AFTER THESE MESSAGES

A Game of Sitcoms Powered by the Apocalypse

DIGITAL EDITION
WRITTEN BY ROBERT EVANS
Layout by Nikki Yager
Art by Moss
(@x_moss_tarx)
Additional Art by
Bitter/stock.adobe.com
Davi-Sales/stock.adobe.com
okalinichenko/stock.adobe.com
n-on-ne-on/stock.adobe.com
Oleg/stock.adobe.com

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 Special Thanks
To Vince Baker for Apocalypse World and creating the foundation so many great games are now built from,

To Michael Sands for creating Monster of the Week which showed me the flexibility of PbtA systems,

To Nick Tourville for creating Hometown Holiday and showing that games can be made about people living
their lives

And finally, a very special thanks to Nikki, Mary, Ash, Megan, Taylor, Blair, Rachel and the rest of the
2000Tales crew for playing in the many many games that lead to this book

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Welcome to TV Land
It’s pilot season, the time for new shows to hit
the airwaves. The bread and butter of broadcast
T.V. are half hour sitcoms and this season you
and your table are creating of one of these
shows. One of you will be the Director running
the show while everyone else will be Castmembers
each in charge of a specific character. The
network is cheap, so you don’t have a group or
writers, but also no producers breathing down
your next either. Everyone will have to work
together to make this show a hit and grow an
audience. Who knows, maybe you’ll even make it
to six seasons and a movie.
3
What do you need
This is a pen and paper or “tabletop”
roleplaying game which means there’s really not
much you and your friends will need to play. All
of the Castmembers will need either a piece of
paper or a printout of their playbook (more on
that later), something to write with, and two
six sided dice. Players can either have their
own dice or share, but most players are very
protective of their math rocks so don’t be
surprised if everyone wants their own. The
Director doesn’t need dice, but will likely need
a lot more paper to keep track of everything or
even an erasable white board.
Outside of that though, the only other things
anyone will need to bring to the game is
creativity and an hopefully a sense of humor.

Part 1: Writing the Pilot
The first episode of most shows is known as the
“pilot”. It’s the test run to see if a show
works and is worth making more of or bombs and
is never seen again. If you only plan of playing
one session or this game all you will make is a
pilot, but if you are looking to play an ongoing
season or miniseries the pilot is still
massively important. Since everyone playing is
collectively writing the show as you go this is
a group activity with the Director and all the
Castmembers as several key pieces of the show
will be setup during a pilot and even more
importantly can be changed after the pilot. The
follow section will cover the steps to setup you
basic premise of the show before moving on to
your cast of characters.
When
Since this is a made up game with made up rules
your show doesn’t have to be made here and now.
The first step is for all the players to agree
roughly when the show is being made. For example
a sitcom in the 80’s will likely have a lot more
cheese catch phrases and bright sweaters while
the 90;s will have more “very special episodes”
and face social issues, and even more modern
shows might be “anti-sitcoms” where the
characters learn all the wrong lessons by the
end of each episode. This also doesn’t have to
be when the show takes place, such as a western
or sci-fi show, but when the show is being made.
4
Where
Every sitcom takes place somewhere specific.
Usually this is a specific city, but can also be
something more fantastical such as an old west
town or a space station. The main point is that
this is the walls of your show’s sandbox. If the
show ever leaves these walls it will be a
special episode dedicated to the special
location such as a beach episode or going to
Disneyland.
Group Dynamic
The classic family sitcom is about just that, a
family, but family can mean many things to many
people and it’s time for your group to decide
what it means to them. The show can focus on a
literal family, but can also easily focus on
coworkers, or even just a group of friends.
Supporting Cast
Not all groups are five plus people and while
many sitcoms have a small number of main
characters they are also defined by a cast of
five or more reoccurring characters. If your
game has four or less Castmembers then the
Director should feel encouraged to add a number
of named reoccurring NPCs to fill the minimum
cast of five. Unlike other NPCs these named
character will not cost Budget as described
later in this book.
Key Sets
Your show doesn’t have an unlimited budget for
sets and locations so the key ones need to be
figured out. Don’t worry too much though, the
Director will be able to take the show beyond
these locations, but it will cost them so your
key sets will see a lot of show time.
Collectively the group decides one three
locations that the show will take place in.
These locations are limited to a single room
such as the family Livingroom or a local bar and
possibly a small area just outside the room such
as a front door or hallway. IF players aren’t
sure about specifics with their characters yet
these locations can be kept broad, and details
can be added as the pilot is finalized.

Part 2: Making characters
Playbooks
Every player other than the Director will be in
charge of a specific main character of the show
and this game uses what are called “playbooks”
to make these characters. Each playbook
encompasses a common character trope found in
sitcoms. These playbooks will determine your
starting Attributes you will use when making
checks as well as give you a list of “moves”.
Starting Attributes
Each playbook comes with three sets off
Attributes. At character creation pick one set
as your starting values in each attribute. You
are not allowed to mix and match attributes from
different sets.
Moves
Moves are the special abilities that define your
trope in the show and often will break or change
the normal rules in special circumstances just
for you.
Catchphrase Moves
When creating a character, you automatically
have access to your playbook’s Catchphrase Move.
A character can only have a single catchphrase,
meaning if a character ever changes playbook
they must either give up their old playbook’s
catchphrase for the new playbook benefits or
chose not to gain the new playbook’s
catchphrase.
Locking Moves
At the beginning of each episode players get to
pick a new move from their playbook to reflect
how the current story will focus on them.
Players can buy Character Developments to lock a
certain number of these move to their character.
This is a reflection of the audience enjoying
the direction a character is going and keeping
that into future episodes. Moves that are not
locked must be replaced with a different
playbook move the following episode. Move can be
selected multiple times in this way, just not
two episodes in a row.
5
Move NPCs
Some moves also will give players a second
character such as a love interest or best
friend. These aren’t main character in the show
and won’t have full playbooks. Instead these are
NPCs like any other character in the show that
isn’t a player, but the Castmember who is tied
to this character will have extra say in what
they do. Working with the Director to decide
what should happen if there is a disagreement.
Move Exclusivity
It is advised that no two players take the same
playbook at the same time. Additionally, every
playbook will let players select some moves from
playbooks that are not their own. It isn’t
advised any two players have the same move
unless both players are ok with this no longer
being something special only one character can
do.
Character Developments
As your character gain’s an audience the shows
writers will spend more time developing your
character. In game this is represented as
gaining improved attributes and additional moves
by spending Audience points at the end of
episodes and typically costs 5 Audience. Each
development can only be taken once which means
no character will likely ever have all the moves
from their playbook so choose wisely.
Advanced Developments
Once a character has gained a big enough
audience they can spread beyond their own
tropes. In game this means after your character
has locked at least five Character Developments
they can begin taking Advanced Developments.
These improvements will let characters more
customize their attributes, pick up more moves
from other playbooks and even leave the show or
start a spinoff series of their own.
The Baby Baby Moves (Pick one)
Imaginary Friend: You gain an ally that only you
“You got it dude!” -Michelle Tan ner
can see or hear. You gain +1 forward when
following your imaginary friend’s advice.
Kids Say the Darndest Things: You gain the Break
The Tension advanced move
Too Cute for This: You can roll Face in place of
Tears for Get serious checks
Twins: Your character is actually played by
identical twins which allows you to be in two
places at once meaning you can show up in scenes
despite travel time or even have a scene with
yourself.

Character Developments
-Gain +1 Tears (Max +3)
-Gain +1 Goofs (Max +3)
-Gain +1 Intellect (Max +3)
-Gain +1 Face (Max +3)
-Lock your newest Baby Move
-Lock your newest Baby Move
-Lock your newest Baby Move
-Gain a move from another playbook
-Gain another move from another playbook

Advanced Developments
(Must take 5 Character Developments from this
playbook before they can be selected)

-Gain +1 to any attribute (Max +3)

S tarting Attributes (Pick One Set)
Tears: 0 Goofs: +1 Intellect: -1 Face: +2
Tears: -1 Goofs: +1 Intellect: +1 Face: +1
Tears: 0 Goofs: 0 Intellect: 0 Face: +2
-Gain +1 to any attribute (Max +3)
-Take another move from another playbook.
-Unlock the Advanced Move for one of the Basic
Moves
-You are no longer the Baby, take a new playbook
keeping all your Attributes, 1 move from the
Baby playbook you already had, and any moves you
gained from other playbooks

Catchphrase Move
Gotta Love Me: Come up with a catch phase you
use when you're in trouble. Any time you fail a
Try Not to Mess Up check and say this phrase
afterwards you gain +1 Audience and no one
blames or punishes you for the disaster you
made.

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The Cool Uncle Cool Uncle Moves (Pick one)
Charmer: You can roll Face instead of Intellect
“Have mercy!” -Uncle Jessy
for Help Out Checks
Cool Job: You have a cool job such as being a
musician, artist, or club owner. Any time you
are making a Flirt check you can bring up your
job to gain +1 to the roll.
Local Celebrity: You have a high paying job in
local entertainment such as news anchor, talk
show host, or popular musician. This position
gives you +1 to any Face check made with an NPC
that recognizes you.
Flirty: You can take the Flirt advanced move.
Nice Wheels: You have an awesome car, truck, or
motorcycle. Additionally, when you Try Not To
Mess up while driving this vehicle you can roll
Face instead of Goof.
Not The Hair: Whenever a disaster or other
accident would leave you a mess you can roll
+Face. On a 10+ you are completely clean and
unaffected by the mess. On a 7-9 Your face and
hair avoid the mess but the rest of you is still
affected. On a 6 or lower you suffer the mess as
normal.

Character Developments
-Gain +1 Tears (Max +3)
-Gain +1 Goofs (Max +3)
-Gain +1 Intellect (Max +3)
-Gain +1 Face (Max +3)
-Lock your newest Cool Uncle Move
-Lock your newest Cool Uncle Move
-Lock your newest Cool Uncle Move
-Gain a move from another playbook
-Gain a move from another playbook
Starting Attributes (Pick One Set)
Tears: -1 Goofs: -1 Intellect: 0 Face: +2 Advanced Developments
Tears: 0 Goofs: +1 Intellect: -1 Face: +2
(Must take 5 Character Developments from this
Tears: +1 Goofs: 0 Intellect: -1 Face: +2
playbook before they can be selected)
-Gain +1 to any attribute (Max +3)
Catchphrase Move -Gain +1 to any attribute (Max +3)
-Gain +1 Face (Max +4)
How You Do’n: Come up with a catch phrase your
character uses when flirting. If you use that -Unlock the Advanced Move for one of the Basic
phrase while flirting or being flirted with you Moves
gain +1 to the roll and +1 Audience. -Retire your character and introduce a new -
character to the show
-Spinoff: If no Castmember is currently -playing
the Parent playbook you can switch over to the
parent playbook resetting your attributes to the
Parent starting attributes but keeping any 4
moves you already have.

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The Overgrown Child
“I thought I saw Bigfoot in Central Park, so I
tackled him” -Marshall Eriksen
Starting Attributes (Pick One Set)
Tears: 0 Goofs: +2 Intellect: -1 Face: +1
Tears: 0 Goofs: +2 Intellect: -1 Face: -1
Tears: -1 Goofs: +1 Intellect: +2 Face: 0
Catchphrase Move
Cut-It-Out: Come up with a catch phrase. Anytime
you want to Break the Tension you can say this
phrase in place of anything else and gain +1 to
the check.
8
Grown Child Moves (Pick one)
Adult Money: Once per episode the Director will
tell you something seemingly useless and
expensive you recently purchased. You gain +1 to
any check you can come up with using this item
for the rest of the episode.
Hang Out: You have a place everyone likes to
hang out at such as a basement, garage, or club.
You gain +1 to all checks made in this location.
Helpful: You gain the Help Out advanced move.
Humorous Helper: When making a Help Out check
you can roll +Goof instead of +Intellect
Natural Screw Up: You roll -Goof instead of
+Goofs for Try Not to Mess Up checks
Running Joke: At the beginning of each episode
roll +Goofs. On a 10+ you gain 2 hold, on a 7-9
gain 1 hold. This hold can be spent to turn any
Break the Tension check you make into a 10+
result.
Character Developments
-Gain +1 Tears (Max +3)
-Gain +1 Goofs (Max +3)
-Gain +1 Intellect (Max +3)
-Gain +1 Face (Max +3)
-Lock your newest Overgrown Child Move
-Lock your newest Overgrown Child Move
-Lock your newest Overgrown Child Move
-Gain a move from another playbook
-Gain a move from another playbook
Advanced Developments
(Must take 5 Character Developments from this
playbook before they can be selected)
-Gain +1 to any attribute (Max +3)
-Gain +1 to any attribute (Max +3)
-Gain +1 Goofs (Max +4)
-Unlock the Advanced Move for one of the Basic
Moves
-Retire your character and introduce a new
character to the show
-Spinoff: If no Castmember is currently playing
the Parent playbook you can switch over to the
parent playbook resetting your attributes to the
Parent starting attributes but keeping any 4
moves you already have.
The Parent Parent Moves (Pick one)
Family Meeting: Once per session you can call a
“Clean is good, dirt is bad” -Danny Tanner
"family meeting" where all Castmembers must
attend. You get to decide what the meeting is
about and gain +1 to all Face checks during the
meeting.
Good News Everyone: Being the one in charge
means you know what's up. Before each episode
the Director tells you what the primary task of
the episode will be. You can call a meeting to
inform the other Castmembers and they gain +1
forward to complete this task.
Lie Detector: You always know when a Castmember
character is lying to you.
My House My Rules: You oversee the main location
of the show. This can range from you owning the
house to being the boss at the office, but no
matter the situation you are the authority who
make and enforces the rules which give you +1 to
any Figure It Out check to determine when your
rules were broken.
Nothing Gets by Me: You can take the Figure It
Out advanced move.
Widow/Widower: You had a spouse, but they
died. You gain +1 Tears anytime they are
brought up.

Character Developments
-Gain +1 Tears (Max +3)
-Gain +1 Goofs (Max +3)
-Gain +1 Intellect (Max +3)
-Gain +1 Face (Max +3)
-Lock your newest Parent Move
-Lock your newest Parent Move
-Lock your newest Parent Move
Starting Attributes (Pick One Set) -Gain a move from another playbook
Tears: +2 Goofs: -1 Intellect: +1 Face: 0 -Gain another move from another playbook
Tears: +1 Goofs: 0 Intellect: +1 Face: 0
Tears: +1 Goofs: -1 Intellect: +2 Face: 0 Advanced Developments
(Must take 5 Character Developments from this
Catchphrase Move playbook before they can be selected)
-Gain +1 to any attribute (Max +3)
Hug It Out: Come up with a catchphrase, any time
you resolve a conflict between two characters -Gain +1 to any attribute (Max +3)
while using your catchphrase you gain +1 -Gain +1 Face (Max +4)
Audience -Unlock the Advanced Move for one of the Basic
Moves
-Gain another move from another playbook
-Gain another move from another playbook
-Retire your character and introduce a new
character to the show

9
The Responsible One
“Why didn't you make a copy and keep it in a
fireproof box and keep it at least a hundred
yards from the original?” -Monica Geller
Starting Attributes (Pick One Set)
Tears: 0 Goofs: -1 Intellect: +2 Face: +1
Tears: +1 Goofs: -1 Intellect: +2 Face: 0
Tears: 0 Goofs: 0 Intellect: +1 Face: +1
CATCHPHRASE Move
Good Grief!: Come up with a catch phrase you say
when things go wrong around you. Whenever
someone causes a disaster, you can say this
phrase to gain +1 Audience. You also gain +1 to
your next check if it is an attempt to fix the
situation.
10
Trope Moves (Pick one)
Always Serious: Any time you would have to make
a Try Not to Mess Up check you can instead make
a Get Serious check.
Make An Impact: You gain the Dramatic Pause
advanced move.
Reliable: At the beginning of each session roll
+Intellect. In a 10+ gain hold 3, on 7-9 gain
hold 2, and 6 or lower gain hold 1. This hold
can be spent at any time to enter a scene you
aren't already in with exactly what another
Castmember needs.
Trusted: You can roll Intellect instead of Face
when trying to get someone to believe you with
Convince Someone.
Love Interest: You have a long-term NPC love
interest. At the start of each episode roll
+Tears, on a 10+ things are great and gain +1 to
all checks when they are with you. On a 6-7 you
only gain +1 Tears when they are with you as
things are getting dramatic. On a 6 or lower
there are problems in the relationship
Character Developments
-Gain +1 Tears (Max +3)
-Gain +1 Goofs (Max +3)
-Gain +1 Intellect (Max +3)
-Gain +1 Face (Max +3)
-Lock your newest Responsible Move
-Lock your newest Responsible Move
-Lock your newest Responsible Move
-Gain a move from another playbook
-Gain another move from another playbook
Advanced Developments
(Must take 5 Character Developments from this
playbook before they can be selected)
-Gain +1 to any attribute (Max +3)
-Gain +1 to any attribute (Max +3)
-Gain +1 Tears (Max +4)
-Unlock the Advanced Move for one of the Basic
Moves
-Retire your character and introduce a new -
character to the show
-Spinoff: If no Castmember is currently playing
the Parent playbook you can switch over to the
parent playbook keeping all your Attributes, 2
Responsible Moves you already have, and any
moves from other playbooks.
The Troublemaker Trope Moves (Pick one)
Meddling Kid: You can spend Audience to give
“I didn’t do it” -Bart Simpson
other Castmembers a penalty to the Try Not to
Mess Up checks at a cost of 1 to -1 as you've
sabotaged or otherwise messed with items to
cause the upcoming disaster. If this results in
a 6 or lower, you gain +2 Audience.
Manipulative: You gain the Convince Someone
advanced move.
I Found It: At the start of every episode roll
+Goofs. On a 10+ gain 2 hold and on 7-9 gain
1hold. This hold can be used at any time to have
something another Castmember has lost or needs
that you "found" earlier.
Secret Stash: At the beginning of each episode
roll +Goofs. On a 10+ you gain 2hold, on a 7-9
you gain 1 hold. This hold can be spent to
access a secret stash you have of illicit items
within the Directors discretion.
Double Trouble: You have a best friend or
sidekick that helps you cause trouble. Gain +1
to any Goofs or Face check when they are helping
you.

Character Developments
-Gain +1 Tears (Max +3)
-Gain +1 Goofs (Max +3)
-Gain +1 Intellect (Max +3)
-Gain +1 Face (Max +3)
-Lock your newest Troublemaker Move
-Lock your newest Troublemaker Move
-Lock your newest Troublemaker Move
-Lock your newest Troublemaker Move
-Gain a move from another playbook
-Gain another move from another playbook
Starting Attributes (Pick One Set)
Tears: -1 Goofs: +2 Intellect: 0 Face: +1 Advanced Developments
Tears: 0 Goofs: +1 Intellect: 0 Face: +1
(Must take 5 Character Developments from this
Tears: -1 Goofs: +2 Intellect: -1 Face: +2
playbook before they can be selected)
-Gain +1 to any attribute (Max +3)
Catchphrase Move -Gain +1 to any attribute (Max +3)
-Gain another move from another playbook
How Rude: Come up with a catch phrase you use
when things don’t go your way. When another -Unlock the Advanced Move for one of the Basic
Castmember successfully rolls a Convince Someone Moves
to try and get you to do something you can say -Retire your character and introduce At a new
your phrase to gain +1 Audience and reduce the character to the show
degree of success they rolled (12+ becomes 10+ -You grew up: You take a new playbook resetting
becomes 7-9 becomes 6) your attributes to the starting attributes of
your new playbook but keeping any 3 moves you
already have.

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The Weirdo Trope Moves (Pick one)
Alternate Identity: Establish what causes your
“Ha! I kill me!” -Alf
character to change, such as a crazy machine or
head injury, and make a second character with a
different playbook. When this event happens, the
Weirdo turns into this character using the new
playbook until the event happens again
transforming them back. Audience points are
shared between the two characters
Big Entrance: When you enter a scene in a flashy
or memorable way roll +Goof. On a 7-9 you have
everyone's attention giving you +1 Forward to
your next check, on a 10+ You gain +1 Audience,
and on a 6 or lower you cause a disaster of some
sort.
Not Human: You aren’t a human. You might be a
robot, an alien, or even a talking cat. Work
with your Director for what bonuses and
penalties your form will give you.
Illogical Logic: You can roll +Goofs instead of
Intellect when trying to Figure It Out.
Weird Hobby: You have a weird hobby such as
magic or ventriloquism. You gain +1 to any check
involving your hobby.

Character Developments
-Gain +1 Tears (Max +3)
-Gain +1 Goofs (Max +3)
-Gain +1 Intellect (Max +3)
-Gain +1 Face (Max +3)
-Lock your newest Weirdo Move
-Lock your newest Weirdo Move
-Lock your newest Weirdo Move
-Lock your newest Weirdo Move
-Gain a move from another playbook
S tarting Attributes (Pick One Set) -Gain a move from another playbook
Tears: -1 Goofs: +2 Intellect: +2 Face: -1
Tears: 0 Goofs: +2 Intellect: +2 Face: -2 Advanced Developments
Tears: +1 Goofs: +1 Intellect: 0 Face: 0
(Must take 5 Character Developments from this
playbook before they can be selected)
-Gain +1 to any attribute (Max +3)
-Gain +1 to any attribute (Max +3)
Catchphrase Move -Gain +1 Face (Max +4)
Did I Do That?: Come up with a catch phrase for -Unlock the Advanced Move for one of the Basic
when you screw things up for other people. Any Moves
time you create a disaster you can use this -Retire your character and introduce a new
phrase to gain +1 Audience but are then kicked character to the show
out of the scene by another Castmember or NPC.

12
Part 2: Finishing Touches
Backstory
Looks & Style With the characters fleshed out there’s only one
With playbooks selected and everyone knowing more step before your pilot is ready to play
their tropes it’s time to think about how your out. Every character needs some backstory that
character looks. The fillable playbooks included connects them to other characters being played.
with the game will have suggestions for ways to Below is a list of statements that all the
describe your characters, face, hair, and players will fill in together as a group. Each
statement has two blanks that will be filled by
clothing but those are just prompts to help
different player characters. A group doesn’t
players who might need a push. Realistically,
have to fill in all of the statements, but every
all you need to worry about is at least player character needs to have their name in at
description of how your character looks or least one blank to be finished.
dresses that is consistent from episode to
episode. This could range from “always in • & are siblings
pigtails” to “wears colorful sweaters”, what • & are childhood
matter’s is that it says something about your friends
character or reminds the audience of the • & don’t like each
playbook you embody. other
• & are exes from a past
Items & Gear relationship
You may have noticed that your playbook didn’t • & are married
mention having any money or special items unless • & are in a “will they
a move gives you something extra special. That’s won’t they” romance
because this isn’t a game about managing gear or • & are former college
gaining new items. Instead, it is assumed roommates
characters have the basics that would fit the
story. Everyone has a place where they live,
character that can drive likely have a car that
gets them where they need to be, and everyone
will have spending money that would make sense
for their characters age and the time they live
in. In the end the Director will have the final
say if a character has something, can go get a
thing, or if it’s not something they would be
able to obtain.

13

Part 3: How to Play
With characters finished and a pilot episode
established its time to play. The only problem
is you might have never played a pen and paper
game before, or at least a Powered by the
Apocalypse game. This section will break down
the basics of actually playing the game for the
Castmembers as well as common terms you may have
already scene in your playbooks. While this
section is important for the Director to also
read, their part in the game has different rules
which will be covered later in the book.
Rolling Dice
Every Castmember will be rolling two six-sided
dice (2d6) when making any check. If you aren’t
sure what “six-sided dice” are they are your
normal dice, you will find in most board games
like Monopoly or Yahtzee. While specific
outcomes might vary from move to move the key
thing to remember is that you will want to roll
a seven or better.
When a player rolls a six or lower it is a
complete failure. Not only will you not succeed
at what you want but things will likely also get
worse for you or others around you. When you
roll a seven, either, or nine you will get what
is called a “mixed success”. Basically, you will
be able to do what you want but something will
go wrong or you’ll have to make a choice as to
what parts you go well and what doesn’t. It is
the director’s job to come up with interesting
choices or outcomes for these mixed successes.
On a ten or higher you succeed fully. You do
what you wanted to do and nothing unexpected
happened. If you character is making a Basic
Move and has unlocked the Advanced Move for it
and rolls a twelve or high they don’t just
succeed but do so with style causing extra
benefits.
Directors on the other hand do not typically
roll dice as they don’t make moves. Instead, the
Director responds to the Castmembers’ actions,
spends Budget, and might occasionally roll a
dice for a table, but not in the same way the
other players do
14
Moves
When selecting one or more moves from your
playbook you may have noticed other moves
mentioned as well. These are Basic Moves which
all Castmembers can make.
Forward & Hold
Many moves from the playbooks mention giving “+1
Forward”. This is a temporary plus one bonus to
the player’s next roll. Sometimes Forward won’t
have any extra rules regarding which roll but
often the move will tell you when that bonus
activates. Once the bonus is used it vanishes.
If a bonus lasts for more than a single roll it
is called “Ongoing” instead. Unless specifically
stated Forward and Ongoing only last for the
scene they are granted.
Some moves give one or more “hold”. This is a
general term for a pool of points to be spent as
the player chooses. Any move that grants Hold
tells you what that Hold can be spent on. Hold
from different moves do not add together and
unless stated within the move Hold only lasts
for the duration of the scene it was granted in.
Audience
Audience points are a pool the player can use
for a multitude of things. The most common use
of audience is to buy Character Developments
which grant a character new moves or better
attributes. Spending Audience for Character
Development is done between episodes as a
characters Audience points will go up and down
during the course of a single episode.
Additionally, no player can have more than ten
Audience points at any given time. Audience
points also reset between episodes, but do not
worry about points that weren’t able to go
towards Character Development because the final
total Audience the entire cast has at the end of
an episode also determines the shows Budget
which the Director handles as well.
There may be other uses for Audience in your
game depending on what optional rules the
Director might be using in any given episode. If
the Director is using any optional rules during
an episode, they should inform you at the
beginning of the episode.
Part 4: Basic Moves
The following moves are usable by all playbooks
and will make up the bulk of your checks while
playing. Unlike playbook specific moves which
you will bring up an ask to use, Basic Moves are
called for by the Director when they feel dice
are needed to determine an outcome.
Break The Tension
When things get too serious or there’s a lull it
always helps to break the tension by getting a
laugh from the audience; Roll +Goof.
10 or Above You nailed it and the audience loves
it. Gain +1 Audience and gain +1 Forward on your
next check in the scene.
7-9 You got some laughs but not everyone got the
joke. Gain +1 Audience.
6 or Below The joke bombed and everyone noticed.
Lose 1 Audience or take -1 Ongoing for the
remainder of the scene
ADVANCED MOVE
12 or Above You also give +1 Forward to another
player in the scene.
15
Convince Someone
Whether it’s getting your way or getting out of
trouble you need to convince someone that what
you say is true; Roll +Face
For An NPC
10 or Above They believe what you want or if you
are trying to get someone to do something they
will tell you the minimum it would take for them
to do it.
7-9 They will believe you if you can provide
proof, or if you are trying to get someone to do
something they will ask you to do something for
them first to prove you are serious.
6 or Below No one believes you or you’ve
offended the person you’re talking to.
ADVANCED MOVE
12 or Above They do or believe what you want
unquestioning and without anything in return.
For Another Player
10 or Above If they do or believe what you ask,
they gain +1 Audience and +1 Forward to their
next action in the scene.
7-9 If they do or believe what you say they gain
+1 Audience
6 or Below They decide how you offend or
otherwise upset them and gain +1 Audience if
they DON’T believe you or do what you ask.
ADVANCED MOVE
12 or Above You also gain +1 Audience if they do
or believe what you want.
Dramatic Pause
When you want to make a point after a dramatic
or serious moment sometimes silence is the
loudest option with a dramatic pause; Roll
+Tears.
10 or Above You made your impact and then some.
Gain +1 Audience and gain +1 Forward on your
next check in the scene.
7-9 You made an impact. Gain +1 Forward on your
next check in the scene.
6 or Below You took too long and now it’s just
awkward. Lose 1 Audience or take -1 Ongoing for
the remainder of the scene.
ADVANCED MOVE
12 or Above You also give +1 Forward to another
player in the scene.
Figure It Out
Whether it’s realizing the vase is broken or
knowing theres a person behind the curtain you
need to figure it out; Roll +Intellect
10 or Above You gain Hold 2
7-9 You gain Hold 1
6 or Below You are oblivious
One hold can be spent to ask the Director any of
the following questions:
• Is someone lying?
• Is anything hidden?
• Is someone upset?
ADVANCED MOVE
12 or Above You can spend two hold to ask the
Director any of the following questions as well:
• What exactly happened here?
• Who did this?
• How can I help?
Flirt
A wink and a smile can help smooth you way
through life and flirting is how you get there;
Roll +Face
10 or Above You gain +1 Ongoing with the target
of your flirtations for the remainder of the
scene.
7-9 You gain +1 Forward towards your next check
to the target of your flirtations in the scene.
6 or Below You come off as a creep and either
take -1 Ongoing with the target of your
flirtations for the remainder of the scene or
take -1 Audience.
ADVANCED MOVE
12 or Above You also gain +1 Audience
Help Out
You can’t do it alone all the time and teamwork
makes the dream work so it time to help out;
Roll +Intellect
10 or Above You grant another player +1 to their
current check
7-9 You grant another Castmember +1 to their
current check but now their failures are yours,
including any lost or gained Audience Points
6 or Below You make things harder for everyone
giving -1 to all Castmembers’ current check
ADVANCED MOVE
12 or Above You grant another Castmember +2
instead of +1.
Try Not to Mess Up
In the world of Sitcoms any task can end in
hilarious failure all you have to do is try not
to mess up; Roll +Goofs
10 or Above You do what you set out to do.
7-9 You can choose to either succeed at what you
want to do with lackluster result or fail with
comedic results. Failing grants +1 Audience
6 or Below It’s an absolute disaster in the most
hilarious way a; gain +1 Audience
ADVANCED MOVE
12 or Above You do things so well the Director
gives you an extra bonus.

Get Serious
Not everything is jokes and laughs, sometimes
things get serious and when they do this is how
it goes; Roll +Tears
10 or Above You do what you set out to do.
7-9 The Director either gives you a hard choice
or a price to pay to complete your goal.
6 or Below Things get worse
ADVANCED MOVE
12 or Above Your actions are so compelling that
you gain +1 Audience.

16
 ATTENTION CASTMEMBERS:
If you are NOT the director stop reading
Congratulations, you’ve finished your section of the book!
Now go away!
The following sections are for the Director ONLY

17
Part 5:
Playing the Director
Welcome to the director’s chair. You might have
chosen this job, or it might have been thrust
upon you, but regardless of how you are now
managing the game for everyone else.

At Least Read This Part!

If there’s any reason you might not be reading
the entire book these are the rules every
Director should always keep in mind.

Rule 1: Keep Things Fun

Your number one job is to make sure everyone
playing is having a good time. This includes
the obvious things like giving good plot hooks
and fun NPCs, but it also means you will be the
one mediating conflicts and keeping the tone
upbeat. This also means that if you end up with
a player whose idea of fun is to ruin everyone
else’s fun it’s up to you to handle that player.

Rule 2: Keep Things Moving

As the director it is up to you to keep the plot
moving forward. If players get stuck or there’s
a lull in the game, it’s up to you to add
something to the scene or get things going again
or to end the scene and start a new one.

Rule 3: Keep Things Fair

As the Director you get final say in arguments
about how things are. This means you have a
responsibility to not abuse this power and to
keep things fair for everyone playing.

18
the Director’s Role
While everyone is playing the same game with the
same end goal, the Director plays After These
Messages very differently than the Castmembers.
Unlike the other players the Director rarely
rolls dice and doesn’t make checks. They do not
have a Playbook or use any other the Basic
Moves. Instead, the Director facilitates the
game and in turn the story for everyone else.

Director Moves
While the Director might not use nay of the
moves the other players do this doesn’t mean
they don’t have moves of their own. These moves
however are fundamentally different as the
Director doesn’t roll dice to determine their
moves. For the Director moves simply happen and
it is then up to the Castmembers to react to
these events with their moves. Below are the
most common moves a Director will likely need.

Call Sheet On Location

The Director can add player characters to the
scene. How the character enters or is revealed
is up to the player unless the Director uses a
Special Effect for the entrance.
Casting Call
The Director spends Budget on adding a non-
playable character to the episode. The cost of
this depends on if the Director planned ahead as
well as how important the character is as
described in the Budget section of this book.
Cliff Hanger
If the director needs to finish an episode
without finishing the plot they can setup a
cliffhanger. This will stretch the plot into the
next episode.
Cutting to Commercial in 10
The Director can give Castmembers a warning that
the scene is running long as well as end the
scene when needed.
Establishing Shot
The Director sets the location as well as which
characters start in the scene.
The Director spends Budget to add a new location
for the episode. The cost of this depends on if
the Director planned ahead as well as how large
or expensive the location is as described in the
Budget section of this book.
Pay Off
The Director pays off a setup they established
earlier in the episode.
Plot Twist
The Director adds a complication to the plot. If
this complication involves adding new
characters, locations, or special effects they
will also have to Spend Budget.
Set Up
The Director can establish important items or
characters for later payoff.
Special Effect
The Director spends 1 Budget to add something
crazy to the episode such as something smashing
through a wall, a room full of soap bubbles, or
an explosion. The special effect allows the
Director to more specifically state what a
playable character is doing and where they are
in the scene when the effect happens, but also
grants that character +1 Audience.

19

Part 6: Creating Plots
While the beginning of this book started with
creating a pilot episode for your game it did
leave out one very important portion, the
episode’s plot. As the Director it is up to you
to come up with plots for each episode.
Sometimes plots will happen to characters, other
times characters will be the instigators of the
plot.
Involving Castmembers
When you have a plot that requires a character
to instigate it such as two siblings splitting
their room in two or one character breaking
something that belongs to another character the
Director should come to the character or
characters that would kick off the plot and talk
to them about your plans ahead of time. Your job
as Director is to set up the plots, but it’s the
Castmembers that determine the specifics of how
everything plays out during the show. And just
like the rest of the game, if a character is not
interested in taking the actions you suggest
that is their choices. As Director it is your
job to adapt to the character’s choices not to
demand what they do.
Some playbooks may also have moves that let them
know about plots ahead of time such as the
Parent. With these characters you simply need to
inform them of the plot. If the plot does not
require the character to take action then what
you tell them does not invalidate the choices
they get to make.
The key piece to remember though, is that sitcom
plots are simple. A single idea or event can be
enough for an entire episode. The character’s
personalities and hijinks will fill in the rest.
A Plots & B Plots
Often in shows there may actually be two plots
in a single episode. The main focus of the
episode is known as the A Plot while the smaller
side story is the B Plot. Feel free to offer
two or three plots for an episode. The one with
the most interest becomes the A Plot while B
Plots only need 3 or so scenes to resolve. When
having multiple plots try to bounce back and
forth between them to change things up.
20
Sample Plots
1. A Simple Plan- The characters have a task
like throwing a party but it all goes wrong.
2. Accidentally Married- Two characters find out
they got married or otherwise ended up in a
contract together but don’t remember any of
it.
3. Broken Treasure- A character breaks or loses
another character’s treasured item.
4. Caught Coming Home Late- One of the
character’s is caught sneaking home or into
work late after an illicit activity
5. Counter Zany- One of the characters is
putting together a scheme to trick or
manipulate another character. Thing is that
character found out and is now scheming a way
to teach the first character a lesson.
6. Dead Pet Sketch- Someone is taking care of a
someone else’s pet and that the pet dies.
7. Dinner with the Boss- A character’s boss is
coming over for dinner.
8. Double Date Night- A single character has
two dates on the same night.
9. Escalating War- Two or more characters end
up in an escalating conflict that starts out
petty and ends in all out war.
10. Forgot to Pay the Bill- Someone forgot to
pay a bill and now a vital utility or service
is cut off.
11. Game Day- The annual games are being held as
everyone splits into two teams and competes.
12. Just One Extra Ticket- A character wins
tickets to a special event but only has one
extra. Multiple of characters want to go.
13. Keep the Receipt- One of the characters has
figured how to exploit a store’s return
policy until an expensive item gets ruined
and can’t be returned.
14. New Job- A character gets a new or second job
leaving them exhausted
15. New Neighbor- A new character moves to the
neighborhood/office and immediately starts
trouble
16. Shower Walk In-A character accidentally walk
in on another character in a private moment
such as showering.
17. We Want Our Idiot Back-An accident causes
one of the characters to have a massive
personality change turning their greatest
weakness into their strength such as an idiot
becoming a genius.
18. Wild Teen Party- One or more characters are
trying to throw a party without the
responsible characters finding out.
19. Wrecked the Car- One of the characters
borrows another character’s car with out
without permission and the car gets in a
wreck.
20. Zany Scheme-A character creates a scheme to
trick or manipulate another character.
Sitcom Plot Structure
The classic sitcom relies on a simple, easily
digestible, structure. When writers need to
make a new weekly script that will likely have
rewrites and notes from higher up the actual
expect time to finish a twenty of so minute
script is only one to two days. Because of this
weekly half-hour shows like sitcoms lean heavily
on formats, formula, and templates. Luckily for
you, this mentality translates to game masters
who need to prep a night’s session with little
to no time at all as well.
The 3 Act Structure
Just about all episodic television relies on the
basics of the three-act structure. In three acts
writers can have a simple beginning, middle, and
end making sure everything is wrapped up by the
end of the show’s run time and ready for the
next episode the following week. This also
allows natural break points for commercial
breaks, or at you table bathroom, stretch, and
snack breaks.
Act 1: Introduction
Every episode starts somewhere and yours starts
here. Act one has one job and that’s to
introduce the characters, main locations, and
plot setup of the episode. You might think
that’s three jobs, but really if you have your
main characters in a main location setting up
the plot you just checked all your boxes. The
main thing to not for Directors however is that
the plot is set up but the conflict, or problem,
hasn’t yet occurred. If an item gets lost or
broken that item is shown. If someone gets in
trouble for doing something that act is
mentioned but the actual rule breaking hasn’t
been revealed.
21
Act 2: The Meat
This is where the bulk of most episodes take
place. With everything established in act one
now it can all go wrong ang fall apart. This is
when plans go sideways, bad actions are
discovered, and conflicts reach a boiling point.
The typical start of the second act is when
things starting to go wrong are first revealed,
but in TV where staying tunes through a
commercial break is the most important job those
revelations happen just before the commercial
break with the absolute lowest point for the
characters marks the end of act two and the
second commercial break.
Act 3: Resolution
In episodic sitcoms everything works out in the
end or otherwise resets the statis quo. The
third act is the wrap up where a final plan
actually works, characters make amends, or
problems otherwise work themselves out. For more
serialized stories, where plots continue from
episode to episode, the third act is a
resolution of some immediate issue when leaving
room open for the bigger plot to feel as if some
progress was made even if things aren’t fully
wrapped up. Finally, the “cliff hanger” or “2
Part” episode actually uses the third act to
rase the stakes even higher as a continuation of
the second act for the next episode to resolve
instead. These multipart episodes however are
rare as leaving your audience without a
resolution repeatedly will just leave them, and
your players, frustrated and result in shows
that “go nowhere”.
Part 7: Budget
While the Director doesn’t have to roll dice or Spending Budget in Game
worry about failing checks, they do have to keep Once the game has started and the episode is
track of the show’s Budget. In this game Budget underway the Director can still spend Budget but
is a pool of points the Director has for adding having to get things together last-minute means
elements to the show to help or hinder higher costs.
characters. The specifics of how Budget affects
Item Cost
the show from episode to episode can vary based
Cliffhanger 1 Budget
on several options, but during the course of the
Extras that don’t 0 Budget
episode Budget is how the director adds extra speak
locations NPCs and expensive effects to the Nonplayable Character 2 Budget
show. Named Nonplayable 3 Budget
Character
Returning Named 2 Budget
Starting Budget Character
A pilot episode usually starts with a Budget New Small Location 2 Budget
equal to the number of Castmembers. So, if 3 New Big Location 3 Budget
players are playing characters then the Budget Famous Location 5 Budget
is 3, if 5 are playing characters then the Special Effect 1 Budget
Budget is 5. Beyond the pilot episode, however,
the how’s budget will be based on the Audience
all the characters have accumulated. At the end Spending Budget Between Episodes
of an episode add the Audience points from all After an episode is done but before the next
the Castmembers together and then divide the episode is planned the Director can make
total by 5. This is the budget for the next permanent improvements to the show. These
episode. Any remaining audience points can be improvements are expensive, but they no longer
noted down for the next episode’s final total. cost budget to add to future episodes.

Item Cost
Spending Budget Before the Episode Returning Character 5 Budget
Becomes a Series
While writing the plot the Director spends
Regular
Budget points to things like extra locations and
Smalls Location 5 Budget
NPCs. See the character below for costs to add Becomes New Key Set
items before the episode has started. Big Location Becomes 10 Budget
New Key Set
Item Cost
Extras that don’t 0 Budget
speak Item Explanations
Speaking Nonplayable 1 Budget Speaking Nonplayable Character – Any NPC that
Character talks and interacts with the cast but isn’t a
Named Nonplayable 2 Budget full character such as a store clerk or cop.
Character Named Nonplayable Character – This is a
Returning Named 1 Budget character with a name and a personality beyond
Character just what their job or function in the story.
New Small Location 1 Budget Small Location – One room set like the Key Sets
New Big Location 2 Budget Big Location – Large rooms or open spaces like
Famous Location 3 Budget parks or an auditorium
Famous Location – Well known landmarks like Big
Ben or the Empire State Building.

22
Part 8: Special EpisodeS
While most episodes might change the plot every
week bottle episodes change the rules in some
way. Below are common types of bottle episodes
and the rules that will affect them.

Bottle Episode Destination Episode

A sitcom staple is the “Beach Episode” or “Going
Like a ship in a bottle your show needs to fit
to Disneyland” where the entire episode takes
into exceptionally small limitations. In a
place in a special location or city. The key
Classic Bottle Episode the characters are
point is that the episode take place outside of
limited to two of their Key Sets and up to one
the general location of the show. Unlike other
Series Regular appearance. While they may or may
episodes this type is extremely expensive
not be able to leave this location the show
costing 10 budget, however unnamed NPCs and
doesn’t meaning all scenes take place in these
scene locations within the new general location
two locations and no additional NPCs will be
do not cost Budget during this episode.
making appearances beyond a single Series
Additionally, at the end of this episode all
Regular if the show has any. This limit forces
Audience points round up to the next amount
the audience to only focus on the main
divisible by five. If a character ends with
characters and thus all Audience gains, and
audience already divisible by five they instead
losses, are doubled. This is a common episode
gain five Audience.
if the Director is running out of Budget.

Clip Show A Very Special Episode

Every sitcom eventually does a special episode
Nothing like a good cheap clip show to save some
about a sensitive topic. Expect a lot more
money but don’t expect any character
Getting Serious checks than Try Not to Screw Up
development. In this episode type characters
checks and drama is the focus this week. In this
don’t get to buy Character Developments or
kind of episode, the Castmembers are competing
Advanced Developments at the end of the episode.
to be the one that gives the PSA at the end of
Instead characters start with 5 audience each
the episode. The character with the highest
and bid to setup the next scene. The Castmember
Audience score at the end of the episode gets to
that bids the most for the scene gets to set up
make the PSA and in turn gets a free Character
a clip from an episode that never existed,
Development.
typically with a “remember when…”. That scene
then plays out and characters can still gain
Very Special Episode Themes
Audience points within the clips. These setups
1. Death
don’t cost the Director any Budget.
2. Drugs
Once a number of clips equal to the number of 3. Prejudice
Castmembers has played out the clip show wraps 4. Serious Illness
up. The Director tallies the remining Audience 5. Stealing
points to determine the next shows Budget. 6. Serious Illness

23
Part 9: Optional Rules
While After These Messages is fully playable as
is there are several optional rules the Director
may want to use to adjust the game to their
liking. Below are optional rules that adjust the
game in various ways.
Famous Guest Star
When you want to have a new player join the game
for only one episode, they can play a guest
star. In this case the player doesn’t need a
playbook and wont gain Audience but instead they
make all checks at +2. When they would normally
gain or lose Audience they instead grant or
remove their Audience to another Castmember.
No Budget Show
If the Director doesn’t want to have to track
Budget they can instead use this rule to run a
show that it being made on little to no budget.
With this rule the Director no longer needs to
spend Budget to add characters or locations but
at the cost of no knowing when it will all fall
apart. Any time a player rolls doubles on their
dice an even happens based on the list below.
1. Injured Actor- The Castmember that rolls
this is injured for real in some way
making them have to leave the scene and
no return for the next three scenes.
2. Falling Set- A Piece of the set breaks
causing the scene to wrap as soon as
possible and the location cannot be used
for the rest of the episode.
3. Footage Missing- The scene immediately
ends, and the Director sets up a new
scene where the end of the last scene is
obviously missing.
4. Missing Audio- Any move that uses a
Catchphrase no longer works for the rest
of the scene.
5. Missing Pages- The writers didn’t finish
writing the scene meaning the actors
have to improvise. All Castmembers gain
-1 to all checks for the rest of the
scene.
6. Boom Mic- One of the Boom Mics falls
into frame causing -1 to the next check
in the scene.
24
Miniseries
Instead of an ongoing show where all the players
have to keep the audience interested enough to
keep a budget going if the Director want to run
a shorter game they can instead do a Miniseries.
The suggested length of a Miniseries is 6
sessions but can be as long of as short as the
director wants. The starting Budget for a
Miniseries is the number of Castmembers
multiplied by the number of sessions. Rather
than keeping the show running as long as
possible the goal of a Miniseries is to end the
final session with a Budget higher than the
starting Budget.
Plot Armor
Sometimes it’s hard to let popular characters
look like a fool. With this rule Castmembers can
spend Audience points to gain a bonus to their
checks. The bonus is equal to the number of
Audience points spent.
Rapid Character Development
If your table is having issues regularly
reaching five Audience per Castmember or tend to
run shorter episodes this rule character the
amount of Audience needed to buy a Character
Development or Advanced Development to three
Audience instead of five.
Writer’s Room
After These Messages already assumes the
Director will be communicating with other
players as needed for plot ideas, but this rule
makes planning episodes a collaborative process.
When using this rule every episode will now have
two phases. The first phase is the Writer’s Room
where the entire table discusses the plot,
pitches locations, and collectively “writes” the
episode. This count’s as “Before the Episode”
for Budget costs.
While this method let’s all the players share in
developing the episode plots, the specific
details, especially those shifted by the dice,
while adjust during the episode as everyone
adapts to the unexpected.

Part 10: Sample Pilots
Maybe you don’t have the time to write a pilot
with your table or maybe you’re just curious how
a specific sitcom would be setup using After
These Messages. This section provides nine
classic sitcom setups complete with Key Sets and
Backgrounds already filled out. Each plot will
also have a list of suggested playbooks along
with a common way that playbook fits into the
plot.
Feel free to adjust the sample pilots as you see
fit. Take as much or as little from them as
you’d like for your own show and leave the rest.
The pilots are broken into several parts as
described below:
Pilot Type
A brief synopsis of the stow concept. All
PLAYBOOKS mentioned in the synopsis will be
written in all caps. Feel free to remove the
playbook name and add the appropriate
character’s name instead when writing down your
own pilot.
The Classic Family
Based on the nuclear family of two parents and
2.5 children this is a staple for family sitcoms
and usually the mold that other styles of shows
break to stand out. This is also the standard
for animated sitcoms.
Examples
The Simpsons, Dinosaurs, Family Guy
Common Playbooks
• The Parent: The responsible of the two
parents in the family, classically the
mother.
• The Overgrown Child: The other less
responsible parent, classically the
father
• The Troublemaker: Either the oldest or
middle child that causes problems
• The Responsible One: Either the oldest
or middle child that typically either
acts against the Troublemaker or parents
the Overgrown Child while the other
parent is away
• The Baby: The infant that may or may not
be able to talk.

Examples Background
Here a handful of known sitcoms of this type • Baby &Responsible One are siblings
will be listed. • & are childhood
friends.
• Troublemaker &Responsible One don’t like
Common Playbooks each other.
Here the common playbooks that appear in this • & are exes from a past
type of show will be listed along with how they relationship
typically fit into the show. Feel free to use • Parent &Overgrown Child are married.
these as guides or inspiration for your own
• & are in a “will they
characters or mix things up.
won’t they” romance.
• & are former college
Background roommates.
Here the Background questions will be listed and
prefilled in with the common playbooks that
would have these relationships. As with the
playbooks, feel free to use this as a guide or
inspiration but do not worry about keeping
everything exactly the same for your show.

25
The Dysfunctional Family
Unlike the classic family the dysfunctional
family shows a less idealized version of a
family. Often family members may nor like each
other and the group lacks a PARENT replacing the
head of the household with the RESPONSIBLE ONE
instead.
Friends in the City
Not all families are related. A frequent modern
take on the family sitcom is to instead focus on
a found family of friends all living together or
close by in a city. In shows of this type the
entire cast is roughly the same age and several
cast members may be married.

Examples Examples
Married With Children, Malcom in the Middle, Friends, New Girl, How I Met Your Mother,
Raising Hope Seinfeld

Common Playbooks Common Playbooks

• The Responsible One: The parent holding • The Parent Typically the responsible
the family together. single friend looking for love.
• The Overgrown Child: The other parent, • The Overgrown Child: Often the PARENT’S
often unwanting to have had children. best friend or roommate.
• The Troublemaker: Often the middle child • The Cool Uncle: The successful friend
• The Cool Uncle: Frequently the with a high paying job
successful in some way oldest child • The Responsible One: One of the married
• The Weirdo: The youngest child of friends, often parred with the OVERGROWN
sometimes the friend of the OVERGROWN CHILD
CHID • The Baby: Not a literal child but
instead the naive newcomer to the friend
group.
Background
• Troublemaker & Cool Uncle are siblings
• & are childhood Background
friends. • & are siblings
• Weirdo & Cool Uncle don’t like each • Parent & Cool Uncle are childhood
other. friends.
• & are exes from a past • & don’t like each
relationship. other.
• Responsible One &Overgrown Child are • & are exes from a past
married. relationship.
• & are in a “will they • Responsible One & Overgrown Child are
won’t they” romance. married.
• & are former college • Parent & Baby are in a “will they won’t
roommates. they” romance.
• & are former college
roommates.

26
Married With Friends
Similar to the Friends in the City trope, this
type of show focuses more on found family than
actual relatives. The key difference is while
the other show tends to focus on a single
character who may have married friends this type
of show focuses on the married couple and their
friends.
Examples
I Love Lucy, King of Queens, Yes Dear
The Mismatched PAring
A sitcom classic as old as the classic family is
the pairing of two opposite personalities trying
to live together. This type of show is able to
function with the smallest cast needing only two
Castmembers but is often filled out with friends
of the couple.
Examples
The Odd Couple, Lavern & Sherly, Two Broke Girls

Common Playbooks
Common Playbooks • The Responsible One: The half of the
• The Parent: The responsible one of the couple that cares about rules and order.
main married couple. • The Overgrown Child: The half of the
• The Overgrown Child: The less couple that hates rules.
responsible one of the main married • The Cool Uncle: The friend or family
couple. member with a frivolous lifestyle.
• The Troublemaker: The OVERGROWN CHILD’S • The Weirdo: The friend of the couple
best friend that typically makes situations worse.
• The Responsible One: Frequently the
TROUBLE MAKER’S spouse or love interest
• The Weirdo: The unmarried friend, Background
neighbor, or family member • & are siblings
• Responsible One &Cool Uncle are
childhood friends.
Background • Responsible One & Overgrown Child don’t
• & are siblings like each other.
• Overgrown Child & Trouble Maker are • & are exes from a past
childhood friends. relationship.
• Responsible One & Weirdo don’t like each • & are married.
other. • Overgrown Child & Weirdo are in a “will
• & are exes from a past they won’t they” romance.
relationship. • & are former college
• Parent & Overgrown Child are married. roommates.
• & are in a “will they
won’t they” romance.
• & are former college
roommates.

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The Office Family The Weirdo Family
Like the found family another nonconventional Where most shows have a single strange character
sitcom family is the work family. Many shows for comedic purposes this show has an overall
using this setup have the entire cast work in strange premise holding the family together.
the same location while others will have most of This might be a family of monsters or people
the cast work together and fill the rest of the with magical powers. A common trop for shows
cast out with people who frequent the place of like this is either the family needing to hid
work. their strangeness or being shunned because of
it.
Examples
Cheers, The Office, Just Shoot Me Examples
The Addams Family, The Munsters, Sabrina the
Teenage Witch
Common Playbooks
• The Parent: The boss.
• The Overgrown Child: The slacker Common Playbooks
employee. • The Responsible One: The adult keeping
• The Responsible One: The suck up the family safe or hidden.
• The Weirdo: The regular customer • The Overgrown Child: The other adult who
• The Baby: The new Employee embraces the family’s weird traits
enthusiastically.
• The Baby: The adopted addition to the
Background family due to their strangeness
• Parent & Weirdo are siblings • The Weirdo: The weirdo amongst weirdos,
• & are childhood typically nonhuman such as a talking
friends. animal or alien.
• Responsible One & Overgrown Child don’t
like each other.
• & are exes from a past Background
relationship. • Responsible One & Overgrown Child are
• & are married. siblings
• Overgrown Child & Baby are in a “will • Responsible One & Weirdo are childhood
they won’t they” romance. friends.
• & are former college • Baby & Weirdo don’t like each other.
roommates. • & are exes from a past
relationship.
• & are married.
• & are in a “will they
won’t they” romance.
• & are former college
roommates.

28
Part 11: Glossary
Audience- The currency to advance characters and
a metric of the popularity of that character
Bottle Episode- A cost cutting episode using
minimal resources to save money for other
episodes.
Budget- The resource the show has to add
additional characters and locations
Casting Call- A term used for when a production
sends out a request for actors to fill a roll.
Castmember- The players who are in charge of a
main character with a Playbook
Check- Any time dice are rolled to determine the
outcome
Clip Show- A cost cutting episode made of
recycled clips from previous episodes
Director- The player in charge managing the
game, coming up with plots, and tracking the
Budget
Episode- A single game session or the duration
of a planned plot
Gust Star- A famous actor as a visiting
character who appears in the show for a single
episode
Key Set- Sets built for a specific show and are
kept on hand to be used regularly in that show
Miniseries- A show with a preplanned number of
episodes and a set end point
Move- Any specific action a player makes in game
NPC- Non-Playable Character- A character that is
controlled by the Director to help facilitate
the story
Plot- The story of an episode
Plot Armor- A term used for when the story bends
to save a character from consequences
Scheme- A complicated plan, typically in some
devious or underhanded way.
Series Regular- A non-main character of a show
who begins to appear regularly in multiple
episodes
Show- The ongoing game or campaign as a whole
Very Special Episode- An episode in a comedy
series that drastically changes tone to convey a
social message to raise awareness about an issue

29
Quick Reference
Basic Move Audience Rewards Spending Budget Before the Episode
Item Cost
Break the Tension Extras that don’t 0 Budget
6 or Lower -1 Audience speak
10 or Above +10 Audience Speaking Nonplayable 1 Budget
Character
Convince Someone Named Nonplayable 2 Budget
+1 Audience for other players that go along with Character
it fi you tolled a 7 or above or go against you Returning Named 1 Budget
if failed. Character
New Small Location 1 Budget
Dramatic Pause New Big Location 2 Budget
6 or lower -1 Audience Famous Location 3 Budget
10 or Above +1 Audience

Flirt Spending Budget in Game

6 or Lower -1 Audience Item Cost
(Advanced) 12 or Above +1 Audience Extras that don’t 0 Budget
speak
Get Serious Nonplayable Character 2 Budget
(Advanced) 12 or Above +1 Audience Named Nonplayable 3 Budget
Character
Try Not to Mess Up Returning Named 2 Budget
6 or Lower +1 Audience Character
New Small Location 2 Budget
New Big Location 3 Budget
Moves that Give Audience Famous Location 5 Budget
The Bay Special Effect 1 Budget
Gotta Love Me

The Cool Uncle: Spending Budget Between Episodes

How You Do’n
Item Cost
Returning Character 5 Budget
The Overgrown Child Becomes a Series
Running Joke Regular
Smalls Location 5 Budget
The Parent Becomes New Key Set
Hug It Out Big Location Becomes 10 Budget
New Key Set
The Responsible One
Good Grief

The Troublemaker
Meddling Kid

The Weirdo
Did I Do That

Director
Buying a Special Effect

30