Toys

A “toy” in this game refers to something that is used for imaginative play by a human. A group of college students sticking googly eyes onto a robot vacuum cleaner would not make that a toy, but if one of them brought it home over the summer and their younger sibling started to play with it, it would be a toy within the scope of the game.

Any equipment which is used by a toy, and not itself a toy¹⁾ is an Accessory. Anything which represents a building, structure, or location to be used by toys is a Playset.

Example accessories include:

• A pirate action figure's sword and compass (their parrot would be another toy)
• A medical kit used by a doll that represents a doctor
• A handbag with a small velcro patch so it can be carried by a teddy bear

When interacting with other toys and monsters, accessories act as you would expect the thing they represent to act - a sword can cut other toys or monsters, a medical kit can fix them, a handbag might contain some minor useful items. When interacting with objects that are more on a human level, they will act as they would in the real world - i.e. a toy chainsaw won't cut a hole through a wooden door, unless it's been designed in a way that is not child safe.

Example playsets include:

• A castle made from building blocks
• A fold-out case with a little diorama inside, for a small doll
• A model railway set

Some toys are somewhat modular - for example, a doll may have several options for detachable limbs, or a robot fighter might transform into several different cars. In this case, there will be one part of the toy (the part with the face), which is the “core” - this is what carries the toy's animacy, and if it is severely damaged or lost, the rest of the modular parts will be just inert accessories.

Toys are individuals with complex inner lives and unique motivations and perspectives. Some Toys love to play and love to play with Jordan, happily taking on whatever role their game calls for on any given day. Other toys might be very passionate about their branding or play mode; Animal Rescue Playset Doll might be thrilled that she gets to work so closely with animals, while Spaceman Ed is devoting his free time to constructing a spacecraft that will take him to the stars (or at least the top of the wardrobe). This isn't always the case though, and some toys may loathe their playset or yearn for school time, when Jordan will put them down so they can get on with their days.

For example, an action figure representing Robin Hood could have one of several different personalities:

• They may actually believe themselves to be Robin Hood, ignoring the contradictions between that character's story and the fact they're 5 inches tall and made of plastic and surrounded by other toys.
• They could be a woodsy, charismatic ranger with a sense of justice, not afraid to get their hands dirty figuratively or literally to do what's right.
• They could be a prim and proper posh socialite, spending their time while Jordan is not playing with them cleaning off the mud they picked up in the garden, and then complaining to other toys about how they keep getting the messy roles.
• They could be a Shakespearean actor, proud of the role they play when Jordan plays with them, and how they are suited to embody it, but with a very different personality in their downtime.

As with much of the setting, Toy Story is a heavy inspiration here, and most things the range of toy characters from those movies is generally acceptable (with the caveat that this is a primarily PvE game, so more directly antagonistic characters are less suitable).

Toys do not remember a time before they belonged to a child - those who are hand-me-downs from older members of the family, or from a friend of Jordan or Kelly²⁾ will remember some of that old life, but they have no deep memories of being on a shelf in a shop, or being made in a factory. OC It may be helpful to think of the first time your toy was played with- this will be it's earliest memory.

In the old house, in the old bedroom, the playsets for Jordan and Kelly's toys formed a makeshift and eclectic town. There were all kinds of buildings and activities - a diner, a town hall, and a casino, a train line ³⁾, a racetrack, and a castle. The Toys used these playsets in a similar way to their indended play mode- they ate at the diner, gamed at the casino and gathered for parties and meetings at the castle and town hall respectively.

In the move the Toy's town was torn apart. Some of Kelly's things didn't even make it in the move, as she'd outgrown some play sets, but it won't be clear what's left until unpacking is finshed. Some of the town has survived and is set up, as detailed in the room page, but much of this is yet to be unpacked or has been kept by Kelly in her room.

By the time Jordan was born, and especially by the time their toys came along, Kelly's toys had cleared her room of monsters, so life in the old house was peaceful. Some of the older toys had war stories, but since there was no expectation that the monsters would return, these bleak tales weren't told often. As Kelly grew up her toys were donated or given away to various cousins, and the few that were kept around were those most precious to Kelly. Kelly's toys did manage to send over some warnings of what may be in store just before they were packed away into boxes for the move, and as Kelly and Jordan are unpacking into their own bedrooms, they haven't been seen again since.

As such, the toys of Jordan's room have little knowledge of the monsters, and arrival in the new room is a huge upheaval for them in several ways. What they have gleaned from the advice that was shared, and their experiences of the first night, is detailed on the monsters page.

The only threats to the toys in this game are:

• Monsters
• Nightmares
• Other toys
  • PvP is not a major theme of the game, but we're not disallowing it - characters are expected to be on the side of protecting Jordan (or at least themselves) against the monsters, but there is a potential for disagreements over the best way to do that (or the dangers of certain approaches) to escalate.
• Themselves
  • e.g. by a plan going wrong, some bad assumptions about how dangerous a situation might be, or a heroic sacrifice as part of a larger plan
  • Players are reminded that suicide as an expression of emotional distress is banned on the conduct and themes page

The dog may cause harm to toys, but will not kill them. There is no mechanical ruling on how much damage kills a toy; Character death (PC and NPC) is a narrative decision that will be made by the GMs when resolving turnsheets.

In Game, there are two forms of “Death” a toy can experience.

The first of these is by being Broken.

• Toys can take damage and be injured over the course of the game, but there is a level of destruction that is irreparable and will deem a toy no longer playable.
• When a toy dies from being Broken Jordan's parents will be unable to repair the toy, and they will no longer be able to play with the toy and may even perceive the toy as “dead” in their own limited understanding. As far as the human characters are concerned, this toy is broken - the causes may be unknown, but it will likely be blamed on a strange accident, carelessness, or the dog.

Toys can also die from becoming Lost.

• Monsters and Nightmares may be able to steal Toys away or trap them in places where Jordan, their parents, and even the other toys cannot find them. Remaining in this state for too long will lead to a toy being lost.
• It is possible for Toys to be misplaced, rather than permanently lost, depending on circumstances. Being misplaced may have a negitive result if Jordan wants to play with you can't cant find you. We will be clear about which state a toy is in, and a toy will only be temporarily misplaced with the permission of the player (e.g. if that player has to miss a session. In this instance there will not be negative consequences for obvious reasons- players are always free to take time away from the game without being IC punished).
• As far as the human characters are concerned, this toy has gone missing, and can't be found anywhere. Given the chaos of the move and the general state of the house, this will be treated as frustrating rather than suspicious.

You can control how likely your toy is to die via the playstyle options when submitting your character, and can change this over the course of the game if you wish.