Serious Mischief explores the overlaps between board games, narrative, and social change.
Influence: Work the System is designed by Carter Lavin and Avery Barrett. Players are activists, attempting to out-organize their opponents to win over the Decision-maker in a political conflict. The game takes players right into the thick of the community organizing experience. Players race to build political power, collecting Tactics cards, claiming limited Supporters, and growing their bases of Volunteers to gain Influence.
Game basics:
- 2-4 Players
- 45 minutes- 1.5 hours
- Complexity: Medium Light
- Mechanics: hand-building, resource management, take-that
- Ages 13+
Components:
- 162 cards
- 1 Decision-maker Bag
- 200 wooden player cubes (four colors)
- 1 Public Eye token
- 50 Money chits
- 50 Volunteer meeples
- 8 inch x 3 inch Reputation Track
The game combines engine-building inspired by Terraforming Mars with hand management inspired by Century: Spice Road to bring to life the dynamism of community organizing.
With over 70 unique Tactics cards (like Organize Rally, pictured), and 22 Supporters, in each game players will unlock creative combinations to create their own personal path to power. The fast-paced escalation of the political engine players build imitates the frenetic real world of campaigning. Just like in real-life campaigning, every game is different, inviting players back to explore new strategies and tell new stories.
For questions about Influence, please reach out to avery@seriousmischief.net.
If you want to learn more about activism, check out Carter Lavin’s book, If You Want to Win, You’ve Got to Fight: A Guide to Effective Transportation Advocacy. It can be found at Princeton University Press.
Carter also provides political activism training to groups and individuals. For information about working with Carter, go to carterlavin.com.