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Narrative Summary

The player takes on the role of a Gopher named Kylan, a scholar studying at the palace of the Gopher king. While serving at the court of the king, he receives a message learning that his family has been kidnapped. With the message comes a ransom note demanding a sum of three thousand gophics (equivalent to ten years’ worth of a scholar’s wages) — from his old friend Gordon (“which you should be able to afford on your rich palace salary,” he wrote). Devastated by the news of his family and anger towards his former best friend, he pleads with the Gopher king to bring his family back. The king refuses, but after much begging from Kylan, relieves Kylan of his court duties for a month so he can attempt to find his family.

Narrative Structure

Note: At night, Kylan dreams of the good times he and Gordon had together. As he journeys closer to his destination, those pleasant dreams turn into nightmares.

• Initial call — Kylan receives news of his kidnapped family and a ransom note from Gordon.
• Preparation — Kylan prepares for his journey by gathering information about Gordon’s location. His neighbor and friend in the palace, Sivanah, convinces him to take her; she has been trained for combat, but he has not. They purchase weapons and gather provisions for the journey.
• The journey to Gordon — Sivanah continues to train Kylan. Along the way, they gather clues by talking to other gophers, fight bandits, and forage for or purchase food. During this time, Kylan and Sivanah see with their own eyes the devastating results of the Gopher King’s reign on the rest of the Gophers. They also learn that, in the eyes of the common Gophers, the Gopher Bandit is a sort of Robin Hood who steals from the nobles to distribute to the different clans.
• Meeting Gordon — Gordon reveals that he has staged this entire fiasco in order to have the chance to talk to Kylan in person. He is planning to take down the king and establish a democratic government instead of aristocracy, and wishes to have an informant in the palace (Kylan) who can pass him information.

The rest of the narrative depends on whether or not Kylan agrees to be the informant — and depending on the scope of the project, players may not be given this choice. In that case, Kylan eventually agrees to help Gordon. The second half of the game then focuses on the takedown of the Gopher King, ending in a boss battle against him.

Backstory

The backstory is revealed in bits and pieces of Kylan’s dreams as his adventure progresses, and through the Gophers he meets on the way.

Though from rival clans, Kylan and Gordon met while attending the kingdom’s palace academy for children of clan leaders and court nobles. Assigned roommates, they turned from hating each other into becoming best friends. They would sneak out at night to have adventures together, foraging for food and pranking palace guards.

During the time of their studies, the old Gopher king died and his son took over the throne. This son was a horrible king, heeding the advice of greedy council members and taxing his people mercilessly. Gordon’s father tried to convince the king to lighten the tax burdens, but instead was put in prison for being “disloyal” and “inciting rebellion”, as advised by the king’s council. The new king then threw Gordon out of the academy, stating that he would be a bad influence on the other students. Gordon begged Kylan to leave with him. But Kylan refused, as he loved studying at the palace, though he promised they would always be friends. Gordon got very angry and stormed away in a rage. The next morning, Kylan awoke to find his friend gone.

Now a few years later, rumor has it that Gordon has taken over leadership of his clan and is planning to overthrow the king — an idea that has garnered much secret interest. Kylan remains a scholar, studying at the palace and serving as representative of his clan in court. The Gophers remain dissatisfied with their king but are afraid to speak, as anyone who says anything against him is immediately thrown in prison. The court and council members are on the king’s side but live in fear, as a group of rebel Gophers, led by a so-called “Gopher Bandit”, have been raiding their lands and seizing crops and money.

Major Characters

Kylan — Scholar and clan representative living in the palace. Desires to rescue his family from Gordon.

Sivanah — Warrior and friend of Kylan with her own agenda. Hot-headed, but a great fighter. The illegitimate daughter of the former Gopher King, she desires to kill the current king and reign in his stead.

Gordon — Leader of his clan and the secret Gopher Bandit. Wants to gather forces to overthrow the current king and create a better government for all Gophers.

Current Gopher King — An inexperienced young man who is easily controlled by greed. Desires more power, more money, more control over the Gophers.