The Constellations Have Chosen Their Champions

Parents
The Stars, Our Constellations by Caroline Berg

FALLEN STARS by Toby Sennett

Game Text
A game for two to four players and one deck of cards.

This game can be played in the style of superhero/sentai stories, as mere mortals caught in a cosmic struggle beyond their understanding, or anything in between.

Phase One: The Sky’s Own Betrayal
Generate a number of Constellations equal to the number of players plus one. Each player draws ten to fifteen stars in a shared area and then players take turns drawing one line at a time to create Constellations. Constellation lines cannot overlap; Constellations are made of between three and nine stars each. Any player may decide that the line they drew is the final line of the Constellation and then they name that Constellation, however each player names only one Constellation each. All players collaboratively decide on the final Constellation’s name. The player who names a Constellation also selects a unique Virtue for it, such as Glory, Honor, Justice, or Passion. The final Constellation is not assigned a Virtue.

Each player decides which Constellation has chosen their character as a champion. Champions are then assigned names, pronouns, and a suit from the deck. The Constellation without a champion is not assigned a suit. Any unused suits are removed from the deck and not used in play. Each player draws four cards that they keep in their hand.

The Constellation not selected to have a champion is revealed to have betrayed the others; this Constellation is referred to as the Descender in these rules but will still have its own name in play. It is enacting a selfish plan to take control or change the world in its favor. The details of this plan and its consequences will be further elaborated on through play. The remaining Constellations choose their Champions in response to the betrayal in the fiction of the game, even though players selected their Constellations ahead of time.

Phase Two: Falling Stars are Trails of Flame
The first situation is one of chaos. The Descender has caused a commotion at a key location as the first step of its plan. The players decide what this chaos looks like and the challenges to be overcome. Do monsters step out of the shadows or does fire rain down from the sky? Does the Descender have its own Champion? What power source, literal or figurative, is the Descender after?

Each player plays one card from their hand face down. The top card from the remaining deck is played face up and then all cards are revealed. Any player with a card of a higher value (or equal if their card is the same suit as their Constellation) has an action that succeeds as expected. Any player may choose to instead give their card to an ally so long as the suit of their card matches the ally’s Constellation’s suit. This card adds to the ally’s result for purposes of determining success.

Failure results in growth and knowledge. The Champion’s action fails, but the player states one thing they learn about the situation and one thing the Champion discovers about themself or their team. Regardless of whether the action succeeds or fails, if a player plays (or receives) a card of the same suit as their Constellation, they may introduce a fact about the history and lore of their Constellation, which may further extend the abilities that Constellation is able to bestow upon them.

After all actions and results are described, all played cards are discarded and players play a new card facedown. Play continues as before and may continue for up to four rounds when all players are out of cards. Each round represents a new challenge the Descender introduces significant enough to require the attention of the all the Champions. The Champions may freely interact between each other without players needing to play cards.

Phase Three: We Shatter at the Zenith
Players draw up to five cards each and discard one for a total hand size of four cards. Whether the initial situation was a success or failure, the Descender now introduces an escalation: this phase represents the climax of the action. The Descender’s plan all comes down to this moment, whether it’s a process that’s been steamrolling forward or the final desperate attempt. Either way, the stakes are as high as they can be. However, more than the danger this situation represents, the tension takes its toll on the Champions.

This phase plays similarly as the previous phase, except players can no longer give cards to other players. Instead, if a player plays a card of another Champion’s suit, they may introduce a fact about the history and lore of that Champion’s Constellation. While this reveal may benefit the Champion by extending their abilities, it may also expose a secret that Champion would’ve rather not known. Perhaps their Constellation was once conjoined with the Descender or their Constellation’s powers have a terrible and destructive interpretation. All players have final veto/approval over what’s true about their own Constellation.

Phase Four: The Ascension Lifts Us All
Players draw up to six cards and discard two for a total hand size of four cards. Shuffle all discarded cards back into the remaining deck; this may need to be done prior to drawing cards as well. The Champions are proactive in this phase, no longer reactionary. The Descender is an aspect of the sky, just as their Constellations are, so they work together to redeem and restore the Descender. Players may give suit-matching cards as aid again.

Once the Descender has been redeemed or all cards have been played, the story is concluded. Do the Constellations abandon their Champions or do the Champions keep their abilities to continue acting on behalf of the stars? What about the world has been changed in the wake of the Descender’s actions and how is the Descender continuing to work on making things right?

Example Constellation Names

 * Arcus, The Queen's Whale
 * The Centaur's Banner
 * Dawn's Crown
 * Flower of Life
 * Hearts of Light
 * The Phantom Yarrow
 * Tail of the Moon Dog
 * The Tortoise & The Crane
 * Tristram's Spirit
 * The Winged Shark
 * The Worm God

Analysis
The Constellations Have Chosen Their Champions inherits a simplified version of the constellation-building system from The Stars, Our Constellations and includes sample constellation names inspired by both real constellation names and the samples provided in The Stars, Our Constellations. The constellations and their stories are key to The Constellations Have Chosen Their Champions' narrative, however play focuses on individual characters.

FALLEN STARS passes on its card-based resolution system, including suits that correspond to specific characters, but removes the GM role. A card-giving mechanic has been added and the rules for redrawing cards has mutated slightly in the new generation. The Constellations Have Chosen Their Champions also inherited Virtues from FALLEN STARS, though they're almost vestigial because of how underutilized they are in the second generation. The themes of betrayal still form the central conflict, however The Constellations Have Chosen Their Champions specifically emphasizes teamwork and redemption over vengeance.

Children
None.