DISH PIT WITCHES

BLAKE M. STONE




(page 1)

fencedforest.itch.io

patreon.com/fencedforest



Dish Pit Witches is © 2019-2020 Fenced Forest Media
 and Blake M. Stone.



Tunnel Goons and its mechanics are the property of Nate Treme / Highland Paranormal Society.



Cover/title set in Bungee typeface.

Body text set in Cousine typeface.



This game's creator resides on the occupied homeland of the Osage, Kaw, and Očéti Šakówiŋ​ people, and supports the return of all colonized lands to their traditional Indigenous caretakers. Please do your part by supporting Indigenous creators' work, and find out what repatriation efforts or reparations programs you can participate in where you live.



For more information on safety tools and consent mechanics to use at your table, please search for:

Kienna Shaw & Lauren Bryant-Monk's TTRPG Safety Toolkit

@rpgnatalie's Support Tools Compilation

Brie Beau Sheldon's Script Change Toolbox


(page 2)

Dish Pit Witches is a #SWORDDREAM game based on the mechanics of Tunnel Goons by Nate Treme.

Though deeply fictionalized, it is derived from my years of experience in the food industry.
I dedicate this game to everyone who has ever busted ass only to see someone else profit.

No matter how exhausted we become, may our magic never dim.


(page 3)

You and your party are queer witches who work in a restaurant.

One of your group will act as the General Manager (GM), creating challenges you must try to overcome. This player describes the world and how it acts on the characters of the other players, while the players decide what their characters do in response.

In game, the GM's interests act against the player characters, because capitalism is fucking bullshit.

In real life, the GM should play as a fan of the characters and a friend of the people at the table. Don’t be an asshole. If a player needs something discussed, edited, or cut out, ensure that it is addressed in a way all can agree on. Consult the support resources listed in the front of the book to help find the best methods for your group.


(page 4)

You need 2d6, a sheet of paper, and a pencil.
Character creation begins by writing down your character’s name and pronouns.

Describe their street style.
The GM will describe their uniform.

Next, choose their station, which comes with two items.
Label the list “inventory”. Mark 8 slots, filling three now.
Choose a third, personal item, not related to their job.
The GM will then specify whether that item is allowed at work. If not, you must hide it.

Host: notepad, pen
Prep cook: knife set, chainmail glove
Dishwasher: waterproof apron, rubber gloves
Busser: bus tub, bleach towel
Sommelier: corkscrew, bucket of ice
Bar back: bottle of liquor, bottle opener

Distribute three points between these three skillsets, however you wish.

WORK HARD: Physical prowess. Brute strength. Endurance. Bluster. Hustle.
PLAY GAY: Quick thinking. Flirtation. New ideas. Creativity. Charm.
DO MAGIC: Knowledge. Problem solving. Willpower. Secrets. Luck.

Mark 0 / 10 stress points onto your sheet.
Be sure you are using an erasable medium.


(page 5)

SKILL ROLLS

When a task or action requires skill to pull off, roll 2d6 and add the relevant skillset value.
If the result is equal to or greater than the threshold set by the GM, you succeed.

THRESHOLDS

Easy = 8
Medium = 10
Hard = 12
Supernatural = 13+

FAILURE

When an attempt to perform a task fails, narrate your character’s reaction. Take stress equal to the difference between the total roll and the threshold set by the GM.

If the total of the failed roll is 2 or less, it is a critical fuckup and you lose 1 point of stress tolerance permanently.

TEAMWORK

When you want to help another person succeed, roll 2d6 + your highest skill.

If you roll at least a total of 8, add +1 to the other player's roll and take no stress. If you fail, you do not help, and you take stress equal to 8 minus your roll.

Any number of people may choose to aid a roll. The bonuses do stack.


(page 6)

STRESS



When a character’s stress meets or exceeds their stress tolerance, they rage-quit the job.
Stress can be reduced by recovery activities, and your stress tolerance can be raised by leveling up.

INVENTORY

Items not in your inventory must be found within the setting in order to be used. Any item you possess that could be used in a situation adds a +1 bonus to relevant skill rolls. Sometimes, a certain item may be required for a given action to be possible at all.

Your inventory slots track how many items you can carry as you work. Leveling up can raise the number of slots as you get practice in your new job. Each carried item beyond your number of inventory slots lowers all skill rolls by 1.


(page 7)

TRACKING TIME

You begin on your Monday, which is Wednesday.

Each session of play is one day.

Level up at the end of each day by adding +1 to your choice of skillset or +1 to your choice of stress tolerance or inventory slots, and performing one recovery activity.

At the end of five days, it's your weekend! Perform three recovery activities in a row instead of one, and level up one skillset AND your choice of stress tolerance or inventory slots. You may also freely roleplay any number of downtime scenes with other characters.

RECOVERY

Decide what your character likes to do with their free time, and narrate a brief scene of them performing one of those activities.

If your current stress is 2 or below, you now have zero. If it is 3 or higher, roll 2d6.

If your current stress is more than half your tolerance, take the lower die value.

If it is equal to or less than half your tolerance, take the higher. Reduce your current stress by this amount.


(page 8)

EXAMPLE OF PLAY

The kitchen is out of fresh rosemary, and the most popular menu item requires it. You are in a rural town, so finding it at a grocery store will take some searching. Using some from the neighbor’s yard is a health code violation.

The GM sets the difficulty for the task at 10.
You roll 2d6 and add your do magic skill.
The total is 8.

You fail to find rosemary, and mark 2 stress.


(page 9)

SETTING TABLES

Location (1d6)

1. roadside stop
2. rural hamlet
3. deep suburbia
4. average town
5. mid-size city
6. major metropolis

Type of restaurant (1d6)

1. food truck
2. bar & grill
3. quick-service
4. theme restaurant
5. hipster bistro
6. fine dining

Challenges (d66)

11. no clean dishes
12. missing tool
13. order mix-up
14. burnt food
15. fridge busted
16. shortstaffed
21. chef fight!
22. toilet clogged
23. power outage
24. sink overflow
25. oil flood
26. grease trap full
31. cook rage-quit
32. locker thief
33. computers down
34. contamination
35. product recall
36. recipe fuckup
41. chef no-showed
42. huge crowd
43. owner is here
44. spoiled ingredient
45. missing ingredient
46. natural disaster
51. chef is drunk
52. broken glass mess
53. grease fire!
54. major injury
55. boss is on one
56. angry customer
61. food critic!
62. health department!
63. bad Yellp review
64. big game tonight
65. order sent back
66. that's not chicken

(END)