The Road to Canterbury
Image courtesy of Dice Hate Me (DiceHateMe.com).
__Greed, Pride, Gluttony, Wrath, Luxury, Idleness, and Envy – the infamous "Seven Deadly Sins". For the faithful, they instill horror. For you, on the other hand, they present a wonderful business opportunity!
In The Road to Canterbury, you play a medieval pardoner who sells certificates delivering sinners from the eternal penalties brought on by these Seven Deadly Sins. You make your money by peddling these counterfeit pardons to Pilgrims traveling the road to Canterbury. Perhaps you can persuade the Knight that his pride must be forgiven? Surely the Friar's greed will net you a few coins? The Miller's wrath and the Monk's gluttony are on full public display and demand pardoning! The Wife of Bath regales herself in luxury, the Man-of-Law languishes in idleness, and that Prioress has envy written all over her broad forehead. And the naughty stories these Pilgrims tell each other are so full of iniquity they would make a barkeep blush! Pardoning such wickedness should be easy money, right?
Not quite. For you to succeed as a pardoner, you'll need to do more than just sell forged pardons for quick cash. To keep your services in demand, you will actually need to lead these Pilgrims into temptation yourself! Perhaps some phony relics might help? There is also one big catch. The Seven Deadly Sins live up to their name: each sin that a Pilgrim commits brings Death one step nearer, and a dead Pilgrim pays no pardoners!
So much to forgive, so little time. Will you be able to outwit your opponents by pardoning more of these Pilgrims' sins before they die or finish their pilgrimage to Canterbury?
In The Road to Canterbury, you play a medieval pardoner who sells certificates delivering sinners from the eternal penalties brought on by these Seven Deadly Sins. You make your money by peddling these counterfeit pardons to Pilgrims traveling the road to Canterbury. Perhaps you can persuade the Knight that his pride must be forgiven? Surely the Friar's greed will net you a few coins? The Miller's wrath and the Monk's gluttony are on full public display and demand pardoning! The Wife of Bath regales herself in luxury, the Man-of-Law languishes in idleness, and that Prioress has envy written all over her broad forehead. And the naughty stories these Pilgrims tell each other are so full of iniquity they would make a barkeep blush! Pardoning such wickedness should be easy money, right?
Not quite. For you to succeed as a pardoner, you'll need to do more than just sell forged pardons for quick cash. To keep your services in demand, you will actually need to lead these Pilgrims into temptation yourself! Perhaps some phony relics might help? There is also one big catch. The Seven Deadly Sins live up to their name: each sin that a Pilgrim commits brings Death one step nearer, and a dead Pilgrim pays no pardoners!
So much to forgive, so little time. Will you be able to outwit your opponents by pardoning more of these Pilgrims' sins before they die or finish their pilgrimage to Canterbury?
- I see that there are a few remaining copies available on Amazon for a ridiculously low price!
- My Designer Diary: A Game Designer's Peculiar Pilgrimage along The Road to Canterbury.
- The Road to Canterbury is First-Runner Up for Dice Hate Me's Game of the Year 2011!
- Designer interview in Continuum Magazine (official University of Utah magazine).
- Initial reviews of the game at Dice Hate Me and The Card Gamer.
- Find out more and learn how to play! Watch the video teaser and a full-length tutorial at the game's official website.
- Read the Guardian UK article featuring The Road to Canterbury.
- The Chronicle of Higher Education profiles The Road to Canterbury here.
- Click here for a sneak preview of the game from Thomas L. McDonald's blog State of Play.
- Click the photo below for my most extensive interview on The Road to Canterbury (includes pictures with funny clothing) for the strategy gaming magazine Battlespace. Please note that the interview gets one thing wrong--I'm not a history professor. I'm in the English Department.