TiGGR in Moominvalley: Values We Carry Forward
A note on approaching Tove Jansson's world with the care it deserves
When we adapt beloved worlds for tabletop play, we're not just borrowing characters and settings - we're inheriting responsibility. Moominvalley isn't neutral creative territory. It's the life's work of Tove Jansson, a queer Finnish-Swedish artist who created radical gentleness from a place of genuine vulnerability and historical trauma.
As we've explored elsewhere on this site, Jansson wrote from the margins - as a queer woman, a linguistic minority, a survivor of Finland's existential struggles through independence, civil war, and world war. Moominvalley wasn't escapism; it was a blueprint for how communities could work if we centered care over conquest, understanding over dominance.
So when we bring TiGGR's "zero prep, infinite chaos" energy into that world, we do it with intention. Here are the values we try to braid into every scenario, every character sheet, every moment of play:
Respect and Sensitivity as Foundation
Every adaptation is, by nature, an interpretation. We're not trying to recreate Jansson's stories beat-for-beat, but to honor the feeling they create - that sense of being genuinely welcomed, of difference being celebrated rather than merely tolerated, of problems being solved through patience and creativity rather than force.
This means our Moominvalley adventures center cooperation over competition, wonder over conquest, emotional complexity over simple solutions. Characters don't "level up" through violence; they grow through understanding. Problems aren't "defeated"; they're resolved through community care.
Radical Hospitality
Moominmamma's door is always open. There's always room for one more at the table. This isn't just politeness - it's a revolutionary act of inclusion that actively welcomes strangeness, difference, and need.
In our scenarios, this translates to adventures where the "solution" often involves expanding the circle rather than excluding threats. The mysterious visitor isn't an enemy to defeat but a new voice to understand. The disruptive force might just need belonging.
Seasonal Acceptance
Things change. People leave. Winter comes, spring returns. Fighting these natural rhythms is futile; finding beauty in each phase is wisdom. Very different from the heroic fantasy of overcoming all obstacles through determination.
Our Moominvalley stories embrace impermanence. Characters wander away and return changed. Problems resolve and new ones emerge. Success isn't about permanent victory but about navigating change with grace and helping others do the same.
Productive Solitude
Snufkin's wandering isn't antisocial rejection - it's necessary self-care that ultimately serves the community. People need space to be themselves, and that's not abandonment but part of healthy relationships.
We design scenarios that honor different ways of participating. Not every character needs to be socially central. The quiet observer, the occasional wanderer, the one who helps by stepping back - all have valued roles.
Wonder Over Conquest
Mysteries don't need to be solved, just experienced. The Groke's loneliness is more interesting than defeating her. Curiosity without the need to possess or control creates space for genuine discovery.
Our adventures often resolve through understanding rather than elimination. The strange phenomenon might be beautiful once you stop trying to categorize it. The "problem" might reveal itself as a gift you weren't expecting.
Chosen Family Resilience
Blood relations matter less than chosen bonds. The Moomin family expands and contracts based on who needs belonging, not biological or social categories.
This shows up in our character creation and scenario design. Players create original valley residents who might be connected through friendship, shared interests, or simple proximity rather than predetermined relationships. The bonds that matter are the ones characters choose to honor.
Gentle Boundaries
You can be kind without being a doormat. Love includes honest feedback. Too-Ticky's practical wisdom, Moominpappa's gentle ego-checks - care sometimes means saying no, or speaking uncomfortable truths.
Our NPCs and scenarios model this. Helping doesn't mean enabling. Acceptance doesn't mean avoiding all conflict. Sometimes the most loving thing is to let someone face natural consequences or to speak truth they need to hear.
Melancholic Joy
Happiness doesn't require constant optimism. You can feel sad about Snufkin leaving while celebrating his return. Emotional complexity is as natural as weather.
We try to create space for bittersweet moments, gentle sadness, the beauty of missing someone. Our "victory" conditions often include elements of loss or change - not because we want to make players sad, but because real joy includes the full spectrum of feeling.
An Act of Love, Not Appropriation
These aren't just design principles - they're acts of cultural care. When we play in Moominvalley, we're participating in a tradition of coded storytelling that offered sanctuary to marginalized communities, that imagined radical alternatives to violence and exclusion.
We approach this work as an act of love for what Jansson created, and recognition of what it offered to people who needed gentleness in a harsh world. Our scenarios aren't trying to "improve" on her vision but to extend the invitation she offered - the possibility that communities can center care, that difference can be celebrated, that there's room for everyone at the table.
Whether you use our character sheets or create your own, whether you follow our scenarios or improvise entirely new ones, we hope you'll carry these values forward. Moominvalley belongs to everyone who needs it - which is to say, all of us.
Play gently. Welcome strangers. Leave room for mystery.
The TiGGR Moominvalley materials are offered in the spirit of fan appreciation and cultural continuation. We encourage adaptation, modification, and sharing - Jansson's work has always grown through the love of its community.