Too Long; Didn't Read (A Summary)

Emporium is a game of mystery and exploration in which player characters are encouraged to examine their sense of self by questioning where they find most value and meaning within a setting where the everyday meets the extraordinary. The overall tone of the game is intended to be one of upbeat curiosity, with the option to explore the strange and quirky, pursue the bittersweet enjoyment of the ephemeral, or delve into the horror of the uncanny.

The game takes place entirely within an infinite supermarket called Emporium, which caters to a range of god-like Entities from diverse planes of reality. However powerful and alien they may be on their homeplanes, all Entities manifest within the store as three-dimensional beings who relate to each other as fellow shoppers and recent employees. Emporium primarily offers Entities a choice of one of three ways to manifest: as a winged Glory, a primordial Chimera or an object-headed Implement.

Emporium is a game about your character's experience in-store, and how meaningful they choose to make it within their immortal lifetime. All player characters will enter the store at the start of the first session and remain within it until the end of the game. At that point, they will be expected to leave unless they have taken steps to ensure otherwise. Players may choose to start the game either as a customer or an employee. In both cases, there will be opportunities to search, barter, and pay for items, explore the reaches of the store and the beings within it, or work for the store and apply for promotions.

As Emporium is set in a supermarket, players will have opportunities to explore consumerism and labour relations. Emporium is a good, if not perfect, employer that provides meaningful compensation and real opportunities for advancement. It's not a dystopian capitalist organisation, but themes of labour and relationship to power and hierarchy aren't absent, either.

During sessions, players will roleplay their characters' interactions and describe their actions over Discord text channels in real-time. This will include the opportunity to participate in short, GM-moderated adventures. After each session, there will be time for players to communicate in-character and finalise their plans over email. At the end of this period, players submit a turnsheet with one major action to the GM team, who will respond before the next session. This response may be either in written form or include physical and/or digital media elements, on an opt-in basis.

If we exceed our player cap of 25, players will be placed in a lottery that will prioritise current students. Questions can be emailed to the GM team at gm@emporium.oxfordrpg.com.