So far, I’ve been calling my planned setting/system for a second-world Korea Choson, which was the name I was using for a previous game set during the Imjin War that I ran at Gen Con 2008. That is no longer a proper name for the game which is no longer historical.
The working title is Broken Tiger.
Koreans use the tiger often in symbology. It was even part of the crest for the “Red Devils” soccer/football team that competed in the 2002 World Cup shared by South Korea and Japan. The shape of the peninsula is often compared to that of a tiger, which is said to drive away misfortune. It’s also been said the peninsula resembles a rabbit, which is an important traditional symbol for wisdom, but lacks the coolness of a tiger.
The focus of the game’s setting – the kingdom which right now I am calling Goryae (in reference to the kingdom of Koryo from which we get the term Korea) is going to be the land of the Tiger Throne.
In the time period in which the game is set, Goryae is split between rival factions and an invading army from an island neighbour. The capital is in the hands of the new dynasty while the older dynasty – receiving some assistance from its imperial neighbour – is holding on in the East.
The land of the Tiger Throne is broken.
As mentioned, this is a land in the convulsions of change, as a new dynasty replaces the weak and corrupt old royal house. Part of this is to provide areas that are under the control of the centre – both the new, militaristic society and the older, bureaucratic society – some that are in the ferment of civil war, and some that are under an oppressor’s boot. As I mentioned earlier, there were many parts of Korean history I wanted to consider, and this allows me to mix and match.
Another strength of the second-world as opposed to the historical.
Welcome to the evolution of Broken Tiger: Tales of a Divided Throne.
You can find out more about Choson/Broken Tiger here.