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Dave Wilson
United States
Pleasanton
California
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Here's a report of a three-player Fiasco session from a FiascoCon held at Endgame, an utterly fantastic game store in Oakland, CA. This report is being written from memory. As a result, some of the specifics aren't quite right, but they're close enough. Particularly, the Aftermath reported will be a little short, but a) we didn't use all our dice for it, and b) I don't remember even all of those we did. But, with that said, here's our Fiasco at the Zoo.
The characters:
 Chuck McWilliams is the Wolf Den Keeper, and the only paid zoo employee of the three main characters. Times are hard, so the Wolf Den Keeper has been given greater responsibility and control of the zoo operations, and he's not necessarily up to the task. He's looking ahead toward retirement.
"Shiela" Robbins is the Australian Excursion Keeper. She's a volunteer, brought on to set up the Australian Excursion since she's (allegedly) from Australia. Truth is, she's not from Australia, but fresh out of university and needed the work.
Aaron Hamilton is a 17 year old volunteer at the zoo. His family has lived next to the zoo for a long time, and he's very well familiar with the zoo. He's been volunteering for some time, and has developed a rapport with Momo, the zoo's gorilla who understands sign language.
The setup:
Chuck McWilliams
- Relationship: Keepers - Wolf Den Keeper and Australian Excursion Keeper
- Location: Behind the scenes - Walk-in refrigerator full of lion food.
"Shiela" Robbins
- Relationship: Zoo hierarchy - Volunteers hired as scapegoats
- Need: To get respect…from the board, despite the mistakes.
Aaron Hamilton
- Relationship: Community - Neighbors to the zoo property
- Object: Animals - Gorilla who knows sign language
Chuck McWilliams
Act One (Dice noted were given away.)
Chuck calls Sheila into his office. He points out that the Australian Excursion , which she was brought on specifically to create, has been underperforming. Sheila reminds him that she is, in fact, a volunteer, and she's doing the best she can given her resources. Both agree that times are tough, but Sheila has ideas to improve the exhibit if the zoo can see fit to invest more in it. Chuck agrees to talk to the Zoo's current owner/director, June Hitchcock, widow of the late beloved D. E. Hitchcock IV, about additional funding for the Australian Excursion. (white)
Sheila, is mucking out the kangaroo exhibit while Aaron is absently fiddling with his smartphone. They start to talking about the zoo, and how times are tough, and how Sheila wishes she would get paid for the work she does. She also tries to get Aaron to do his share of the work. He counters by noting that there's only one broom there, but Sheila will have none of that. She hands him the broom, and heads off to find another one, with Aaron checking her out as she walks away. (white)
Chuck is stocking the refrigerator with lion food as Aaron comes by with a wheelbarrow full of kangaroo poop. Aaron gets a little careless, and some spills, and that sets Chuck off. He yells at Aaron for his carelessness, and his detachedness, and the risk of contaminating the lion food with bacteria from the kangaroo poop. It all demonstrates Chuck's distrust and lack of patience with Aaron, as well as Aaron's laid-back attitude about his volunteer work in general. (black)
Chuck enters June Hitchcock's office. As meekly as possible, Chuck asks for additional investment in the Australian Excursion to make it more attractive to customers, which will in turn increase foot traffic, and so increase zoo income. June suggests that since the exhibit isn't working, perhaps it'd be better to cut it off. Chuck tries to remind her that it takes money to make money, and the zoo is already working with a skeleton crew, having just laid off the lion keeper six weeks ago, but June then drops the bombshell: she has been given an offer to buy the zoo from her, in order to turn it into a golf course. She gives Chuck two weeks to turn the zoo into a money-making venture, with no additional help. Chuck, recognizing that his cause is lost, simply gives in, and leaves. (black)
Chuck and Sheila are in the refrigerator, cleaning and straightening up to make sure there was no contamination from the kangaroo poop. Chuck tells Sheila about June's ultimatum, including specifically the lack of additional funds to pursue any improvements. Sheila seems unconcerned; she has ideas, and with Chuck's permission, she can put them into action. See, the zoo as it is now attracts only the very old, who remember how it used to be, and the very young, who just like the cute animals. But the teens are the ones with all the disposable income, so she plans to develop programs to attract them. As they discuss these plans, Tommox (an South African from a tribe that spoke the Xhosa language, but whom everyone called "Tommy"), walked in to get some food for the lion. Chuck is shocked, because, after all, Chuck laid him off six weeks ago. Tommy leaves before Chuck recovers. At the end, Sheila has the go-ahead to plan her show. (white)
Aaron is playing blackjack with Momo, the gorilla who understands sign language. Aaron and Momo have a real relationship, and Aaron has gradually taught her to shuffle and deal cards, and what "hit" and "hold" means. Sheila walks in as they're playing, and Aaron loses again. They deal her in, but Aaron tells her to "let Momo win. When she loses, she gets really agitated." After that hand (won, of course, by Momo), Sheila and Aaron discuss plans to make the zoo popular again. Sheila tells Aaron how she needs to attract teens like him, and how it needs to be a lot edgier to make it happen. Her thought was that they could stage a boxing match between a man and a gorilla. Since he has such a relationship with Momo, surely the two of them could do it, right? He just has to teach her to box, and to pull her punches so that Aaron can throw the fight after making it look good. Aaron is unsure (he's also doubting that she is, in fact, Australian), but is finally convinced by the promises of fame amongst his peers and possibly finally getting paid for his job. Aaron quickly posts to his social media outlets about the upcoming show. (white)
Tilt (softer table, from the Fiasco Companion)
Truth: An unwanted confession
Folly: A complex mistake leads to simple pain
Act Two (Dice noted were kept.)
Once again Chuck calls Sheila into his office. He wants more details about the show she's planning. See, he's getting inquiries from both PETA and reports at News Channel Six about what's coming from the Zoo's social media outlets. PETA is very concerned that Momo is being ill-treated, while the reporter is just trying to get to the bottom of these odd tweets. Chuck tries to get details, but Sheila deflects his concerns. It'll be safe, and no animal will be harmed. Chuck is still concerned, but, desperate for success to save the zoo, he lets it go. (black)
Sheila is in the zoo's veterinary clinic, collecting various medications that she thinks will help with the production. Tommy comes by, and the two start talking. She tries to convince Tommy to be included in the show, possibly with a lion tamer act of sorts with him and Mufasa, the zoo's lone remaining lion. During the conversion Tommy suspects that Sheila isn't really Australian, Shiela also tries to enlist Tommy into the show, including him and Mufasa the lion in the act. Tommy pegs her as not Australian--he's been to Australia before--and she confesses, but does it matter at this point? She's not doing anything particularly Australian now, and it'll restore the zoo to prominence and (hopefully) get them paid. (white)
Sheila, once again in the refrigerator, preparing food for Mufasa for the show, is interrupted by a very shaken Aaron. He describes how Mufasa turned on Tommy and viciously killed him. "His ear hit me!" Aaron wails. As Sheila tries to comfort him, Chuck arrives, and tries to figure out what's going on, and what to do next. At this point, Chuck realizes he's in far too deep, and it's easy for Sheila to convince him that we have to carry on with the plan. Aaron reminds Chuck that he is the adult, and shouldn't someone be acting like one? Chuck confirms his decision: cover up Tommy's death, and the show must go on. (black)
Showtime approaches. Chuck greets a couple of representatives from PETA--one is the primary representative, who introduces the other as the sign language expert who hopes to interview Momo after the show to see how she feels about her incarceration. Also here are two employees of News Channel Six--a reporter and a photographer. They grill Chuck before the show, asking about Aaron and his responsibilities, about the zoo's social media outlets and whether he has any clue what's going on with them, and in general showing Chuck in the worst possible light. Chuck stammers out a deferral, "I'll be more than happy to continue this discussion afterwards, but it's almost showtime! Let me show you to your seats." (black)
Flash back to Sheila tranquilizing Mufasa, and then entering the lion exhibit to remove Tommy's remains. The revulsion is plain on her face, but this needs to be done silently -- the show must go on! Later she meets with Aaron, who is really nervous about the upcoming show. Sheila is immediately worried that Aaron is going to back out, and wants to make sure that Aaron will be OK for the show, so she provides him with some medication that will help him out. Aaron appreciates the help; he needs to calm down, because Momo keenly feels Aaron's emotional state, and if Aaron is agitated, then Momo gets agitated, which would make for a dangerous show. Sheila, realizing that she gave Aaron the amphetamine rather than the tranquilizer, admits to Aaron that she's not Australian. Her real name is Agnes, and she's from Brooklyn, and she thinks he's kinda cool. I think she realizes that this might be the last time she gets to talk to him. Aaron, for his part, is flattered, and returns the compliment, and then leaves to prepare for the show. (black)
The music swells. The amphitheatre is packed; standing room only, filled with teens all excited with bloodlust. They're here to see the battle royale. Aaron's amped up from the drugs, and Momo becomes as agitated as Aaron, and loses control, attacking Aaron with an unexpected ferocity. Standing on the upper level of the amphitheater and off to the side, Sheila winces and turns away, only to realize that June Hitchcock is standing next to her. June is at first horrified, but gradually appreciates the size of the crowd and how many tickets were sold. Chuck is still in the priority seating area with the PETA folks and the newsmen, and he can only stare, dumbstruck, at the carnage in front of him. Of course, the PETA folks are livid, screaming for security, screaming at Chuck. The news people are keeping active, getting film and reporting on scene. Aaron, somehow, manages to escape Momo's clutches and, beaten, bruised and bloodied, crawls to safety as security finall converges and breaks up the event. (white - hey, he survived)
Aftermath (also the softer Aftermath table from the Fiasco Companion)
Chuck: Black 3: Extremely awful.
Aaron: Black 6: Mortifying
Sheila: White 2: Degrading
 Chuck watches on TV as they televise the groundbreaking for the new golf course.
Sheila gets, simultaneously, a berating and a job offer from June.
Aaron's image, all beat-up, bloodied, and bruised, goes viral on the social networking sites.
 Chuck opens his letter from the International Zoological Society, revoking his zookeeping credentials permanently.
Sheila stands dressed in the uniform of the pro shop at the golf course, grimly bearing the whims of the elderly lady golfers.
Aaron goes through all of college shunned by his classmates, never getting laid.
Edit: "bookkeeping"???  Chuck lost his *zookeeping* credentials. Also, I can't consistently spell Sheila correctly.
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Posted Tue Jan 17, 2012 7:55 pm