In 1804, Meriwether Lewis and William Clark embarked on an expedition with a party of approximately thirty men, named The Corps of Discovery. Their journey took over two years and was an adventure filled with peril, serendipity, and a multitude of colorful characters. It is a quintessential American epic and an important part of our nation’s heritage. However, the details and ramifications of this journey are largely unknown to the general populace.

Meriwether is a role-playing game in which the player is given the same goals assigned to Meriwether Lewis by President Jefferson:

1. Find an all water route from the United States to the Pacific Ocean;
2. Explore the newly acquired Louisiana Purchase;
3. Establish peaceful trade relations with Native Americans;
4. Discover new plants, animals and minerals.

Project Goals

The primary goals of the Meriwether project are:

1. To teach players about the Lewis and Clark expedition’s cultural and historical significance.
2. To demonstrate that a historical role-playing game can be a fun, immersive, and compelling learning experience.
3. To trailblaze the methods that will best allow players to learn by playing historical role-playing games. The research into these methods will contribute to the field of computer-assisted learning by establishing a format upon which other games can be designed.