inaugural tdm of unspecified duration.

[vestigemods]

VESTIGE TEST DRIVE MEME

WHAT IS THIS?

This is a test drive meme for Vestige is a musebox-game successor to The Box (yeah, the one that died like five years ago). It's invite-only with no activity check and almost no application to speak of.

This is a horror jamjar based on Cabin In The Woods, in which characters are pulled into this containment zone run by the Technicians working from a lab underground with the goal of creating Good Quality Suffering™️ to appease the elder gods who hover on the verge of creating a worldwide apocalypse. But of course, suffering is pointless if everyone is too numb to properly suffer, so there are plenty of morale boosts provided in between bouts of fear and misery.

This TDM is ongoing and will fill the gap between now and when I get around to setting up the comms. There is no official start date and currently literally nothing but this TDM available for perusal, but I'll update this section of the blurb as that changes. Threads in this TDM are welcome to be game canon once this shit opens because fuck it. If you have questions, feel free to ask in the top-level below or just wing it tbh, we'll be doing a lot of winging it up in this shit.

Characters arrive with all powers intact and carrying all items that they had with them on their canonpoint.

Also, feel free to hit up the Intro + Friending meme to network with your future peers in this suffering endeavor. (EDIT 5/20: We also now have a DISCORD SERVER! So hop on into that if you'd like.)

PROMPT 1 ► just your ordinary cabin in the woods

⬛ARRIVAL + GENERAL PROMPT

Whenever you're from or wherever you were, you awaken now with the mildest of headaches in a medium-sized wooden cabin. Maybe you wake in a bed, barely padded and covered in dust (so are you now, congrats!). Maybe you wake on the floor, arguably softer than the bed in spots thanks to some handy dandy water damage. Either way, you certainly aren't where you were before, and you have no recollection whatsoever of arriving.

The cabin is modest but multi-roomed and fully kitted with a kitchen and cozy living room. Nice, dry wood sits stacked by the fireplace, and if you check the various switches, the lights turn on with only the faintest protesting static. The cabinets are surprisingly well-stocked, as is the fridge, with perishables and non-perishables alike. As if someone has been here recently... but how, when everything else seems so thoroughly abandoned?

Should you choose to ignore the cabin's supposed hospitality and try to leave, you'll find that both the front and back doors are securely locked, in a way that no amount of fumbling with the locking mechanism seems to remedy.

That's when a sloooooow creak draws your attention to a door nearby, one you may not have noticed before... but it's open now. Was it before? Better yet, should you check out what lies beyond?

PROMPT 2 ► who's up for some fighty-fight, kids??

⬛MONSTER HORROR.

The basement is musty and dim, though a pull-string at the curve of the creaky stairs seems to turn on a sparse row of lightbulbs dangling precariously from the ceiling along the center of the room. This little bit of light illuminates a room absolutely packed with items, furniture and boxes and various knick-knacks of unknown and questionable origin. Spiderwebs litter nooks and crannies, many with actual spiders still nesting inside, and a layer of dust coats most every surface in sight.

It doesn't seem like there's anyone down here, nor is there any sign of an exit at the basement's far end. There is, however, something that catches your eye. An item, one that your feet seem to carry you toward without your mind quite telling them to do so. Perhaps it's familiar somehow. Perhaps it's so foreign to you that you can't help but get a closer look. One way or another, you somehow end up reaching out to touch it. But what harm can that do, a single touch?

Oh, sweet summer child. Haven't you seen this movie?




---




Whatever else your characters might touch, to activate this prompt they'll also touch one of the following five items:


• A child's drawing, of what appears to be... shit, what even is that? Is it a bat? Is it some kind of... reptile? We just don't know. (result! warnings for gore/violence.)
  
  
• A light-blue paper face mask, the sort used in hospitals for patients who have a cold. Maybe you guys should've brought masks too. It sure would keep all this dust the hell out of your nose... ( result! warning for body horror! )
  
  
• A buzzsaw blade, dusty but intact. ( result! warnings for gore/violence. )
  
  
• A music box, covered in faded yellow flowers. I wonder what music it plays? ( result! warnings for gore/violence and Alarming Children. )
  
  
• A funeral urn. But... It seems that someone glued it shut around the edges? I guess that's one way to make sure nobody spills grandma. ( result! )

These enemies can and will follow characters outside, should they try to flee. It might actually be a good idea to face these foes outdoors where it's less confined, provided they don't stray too far from the cabin (see prompt #4).

The blurbs are just guidelines, feel free to scale up or down how strong/weak the monsters are, how many there are, etc. in order to better fit your characters' level of capability. The Technicians know your characters' strengths and weaknesses, so they'd know how to send enough to make this challenging but not insurmountable.

PROMPT 3 ► congratulations, you fucked up

⬛SURVIVAL HORROR.

Perhaps you didn't touch anything in the basement. Hell, maybe you didn't even set foot through that ominous basement door. But hey, we get it. Not everyone likes to party. You're not getting off easy, but at least you can say that you didn't fall into the trap.

If, by the time an hour has passed since the creaking open of the basement door, no object has been touched and no baddie has been summoned, you'll find your nose assaulted by the prevailing smell of smoke. One glance out any window tells you why: The cabin has been surrounded in it, an oblong ring of fire six feet thick burning tight along the exterior cabin walls. You're safe inside for the moment, but how long will that last?

Now, you have no choice but to try to escape the blaze. It overtakes the cabin quickly, creeping up over the rooftop, shattering windows and burning a path inside. No matter which way you try to run, you're almost certain to get burned... But that's certainly better than burning to death in here.

PROMPT 4 ► "escape"? never heard of her.

⬛PSYCHOLOGICAL HORROR.

For some, staying in this creepy cabin with its stupid locked door was never an option. Maybe you break one of the windows and crawl through that, or maybe you're angry and OP and punched a man-sized hole in the wall itself. Hey, we're not judging. You got yourself outside, and that's what counts.

The outside of the cabin is... actually pretty nice. Picturesque woods, birds singing, perhaps a couple of deer bounding through the trees not far off. This place might actually be relaxing, if it weren't so alarming and kidnap-y. But it is, so it's time to get the fuck out of Dodge.

Or to try to, anyway. Just a few short meters into the trees, you find yourself entering a deep and all-encompassing fog. You can barely see your hand out in front of your face, let alone your path through the forest ahead. If you're not alone in this venture, you'd best keep a hand on your companion lest you lose track of them, as well. And is it just you, or is there a slight chemical taste to the fog that you're breathing in?

(Yes. The answer is definitely yes.)

Before long, you find yourself turned around, stepping back out of the fog with the cabin in front of you. Little do you realize that simply turning you around is the most merciful fate that this fog has to offer.

---

This is easier to break down without narrative, so!

• The first time your character ventures into the fog, they're just turned around and sent back to the cabin.
  
  
• The second time, they hallucinate things that they don't want to hear. Something they fear, something that hurts them, something that stresses them the fuck out. Maybe a character's worst fear is wildcats and they hear one growling just out of sight in the mist. Maybe instead they hear a loved one crying for help back in the direction from which they've come, drawing them back to the cabin. Or maybe they hear the voice of someone they admire berating their cowardice or stupidity or something, for running away from the cabin in the first place. The goal is to psych them out and send them running back to the place where the action is happening.
  
  
• The third time, it's the same but full-blown visual or even physical hallucinations. Basically anything that might lure, scare, emotionally wound, etc. them into going back to the vicinity of the cabin.

Characters are welcome to start off venturing into the mist together, or to discover one another while they're already in the mist. If it's the latter, look out - it may be harder to tell friend from foe when you can't quite trust your own mind.

THE LOOP ► a note on replayability

Regardless of which prompt your character faces, they'll be left unbothered after the creature is defeated or the problem is overcome until sunrise the following morning. Though the fog still keeps characters from straying from the area, they're welcome to recover and lick their wounds in the immediate cabin vicinity. An unburnt cabin leaves them food and resting facilities, while a burnt cabin... Well, at least the fire never spread from that self-contained ring, so they have some nice unburnt grass to sleep on.

Come sunrise, all characters still awake will fall unconscious. At this point, many of them will reawaken in a perfectly undamaged cabin back in Prompt #1 to begin the loop anew. They may have the same comrades in this loop, or perhaps they have different ones. Maybe their new companions have done this before as well. Maybe they're brand new and have no idea what they're up against. R.I.P., you poor unsuspecting fucks.

This is, in effect, a series of trial runs by the current batch of Technicians to see if they're able to run this containment zone scenario long-term. When Vestige opens properly, characters will awaken free of the loop and will have quite a bit more continuity and recovery time between horrors. The 'loop' mechanic is specifically in place to give this TDM some shelf life and let y'all entertain yourselves while I work on the actual pages and such, rather than the one-and-done feeling of the usual TDM.

CODE BY TESSISAMESS (patreon)

Comments

Vanya Hargreeves | The Umbrella Academy

[misplayedmelody]

CABIN IN THE WOODS

[ Considering the last few hours that she does remember are simultaneously painful and fuzzy, waking up in a weird cabin is not enough to cause Vanya to immediately freak out. She's still dressed in her all-white concert attire, now smeared unevenly with dust from the bed. Glancing in a dirty mirror, she can see that her eyes are dark, back to normal, but she has a splitting headache and is partially deaf in one ear. There's also a ringing in it. That... can't be good.

Cautiously exiting the room in which she'd awoken, Vanya peers down the hallway before committing to explore. It's not any place she recognizes, nor does she have even the slightest idea how she could have gotten here. Maybe this is Five's doing? Who knows?

Maybe if she can get a good look around outside... but the door is locked. Thoroughly. Triggering a sudden onset of cleithrophobia, and the ringing in Vanya's ear starts to get worse. Nearby objects begin to rattle, and she closes her eyes, trying to calm down. Deep breaths. Focus. Getting upset over one locked door doesn't help right now.

Vanya is so focused on stilling her powers that she doesn't hear another door open behind her. Doesn't notice anyone else approaching. ]


CABIN IN THE WOODS (LOOP)

[ With the second... and third... and however many other times she awakens, Vanya's trepidation lessens and her frustration increases. Still trapped, it's getting harder to hold her volitile powers in check. But she's trying so hard to explore more of the cabin before everything in her head catches up to her.

Cabinets stocked? Check. Suspicious later of dust on everything? Check. Any broken furniture or windows repaired as if new when she awakens? ...also check. ]


BASEMENT / FIGHTY-FIGHT

[ Vanya probably should know better than to go down into the dusty, cluttered basement. Nothing good ever came from exploring these sorts of places, especially alone, but she still couldn't resist at least taking a look around. Maybe there would be a close about what's going on, since there didn't seem to be any answers in the cabin itself.

Shoving her hands firmly into her pockets, Vanya carefully maneuvers around the basement's clutter. There are a lot of curious things in the room... but a yellow music box catches her eye.

She's just about to reach out and touch it when she hears someone else descending into the basement. Alarmed, she turns to see who it is. The music box is forgotten... for now. ]


ESCAPE???

[ Finally, the captivity is too much. Vanya focuses on the tone ringing in her ear and doesn't so much blow the front door open as blow the whole door frame from the wall with the door still closed.

And out into the fog she goes. Running as fast as she can.

And back at the cabin she arrives. ]

What the hell?

loop;

[deferences]

[in sizhui's case, this is his first time reliving the time loop. he's already realized that things were the exact same way they'd been when he'd first shown up; no matter what he overturns or uproots, nothing has changed and everything is exactly as it should be. (cabin-wise, anyway, he can't really speak for himself or the other people around).

instead of immediately going about searching the same things he'd already checked, it's the kitchen he's considering. mainly, the refrigerator with its swinging doors and chilled air flowing out. most of what's inside isn't too recognizable, but some of the fruit catches his eye. should he really eat this random food? no, probably not, and yet he plucks up an apple, gives it a momentary once-over—

before realizing that he isn't standing there alone. slowly, he turns toward vanya, eyebrows curiously raised.] Ah, I'm sorry, is this is your food?

[misplayedmelody]

[ Vanya is sitting on the kitchen counter, also considering an apple. She's so deep in her thoughts that she doesn't immediately register when another person enters the room. Her mouth falls open for a moment. First because she's only now realizing how dangerous it might be to let her guard down in a weird cabin in the woods; and second because this is the second time she's encountered another person. Maybe the time look is breaking(?)! Maybe.

She blinks and shuts her mouth, motioning to the refrigerator with the hand holding her own apple. ]

It's not mine. I think it's meant for whoever wakes up in the cabin, so you can have whatever you'd like.

[ Vanya hasn't yet moved from the counter top, not really eager to close the distance with a randomly appeared stranger, but by the soft tone of her voice, she's trying to be kind. ]

I've been here for a few days and haven't seen anyone else. Did you just get here?

[ and then, remembering her manners ] I'm Vanya. What's your name?

[deferences]

[his attention bounces between vanya and the apple a couple of times before settling on the former again, studying her curiously. she doesn't seem all that threatening but looks certainly can be deceiving; it's sizhui's hope they won't have to fight for whatever that may be worth, especially because she seems kind— and hey, they both chose the same fruit! that... has to count for something, right? similar tastes in produce.

(he doesn't know, he's making something up on the fly! he'd just rather they be friends instead of enemies because sizhui's tired of being nervous about everyone.)

sizhui instantly wants to take a bite after this revelation, but thankfully, he hesitates long enough to say,] Thank you, [then he chances the slightest bite, sighs with a mixture of delight and relief.

though he chews as quick as possible to make sure he won't leave her hanging.] Ah, sorry, I just wanted to— [doesn't matter, more important things at hand:] A few days by yourself? I... no, I've been here a day, I think. Maybe two? It's hard to tell when everything has mostly run together the whole time.

Perhaps I've actually been here even longer? Hm... [sizhui trails off though, shakes his head then remembers his own etiquette and dips into a bow.] Nice to meet you, Vanya. My name is Sizhui. [minus the usual ‘lan’ since there's no reason he should get Extra unnecessarily.]