Unknown Armies 9/11 Jam Results

Results from the Unknown Armies 9/11 jam. Submissions were limited to 3,333 words, set some time in 2001 to 2008, and linked to a series of prompts chosen by the contest organizer.

The Springfield Travel Agency, by Arbor Day. 

Feels like something out of UA2, with the lengthy backstory leading to a couple paragraphs of playable information. Similar to Dream Syndicate from Labyrinth (another Tynes product) this is a cool web forum in need of more ways for it to matter in real life. There's a ton of stuff happening behind the scenes or in flashbacks and it would be great if more of it could be visible and relevant to the players. The quest to build the Otherspace is the most promising hook but also the one with the least airtime.

Towerfolk, by Cliomancer

In high school one of my teachers had a sister who was late for the train that got nerve gassed by Aum Shinrikyo. I think the primary way Towerfolk would get caught is a "death spiral" where they freak out, appear the next day, someone tries to eject them for their behavior previously and they freak out again, then they appear the next day...

Various Entries, by Indigo
Raw creativity without any editing or attempt to fit it into the game system. I like these entries but the collection would have benefited from at least one being smaller in scope. I understand the theme is conspiracies but a list where everyone is an ancient god or world-ruling demon is a bit top heavy. The Warrior is probably my favorite, but he needs a cause to fight for in order to use his channels and taboo. 

Steadman

Martyr’s Dirt, by MadJaymilton
I like this one. There's a throwaway line in the Delta Green scenario Holy War where Steven Alzis, the Delta Green equivalent of Comte Saint Germaine, rolls around in the ashes of the Twin Towers like a bird taking a dust bath. I briefly explored the use of ritual sacrifice items to sub for normal ritual components in Mummy Roads.

Psuedippurgy, by Mechristopheles

Great start. I've never thought of hobby horses as a phenomena of the early 2000s but I think my sister had one during the specified time period. A sample NPC would take this one over the finish line.

I’ll Take New York, by mellonbread

    The Ambrosio Crew, by mellonbread

    Death Wish, by mellonbread

    Local Flavor, by mellonbread
    The Pioneers, by mellonbread
    Somebody’s Gonna Remember You, by mellonbread

This is a scenario I started work on a couple years back. The initial draft of the Pioneers got recycled into the Lumpen Sleepers a few months ago. Nobody was interested in those so I figured nobody would notice if I brought them back for this adventure. Unique supernatural abilities are great because they can be explained in a couple sentences and don't require pages of spells and mechanics. The other elements can be used outside of the scenario or for games set in the present day - Fresh Kills is no longer a landfill but the crows are still hungry.

Phantom Terrorists, by Tormsen

I don't care for the straightforward allegory but I like any creature that appears in places with strong magickal energy, like those butterflies that flock to mass graves, ever since I read that article on the Hodgson Swine Things. I assume the part about whispering dark secrets to people who hate things closer to home is a riff on the Sassenachs from Special Orders.

The Ghosts Online, by Valiant

This feels more like something from the present day than something from the post 9/11 era. I remember a lot of things that sucked about the early 2000s internet, but being infested with mindless bots is a more recent development. The ritual is cool. It takes something abstract and online and makes it actually relevant for play.

Not enough people said which prompts they were using for me to tally them.

Thank you to everyone who submitted, and I hope to see more events like this in the future.