectively a 'Defend' roll.

The landing zone is a windy and snow covered mountain plateau. 


From here on Venus is a "sandbox adventure" that uses the Marxist 'Stages of History' theory as a framing device.   As our heroes descend down the mountain,  through cloud forests, via jungle rivers, along swampy rice growing deltas and into the Venusian towns they will meet people and situations that represent each of stage in the Marxist theory of history. (See I told you 'this show is educational').  

  • In the cloud forests they encounter a wild group of non-uplifted Venusian Gorillas, living as equals but always on the verge of starvation (representing primitive communism).   Within this group there are uplifted gorillas, who do not seek to fight the oppressor but simply move out of their range.  A raid by Venusian Tooth Beasts and some rousing speeches from our heroes and these uplifted gorillas will see the error of escapist plans.  They will offer their services as guides to ....
  •  The deep jungle interior where gorillas and frogs harvest _Rubium_ sap under slavery conditions.  They work hard with a gun in their back for a bowl of rice a day.  We explore the Heart of Darkness, incite a servile uprising (I am Sparticus) and follow the river until ...
  • The jungle meets the rice paddy and Frog Peasants toil under feudalism as share croppers and serfs to pay the tithes to the church and land rents to the barony.  Peasants burn the jungle to create land they can claim title on and farm as yeomen (Kulaks).  Bandits (dirty robbing hoods) and Gorillas lurk in the jungle fight against peasant encroachment.  Our heroes bring together the oppressed Gorilla and peasant, so they can throw off the barons and priests by raiding ....
  • The city where the artisans use their money capital to challenging the traditional order of peasant, warrior-noble and priest in favour a society of political liberty, a money economy and a world of bosses and wage labour.    Along with economic change, the city folk are undertaking a protestant reformation of their frog religion - that rejects superstitious practices such as the regular blood sacrifices to the river monster god Beth-Dagon required for rice fertility.  The city raids are successful leading to ...
  • Wide spread confusion about the way forward.  Religious reforms,  establishment of a constitutional monarchy and other "counter-revolutionary" measures are proposed as ways to quell the uprisings by the poor.  Many charismatic locals offer potential ways forward. Our heroes need to help one gain legitimacy as the 'dictator of the proletariat' to manage the chaos.  
  • If they choose well order is restored, power is devolved to governing committee and Frog and Gorilla find ways to co-exist.  Venus embraces the principles of progressive materialism and asks our players to leave so they can develop a distinctively Venusian version of Fully Automated Luxury Gay Space Communism
(Future posts will add flesh to this story framework).


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