Apocalypse World: opening your brain and missing
After writing this I can't stop thinking about missed rolls.
putting someone in a spot
"You absentmindedly touch the bloodstain and you know the name of the killer, Dremmer, Dremmer, Dremmer, Dremmer, Dremmer, you don't know how long you've been saying it, but everyone's looking at you. What do you do?"
"You're looking into the well and you can hear a voice whispering a name, Dremmer, Dremmer, Dremmer, Dremmer, Dremmer, you've been saying the name ever since you looked into the well, and now everyone is giving you a wide berth. What do you do?"
"A cold gust off nothing, and dread rolls out of you like a temperature. The dog whines, the baby wakes, the two men who were calm a second ago are suddenly squaring up over nothing. You brought the cold wet wind in with you. What do you do?"
announcing future badness
"The room smells of smoke, you don't know from where, only that it's close and it's not here yet, and you've maybe got until the sun sets. What do you do?"
"For half a heartbeat you see the yard from above, and there's a body in it wearing your coat, and the crows are already down. Then it's gone and you're back at the table. What do you do?"
"The whisper doesn't give you a name this time, it says 'three days, three days, three days' and you know with total certainty that something arrives then. What do you do?"
announcing off-screen badness
"The campfire's out and it shouldn't be, nobody is laughing and the beers are empty. Then you're back, the fire is lit and the party is still raging. What do you do?"
"The name still escapes you but it comes with a door, a place you've never been to, and a feeling like it's unlocked. Something's happening at that place right now, to someone you know, and you're too far away to stop it. What do you do?"
"You hear your sister's voice, clear as the room, saying your name the way she does when she's frightened. She is not here. She has not been here in years. What do you do?"
inflict harm
"The knowing pours in clean and true, but you can't hold all of it, slipping from your mind like a dream you wished you could remember, your nose opens up, blood down your lip, and the world tips a little. Mark 1-harm. What do you do?"
"You get it all, every piece you asked for, and when you come back the ache is behind your eyes and it doesn't leave. Take -1ongoing until you get some sleep. What do you do?"
take away their stuff
"The vision runs long and you surface mid-sentence, except it isn't the sentence you were saying, and the person across from you has already answered a question you don't remember asking. What do you do?"
"Your thoughts are sluggish, like you're waking up from an all nighter, and you see Dremmer walk through the door. Reflexively you feel for your gun, but your holster is empty. What do you do?"
"The engine starts to sputter, tank almost empty. 'What the hell? Thought I just filled this thing.' says Dremmer. What do you do?"
turning their move back on them
"You go looking and something looks back, and it reads a page of you. Your name, your debt, the thing you've told no one, and you feel it filed away somewhere you can't reach. What do you do?"
"The whisper gives you the name, then keeps your mouth and uses it: what comes out next is a threat, in a voice not yours, 'Fuck you Dremmer, I'll cave your head in if you say another word!' What do you do?"
"You don't see him, but you know he can see you. Wherever he is, Dremmer now knows exactly where you are. What do you do?"