Arete N/A, Quintessence N/A, Background Cost 4 pts.

Mahjong, a complicated four-player tile game from Shanghai, has taken China by storm and has begun spreading around the globe. It’s even played in New York City and London, on the opposite side of the world. This particular set gives the players a better sense of each other. Although this insight into opponents’ psyches doesn’t provide information that’s specific enough to facilitate cheating, it reveals their characters and moralities to each other. These sets are highly prized among honest people seeking to do business with strangers or even people who’ve been maligned in an attempt to repair their reputation.

System

Once a group of four players sit down to play mahjong, a wave of understanding washes over them. Each gains a growing sense of understanding of each other, making telling outright lies and falsehoods to other players impossible, although they’re still capable of other acts of deception and can lie freely to non-players. After a full 16-hand game (approximately two hours), this effect persists even away from the table until the next Lunar New Year. During this period, characters seeking to purchase or increase a Contacts, Mentor, Patron, or Retainers Back­ ground involving one of the other mahjong players can do so for Experience Points ×2, instead of the usual ×3.