Ikog

Summary

A game played every few weeks by several dozen players from all walks of society. Ikog is played in public areas for a few hours on a given night. The frequency and location of the events changes without warning. The game itself is a complex chess-like game that involves two players moving and rotating pieces on a large checked board. Pairs of players play a game and wait until all the games are finished, and then the players pack up the games and leave.
Ikog players say nothing while playing and never preach or offer any explanation of what they are doing, and so most of the Island considers them harmless and ignores them. Ikog players when asked about the game simply brush it off as a hobby. However, a few extra boards are always set up at any Ikog event for people to try to learn the game on their own, and there are always a few initiates studying the players and experimenting with the pieces.

Beliefs

If Ikog players have beliefs, they don't talk about them. What they do is play the game. They never talk at all during the public games, and they rarely try to persuade anyone else to play. What little is known about Ikog is what players will say when questioned in other context.
Ikog is a territory game similar to Chess where the goal seems to be to capture a certain amount of territory on a large grid. Players take turns placing, moving and/or rotating pieces on the board. Pieces are removed when captured, but replaced under certain conditions. It is not clear how pieces are captured or when the game ends to outsiders, but all Ikog players seem to be following the same rules. To outsiders, it is incomprehensible. If asked, all Ikog players will say is that it's a game of placement, movement, facing, range, and bond. They say that almost like a mantra.
Everyone who plays Ikog has their own set that they either made or had made for them. There is no other way to get an Ikog set. The sets can be crude or ornate, expensive or cheap, all depending on the player. But while Ikog players have been known to tool around with pieces and layouts on their own, there are no reports of seeing any two-player games of Ikog played outside of the main events.

History and Organization

No one knows how Ikog started. Players first started appearing in the reconstruction after the Great Storm. The number of players has about doubled during that time, but other than that, Ikog is exactly the same ritual as it was when it started.
Ikog players don't socialize during the game, and make no real attempt to meet outside of games. A few Ikog players know each other outside of the game and fraternize in those contexts, but the game is a separate world they never refer to when not playing. Ikog players are literally drawn from all walks of Ecumene life: there are House members, laborers, soldiers, Italosi, and gang members. There is at least one person who appears homeless. Not every player shows up for every game, but no one misses more than a couple sessions in a row.
The ritual of Ikog is always the same. Half the players bring sets. Half the players bring the tables. Each player brings a chair. The tables and chairs are set up so each table has two chairs opposite each other. Without speaking the players wait a moment and then as one start arranging themselves at chairs around the tables. The players sit and play whoever is across from them. (No one has ever seen an odd number of players at an Ikog event.) They play until the game is over. They wait in silence, contemplating the board, until all games are complete. Then all the players shake hands. One player takes the set, one player takes the table, everyone takes a chair, and everyone leaves. There is no talking during the event, and players will not engage with outsiders while playing.
Ikog does not sponsor any other activities, and no one tries to convert people to it. Very rarely, someone will invite someone to try it, but even that is very unusual. People join Ikog by sitting down at an empty table at the end of the setup and playing with the pieces while watching the other games. At a certain point after at least months of hovering, the player chooses to join the main tables instead. No one knows what causes that switch, because no one explains why they make it.
There are no known written rules of Ikog, no membership lists or manifestos, and no formal organization at all.

Key Details

Founded: Appeared during the Reconstruction after the Great Storm
Leadership: No apparent leadership at all.
Headquarters: No headquarters - games rotate locations
Membership: There are less than one hundred Ikog players.
Affliations: Players are drawn from all walks of life, but no organization supports the game.

Type

Secret, Brotherhood