Someone slipped an unmarked envelope under your door. It is a fine envelope, crisp-edged and carefully wax-sealed with a symbol like a pair of wings. You have certainly seen this symbol before on the sides of regal carriages and on banners and bookbindings. Surely your door has been mistaken for that of someone of far more importance.
Curious, you break the seal. Inside is an elegantly penned invitation.
Curious, you break the seal. Inside is an elegantly penned invitation.
Lord Roderick Ancroft Fowle Requests the Pleasure of Your Company at the
Twenty-Fifth of November, Eighteen Hundred and Fifty-Five
Seven O'Clock in the Evening
Toadmere Rookery Ballroom
MASQUERADE
Twenty-Fifth of November, Eighteen Hundred and Fifty-Five
Seven O'Clock in the Evening
Toadmere Rookery Ballroom
PREMISE
Your character is a citizen of Pallhallow, a modest Victorian town in the quiet and rainy countryside. As long as your character can remember, the Toadmere Rookery -- the mysterious old estate on the hill -- has never opened its doors to anyone but one strange servant, and the Lord Roderick Fowle has locked himself away inside. So when invitations appear in the hands of persons who are exceptionally underqualified to receive them, it is a most curious event indeed.
Although the opening scenes are simple enough, gameplay will soon lead deeper down the rabbit hole, if you will. Beneath the quiet town of Pallhallow you may expect everything steampunk from automatons to dirigibles, rune-based magic and enchantment, dragons and dinosaurs, plenty of mystery, and a rumored big-bad only called Grimtooth.
GAMEPLAY
Things will play out differently depending on what the characters do or say; you determine how this story is told. This game is exploratory, but there is a common goal, an overarching plot, a plethora of subplots, and plenty of motivation to move forward. The style will be lighthearted and a bit ridiculous at times, but may take a few dark or horrifying turns. Characters are encouraged to forge their own path and develop new skills and abilities, make new friends and enemies, and find new tools and artifacts to help them along on their journey.
NOTES
Inspirations are drawn from Fallen London, Neverwhere, Lemony Snicket, Charles Dickens, Jules Verne, Labyrinth, Dinotopia, MYST, Undertale, Mushi-Shi, and CLAMP in general. If you like one or more of these, you might like this. :)
Experience has told me that at least half of all accepted characters drop out in the first four weeks of gameplay. Therefore, there will be no limit to how many characters will be approved. The first few weeks of gameplay will be the most chaotic, but posting will eventually slow to a steady pace. So, don't panic if it's too fast, and don't panic if it slows down. It's okay. :)