Deathless Roulette

*Deathless Roulette'* is a dangerous game of chance and long standing tradition within the Deathless in which a player loads a gel round of DVodka into a single revolver chamber, spins the cylinder, then places the barrel into their mouth and pulls the trigger. While the activity is generally non-lethal, one always runs the risk of suffering severe blunt trauma if proper care is not taken.

## Origins

As is the case for much of what is found within the corporation, Deathless Roulette’s exact origin is a matter of intense debate. Some claim that the activity is as old as the constellation project itself, and that it was passed down from Koschei himself to the rest of the crew onboard the ship known as *Scorpio*. Others swear by another story, in which Colonel Grigory “High Roller” Pechorin was forced to play a much more lethal version of the game during his time in captivity under the Orphans of Thorg, and introduced the current ruleset to the corporation some time after his rescue. A vocal minority within the Deathless Navy are quick to shut down these stories and assert that the tradition was started on a whim when a band of inebriated orbital marines found themselves bored one night.

## Known Variations

Just like the drink it uses, Deathless Roulette is known to possess a variety of different house rules, with alterations in the ruleset varying in complexity. Below are a list of better known or widely practiced variations of the classic Deathless Roulette:

### DCF Roulette

This variation of Deathless Roulette is less of a game and more so a vicious means of discipline that was first introduced by an officer stationed within Koschei’s most infamous prison complex. In its first recorded practice, six inmates had earned themselves the ire of their warden, and were forcibly sat down around a mag revolver and told to play a game of Deathless Roulette. The catch was that the revolver had five of its six chambers loaded with mag rounds. The inmate to survive the Roulette was spared, given a second chance, and sent back to their cell. Since then, DCF Roulette has been an often sought after means of punishment for prisoners that the wardens deem too troublesome.

### Beginner’s Roulette

Developed by the Department of Public Relations, this variation of Deathless Roulette was turned into a toy set, and is meant to introduce the game to children and newcomers alike. Instead of loading a gel round into a mag revolver, the players make use of a specially made Deathless Foam Dart Blaster™ (available for purchase at every Outreach Office). Should the toy fire a foam dart into one of the player’s mouths, they are considered the loser and must take a shot of DVodka Kids™ *(Disclaimer: DVodka Kids™ sold separately).*

### Orbital Drop Roulette

Heavily discouraged by most superior officers that catch wind of the activity, Orbital Drop Roulette’s origins can be traced back to members of the Orbital Marines Units that sought a greater thrill than the one provided by the base ruleset. However, they were unable to find the time to come up with any meaningful change to the rules and decided to just try and play the game while in the midst of an orbital drop. Surprisingly, the game went off without a hitch, and Orbital Drop Roulette has become something of a well-known, rarely practiced pastime of the Orbital Marines ever since.

### “Truth or Trigger?”

An off the cuff variation of the game that started when a Deathless mercenary expressed interest in passing the time with several nobles who were put off by the inherent risk that came with the original ruleset. Best played with larger groups, this game has one player fully load a mag revolver with gel rounds while the rest of the group sits in a circle. Once loaded, the player outside the circle sets the revolver down in the middle of the rest of the group and spins it. When it stops spinning, the player outside the circle looks to the player the revolver has its barrel pointed towards and asks, “Truth or Trigger?”. At this point, said player has the option of letting the player outside the circle ask them a question that they must answer truthfully, or put the revolver in their mouth and pull the trigger. Whatever the option, the player outside the circle then switches places with the one the revolver landed on, and the game continues until the revolver is out of gel rounds.

## Incidents

With a game as dangerous and long standing as Deathless Roulette comes a history of incidents and injuries. While care is taken by those who play with the normal ruleset to prevent fatal injury, there is never a guarantee. What follows is a list of infamous Deathless Roulette incidents that are used to forewarn the unfamiliar or reckless of the game’s dangers.

### October 27th, 3021

Deputy Vice President Tatyana “Rusalka” Kazakov is found guilty of breaking the Deathless Terms of Service after it comes to light that she murdered her superior in a rigged game of Deathless Roulette — replacing the gel round with a hollow point — to try and take their place.

### April 12th, 3198

An especially smug lieutenant of the 9th Mechanized Heavy Company "Road Rollers" thought he could cheat a noble client out of more credits with a game similar to Deathless Roulette. The lieutenant wagered that if he could pull his revolver’s trigger five times in a row without firing the gel round, the noble would owe him double the promised pay for his contract (little did the noble realize that the lieutenant had palmed the gel round after loading the weapon). After he successfully went through five chambers of the revolver without firing the gel round however, the noble — bug-eyed and full of fear — claimed that no mere human could be so lucky, declared the lieutenant a synthetic, and had him shot to death there and then.