The following is the final email I just sent to Michi for this Halloween.
Dear Michizure and whomsoever else may be involved in AO and TSW holiday content,
We've got another list of Halloween ideas to help with your brainstorming. As usual, I've collected ideas at GSP parties for a couple weeks, then the GSP staff and dancers helped me pick out which ones to detail more and list first, but the whole list we came up with is included here.
1) bunny ears
AO still needs bunny ears, wearable on your own head like the devil horns, not replacing your head like the Usagi mask and Catgirl morph. I think this has been toward the top of my Halloween list every year I've done it. TSW finally has them, but could use some more color options, specifically white, brown, and pink.
2) a pet potted plant that says, "Not again," when it spawns.
Yes, it's a Hitchhiker's Guide reference, but probably no closer to infriging than the paranoid android named Marvin already in AO. Bonus points for making it spawn high above the ground. Cheerfully confused whale optional.
3) Baron Samedi skeletal face paint makeup (TSW)
The Spooky Skull mask we already have is a "Hat" so it can't be worn with a tophat, but a face mask would work with the full Baron Samedi outfit, tophat included. Matte black and white skull makeup, with a few cracks and grey shadowing, might be even better. Something like this guy:
http://www.halloweenforum.com/halloween-costume-ideas/136926-baron-samedi.html4) Midnight Spectre Bikini
Another returning favorite, a bikini of the same cut as the Midnight Pumpkin, but in black and purple matching the Mysterious Cloak. A pale lavender grin fades in and out every few seconds. And not just for AO. TSW needs this and the Midnight Pumpkin and Naughty List bikinis, too.
5) strapless long dress, side slit all the way up to the hip
Like Jessica Rabbit's dress, the iconic one that's so popular for cosplay. As close to it as you can legally get, anyway. The long gloves to go with it would be nice, too, but that might be pushing it. Maybe better if they're sold separately, so we can mix and match colors and decide for ourselves whether to cosplay a toon in a game.
6) Uncle Pumpkin-Head lore (AO)
We've been murdering ol' Gourdy for his pocket candy and assorted toys for over a decade and I keep wondering what exactly his story is, but there doesn't seem to be any lore in game. I've been making up my own and asking for more ideas and collecting those separately. Maybe you guys already have some story in mind for him, or maybe some of ours might be a place to start. That's a long separate post, though, so I'll include those specifics in a second message.
7) plaid and tartan kilts and skirts
AO's restriction on new meshes makes kilts and knee length skirts a problem, but a choice of ankle length and miniskirts in a few different Scottish and Irish tartans would suffice. Or maybe you could do something like the Play Costume - Sixth Edition skorts and ruffles, but with a white blouse and plaid knee socks instead of the white stockings?
In TSW, the length isn't an issue, we just need more variety. Specifically, it would be nice to have more Irish tartan skirts and kilts, like solid color kilts and tartans in green and blue, green and red, or anything with purple. A little variety in the lengths would be nice, too.
8) Mr. Evil Squeaky or Zombie Squeaky lanterns (AO)
Like the Mr. Squeaky Lantern from the Anniversary, but on the other shoulder, or clickable to switch shoulders so you can have a devil-duckie on each shoulder. Or a duckie and a devil, or a devil and a zombie, etc..
9) knee socks and thigh-high stockings and arm warmers with skulls, pumpkins, ghosts, kitties, bats, etc
Good fall apparel for keeping warm and mobile and Halloweeny stylish at the same time. I think we would most likely want sneakers or low boots with these socks, not just the socks like the Christmas ones. Too bad we don't have a separate layer for that yet.
10) fantasy sorceress and barbarian costumes
The archetypical skimpy outfits, like something out of a Vallejo cover for a Conan book. Or Age of Conan's concept art. You guys have a few examples of that handy, right?
11) Red pumps with a black rose ankle tattoo (AO)
Hopefully TSW will get a tattoo layer some day, but AO doesn't have layers at all, so ankle tats would have to come with shoes or bare feet. (Actually, some bare foot options would be nice, too.) Matching tattoos on both ankles would be fine if that's easier. We need plain red pumps too, while you're at it - we STILL have only black and white.
12) some TSW pets copied to AO
This sounds a bit more work than most of the ideas here, but for all we know, you might have had someone working on unified asset management and conversion and you just need something to test it on. A few particular examples were suggested:
- Drauglord Puppy
- Succubus
- Chibi Cthulhu
13) Cellphone / handheld game item we can wander around with like we're playing "Leetnappers Go" or some such Pokemon parody
In TSW, we could take screenshots of monsters on our invisible cell phones to play monster bingo or something. Maybe it's a new game from one of Orochi's branches, something they developed to get us to track monster populations for them by giving us points for taking photos of critters, since their own teams seem to keep getting squished. Maybe make a minigame where we pick critters from our bestiary or museum, or summoned pets, and do "damage" to an opponent's summon based on how many of that class of critter we've killed.
In AO, we could cast or use a "Nano Cage Trap" on critters to have a chance of making them drop a pet nano that summons them, like the old Shade spirit siphons. Make the chance inversely proportional to their remaining health or something? It could make pet fights interesting again, like Leetzilla vs. Croaker in mini-Galway castle.
14) standard "Magician's Lovely Assistant" skimpy tux-colored leotard and mini-jacket with tails
Vegas-style magician's assistant. You know the kind, designed to be showy and distracting but classy. A bit less thongy than the bunny suit, and jacket tails instead of bunny tail. Basically a generic store-brand Zatanna costume, accessories sold separately, batteries not included. A matching black and white magician tuxedo, too, of course, but it would be cool if both styles were available for anyone. Black and white tophats, of course. Magic wands go with those costumes too, and those got suggested separately as well, with some interesting options:
- magic wand sparkles from the tip like an advy damage shield (AO)
- throw little fireballs like the Staves of Inferno (AO)
- usable as an Elemental focus, same animations except the right hand is holding a wand (TSW)
- social-only visual effects toy like the torch and flute (TSW)
15) spiderweb teddy/bodystocking
I've been suggesting this for a few years now, and even drew what I thought it should look like in AO, since I couldn't find a reference image close enough. It's basically a sparse fishnet bodystocking in silver or black that only really covers where necessary and the rest is a spiderweb of thin strands barely holding it together. I previously suggested it as a minidress, worn over a matching thong, but this year it was requested as either a bodystocking from shoulders to toes, or a teddy with high cut legs.
There are plenty of spiderweb teddy and bodystocking costumes available in adult costume and lingerie stores, but I was imagining the dense opaque center of the web design covering the censored parts, and I don't see examples of that in real stores, probably due to lingerie engineering and support issues that games just don't need to worry about. I drew both a silver/white minidress version and a black teddy version and posted them on the GSP forums.
download/file.php?id=5181&mode=viewdownload/file.php?id=5182&mode=viewdownload/file.php?id=6347&mode=viewdownload/file.php?id=6346&mode=viewAll it's missing is black pumps with a spider tattoo on the ankle.
16) Uncle Pumpkinhead's scythe weapon (AO)
Complete with impaled teddy bear. He drops a couple of guns that aren't props, so why not the scythe at his level too? About the same stats as the scythes in the Temple of the Three Winds would probably be reasonable. Bonus points if clicking it makes you raise it above your head and Deathgiggle. This would also be a good opportunity to throw in some UPH lore, or maybe something new and different, like a proc that summons one of the floating blobs from Steps of Madness as a short-term attack pet, maybe Nebulous Feeling or Pulsing Hatred.
17) red and black Victorian velvet corset outfits
Corsets with some mix and match legs, hats, sleeves, boots, and gloves, with different details, could make a nice variety of costumes. Queen of Hearts style silver details and heart motifs, gothic vampire style ruffles and laces, Moulin Rouge style asymmetric skirts and feathers, and so on. As many options as we can get along those lines. There are really too many options to link specific examples.
18) French maid costume (TSW)
The stereotypical sexy French maid costume. Black bustier and miniskirt and thigh-high stockings with garters, white apron, lots of white lace, gloves, and a lace tiara. And maybe a traditional English butler's tux for the men?
Also, could you fix the inner thighs of AO's French Maid skirt, please?
19) bloody cheerleader costume
Both AO and TSW already have sports teams in their lore, so the colors and logos are there. Apply those to the standard pleated miniskirt and crop top/microjacket outfit and splatter blood on it like she's been out stabbing undead things with wooden stakes in the name of her Goddess Buffy Summers. An optional decayed mask would be cool so it could double as a zombie cheerleader costume. And boys /can/ be cheerleaders if they're serious enough to put up with the teasing, so how about both bloody cheerleader and bloody player (baseball/zigball) costumes for everyone?
20) steampunk airship pirate costume
If you already know what steampunk is, that pretty much explains itself, and if you don't, it would probably be easier to Google it yourself than to explain it here. I'm sure you guys know what steampunk is.
21) clothing with glowing runes flowing around it, preferably something arcane looking, maybe latin or angelic script
22) pet leet with the upper half of its body stuck in a pumpkin
- like the pics of squirrels stuck in little jack-o-lanterns that have been going around
-
http://www.boredpanda.com/squirrel-stea ... max-ellis/23) a concert tee from the world tour of Trash King and the Techscavengers (AO)
- (I expect they would sound a lot like Einsturzende Neubauten)
24) pet Kitties of Ulthar (TSW)
25) Elvira's dress
26) bring back the Deadrider and Nosferatu hover bikes (AO)
27) Gandalf-style staff with a continuously glowing crystal at the top
28) placard: "I can't do that while I'm falling!" (AO)
29) duct tape outfit
- like a silver Miiir but with fewer straps
- possibly by equipping the Tinker's Super-Effective Tape or converting it into a clothing item
- while you're at it, the gift wrapping paper and beautiful bow should also be wearable
- the paper clips worn as a chest item might be a little much for the ratings - too bad
30) more morphs like the catgirl uniform (AO)
- foxgirls, wolfboys, bunnytrox, etc
- maybe even catboys and wolfgirls, why not?
31) some new gothic wardrobe inspired by anything Threnody in Velvet models
-
https://www.facebook.com/threnodyinvelvet- also now
http://threnodyinvelvet.com/32) traditional western Native American outfits, NOT the K-Mart "Indian Princess" / Disney "Pocahontas" look
- like
http://orig10.deviantart.net/2811/f/201 ... sarine.jpg but more bead work and colors
- or
http://orig01.deviantart.net/a2d6/f/201 ... 4u38jt.jpg33) pet Heckler or Stone Shem with a cowbell and a t-shirt that says "Can't Stop the Cowbell"
34) "Shem of the Shadowy Brink" heckler pet (AO)
35) investigating the "myth" of Bloody Mary (TSW)
36) change Tertium Quid to fit in either Util or Shoulder slots like the Mr. Squeaky lantern (AO)
37) Pumpkin / Jack-o-Lantern Backpacks
38) tattered bikini made from Uncle's haunted rags (and some dry-cleaning nanos) (AO)
39) dark angel costume
-
http://www.yandy.com/Deluxe-Dark-Angel-Costume.php40) "Wraithbuster" untested, unlicenced portable nuclear accellerator (TSW)
- like AO's "Ancient Protonic Ionization Pack", "Ancient Positron Collider" weapon, back when they were new and way too experimental, to go with that new tan Wraithbuster jumpsuit
- maybe something that works like the Orichi quantum brace and/or flamethrower, but bulkier, like a big hybrid cyberpunk/steampunk backpack worn like a blood magic tome, attached to a chrome flamethrower covered in sparking gauges, glowing tubes, flickering holographic displays, and flashing warning lights
40) Abmouth pet (AO)
- maybe call the little one Abmouth Minimus?
42) some different, more obscure (to Americans anyway) totem/spirit animal spookiness (TSW)
- Something based on non-European/ non-Egyptian death/ rebirth ceremonies.
- Maybe Hawaiian, African, Eskimo/ Native American?
- Mexican/ Spanish is overdone, but there is so much that isn't touched in popular mythology.
- African plains-dwellers, for example, would kill and skin a hyena, which would give them strength, but also take away part of their will.
43) pet koalas (TSW)
- aka "Tree Floofs" that multiply when you feed them after midnight and turn into "Drop Bear" demons when they're wet, like inverse mogwai
- foreshadowing of an Australian zone. Uluru would make a great dungeon.
44) deployable Halloween lanterns and pumpkinjack nanos (AO)
* white shorts with a red bullseye (or two) on the back
* Pet techscavenger or Junk Shem with a cowbell and a t-shirt "Cowbells are Metal."
* Luella's outfit
* body glitter option on the tattoos layer (TSW)
* pet bats
* pet skeleeton, either a leet painted with white bones or a skeletal leet
- or give him a pumpkin head and call him Jack Skeleeton
* "Eat Me" cookies of Challenger and "Drink Me" potions of Taren (AO)
* blue gingham dresses to go with the scaling cookies and potions and bunny ears
* leopard bikini or one shoulder leotard
* cloud of bats nano / aura
* "No Streets" placard
* a "blurry" aura that makes everyone else see you through the color blur filter you get with the good shrooms, but just you. Everything else is rendered normally. (TSW)
- "I'm not drunk, you're just blurry."
* pie crusts or dough (use with personal cooker) to make pumpkin pies (AO)
* ghost bride costume (and matching groom)
-
http://www.yandy.com/Ghostly-Bride-Costume.php* cute and/or ironic bumblebee costumes (TSW)
* Costumes of "an attractive yet non-threatening racially diverse cast of a CW show"
* Hex stone items that give you a smoke aura when you click them and remain active until you use them again, like the magic dancing shoes (TSW)
* broken dolly costume
* asymmetric ruffled red and black salsa dress
* pet spectres
* silver lycra 50's sci-fi costumes
* fire djinni (efreet) feet (TSW)
- bare clawed feet with flames
* werewolf fur "clothes" (TSW)
- should be compatible with tophats and monocles for "Werewolves of London" jokes
- teacups optional
* demons of some sort (preferably something new, not just more Filth again) invade Agartha (TSW)
- go into some small contested areas like "Deep Agartha" and fight them back and repair the seal
- maybe Uncle Pumpkin-head?
* Freddy Kreuger's glove claw skin / weapon and hat
- to go with the ripped striped sweater both games already have
* Aztur morph/costume nanos (AO)
* sasquatch costume
- bandolier optional (goes well with a Wookiee bowcaster)
* Improved Old Father Time costume with hood UP and a long beard and scythe (AO)
* Mr. Squeaky Mask (AO)
* Arseless leather pants for Atroxes only (AO)
* New Weird Tasting Candy Cherry morphs (AO)
- Lord of The Void
- translucent Shadowlands spirits
- eremites
- Yuttos
- dryads
* Frankenstein Costume parts: Big, clunky old boots, tattered tux, green face and beck bolts, terrible hair, etc.
* Screwdriver-carvable pumpkins that change Jack-o-Lantern faces with successive uses (AO)
* pick some catnip, or buy it from Annapurna and use it on Kitties of Ulthar to charm/confuse/intoxicate/capture them as pets (TSW)
* seasonal decorations in the museums (TSW)
* apples with razor blades
* exotic rocks from Uncle Pumpkin-Head's asteroid with a story in their description (AO)
* ankle length Captain Anarchy cape (AO)
- like Superman's cape, but with the AO symbol instead of the S
- even better if it actually does make you fly - use a Ganimedes Personal Jetpack on it to make it look like a cape but function as a jetpack (in the back clothes slot) - but you keep the jetpack too, after combining, for different looks
* pet Helena and Gatekeeper (TSW)
* make Phasefront Besom broomsticks less unobtainable (AO)
* witch hat (AO)
* Tri-corner hats to go with the pirate scimitars (AO)
* dirndl and lederhosen
* mascot costumes (AO)
- morph the wearer into a heavy trox and fuzzy like a panda or gopher mascot, or grey to go with the Uta head
* Abmouth costume morph (AO)
- like the Tri-Plumbo one cast by Frankenleet and Draculeet
* face piercings and tattoos (TSW)
* court jester costume
- and/or something more like Harley Quinn
* scarecrow costume for camouflage in overgrown fields
- might also need a /scarecrow emote to pose like one - just use the Agartha portal pose, but without the timer and light effects
* Breechcloth and chaps riding outfits (TSW)
- like
http://orig04.deviantart.net/4c47/f/201 ... 7kbmsi.jpg* pet glowing eyes (TSW)
- just eyes that blink and look around and close and then open somewhere else
* black censor bars costume
As always, thanks for reading, and I hope you found at least some of this useful, inspiring, or at least amusing. We're all looking forward to seeing what's in store for this October. Thanks for all your continued work on our favorite games!
- Jezebelle