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[Silent Hill] Back to School Special
Reynolds
Gone Fishin'Registered User regular
Gone Fishin'Registered User regular
In my restless dreams, I see that town.
You promised you'd take me there again someday.
That day is today. Welcome to the end of your life.
Room to Room
A Silent Hill Side Story
The town of Silent Hill is a great place to visit. A tourist magnet, in some senses. A quiet little town where you can just get away from it all. You took a trip there, once. Or maybe you passed through a few times. Lately, you've even been dreaming of the place. The dreams were not...pleasant, though. And, ever since they began...well...
I've recruited four players for this game. It will be my first attempt at something in the horror genre, but I believe I have enough experience to at least give it a try. The system is not decided on yet, and I'd like to hear suggestions.
The most likely choices are, currently : d20 Modern, new World of Darkness, or Call of Cthulhu. In increasing order of difficulty for me to run. This will be a very low power level game. With five of you, even old doctors and little kids should be able to take out a zombie dog or two.
There will definitely be an additional Sanity Meter that will fluctuate during the game. Go into the red, and you'll start freaking out. Keep pushing it, and you might just give in to the Town, and lose the will to live. In keeping with the spirit of the game, your memories will be a bit foggy and clear up as the game moves along. I do not want you to come up with a detailed backstory for your characters. The most important element of this game is what I'm calling the Three Steps of your Dark Secret.
Step One is the half-truth you tell the world.
Step Two is the reality you keep to yourself.
Step Three is the horrible truth that you can't, or simply refuse to, remember. What the Town is punishing you for. You do not create this level, only the lower two.
For an example, let's use SH2's main character. Step One is that his wife died of an illness three years ago.
We'll be playing over IRC. The best times for me are Saturday or Monday night, but Friday and Tuesday are also possibilities.
Update : We will be playing on Saturday nights starting at 6 Central time, normally ending around 10. We have the option of staying later, although cj iwakura will usually be leaving even before 10.
1. Valkun - Jonathon
2. PurpleXVI - Smith
3. cj iwakura - Jacob
4. Shinyo - Matthew
You promised you'd take me there again someday.
That day is today. Welcome to the end of your life.
Room to Room
A Silent Hill Side Story
The town of Silent Hill is a great place to visit. A tourist magnet, in some senses. A quiet little town where you can just get away from it all. You took a trip there, once. Or maybe you passed through a few times. Lately, you've even been dreaming of the place. The dreams were not...pleasant, though. And, ever since they began...well...
I've recruited four players for this game. It will be my first attempt at something in the horror genre, but I believe I have enough experience to at least give it a try. The system is not decided on yet, and I'd like to hear suggestions.
The most likely choices are, currently : d20 Modern, new World of Darkness, or Call of Cthulhu. In increasing order of difficulty for me to run. This will be a very low power level game. With five of you, even old doctors and little kids should be able to take out a zombie dog or two.
There will definitely be an additional Sanity Meter that will fluctuate during the game. Go into the red, and you'll start freaking out. Keep pushing it, and you might just give in to the Town, and lose the will to live. In keeping with the spirit of the game, your memories will be a bit foggy and clear up as the game moves along. I do not want you to come up with a detailed backstory for your characters. The most important element of this game is what I'm calling the Three Steps of your Dark Secret.
Step One is the half-truth you tell the world.
Step Two is the reality you keep to yourself.
Step Three is the horrible truth that you can't, or simply refuse to, remember. What the Town is punishing you for. You do not create this level, only the lower two.
For an example, let's use SH2's main character. Step One is that his wife died of an illness three years ago.
Step Two is that you actually murdered her. Probably only a week or two ago.
Step Three is his selfish reasons for this act, as well as his feelings for 'Maria'. Along with the reaccurring theme of a 'monster' personifying this act by repeatedly murdering Maria in front of you. Perhaps more times than you even see in one playthrough.
We'll be playing over IRC. The best times for me are Saturday or Monday night, but Friday and Tuesday are also possibilities.
Update : We will be playing on Saturday nights starting at 6 Central time, normally ending around 10. We have the option of staying later, although cj iwakura will usually be leaving even before 10.
1. Valkun - Jonathon
2. PurpleXVI - Smith
3. cj iwakura - Jacob
4. Shinyo - Matthew
Reynolds on
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Rock Band DLC | GW:OttW - arrcd | WLD - Thortar
NWOD is probably our best bet. I'd prefer to just use d20 Modern, but some people simply hate it, and refuse to go near it. So I'm trying to find a middle ground for everyone.
I might as well agree to sign up. Friday or Saturday sound the best to me.
Rock Band DLC | GW:OttW - arrcd | WLD - Thortar
Unless, of course, I can talk to my boss about not scheduling me for a night shift on whatever day we decide to play. That is actually a possibility.
Rock Band DLC | GW:OttW - arrcd | WLD - Thortar
CDT is Central I guess? Same time as me. Saturday would be better than Friday. I'd prefer to start a little earlier than 10 PM, though. We probably shouldn't go much earlier than 7, want it to at least be dark out. Playing from about 7-11 or 12 would be best. Other guys, tell me what you think.
I want to run everyone through a one-on-one first session. It'll be half character creation/approval, and half getting people into the game world. So I'll try and hang out in #ODAM. If you don't know how to get there on IRC or don't see me there, just AIM/MSN/PM me.
Everyone's background needs to be really basic. You can give names for all your relatives and friends, and perhaps a quick description and personality. A very short history for yourself that just covers their life in broad strokes. The most detailed thing you need to worry about right now is your Room.
You need to know the floorplan for your apartment/house, its address, how its decorated, things lying around, etc. If you can draw a floorplan/map in Paint or scan something in, that's even better. Just keep it simple, we want to keep in theme with most of the SH maps.
If people want to post their character ideas here, that's cool. You can be almost anything you want. Little kid, old man, cop, mother, lawyer, cult member...whatever. Just some basic info, and you don't have to post anything about your Steps. It might be best to save that until you meet. If you do want to mention them, don't go beyond Step One.
Edit : I thought that Morality and Willpower might be good enough for a 'Sanity' rating, but I think we'll need to add a specific stat just for that. So here's my rough draft. What do you think?
One to ten (1-10) dots. Start off with ten(10). Perfectly unaware of anything supernatural. Seven(7) would be about average for someone that has survived Silent Hill. Five(5) is someone that's deep within the pull of the Town, and has given up most of their hope of escape. Paranoid and desperate to escape, twitchy and a bit crazy. Below that, they start to give in...either by becoming the monster they are inside, turning into one of the Town's demons, or committing suicide to end it all and give up. One(1) is too far gone to save.
But cj is up at the first alternate, and it's pretty likely that one of those five won't end up playing. Or might just get killed or go insane.
Which means, guys...now that I've got enough people that want to play, I need to make sure what times you want to and can play.
Rock Band DLC | GW:OttW - arrcd | WLD - Thortar
nWoD and D20 Modern are both fine with me, though in that case I'd actually rather prefer D20 for once.
I put you on there, as well as two people I've been talking to elsewhere that expressed some interest. I think we've already got more than enough prospects to make sure we get a good group and some backups. Awesome. And there's Purple.
Thanks guys.
I hope you were kidding and meant "I put Valkun in spot number five because I've played with him before and he's always proved to be reliable and a god among men." O_o Because that's seriously unfair to cj iwakura otherwise. I would never abuse my position to garner favor in one of my player's game and I expect the same from you.
On a less serious note, I work days so I'm free most nights unless you're planning to play until the middle of the morning.
I thought it'd be good for me to have played with at least one of the people there. I don't think I know or have played with the other guys, and two of them are new to RPGs too. So I could use some help.
You'll also have a chance to criticize me when I mess up. And freak out and complain to me that you don't understand some rule.
However this Saturday and the one after the Saturday I have to work are free- and I can ask not to get scheduled Saturday nights if that is the agreed night we will play.
Rock Band DLC | GW:OttW - arrcd | WLD - Thortar
So, checking the list, of the top Five.
Valkun : Open any nights
DarkPrimus : Unavailable some Fri/Sat nights until schedule can be changed
Digger Dude : Said he's good Sat night, don't know about others
jdarksun : Available Fri/Sat nights, EST, can't stay as late
I haven't heard back from Redeemer yet.
For the alts...
Zerinan : Sat nights fine
Purple : Sat nights/most nights fine
cj : Works nights, off Fri/Sun
I like the second a little bit more. But that's probably just because you thought it out further. And it seems to have more dark elements mixed in.
It's looking like we'll all try to meet up this Saturday at about 7 in the #ODAM room and work on character sheets and hammer out the last bits of your character ideas. Maybe help draw Room blueprints. Valkun might be able to show me how to get a pbwiki started up to host all the pictures and character sheets and such.
Then, between that and the next week, I hope to run you all through very brief Prologues/one shot adventures to get you set up for the first sessions. So far I haven't run into anyone and had the time to or us both prepared enough to run one.
And I'd love it if everyone on the list, even the 'maybes' or any lurkers show up this Saturday. That way if some of the top five don't show up, we'll have replacements right there. We can also all chat and make sure the timeframe is good, and we can all work together. And then the alts will all have characters set up in case they need to step in.
If you want to start trying to make a nWoD character too, that's fine.
Fill in the fields on the right, click the button. Voila.
Nobody else showed up, but that was why I tried to recruit so many people. All those names have been moved down the list. If anyone would like to speak up, I could use one more person to fill the last slot in the regular party.
I should be getting in your rough character bios, Room info/maps, Secrets, character sheets, and all that soon. I will be trying to run everyone through a quick adventure before Saturday to get everyone set up and feel out this whole genre.
Here's the drawing Dark Primus did of his Room. This is a pretty good example of what I was imagining. I'll try to work out my own maps for the areas you explore. And, hopefully, I'll get all of them and some of your characters' info up onto a wiki sometime soon.
Here's a quick sketch I did of my character's first floor. The other areas of the house will probably be blocked off by Silent Hill.
I captured an image of the character sheet from the WoD sourcebook, so I can either fill that in, or send in the stats via a PM or something. Either way, I'll have something going soon.
Merits and Flaws don't come into play in this, I take it? And is the sanity level predetermined, or will there be a roll for that?
(I'll need a good primer on how the game is run based on dice, because I've never used a die system before.)
Rock Band DLC | GW:OttW - arrcd | WLD - Thortar
You can take Merits and Flaws, sure. Don't see why not. Actually, you all prettymuch have the Flaw in the book that's almost exactly 'Dark Secret'. Everyone starts off with 10 dots in Sanity, and you'll be making Resolve or Composure (or Willpower or something) rolls to prevent losing dots. And probably getting them back if you compose yourself or do something heroic to beat back the darkness.
For WoD dice, you just roll a lot of d10's. You get one for every dot you have in something. Like shooting a gun is Dex + Firearms. So if you had a 3 Dex and a 2 Firearms, you'd roll 5 dice if you were shooting a gun. Every die that comes up a 8, 9, or 10 is a success and is good.
Reynolds, just catch me anytime you see me on AIM and I'll probably be able to do that prologue session, I won't be able to work on my character until Wednesday though.
I'll try to get on and look for you. And, guys, I really need your completed info before we can continue. While I might have the backstory and most of the ideas I need for location and challenges, this genre is fairly character-based. So, unless I get a rush of PMs and email, we'll probably have to skip this Saturday and start up the game the next. Which might work out okay, if the person that had to work gets that next Saturday off like he wanted.
I just don't want to put the adventure together in too much of a rush, and I really need to be sure about your characters before I start. Imagine if the guys from Indiana Jones had filled the tomb full of cats instead of snakes, because they were working from a rough draft of the script. ;p
I really want to play it, but I can't guarantee that I'll have the time to be there regularly. I'd rather let you start the game with a full group rather than play for a while then have to leave. Sorry.
Rock Band DLC | GW:OttW - arrcd | WLD - Thortar
The last campaign I ran was for just two players, though, so I don't mind. I'd like more, but, we'll see how this goes.
House Description:
Outside:
Located in the rustic foothills of Maine, this old civil war era manor sits in the middle of an overgrown estate. Without the aid of a gardener or caring inhabitant, the yard has become overgrown with grass and weeds, several trees cover the house in near perpetual darkness with their limbs in desperate need of a trim. The fountains and stone benches remain overgrown with vines and moss and are chipped and cracked. The paint on the outside of the house is faded and entirely absent in places, although no birds seem to have been interested in staying long enough to leave their refuse.
Entry Hall:
The double doors of the front of the house open into the entry hall whose main attractions are the pair of spiraling staircases that lead to the second floor. An old grandfather clock sits off to the side although it is long broken and the hands perpetually point to 6:46. Some umbrellas and canes which have seen better days are held within the hollowed out remains of a butter churn and a shrivelled houseplant sits patiently in one corner.
Piano Room:
The majority of the piano room is taken up by a fairly new grand piano which sees frequent use by Jonathon who plays it expertly. A few children's toys can be seen scattered underneath as if someone had been using it as their fort. An antique radio/record player sits underneath the window along with a collection of jazz vinyls, they don't seem to have been touched in some time. Portraits of a Victorian era couple are hung in one corner, their eyes seem to follow you wherever you go.
Dining Room:
A massive marble table takes up the majority of this room with a faux fruit centerpiece. Light attempts to shine through the grundgy window allowing the dimness of the room to be penetrated on occassion. A blunderbuss is hung upon the far wall. An entire armoire is filled with fine china although a padlock has been drilled into its finished surface preventing entry. An empty frame hangs above the brick fireplace which has long been colored black from use.
Kitchen:
Dirty plates and utensils line the sink and the surrounding counter, any attempt at cleansing them seems to have gone long ignored by the occupants of the house. Wholesale sized bags of plastic forks, foam cups, and paper plates sit on the center island atop the stop. Someone has taken to producing a pyramid of empty, and fragrant, chinese take out boxes near the refigerator. Muddy footprints are laid upon the floor leading from the atrium.
Atrium:
The trees in the atrium have been untended so long that a few have managed to penetrate the glass dome that covers the room. Darkness covers the area even during the daylight hours and the sound of nesting bees can be heard whenever one is in the room. Old garden tools are spread around the area along with an unfueled chainsaw stuck in the side of a dead trunk, as if the owner had simply stopped caring half way through the job.
Library:
The walls of the library are filled with numerous heavy volumes, many of them having to deal with medicine and molecular biology. A brand new pool table sits in the center of the room, it looks as if it's barely been used. Stacks of books can be seen scattered underneath. A leather bound chair sits in one corner surrounded by an end table with a heart shaped lamp. A square section of the wall is much lighter in color as if there had once been a painting there.
Bathroom:
Having been added after the initial construction, a single light bulb swings from the rafters above. Strange holes are drilled into the sides of the room and the air feels heavy and clausterphobic. The floors creak heavily when one steps through the area.
I sent the basic character stuff to Reynolds as well, but I guess I can go more specific if need be.
We seem to be on the right track. The three people left seem to have characters that are finished or almost finished. We will hammer out the last few kinks tonight. If we have time, we might try to set up some sort of short RP to whet the appetite for next week.
If anyone that wasn't here last week wants to show up tonight, please stop by. Or if new people are interested, come talk to me.
Yes, I'm sure we'll be posting crazy snippets here. Or, I might set up a wiki. But I'll be waiting until after the first game, when everyone has met up and knows who everyone else is.