Sonichu Don't Zap to the Extreme - An interactive horror experience

[Quote Me Now]

Alright Quote Me Now, what’s this?

This thread is a play-by-post of an RPG setting I’ve been working on lately. Basically, I’ve adapted the city of CWCville into Don’t Rest Your Head, a wonderful little system by Evil Hat Games. I felt CWCville was the perfect place to set a horror RPG, because there’s so much unintentional horror there to begin with, especially if you exaggerate it! It’s almost like collaborative fan fiction! Also, this post is quite long, so I’ve included handy subtitles, and I apologise for the text wall.

Won’t this thread get real cluttered, real fast?

I’ll be opening one of those nifty conversation things with all players (Assuming people are interested, of course) and using those to handle all the normal GM-Player back and forth that tends to go on. The only posts in this thread from myself will be regarding story developments, and all player posts will be final! So we won’t see 10-page discussions on what to do next, and all my posts are likely to be both long, (hopefully) interesting, and entirely relevant, the best combination.

If I want in, how do I get in?

I guess the only fair way to do this is first-come first-served, so they first four people to post characters below can experience the true horror of CWCville.

How do I make a character?

Just answer these questions!

1) What’s your name? Don’t use your real name, obviously.

2) What really Grinds your Gears? This is your “Stress Power”, a mundane thing you’re really good at. It can be anything, as long as it’s possible for a normal person to do it. Probably not as well as you, though.

3) What can you do that you can’t explain? This is your “Madness power”, an impossible thing that you can inexplicably do due to exposure to Magi-Chan’s powers. It can be anything, as long as it’s impossible, but Chris-inspired ones are very very welcome.

4) Why does Chris hate you? This is the big one. Each of your characters has done something against CWCville’s laws. Usually this is open-ended, but I’m going to have to ask you all to pick from these, and avoid duplicates if you can please.

a) I waste unborn children by not “Recycling”.

b) I have a sweetheart and my name isn’t Chris, making me a JERK

c) I am…*Sigh*…a homo.

d) I smoke tobakky.

e) I make SLANDEROUS MOCKERIES of Mayor Chandler’s creations

f) I just don’t like the Great Director Chandler very much.

Are you going to get to the point, or just explain rules all day?

I will post DA RULES if I get enough interest to justify making people read them – But I don’t intend to post the entire rulebook for Don’t Rest Your Head, just a concise version that will allow people reading the thread to understand what’s going on. In the interests of not doubleposting, I’ll include the prologue for this wondrous, magical adventure we’re going on below.

Prologue

So you’ve started to think for yourself. It’s new, I know. Don’t panic.

I don’t care how it started. Maybe you broke the rules intentionally, maybe you didn’t, I’m not here to judge you. The point is, it bothered you. It nagged at you constantly, and it made you question the rules. Whether they were just. Whether they were right. Little by little, you started to notice all the small things wrong with this place. The straws that are just a little too big. That feeling just at the back of your mind, like you’re being watched. Until one day, something snapped.

That’s when you started wondering about it all. The almost-human abominations that are venerated and celebrated, the “Mayor” having a lifetime tenure, the happy daze people walk around in all day. When you took a long, hard think about it all, you stopped being a Citizen and instead, became Aware.

But that snap you heard wasn’t the sound of your mind breaking under the guilt of what you’ve done and reality falling away. No, this is all too real. It was the sound of the straps fastening on your wrists in the ten-button electric chair, and the switch being primed. When you started thinking, you became a target. They can sense that you know what they are, and you’d better pray they never find you.

You’re going to be hurt. You’re going to be hunted by the very people…no, the very things that not long ago, you called your guardians. There’s no going back to the life that once was, if you can call it life. You’ve got to find a way out of CWCville before they find you – but nobody ever leaves.

Keep moving.

Keep resisting.

Don’t Zap to the Extreme.

 

[Tavern Explorer]

Well, this looks fun.

1) Tavern Greil

2) Running around

3) Doing parkay

4) e.

 

[Chelonian]

1) Bob Fatmann, aka Sammy

2) Large amount of fat, particularly in his fists. This turns blow from Bob quite deadly if he can muster the strength to move his massive arms.

3) Transforming into a rotting fat version of Sonichu, only able to use a weakened Thunderbolt that leaves a crater that sinks of death and decay.

4)E, for supposedly impersonating the almighty Chris-Chan.

 

[Randall Fragg]

Count me in!
1: The Jerkheif, aka Hank Venderson.
A 7 ft tall black cop who moved to CWCville to get away from the crime of New York. He scores with the ladies and thus violated Rule B
2: Pain resistance.
3: Police Brutality. The Jerkeif can fly into a rage and gain temporary damaged resistance.

 

[A Random]

1) Pigeon Pijon. My parents hated me because I was born a JERK and thus could not become a boyfriend-free girl from the ground up for the Great Director Chandler, thus they gave me a stupid name based after my last name.

2) Looking good in any outfit. I have such an unique style sense that I could be confused for a homo, but I'm not.

3) I can cast MAGIC!!111 Well, not every kind. I can grab things and make them... do things. That they shouldn't do. It happens. I have to follow their rules, though - I can only move stuff in and out of hats, for instance, not make the hats fly and kill people. Yet.

4) I just don't like The Original Chris'Tard Chandler much. Why would I? I have a stupid name thanks to being a failure to him!

 

[Judge Holden]

Hmm, lets see

1) The Smiling Judge

2) Pervert Berserker - Is driven to homicidal rage at the sight of anything he has not yet fucked, groped, or forced to imbibe his body seepings, and will go out of his way to fuck it in any orifice unless he is restrained

3) Blood of Fistichu - Can transform into an electronic hedgehog pokemon themed heavily around fisting and skullfucking, who was banished by the CWC to labor in mining Barb's fat-flaps for lost legos after attempting to sew angelica, punchy, and wild into a hedgehog centipede

4) e

 

[A Random]

...is The Smiling Judge straight or pan?

 

[Quote Me Now]

Alrighty then! I have my 5 vict...er...players! Starting conversation to get things sorted.

 

[Quote Me Now]

DA RULES

All characters in this game have the same "Stats". These stats are Sanity, Stress, and Madness. Everyone starts with 3 Sanity. All monsters and challenges only have one stat - Autism.

When a conflict needs to be resolved, dice rolls happen on my end - 1 roll per conflict. Before each roll, you may choose to add one Stress to your total, and up to 8 Madness. I will roll a number of six-sided dice (d6) equal to your Sanity, Stress and Madness combined against a number of D6 equal to the challenge's Autism rating. If you win the conflict, yay! Whatever you were trying to do is accomplished! If you lose the conflict, your Stress will increase by 1, and other effects may happen depending on what, exactly, you just failed trying to do.

Stress is "sticky" - it stays around after you gain it. If you add one Stress on a roll where you previously had zero, you will have 1 Stress at the beginning of the next conflict. This will make you more powerful, but it comes at a cost. If you hit 6 Stress, you will Crash into Slumber - Your character can no longer stand all this Stressful Torture, and can do nothing but shit themselves and do nothing. If your friends don't help you, the nightmares of CWCville will soon descend...

Madness is not "sticky". It disappears after every roll.

You may be wondering, "But Quote Me Now, why not just add 8 Madness to every roll?"

Here's why. A roll is always "Dominated" by a stat. The only one that's good for you is Sanity, all the others will hurt you. I don't want to go into the exact details here (Players, ask in conversation if you want the exact details), but it's important to note that the stat that dominates is highly likely (but not certain) to be the one with the most points - So if you add 8 Madness on a 4 Autism challenge, it's very very likely that Madness will dominate. Roll domination will affect the story.

If Sanity dominates, you may decrease your Stress by 1, or restore a Madness response (More on that later). This is, once again, the only one that is good for you.

If Stress dominates, your Stress increases by 1, bringing you ever closer to Crashing into Slumber.

If Madness dominates, you act according to primal instinct - Fight or Flight. If this happens 3 times, you "Snap", and one of your Sanity dice is permanently replaced with one permanent Madness dice. If you run out of Sanity, well...pick your favorite color, a terrible name, and an awful Pokemon-inspired power, because you're one of them now.

If Autism dominates, I get a point in my Pot of Fail that I can use later on to affect roll dominance. This will undoubtedly be bad for you.

That's pretty much all the mechanics you'll need to know to understand what's going on here. In summary, don't hit 6 Stress, don't overuse Madness lest you become a recolor, and Sanity is your only refuge.

Now the rules are hopefully understood (Once again, players please ask in conversation if you're confused):

Chapter 1: Hank Venderson, The Jerkhief

It's a tough life being as handsome and good with the ladies as you, Hank, but someone's gotta do it. You've met with your current sweetheart on a lonely hilltop on the outskirts of CWCville - It's too dangerous to meet within the confines of the city. Somebody might find out, and the consequences would be...well, best not to think about it. As you sit, relaxed on the hilltop, a single leaf from the tree you're both sitting under spirals lazily to the ground. You feel a slight tremor from beneath you, but apart from that, everything is perfect. The city of CWCville is splayed out before you, and for a while, you can almost forget about the horrible, oppressive atmosphere that pervades the city.

The tremor becomes slightly stronger. The clouds above your head begin twisting into spiral patterns. Looking around you, you see the hilltop being...twisted. The land is almost folding into a different shape. A spiral shape, with you and your sweetheart at the centre. You hear an audible rumble as the tremor intensifies, and the sudden quake almost knocks you off your feet. Your sweetheart clings to you for stability, as great fountains of dirt are thrown in all directions around you.

Suddenly, without warning, your sweetheart is grabbed from below and pulled underground.

What do you do, Hank Venderson?

 

[Randall Fragg]

DA RULES

All characters in this game have the same "Stats". These stats are Sanity, Stress, and Madness. Everyone starts with 3 Sanity. All monsters and challenges only have one stat - Autism.

When a conflict needs to be resolved, dice rolls happen on my end - 1 roll per conflict. Before each roll, you may choose to add one Stress to your total, and up to 8 Madness. I will roll a number of six-sided dice (d6) equal to your Sanity, Stress and Madness combined against a number of D6 equal to the challenge's Autism rating. If you win the conflict, yay! Whatever you were trying to do is accomplished! If you lose the conflict, your Stress will increase by 1, and other effects may happen depending on what, exactly, you just failed trying to do.

Stress is "sticky" - it stays around after you gain it. If you add one Stress on a roll where you previously had zero, you will have 1 Stress at the beginning of the next conflict. This will make you more powerful, but it comes at a cost. If you hit 6 Stress, you will Crash into Slumber - Your character can no longer stand all this Stressful Torture, and can do nothing but shit themselves and do nothing. If your friends don't help you, the nightmares of CWCville will soon descend...

Madness is not "sticky". It disappears after every roll.

You may be wondering, "But Quote Me Now, why not just add 8 Madness to every roll?"

Here's why. A roll is always "Dominated" by a stat. The only one that's good for you is Sanity, all the others will hurt you. I don't want to go into the exact details here (Players, ask in conversation if you want the exact details), but it's important to note that the stat that dominates is highly likely (but not certain) to be the one with the most points - So if you add 8 Madness on a 4 Autism challenge, it's very very likely that Madness will dominate. Roll domination will affect the story.

If Sanity dominates, you may decrease your Stress by 1, or restore a Madness response (More on that later). This is, once again, the only one that is good for you.

If Stress dominates, your Stress increases by 1, bringing you ever closer to Crashing into Slumber.

If Madness dominates, you act according to primal instinct - Fight or Flight. If this happens 3 times, you "Snap", and one of your Sanity dice is permanently replaced with one permanent Madness dice. If you run out of Sanity, well...pick your favorite color, a terrible name, and an awful Pokemon-inspired power, because you're one of them now.

If Autism dominates, I get a point in my Pot of Fail that I can use later on to affect roll dominance. This will undoubtedly be bad for you.

That's pretty much all the mechanics you'll need to know to understand what's going on here. In summary, don't hit 6 Stress, don't overuse Madness lest you become a recolor, and Sanity is your only refuge.

Now the rules are hopefully understood (Once again, players please ask in conversation if you're confused):

Chapter 1: Hank Venderson, The Jerkhief

It's a tough life being as handsome and good with the ladies as you, Hank, but someone's gotta do it. You've met with your current sweetheart on a lonely hilltop on the outskirts of CWCville - It's too dangerous to meet within the confines of the city. Somebody might find out, and the consequences would be...well, best not to think about it. As you sit, relaxed on the hilltop, a single leaf from the tree you're both sitting under spirals lazily to the ground. You feel a slight tremor from beneath you, but apart from that, everything is perfect. The city of CWCville is splayed out before you, and for a while, you can almost forget about the horrible, oppressive atmosphere that pervades the city.

The tremor becomes slightly stronger. The clouds above your head begin twisting into spiral patterns. Looking around you, you see the hilltop being...twisted. The land is almost folding into a different shape. A spiral shape, with you and your sweetheart at the centre. You hear an audible rumble as the tremor intensifies, and the sudden quake almost knocks you off your feet. Your sweetheart clings to you for stability, as great fountains of dirt are thrown in all directions around you.

Suddenly, without warning, your sweetheart is grabbed from below and pulled underground.

What do you do, Hank Venderson?

Well, the ground just ate my gal pal, so I'm going to the cowardly but seemingly sane thing of running like hell.
I've got three sanity, right? So, I'm going to add two madness, and one stress.

 

[Quote Me Now]

Well, the ground just ate my gal pal, so I'm going to the cowardly but seemingly sane thing of running like hell. I've got three sanity, right? So, I'm going to add two madness, and one stress.

If there's somewhere you want to be right now, it's anywhere but here! Abandoning your gal pal to her unknown fate - you've got plenty more, anyway - you try to make a break for it. At every turn, you're blocked by a sudden eruption of rock and dirt, the first of which almost knocks you to the ground as it erupts from the earth in front of you. You find yourself running in ever-smaller circles, as you're driven further and further back to the center of the spiral.

Whatever's there, you don't want any of it. Turning to face the oncoming avalanche, you run straight for it, hoping to punch through and make it out the other side.

What happens next is a blur of sound and pain. You hear what sounds like the whirring of a powerful drill behind you. You feel the impact of the stone on your body, as you crash through it. Barely conscious, you shakily run towards CWCville. The city may be bad, but you might be able to hide there...

Result: Player wins, Autism dominates. I receive 1 coin in my Pot of Fail.

Chapter 2: Pigeon Pijon

God damn that Chris. He's the one thing in your life you wish never happened, and you haven't even met the guy. Everything from your name to being stuck in this stupid, run-down excuse for a city is his fault. You can't even criticize him these days without being punished.

Still, there's one person who makes you feel better about the whole thing, and you're on your way to see him now! You feel like you can talk about anything with Jason. Jason "J-Twig" Twigganato is, on reflection, the only good thing about this city. If ever you need someone to talk to and vent your frustrations to, you can always count on J-Twig to listen.

You and J-Twig only ever talk about Chris, but it's so refreshing to be able to speak your mind about him to someone without fear of reprisal! You guess he must feel the same way about the guy, the way he goes on about him.

When you meet J-Twig today, however, something is different. You can't quite place it at first. Maybe it's something about the way he's standing with his back to you, he seems so...listless. So much less exuberant than the J-Twig you know. It's only when you get closer that you notice something really strange. He's standing in a puddle of water. When you approach him, he turns around, slowly. As he does so, a fly buzzes around his head and comes to rest on his arm. His blank, emotionless face stares at you, and a drop of water runs from his soaked hair down the side of his cheek.

"Hey...Pigeon. I've...been thinking...about the whole...Chris thing. We've had it...all...wrong..." he drones. "I've...met a really nice girl, who...showed me how...wrong I was. You should...come...meet her."

As he speaks, the fly on his arm alights on his ear, and crawls inside. He winces slightly as it does so, but it doesn't interrupt his speech.

He begins to reach out for you, to grab you forcefully by the arm. You begin to hear a buzzing sound, like a nest of angry wasps. You see rapid movement behind J-Twig's dead, cold eyes, as thousands of insects swarm inside his head.

What do you do, Pigeon Pijon?

 

[A Random]

Meeting J-Twig was by pure luck; guy was new to town, or so he thought, the two of you meeting at some point in CWCville's high school - not that Pigeon wanted to think about it, considering the sheer amount of unpleasantness he had both witnessed or gone through during those nasty years. Not even a year and the two were practically best buds, hanging out after school and having what little fun could be found when you weren't a popular guy. Since, for some reason, his parents had made it clear to the rest of CWCville that they wanted a girl to begin with and their disappointment at not having one was amazing. J-Twig was smarter than any of these dumbasses, that was for sure.

Which was why seeing the guy like this was unnerving to begin with. But Pigeon was a calm guy. He knew not to mess with other people needlessly, so at first, he let J-Twig talk. The whole fly thing was weird, and it was weird that he was so wet, but holy crap did that fly just enter his ear

Eyes wide as the hand moved forward, Pigeon took a couple of steps back, keeping his distance and arms up. "Um, dude," he said, politely, "you know the local 'one girl per guy' policy, right? I mean, really, congrats! You found the girl for you and all!" At this point, the tone was a little too strong, as Pigeon struggled to smile. "I'd rather not get you in trouble by accident or anything!"

The redhead was already sweating. Bugs. His best friend was infested with bugs. It was all he could do to keep up the straight face and even then he already wanted to retch.

Horrible as it was, though, he was also terrified for himself. Pigeon didn't want to leave J-Twig to this horrible fate, he honestly would want to see his best friend again, but... right now? He was going to run. Fast.

 

[Quote Me Now]

Horrible as it was, though, he was also terrified for himself. Pigeon didn't want to leave J-Twig to this horrible fate, he honestly would want to see his best friend again, but... right now? He was going to run. Fast.

J-Twig moves forward slowly. "Not, it's...okay...she's not a...girl...exactly." As Pigeon turns to run, J-Twig's mouth opens wider than it should. A torrent of water spills out of it, and it's all Pigeon can do to keep standing against the current that starts sucking him backwards as he tries to run. He feels the sting of hundreds of tiny mandibles on his legs, and falters, losing his balance. In desperation, Pigeon grabs a drainage pipe hanging above him as he strains to keep himself from being sucked back towards the thing that used to be his best friend.

It's not enough. Pigeon feels his grip slipping, closes his eyes, and strains to hold on for his life. He feels a spark run down his fingers into the pipe, and suddenly the sucking pressure is gone. Opening his eyes, Pigeon sees the water around his feet, along with the thousands of small insects inside it, being sucked into the pipe faster than it was flowing from J-Twig. Eventually, J-Twig has no more left - His strength spent, the husk of what once was a proud man collapses to the ground, a tiny puddle of water pooling around his body and a solitary fly buzzing up into the sky, flying in a straight line as if it had a plan and purpose. Wanting to be anywhere but here right now, Pigeon runs as fast as he can away from the scene. Surely this wasn't real, right?

Result: Player wins, Autism dominates (+1 coin into my Pot of Fail)

Chapter 3: Bob "Sammy" Fatman

There aren't many good places left in CWCville, but The Empty Fapcup Bar and Grill sure is one of them. The owner's a good sort - He knows what's up in this city, and knows how to fly just low enough under the radar for people like you to find him, but the authorities to miss him. Out front, it's all fine dining and country cookin', a perfect place for that first, second, or even third date (There's a room upstairs that can be rented by the hour)! A place where the Fanta flows freely, and the microwaves never stop turning out quality dining.

Of course, there's also the back room, for people like you. Smoking may be a "Dirty" habit, hell it may even be banned, but you've got a right to smoke yourself to death if you want to, right? Ever since the city's supply was sent to the moon, it's been hard for you to get hold of a decent amount of tobbacky at once, but your suppliers here keep you in pretty good shape, and they don't charge exorbitant amounts. The Empty Fapcup's back room caters to all vices that The Great Mayor has seen fit to outright ban, from alcohol to drugs. Nobody judges you here. It's a safe place.

That is, until today. You're sat in your favorite chair, enjoying your daily hit of nicotine, when your safe haven is violated in a blur of confusion and sound. It all happens so fast, you barely have time to register it happening

The window is smashed in with enough force to embed glass shards into the wall behind you, and a green blur flies through the place where the pane used to be. Wild Sonichu rolls across the floor, and in one fluid motion, grabs the throat of the man sitting next to you and slams him into a wall. Pressing his face up against the terrified man, he stares at him with his mad, bloodshot eyes.

"What's the matter?", Wild cackles. "DONTCHA WANT A BIT OF WEEEEEED?"

Wild throws his head back in uproarious laughter at his own hilarious joke, before holding the poor man's throat open with his hands and breathing a black, noxious substance down his gullet. He throws the poor man to the floor, who starts retching and coughing up thick, black bile.

Throwing his arms up above his head, Wild sends vines shooting out of his arms, attaching them to the ceiling and walls. With a final yell of "NO SMOKING, BITCHES!", and another blood-chilling cackle, Wild starts to pull. The walls crack, and the building begins to collapse in on itself.

What do you do, Bob Fatman?

 

[Chelonian]

Tossing his cuban cigar towards the green Pokemon, the morbidly obese Sammy covers his eyes and hopes for the best results from the action.

 

[Quote Me Now]

Tossing his cuban cigar towards the green Pokemon, the morbidly obese Sammy covers his eyes and hopes for the best results from the action.

The building collapses directly on top of the stationary Sammy and the assembled patrons, none of which are fortunate enough to possess Sammy's robust nature. Sammy's large, rotund body is able to withstand the brunt of the collapsing building with less ease than would be comfortable. The crushing masonry almost chokes him, and Sammy is only able to survive by slowly and painfully assuming a kneeling position, where enough free space is cleared for his lungs to inflate normally.

From above him, Sammy hears the green Pokemon rambling to himself. "HAHAHA! Transformers! Buildings on your head!" The nonsensical attempt at humor is joined by another voice - a nasal, whiny voice, mercifully muffled by the masonry between Sammy and it's source.

"That's a good job, there, Wild Soni-Chu. We can't ha...we can't be having trolls like them around for the Sonichu Day celebrations. We'll be getting more loyal citizens to repluc...be getting more loyal citizens to replace them on that day, anyway."

"MMMMMHMHAHAHA, thank you, Father!", replies Wild Sonichu.

By the time Sammy has heaved his corpulent, yet surprisingly strong form out of the rubble of what once was a cool place to hang out at like a fat phoenix, Wild and his Father have long since departed.

Result: Tie (Player wins ties), Stress dominates (Stress increased by 1)

Chapter 4: Tavern Greil

Another day, another dollar. Not that you don't enjoy your work, of course, but being the original co-creator of an intellectual property as hot as Homochu is hard work. What started as a way to relieve stress turned into a cult hit overnight, and soon you had thousands of adoring fans metaphorically beating down your door for the latest issue. Not literally, of course - as soon as the Mayor caught wind of it, the publication was immediately outlawed. But there's something about Homochu's illicit appeal that makes it a hot product, one that people are very interested in purchasing under the counter.

As you climb the stairs to your office, you hear a sound from behind the door. A voice you don't recognize. It sounds female, but is just a little too deep, and slightly rough.

"So if you're not the creator, who is?"

You hear your co-creator, Mitch Anderson, respond. "I...look, he's some guy called Tavern Greil, I don't know where he is, just...AAAAAAGH!". The scream coincides with all of the lights in the building flickering on and off, rapidly.

Bursting through the door, you find Mitch face down in the middle of the room. There are scraps of pink and blue clothing strewn everywhere around him, the window is open, and the latest draft of Homochu #8 is missing from your desk.

Slowly, Mitch begins to stir. Your relief that your friend is okay is short-lived, as rising from the floor, he reveals a gaping hole in the middle of his face, electricity arcing between the widest parts. Slowly, he moves towards you, his arm outstretched and sparking.

What do you do, Tavern Greil?

 

[Tavern Explorer]

"Oh, shit!"

Without hesitation Tavern turns a 360 and dashes for the door, trying to get down the stairs and out the building as fast as he can.

 

[Quote Me Now]

Turning around 360 degrees, Tavern finds himself once again facing the monstrosity that used to be his friend. Correcting his previous mathematics error, Tavern runs for the door, only to find his path blocked by electricity surging from the walls. With a wall of death in front of him that threatened to zap him to the extreme, and a nightmarish abomination bearing down on him from behind, there was only one option left to Tavern - The open window. As the body of Mitch Anderson made a clumsy, stumbling lunge forwards, Tavern vaulted out of the window, trying desperately to remember his elite Parkay methods.

After a terrifying moment of peril in which Tavern felt gravity exert it's cruel influence upon him, his feet mercifully found purchase on the vertical wall. Running down the wall as fast as he could Tavern dashed into the streets of CWCville, leaving his old life behind him.

Result: Tie (Player wins ties), Autism dominates (+1 coin to Pot of Fail)

EDIT: Afinepickle replaces Judge Holden

Chapter 5: Stan "The Pickleman" Bronswick

Stan "The Pickleman" had, perhaps, one of the most dangerous and daring jobs in the whole of CWCville. He ran an illegal pickling business, an industry detested and banned by Mayor Chandler due to a pickle's apparent resemblance to ducks.

Stan had no idea how pickles are meant to resemble anatidae, but then again, Stan didn't understand a lot of CWCville's nonsensical "laws". One such law was the law about "Recycling" to prevent loss of "unborn children", a law that Stan had avoided following since the day he arrived in this strange, mad city.

Fortunately for Stan, he was not alone is his attempt to circumvent CWCville's most bizarre and quite frankly disgusting law. Within days of moving to the city, he'd found a friend in his best customer, Dave Dosh. Dave, too, found the law on "Recycling" objectionable. Every Friday, Stan and Dave would sit out in the sun after work and enjoy the cans of orange Fanta provided to every citizen, untainted by foul tastes. Flouting the laws in a place like CWCville could be daunting, but it was easier with company.

Stan always enjoyed Dave's company, but Dave often seemed distant and distracted. So, when Stan walked in on Dave seemingly involved in a passionate clinch with a strange, white-furred...erm...girl, he believed he may have found the reason for Dave's mind tending to wander. Stan wasn't one to judge - maybe Dave was just into anthropomorphic hedgehog-type women. With wings.

When Dave was released from the embrace, however, Stan wasn't so sure. There was a look of terror on his friend's face, seemingly frozen there. The mysterious hedgehog girl quickly took off into the sky leaving Dave to cough violently. As soon as he noticed Stan, Dave started trying to talk.

"Stan...Stan, don't come any closer." Dave could barely speak past his coughing fits.

"I can...I can feel them, Stan. She made me...Oh god, she made me..." Dave retched, clutching his stomach. "Stan, you need to run! Run now, or I'll...AAAAAAGH!"

As Stan watched helplessly, Dave's skin was pierced by hundreds, no, thousands of tiny white tendrils. His face twisted into a masque of pure agony, and he rose to his feet with a will that was not his own. Staggering towards Stan slowly, Dave was able to choke out a few last words. "Stan...go!".

Dave broke into a run, aiming straight for Stan, his arms outstretched.

What do you do, Stan the Pickle Man?

 

[Afinepickle]

Stan is absolutely stunned and terrified by the display. He doesn't understand exactly what's going on but heeding his...transformed...friend's last words. Stan turns promptly around and bolts it.

(Adding one stress and one madness dice)

 

[Quote Me Now]

Stan freezes, not knowing what to do. For a good few seconds, he can do nothing but stare at Dave's transformed self in shocked disbelief. It's only when Dave is very close that Stan acts, on instinct more than reason.

Jumping backwards, Stan runs. He runs as fast as he can, in any direction he can find. He runs so fast, he loses himself in the maze of streets that is CWCville, and he does not stop running for anyone or anything. He doesn't even stop when he notices how he now has .

Result: Player wins, Madness dominates (-1 reponse, Stan has 2 left)

Intermission

As the 5 of you flee the nightmarish denizens of CWCville that have targeted you, you know it's not the end. The city of CWCville constantly shifts, it's streets twisting and turning to the most "Convenient" form at all times. That's why you always run into just the right person, that's why everything here is so damn contrived. The city itself twists to serve some unknown "plot", no doubt constructed by Mayor Chandler himself. As such, it can be completely expected that the next corner you turn could very well have you run straight into the waiting arms of the creatures you just fled from.

As the 5 of you round a corner, you run straight into 4 other terrified people, fleeing for their lives.

...fucking CWCville.

The game begins "properly" from this point, now I've done all your character intros! Introduce yourselves, talk, and decide your priorities! The night is drawing in, and CWCville is a hostile place, but you all know it's geography and the places you could go (Or at least, you hopefully do if you've read Sonichu). Good luck!

 

[Tavern Explorer]

Tavern dodges back, trying to keep the four strangers in sight while looking for something to use as a weapon.

"Oh fuck! Don't you fucking get near me, you're not killing me too!"