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[CYOA] Mist --- Memories of the Clockwork City

Gandalf_the_CrazedGandalf_the_Crazed VigiloConfidoRegistered User regular
edited February 2013 in Critical Failures
Mist
Mist_zps0963947d.jpg
OP shamelessly plagiarized from Mojo_jojo

I. Introduction

“It's like everyone tells a story about themselves inside their own head. Always. All the time. That story makes you what you are. We build ourselves out of that story.” -- Patrick Rothfuss

This is a story of the Mist, and of The Before Times.

Once, perhaps long ago, there was a land, a world, a place. You lived there for some time, perhaps your entire life.

And then it ended.

Now there is only Mist.

"I decided to devote my life to telling the story because I felt that having survived I owe something to the dead. And anyone who does not remember betrays them again." -- Elie Wiesel

The Mist is a seemingly endless grey landscape. There are no trees, no animals, no weather. There is no day, and no night. It is neither hot nor cold.

The Mist can be shaped in the same way as dirt might have been in The Before Times, used to create shelter. Shelter from the vast nothingness.

The Mist is edible and nourishing, but is without taste or satisfaction.

In what may as well be the center of the Mist, there is a settlement of Survivors, castaways from The Before Times.

Spread out across the distance, there are Remnants -- artifacts and reminders of a place that is no more.

"I can believe things that are true and things that aren't true and I can believe things where nobody knows if they're true or not." -- Neil Gaiman

II. What Is This?

This is a Choose Your Own Adventure (CYOA) game. It’s sort of like a Play By Post but more freeform and with no defined player list. Every turn I’ll post an update, with a few options (or perhaps an open-ended question) and then you, the players, get to decide what happens next.

I also encourage you guys to post little side stories, or drawings or whatever. I’m just arbitrating. it’s your story to run. Also, it helps me to know what you guys want so I can swing my options to fit that better.

III. The Rules

This CYOA will be much less number-crunchy than some. There is no funding to track, no tech tree.

In general, here is how choices will be made in this game: Every post, I will pose a question or choice to you, the players. I may provide some specific options for you to choose from and vote for in the appropriate color. Other times, I may pose an open-ended question, wherein players may propose their own short answers to the question in the appropriate color.

In the former case, the option with the most votes will be selected.

In the latter case, the player-proposed option with the most "Agree/Awesome" reactions will be selected.
In general, this game will follow a cycle of "Scavenge ---> Tell A Story ---> What Are You Hiding? ---> Repeat". The meaning of these terms will become clear soon enough. And without getting too spoilerific, there will probably be elements added into the game over time that do not fit strictly within this cycle -- depending on the choices you make, of course.

IV. Can I Play?

YES. Please do.

Just go to my most recent post and start contributing...either by voting for one of the options given, or (in the case of open-ended questions) supplying your own proposal.

V. How Do We Start?

The story will center around one protagonist and that protagonist's child.

What is the protagonist's name?

For this decision, submissions will be open until the end of page 1, or until I get home tonight if page 1 doesn't fill up. The most agreed/awesome'd name will be selected.

PEUsig_zps56da03ec.jpg
Gandalf_the_Crazed on
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Posts

  • jdarksunjdarksun Struggler VARegistered User regular
    What is the protagonist's name?
    Sister Maria Teresa Garcia Graziela Aguilera Delgado Francisco Diego Arroyo Inigo Montoya Zapata Paquito El Guapo Abuelita de la “Boom Boom” Mendoza

  • GrimmyTOAGrimmyTOA Registered User regular
    Nooooooooooooo!

    How about Beauregard?

  • Gandalf_the_CrazedGandalf_the_Crazed Vigilo ConfidoRegistered User regular
    edited February 2013
    I should clarify that this CYOA is intended to be more serious than humorous in tone. Obviously if you guys want to turn it into a comedy, I can't stop you, I'll just do what every DM has done, ever, for all time.

    Gandalf_the_Crazed on
    PEUsig_zps56da03ec.jpg
  • GrimmyTOAGrimmyTOA Registered User regular
    Oh. In that case, how about Samuel Van Zoelen?

  • jdarksunjdarksun Struggler VARegistered User regular
    If we don't know anything other than The Mist, would we even remember our name? Would we even have a name?

  • Gandalf_the_CrazedGandalf_the_Crazed Vigilo ConfidoRegistered User regular
    jdarksun wrote: »
    If we don't know anything other than The Mist, would we even remember our name? Would we even have a name?

    You remember The Before Times -- your child does not. Details of those days will be revealed by your choices as you tell stories to your child.

    The OP is intentionally vague so that the players can supply details of The Before Times, rather than being railroaded by my concept of them.

    PEUsig_zps56da03ec.jpg
  • Erin The RedErin The Red The Name's Erin! Woman, Podcaster, Dungeon Master, IT nerd, Parent, Trans. AMA Baton Rouge, LARegistered User regular
    Roland is my name... I think.

  • Iron WeaselIron Weasel Dillon! You son of a bitch!Registered User regular
    Or was it ... Lily?

    Currently Playing:
    The Division, Warframe (XB1)
    GT: Tanith 6227
  • Gandalf_the_CrazedGandalf_the_Crazed Vigilo ConfidoRegistered User regular
    Jdarksun is a genius and I'm going with an idea he just suggested via PM.

    Our protagonist does not need a name. We need only choose...are we The Man, or The Woman?

    PEUsig_zps56da03ec.jpg
  • Iron WeaselIron Weasel Dillon! You son of a bitch!Registered User regular
    That is an excellent idea.

    The Woman

    Currently Playing:
    The Division, Warframe (XB1)
    GT: Tanith 6227
  • Erin The RedErin The Red The Name's Erin! Woman, Podcaster, Dungeon Master, IT nerd, Parent, Trans. AMA Baton Rouge, LARegistered User regular
  • CayrusCayrus Consul Friends, Romans, countrymen, lend me your ears!Registered User regular
    Ya'll are sexist.

    The Man[/b]

    Former Secret Service Agent Nathaniel Ford in Call of Cthulhu: Whispers in the Darkness

    Henri Emmanuel Gratien St Pierre in Where No Man Has Gone Before

    Lord Augustus Cumberbatch in Eclipse Phase
  • CayrusCayrus Consul Friends, Romans, countrymen, lend me your ears!Registered User regular
    Blerg.

    The Man

    Former Secret Service Agent Nathaniel Ford in Call of Cthulhu: Whispers in the Darkness

    Henri Emmanuel Gratien St Pierre in Where No Man Has Gone Before

    Lord Augustus Cumberbatch in Eclipse Phase
  • GrimmyTOAGrimmyTOA Registered User regular
    The word for the world is Mother.

  • TipharethTiphareth Registered User regular
    In the time before there were many like her but wasn't this one Zoey?

  • vertrouevertroue I am Female Totes Not a SithRegistered User regular
    The Woman.

    Blood and Fire
    From the Desk of Darth Vertroue Diplomat to the USA.
  • The EnderThe Ender Registered User regular
    In the time before there were many like her...

    ...Were there?

    Were there any like her at all , in fact? If there were, The Woman hadn't met them.

    With Love and Courage
  • vertrouevertroue I am Female Totes Not a SithRegistered User regular
    If she is The woman doesn't that make her the only one?

    Blood and Fire
    From the Desk of Darth Vertroue Diplomat to the USA.
  • Gandalf_the_CrazedGandalf_the_Crazed Vigilo ConfidoRegistered User regular
    vertroue wrote: »
    If she is The woman doesn't that make her the only one?

    Not necessarily, that will be up to all of you.

    PEUsig_zps56da03ec.jpg
  • KaplarKaplar On Google MapsRegistered User regular
    The Man.

  • BedlamBedlam Registered User regular
    YOU DA MAN!

  • Gandalf_the_CrazedGandalf_the_Crazed Vigilo ConfidoRegistered User regular
    Got some extra time at work, gonna go ahead and call it.

    You, The Woman, step outside. The Child lies asleep within the Mistformed shelter behind you, watched over by a fellow Survivor.

    It is your turn to scavenge today.

    Your mind prompts you to shiver as you set out for the edge of the settlement, but you remind yourself that it is not truly cold here; it is only the oppressive greyness that causes you to feel that way. Reaching the edge of town, you scoop a handful of Mist from the ground and swallow it.

    Breakfast.

    With "food" so plentiful, there is hardly any purpose to labor, no need to grow crops. You and the other Survivors could finish out your lives without lifting a finger, simply eating of the Mist as your bodies require until they wither with age and fall. But by mutual agreement, each day one Survivor is sent out to scavenge the wastelands for Remnants.

    Today, you find 4 Remnants. What did you find?

    The first 4 suggestions posted in PaleGreen which garner at least one Agree/Awesome will be accepted.

    Keep in mind that these items represent the nature of The Before Times. As such, you should consider carefully what each item says about the culture, technology, and civilization of that land.

    PEUsig_zps56da03ec.jpg
  • Erin The RedErin The Red The Name's Erin! Woman, Podcaster, Dungeon Master, IT nerd, Parent, Trans. AMA Baton Rouge, LARegistered User regular
    edited February 2013
    A stopped watch

    Erin The Red on
  • GrimmyTOAGrimmyTOA Registered User regular
    A half-completed crossword puzzle.

  • vertrouevertroue I am Female Totes Not a SithRegistered User regular
    An eraser

    Blood and Fire
    From the Desk of Darth Vertroue Diplomat to the USA.
  • see317see317 Registered User regular
    edited February 2013
    A loaded single shot pistol

    see317 on
  • premiumpremium Registered User regular
    Going with the theme of the protagonist not having a name, and if intangible things count...
    A name.

  • CayrusCayrus Consul Friends, Romans, countrymen, lend me your ears!Registered User regular
    A canteen of water

    Former Secret Service Agent Nathaniel Ford in Call of Cthulhu: Whispers in the Darkness

    Henri Emmanuel Gratien St Pierre in Where No Man Has Gone Before

    Lord Augustus Cumberbatch in Eclipse Phase
  • Gandalf_the_CrazedGandalf_the_Crazed Vigilo ConfidoRegistered User regular
    Intangible things may be suggested, but they will be given tangible form if they're selected. "A name" might become a name tag, a business card, etc.

    Reasons for this will become apparent soon. Gotta leave work now, I'll continue this after supper tonight.

    PEUsig_zps56da03ec.jpg
  • Gandalf_the_CrazedGandalf_the_Crazed Vigilo ConfidoRegistered User regular
    edited March 2013
    You find a stopped pocketwatch, a half-completed crossword puzzle, a blue eraser, and a loaded single-shot pistol. These are today's Remnants. Placing them into your pack as you find them, you turn toward home.

    Returning to the settlement, you hear raucous noises as you approach your shelter. Stepping inside, you discover your child playing with an older friend, the two of them sharing a set of small toys that had been scavenged from the wastelands.

    The fellow Survivor you left to watch over The Child is sitting nearby, on a tuft of Mist.

    "I didn't think you'd mind, the two of them seemed to know each other."

    Who is this Survivor, the one to whom you entrust your offspring?
    The first answer given will be accepted.

    Gandalf_the_Crazed on
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  • see317see317 Registered User regular
    edited February 2013
    In the same way I have no name, The Other is similarly without past identity.

    see317 on
  • Gandalf_the_CrazedGandalf_the_Crazed Vigilo ConfidoRegistered User regular
    You shake your head, "It's not a problem."

    The Other smiles, and leaves you to your business. What would be night, if The Mist had day or night, is approaching. Before long, The Friend leaves as well.

    You will report your findings during the settlement's Meeting in due course. For now, it is time to rest.

    You begin to tuck in The Child with a few scavenged, tattered blankets. It is then that the words come which will change everything.

    "Mommy, will you tell me a story?"

    "A story? What sort of story?"

    "Tell me about The Before Times. Where did we live?"

    You sit back, forcing yourself to smile, but reeling within. How could one possibly begin to explain those days to a child who has known nothing but Mist?

    It is then that your eyes fall upon the Remnants gathered earlier that day. Yes, you think, perhaps...

    "Once, in The Before Times, there was a vil...a settlement. Like this one, a gathering of people -- but much larger. It was like...it was like..."

    Which of the Remnants you collected today most reminds you of your home in The Before Times? Why?

    Submissions are open until tomorrow night. At that time, the most agreed/awesome'd proposal will be accepted.

    PEUsig_zps56da03ec.jpg
  • jdarksunjdarksun Struggler VARegistered User regular
    edited February 2013
    A half-completed crossword puzzle. We spent our time on the most frivolous of things, and even then, rarely completed what we started.

    jdarksun on
  • kimekime Queen of Blades Registered User regular
    Pale green should never, ever be a color choice. Just FYI.

    It makes me have to highlight everything I want to read.

    Battle.net ID: kime#1822
    3DS Friend Code: 3110-5393-4113
    Steam profile
  • see317see317 Registered User regular
    edited February 2013
    The stopped pocket watch. Marvelously intricate, detailed and useful, but entirely reliant on the perfectly balanced interactions between components. One small flaw and the entire system is reduced to a useless bauble, or less.
    But with skilled hands and a keen mind one could restore it to it's once usable state.

    see317 on
  • Gandalf_the_CrazedGandalf_the_Crazed Vigilo ConfidoRegistered User regular
    kime wrote: »
    Pale green should never, ever be a color choice. Just FYI.

    It makes me have to highlight everything I want to read.

    Agreed, actually. Is there a better green that isn't forestgreen? I'd like to keep the "green = before" theme going, it makes me happy.

    PEUsig_zps56da03ec.jpg
  • kimekime Queen of Blades Registered User regular
    kime wrote: »
    Pale green should never, ever be a color choice. Just FYI.

    It makes me have to highlight everything I want to read.

    Agreed, actually. Is there a better green that isn't forestgreen? I'd like to keep the "green = before" theme going, it makes me happy.

    http://i236.photobucket.com/albums/ff4/MrBlarney/forumcolors.png

    Battle.net ID: kime#1822
    3DS Friend Code: 3110-5393-4113
    Steam profile
  • Gandalf_the_CrazedGandalf_the_Crazed Vigilo ConfidoRegistered User regular
    kime wrote: »
    kime wrote: »
    Pale green should never, ever be a color choice. Just FYI.

    It makes me have to highlight everything I want to read.

    Agreed, actually. Is there a better green that isn't forestgreen? I'd like to keep the "green = before" theme going, it makes me happy.

    http://i236.photobucket.com/albums/ff4/MrBlarney/forumcolors.png

    OK, we'll use limegreen from now on for the Remnants. In my head, it was a lot more garish, but I guess that was just my imagination.

    PEUsig_zps56da03ec.jpg
  • Erin The RedErin The Red The Name's Erin! Woman, Podcaster, Dungeon Master, IT nerd, Parent, Trans. AMA Baton Rouge, LARegistered User regular
    see317 wrote: »
    The stopped pocket watch. Marvelously intricate, detailed and useful, but entirely reliant on the perfectly balanced interactions between components. One small flaw and the entire system is reduced to a useless bauble, or less.
    But with skilled hands and a keen mind one could restore it to it's once usable state.

    Seconded

  • Erin The RedErin The Red The Name's Erin! Woman, Podcaster, Dungeon Master, IT nerd, Parent, Trans. AMA Baton Rouge, LARegistered User regular
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