Arabian Days
From far and wide, the greatest scientists of the Islamic Golden Age travel to study at Baghdad's legendary House of Wisdom. In the court of Harun al-Rashid, a watchful Scheherazade takes notes, as Indian princes play chess against Charlemagne's paladins, and vikings get into fist-fights with the local jinn.
This is a game of historical fanfiction, set in the year 802, as some of the greatest medieval scholars, heroes, and folk tales leave their mark on the world
Long Description
[This is a first run, and there may be bugs. tl;dr: this is a historical fantasy secrets & powers game, combining the stories of 1001 Nights, the geopolitics of the Silk Road, and the historical achievements of the Islamic Golden Age, plus a diverse range of romance plots]
Everyone here is seeking some form of immortality. Will you join the alchemists in their search for the legendary philosopher’s stone, or the explorers who quest for the water of life? Will you build an empire that can last after you’re gone, leave behind a legacy of piety, or simply live a life exciting enough that your story will still be told for thousand years?
The year is 802, and the Islamic Golden Age has just begun. Once again, a resurgent Silk Road connects Europe with China, and three continents are sharing in the profits. New empires emerge across the world, bolstered by trade in spices, gems, and ideas. At the heart of global trade sits the legendary Round City of Baghdad, capital of the Abbasid Caliphate, center of the known universe. And at the center of the Round City sits the House of Wisdom, the world’s first and greatest academic campus.
At the palace, delegates from China and Tibet wait patiently for an audience with the Caliph, and a chance to end the three-way war that has lasted for nearly a century. Behind them, Frankish paladins and exiles from Byzantium pace nervously, searching for new allies. Foreign princes from India and Khazaria wander with their retinues, searching for something more specific...
★
The City of Baghdad swells with science and intrigue, maps and negotiations. At the House of Wisdom, new fields of study are invented and debated. Algebra. Alchemy. Algorithms. In hushed tones, scholars work late into the night, translating the work of Euclid and Aristotle into a dozen languages.
In the corridors, poets talk of elephants and tigers, ships and dragons. In the streets, new visitors take in the sights and sounds of the city. The Radhanites, an international community of Jewish travelers, bring tidings and luxuries from all four corners of the globe. The Varangians, viking explorers from the distant North, peddle even stranger cargo...
★
Look beneath the surface, and you'll find even more stories. A wealthy merchant named Aladdin seeks to catch the eye of a certain princess. The famous captain Sindibad seeks funding for a new venture. Rumors swirl about a mysterious noblewoman with a thirst for blood. In a quiet part of the library, two poets commiserate about those who will never love them back. Nearby, in the Arabian desert, three jinn prepare for a long-overdue reunion.
And through it all, the daughter of a Khorasani vizier takes notes, writing down every story as though her life depends on it...
This is a game of historical fanfiction, casting some of the most famous stories of 1001 Nights (and a few of history’s greatest scientific authors) against the historical landscape in which they might have lived. It’s a game that examines the broader mythic history of Europe and Asia, leading to a medieval who’s-who of interesting figures. Set during one of the most bizarre decades of global history, the game dives into the geopolitics of the Silk Road, and the surprisingly diverse world it created.
It’s also a game of alchemy, romance, and mythology, and a game about legacy and loss.
Arabian Days is a grand secrets & power game, with some characters focused on mechanical translation puzzles or trade manipulation, some exploring the desert through a variety of adventures, and others trying to find love, marriage, or diplomatic treaties.
Inspiration Note: This a grand historical fantasy, where characters are mostly based on real historical or literary figures, but some may diverge more than others from the source material.