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====== The Original Idea ======
For many gamers, when they talk about their characters, they talk about the //evolution// of their character... who they were and who they became.  So, I wanted a game that made the rapid evolution of the character a story imperative.  There should be a record of everything the character gives up--through transcendence or sacrifice--to become who they are.  I want a fair amount of character Aspect churn, but I don't want to //require// it.

**[[Touchstones]]** that influences the idea.


====== What We Become ======
In **What We Become**, humanity is in the early stages of the emergence of a symbiotic **Mycelial Bloom**, a microscopic networked intelligence born from bioengineering, nanobiotics, and desperate attempts to address multiple problems... environmental disasters, pandemic eruptions... 

Each "bloom colony" is a colony of microscopic organisms that have taken residence ("colonized") a living being, and symbiotically advanced itself and it's host.  The colony is--literally--a microscopic civilization unto itself.  And the weight of it's presence and //attention// can change the world.

Now it is beginning to blur the line between self and world.  This should probably feel apocalyptic, but I want it to include hope.  So, instead, it's a story of metamorphosis.

Players take on the roles of //"The Touched"//: humans partially "colonized" by **the Bloom**, navigating the fragile moments before their mutual collective evolution. Every choice shapes not just who they are, but what humanity might become.

Mechanically, it builds on the PBTA/Mist Engine used in Powered-by-the-Apocalypse games and Son of Oak (City of Mist, Otherscape, Legends in the Mist) games, but I want to evolve those systems a little to differentiate it.  This may require changing terminology.

As a collaborator, you’ll be helping to design a world where change is neither apocalypse nor salvation, but an ongoing negotiation between self and symbiosis. This is biopunk with empathy: a setting that asks not //“how do we survive?”// but //“how do we evolve?”//

All of what's here right now is the conceptual spine of what I want.   I imagine it's all subject to change... and I accept that change is going to be necessary.

===== Themes =====
  * **Symbiosis and Identity:** What remains “you” in the face of rapid evolution?
  * **Faith vs. Control:** Competing visions for humanity’s next form.
  * **Memory and Continuity:** Holding onto the self through change.
  * **Adaptive Ethics:** Negotiating coexistence with emergent life.

===== Core Mechanics =====
  * **2d6 + tags** resolution derived from City of Mist, but customized
  * **Anchors:** core aspects of identity that grant stability; may be evolved or burned for automatic success.
  * **Rupture Choice:** periodic & end-of-chapter evolution—players redefine or sacrifice Anchors to reflect change.
  * **Symbiosis Track:** measures balance between Harmony and Dissonance within each host.
  * **Tag System:** statuses affect individuals; conditions affect environments.
  * **Optional Co-Pilot:** another player may embody the colony within a host, voicing its instincts and goals.

===== State of the World =====
  * There were a series of catastrophes.  While the world didn't "break down" much of the infrastructure is unreliable...  Not //quite// post-apocalyptic...
  * The **Mycelial Bloom** spreads unevenly. 
  * Some enclaves embrace the Bloom as salvation; others isolate themselves behind sterile walls.
  * Ecosystems show signs of recovery, yet politics and faith fracture around what humanity could or should become.
  * Transitional Hosts (//The Touched//) embody this uncertainty, bridges between human autonomy and collective evolution.

===== Design Intent =====
  * Preserve continuity with the PBTA approach to fiction-first play.
  * Prioritize narrative consequence over mechanical optimization.
  * Encourage collaboration and introspection through shared storytelling.
  * Encourage--but do not //require//--Aspect churn; Characters evolve.  Or not.  It's the Player's game, after all.




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