SHARON DA SILVA (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
fogsong) wrote in ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png)
countryclub2022-12-02 01:00 pm
fogsong) wrote in countryclub2022-12-02 01:00 pm
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An Otherwordly Player Plot!
Did you know that everyone has their own hell in Silent Hill?
This is a long-term player plot that will last for several months starting December. Sleepers will have the chance to be suddenly transported to a hellish otherworldly version of Trench where they can be confronted by monsters born of their fears, guilt, and personal traumas, along with a strange variety of puzzles and items that will hint that this world is picking up on the things they refuse to address.
Wait, what?
Sharon has the ability to shift reality and pull others into a nightmarish version of the world she's in! It's an ability that she's avoided taking advantage of due to personal issues but she's come to realize that it might prove useful in the future so she's out here practicing by sporadically opening up the Otherworld and drawing characters in for a limited amount of time.
This is her testing her reach and her control by picking and choosing the districts she plunges and limiting the amount of Sleepers that can be drawn in. As the weeks go on, her reach extends and her control grows as she begins to better understand her ability.
Like all player plots, this is entirely optional!
How do they end up there?
It can happen anywhere and at any time. A dense fog will roll in, no matter where a Sleeper might be, inside or outside, that will obscure their vision and muffle sound. A darkness follows soon after, followed by the sound of a siren. If your character has a light on them or can see in the dark, they'll see that the fog is gone but the world around them is shifting, aging and corrupting in fast forward right before their very eyes. (Outdoor Example, Indoor Example, and Indoor Example II)
Once the siren is done sounding, the darkness will let up and they'll be in a very different Trench. A Trench full of different monsters, some that may tickle at their memories or remind them of people or experiences that have impacted them through their life. A Trench that taps into their fears and regrets and brings them to life.
What's it like?
The Otherworld is very clearly Trench. Sleepers will be able to recognize shops and homes and familiar streets but it's as if the city itself has succumbed to corruption; twisted and rotted after years of neglect. The streets in areas have given way and collapsed, taking a normal route from Sleepers and forcing them to cut through row houses or shops to reach the other side. Monsters roam the dark streets, and it's always safer to be inside than it is to be outside but there may be times when Sleepers have no choice.
Although Trench will be dealing with snow, this Otherworld version of it will be notably absent of thick drifts. There may be the occasional dusting of snow, or even rain, but it will be appear wrong; tainted and dirty.
Each district might have a different vibe to it. Lumenwood may find monsters based around plague doctors, blood ministers, and nurses roaming the streets and buildings and there might be plenty of used, rusted medical equipment laying about. Whereas Crenshaw might have smaller monsters that remind Sleepers of children or horrifying family units that stalk the streets while toys, drawings, and bicycles could litter the ground..
Monsters?
The monsters can change depending on the Sleeper, often reflecting their own traumas or guilt back at them (though not always) in ways that might not always be obvious (eg: the armless man symbolizes being trapped in one's self as well as a toxic hatred that corrodes everything around it due to the acid it can spew from its chest or dark nurses who represent Alessa's jealousy of womanhood). It's possible for two Sleepers to be in the Otherworld together, fighting the same creature, but both seeing something entirely different!
Don't be afraid to experiment!
Give your Sleeper a boss fight they have to beat to finally escape this Otherworld! Give them a stalker monster that hunts them relentlessly through this twisted city until the darkness fades! Give them a monster that never attacks but whenever it's around there's a heavy feeling of oppression and sorrow in the air! Hell, give them a monster that helps them out when they're in danger that reminds them of someone important to them! The sky is the absolute limit here!
Feel free to use monsters already known to the Silent Hill universe
Safe Rooms?
Although it's not a feature in the films, it's common in the games for our protagonists to have a room where they can collect themselves and save the game. The Trench version of the Otherworld will have safe rooms that can be easily located by clusters of wispy butterflies that hang around the doors leading to the room. It will almost seem as if people are being led there on purpose. In every safe room, there will be a note telling characters they can remain in this room until the world returns to normal if they need to.
What else can be found?
That depends on you and what you'd like to do with this place! Maybe your Sleeper is a soldier and they find the dog tags of long dead companions. Maybe your Sleeper is a parent and they find sketches that look a lot like something their child once drew. Or maybe your Sleeper spent a lot of time in a hospital and they start finding old hospital records.
Can my character figure out its Sharon?
Yes! It won't be obvious to the majority, in fact it will just seem like your average Trench nonsense, but anyone she's discussed her ability to shift the world with could easily put two-and-two together. There will be notes throughout the Otherworld in her handwriting offering tips (eg: "they're attracted to the light" & "keep quiet" & "sometimes it's better to run") and, sometimes, apologies. Of course, your character could miss those notes entirely!
If you think your character may be able to put it together because of a specific ability they have, let me know! I'm pretty open about what can come from this!
How long are characters trapped in this Otherworld?
Sleepers can be trapped for upwards of a day or as little as an hour! It's entirely up to you and what you're willing to put your character through!
Here's a plotting form to help you get started but feel free to add anything that helps give a good feel of what your characters Otherworld will be like including pictures and descriptions!
Echo | Pandora Hearts | late and overthought
Character Name: Echo
Team-up or Solo Team ups would be best, but she can handle most of this alone.
Monster Ideas:
Marionettes – Basic monster encounters. They are mostly blank wooden marionettes in various states of decay (or not), including how many of their strings are attached, and those lead into the unseen of the fog or a ceiling. There is very faded paint on them, and what can be made out will resemble whoever is looking at it (i.e. you will see yourself), although the details are so faded it may take a few encounters to start noticing this. They wield knives, daggers, or whatever sharp weapon they've managed to find in the area. Symbolizes Echo being considered an emotionless doll by practically everyone and her being in a long line of puppets under Duldee's control.
Chains – Basic monster encounters. Skeletal birds, about medium-sized in the avian family. They have no legs; their torsos are fused to the broken shell of an egg which is razorsharp. Their wings are long metal chains, which they will use to whip or ensnare their targets. They are also very hot to the touch; they leave burns which also become a prickly heat rash making them itchy as well as painful to touch.
Chessmaster – Single monster. It looks like a huge queen piece made of flesh, with two sets of long spindly arms emerging from it. Its eyes are different colors, the right red and the left gold. It holds a Marionette along the front of its body with one set of arms almost possessively, the head tilted just next to its own. One arm is pressed against its chest while the other is typically wrapped around the waist area. The Chessmaster uses it as it sees fit, first infusing it with poison from its mouth, then perhaps using it as a shield, throwing all of it at you or dismembering it to use parts of it as projectiles or a weapon. When one is used up, another Marionette emerges from inside and the process begins all over again. The Chessmaster may also swipe at you with its free arms, and the tips are sharp and also poisonous. This is for the abuse she suffered under Vincent and how he only ever saw her as a tool.
Blood Squid – Single stalker monster. Large for a squid but an average size for a person. As the name suggests, its shape resembles a squid which is almost completely covered in and dripping blood. When you first get near the beach, it will emerge from the water, slowly walking toward you using its two tentacles like legs. You may not even notice it at first. A humanoid pair of red eyes can be easily made out. Once it is within a few yards/meters of you, it will occasionally say "Echo!" in a distorted and almost pained voice. People who knew Oz might be able to recognize his voice behind the distortion. Its eight arms take the shape of two scythes, and once it's in reach it takes frequent but broad swings indiscriminately. As already implied, this one symbolizes the blame she's put on herself both for Oz's death in Trench and his call back to the sea not long after. Echo probably won't be of much help in battle. She's not seeing the same thing as you.
Decoy – Single monster found near Sanguine Graveyard (and/or the Pandora House, they're pretty close together). It resembles a large, burly humanoid training dummy like you see in video games. The target, on the left side of its stomach, bears a puncture wound from some sort of blade and is bleeding. It is surrounded by pungent smoke, making it difficult to spot until it's right by you. It attacks by extending long chains from its back, aiming for your limbs or any other good place to hold you still before strangling you. This one is the guilt she still has over letting her guard down and not being able to stop Noise from taking over and fatally wounding Oscar Vessalius.
Flesh Mirror/Puppeteer – Single monsters, found inside somewhere. Styled like a final boss but doesn't have to be. The first monster looks like a full-body mirror, except it's really part of a full body. Flesh surrounds the surface and feet stick out the bottom, arms come out the sides and a head similar to a Marionette's that's also made of flesh is on top. It has eyes, which have a wild look in them, and eerie, cruel laughter can be heard. One hand holds a large knife, and in spite of the awkward shape it moves very quick and nimbly. When defeated it all shatters much like a normal mirror, and the pieces will suddenly snap back on strings that were unseen until just then. A giant monster emerges from beneath the water (which stays as a surface you can stand on), a sickly gray color with hollow eyes and a wide crazed grin showing off its pointed teeth. The pieces of the previous monster become completely wrapped by a large fishing net the monster holds above you, and also attached to the net is a control bar for marionettes. Multiple Marionette enemies hang from the strings and attack you, and once one is broken, worn down, or has just been out for a while it is dropped into the water and replaced. The Puppeteer also will shoot out large ribbon-like tendrils from under the water and try to wrap you in them and drag you under. It's possible to break out, but it's also possible to drown. Symbolizes a crapton of things.
Any CR or experiences you'd like: Getting Echo to realize how certain things in her past have affected her and maybe learn what some of her feelings are is my main goal, followed closely by an opportunity for others to learn more about her. I'd like her to make peace with as many of the things she feels guilty about as possible. I also think it'd be good for her to understand how awful things really were for her if only so she can work toward finding more healthy relationships, and maybe even start to get an idea how to move forward with her life as an actual person because she's been very stalled on that front. Most of these she can confront fairly well in the sense of combat but she may need help on the emotional side, especially on the feelings she still doesn't understand. The Oz-guilt monster is definitely going to make her a mess and she may not be able to do any of that herself, so that could go a variety of ways depending on what happens.
Handwaving: Sure, just contact me! I'm especially fine with handwaving traveling through town/encounter the mobs/basic attacking portions with the longer boss fights because that's just gonna be thread padding. You are also free to control any of the monsters as you see fit as long as it's in my guidelines even if I've already written something for them! I may need to write the death scenes for one or two of the boss ones though; I didn't list everything I came up with.