What stories are told thru objects left behind...

...what memories always fade away?

What is it?

Provenance of the Dead is a fast-paced, competitive storytelling game about historical identity. As a team of ARCHAEOLOGISTS unearthing a burial site, players race each other to find artifacts that support their hypotheses. But be careful—the faster you dig, the faster the site is destroyed! One player secretly takes on the role of the living PRESENCE of the buried. As their sacred rites are threatened, this spirit will rise to stop the dig, restore peace, & protect the Provenance of the Dead ! 

This game is designed for:

• Boardgamers looking to try a bit of collaborative storytelling
• History and social studies classrooms
• Writers, storytellers, & designers looking to spark up some world-building
• Campfires, road trips, and power outages
• Cancelled game sessions and rainy nights

An expanded edition with more tips & rules can be found in Roll for Learning: 51 Micro Tabletop Role-Playing Games to Use in the Classroom, out now from Play Story Press (Get it FREE here!)

What do you need?

1. 2-4 players 
2. 45-75 mins
3. 1 deck of 54 standard playing cards (including 2 jokers)
4. 1 small token per player (eraser, game piece, candy...)
5. Pencils, rulers, & lots of paper

Included in the downloads is 1) a page version for on-screen viewing & 2) a printable zine version for legal sized (8.5"x14") paper. Check out the tutorial below to see how to fold your own zine (it's easy!):

Credits

• A complete edition of this game with additional tips, guidance, & rules will be available in Roll for Learning: 51 Micro Tabletop Role-Playing Games to Use in the Classroom, published by Play Story PressTM. 
• Art licensed under CC-BY-SA-4.0 by Lidingo & CC-BY-3.0 by yousero. Public domain art by Josef Čapka, Tinus Van Doorn, & others. 
• The text ofProvenance of the Dead is licensed by Palleon Press under CC-BY-SA 4.0.