The True History of Oz

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The Next Chapter.
Is The First Chapter.

A whispered legend has it that L. Frank Baum took his OZ story from a mysterious series of books called The True History of OZ.

The Wizard of Oz, the beloved movie from 1939, and all the other adaptations and variations – in books, on TV, other movies, several new ones currently in development in Hollywood – are all based on the book The Wonderful Wizard of OZ by L. Frank Baum.

The problem is, that that source material – Baum’s book – is, according to this legend, wrong.

Or, to be more precise, L. Frank Baum took the idea for his OZ from The True History of OZ, written by a native of the actual OZ named Calista Z. Turns out, Baum stumbled upon this strange 5-volume history while going bankrupt running a general store in the Dakota Territories in 1890. How they came to be in the back room of his general store in the Dakota Territories is a book unto itself.

Baum, at first, did not like these stories. They were dark, violent, full of revenge, terrible secrets, gangs, vice, war, apocalyptic magic, and more.

Nevertheless, Baum, so the still unproven legend has it, recognized the power of the stories and the characters and the world in which they lived. He appreciated the ultimate lesson and theme of those books, which was: If change is possible, then hope is justified.

After reading and re-reading the 5 books dozens of times, he decided to turn it into a children’s story. He made it cute, silly, and sweet, and, of course, it then became one of the most beloved books ever, and he became a fabulously wealthy man.

From a bankrupt shopkeeper, to one of the wealthiest men in America, in a few short years, from one short book. Very curious.

But the real story of OZ, according to Calista Z., who was there, was not cute. Or silly.

Or sweet.

At all.

In other words, there are other words.

This is:

The True History of OZ.

[Limited Edition TTRPGs]

The True History of Oz

Limited Editions

In advance of the Kickstarter campaign to fund the production of The Tin Man Runs the Town TTRPG (tabletop role-playing game) we are offering a Limited Edition version of the game. 100 Limited Edition versions will be published. These editions will be hardcover, will contain additional artwork including maps and character illustrations, and will be numbered 1-100, signed by the creators, and dated. Before the Kickstarter launch, each 1 of 100 is $250.00. (17 have been sold so far). After the launch, they will be $1000.00.

Stann, the Leader of the Giant Flying Monkey Gang.
Alley
As the Emerald City has grown, so too has its criminal underworld.

They are the only Limited Edition versions that will ever be published.

The Tin Man Runs the Town TTRPG is based in part on the Forged in the Dark d6 system. The basis for this system is to make the mechanics feed the narrative by having the players choose when and what to roll and have more control over the narrative description. Game Masters set the Position and Effect of the rolls, helping to inform Player decisions on their effect and consequence. Rolls are almost exclusively based on the Player Character’s Skills list, outside of which, there are only a handful of uncommon rolls. This further simplifies gameplay and keeps the focus on the action.

Nick struggles against an evil tree in the Haunted Forest, as a Tin Man, slashing his axe through the underbrush, rushes to his rescue.

The game also emphasizes the Player Characters as a team with the Theme mechanics. The Players decide on a single Theme that defines what their Player Characters want to achieve as a group and why they have decided to work together. The group’s Theme helps determine the campaign narrative as well. Will they be freedom fighters working against the oppressive nobility? Or will they work to take control of the criminal underworld? Maybe they’re all there to become the nobility and put the workers under their thumb just like they were. This mechanic ties into Session Zero discussions and helps the Game Master decide how to outline the campaign.

Mystery, magic, and some hard-won hope in the face of forces that sometimes seem beyond our control – that’s what the True History of OZ is all about. The theme of this incredible story: IF CHANGE IS POSSIBLE, THEN HOPE IS JUSTIFIED.

And so:

GoFundMe
gofundme.com/help-launch-the-true-history-of-oz

You will receive an email from me, confirming you will receive 1 of the 100 Limited Edition games.

Thank you!

Matt Schulte
Creator, Writer, and Lore Master of The True History of OZ

and

Elliot Holder, Co-Designer of The True History of OZ TTRPG

More about Elliot:
Elliot Holder has been playing and GM’ing TTRPGs for the last 8 years. He has run games in a number of systems including Dungeons & Dragons, Blades in the Dark, GURPS, Cortex Prime Games, and Fate Games as well as a number of One Page RPGs. Game design is not new to Elliot, as he has created numerous mechanics for games. He has appeared on a number of livestreams including Warlocks and Waffles and the Vaktare. He currently runs professional games through the Start Playing Games platform.

More about Matt:

Mattschulte.net

linkedin.com/in/mattschulte

 

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