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ph_memes2023-09-03 04:38 pm
TDM #2 - Down in the Underground [REPRINT]
[Moderator Notes]
Since our TDMs go out bi-monthly, this is a test run of reposting the TDM at the beginning of "off-months" in order to optimize visibility for toplevels in the second month of a TDM's lifespan. If this turns out to actually be helpful, then brand-new TDMs will be labelled "FIRST EDITION" and reruns will be labeled "REPRINT" going forward! If not, we'll just go back to posting bi-monthly. Let's give this the ol' college try and make sure to look out for new toplevels so that we can figure out how helpful it is!
Pumpkin Hollow Gazette
8/5/23 | TDM #2: "Down in the Underground"
Content Warnings: [Article 2] claustrophobia, caves, drowned corpse
[Article 4] Various violence by monster
We're glad you're here!
WELCOME TO PUMPKIN HOLLOW!
By Yorick Aberdeen
JACK'S MARINA - Reports from the Pumpkin Hollow Port Authority indicate that arrivals by otherworldly newcomers to Marrow Isle are continuing at a steady rate. The first batch of new arrivals, which had been the very first travelers to Pumpkin Hollow in at least five years’ time, began in early June of this year and have already proven to be an incredible boon to both our economy and our overall quality of life. We now have a new farm on the island for the first time in years, as well as clever new members of the constabulary, a few helpful craftspeople, and even our own brand new local musical act. Not only that, but the prestigious Ms. Dahlia Leeds has taken a personal assistant, which this reporter is pleased to announce has gotten him out of a number of mundane tasks. (No offense is meant to Ms. Leeds, of course--- the Pumpkin Hollow Gazette certainly harbors no ill will toward its most consistent donor!)
According to interviews with a number of these newcomers, they appear to all come from realms far beyond our own, to the point where they have homelands with unfamiliar names and have never heard of the Emerald Isles at all. Those willing to share more details report that they each met with a strange woman in a bland-looking office building who offered them a chance at a new life, then found themselves on the ferry here. None of them seem to know anything further, as far as the Pumpkin Hollow Gazette is aware. Curious circumstances indeed.That said, we are beyond pleased to welcome even more new neighbors to our fair town. Any newcomers should feel welcome to come to Town Hall if they are in any need of assistance. Mayor Poe and any member of Town Council would all be more than happy to lend a hand.
Additionally, the Temple of Sacred Roots will be holding a small gathering on temple grounds to welcome any wayward souls who could use a bit of help adjusting. Reverend Degas Clayton would also like to remind everyone that he is always available to offer guidance after any of his Sunday sermons unless otherwise stated. He has expressed an interest in personally welcoming as many new residents as he is able.
Hopefully things will continue to look up for Pumpkin Hollow as more arrivals land upon our docks. This will be of particular importance as we draw ever closer to Autumn. October in particular promises to be an especially difficult time, as usual. The Pumpkin Hollow Gazette will report further on our paranormal forecast as the season of spirits draws near. We hope to keep local casualties to a minimum this year after last year’s record high.
In any case, best of luck to our new residents, and welcome again!NOTORIOUS 'RIVER WALKER' SPOTTED AFTER LONG ABSENCE; EXTREME CAUTION ADVISED
By Yorick Aberdeen
The Paring River Bridge in Lockwood Forest.
LOCKWOOD FOREST (Paring River) - Woodland travelers beware! And not just for all of the usual reasons, either. This past weekend, local shepherd Joseph Peterson reported to the local constabulary that he had an encounter with a creature that had been presumed to have moved on from our fair isle. Peterson, 37, allegedly came across the beast colloquially known as the “River Walker” while crossing the Paring River bridge near the entrance of Lockwood Forest, where he was grabbed and knocked out. Once he regained consciousness, Peterson then reported being lost in an underground cave system whilst being pursued by the monster for an unknown amount of time estimated between six and twelve hours.
The River Walker, a spider-like creature with the face of a human corpse, is so named because it appears to exclusively use the Paring River as its hunting ground. The creature is apparently completely unique to Marrow Isle, as the Pumpkin Hollow Historical Society was unable to uncover folklore or recorded sightings of anything matching the River Walker’s description in any of the texts they have access to. However, through collecting data from resurrected residents who were its victims, the Town Hall Safety Board was able to glean information about this menace that should help citizens avoid yet another timely demise.
Firstly, all residents traveling in the Lockwood Forest should steer clear of the Paring River if possible. While it is true that the Paring River cuts directly through the forest near the entrance and arcs through the majority of the woodlands, and also that the main path through the woods which goes over the Paring River bridge is the only way through to Crane’s RIdge or any of the hunting areas, the river should still be avoided whenever residents are able. This will minimize potential contact.
Secondly, be aware of your surroundings when near the river. Data indicates that the creature will make a soft chittering sound before reaching up to grab a victim. Many prior victims also report the surrounding area seeming “too still” when the creature was in the area. If you experience any of these phenomena, it would be wise to run--- though most reports suggest that outrunning the River Walker aboveground is impossible. But still, it is important to do your best.
And lastly, should you be taken below ground with this monstrous creature, it will transport you to tight underground caves where you will be forced to crawl, squeeze, and climb for your life. All the while it will follow you, taunting and toying with you. Utilize these long, grueling hours to your advantage! Studies have shown that the River Walker struggles to attack groups of two or more effectively, so while you are being tortured, search for a traveling companion!
If you do encounter the River Walker, please report the sighting to the Town Council or the Historical Society regardless of whether or not you die. Those killed by the River Walker are encouraged to stop by the Oak & Iron for a copy of the Safety Board’s Advice Pamphlet for the Recently Deceased after resurrecting. And remember, quitters are tastier prey, so don’t give in to despair! Even if you are caught and killed, you can at least say you persisted out of spite.
BLUE ISLAND CRAB HATCHING SEASON BEGINS AS SUMMER HEAT PERSISTS
By Yorick Aberdeen
A little sketch by yours truly.
TAWNY BEACH - If you’re out on the beach enjoying the last month of warm sea water, be mindful where you step! Earlier this spring, the local Blue Island Crab population had their mating season. Males of the species came up on the shore with clusters of tiny but durable eggs bundled up in their claws and buried them in the sand, and they’ve been warmed by the summer sun all season. As we enter the last month of summer the new crabs are finally ready to emerge from their birthplaces and begin their lives.
It is worth noting, however, that newborn Blue Island Crabs tend not to go directly back to the sea. In fact, it is common for them to spend the first few weeks of their lives searching for food and nesting materials such as seashells, driftwood, broken pottery, or small pieces of metal roughly the size of the average piece of valuable jewelry. They are also very adept climbers and are capable of scaling stairs and countertops with relative ease. Additionally, they seem to be able to communicate well with others of their species and are capable of collaborating. Many townsfolk have even gone so far as to describe their behavior as “scheming.” Blue Island Crabs are also notorious for not being very picky about what they eat. All this is to say, expect to have your food, personal items, and practically anything that is not tied down stolen by small blue crabs.
An unfortunate side effect of the hex has been that the beloved and highly anticipated Cucumber Festival, which normally takes place in early June, had to be canceled due to a lack of cucumbers. This has earned the ire of a great many residents who have cited the festival as “their last source of a modicum of joy on this goddess-forsaken island”, among other more colorful statements.
But there is good news! Hatching season and the subsequent early life of the crabs, all told, will not last more than a few weeks before the crabs mature enough to return to the sea with the rest of their kind. And of course those lucky enough to catch some will report that they make for a fine meal. There is no finer party dish than a Blue Island crab boil!
INCREASED PINE DEVIL SIGHTINGS SPELL BAD NEWS FOR LOCAL PEDESTRIANS
By Yorick Aberdeen
A painting of the Pine Devil provided by Mayor Poe
ISLAND-WIDE - In more concerning news, reports have been coming in from all over the island that there have been an uptick in sightings of the Pumpkin Hollow Howler. Otherwise known as the Pine Devil, this extremely dangerous man-eating beast has been a staple of Marrow Isle’s rotating cast of horrors for at least the past 15 years. Much like the aforementioned River Walker, the Pine Devil has a tendency to come and go and sightings fluctuate with some regularity. It seems that as we draw closer to prime haunting season we will be faced with increased appearances from the island’s least-favorite celebrity.
Here’s what we know:
The Howler’s primary motivation is to eat and he prefers larger prey. This includes pigs, cattle, deer, and humans. He has no known den and is apparently nomadic. No one has ever been able to locate the Pumpkin Hollow Howler when he is not actively hunting. At full height, he stands a whopping eight feet tall on unguligrade legs. He has clawed hands and large fangs which are its primary method of attacking and is capable of flight, and his eyes glow blue in the dark. He is a strong, fast creature who has no qualms about coming into town if necessary. Surviving encounters with the beast is notably rare.
If you have any encounters with the Pumpkin Hollow Howler, report to Town Hall or the constable’s station at your earliest convenience to make an incident report. The constabulary is taking reports 24 hours a day, so please make your report either immediately after the incident or upon resurrection. May your lanterns stay lit, and be safe out there!
Page 1
Captured by the River Walker? Click here…
Perhaps you didn’t read the paper. Perhaps you didn’t take the warnings seriously. Or maybe you simply had no other choice. Whatever the case may be, the Paring River Bridge lies before you, and the world around you is unnaturally still. The sounds of chirping birds, burrowing mammals, and chittering insects have all died and left the air uncannily silent.
You attempt to hurry across, hoping to make it before anything unsavory catches your scent. But the moment you place your foot upon the stone pavers of the bridge, it is already too late. Behind you, you can hear the scuttling of much too large insectoid legs and a soft rattling sound, almost like the sound of a woodpecker drilling into a tree but somehow… wetter.
Instinctively, you turn to look behind you. A bulbous, lumpy abdomen drags the ground, and from it extends a set of eight black legs, chunky and irregular, as if they were wooden stakes hewn into rough points with a careless knife. Long, spindly fingers extend from thin arms on either side of an emaciated torso covered in shiny black insect carapace. And on top, the face of a human woman who looked as though she’d been drowned, bloated and rotting. White eyes, matted brown hair, and a wicked smile framed by patchy blue lips.
You black out before you even have the chance to scream.
When you awaken, your head is pounding as if you’ve just woken from a bender. You are on a dirty, irregular stone floor. The beginnings of stalagmites jab into your back. In the distance, you can hear dripping water and the shifting of something moving. It is dark, but light enough to see by, allowing you to see plainly that the ceiling above you is significantly too low for you to stand.
Then, you hear a laugh, hoarse and cruel. “Rise and shine, little morsel. Oh, how I do love to play with my food…”
That’s your cue to get moving.
For the next several long, grueling hours, you crawl your way through this tight and unrelenting fortress of stone on hands and knees as rocks cut into your hands. In caves that are tall enough to stand, you have to walk sideways to proceed or even hold your breath in order to make it, and all the tunnels look more or less the same. The River Walker’s raspy voice echoes off the walls, making its location imperceptible… but it’s close.
You need to find a traveling companion. And soon.
Interested in encountering the Pine Devil? Click here...
The Pine Devil is a mod-run NPC and we can only handle a certain number of encounters at once. For this TDM we will be favoring new characters on a first-come, first-served basis. However, you may still handwave or summarize the encounter by rolling a D20 with 15+ to survive and 18+ to walk away unscathed, and write out the aftermath. You do not need a mod’s permission to do this!
You also do not need to fill out a Death Certificate if you're not fully apped in, but can if you want to. Your character will resurrect as normal either way!
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A gruff little sound follows the suggestion of hunting or guard work. Hearing there's somewhere he can go to actually get a full accounting of possible positions, he figures that he can make his way there in his own time. For now though? He'd content himself to look out on the landscape from his tree, feel the weight of his body where it's settled, listening to the world.
And then the tune that makes the corner of his mouth quirk up subtly. Music wasn't something that he heard a lot of until pretty recently, and though he doesn't recognize the tune, it doesn't sound bad. It kind of makes him miss his harmonica.
If they spend long enough in silence, he's going to doze off on the spot.
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Perhaps Chris notices how tired Sam is, or perhaps they just don't like silence at the moment. After a little bit of quiet, Chris calls out, "Did you get your lay of the land? I promise, the tavern is nicer to sleep in than a tree."
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With a sharp breath he stirs again, looking back over at the other in their tree.
"Right, dream lady said there'd be a place to go..." He's gonna have to come to terms with his dreams actually being real harbingers rather than nightmares brought on by his condition, huh? "Hey, you said tech's way behind, how's the shower situation?"
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(Less chance of death. Not zero, but less.)
They slowly climb down when Sam begins to descend. And in response to the shower question, they reply, "I have only seen bathtubs, but there is running water."
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"Hot bath's fine too," he concludes. "They have energy drinks or anything? Pretty sure I'm gonna go into mad caffeine withdrawal before too long." He did it to himself. Drinking nothing but beer, water, and Monster Energy were bound to catch up with him sooner or later.
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"I'm so sorry, but actual coffee is in limited supply. I think some people supplement it with a chicory-root drink, but that one doesn't have caffeine." Chris gives a little sigh, "I could at least get you something for the caffeine withdrawal headaches... I know there's at least one willow tree growing on this island."
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He doesn't like the prospect of those headaches, he's had to deal with them before, but in their current position here it isn't as if he really has a choice in the matter. Gritting his teeth and trudging on ahead would have to be what he falls back on. It was going to suck, but he could weather this too.
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There is some sympathy to Chris's expression, but it falls away as they focus on finding the way back to town. Sometimes they stop and look around, then get an attentive, listening expression on their face before forging ahead again. It's an odd way to navigate, but it does get Chris and Sam to a spot where the trees thin out and a set of railway tracks are visible.
Across the tracks, one edge of the village can be seen.
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Still, he merely follows, just out of arm's reach, though he pauses when a rash of goosebumps rolls up his arms at the distinct sensation of something else nearby. He holds his breath and carefully navigates just behind Chris at that point, merely watching them with perpetually narrowed eyes and knitted brow. He moves away when he feels anything coming closer but otherwise says nothing on it.
At the tracks, Sam finally lets himself breathe fully. "All roads lead to town?"
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"They lead out of town, too, depending on which way you face," Chris points out, then they smile, "but yes."
Chris looks and listens carefully before crossing the train tracks. It's not until the two are both safely across that they ask Sam, "Do you see the ghosts?"
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"No, but I can sense 'em," he replies quietly, stepping over the tracks behind Chris to continue to follow a few paces behind them. "They really don't fuck with you guys?"
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As they head further into town, the roof of the temple can be seen in the distance. This particular part of town seems to be fairly quiet, and if anyone greets Chris or Sam, it's merely with a wave instead of a verbal greeting. (Chris's strangeness is... known. They've climbed buildings to speak to ghosts, among other things, and the gossip mill never forgets.)
Chris turns right, taking them along the north face of the Temple of Sacred Roots -- it's not a straight path, and that's so weird for someone used to a big city -- before pointing out Town Hall.
"There's Town Hall. The bigger building next to it is Greymare Library. The Oak and Iron Tavern is directly south from the library, just across the Festival Green."
[[ OOC: Yes the player has saved and is consulting the island map. They are that kind of nerd. 😉 ]]
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Walking with someone that's apparently well-known in the village is giving him the same kind of anxiety that walking into a room full of strangers does. He'd just have to trust that they would stay outside of his personal space for the time being while he's talking to someone else. At least Chris seems to know where they're going, and Sam moves along the meandering trail easily. Trails and desire paths have helped him navigate everywhere he's ever gone. Getting to know these ones would be the next thing on the agenda.
Sam listens quietly as Chris points out the various buildings and landmarks. He's wondering if there's a map of the place that he'd be able to take along with him...
"Guessing city center's not far off. They took my clothes," he points out needlessly, looking down at the plain clothes he'd been punted into this place wearing, so much flimsier than what he's used to. "Wanna layer back up when I can."
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People basically acknowledge Chris but then keep going. Chris is well known because he's fucking weird, not because people actually like him.
Chris says, "We're all of us coming from different worlds, from different times, with different frames of reference. You say 'BTs' and that means something to you, but most likely nobody here will know that means 'ghosts' until you explain. I told Ms. Leeds that 'the Between here is empty' when I first got here, and she didn't know what the fuck I was talking about. You probably don't know what the fuck I'm talking about. Come on, we're going into Town Hall."
Once inside, Chris communicates that he's got a new arrival who apparently got dropped in the woods instead of arriving on the ferry.
Sam will now be given the basic welcome spiel, handed his
Universal Basic Incomenewcomer stipend and a map, and given a chance to report his job skills. Whatever other information he needs to convey or ask about, good chance to do so.However long it takes, though, Chris will be waiting for him when he's done.
[[ OOC: I'm handwaving because I don't want to be in charge of that interaction at Town Hall. Cover it if you want, or roll with the time skip. Chris is willing to take Sam to the clothing shop or wherever. ]]
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Sam is quiet, accepting even as he gives that ever-present paranoid look to everything and everyone, though he'd have to admit that suddenly being handed cash is...kind of cool. At least it means he'd be able to grab those clothes in his own time. The map is a relief at least, and you can bet he'd be keeping that on him in perpetuity.
He doesn't actually ask many questions, just accepting whatever they'd tell him and trusting that sooner rather than later, he'd just be let loose.
[[Totally fine, I figure Chris can leave Sam to their own devices and they can meet again later if you like.]]
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And they walk off, humming the same song as before.
...if Sam watches long enough, he might see Chris stop, turn to look toward some empty space, and then go running off with purpose. Just another weird moment from Chris, the other Pumpkin Hollow residents will assume.
[[ OOC: I figure that's a wrap, and you can have Sam react to this if you like but you don't have to. Thanks for the fun thread! ]]
b ovo b wrap!
For good measure, Chris gets a thumbs-up in parting. Twenty likes. And then they're gone, and Sam is headed in the opposite direction. Time to lay down and think about what to do next.