Line #32 TabletopGame/OverTheEdge


1	[[quoteright:200:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Over_the_Edge_RPG_1062.jpg]]
2
3	->This game is a coded message. You will decode the message in your dreams and execute its instructions in the spaces between moments of will. Neither you nor I will ever know the contents of this message.
4	-->--Jonathan Tweet, on the credits page of the second edition
5
6	''Over the Edge'' is a tabletop roleplaying game by Creator/JonathanTweet in collaboration (to a certain extent) with Creator/RobinLaws and [[XtremeKoolLetterz Mark Rein·Hagen]].[[note]]That's a large part of the team responsible for ''[[TabletopGame/VampireTheMasquerade Vampire: The Masqerade]]'' and ''TabletopGame/ArsMagica'', if those names mean nothing to you.[[/note]] If ''TabletopGame/UnknownArmies'' is the roleplaying game for the works of Creator/TimPowers and ''TabletopGame/{{Kult}}'' is the roleplaying game for the books of Creator/CliveBarker, then ''Over the Edge'' is the roleplaying game version of ''Literature/NakedLunch''. It also had a short-lived trading card game incarnation under the title ''On The Edge''.
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8	The game is set on the mysterious Mediterranean island of Al Amarja, which is ruled by Monique D'Aubainne and various members of her extended family. The D'Aubainnes have most of the laws of the U.S.A. (or something like them) on the statute-books but basically only enforce them if you attempt to mess with the status quo, making Al Amarja effectively a Libertarian despotism. As a result, it is home to every conspiracy imaginable (no, seriously, one splat-book has a table to determine [[spoiler:whether any given housecat is an alien and part of the huge Conspiracy of Cats]]) as well as a haven for all sorts of freaks and malcontents.
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10	The native Al Amarjians ("'Marjians" or "Martians" in local slang) are a mongrel and polyglot population, given to self-expression largely (but not exclusively) in the form of drinking, drugs, public weirdness and violence. And they wear nooses instead of neckties.
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12	The rule system used was released separately as the Wanton Role-Playing System ([=WaRP=] System) under an Open Source license; a few adventures for the [=WaRP=] System were published.
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14	A third edition was released in early 2019, moving Al Amarja to the Atlantic Ocean (off the coast of Africa) and making many other changes to the setting, both large and small. It also changed the rule system to one built around rolling two dice (called "lots") and rerolling based on relative ability levels.
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16	----
17	!! All editions provide examples of:
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19	* AbsurdlyHighStakesGame: Winds of Change, the floating casino run by "Chick", specializes in these. Bet your life against someone else's - loser dies, winner gets a OneUp. Just don't try to cheat.
20	* AlienGeometries: The Terminal, Al Amarja's major airport. It's shaped like a step pyramid. An ''upside-down'' step pyramid. Try not to get lost.
21	* AllMythsAreTrue: At least, a good portion of them. And there's kitset rules for making up the rest of them.
22	* AncientConspiracy: Several, including the Movers, the Pharaohs, and the Earthlings.
23	* BatterUp: Baseball bats are the preferred weapon of Otto's Men (first/second editions) and their third-edition counterparts, the Clubbers.
24	* BizarreGamblingWinnings: at the Winds of Change, the floating casino run by "Chick", characters could bet almost anything, up to and including betting your life against someone else's: loser dies, winner gets a OneUp. Just don't try to cheat.
25	* CityOfAdventure: The Edge, as the primary setting of the game. The other cities on Al Amarja seem to be calmer most of the time.
26	* CityOfSpies: [[spoiler:Pretty much every secret service has a branch on Al Amarja]].
27	* ConspiracyKitchenSink: The core books include dozens of secret conspiracies, and those just scratch the surface.
28	* DoomsdayDevice: Several, although exactly which ones may depend on edition.
29	* EvenEvilHasStandards: Even other drug dealers think the Sandmen are freaks.
30	* EvilTwin: The Andalusia Dog's half brother, Rex.
31	* {{Expy}}: Al Amarja for [[Literature/NakedLunch Interzone]].
32	* FantasticDrug: Lots of them. And then subverted with Wings, which is ''sold'' as if it has the same weird psychic effects as the fringe-tech drugs, but is actually just LSD.
33	* FratBro: Sigma Omicron Beta, especially in first/second edition. Third edition Sigma Om shades a little bit more toward barely-closeted ManlyGay.
34	* GambitPileup: The inevitable result of ConspiracyKitchenSink.
35	* LovePotion: MDA-Cubed, an incredibly powerful aphrodesiac.
36	* {{Mad Scientist}}s: They're called "Oppenheimers".
37	* ManiacMonkeys: The Dog Faces are a gang comprised of one old lady, her freaky radio technology and a ''horde of intelligent baboons''. They're dangerous, to say the least.
38	* MilkmanConspiracy: These are also numerous.
39	* {{Mutants}}: Many. Bitter and Herb's is run by one and is a popular hangout for them.
40	* PublicExecution: In Justice Plaza, in both settings. The State in third edition also allows private companies to buy the rights to perform executions for profit. These frequently are in the form of a DeathTrap, only without the victim surviving.
41	* PuppeteerParasite: [[spoiler: The Kergillians.]]
42	* RealityWarper: [[spoiler: The Cut-Ups Machine, and by extension the people in the Cut-Ups Project,]] will change reality if any organisation gets too close to running the world.
43	* SeriousBusiness: The Sommerites are a religion worshipping the rock vocalist Karla Sommers. They throw good parties.
44	* ShoutOut: Al Amarja is basically [[Literature/NakedLunch Interzone]] on even more drugs.
45	** One of the cards in ''On The Edge'' is The Centipede, a shout out to the film version of the ''Film/TheMask'' (which took place in 'Edge City').
46	** Assorted members of the Cut Ups are shout outs: [[Series/DoctorWho Doctor What]], [[Film/UnChienAndalou the Andalusia Dog]], Creator/TerryGilliam and real life RPG designer Doc Cross.
47	** One of the forms of PublicExecution in third edition is sharks with [[Film/AustinPowers laser pointers attached to them]].
48	* TomatoInTheMirror: [[spoiler:The glugs are the real humans. The rest of the human race are mutants bred to destroy them. In the third edition, the glugs are pure Neanderthals, changing the details of the story while the broad strokes remain.]]
49	* {{Tulpa}}s: Useful for infiltration, but one must be careful. If they realize that you know what they are, it damages their ability to maintain their self-image, and they may vanish back into the nothingness they came from.
50	* ViceCity: The Edge.
51	* WretchedHive: Al Amarja.
52	----
53	!! The first and second editions, and the card game, provide examples of:
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55	* AlphaBitch: Sigma Epsilon Xi sorority girls tend toward this.
56	* ContentWarnings: The "With a Long Spoon" adventure has a content advisory on the back cover marking it as for mature readers, and a note: "There are a lot of moral 'grey areas' in Over The Edge. This adventure isn't one of them."
57	* ElvisLives: And owns a Memphis-themed nightclub in The Terminal under the name "Aaron Parker", as he attempts to ascend to godhood.
58	* FunWithAcronyms: The fraternities and sororities all spell out something characteristic of their members with their names.
59	** Sigma Omicron Beta (SOB) is {{Jerkass}} {{Frat Bro}}s.
60	** Sigma Epsilon Xi (SEX) is ReallyGetsAround {{Alpha Bitch}}es.
61	** Delta Epsilon Theta (DETH) is Gloomy {{Goth}}s.
62	** Alpha Rho Tau (ART) is artsy {{Granola Girl}}s.
63	* {{Goth}}: Delta Epsilon Theta fraternity is Gloomy Goths.
64	* GranolaGirl: The girls in Alpha Rho Tau.
65	* HighTimesFuture: Drugs aren't legal in Al Amarja, but the law isn't enforced unless the Peace want an excuse for an arrest, or unless it's a drug they really want to control like [=SloMo=].
66	* LesserOfTwoEvils: The "With a Long Spoon" adventure features a choice between multiple horrible groups, the least-evil of which is standing by and watching another group that [[WouldHurtAChild tortures children]]. They're not planning to stop the torturers, they just want to know if their theory that abusing children can trigger psychic powers works.
67	* OmnicidalManiac: [[spoiler: Mr. [=LeThuy=], an unassuming Vietnamese man.]] He's also a dangerous nihilist who wants to destroy the universe.
68	* RealityWarper: The [[spoiler: Throckmorton Device]] is a very slow-acting one.
69	* ReallyGetsAround: Sigma Epsilon Xi sorority, typically with Sigma Omicron Beta fraternity.
70	* Really700YearsOld: Medieval alchemist Nicholas Flamel and his wife now reside on the island, thanks to the Elixir of Life.
71	* SpontaneousHumanCombustion: An uncommon side-effect of Blue Shock abuse. Ponder the effect of it happening in a room full of Blue Shock addicts, which enhances all the senses...
72	* StableTimeLoop: [[spoiler: The Throckmorton Device]] is controlling events in the past to ensure its own creation.
73	* ThoseWackyNazis: Monique D'Aubainne bought the island off them during UsefulNotes/WorldWarTwo.
74	* WordSaladHumor: The Coatless Code of the Chaos Boys (of which the Cut-Ups are the local cell) is about two-thirds this and one-third ShoutOut to Music/JamesBrown.
75	--> "This is the weather the cuckoo likes, armored division submissive to vernacular the world into a gambling birdhouse velocity."
76	* YouCantThwartStageOne: Construction of [[spoiler: the Throckmorton Device]] clearly cannot be stopped, because it is already controlling things to ensure it will be.
77	----
78	!! The third edition provides examples of:
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80	* ArmsDealer: Of a sort. Gun Metal doesn't sell guns, or even weapons. It specializes in sports equipment and tools that just happen to be extremely useful for beating people up.
81	* ArtificialIntelligence: Rebus, and its virtual assistant Reba.
82	* AlternateSelf: "A Conclave of Chikutorpls" features five different versions of Chickutorpl from alternate universes.
83	* TheEndOfTheWorldAsWeKnowIt: Several groups are convinced that it's imminent, including the Movers, the Stitch, the Cut-Ups, and the Pharaohs. It is possible that what they are detecting is [[spoiler: C, the coming singularity]].
84	* EvilMask: The masks in the "Sympathy of the D'Aubainnes" adventure, where people wearing masks of one of the D'Aubainne children are forced to compete in a contest between the siblings.
85	* FunWithAcronyms: Most of the fraternities and sororities spell out something characteristic of their members with their names.
86	** Sigma Epsilon Xi (SEX) is SexMagic witches.
87	** Delta Epsilon Theta (DETH) is wannabe nihilists.
88	** Alpha Rho Tau (ART) is guerrila artists.
89	* GraffitiOfTheResistance: Alpha Rho Tau, the forbidden sorority, uses subversive graffiti and other guerrilla art to attempt to liberate people.
90	* HighTimesFuture: Most drugs are legal in Al Amarja. Drugs must be taken for a medical condition, but exactly what it is isn't relevant. Any mood-altering substance is considered a drug, including alcohol, caffeine, nicotine, and nutmeg. {{Fantastic Drug}}s like MDA-cubed are technically illegal, but the State doesn't care except for combat-enhancing drugs like [=SloMo=].
91	* HumanSubspecies: [[spoiler: Glugs are Neanderthals. The Pharaohs are ''homo erectus''.]]
92	* ImprovisedWeapon: Weapons are banned on Al Amarja. [[BatterUp Baseball bats]], [[WrenchWhack wrenches]], kitchen knives, and similar aren't weapons, fortunately.
93	* InsistentTerminology: 'Mutant' is derogatory and dehumanizing; the term 'Phenotype Nonconformist' or 'PNC' is preferred.
94	* TheManBehindTheMan: Monique d'Aubainne, President of Al Amarja in the previous editions, did not take over after the death of her husband Jacques, "Our Martyred Leader". Instead, her son Jean-Christophe is now Head of State, and his sisters, Sister Cheryl and Sir Constance, actually run things. The book's index indicates that Monique is the secretive figure known as "Mother", leader of the Presidential Guard and likely power behind the throne.
95	* MythologyGag: Many important characters and places from earlier editions reappear in considerably different circumstances.
96	** Throckmorton's Exterminators is a globally-recognized brand. The head of the local franchise is Clyde Blanche, who feels like he MissedTheCall somehow.
97	** Ms. [=LeThuy=] is a charming woman who fits in everywhere and seems to get along with everyone.
98	** Total Taxi, formerly the epitome of discreet travel, is now short for Totalitarian Taxi, the only taxi service allowed on the island.
99	** Tiffany Trilobite, the cartoon character, can talk to people, and had an infamous episode that triggered epileptic seizures. [[spoiler: This was part of a plot by the Stitch.]]
100	* OtherMeAnnoysMe: The Chickutorpls in the "A Conclave of Chickutorpls" adventure (in "Welcome to the Island").
101	* PeoplesRepublicOfTyranny: Played with. The Ultimate Democratic Republic of Al Amarja is a pseudo-libertarian police state.
102	* PoweredByAForsakenChild: [[spoiler: Rebus is based on a girl named Raaida. No one knows where her body is, if it still exists at all.]]
103	* PuttingTheBandBackTogether: The goal in the "Battle of the Bands" adventure is to get the band "Betwixt" back together.
104	* RecursiveCanon: The earlier editions of the game exist in the game world, where they were created as disinformation about Al Amarja.
105	* RidiculouslyAverageGuy: Ms. [=LeThuy=]'s genome is somehow a perfect union of humanity as a whole. And this averageness might be contagious.
106	* SexMagic: Sigma Epsilon Xi appears to be a sorority of wannabe sex witches.
107	* TheSingularity: [[spoiler: C might be this.]]
108	* StableTimeLoop: [[spoiler: C - the upcoming singularity -]] is controlling events in the past to ensure its own creation, and possibly has been doing so for millions of years.
109	* TakeThat: The core book twice comments on how you can tell it's set in a horrible dystopian AlternateUniverse because UsefulNotes/DonaldTrump [[HarsherInHindsight won the 2016 election]].
110	* TheUnfettered: Delta Epsilon Theta fraternity tries to be this. "Those who know that everything means nothing are free to do anything."

Context TabletopGame / OverTheEdge