MARTYRS - A Psychological Horror Game

[Hecatoncheires]

"An equilibrium is not always an optimum; it might not even be good. This may be the most important discovery of game theory."
- Ivar Ekeland, 'The Best Of All Possible Worlds'​

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Welcome, friends.

Today, we're going to play a game.

It works very simply. So simply that even idiot children like you can understand it. The rules are as follows.

I am going to kill one of you. Quite brutally.

Who that person is remains up to each one of you.

Each round, I'll give you three hours for someone to step forward and volunteer. To take one for the team, so to speak. If an hour passes and no-one's stepped up, I kill all of you. Really brutally. And then it's on to the next round.

And the next.

Let's get stuck right in, shall we?

Who's first?

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OVERVIEW THE GAME RULES CHARACTERS

• Hey chums. I wanted to throw something grim and fucked up together for Halloween.
  
  And given that I've just sat through Rob Zombie's half-baked new flick '31' (as well as a tonne of the 'Saw' movies), I've been trying to figure out my own spin on that whole set-up/story.
  
  'Martyrs' is the net result. A combination of splatterpunk, psychological horror, and a cheeky bit of Game Theory (yeah okay, 'Zero Escape' may have had a hand in this idea too). Players take the role of one of several individuals forced to take part in a bizarre, twisted re-imagining of the Volunteer's Dilemma. As the story plays out, the characters must attempt to discover a means of escaping the deranged game they are being forced to participate in, all whilst attempting to choose whether to suffer for the good of the group or trust in the goodwill of others.
  
  I'm aiming for this to be a fairly simple, short (by forum standards) and brutal affair, with characters being driven to increasingly desperate and deplorable measures as the situation they're in grinds them down. Lots of character interaction, tension and drama juxtaposed by brutal, over-the-top violence.
  
  Y'know, good ol' fashioned family fun.
• You know how this story goes.
  
  A group of people awaken in an unknown location, groggy with the drugs that have allowed them to be transported, just in time for a strange voice to inform them all that they're now participating in a simple little game. Every three hours, one of them will die. And it's up to each of them to decide whether that person should be them. If someone steps forward and offers themselves up for the good of the group, the game continues. If no-one does, everyone dies (very badly).
  
  The aim of this game is to explore the dynamics between a cast thrown into a desperate situation, and see how it changes and warps them over time. There's an element of mystery and intrigue to the whole affair, given the strange setting and the murderous individual (or is it individuals?) wrecking havoc on the group, but for the most part I'm aiming for this to be a simple, straightforward affair.
• • Have fun. That is the golden rule.
  • This game is going to involve a whole lot of blood, guts, suffering and gore. You probably shouldn't join if that's not your thing.
  • Given that a certain amount of this game will involve characters fucking over other characters , it's important to remember the difference between In Character and Out Of Character. Don't take it personally.
  • Characters are absolutely allowed to lie in-game. So are players, too. If they want.
  • Don't be such a duch.
  • No, seriously. Have fun.

  
  The game is divided into two phases: the main phase and the voting phase. In the main phase, characters interact with each other and the setting in order to discover what's happening to them. In the voting phase, players have to decide whether their character will offer themselves as a sacrifice to the person holding them hostage, or hope that someone else will in their place. To ensure that this is hidden from the other players, voting will be done via PMs.
  
  At the end of voting, whoever has volunteered as a sacrifice will be killed (most likely in a rather gruesome fashion) and the game will continue. If more than one person volunteers, a single person will be randomly selected from their number.
• Name: ((What is your character called?))
  Gender: ((What's your character's gender?))
  Age: ((How old is your character?))
  Overview: ((Give a brief, one or two sentence overview of who your character is and what they're about.))
  
  Appearance: ((What does your character look like? Please also include an image of your character, so everyone has a visual representation to go on.))
  
  Personality: ((What is your character like? What sort of a person are they?))
  History: ((Where has your character come from? What's their background? Give us a brief overview of who they are and what has brought them to this point.))
  
  Hopes: ((What are your character's hopes and ambitions? Where do they want to be in life?))
  Fears: ((What scares your character? What keeps them up at night?))

THE GAME UNFOLDS HERE​

 

[Pahn]

I am so in. T_T


L'enfer c'est les autres!

 

[Moogle-Girl]

I second that notion. I'm indecisive about what character I want to use, so I think I'll hold off until a few sheets get posted so I can see what personality types we'll already have. That way I can keep things fresh with a different role.

 

[pinkpanda8357]

Can we have two characters if we are planning to kill off one of our characters early?

 

[Hecatoncheires]

I think I'll put a limit of two characters per person in place, just so no-one goes apeshit with it, but yeah: if you'd like an additional character feel free.

 

[Shambles]

You mentioned that this RP would be shorted than a lot of other RPs. What would the posting requirements be? Once a day? Thrice a week? Other? I'm pretty interested.

 

[Hecatoncheires]

I try to avoid posting expectations in my games (usually cos I can't keep to them myself), so really as long as we're moving at a pace everyone's happy with then I'm happy.

 

[pinkpanda8357]

Name: Jerome

Gender: Male

Age: 24

Overview: Jerome is the type of man who constantly reaffirms his own masculinity. He is often found at the gym, outside of the gym, or on his way to the gym. When complimenting his fellow 'bros', he often starts his sentence with, "Not to sound gay or anything, but..."

Personality: Confidence and suave, with a hint of arrogance.

History: Jerome went through his teen years as a bassist in a band with some of his friends. He ended up getting kicked out when he kept bringing his girlfriend to practice. From that point on he decided bands are lame and he would rather spend his time lifting. Unfortunately, his now ex-girlfriend did not agree and ended up hooking up with the vocalist in his old band.

Hopes: He hopes to impress a hot babe with his guns, obviously. And maybe become a personal trainer or something.

Fears: His roommate is going to stop paying his rent, which would mean Jerome would have to cancel his gym membership.​

 

[Shambles]

Name | Alice Leanne Marsh
Gender | Female
Age | Fifty years old
Overview | Alice is a divorced mother of three. She works full-time as a social worker within the local hospital. Suffering from bouts of anxiety and depression, Alice hides her feelings through humor and compassion.

Appearance | Alice is a woman with light skin and dark features. Her dark brown hair is long, reaching past her shoulders, and matches her eyes. She is tall and slender, standing at 5'8" and weighing 120lbs. Wrinkles have begun to appear around her eyes and mouth and she has started finding grey in her hair. When she is not working, Alice dresses casually, preferring a thin long-sleeved blouse and slacks.

Personality | Alice is a woman who values tradition and order. She is aware of her surroundings and prefers facts over theories. It is not unknown for her to stick to her principles and grow stubborn if contested. Despite this, Alice is a strong believer of team-work, believing that more minds coming together will bring about greater good than a single thought could hope for. Alice is known for her dedication and direct attitude. She is loyal, patient, and reliable as well as trusted with organization. On the downsides, Alice can be seen as inflexible and judgemental. If thrown into an unconventional situation, she can grow uncomfortable and disoriented. She also finds it incredibly difficult to relax and express her emotions unless pushed toward a breaking point.

History | Alice was born to wealthy parents and never wanted for anything except for true companionship. Her parents spent a lot of money to keep their only daughter happy, but ultimately forgot that a child needed more than toys to grow up with. Once she turned 18, Alice left home to pursue her own life without asking for help from her parents. She went to college to become a teacher, ultimately changing her major to social work. This was when she met Mark, a psychology major. They dated for two years before getting married.

Alice graduated college and began working with Child Protective Services until she got pregnant with their first child, Jonathon. She took off work and remained a stay-at-home mother for five years. During that time, their second child, Marie, was born. When she returned to work, tension began to rise in the marriage and after an unexpected pregnancy ten years later, that tension spilled over. Mark had found himself another woman and within a year, the two were divorced.

Alice is now employed at the local hospital as a social worker. She works long hours but has a lot of help from her children. Jonathon (23) lives in his own apartment on the east side of town. He is currently studying at the local community college. Marie (19) still lives at home and helps watch over Jackson (9).

Hopes | Alice wants to see her children succeed. That is her biggest wish. Everything she does is for her children and she wouldn't change that for anything.
Fears | Violence, Darkness, Failure of herself and/or her children.
​

 

[Greenie]

This looks so good. Wish I could join but :/ I'd probably be too slow, especially seeing it's back to work tomorrow.

So I shall stalk instead. :D Have fun y'all!

 

[Shambles]

This looks so good. Wish I could join but :/ I'd probably be too slow, especially seeing it's back to work tomorrow.

So I shall stalk instead. :D Have fun y'all!

I'm a slow poster, too. You would probably blend in with us just fine in case you change your mind. :)

 

[Hecatoncheires]

This looks so good. Wish I could join but :/ I'd probably be too slow, especially seeing it's back to work tomorrow.

So I shall stalk instead. :D Have fun y'all!

For what it's worth, I really don't have a lot of posting speed expectations for this game. So as long as you can contribute to the story, you're totally welcome to get involved.

 

[Astaroth]

Grumpy is slow as molasses. :U

 

[Pahn]

Grumpy is slow as molasses. :U

pls 8D

are you gonna join Ozzieee huuuuh

 

[Greenie]

Hrmm slow as molasses is good for me. :D I'll make a sheet by tonight or tomorrow. ^_^

 

[Hecatoncheires]

Grumpy is slow as molasses. :U

Can confirm.

 

[Rae]

This is my kinda ish. If you'll have me, I'd love to get in on this. :D

 

[Hecatoncheires]

Sign-ups are open, chum. Get involved.

 

[CasmiRari]

​

Name: Rocco Jackobi
Gender: Male
Age: 24
Overview: RJ is an urban scamp trying to balance his responsibilities and his irresponsible nature. He is wholly and honestly more interested in living "fun" life than a "full" one, but the way he's been raised, if the call is urgent and dire enough, he will heed it.

Appearance: Rocco is 6'1", with a lean body build, brown eyes and some very trim facial hair. He keeps his naturally brown and curly hair short and may or may not straighten it depending on which side of the bed he wakes up on. His style is typical casual street hipster with a dash emo most of the time, though sometimes he goes full high fashion hipster with bright green loafers, collared patterend button up t's with bowties, or denim daisy print shorts with leather jackets and white t's.

Personality: Though he has a personal philosophy of hedonism and a general proclivity for irresponsibility, RJ isn't really a bad person, nor is he someone others usually have bad things to say about. He is all about fun, and believes that fun is even better with others. He likes to be part of groups, likes to try new things, and is always looking for new ways to indulge himself, whether its with food, clothes, romantic interests, a certain job, roaming, or whatever else he can think of. While he has many 'friends' and aquaintences, he has very few people he is really close to. When with others he has a more submissive/passive personality and so while no one thinks it quite so succinctly, he's sort of the type others only interact with when they need something from him and otherwise would not seek out. Things he loves, though, are his neices, his old truck- the first responsible acheivement he ever made, being free of all stress and feeling wanted.

History: RJ grew up in New England to a wealthy family. They weren't Bill Gates or anything, but they were certainly not middle class. That said, his father worked very, very hard to ensure his family stayed in the lap of luxury, and was sort of an office suck up, mostly because his superiors were all the type to be susceptible to that kind of thing. RJ was very ashamed of his father. His mother, on the other hand, was a very typical socialite- consumed with her charities, her socialite friends and their gossip, and showing off her family and status and possessions to them and others. His mother annoyed him, though he did love her. RJ's favorite person was his older sister Cecilia, 4 years his senior and always just as radical and troublesome as he was. She's the one that invited him to skinny dip in the pond the day of her mother's "Ball under Moonlight" fundraiser and then streak through her party back into the house. It was her that helped him construct the bungee set up off the roof of their house that would have surely killed one of them if the driver hadn't come along. And it was her who left he family first to be part of her own.

She married at 19 to a nice man named Greg who RJ also liked, but left RJ alone with their parents. Neither had any issue with her marriage- Greg had a good enough status and job, but RJ now had all their attention. He needed to get good grades, go on to be either a doctor, lawyer, or a politician(that was their version of 'you can be whatever you choose to be' for him) lead a rather perfect life, and simply be an overall trophy son. He did so. All A's, political science major since cutting people open and possibly ending up dealing with poop as well as being anywhere near anyone who'd ever killed anyone else gave him goosebumps, several notable extra curriculars, and outstanding behavior. The whole time he felt dead inside and was, unknown to anyone but C.C., in a fairly constant state of depression.

Then something happened. Out at someone else's fundraiser or something, his parents as well as several others riding in a private plane all perished in a crash due to extreme turbulence and incorrect weight distribution management. It devastated their children, but they came to find out the bulk of the money, bonds, property, ownings, stocks, and overall finances went to Rocco- he had pleased his parents and the set trajectory of his life was something they approved of. C.C. already had a husband and a family to take care of her, so they didn't leave her with nothing, but it certainly wasn't an even split. Suddenly, he was free of his parents desires and in full posession of enough wealth to live without every working a day in his life if he was more frugal. At first it brought him no joy- as the death of his mom and dad had been the reason for it, but eventually as he coped, he began to appreciate his situation more and more until he finally began taking advantage of it. At 22, a semester before he was set to graduate, he dropped out of school and began living on his own in the city in an apartment- a relatively nice one- with a roommate.

Experiencing the joys of being an adult with no tethers, RJ got drunk on the lack of responsibility and expectation and just began drifting from thing to thing with all the whimsy a secretly rich 20-something might have. He stayed close to C.C. and her family but otherwise completely shed every part of his old life. Things were once again good for him and it lasted about a year. When he was 23 his sister and her husband were involved in a mugging. Things got out of hand and when one of the two offenders got spooked and accidentally shot her, Greg went after him in a rage and got himself shot too. It was a date night for them, so their two daughters, 4 and 6 were at home at the time safe and sound. This time, RJ was left with two very large responsibilities.

RJ now raises Sophie, the elder at 7, and Eloise the younger at 5 by himself(Sort of- his roommate helps if he begs, provides compensation on one way or another, and isn't scheduled to be on a date with his boyfriend), while also trying to retain his life of general debauchery, even though he took them out of boarding school and put them in public school in part so he didn't have to pay the school fees but also so he could be near them, and now has to have a lot more to do with them than he would have if he'd left them how they were.

The day he was taken, he was out for a night of fun with his friends while Sophie and Eloise were at a sleepover at one of Sophie's friends for her birthday while Eloise got to come along because the birthday girl's younger brother was her bestie.

Hopes: RJ wants to just forever be his easy going self, but he also now wants Sophie and Eloise to grow up proud of him and happy with their lives
Fears: That anyone else he loves will die, or be taken from him.

 

[Hecatoncheires]

HEY KIDS, IT'S TIME FOR GRUMPY TO HARASS ALL THE PEOPLE WHO MADE THE MISTAKE OF EXPRESSING INTEREST.

@Pahn @Moogle-Girl @Greenie @kimsim12 @Melonica @Astaroth

Now then, let's take a gander at the sheets we've got so far.

@Cait
Alice is totally accepted. Nice, rounded character, good bit of background material too. Plus lots of angles for me to use to fuck with her

@CasmiRari
RJ is also absolutely accepted. He's flawed in interesting ways, but has ties to the outside world that'll create really interesting conflicts with his altruistic nature.

Great characters, guys. Thanks for getting involved.

I'll try to wrangle a few more folks for this game, since once we're locked in it'll be difficult to add more characters (though not shed them), and then we can get stuck in.