The coal miners of West Virginia were facing tough times. Paid little or even, really, nothing at all (instead getting scrip, a money system that was only good at the company store and nowhere else), they were looking to unionize. Of course, the coal companies were against that. What ended up happening was a rather dramatic battle (literally) between workers and law enforcement. The Price of Coal is a new RPG that puts you into those hills. The game is up on Kickstarter now.
From the campaign:
In 1920, the coal miners of West Virginia faced shameful living conditions, and even worse working conditions. Miners were paid subsistence wages, despite high profits, or even paid only in scrip which could only be used at the company-owned store. Within the mines themselves, workers experienced frequent cave-ins and other dangerous accidents, as the operators were reluctant to reduce production for the sake of safety.
Whispers of unionization began to arise in the mountains. The coal companies responded harshly, employing company gun thugs to violently and cruelly enact the company’s will upon the miners.
Events escalated from there, including the declaration of martial law, spiraling into the 1921 assassination of Sid Hatfield, who had by then become a local icon and a leader to the miners throughout the region.
Federal troops were dispatched to Blair Mountain, including aerial bombers equipped with leftover gas and explosive bombs from the Great War. Days of guerrilla warfare followed, during which as many as one hundred miners were killed for the crime of wanting a better life.
The Price of Coal is a card-based prompt-driven storytelling game about coal miners and their loved ones in West Virginia, 1921. It’s about the struggles faced by those who stand up for their rights, and about communities that come together through hard times. It’s about a history that should not be forgotten. It’s about the fights we still face today.
The game uses character and prompt cards to help you tell the story of a year leading up to a terrible battle. During this year, characters will face many trials together, both inside and outside the mines. The Price of Coal draws inspiration from a variety of storytelling games, like Red Carnations on a Black Grave, For the Queen, The Quiet Year, and Montsegur 1244.
The campaign is up and over its funding goal with 14 days left to go.
Source: Tabletop Gaming News
