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vestigechat2020-05-12 11:48 pm
vestigemods) wrote in vestigechat2020-05-12 11:48 pm
Entry tags:
inaugural tdm of unspecified duration.
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.
- 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! )
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:
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.
no subject
...Nightless City, swathes of resentment, fierce corpses, his sister growing lifeless in his arms...
He remembers the battle, remembers the hate bubbling up in him and it doesn't make sense that he should be furious with Wei Wuxian for killing her when he is at the same time frantically following her voice but right now, he can't bring himself to question it. All that matters that Wei Wuxian is here and A-Jie is somewhere out there, calling for him and in need of his help. ]
You did this! [ he howls though he barely even knows what exactly he is accusing him of now. He bodily throws himself at Wei Wuxian, aiming to grab him by the shoulders, to throw him back onto the ground and tear at him, or punch at him, he doesn't even know what will be enough. ] You did this to her!
[ It doesn't really matter what this is when the list of his betrayals is so long. ]
no subject
I - ( did he do this to her? was she there when he left the cabin and he hadn't even realized? was someone punishing her to claim some sort of blood that mattered to the yiling patriarch, even if not his own? the details and nuances don't make sense, but that doesn't feel so important here in this moment. jiang cheng is pinning him to the dirt and he's so sure that he did this that all wei ying can do is gasp in a breath and plead, ) I have to fix it. ( whatever this is, if she's suffering because of him or even if it's not because of him, he has to fix it - he has to.
he struggles a little now, arms pulling free to try to find purchase on the man hovering over him so as to maybe push him off. his voice is a bit stronger when he says, ) We have to find her, is this really so important?!
GAH I musta lost your tag I'm so sorry but "accidentally deletes you from life & has regrets" is IC
[ There is another scream from somewhere far away in the fog and his head jerks up, eyes panicked wide.
He knows she died. She died in his arms. But she is here now and what if... What if she is really here. What if it is just a ghost, really, he would take a vengeful ghost come for him just as long as he can see her one more time. ]
no subject
the scream gets both of their attentions at once, fearful and haunted, like forest creatures who've heard the cry of wolves. but it snaps something back into place, some rationality, some ability to take control. his eyes turn back to jiang cheng and he finally pushes himself back to his feet, closing the distance between them to take jiang cheng by the shoulders and look him in the eye. ) Whatever it is that I did, you can make me pay for it later. We have to go. ( and then he's turning to hurry off through the trees, keeping it to a brisk walk until he can be sure of whether jiang cheng is following or staying behind. )
no subject
Her cries now are far too reminiscent of these last terrible moments at Nightless City, mere days ago. The memory more than the yells now drives him to follow Wei Wuxian and then overtake him, forging ahead without care whether he would follow or not.
Yet no matter how fast he runs, the cries don't seem to come any closer, the fog only gets ever thicker, leaving him more and more disoriented and unsure of where he is or what he is doing, only following these panicking cries matters anymore...
He stumbles and whirls around, eyes searching out Wei Wuxian once more with fury. ]
Why aren't you doing anything! You have all that power and you can't even make the fog go away! Where is your power now! What is it good for if you can't ever protect anyone!
no subject
but before he can get more than a couple of yards, 'what is it good for if you can't ever protect anyone!' and it's his turn to stumble to an abrupt stop, the air rushing from his lungs as if he's been struck and he can't quite convince them to bring any air back in. but he has to, doesn't he? because his hand already reaches to draw chenqing from his belt, to lift the flute to his lips and what choice does he have but to breathe if he's going to play?
and play he does, a sharp-edged tune unlike the ones jiang cheng may have heard from him in the past. it's apparent almost immediately what the tune is meant to do - a wind picks up around them, dispersing the fog almost entirely in an increasingly large circle around them. but already his nose leaks blood and his legs have started to shake - this isn't what his cultivation is built for, this isn't sustainable, but shijie cries again for help and in one final push he sends the wind rushing off in the direction from which she screamed. it won't clear the whole way, but it certainly clears visibility for at least a hundred feet, a thought that he comforts himself with as the melody trails off and he sinks to his knees. )
Find her, ( he barks, though his words are the slightest bit hazy around the edges. )
no subject
he was at her funeral, he knows she didn't survive, but what if, Wen Ning was brought back and Wei Wuxian is right hereFact is, he can't bring himself to tell Wei Wuxian to stop, even as he hates himself more for it with every second.
Then Wei Wuxian crumbles but the path is clear and Jiang Cheng finds himself with an even harder choice to make. ]
You can't... you have to get up... [ His protest is weak, though. Wei Wuxian only just escaped death, only to go through this torment here.
He starts moving down the cleared path, rushing along and stopping and rushing again. ] I'll be back. Don't move. Don't you dare go anywhere! [ Pain flickers over his face and his voice quivers. ] Not again. You can't disappear again.
no subject
oh, but 'don't move' - that's so much easier. it's a relief, almost. the alternative was to have to explain to jiang cheng that getting up would just mean falling back down again, because they clearly need one more failure for a-cheng to lament. and though any other time he'd be desperate to find his shijie, he knows for a fact that jiang cheng is the one person he can trust in shijie matters even more than he trusts himself.
and so he calls, ) I'll be here, ( as coherently as he can - and as soon as the man disappears from sight, he lets himself collapse onto the (surprisingly soft) forest floor and roll over onto his back. does that count as moving? it shouldn't. he didn't move, gravity moved him.)
no subject
Fear makes his heart race and his face twist into a fierce scowl as he races through the fog that is thickening around him again - or did he run so far that he left the area cleared by Wei Wuxian? He can't tell anymore, it all looks the same in the fog. Jiejie! Jiejie, where are you?! A-Li! he keeps calling until his throat feels sore and he doesn't even know when, but at some point there is another cry joining it. ]
Wei Wuxian! Where did you run off to? [ His voice breaks and he stumbles over a root that shouldn't even have bothered him but now it sends him crashing to his knees and he just stays there, breathing hard, choking on tears he refuses to shed. He's gone. Lost somewhere in the fog, if he'd ever been there at all, if he hadn't just been a figment of his wishful imagination. If this isn't just another dream that turned out to be a nightmare. He stifles another sob and wipes angrily at his sides and sucks in a sharp breath for one last mournful cry of ] Wei Wuxian! I will [ his voice cracks, breaking down to a choked whisper ] I'll stab you when I find you. I'll really do it this time.
[ There comes no response, even Yanli's pleas have vanished into the fog. ]