You are probably wondering, first off, what the hell this is all about. Simply put, PSYCHOBILLY’S HOUSE OF SLAUGHTER is a game. It is a Role Playing Game, of sorts because you are taking on the ‘role’ of a certain character and you command the ACTIONS and OPTIONS of a character you customize as the game proceeds towards its inevitable end. Your character will have a name, some ATTRIBUTES to distinguish what he/she is good at, ITEMS it will be carrying, as well as memories, quirks, and (if you get right down to it) a personality. Each person that plays this game has a different character that they control by describing what they might say or do. Only you and the GAMEMASTER have a say on the immediate qualities of what your character is doing or saying, but other characters can interact with your character resulting in many ways including INJURY or DEATH.
This is a game and like most games there are ways to ‘win’. I quote ‘win’ because, in this case, there are many ways to win and these ways may not, at first glance, be obvious. The game is all contained within a fictional game show, “PHSYCHO BILLLY’S HOUSE OF SLAUGHTER”, where contestants are selected and become one of the six different guests that this game show hosts. It must be bared in mind that your character is like a pawn you control, forced to become part of this game show most likely against his/her will. The ‘prize’ for ‘winning’ is to be let free from the game and to escape the horrors within. Each CONTESTANT will be given a SCAVENGER-HUNT list that will contain five items. If the items on the list are found and returned to the CONTESTANT’S starting place (a color coded PNEUMATIC TUBE) then they are promised their freedom by PSYCHOBILLY himself.
The SIX CONTESTANTS will begin wearing nothing more than a pair of coveralls that sports one of the following colors: RED, YELLOW, WHITE, GREEN, BLUE, and PURPLE. They will be carrying the SCAVENGER LIST as their only beginning item. You shall be given instruction on which of the six colors you are, the location of your starting place, the items on your list as well as ATTRIBUTES and STATISTICS concerning the essential information of your character. This information can also be glanced at through a sub-page of the main website and will receive updating regularly.
HOW DO I PLAY?
You will be able to play this game by posting onto the PSYCHOBILLY’S HOUSE OF SLAUGHTER website as a co-author. Upon registering a GMAIL account through blogger.com you will be added as an author of the website, as well as given information concerning what character you are playing. Your account name can be your character’s name, your name, or simply what color player you are. I’d ask that you would not use names that confuse, or switch constantly for my memories sake.
When you are capable of posting, you simply log on as you feel and respond to the posts made by PSYCHO BILLY. He will address you as your player in the post title e.g., “RED PLAYER GO!!” or “BLUE PLAYER in the KITCHEN” or “GREEN PLAYER: TUBULAR RASA.”
Keep in mind that many players will be posting so you may have to scroll to find where your post is. This is my first attempt and I suppose I have plenty to learn about making this user-friendly. You may then post on the blog yourself or click the comment button to respond with what you want to do. There will be a bit said posting protocol below but for the most part you simply describe what it is you want to do. Examples: “I will sneak to the end of the hallway and keep my eyes peeled” or “The red contestant will fire his pistol at the fiendish looking mad man.” Or “‘Fuck You Cassidy!!’ and I bash his skull in with my fist!” Or even “Duck and cover!” is acceptable supposing you assume I get the idea of what you are doing. Large paragraphs of character descriptions are not necessary, but I do enjoy them!
To create a new user you must have a GOOGLE account. If you do not have one then it is not a big deal just make one by obtaining a Gmail address. If you are currently using another email account then I will probably send you information to obtain a Gmail account with your initial response email. I hope that it is not too much a pain in the ass to use another account for you folks, but I normally use a hotmail account myself and have had little difficulty making it work for me. Well, so far anyways.
The posting can be done by going to the BLOGGER WEBSITE (www.blogger.com) and signing in as your Gmail. You will be added to my blog’s author list and you should see a list of any blog’s you may or may not have on BLOGGER. Click on the “View Page” beside the HOUSE OF SLAUGHTER blog and you can see what has been posted. Check for posts that pertain to you and give them a read (I am assuming that reading others’ pages will happen from time to time, if not always so welcome to the McCarthy era!!) and either post a “new post” or comment on the posts that pertain to you.
It is important to realize that unless your CHARACTER is capable of interacting you ought not to post and really shouldn’t have been privy to what has happened. That being said, cheaters usually prosper. Still, your character is limited by the normal limitations that dictate our regular day-to-day, thus no time-travel or slipping through the 3rd dimension in space or at least not until you discover the technology.
Thus, if RED CONTESTANT is in the KITCHEN and your character the BLUE CONTESTANT are in the NORTH EAST HALL then the actions of either player is mutually exclusive to one-another, they can’t post in direct response to the others, and they have little in the way of interacting with one another due to the distance they are apart. That being said, there is no guarantee that the person playing the RED CONTESTANT is not reading what you have been posting for the last six weeks.
WHAT IS THE BEST WAY TO POST?
First off, there is no determined ‘right way’ to post. You can really type what you want however you want to. There is counter-productive ways of posting, that is to say it would not be hard to purposefully try and dismantle this website. But I gather for the most part people are not trying to destroy a game when they sit down to play it. They may want to bend the rules, play it their own way, or revel in their mastery of a game but by-and-large they do not want to end the game prematurely. So the best way to post is first and foremost toward some end in the game or at the very least a reaction to it.
If you are impressed with how RED PLAYER solved a complex riddle by smashing stuff then by all means comment or post something about it. If you happen to have a gruesome image file that captures the moment, post it. This is our story, we are all authors, but bare in mind that is PSYCHO BILLY who pulls all the strings. You can post, out of character, in these ways but it is asked that you keep it to a respectable level and try to stick to the narrative.
There is a POSTING PROTOCOL that can be followed when referring to in-game terms. A GLOSSARY OF TERMS will be up on the website shortly as a sub-page much like the CONTESTANTS STATISTICS and ITEMS sub-page. This will outline the in-game terms as they evolve. Many of these TERMS will be actions a character would typically take. This can give the player ideas and a way to formalize what their character will do and how successful they may be in their actions. If these TERMS are put into a sentence describing your action, you can ‘highlight’ these terms by capitalizing the word to let me know that you are doing something of a standard RPG action.
Examples:
I SNEAK down the hall
I USE my PISTOL and shoot the mothafucker!
I USE my CROWBAR and pry the DOOR open
I MOVE in close so I can USE my BASEBALL BAT
I SEARCH the ROOM
I DISARM the GRENADE TRAP
‘Highlighting’ particular words using capitalization allows PHSYCHO BILLY to know what it is you are attempting to do in a recognizable form. This is not always essential, and sometimes not beneficial to use every time you post but can help keep the game a consistently played one. It can also help for quick reference for when you are scanning back into the archives of our play-by-posts.
If you want your character to say something then put what is being said in quotations, allowing the readers to distinguish talking from ACTIONS. This may mean what you say is then re-posted onto PSYCHO BILLY’S post for another player if they can hear what you are saying. What you describe as your ACTION will also be reposted on other CONTESTANTS posts if they are aware of what you are doing. Thus, events can be observed from multiple perspectives from different PLAYERS. It may be fun to see how other CONTESTANTS perceive the same events from completely different angles and measure that against their re-ACTION.
Examples: With my PISTOL AIMED at his HEAD and with a gruff voice I say “YOU GOTTA ASK YOURSELF, ARE YOU FEELING LUCKY PUNK??”
WHO THE HELL IS THIS PSYCHO BILLY GUY?
Glad you asked. Essentially, he is me. Well, more the character I will be playing in this game. I am in many ways the GAMESHOW HOST and it is likened to the DUNGEON MASTER or STORY TELLER for most table-top RPGS. I am the one who tells the story; it is PSYCHO BILLY who pulls most of the strings. I gotta tell you that if this is good cop/bad cop, PSYCHO BILLY is most definitely the bad cop. You oughta give him what he wants or he is going to get angry. He wants you to amuse him, and his audiences while he records everything you do in your attempt to get free. He wants you to finish this sadistic SCAVENGER HUNT with as much style as you can muster. I should be honest, I want that too.
PSYCHO BILLY will be the name I post under. If he says something (which will blare from speakers in every corner) I will put it in quotations. Much like how I ask of you. I will not post what it is he is doing unless you have some way of observing that. I will post narration for the events and environment that surrounds you but these are not the words of PSYCHO BILLY himself.
WHAT ELSE IS KNOWN ABOUT PSYCHO BILLY?
He’s a god, he’s a man, he’s a ghost, he’s a guru.
WHAT ARE THESE ATTRIBUTES AND STATISTICS YOU WERE TALKING ABOUT?
It’s about time you asked that question, it means you wanna figure out your character. Your character has ATTRIBUTES that are broken down into seven S.P.E.C.I.A.L ATTRIBUTES.
S IS FOR STREGNTH: Can you lift a whole bunch at once? Do you pack a good punch? Captain of the wrestling team? You are probably STRONG
P is for PERCEPTION: Do you notice things before others do? Can you find anything as long as you SEARCH for it? Are you a private detective? You are probably PERCEPTIVE
E is for ENDURANCE: Can you take a few good punches before injury? Are you seldom sick? Do you want to live forever? You must have good ENDURANCE
C is for CHARISMA: Can you talk your way out of anything? Are you good with people? Are you a politician? You are probably CHARISMATIC
I is for INTELLEGENCE: You like books? Did you want to correct the grammar of the previous question? Are you a SCIENTIST? You are most likely INTELLEGENT
A is for AGILITY: Do you have good reflexes? Do you like shooting guns? Are you a ninja? You are probably AGILE
L is for LUCK: Do you find fortune wherever you go? Often get just what you needed just when you needed it? Do you claim some sort of birthright? You are probably LUCKY
Each ATTRIBUTE ranges from one to ten. A score of one means that you are horrible and possibly crippled when it comes to doing things that would involve that particular ATTRIBUTE. A score of five means you are among the average populace when it comes to your abilities. A score of ten means you are perhaps one of the best in the world with that attribute.
HOW WILL I USE ATTRIBUTES?
ATTRIBUTES are used to determine the result of an ACTION that you described doing in your post. When you attempt to do something the success or failure of your action depends on a random roll (usually 1-20) combined with a particular ATTRIBUTE or even a combination of ATTRIBUTES. The nature of the ACTION itself will determine the ATTRIBUTES that get used. For example if you SNEAK then you will probably use the AGILITY ATTRIBUTE. Thus, if you have high AGILITY you will be better at SNEAKING.
Sometimes ATTRIBUTES are used in reaction to certain events. This can range from your PERCEPTION determining whether you see or hear something to using your AGILITY to DODGE the explosion of a GRENADE TRAP. This will be determined by me and the result will be part of the post.
Sometimes ITEMS and CONDITONS will adjust your ATTRIBUTES and this will be adjusted on your CONTESTANT sub-page. Your ATTRIBUTES cannot be raised beyond ten nor lowered beyond one.
ATTRIBUTES also determine the result of STATISTICS that are further aspects of your character.
WHAT ARE THE STATISTICS OF MY CHARACTER?
Your characters STATISTICS are determined by your ATTRIBUTES, ITEMS and CONDITIONS. They are a measure of specific game aspects of your character and can be changed significantly as the game is played.
STATISTICS include:
HP xx/yy: Your health and general well being. Considering no one gets outta here alive, this is essentially how close you are to death. This is determined by your ENDURANCE score primarily. Certain things in the game may also increase your HP. The xx represent your CURRENT HP and it will be number that ranges from 5 to 50, but never past your MAX HP. The yy represent your MAX HP which is the maximum HP you may have at any given time and it is this aspect of your HP that ENDURANCE effects most. Your beginning MAX HP will be five times your ENDURANCE score. When you take DAMAGE your CURRENT HP will go down.
DR: x: This is the amount of DAMAGE you are protected from when ever you take DAMAGE. It usually comes in the form of ARMOR or CLOTHING but sometimes CONDITIONS like COVER will add to this STATISTIC as well.
DEFENCES: These are representations of how hard your character is to ‘hit’ in a possibility of three different ‘ways’. That is to say, how hard would it be to throw a dart at your forehead or how hard would it be to poison you. Your DEFENCES are a number that the higher it is the harder you are to effect.
FORTITUDE DEFENCE: This represents how hard it is to physically effect you in a substantial way. This would include poison, alcohol, freezing to death, or even as simple as being pushed over.
REFLEXES DEFENCE: How hard is it to actually make contact and ‘hit’ you. This is how good at dodging you are thus how hard you are to target. Also this is your ability to react to something that you notice happening.
VOLITION DEFENSE: The power of your mind will come into play within this game, so beware! How hard is it to DOMINATE or CHARM your character? If you have high VOLITION then you are less likely to be TRICKED by such CONDITIONS or even CONVINCED by the CHARISMA of others.
WITS DEFENSE: The power to have you -ahem- wits about you. Do you notice a man in the hall way trying to hide against the wall. Do you lose the man with the knife during a cat and mouse chase through the library. All of these things depend on WITS defense when ever something is trying to get from under your nose or past your eyes and ears.
PERKS: That’s right, as if I didn’t rip-off Fallout enough; PERKS! As the game progresses the CONTESTANTS may learn some tricks along the way. As they do, they will receive benefits on particular ACTIONS, STATISTICS, and even ATTRIBUTES. These bonuses are called PERKS. They are that little bit extra that lets your character become more and more unique in his/her style. They will usually be rewarded by PSYCHO BILLY for particular ACTIONS, as a boost to your self-esteem, or even in exchange for favors or ITEMS. This is as close as you get to leveling-up but you will be given choices to allow your character to go down particular ATTRIBUTE or STATISTIC ‘paths’ that get ever-more rewarding.
WHAT ABOUT ITEMS, HOW WILL I USE THEM?
Items will come in many forms but they can be boiled down into several categories:
AMMO: this is what you will load into the corresponding GUN WEAPON
WEAPONS: ranging from KNIVES to TOMMY GUNS WEAPONS are a plenty in the
SLAUGHTERHOUSE
CLOTHES: there will be the chance to wear another set of clothing if you want and they may end up effecting different ATTRIBUTES and STATISTICS.
CONSUMABLES: whether it be FOOD, BAND-AIDS, DRUGS or POTIONS it will usually effect your STATISTICS or ATTRIBUTES when absorbed into your body
PARTS: you will be able to REPAIR, BUILD or MODIFY OBJECTS or ITEMS by using these in conjunction with other ITEMS
SCAVENGER ITEM: Either your character or another CONTESTANT will need this to complete the SCAVENGER HUNT so these are to be treasured.
MISC: You just never know what I may chuck in there, hell I don’t
You can simply incorporate the name of the ITEM (in capitals if you want to ‘highlight’ it) when you type your post to indicate that you are using it. If you are going to READY another WEAPON or WEAR another ITEM you ought to declare that you are doing so and I will be sure to include it in your CONTESTANT sub-page.
HOW WILL I FIND ITEMS, OR DISCOVER THINGS TO DO?
Simply read the corresponding posts that include your CONTESTANTS COLOR and respond. If you want to search an area for more detail then simply describe your characters attempt to SEARCH. If you want to ask a question about more details then type a post asking the question. You will find things by moving around, SEARCHING, or generally investigating what narration that is described to you. At the end of such post, I will provide you with any items you TAKE as well as update your CONTESTANT sub-page.
SO MY CONTESTANT SUB-PAGE IS MY CHARACTER SHEET?
Yes
WHERE DO I SEND ANY FURTHER QUESTIONS TO?
Psychobillyshouseofslaughter@gmail.com
or simply log on to:
http://psychobillyhouseofslaughter.blogspot.com/
