The Dream of a Diamond Chair

The Dream of a Diamond Chair is a two-part story game exploring how children imagine place and the poignant loss of space and place experienced by adults.  During the first part of the game, players assume the roles of children who are turning their surroundings into lush imaginary landscapes.  On your turn, you will briefly introduce an object and setting and describe—in the most epic, Dunsanian, way possible—the central role it plays in your fantasy world.  You can play with scale by turning light fixtures into glowing palaces or space stations, and turn the yard glimpsed through a window into an endless trackless wilderness.  The other players then take turns asking about other items nearby, fleshing out the real space and giving you prompts for expanding your dreamland.

Terry:  "The chair is my grandmother's kitchen is my diamond throne, from whence I watch the sun rise over the alabaster peaks of Geth."

Mark:  "And what of the clock above the stove?"

Terry:  "It is the clock tower of the royal observatory, chiming the hours until the three moons converge."

After everyone has had a turn as a child the game moves to a later period in each character's life.  On your turn you will now describe why you are visiting the setting for the last time.  The other players ask questions to help you explore your feelings and how you will remember the space.

Terry:  "My senior year in college my parents called to let me know that my grandmother was moving to a nursing home.  I'm visiting to help her pack."

Mark:  "Do you ask to take anything from the kitchen as a memento?"