shadowsaint007

Persona: Soul Train

It was another hot summer night, with sweltering heat reaching into the depths of night. It was going to be another sweat-soaked uneasy sleep for many - and not just because of the temperatures. In their sleep, people would be tossing and turning, their tumultuous fever dreams spawning far more nightmares than would be normal. Those who couldn't give in to the sweet relief of repose would instead stay up, tuning to the mysterious new radio talk show, "Soul Train".

One such person was not feeling like sleep at all. The adrenaline pumping in his veins were all he needed, his face calm and focused, if a bit intense. His room was barely lit; enough for him to navigate across the room and make out certain objects, not enough to draw attention at this unnatural hour. Upon his pillow was a gold-and-white mask from a popular sentai show, by his bed was a sheathed sword, a gift from a Ren Faire he used to work at.

Reaching for the small handheld radio on the small table next to the bed, he put the earbuds in, and tuned in to listen, his eyes glittering intensely as he listened.

When did this all begin? Staying up late, listening to some weird radio station at the dead of night, taking in the strange and unnatural stories... it was probably just mere weeks since he awoke to this world of shadows and mystery, but it felt like yesterday, the memory of that horrid dream ringing in his mind as though he had it moments ago...

The Nightmare said He was running. Where was he running to? Or rather, what was he running from? As the world twisted and turned around him, shadows and darkness passing over everything and twisting familiar forms into horrid abominations...

"I am Thou..."

A train comes in from nowhere, sliding to a halt in front of him, the doors open to a dark blue interior. Stepping in, he feels like the carriage stretches forever.

The train starts, but instead of the expected lurch he finds himself pulled in inexorably along with the train. Like some intense destiny was drawing him to an inevitable path. The train passes through a tunnel, and just as quickly, the sense of gravity disappears, and he finds himself once more on open ground.

"...and Thou art I..."

The shadows, which shift uneasily around him, mutate and transform into dark creatures, black blobs with unnatural masks, or creatures from myth, both great and small. Their eeries moans and cries fill the world around him as he realizes he is trapped. They turn to see him, and start closing in. There is no where to run. And he realizes he is all alone.

In desperation, he starts swatting them aside, hitting them with his fists, his open palm, kicking wildly, all to no avail. The react as though he was slapping him with a feather, and reach out to him. He tries to scream a cry of terror that would not leave his throat, leaving him voiceless as the things bury him under their combined, writhing mass.

"From the Sea of Thy Soul, I come..."

And suddenly, where there was darkness, there was light. Fire and heat filled his vision, and he felt his flesh being struck with a heat like a thousand furnaces. Fire and light so intense they could vaporize steel, but he felt disproportionately little pain.

All he saw before he woke up was the mask of a man wreathed in fire, its eyeholes burning into his soul with an intense light...

When he had woken up, he had felt sick. He had hoped it was not a fever; it was far too busy a time for him to fall sick. He had been relieved when the nausea and dizziness wore off after a few days.

In retrospect, a fever would have at least been a rational explanation. He felt... changed, somehow. Like somehow his eyes had been opened to a different universe.

Shortly thereafter, came the Nightmares, and the hunts, and the long nights patrolling the city. It was overwhelming and draining, but something in him was calling out for more, his sense of adventure drinking in the experience.

So there he was, listening to the radio, hoping that his sister would be asleep so she wouldn't notice he was up late.

He strains his ears, reaching the sword beside the bed, feeling an strange, bubbling sensation in the hollow of his chest; a combination of anxiety and readiness.

Kingdom Hearts: Signs of Zodiac

Renose said Then it'll be Neo-Bahamhut time when I post

Pretty much. It needed a beacon to lure them to a trap and kill them all, so yeah, "Target-Rich Environment" sums any Cy-bug assault just fine. It's just that people tend to run out of ammo before the Cy-Bugs run out of Bugs.

Persona: Soul Train

Say, whatever happened to the Strength and Moon Arcana? They were reserved, and yet the players haven't written up a sheet yet.

Persona: Soul Train

Huh. That's a pretty cool idea. I'll second it.

Persona: Soul Train

well, how would we have obtained our Personas? While it might be quicker to have people start with their Personas, is there any way to find out who has the potential and who doesn't?

An alternative idea is that everyone has awakened to their Persona abilities, and initially have to get in contact with the other Persona users. In numbers lies strength, after all.

More importantly, though, is how will the issue of relationships be managed? Things like that take time and money, and thus we probably need to roleplay it day-by-day, with the GM deciding when to start a day or end it, and when does the "Dark Hour" open.

Some things would need money, so while it's best to abstract money (i.e. just run it without numbers), GM permission would be necessary for certain things - driver's license, buying a bike/used car, getting something expensive, etc... The players will be required to roleplay that; the GM's role is going to be a simple "yes you can get that" or "no, you need more time/money/work".

As for the idea of a train dungeon... actually... Funny, I just had an idea. Basically, we use the eponymous 'Soul Train' the same way the Persona 4 crew used the television at June's, or how Tartarus functioned in Persona 3. Basically, take the train, ride it to a destination, hop off the train, and then come back when you're done. Just don't take too long or the train moves on without you, and you're stuck in the Shadow/Nightmare world. As the RP progresses and progress is made clearing up the Shadow places, more 'destinations' open up that you can reach by train. Of course, the idea of multiple people entering the train at different times becomes an issue; should there be 'regular trains' to a dungeon, or would the players be in different 'compartments' to represent how they have yet to work together?

It would still be possible to use Personas and fight Shadows/Nightmares in 'Real' Bedford, but that's like Shadows manifesting outside the TV in Persona 4: it's basically Bad News.

On a final note, relationships: While the PCs will inevitably have their own circles of friends and relatives, the whole concept of Persona is that the PCs work together, become friends, maybe even form romantic attachments together. That has to be discussed between the players (naturally), whether through advance planning or just playing it by ear. The GM can offer suggestions, but it's the players who need to find a way to connect.to each other, and to establish a bond over time. How fast the bonds develop is up to the players; whether because two characters work/interact together a lot or because they just naturally hit it off makes it go faster or slower - but it still takes time to turn someone from "perfect stranger" to "my friend till the end".

Persona: Soul Train

So, what did people think of my suggested places in town? I'd add an arcade, but those things have pretty much been dwindling in popularity last I checked.

Persona: Soul Train

The Social Links, I'd highly recommend. It allows the players to improve teamwork and basically helps the whole theme of "many in harmony exceed one in perfection" and "nobody is an island" which the series as a whole pushes to the fore.

Granted, they won't allow you to unlock more Personas, but they'll be necessary for facing the Final Evil and generally becoming better people.

Persona: Soul Train

Well, Igor generally makes a contract with the "MC" of the game, and thus starts the series of events that lead to the conclusion of the game. Handling several such characters at once would be a bit more complex. However, he could still do so, though handling a group of people rather than one guy alone means he needs everyone available to tell them information so as to avoid repeating himself.

However, Igor's role need not be exclusive. He could be 'replaced' by the usual wise mystic mentor. Indeed, the biggest reason he should be in this kind of game is, well, because he's been in almost the entire series.

As for evoking the Personas, how would the masks be used? Would a glyph appear on them that we'd have to touch/activate? Or some other special effect?

Persona: Soul Train

Not familiar with Journey, believe it or not, so...

*googles it*

....huh. The damn song fits the game perfectly. Well, almost.

Persona: Soul Train

What, no *midnight* train? That would be a lot more fitting if you ask me.