Science: The Hypothesis

Science: The Hypothesis started out as a metagame in the style of Mornington Crescent or The Extraordinary Adventures of Baron Munchausen, where people discuss cards, decks, and strategies in the titular fictitious Magic: The Gathering-like collectible card game. Somebody decided that they wanted to play the game for real, so they got shit done and made a prototype ruleset, transcribed here.

Under Construction

You are the head of a newly constructed Research Laboratory. You don't ask who funds you, you don't ask why they hired you, your job is just to work and produce results. You are also told that you have competition: competition with laboratories, working to produce more and better results than you. You can't allow that, can you? You'll just have to use every last Robot Prototype, Dedicated Research Assistant, Viral Plague, and Black Hole at your disposal to outdo them... and possibly even kill a few in the process...

The image that started it all.

As M:TG, S:TH has the equivalent of a library, hand, land area, and creature area.

• In S:TG, the Library is called the Agenda. You draw one card from it at the beginning if your turn.
• The Graveyard is the Decommissioned field.
• Creature cards are Experiments.
• Enhancements are Equipment, and cannot be unequipped.
• Theories and Laws are enchantments and the like.
• Sorceries are Studies and Instants are Consequences.

Each card has one requirement:
Research Points

• Research Points are gathered by spending Funds in your Laboratory or one of its four Wings.
• Research Points are always specific to one area of science: Gravity, Economics, Physics, etc.

Your Laboratory is played at the beginning of your first turn. It is always placed face-up on top of your deck before the game begins, and is played before you draw your hand. Your Laboratory should always give you 1 related Research Point at the beginning of your turn.

To the top, left, right, and bottom of your Laboratory are its four Wings. Each of these can hold one Laboratory Extension which you can then channel more Funds through to gain different things. (What different things, you ask? I have no fucking idea.)

Funds are acquired through Grants and Endorsements. You receive $1 Billion per turn from whatever source you choose (Black Market, Government, Private Sector, etc). Some Laboratories or Lab Extensions produce Research Points for $.5 Billion, some for $2 Billion. It all depends on the strength of the Extension.

Funds and Research Points persist through your turns, unless otherwise stated.

Victory Conditions

Victory does not come when your opponent is destroyed. There is no Life Total, there is no Kill You Dead scenario. Hindering your opponent, blowing up his shit, draining his resources, that's all well and good and fun, but you actually win by producing results for your employer. How? The Victory Condition detailed on your Laboratory card. It can be changed or modified by your Lab Wings but will remain mostly consistent through the game. While the cards are still in the planning phase, an example would be building and maintaining the LHC (for Physics), or producing a Universal Vaccine (for Biology).

Gameplay Example

To be fleshed out later, but here's the basic idea:
1: Both players shuffle their decks and place their Laboratory on top.
2: The player decide who goes first (rolloff, rock-paper-scissors, etc).
3: The first player plays their Laboratory and draws [5-7] cards.
4: Their opponent does so as well.
5: First Player's First Turn begins. They collect the resources stated on their Laboratory, and play the cards in their hand using those resources.
6: ????
7: Profit

Thoughts

Mana is used to play cards relating to your field. Black Hole, Botany, Black Death, AI Revolt, etc. Research Points.

You're only out when you say you're out: If you have free-cost cards that give cash, or allow other cards to be played, fucking do it. You're not out till you say you are, and there's always a chance for a comeback.

That image is going to be a bitch. Perhaps the left bubble is... actually, no, I have no fucking idea why there are two bubbles there. You know what? Fuck the image.

Advancements?

Things to work on

So much oh god.

Actual cards. Card layout. Play space layout. Cash.
Wait. Fuck. I said wings were going to have to have Cash funneled through them. But right there I said that they just produced RP. Shit. Change the listed RP to 'max RP that can be gained by spending cash'?
This is a good idea. It would also allow some Wings to produce cash. Or free RP (and they would be more valuable).
>Mark: "I'd say both. With you able to pump money into them for more RP. Maybe give some an upkeep cost as well?"

Ideas for more cards:

• Special Enhancement | $2B, 1RP | Free if played on Cyborg, Next card targeting this Experiment is ignored and sent to the Decommissioned field.
• Haywire Electronics | $3B | Targets an opponent's Laboratory or Lab Wing - Targeted Laboratory or Lab Wing cannot be used until Haywire Electronics Player's next turn.
• Plague | 1 Biology RP, 2RP | Target Experiment or Lab Addon is killed and Decomissioned.
• Prototype Robot | $3B, 2 Physics RP | Gives one free Physics RP per turn starting next turn. These RP are destroyed at the end of your turn.
• Government Grant | 1RP | Gives $1B.
• Private Endorsement | 2RP | Gives $1B every turn for the next three turns.
• Public Relations Dept. | 2RP | Gives $1B every turn at the beginning of your turn, Upkeep: 1RP.
• Lab Wing A | $1B | Produces 1 relevant RP per turn at the beginning of your turn, You may spend $1B to receive 1RP, spending up to $5B this way, Upkeep Cost: $1B.

Images and Shit

• 
  Generic Card Template
• 
  An advanced Laboratory Wing example (produces specific RP)
• 
  A Laboratory Wing Attachment example
• 
  A Laboratory Wing example
• 
  A Laboratory example
• 
  The first rendition of the play space for Gamerfag's version

See Also

• Science: The Hypothesis (metagame), the inspiration for this game.
• Space: The Convergence, the inspiration for that metagame.

Footnote

The progenitor of this page has fallen into a bit of a mess. Specifically, being locked away for a month without internet. While this does create vast opportunities for improvisation and reflection on game mechanics, it also makes working on this wiki entry slightly difficult. He did create a neat DnD campaign, though. (Expect updates sometime mid to late August.)