So, it's been a while since I did an RTD. This is because I've been trying to figure out what would be a good mechanic to base an RTD around. So, I took some inspiration from a combination of Space Station 13, Paranoia, and game theory.
The Servant's Plot!
You are a servant in a fairy palace nestled under Dublin, Dolcan's Meadow. A plot has been launched to overthrow the queen and replace her regime with a worker's paradise. You are part of this plot, but you must keep up the facade of being a loyal servant while also slowly sabotaging the kingdom in preparation for the uprising!
This would be a mission-based RTD, with every mission having an objective set by the rebellion. Objectives require multiple non-specific players to complete and are usually things like "one player must give the prisoner a bottle of rotshroom wine, another player must chop a rose from the private garden, and the last player must steal a key from the spymaster's daughter". However, every player also has a job that they choose at the start, like being a chef in the royal kitchen or a teacher for the fairy princes, and the longer you don't do your job the worse your performance will be.
Completing an objective gives everyone involved in the objective a unit of Respect from the rebel leader. Respect means you can pull in favors to make things easier: in game terms, this gives a roll a +1 at the cost of a unit of Respect. Doing your job well means you get a promotion, earning a level of Reputation. Reputation means you can abuse your authority to immediately complete a task: in game terms, this means you auto-succeed at a task (As if you had gotten a 5) but lose a level of respect.
Both of these start out at 1 for each player. If your Respect goes to 0, you can't get any more favors and you actually have to start doing favors for NPCs. If your Reputation goes to 0, you are put on a watch list and if you do anything suspicious you might be captured by the queen's guard, interrogated, and even executed if things go really wrong.
What do you guys think? Would you be interested in some servant-based political pixie intrigue? Is there anything about the rules that could be improved?