Players: Ben, Pat, and Charles.

Ben and Charles indulged me by playing a Microscope game steeped in Cold War espionage. We used real-life countries but ignored any and all historical accuracy.

The real world setting did a great job of focusing us on the characters and their motivations as opposed to making lots of history to flesh out the setting. We had a bitter rivalry between a beleaguered British spy and his sadistic traitor of an ex-partner. We had the extra-marital affair set in a prolonged surveillance mission. We had the clash of idealism and cynicism as a group of senators argued over a bill to allow the government to censor the media.

You'd think my urge to play a Cold War Microscope game would be satisfied after that, but it totally hasn't. Anyway, thanks for the great game, Ben and Charles!

Yeah me too: more Cold War!

I almost think the Black Flu was too grand and distracted a little from the bitter drudgery of espionage, but every interpersonal scene was great. Excellently real and harsh. I wrote up a snippet for another post:

The British agents on operation "Mockingbird" are set up in a flat in a ghetto of emigrants who got out of the Eastern bloc and came to the West. The agents have been hunkered there for weeks, listening to and recording the bugs they have planted in the embassy down the street.

The operatives would stick out like sore thumbs in this neighborhood but the immigrant landlord is working with them.

"How can you trust him?"

"Don't be daft. He got out from behind the Curtain. He knows why we're doing this better than any of you lot."

And yes, I warned you that Carson was bad for Maggie. Actually I figured once her sister was so critical we'd see that both of them (Maggie & Carson) were more responsible/careful/restrained than she thought. But I was WRONG.

The Cold War was just too delicious for me. I had to immortalize a few more vignettes:

Moments in the Cold War