Through Bolted Doors

No lock is strong enough to keep out a determined heart, yet the doors that hold you shut are not made of iron alone. One of you is bound by duty to a marriage not of your choosing, watched and guarded to ensure your obedience. The other is the one who loves you, willing to risk all to see you free. Through whispered letters and daring plans, you will scheme to flee—but the road is treacherous, and missteps come at a cost. Each trial brings the risk of discovery, and should your luck run dry, you will be torn apart without a final goodbye.

Inspired by Taming of the Shrew, this game is played through letters, with the trials of your escape determined by fate itself—drawn from the Major Arcana of a tarot deck. Success or failure is left to the toss of a coin, and with every failure, your shared resolve wanes. If you endure, you may yet meet in the dark of night, beyond bolted doors and prying eyes. If not, the weight of duty will seal your fate. Will love triumph, or will the world conspire to keep you apart?

How It Works: 

Through Bolted Doors is a two-player letter-writing game where one plays The Captive, trapped in a betrothal they do not want, and the other plays The Liberator, striving to free them. Each round, players draw from the Major Arcana to determine an obstacle and flip a coin to see if they succeed or falter. Failures cost shared Resolve, and if it runs out, the lovers are discovered and torn apart. Their fate—freedom or heartbreak—rests in their hands, their words, and the whims of fortune.