8.7 CM

8.7 CM is a two-player (for now) tabletop role-playing game about petkeepers raising their lobsters to survive rounds of fishery harvesting.

In coastal areas, people can go fishing under the regulation of size restrictions upon sea creatures. For lobsters, the threshold is 8.7 cm. Lobsters only which the distance between the eyes and the rear larger than it can be fished. Humans made these standards to protect other creatures or, maintain the balance, in the name of sustainability or humanistic concerns. I could imagine in what path would these creatures evolve in terms of the theory of evolution to a more significant time extent. Are they going to have insanely bigger claws or tails to feed human desire or abnormally smaller heads to escape for harvests? People would sacrifice their lives to rescue endangered animals. People would also make benevolent but cruel rules in place of the laws of nature.

The two players will nurture their lobsters as if they were their children or friends, slowing the growth of the head as much as possible to avoid being harvested. The game will be played out in about half an hour to an hour, and whoever can survive more rounds of head harvesting or grow the tail and claw to a certain length wins. The harvests keep rolling on until a player wins. 

Harvests Deck: To accelerate and chaotize the game, each round of harvest is assembled with an effect.

The player nurtures the lobster from three fields: hunger, happiness and discipline. The 3 fields have their own meters that can sum up to 5 points and have different effects when reaching every 5 points. In the beginning, players draw a card from each deck (hunger, happiness and discipline) and each round redraws 2 cards from each of the 3 card types by rolling the dice.  Each card has an effect that increases or reduces points. In each round, the players throw two cards on the target and apply the effects on them, and the two targets can be any side respectively.

Hunger Deck: The player feeds the lobster with multiple options, such as making them a vegan, a vegetarian a non-shroom eater, etc. Even better is not spared, French cuisine, Chinese cuisine, Truffle feasts and so on. Different cards will lead to various growth speeds.

Effects: Every 5 points in the Hunger meter grants players a chance to grow one of the 3 body parts of their lobsters. When this chance is given, players have to draw a Questions card answering a question about the cultivation of lobsters and sea creatures. If the answer is correct, the player can choose a grown body part themselves, and if the answer is wrong, they can only grow the head. Every growth grants an essence to each body part’s meter. When a player’s Head reaches 5 essences, their opponent wins; when their Claw or Tail reaches 5 essences, they win.

Questions Deck: Only with perfect knowledge and reason can you raise flawless lobsters, we must test you!

Happiness Deck: The little lobster absolutely needs all-around care. Its spiritual world needs to be quickly occupied. An opera, a duet, or a Hamilton would all be the best spiritual food for it. A techno rave would also be good after getting tired of listening to all kinds of exquisite music. For relaxation alone, the user could take it to the beach and sunbathe. If his spirit is constantly empty, his mental discontent may lead to physical disability or he may even say goodbye to the world by committing suicide.

Effects: Every 5 points in the Happiness/Discipline meter grants players an essence on Happiness/Discipline. A Happiness essence and a Discipline essence together can be exchanged for a Mystery card, which activates an ability.

Discipline Deck: In the complex and ever-changing marine world, the cute little lobster needs to develop its martial arts skills and so on to protect itself from danger from the outside world. We offer fitness options to keep it fit before a shark accidentally eats him. We offer advice to keep it out of dangerous no-go areas so that it doesn't die accidentally before it is fished.

Effects: Same as Happiness Deck.

Mystery Deck: This is a gift given to you by your glamorous qualities, so throw your abilities unflappable.