Untitled Shakespeare Game Playtest

[vcczar]

@WVProgressive @Willthescout7 @ShortKing@10centjimmy @Bloot911 @OrangeP47 @ConservativeElector2

The Impresarios have gone through a nightmare of a time trying to find a place to stage their plays. As the internet and modern booking didn't exist then, each impresarios probably had to personally make 20 trips all over the London area on foot over the course of the month to find a locations. As paper was expensive, writing a letter wasn't practical. Eventually, the companies will want a permanent theatre, and they'll appoint a manager to handle some of the more tedious aspects for their company. The constant moving from location to location will cut in to rehearsal time, since the entire company will need to move locations. 

Player	10CentJimmy	Bloot911	ConElector2	OrangeP47	ShortKing	WilltheScout7	WVProg
Impresario	Edmund Guttersworth	George Rowe	Christian Weybridge, Gent.	John Jones	John Avery	Henry Lincoln	Edward Byron
Company	Oxford's Men	Chandos's Men	Essex's Men	Leicester's Men	Lord Treasurer's Men	Earl Marshal's Men	Buckhurst's Men
1	Tabard Inn-SW	George Inn-WC	Saracen's Head-L	The Beargarden - BS	The Bull Ring - BS	George Inn-SW	Bull Inn-L
2	Tabard Inn-SW	George Inn-WC	George Inn-SW	Boar's Head Inn - WC	Saracen's Head-L	The Bull Ring - BS	Bull Inn-L
3	Tabard Inn-SW	George Inn-WC	George Inn-SW	Boar's Head Inn - WC	Saracen's Head-L	The Beargarden - BS	Bull Inn-L
4	The Beargarden - BS	Bull Inn-L	George Inn-WC	Boar's Head Inn - WC	The Bull Ring - BS	George Inn-SW	Saracen's Head-L
5	The Bull Ring - BS	The Beargarden - BS	George Inn-WC	Bull Inn-L	Boar's Head Inn - WC	Tabard Inn-SW	Saracen's Head-L
6	George Inn-SW	The Bull Ring - BS	Tabard Inn-SW	Bull Inn-L	Boar's Head Inn - WC	George Inn-WC	Saracen's Head-L
7	George Inn-SW	Tabard Inn-SW	George Inn-WC	Bull Inn-L	Boar's Head Inn - WC	Saracen's Head-L	The Bull Ring - BS
8	The Beargarden - BS	Tabard Inn-SW	George Inn-WC	George Inn-SW	Saracen's Head-L	Bull Inn-L	Bull Inn-L
9	The Bull Ring - BS	Tabard Inn-SW	George Inn-WC	George Inn-SW	Saracen's Head-L	The Beargarden - BS	Bull Inn-L
10	The Beargarden - BS	George Inn-WC	George Inn-SW	George Inn-SW	Saracen's Head-L	Tabard Inn-SW	Bull Inn-L
11	Tabard Inn-SW	The Bull Ring - BS	George Inn-SW	George Inn-WC	The Beargarden - BS	Boar's Head Inn - WC	Saracen's Head-L
12	The Beargarden - BS	Boar's Head Inn - WC	George Inn-SW	George Inn-WC	The Bull Ring - BS	Tabard Inn-SW	Saracen's Head-L
13	The Bull Ring - BS	Bell Inn-L	Tabard Inn-SW	George Inn-WC	Boar's Head Inn - WC	The Beargarden - BS	Saracen's Head-L
14	The Beargarden - BS	Bell Inn-L	George Inn-WC	Tabard Inn-SW	Saracen's Head-L	George Inn-SW	Bull Inn-L
15	The Bull Ring - BS	Bell Inn-L	George Inn-WC	Tabard Inn-SW	Saracen's Head-L	Boar's Head Inn - WC	Bull Inn-L
16	The Beargarden - BS	Bell Inn-L	The Bull Ring - BS	Tabard Inn-SW	Saracen's Head-L	George Inn-SW	Bull Inn-L
17	The Bull Ring - BS	Bell Inn-L	Tabard Inn-SW	The Beargarden - BS	George Inn-WC	Boar's Head Inn - WC	Saracen's Head-L
18	George Inn-WC	Bell Inn-L	Tabard Inn-SW	Boar's Head Inn - WC	The Beargarden - BS	George Inn-SW	Saracen's Head-L
19	George Inn-WC	The Beargarden - BS	Tabard Inn-SW	Boar's Head Inn - WC	The Bull Ring - BS	Bell Inn-L	Saracen's Head-L
20	George Inn-WC	George Inn-SW	The Bull Ring - BS	Boar's Head Inn - WC	Saracen's Head-L	Bell Inn-L	Bull Inn-L
21	Saracen's Head-L	George Inn-SW	Tabard Inn-SW	Bull Inn-L	The Beargarden - BS	Bell Inn-L	The Bull Ring - BS
22	The Bull Ring - BS	George Inn-SW	Tabard Inn-SW	Bull Inn-L	Saracen's Head-L	Bell Inn-L	The Beargarden - BS
23	Tabard Inn-SW	The Beargarden - BS	George Inn-WC	Bull Inn-L	The Bull Ring - BS	Bell Inn-L	Saracen's Head-L
24	The Beargarden - BS	Tabard Inn-SW	George Inn-WC	George Inn-SW	The Bull Ring - BS	Bell Inn-L	Saracen's Head-L
25	The Bull Ring - BS	Tabard Inn-SW	The Beargarden - BS	George Inn-SW	Boar's Head Inn - WC	Bell Inn-L	Saracen's Head-L
26	The Beargarden - BS	Tabard Inn-SW	The Bull Ring - BS	George Inn-SW	Boar's Head Inn - WC	George Inn-WC	Bull Inn-L

Up next: Hiring staff.  Look at your current actors. If they have a "Yes" listed under "Prompter," "Tireman," "Stagekeeper," or "Manager," then they can hold these staff positions. Only a manager can act and manage, although they'll occasionally lose some of their acting bonuses, so it's often best to not have your lead also manage. It's a good idea to probably move one of your crappy actors to staff so you can potentially draw a better actor as a replace. Please copy+past this form and insert the names of your staff members. If you want to draw a staff member, rather than move an actor to staff, then just put "draw.":

• Manager (Officially represents the company and acts as your administrative #2. Can retrain their acting position)  :
• Prompter (Manages the play manuscripts, writes out the lines for each actor, plots the play for the actors): 
• Tireman (Manages the costumes, repairs and amends the costumes, etc.): 
• Stagekeeper (Cleans the theatre, repairs the stage, decorates the stage, writes the play bills to advertise the play and hangs them up in the area): 

While the last three lose their acting position, they technically will act in scenes that require crowds or a lot of actors, which is why low skill actors often handled these roles. In addition to these, when you have a new play, you'll hire unnamed scribes to aid the prompter, and you'll hire unnamed gatherers (collect money at the doors) for when plays are staged. Gatherers were often family members and spouses. Scribes aided the prompter in writing out all the lines for the actors since they generally had about a day to do this. 

 

 

[OrangeP47]

Manager: Draw

Prompter:  Mark Savill

Tireman:  Robert Smith

Stagekeeper: Emanuel Noke

[WVProgressive]

• Manager (Officially represents the company and acts as your administrative #2. Can retrain their acting position) : Draw
• Prompter (Manages the play manuscripts, writes out the lines for each actor, plots the play for the actors): Edward Thorpe
• Tireman (Manages the costumes, repairs and amends the costumes, etc.): George Washington
• Stagekeeper (Cleans the theatre, repairs the stage, decorates the stage, writes the play bills to advertise the play and hangs them up in the area): Richard George

[OrangeP47]

Also I'm gonna assume this is a "free" way to maybe get some less terrible actors by booting these people into staff? Just to be clear?

[ShortKing]

Manager: Draw
Prompter: Josias Cranford
Tireman: Edmund Fogg
Stagekeeper: Draw

[ConservativeElector2]

Manager: Draw

Prompter:  James Carter

Tireman:  Matthew Pigot

Stagekeeper: Draw

[10centjimmy]

• Manager (Officially represents the company and acts as your administrative #2. Can retrain their acting position)  : John Alleyn
• Prompter (Manages the play manuscripts, writes out the lines for each actor, plots the play for the actors): Erasmus Barton
• Tireman (Manages the costumes, repairs and amends the costumes, etc.): Nicholas Sprottle
• Stagekeeper (Cleans the theatre, repairs the stage, decorates the stage, writes the play bills to advertise the play and hangs them up in the area):  Thomas Jefferson

[vcczar]

Only need @Bloot911 and @Willthescout7

[Bloot911]

Manger- James Burbage

 Prompter-Samuel Hammer

Tiireman-James Monroe

Stagekeeper:Humphrey Blexham

[vcczar]

1 hour ago, Bloot911 said:

Manger- James Burbage

 Prompter-Samuel Hammer

Tiireman-James Monroe

Stagekeeper:Humphrey Blexham

It can't be an apprentice or boy actor. Has to be an adult. Hamner and Monroe don't qualify. 

[Bloot911]

David Mitchell: Prompter

Micheal Barrow: Tireman

[vcczar]

I think only @Willthescout7 is left.

[Willthescout7]

I've been out pretty much all day due to work and festivities. I'll have it done by the time you wake up

[Willthescout7]

• Manager: Draw
• Prompter: Nathaniel Pinnock
• Tireman: Elisha Millet
• Stagekeeper: Richard Warner

[vcczar]

4 hours ago, Willthescout7 said:

• Manager: Draw
• Prompter: Nathaniel Pinnock
• Tireman: Elisha Millet
• Stagekeeper: Richard Warner

These last two are ineligible because they aren't adult actors. Staff can't be an apprentice or boy. I'll give you a couple hours to propose two eligible adult actors for staff. Otherwise I'll put "draw" so we can move to the next phase. 

[Willthescout7]

I'll just draw

[vcczar]

@WVProgressive @Willthescout7 @ShortKing@10centjimmy @Bloot911 @OrangeP47 @ConservativeElector2

I'm now filling in the holes in your companies. 

@10centjimmy had appointed an apprentice to staff, so I had to move him back to his apprentice role. He draws Benjamin Day as a stagekeeper, John Perkins as a 1 skill actor (has +2 bonus to comedy and touring vet skill), and Edward Cod as a 1 skill actor. 

@Bloot911 Gets three new actors: Thomas Shipwash (1 skill), John Dutton (potential for 3 skill and bonuses to tragedy and comedy), and Henry Makepeace (1 skill)

@ConservativeElector2 has to draw all of his staff because he didn't select any adults, who are the only eligible actors for staff. As such, he gets Stephen North for Prompter, Robert Blackadder for Tireman, Lewis Holbrooke for Stagekeeper, and Sebastian Westcott for Manager. The latter historically ran a boy acting company in the 1580s. 

@OrangeP47 gets Richard Farrant as manager. He also has the ability to write plays, but he's quite terrible at it. Historically, he managed a boy actor company and wrote plays for this company. He draws three actors: Philip Ander (1 skill), Robert Sherman (1 skill), and Richard Wreke (1 skill). 

@ShortKing Edmund Fogg is too young to be staff, so you'll draw someone for that spot. Richard George is now Tireman, and Geoffrey Nevinson is now Stagekeeper. John Brayne is manager. Historically, Brayne co-owned the theatre known as The Theatre, which was Shakespeare's first theatre, most likely. As an actor he draws.....Richard Tarlton! Queen Elizabeth's favorite clown! Historically, Tarlton dies before Shakespeare takes off, but he was THE comic actor of the 1570s and 1580s and inspired all later clowns. He was a topic of poems and essays and dedications for several decades after his death. Tarlton starts with a 4 skill in acting and has a potential for 5. Lots of other bonuses. He can also playwright, but isn't very good at it. He must have looked funny because there's mention of people laughing as soon as they saw his face, even before he spoke or did anything. As mention, ShortKing also has Robert Armin as an 8-year-old boy actor, who would be the major clown of the 1600s decade. Baring tragedy, he's set for lead clown possibly from 1576-1615 or so. Armin will reach adult actor about 1589, which means he'll have to make a choice between Tarlton and Armin by then as they'll both demand to be lead clown. Naturally, even if Armin isn't at 5 skill yet, he'll probably be the one to keep just because he'll have more years left. It's sort of like when the 49ers had both Joe Montana and Steve Young or when the Packers had both Brett Favre and Aaron Rodgers. 

@Willthescout7 gets Humphrey Cowell as Stagekeeper, Rafe Monde as Tireman, and Henry Evans as manager. Historically, Evans owned a theatre in the late 1590s to early 1600s. He also gets Jacob Garrett, a 1 skill actor. 

@WVProgressive gets Margaret Brayne as manager. Historically, she's the wife of John Brayne (ShortKing's manager). She inherited co-ownership of the The Theatre on her husband's death. Women couldn't legally act, but nothing would have barred her from handling managing duties. George Washington is too young to be a staff member, so Laurence Bridgeman is drawn to be Tireman. Robert Mead and Joseph Waltham are drawn as actors, both 1 skill. 

Most of the eventually good actors are apprentice age, boy age, younger, or not even born yet. They're better because they grow up in an industry that's had some years to get established. Most of these old actors are growing up in the era of Miracle Plays, Morality Plays, and Mystery Plays -- all more about present a message than about acting or action. 

I'll set up the plays next. 

 

 

 

 

[vcczar]

@WVProgressive @Willthescout7 @ShortKing@10centjimmy @Bloot911 @OrangeP47 @ConservativeElector2

Acquiring Plays for the Company

A playing company's Prompter has the capacity to take care of 30 plays at a time, 26 which will need to be staged. As new plays provide bonuses, there will eventually be a lot of turnover with the plays. 

Here's how you can get plays: 

1. Purchase, sell, or trade with another company. This isn't an option right now, obviously.  
2. Purchase or sell a play at the bookstalls outside St Paul's Cathedral. This was where the book trade, printing trade, and publishing trade was located in London. A play that is older than 50 years -- before 1526 -- is 10 shillings (half a pound) and a more recent play is 1 pound. You don't have any plays to sell at the moment.
3. Use a play written for you by a playwright. This isn't an option yet. 

The bookstalls will only sell published plays. Playwrights will produce unpublished plays. Any company has access to published plays. As in, every company can own the same published plays. Unpublished plays are valuable because your company will own the exclusive rights to the play and its performances. However, for now, we can only get published plays.

This is what you all need to do this turn.

1. See the "Published Plays" tab -- I've moved it to the first tab spot. 
2. Remember you only have 30 pounds remaining. There's now way you'll have 26 news plays this month, so you'll have to repeat some performances, which will produce some low profit nights, but it's necessary at the moment. Let me know which published plays you want to purchase. It costs 18 pounds for the entire collection of current published plays. 
3. Keep in mind that you still need buy costumes, which will be the largest expense. If you have to purchase all the types of costumes, then it will cost you 22 pounds for inaccurate costumes. You might get some donations from your patron, but it's 10% chance or less that they'll do it. You might have to take out a loan, which will have to be paid back before you can make a profit. If you don't repay a loan by next January, you're company will fold. 

Anyway, give me the names of the plays you want to purchase. You won't be able to get 26 plays--one for each day of performance--so you'll be repeating plays, which is something you'll want to avoid once you can afford 26 plays. 

[ShortKing]

John Avery will purchase the following plays:

Ralph Roister Doister
Jack Juggler
Gammer Gurton's Needle
Abraham
Liberality and Prodigality
Everyman
Mankind
The Castle of Perseverance
Interlude of Youth

Edited July 5, 2022 by ShortKing

[OrangeP47]

Leicester's Men will take Everyman, Mankind, Interlude of Youth, Gorboduc, Jack Juggler, The Play of the Weather, Generic Cycle of Mystery Plays, and The Castle of Perseverance

[Willthescout7]

1. Everyman
2. Abraham
3. The Castle of Perseverance
4. Gorboduc
5. The World and the Child
6. Interlude of Youth
7. The Play of the Weather
8. Palamon and Orcite
9. King Xerxes
10. Damon and Pythias

[10centjimmy]

1. King Xerxes

2. Abraham

3. Chariclea

4. Liberality and Prodigality

5. Jack Juggler

6. Gammer Gurton's Needle

7. The Disobedient Child

8. The play of the weather

9. The castle of perseverance

10. Mankind

Edited July 5, 2022 by 10centjimmy

[WVProgressive]

1. Ralph Roister Doister
2. The Disobedient Child
3. Jack Juggler
4. Gammer Gurton's Needle
5. Liberality and Prodigality
6. The World and the Child
7. Everyman
8. Mankind
9. The Castle of Perseverance
10. Interlude of Youth
11.  Generic Cycle of Mystery Plays
12. Chariclea
13. King Xerxes

[vcczar]

Just need @Bloot911 and @ConservativeElector2

[ConservativeElector2]

Generic Cycle of Mystery Plays

The Castle of Perseverance

The Play of the Weather

Ralph Roister Doister

Gorboduc

Palamon and Arcite

Damon and Pythias

Chariclea

Timoclea at the Siege of Thebes

King Xerxes