I’m part of a new group called Death by Awesome, which will run jeepform style games and other Nordic detritus at the Double Exposure convention DREAMATION, which runs in Morristown, NJ at the end of this month. Allow me to introduce the other members:

Ashley Zdeb, who works at Eschaton Media and runs the zombie apocalypse larp Dystopia Rising.

Tim Rodriguez, head of Brooklyn Indie Games, and host of the podcast Dice, Food, Lodging.

Our mascot is Hoppy the Pirate. Suffice it to say that he’s got a pogo stick for a peg-leg, and he comes from an extensive martial arts background. To meet the anonymous man behind the eyepatch, simply show up to one of our games.

At DREAMATION, we’re running several jeepform games, plus an Ars Amandi workshop.

A quick word on jeepform:

Jeepform is a school of gaming that hails from Sweden. Jeepform games feature minimal mechanics and emphasize story. Typically, they are written for 2-10 participants, and operate like an improvised play — in many games, the number and type of scenes played are already fixed. Jeepform tells stories that are ‘close to home’ — that is, about the real world, not vampires on spaceships — and often induce strong emotions in players.

While the name “jeepform” sounds like this:

When you play in a jeep, it can feel like this:

But then afterward, you feel like this:

Read more about jeepform games over on the jeepen website or read my interview with jeeper Frederik Berg Østergaard.

Here’s what Death by Awesome is running at Dreamation:

Thursday, 8pm-midnight: Doubt. 4 players. A game about relationships, love, and doubt. (Event L003)

Friday 9am-1pm: Previous Occupants. 4 players. A game about murder and escaping the past. (Event L005)

Friday 2pm-6pm: Ars Amandi workshop. 6+ people. Learn how to have Scandinavian arm sex. Then think about all the cool games you could write using this mechanic. Want to know more about Ars Amandi? Check out a workshop description, a recap of a previous workshop, or an interview with mechanic creator Emma Wieslander.  (Event L009)

Friday 8pm-midnight: Drama on the Lawn. 5 players. A Tim Rodriguez original about a Shakespearean troupe who has trouble letting go of their roles. (L013)

Saturday 9am-1pm: The Upgrade. 6-8 players. Participants in a Temptation Island-style reality show must decide whether to upgrade their romantic partners. (L017)

Sunday 10am-2pm: Doubt. 4 players. (L034)

If Doubt and Previous Occupants fill up we may be able to run two games.