Musgrove Mysteries - The Law of Play

Designing a world where the government replaced violence with games.

A Quiet City of Arguments

Musgrove Mysteries: The Books that Bind is set in Rodentia, a post–Great War dieselpunk city run by a single rule: no violence allowed.

Its citizens — tall, furred hybrids of mice, cats, and hounds — live under the watch of Vigilant Coils: anti-aggression devices mounted on every lamppost. Any physical act of harm triggers an instant electric discharge. The Coils ended riots, but not resentment.

To keep tempers contained, the government introduced a legal replacement — Disputes.
When two citizens clash, a Coil projects an official minigame.
Win, lose, record the result, move on.
The city calls it order. Everyone else calls it survival with manners.

Design in a Regulated World

This mechanic shapes every system in Musgrove Mysteries.
You don’t fight; you play to progress.

You’re Murdoch Musgrove, a struggling writer dragged into a noir-flavoured treasure hunt for his stolen first editions. Every confrontation — from mafia henchmen to petty bureaucrats — unfolds through a sanctioned Dispute.

Each minigame doubles as both gameplay and personality test:

• Liar’s Dice for deceit and risk (pirates, Treasure Island).

• Darts for precision and pride (Robin Hood).

• Scrolling Music for rhythm and control (20,000 Leagues).

• Boules for unity and patience (The Three Musketeers).

World Logic

The Coils let Rodentia function as a lawful machine.
They project games instantly, monitor scores, and file the outcome in state records. There are no crowds, no cheers — just the faint hum of current and a bureaucratic confirmation tone when a dispute ends.

That small detail gave the game its tone: civilised repression.
The player’s victories aren’t violent, but they still carry danger — reputation, information, and trust are all at stake.

Crafting the Tools

Each Dispute has its own set of customisable equipment: modular darts, weighted boules, dice with swappable faces, scrolls with adjustable tempo. These are both upgrade paths and personal statements.

You don’t buy power — you tune expression.
The way you build your tools says as much about you as how you play.