Fragmented memories of Nocture City's latest Hunter
The Nocturne Nightlife
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Initiation
Inkbones
No Glory Save Honor
- Location
- Where you can still smell the sky
There are those who live in the Light. They don't see the shadows gathering around them. They don't see the war being fought in front of their closed eyelids. They live in blissful ignorance, walking though life, unsullied by the truth of the world.
But not you.
You are a Hunter.
You are the one that kills the shadows before they can breach the Light.
You are the one that makes bedtime horrors shudder in the gutters they hide in.
You fight the hidden battles of this world. Your arena is the back ally and the deserted car park, your shield is your unflinching will to drive back the forces of darkness and your weapon is how awesome you look while doing so.
To those who live in the Light you are a phantasm, a shadow whose presence is vaguely terrifying and quickly forgotten. You won't have to worry about the police chasing you down, but don't think for a second that your actions don't have consequences.
Everything you do, from using your various unnatural abilities, to avoiding getting stabbed, increases your Grim. If your Grim gets high enough, your Dark level increases. The higher your Dark level, the further you're pulled out of the Light, and more you leave your humanity behind. If you allow yourself to lose your humanity entirely, you will cease to be a Hunter and become a monster for someone else to fight.
Now that we've gotten that our of the way, there's the simple matter of how, exactly, you became Initiated.
[ ] Dynasty| You're the most recent scion of a long lineage of Hunters, and as such you stand to inherit centuries of accumulated monster-hunting wisdom. As well as the family enemies. Pros: access to the family library. Cons: gain two enemy factions from the start.
[ ] Contract| you died (badly), but a Patron brought you back in return for Hunting specific targets. Pros: you cannot be killed until your Contract is fulfilled. Cons: Failure to Hunt targets will be...punished.
[ ] Back in Action| you were legendary, but your heart tired of it. You retired, but something has pulled you back into this life. Pros: significantly better starting gear. Cons: maluses to physical rolls.
[ ] Survivor| you lived in the Light, until something horrible almost killed you. You were saved by strangers in black, and you're unwillingness to forget accidentally made you one of them. Pros: start at -1 Angst. Cons: no starter gear.
[ ] Escapee| they thought you mad. They locked you up. You got out. Maybe they were right. Pros: resistance to mental effects. Cons: first mission is escaping the Asylum.
[ ] Errant| you were inducted into an an ancient Order, who consider the task of Hunting a divinely issued one. Pros: allied Hunters willing to help you in times of need. Cons: your Order is constrained by a tight moral code, if you cross it one too many times they will cast you out.
Everyone needs a little leg up at the beginning, right? Choose yours. Be warned, the more you use these "gifts," the more they will consume you.
[ ] Infernal Brand| the energies of the Inferno burn within you. The more you use them, the more Infernal you will become in form.
[ ] Celestial Mark| commonly known as angels, the Celestials follow the commands of their superiors without question. Borrow too much power from their Mark, and you will too.
[ ] Corrupted Blood| your blood has been intentionally tinged with the blood of vampires. The thirst is a real and very present problem for you, but you should be able to hold it at bay...at the moment.
[ ] Changeling| you have been touched by the Fey, and I shouldn't have to tell you how pernicious their presence can be.
[ ] New Eyes| the power of the Old gods is as twisted and insane as they are, but nothing if not reliable.
But not you.
You are a Hunter.
You are the one that kills the shadows before they can breach the Light.
You are the one that makes bedtime horrors shudder in the gutters they hide in.
You fight the hidden battles of this world. Your arena is the back ally and the deserted car park, your shield is your unflinching will to drive back the forces of darkness and your weapon is how awesome you look while doing so.
To those who live in the Light you are a phantasm, a shadow whose presence is vaguely terrifying and quickly forgotten. You won't have to worry about the police chasing you down, but don't think for a second that your actions don't have consequences.
Everything you do, from using your various unnatural abilities, to avoiding getting stabbed, increases your Grim. If your Grim gets high enough, your Dark level increases. The higher your Dark level, the further you're pulled out of the Light, and more you leave your humanity behind. If you allow yourself to lose your humanity entirely, you will cease to be a Hunter and become a monster for someone else to fight.
Now that we've gotten that our of the way, there's the simple matter of how, exactly, you became Initiated.
[ ] Dynasty| You're the most recent scion of a long lineage of Hunters, and as such you stand to inherit centuries of accumulated monster-hunting wisdom. As well as the family enemies. Pros: access to the family library. Cons: gain two enemy factions from the start.
[ ] Contract| you died (badly), but a Patron brought you back in return for Hunting specific targets. Pros: you cannot be killed until your Contract is fulfilled. Cons: Failure to Hunt targets will be...punished.
[ ] Back in Action| you were legendary, but your heart tired of it. You retired, but something has pulled you back into this life. Pros: significantly better starting gear. Cons: maluses to physical rolls.
[ ] Survivor| you lived in the Light, until something horrible almost killed you. You were saved by strangers in black, and you're unwillingness to forget accidentally made you one of them. Pros: start at -1 Angst. Cons: no starter gear.
[ ] Escapee| they thought you mad. They locked you up. You got out. Maybe they were right. Pros: resistance to mental effects. Cons: first mission is escaping the Asylum.
[ ] Errant| you were inducted into an an ancient Order, who consider the task of Hunting a divinely issued one. Pros: allied Hunters willing to help you in times of need. Cons: your Order is constrained by a tight moral code, if you cross it one too many times they will cast you out.
Everyone needs a little leg up at the beginning, right? Choose yours. Be warned, the more you use these "gifts," the more they will consume you.
[ ] Infernal Brand| the energies of the Inferno burn within you. The more you use them, the more Infernal you will become in form.
[ ] Celestial Mark| commonly known as angels, the Celestials follow the commands of their superiors without question. Borrow too much power from their Mark, and you will too.
[ ] Corrupted Blood| your blood has been intentionally tinged with the blood of vampires. The thirst is a real and very present problem for you, but you should be able to hold it at bay...at the moment.
[ ] Changeling| you have been touched by the Fey, and I shouldn't have to tell you how pernicious their presence can be.
[ ] New Eyes| the power of the Old gods is as twisted and insane as they are, but nothing if not reliable.
Last edited:
- Location
- Bed
[X] In Too Deep
-[X] Survivor
-[X] New Eyes
She never got a good look at what attacked her - it shambled from shadow to shadow with unnatural speed. All she had was the twisted claw mark on her bag as evidence of the attack. Her memories were jumbled - figures in shadow wielding weapons old and mysterious, locked in combat with the,,, whatever it was, while she tried to flee. To escape to the light. But it was intent on chasing her. She didn't know why.
She ran in a direction. Any direction. It led back to it. She turned around and ran again. Still, she found herself arriving back at the combat which she could not see. The tendrils reached for her, clawing as if the air itself was its enemy. One of the figures in shadow swung forth, and the creature let out an unholy scream. With the last of its life force, it sprang forward, straight for her.
Forward, into the light.
And she saw it.
Her memories refused to go further, always stopping at that point. But as she awoke in her bed, there was a curious ache in her eye. And when she looked in the mirror, her pupil had a mark on it. It was only visible when she squinted, and she couldn't look at it directly no matter how hard she tried - but it was on her now. In her. Part of her.
-[X] Survivor
-[X] New Eyes
She never got a good look at what attacked her - it shambled from shadow to shadow with unnatural speed. All she had was the twisted claw mark on her bag as evidence of the attack. Her memories were jumbled - figures in shadow wielding weapons old and mysterious, locked in combat with the,,, whatever it was, while she tried to flee. To escape to the light. But it was intent on chasing her. She didn't know why.
She ran in a direction. Any direction. It led back to it. She turned around and ran again. Still, she found herself arriving back at the combat which she could not see. The tendrils reached for her, clawing as if the air itself was its enemy. One of the figures in shadow swung forth, and the creature let out an unholy scream. With the last of its life force, it sprang forward, straight for her.
Forward, into the light.
And she saw it.
Her memories refused to go further, always stopping at that point. But as she awoke in her bed, there was a curious ache in her eye. And when she looked in the mirror, her pupil had a mark on it. It was only visible when she squinted, and she couldn't look at it directly no matter how hard she tried - but it was on her now. In her. Part of her.
[X] Through the Looking Glass
-[X] Escapee| they thought you mad. They locked you up. You got out. Maybe they were right. Pros: resistance to mental effects. Cons: first mission is escaping the Asylum.
-[X] New Eyes| the power of the Old gods is as twisted and insane as they are, but nothing if not reliable.
-[X] Escapee| they thought you mad. They locked you up. You got out. Maybe they were right. Pros: resistance to mental effects. Cons: first mission is escaping the Asylum.
-[X] New Eyes| the power of the Old gods is as twisted and insane as they are, but nothing if not reliable.
- Location
- United States
- Pronouns
- He/Him
[X] Autumnal Leaves
-[X] Dynasty
-[X] Changeling
-[X] Dynasty
-[X] Changeling
[X] Survivor| you lived in the Light, until something horrible almost killed you. You were saved by strangers in black, and you're unwillingness to forget accidentally made you one of them. Pros: start at -1 Angst. Cons: no starter gear.
[X] New Eyes| the power of the Old gods is as twisted and insane as they are, but nothing if not reliable.
[X] New Eyes| the power of the Old gods is as twisted and insane as they are, but nothing if not reliable.
Z488411
Scatterbrained
- Location
- Europa
[X] Through the Looking Glass
-[X] Escapee| they thought you mad. They locked you up. You got out. Maybe they were right. Pros: resistance to mental effects. Cons: first mission is escaping the Asylum.
-[X] New Eyes| the power of the Old gods is as twisted and insane as they are, but nothing if not reliable.
-[X] Escapee| they thought you mad. They locked you up. You got out. Maybe they were right. Pros: resistance to mental effects. Cons: first mission is escaping the Asylum.
-[X] New Eyes| the power of the Old gods is as twisted and insane as they are, but nothing if not reliable.
- Location
- Europe
[X] Through the Looking Glass
-[X] Escapee| they thought you mad. They locked you up. You got out. Maybe they were right. Pros: resistance to mental effects. Cons: first mission is escaping the Asylum.
-[X] New Eyes| the power of the Old gods is as twisted and insane as they are, but nothing if not reliable.
-[X] Escapee| they thought you mad. They locked you up. You got out. Maybe they were right. Pros: resistance to mental effects. Cons: first mission is escaping the Asylum.
-[X] New Eyes| the power of the Old gods is as twisted and insane as they are, but nothing if not reliable.
The face in the shadows
Inkbones
No Glory Save Honor
- Location
- Where you can still smell the sky
A brief word on the identity of our protagonist.
You are a Hunter, all other facts are secondary. Certain details, such as your gender, ethnicity, etc., are intentionally made ambiguous as an exercise for the reader.
You could, for instance, look like this:
Or, perhaps, like this:
If not, maybe this one?
If none of these are the face the reader has imagined for their Hunter, please feel free to institute a different one.
You are a Hunter, all other facts are secondary. Certain details, such as your gender, ethnicity, etc., are intentionally made ambiguous as an exercise for the reader.
You could, for instance, look like this:
Or, perhaps, like this:
If not, maybe this one?
If none of these are the face the reader has imagined for their Hunter, please feel free to institute a different one.
The Promised Asylum
Inkbones
No Glory Save Honor
- Location
- Where you can still smell the sky
[X] Through the Looking Glass
-[X] Escapee| they thought you mad. They locked you up. You got out. Maybe they were right. Pros: resistance to mental effects. Cons: first mission is escaping the Asylum.
-[X] New Eyes| the power of the Old gods is as twisted and insane as they are, but nothing if not reliable.
-[X] Escapee| they thought you mad. They locked you up. You got out. Maybe they were right. Pros: resistance to mental effects. Cons: first mission is escaping the Asylum.
-[X] New Eyes| the power of the Old gods is as twisted and insane as they are, but nothing if not reliable.
Praise be to Ru_, whose small and mostly non-canon omake shall reap unexpected rewards.
Also, possible trigger warning ahead.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
You don't remember where you were going, just that you had a train to catch, and you were almost late. You had been pushing and shoving people in an effort to move through the thick crowd of the train station when the stabbing happend. The maniac had done it right in front of you, just whipped out a knife, looked you straight in the eye, and stabbed it into their own gut.
People surged forward toward the corpse, perhaps to supply aid, but more likely to witness the spectacle. You, on the other hand, were trying to get as far away as possible. You weren't exactly a very religious person, but what few senses you had were screaming at you to get away.
Yet again, you were pushing against the crowd, but your late appointment couldn't be further from you mind. You pressed against the tide of warm bodies, dread curling around your guts like a venomous serpent, but somewhere in your mind you knew that you weren't going to escape this.
A gasp made you reflexively look behind you, where the corpse lay in it's own blood. In a trick of the light, it looked like it had become black and shiny, like the knife they had impaled themselves with. And the blackness was spreading. Bystanders scream as shards of black stone pierce the ground and then their flesh. The tide around you became a stampede, surprise becoming fear becoming brain-boiling terror.
1d20=17
??? {X|_|_}
A man beside you was suddenly crucified by a black stalagmite, but you managed to avoid a similar fate. The ground beneath you was becoming black, with red light shining from the cracks. Something spears out of one chasm and tried to wrap itself around your leg.
1d20= 9
??? {X|X|_}
You tried to avoid it, but it curled around your leg anyway. You retched when you saw it; it was like an octopus arm, made only of scarlet eyes. To see them burned you.
1d20=15
??? {X|X|X|}
You grab it and rip it off your leg, screaming as you feel a strip of your skin come off with it. Then the Tower was there.
It shot out of nothing, broke the ceiling, and kept going. It was taller than the sky. It was built before time. It was a monument to everything that was lost. It looked at you, and into you. It saw everything you were, and everything you are, and everything you could have been, and it was bored. It put a piece of itself into you as a matter of formality, then looked onward.
When they found you, later, surrounded by corpses and curled into a fetal position, you were rather catatonic.
They told you that there was an explosion, a bomb. You wanted to nod your head, to believe the lie like they did. But you couldn't. You couldn't lie to yourself about what you'd seen. You told them what really happened. You showed them the eye growing under your skin. They told you it was a burn from the bomb. They said this while your eye blinked at them. You said that they were insane. They said you needed rest, that they were sending you somewhere where you could get a lot of it.
The box they put you in is padded. They jacket they put on you is uncomfortable. Every so often a man comes and puts food in your mouth. You have time to think now, and you have come to the following conclusion.
You don't care how much it will cost. You don't care what you'll have to become. The next time you meet the Tower, it won't be bored.
[ ] Every now and then, a man comes and takes your mask off to put food in your mouth.
[ ] Talk to him, try to learn something.
[ ] You watched a television show once, about a magician. He learned how to get out of a straight jacket by dislocating his arm. You could try to do the same. [Progress: {_|_|_|_}] [Increases Grim][ ] You feel your eye blinking under your sleeve. You have a piece of something foul inside you, might as well try to use it. [Increases Grim][The Tower grows]
[ ] The back of your eyelids feel greasy, but you've been so...tired...lately. Perhaps it's the pills. Perhaps something is calling you. [Decreases Grim]
Grim: VVVVVVVVVVVV
Dark: \/\/\/\/\/
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- Location
- Bed
I do not trust for even one second the idea that succumbing to those pills will have any good effects.
[ ] Talk to the food guy
- Sure, he'll definitely try to gaslight us and tell us everything is fine, but he might let slip SOMETHING useful. As it stands, we don't even know the name of where we are.
(Also I know enough about the common associations with "The Tower" to be deeply concerned even without knowing the specifics)
[ ] Talk to the food guy
- Sure, he'll definitely try to gaslight us and tell us everything is fine, but he might let slip SOMETHING useful. As it stands, we don't even know the name of where we are.
(Also I know enough about the common associations with "The Tower" to be deeply concerned even without knowing the specifics)
- Location
- Sweden
[X] You feel your eye blinking under your sleeve. You have a piece of something foul inside you, might as well try to use it. [Increases Grim][The Tower grows]
I agree with Ru_ that the pills seem a bit too suspicious. Of course, this option isn't optimal either but hopefully we'll not pick up too much Grim. Additionally, since our mark is an eye, it might be useful for seeing things - like where we are and/or how to get out.
I agree with Ru_ that the pills seem a bit too suspicious. Of course, this option isn't optimal either but hopefully we'll not pick up too much Grim. Additionally, since our mark is an eye, it might be useful for seeing things - like where we are and/or how to get out.
Inkbones
No Glory Save Honor
- Location
- Where you can still smell the sky
Hmm. *scribble scribble*
- Location
- Sweden
Should I be worried?
- Location
- St. Petersburg
Is it for every attempt, or just on succeeding? 4 Grim is a rather high price to pay.
[x] Every now and then, a man comes and takes your mask off to put food in your mouth.
-[x] Talk to him, try to learn something.
I know the vote is closed; it's not like it changes the winning option.
Sanity is a Choice
Inkbones
No Glory Save Honor
- Location
- Where you can still smell the sky
[X] You feel your eye blinking under your sleeve. You have a piece of something foul inside you, might as well try to use it. [Increases Grim][The Tower grows]
Potential trigger warning.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
It's far past nightfall. There are no windows in this room. The only light comes from the edges of the door, but that is hardly sufficient to fend away the dread gnawing at your spine.
You can feel it. Like an itch you can't scratch, a wound filled with rotting fluids. You hate it. And you cannot resist it's pull.
For a moment, nothing happens. Then, a small crack appears in the wall, letting a sliver of scarlet like leak in. Then the entire wall is stripped away and all you can see is the Tower.
It's eyes do not see, they accuse. It's chains will bind the deserving and undeserving alike. It was built by humanity, brick by blasphemous brick, and it's sight made you wonder why you had ever believed in fairy tales like "mercy", or "pity."
A few hours later, you come back to yourself. Your straight jacket lies shattered around you. You are on your knees as if praying, a mad grin still on your face. Nonsense written in your own blood is scrawled across the floor, walls, and even the ceiling. You scream from the pain of your wounds.
Still, while your foray into the darkness was not without price, it was also not without gain.
{-----------------------------------------------------}
You have unlocked the Gift of the Tower. You may now learn to channel power from your patron, if you can learn to withstand it's influence.
There are five approaches to power, and five principles that govern them. Choose a principle with which to advance, for the moment. [Don't worry about picking the wrong thing, this is the tutorial]
[ ] [Gift] Hand| the principle of the Hand is immediate and brutal, dealing with a problem directly and unsubtly.
[ ] [Gift] Eye| the principle of the Eye observes and comprehends, dealing with a problem by understanding it and piercing it's weakness.
[ ] [Gift] Smile| the principle of the Smile avoids and manipulates, dealing with a problem by undermining and working around it.
[ ] [Gift] Bone| the principle of the Bone protects and withstands, dealing with a problem by resisting it's consequence.
[ ] [Gift] Blood| the principle of the Blood exalts and advances, dealing with a problem by making it surmountable.
Gained Wound: Flagellations [bedridden, -10 to Sanity rolls]. Healing Progress: [_|_|_]*
Grim: VVVVVVVVVVVV
{------------------------------------------------------}
You woke up in the hospital wing, wrapped in bandages and a pint of blood being squeezed into you. An orderly built like a granite boulder stands guard, presumably to keep you from harming yourself further.
After a while, the curtain around your bed is moved aside, revealing a man in a white lab coat over a suit and tie. Like everything else he is a sterile black and white, making the red stains on your bandages stand out all the more.
"Hello, I am Doctor Melinoe. It is my job to try to make you well."
You regard him for an uncomfortable beat or two.
[ ] [Dr. Melinoe] Sarcasm| "Think it's a bit late for that doc."
[ ] [Dr. Melinoe] Acid| "I have no use for well-meaning fools."
[ ] [Dr. Melinoe] Cordiality| "Well, it's a pleasure to meet you."
[ ] [Dr. Melinoe] Write-in.
He merely smiles and adjusts his glasses.
"Be that as it may, I have seen many cases like yours. People subjected to horrible sights, doubting their own eyes. Fear not, my friend. Sanity is a choice."
He brings out a small wooden box from under his arm.
"And with that in mind, would you like to play a game of chess?"
[ ] [Chess] Agree [Grim Decreases]
[ ] [Chess] Refuse [Return to the padded cell]
[ ] [Chess] Fling the board in his face [Grim Increases] Grim is too high for this action
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Plan format please. Votes:
Potential trigger warning.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
It's far past nightfall. There are no windows in this room. The only light comes from the edges of the door, but that is hardly sufficient to fend away the dread gnawing at your spine.
You can feel it. Like an itch you can't scratch, a wound filled with rotting fluids. You hate it. And you cannot resist it's pull.
1d100=51. Success, but there is a complication.
For a moment, nothing happens. Then, a small crack appears in the wall, letting a sliver of scarlet like leak in. Then the entire wall is stripped away and all you can see is the Tower.
It's eyes do not see, they accuse. It's chains will bind the deserving and undeserving alike. It was built by humanity, brick by blasphemous brick, and it's sight made you wonder why you had ever believed in fairy tales like "mercy", or "pity."
A few hours later, you come back to yourself. Your straight jacket lies shattered around you. You are on your knees as if praying, a mad grin still on your face. Nonsense written in your own blood is scrawled across the floor, walls, and even the ceiling. You scream from the pain of your wounds.
Still, while your foray into the darkness was not without price, it was also not without gain.
{-----------------------------------------------------}
You have unlocked the Gift of the Tower. You may now learn to channel power from your patron, if you can learn to withstand it's influence.
There are five approaches to power, and five principles that govern them. Choose a principle with which to advance, for the moment. [Don't worry about picking the wrong thing, this is the tutorial]
[ ] [Gift] Hand| the principle of the Hand is immediate and brutal, dealing with a problem directly and unsubtly.
[ ] [Gift] Eye| the principle of the Eye observes and comprehends, dealing with a problem by understanding it and piercing it's weakness.
[ ] [Gift] Smile| the principle of the Smile avoids and manipulates, dealing with a problem by undermining and working around it.
[ ] [Gift] Bone| the principle of the Bone protects and withstands, dealing with a problem by resisting it's consequence.
[ ] [Gift] Blood| the principle of the Blood exalts and advances, dealing with a problem by making it surmountable.
Gained Wound: Flagellations [bedridden, -10 to Sanity rolls]. Healing Progress: [_|_|_]*
6 - 1d6= 5
{------------------------------------------------------}
You woke up in the hospital wing, wrapped in bandages and a pint of blood being squeezed into you. An orderly built like a granite boulder stands guard, presumably to keep you from harming yourself further.
After a while, the curtain around your bed is moved aside, revealing a man in a white lab coat over a suit and tie. Like everything else he is a sterile black and white, making the red stains on your bandages stand out all the more.
"Hello, I am Doctor Melinoe. It is my job to try to make you well."
You regard him for an uncomfortable beat or two.
[ ] [Dr. Melinoe] Sarcasm| "Think it's a bit late for that doc."
[ ] [Dr. Melinoe] Acid| "I have no use for well-meaning fools."
[ ] [Dr. Melinoe] Cordiality| "Well, it's a pleasure to meet you."
[ ] [Dr. Melinoe] Write-in.
He merely smiles and adjusts his glasses.
"Be that as it may, I have seen many cases like yours. People subjected to horrible sights, doubting their own eyes. Fear not, my friend. Sanity is a choice."
He brings out a small wooden box from under his arm.
"And with that in mind, would you like to play a game of chess?"
[ ] [Chess] Agree [Grim Decreases]
[ ] [Chess] Refuse [Return to the padded cell]
Plan format please. Votes:
- Gift
- Dr. Melinoe
- Chess
- Location
- St. Petersburg
Um. The votes don't seem to be too closely related for that, and everyone votes by task. Do you really need them in Plan format, or can I leave it as is?
[x] [Gift] Blood| the principle of the Blood exalts and advances, dealing with a problem by making it surmountable.
[x] [Dr. Melinoe] Cordiality| "Well, it's a pleasure to meet you."
[x] [Chess] Agree [Grim Decreases]