Watch The Skies: New Materials
Watch The Skies is a game about geopolitical actors at a crisis moment, asking “how would Earth governments deal with visitors from the stars?”
Each faction has to weigh its agenda with the new facts, dangers, and opportunities the Aliens represent while keeping the public quietly in the dark until this information can be spun in a positive light.
Factions
Nations
The bulk of the players will play in 4 person Earth Nation teams where each player takes on a different role. Each Nation has different abilities and a different agenda informed by their history and role in the world. One player is the Head of State (think the President or Prime Minister) who decides on their team’s priorities and how well their nation looks in the Press. The second and third players are the Chief of Defense and Chief Scientist for their country, who work to maintain security and technological supremacy, respectively. The final player will be the United Nations Delegate and work to overcome humanitarian crises every turn.
The Media
The Media consists of up-to-three one-person teams, each one a venerable media outlet trying to discover the truth about those strange lights in the sky. How the Nations look in the Media directly affects their income. The Media is also responsible for creating a brief news report each turn, which all players should attend.
The Aliens
The mysterious Aliens provide the story and drive for Watch the Skies. Their motives, capabilities, and even language are unknown at the beginning of the game. Most players are not even allowed to interact with them at the start.