The Setting: Anti-alien spy agency located in Cleveland

The Characters:

Beloved: Rachel Smith (Seth) -- A Rank 1 Agent, Rachel was recently demoted from the New York office due to an unfortunate incident involving the destructing of a building. Despite all the skills and talents you'd expect to find in a top level agent, Rachel is socially a little abrasive, especially in Cleveland where she finds everything beneath her. She's trying to get back in the good graces of ABI (Alien Blasters Incorporated) so she can return to New York

Suitor 1: Pete Tanner (Brenna): Pete has been in the agency for years, but that doesn't mean he's gone far. While his out-going personality and computer skills help on the job, his tendency to crack under pressure and poor ability to actually relate with people hamper his progress and tend to leave him alone. He is always out classed by Jack Card, the top agent in Cleveland.

Suitor 2: Trent Carter (Drew). Son of star agent Rodger Carter, Trent, or "The Ivory Falcon" has he likes to call himself, is a bit of a tool. Scratch that, Trent is a major tool. He is a spoiled rich boy who has only gotten to where he is today thanks to daddy's coattails. Of course, in Trent's mind he is the coolest thing to happen to the Cleveland ABI offices and he knows it. Did he mention his father is Rodger Carter?

What Happened

Early on, we find Trent, Rachel and Pete clearing out a warehouse filled with alien eggs. This provides the major plot hook for the story as it lets Trent snatch one of the eggs -- in turns out under the hardened douchebag exterior, Trent isn't so sure blindly killing aliens without understanding them better is the best of ideas. Of course, Pete realizes something is up when his scanners show alien presence still active, but despite launching a formal review process Trent's secret remains save as "The Ivory Falcon" is able to use his family reputation and a few well placed lies to weasel his way out of the situation. Pete and Rachel aren't as easily convinced though, especially when a rampaging Brood Mother shows up to reclaim her egg. Luckily, Jack Card is there to save the day and the jig appears to be up for poor Agent Carter. Fortunately for him, his passionate appeal concerning the shoot first methodologies of ABI got through to an already jaded Rachel Smith who is able to spring The Ivory Falcon from lockup and the two escape to start ARI - Alien Researchers Incorporated. Meanwhile Pete Tanner returns to his life as a agent with the only really significant change being Jack Card is even more of a hero than ever.

Thoughts:

This was a fun STM game. The romance bit was downplayed a little by Rachel's disdain of everything Cleveland, but the game still worked as Pete and Trent were both blindly optimistic in their attempts to win her over (and the prize was just a date, which was pretty easy to fit into the epilogue despite little romantic chemistry between Trent and Rachel)

Just a date seems kind of like low stakes. It seems like that might mute your game a little.

Another thing to keep in mind is that you can have Shooting the Moon games that aren't romantic at all. We've played where two rivals both wanted to be the new protege of the master telepath and another game were two minor demons were vying to be the familiar of a sorcerer. (oh, and another where two gods were trying to woo a mortal hero to be their champion)

Normally yeah I'd agree, but we were struggling to come up with an interesting prize and wanted to get to stop stalling on it. And it worked here because both suitors still had bold ambitions even if the prize itself was a little muted. Those ambitions are ultimately what is going to help get you an interesting game. A good prize helps by encouraging players to aim high, but I've played STM games with higher stakes prizes that haven't turned out as well, in part because the suitors weren't actually focused on the prize or didn't feel the prize was something they could actually obtain.