It's that time again! Uncle Pumpkinhead's busily cloning himself on that asteroid of his and needs inspiration for new presents he can bring when Rubi Ka swings close enough in our orbits to jump across the void and search for the Most Sinful Pumpkin Patch and make his offering to The Gankingest Pumpkinhead. Or something like that. And then there's the cosmic horror and deeper insanity of the TSW events. Who knows what that might bring? If you have something strange enough rattling around in your head, maybe you do. Go ahead and suggest it and see what happens. FC probably has their own Halloween lore ideas already, at least in general terms, but they need more every year, so they can always save the ones they like for later, adapt them, etc.
As usual, I'll be gathering the suggestions in this thread, and after a couple weeks of collecting ideas, GSP Crew and Dancers will vote to pick our top 20 favorites and I'll write those up in more detail, with reference images where necessary, then send them all in for FC's idea pool.
Schedule:
Jul 21 - Aug 3: Two weeks of collecting suggestions at parties and here in this thread.
Aug 4 - Aug 17: Two weeks for GSP DJs, Dancers, and Staff vote on their favorite ideas. (vacations happen a lot around this time, so they're often not all available the same week)
Aug 18 - Aug 24: One week for me to sort out and write up the favorite ideas with detailed descriptions and reference images.
Aug 25 - Oct 24: Hopefully, FC will be designing, building, implementing, and testing all the new goodies some time in the two months before the event, wedged in between all the other things they're working on.
Some time around Oct 25, probably: Events start
Oct 31: Halloween
Now this is a brainstorming thread, so we want lots of ideas to choose from. GSP will be picking favorites for me to write up in detail, but I'll be sending in the whole list, even if some of them are just vague single phrases, because something that didn't strike a chord with us might turn out to give FC a good idea anyway.
Some guidelines for suggestions:
1) Be specific enough that everyone will have roughly the same idea what you mean.
2) Don't infringe on anyone else's Intellectual Property. Ideas inspired by some other game, movie, tv show, or whatever, are fine, as long as they're just oblique references. Using quotes, images, or names that belong to someone else isn't going to happen. The dance emotes in TSW are a good example. They're all recognizable, but not /exactly/ identical to the famous choreography, and they're named something similar, not the actual song title. Except Gangnam Style. Maybe FC legal isn't worried about using that spelling when the game doesn't even know how to spell in Korean?
3) Keep it within the games' ratings, whatever they are in your region. You've all seen the bikinis, thongs, alien toys, and Dragon tantric footrubs, so you know there's still a lot of room to be sexy without getting too explicit.
4) Original new ideas are preferred, but if we still haven't gotten your favorite idea from some previous year, go ahead and suggest it again. Here are links to the previous lists if you want to look something up or just get some inspiration to get the creative juices flowing.
Halloween 2015 Brainstorming
Halloween 2014 Brainstorming
Halloween 2013 Brainstorming
Halloween 2012 Brainstorming
Halloween 2011 Brainstorming
Halloween 2010 Brainstorming
Currently playing: [Kermie's Gridstream Playlist] Atari Teenage Riot - Delete Yourself
Halloween 2016 Brainstorming
Moderator: Station Managers
6 posts
• Page 1 of 1
Halloween 2016 Brainstorming
by Jezebelle » Thu Jul 21, 2016 7:52 am
- Jezebelle
- GSP Dancer
- Posts: 1098
- Joined: Fri Jan 22, 2010 5:07 am
Re: Halloween 2016 Brainstorming
by Jezebelle » Thu Jul 21, 2016 7:52 am
1) Freddy Kreuger's glove claw skin / weapon and hat to go with the ripped striped sweater both games already have
2) “Eat Me” cookies of Challenger and “Drink Me” potions of Taren (AO)
3) blue gingham dresses to go with the scaling cookies and potions and bunny ears
4) bunny ears in AO! And different colors of bunny ears for TSW, specifically white, brown, and pink.
5) plaid and tartan kilts and skirts
6) Mr. Evil Squeaky or Zombie Squeaky lanterns, like the Anniversary one, but on the other shoulder, or clickable to switch shoulders so you can have a devil-duckie on each shoulder (AO)
7) spiderweb teddy/bodystocking
8) midnight spectre bikini - same one we've been requesting for years
9) fire djinni (efreet) feet – bare clawed feet with flames (TSW)
10) pet spectres
11) pet Kitties of Ulthar (TSW)
12) generic paranormal investigator and/or exterminator uniform and/or accessories (TSW)
- like the "Protonic Ionization Pack", "Positron Collider" weapon, and "Old Brown Jumpsuit" in AO, but about 27 centuries less "Ancient".
13) “Shem of the Shadowy Brink” heckler pet (AO)
14) bring back the Deadrider and Nosferatu hover bikes (AO)
15) cloud of bats nano / aura
16) pet Heckler or Stone Shem with a cowbell and a t-shirt that says "Can't Stop the Cowbell"
17) Pet techscavenger or Junk Shem with a cowbell and a t-shirt "Cowbells are Metal."
18) a concert tee from the world tour of Trash King and the Techscavengers, who I expect would sound a lot like Einstürzende Neubauten (AO)
19) placard: “I can't do that while I'm falling!” (AO)
20) Aztur morph/costume nanos (AO)
21) Abmouth pet (AO)
22) change Tertium Quid to fit in either Util or Shoulder slots like the Mr. Squeaky lantern (AO)
23) duct tape outfit, like a silver Miiir but with fewer straps (AO)
- 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 clip as a chest item might be a little much for the ratings - too bad
24) 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, as a precursor to an Australian zone. Uluru would make a great dungeon
25) sasquatch costume
- bandolier optional
26) Improved Old Father Time costume with hood UP and a long beard and scythe (AO)
27) Pumpkin / Jack-o-Lantern Backpacks
28) Mr. Squeaky Mask (AO)
29) Cellphone / handheld game item we can wander around with like we're playing Leetnappers Go or some such Pokemon parody
- snapping photos of real monsters on our invisible cell phones (possibly by taking screenshots?) to play monster bingo or something (TSW)
- call it 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
- casting/using a Nano Cage on critters has 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? (AO version of same idea)
30) Arseless leather pants for Atroxes only (AO)
31) New Weird Tasting Candy Cherry morphs (AO)
- Lord of The Void
- translucent Shadowlands spirits
- eremites
- Yuttos
- dryads
32) Frankenstein Costume parts: Big, clunky old boots, tattered tux, green face and beck bolts, terrible hair, etc.
33) Gandalf-style staff with a continuously glowing crystal at the top
34) deployable Halloween lanterns and pumpkinjack nanos (AO)
35) Screwdriver-carvable pumpkins that change Jack-o-Lantern faces with successive uses (AO)
36) pet leet with the upper half of its body stuck in a pumpkin, like that squirrel caught in a decoration video
37) magic wand that sparkles from the tip like an advy damage shield
38) fantasy sorceress and barbarian costumes
39) investigating the "myth" of Bloody Mary (TSW)
40) some new gothic wardrobe inspired by anything from Threnody in Velvet's FaceBook photos
41) body glitter option on the tattoos layer (TSW)
42) pick some catnip, or buy it from Annapurna and use it on Kitties of Ulthar to charm/confuse/capture them as pets (TSW)
43) 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)
44) seasonal decorations in the museums (TSW)
45) Costumes of "an attractive yet non-threatening racially diverse cast of a CW show"
46) apples with razor blades
47) knee socks and thigh-high stockings and arm warmers with skulls, pumpkins, ghosts, kitties, bats, etc
48) pet bats
49) exotic rocks from Uncle Pumpkin-Head's asteroid with a story in their description (AO)
50) tattered bikini made from haunted rags (and dry-cleaning nanos) (AO)
51) Red pumps with a black rose ankle tattoo
- and plain red pumps too, while you're at it - we STILL have only black and white (AO)
52) ankle length Captain Anarchy cape (AO)
53) Uncle Pumpkin-Head lore (AO)
54) 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.
55) pet Helena and Gatekeeper (TSW)
56) skeleton mask like the Spooky Skull Mask, but as a face item so you can wear it with a top hat, or with the whole Baron Samedi outfit (TSW)
57) Baron Samedi skeletal face paint makeup (TSW)
58) 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)
59) clothing with glowing runes flowing around it, preferably something arcane looking, maybe latin or angelic script
60) demons of some sort (preferably something new, not Filth again) invade Agartha and have to be fought and sealed out, in small contested areas like “Deep Agartha” (TSW)
- maybe Uncle Pumpkin-head?
61) a pet potted plant that says, "Not again," when it spawns
62) more morphs like the catgirl uniform- foxgirls, wolfboys, bunnytrox, etc (AO)
63) some TSW pets copied to AO, like Drauglord Puppy, or a pet succubus, or even a Chibi Cthulhu (AO)
64) make Phasefront Besom broomsticks less unobtainable (AO)
65) pet skeleeton, either a leet painted with white bones or a skeletal leet, or give him a pumpkin head and call him Jack Skeleeton
66) white shorts with a red bullseye (or two) on the back
67) witch hat (AO)
68) Tri-corner hats to go with the pirate scimitars (AO)
69) dirndl and lederhosen
70) mascot costumes – morph the wearer into a heavy trox and fuzzy like a panda or gopher mascot, or grey to go with the Uta head (AO)
71) "No Streets" placard
72) pie crusts or dough (use with personal cooker) to make pumpkin pies (AO)
73) Uncle's scythe weapon (AO)
- he drops a couple of guns that aren't props, so why not the scythe at his level too?
74) Abmouth costume morph (AO)
75) face piercings and tattoos (TSW)
76) red and black Victorian velvet corsets with mix and match legs, hats, sleeves, etc., for Queen of Hearts style with silver details and heart motifs, gothic vampire style, Moulin Rouge style and similar
77) French maid costume (TSW) (and fix the skirt of the AO one too, please)
78) standard “Magician's Lovely Assistant” skimpy tux-colored leotard and jacket with tails
79) court jester costume
80) Elvira's dress
81) leopard bikini or one shoulder leotard
82) broken dolly costume
83) dark angel costume - http://www.yandy.com/Deluxe-Dark-Angel-Costume.php
84) ghost bride costume (and matching groom) - http://www.yandy.com/Ghostly-Bride-Costume.php
85) Luella's outfit
86) silver lycra 50's sci-fi costumes
87) steampunk airship pirate costume
88) strapless long dress, side slit all the way up to the hip, Jessica Rabbit style
89) scarecrow costume for camouflage in overgrown fields
90) bloody cheerleader costume
91) traditional western Native American outfits, NOT the K-Mart “Indian Princess” / Disney “Pocahontas” look
- more like http://orig10.deviantart.net/2811/f/201 ... sarine.jpg but more bead work an colors
- or http://orig01.deviantart.net/a2d6/f/201 ... 4u38jt.jpg
92) Breechcloth and chaps riding outfits like http://orig04.deviantart.net/4c47/f/201 ... 7kbmsi.jpg (TSW)
93) werewolf fur “clothes” (TSW)
- should be compatible with tophats and monocles for "Werewolves of London" jokes
- teacups optional
94) pet glowing eyes (TSW)
– just eyes that blink and look around and close and then open somewhere else
95) cute and/or ironic bumblebee costumes (TSW)
96) asymmetric ruffled red and black salsa dress
2) “Eat Me” cookies of Challenger and “Drink Me” potions of Taren (AO)
3) blue gingham dresses to go with the scaling cookies and potions and bunny ears
4) bunny ears in AO! And different colors of bunny ears for TSW, specifically white, brown, and pink.
5) plaid and tartan kilts and skirts
6) Mr. Evil Squeaky or Zombie Squeaky lanterns, like the Anniversary one, but on the other shoulder, or clickable to switch shoulders so you can have a devil-duckie on each shoulder (AO)
7) spiderweb teddy/bodystocking
8) midnight spectre bikini - same one we've been requesting for years
9) fire djinni (efreet) feet – bare clawed feet with flames (TSW)
10) pet spectres
11) pet Kitties of Ulthar (TSW)
12) generic paranormal investigator and/or exterminator uniform and/or accessories (TSW)
- like the "Protonic Ionization Pack", "Positron Collider" weapon, and "Old Brown Jumpsuit" in AO, but about 27 centuries less "Ancient".
13) “Shem of the Shadowy Brink” heckler pet (AO)
14) bring back the Deadrider and Nosferatu hover bikes (AO)
15) cloud of bats nano / aura
16) pet Heckler or Stone Shem with a cowbell and a t-shirt that says "Can't Stop the Cowbell"
17) Pet techscavenger or Junk Shem with a cowbell and a t-shirt "Cowbells are Metal."
18) a concert tee from the world tour of Trash King and the Techscavengers, who I expect would sound a lot like Einstürzende Neubauten (AO)
19) placard: “I can't do that while I'm falling!” (AO)
20) Aztur morph/costume nanos (AO)
21) Abmouth pet (AO)
22) change Tertium Quid to fit in either Util or Shoulder slots like the Mr. Squeaky lantern (AO)
23) duct tape outfit, like a silver Miiir but with fewer straps (AO)
- 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 clip as a chest item might be a little much for the ratings - too bad
24) 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, as a precursor to an Australian zone. Uluru would make a great dungeon
25) sasquatch costume
- bandolier optional
26) Improved Old Father Time costume with hood UP and a long beard and scythe (AO)
27) Pumpkin / Jack-o-Lantern Backpacks
28) Mr. Squeaky Mask (AO)
29) Cellphone / handheld game item we can wander around with like we're playing Leetnappers Go or some such Pokemon parody
- snapping photos of real monsters on our invisible cell phones (possibly by taking screenshots?) to play monster bingo or something (TSW)
- call it 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
- casting/using a Nano Cage on critters has 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? (AO version of same idea)
30) Arseless leather pants for Atroxes only (AO)
31) New Weird Tasting Candy Cherry morphs (AO)
- Lord of The Void
- translucent Shadowlands spirits
- eremites
- Yuttos
- dryads
32) Frankenstein Costume parts: Big, clunky old boots, tattered tux, green face and beck bolts, terrible hair, etc.
33) Gandalf-style staff with a continuously glowing crystal at the top
34) deployable Halloween lanterns and pumpkinjack nanos (AO)
35) Screwdriver-carvable pumpkins that change Jack-o-Lantern faces with successive uses (AO)
36) pet leet with the upper half of its body stuck in a pumpkin, like that squirrel caught in a decoration video
37) magic wand that sparkles from the tip like an advy damage shield
38) fantasy sorceress and barbarian costumes
39) investigating the "myth" of Bloody Mary (TSW)
40) some new gothic wardrobe inspired by anything from Threnody in Velvet's FaceBook photos
41) body glitter option on the tattoos layer (TSW)
42) pick some catnip, or buy it from Annapurna and use it on Kitties of Ulthar to charm/confuse/capture them as pets (TSW)
43) 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)
44) seasonal decorations in the museums (TSW)
45) Costumes of "an attractive yet non-threatening racially diverse cast of a CW show"
46) apples with razor blades
47) knee socks and thigh-high stockings and arm warmers with skulls, pumpkins, ghosts, kitties, bats, etc
48) pet bats
49) exotic rocks from Uncle Pumpkin-Head's asteroid with a story in their description (AO)
50) tattered bikini made from haunted rags (and dry-cleaning nanos) (AO)
51) Red pumps with a black rose ankle tattoo
- and plain red pumps too, while you're at it - we STILL have only black and white (AO)
52) ankle length Captain Anarchy cape (AO)
53) Uncle Pumpkin-Head lore (AO)
54) 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.
55) pet Helena and Gatekeeper (TSW)
56) skeleton mask like the Spooky Skull Mask, but as a face item so you can wear it with a top hat, or with the whole Baron Samedi outfit (TSW)
57) Baron Samedi skeletal face paint makeup (TSW)
58) 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)
59) clothing with glowing runes flowing around it, preferably something arcane looking, maybe latin or angelic script
60) demons of some sort (preferably something new, not Filth again) invade Agartha and have to be fought and sealed out, in small contested areas like “Deep Agartha” (TSW)
- maybe Uncle Pumpkin-head?
61) a pet potted plant that says, "Not again," when it spawns
62) more morphs like the catgirl uniform- foxgirls, wolfboys, bunnytrox, etc (AO)
63) some TSW pets copied to AO, like Drauglord Puppy, or a pet succubus, or even a Chibi Cthulhu (AO)
64) make Phasefront Besom broomsticks less unobtainable (AO)
65) pet skeleeton, either a leet painted with white bones or a skeletal leet, or give him a pumpkin head and call him Jack Skeleeton
66) white shorts with a red bullseye (or two) on the back
67) witch hat (AO)
68) Tri-corner hats to go with the pirate scimitars (AO)
69) dirndl and lederhosen
70) mascot costumes – morph the wearer into a heavy trox and fuzzy like a panda or gopher mascot, or grey to go with the Uta head (AO)
71) "No Streets" placard
72) pie crusts or dough (use with personal cooker) to make pumpkin pies (AO)
73) Uncle's scythe weapon (AO)
- he drops a couple of guns that aren't props, so why not the scythe at his level too?
74) Abmouth costume morph (AO)
75) face piercings and tattoos (TSW)
76) red and black Victorian velvet corsets with mix and match legs, hats, sleeves, etc., for Queen of Hearts style with silver details and heart motifs, gothic vampire style, Moulin Rouge style and similar
77) French maid costume (TSW) (and fix the skirt of the AO one too, please)
78) standard “Magician's Lovely Assistant” skimpy tux-colored leotard and jacket with tails
79) court jester costume
80) Elvira's dress
81) leopard bikini or one shoulder leotard
82) broken dolly costume
83) dark angel costume - http://www.yandy.com/Deluxe-Dark-Angel-Costume.php
84) ghost bride costume (and matching groom) - http://www.yandy.com/Ghostly-Bride-Costume.php
85) Luella's outfit
86) silver lycra 50's sci-fi costumes
87) steampunk airship pirate costume
88) strapless long dress, side slit all the way up to the hip, Jessica Rabbit style
89) scarecrow costume for camouflage in overgrown fields
90) bloody cheerleader costume
91) traditional western Native American outfits, NOT the K-Mart “Indian Princess” / Disney “Pocahontas” look
- more like http://orig10.deviantart.net/2811/f/201 ... sarine.jpg but more bead work an colors
- or http://orig01.deviantart.net/a2d6/f/201 ... 4u38jt.jpg
92) Breechcloth and chaps riding outfits like http://orig04.deviantart.net/4c47/f/201 ... 7kbmsi.jpg (TSW)
93) werewolf fur “clothes” (TSW)
- should be compatible with tophats and monocles for "Werewolves of London" jokes
- teacups optional
94) pet glowing eyes (TSW)
– just eyes that blink and look around and close and then open somewhere else
95) cute and/or ironic bumblebee costumes (TSW)
96) asymmetric ruffled red and black salsa dress
Last edited by Jezebelle on Thu Aug 04, 2016 7:52 am, edited 8 times in total.
- Jezebelle
- GSP Dancer
- Posts: 1098
- Joined: Fri Jan 22, 2010 5:07 am
Re: Halloween 2016 Brainstorming
by Jezebelle » Thu Jul 21, 2016 7:53 am
[second reply reserved just in case - we haven't needed it yet, but these lists do keep getting longer]
- Jezebelle
- GSP Dancer
- Posts: 1098
- Joined: Fri Jan 22, 2010 5:07 am
Re: Halloween 2016 Brainstorming
by Jezebelle » Sat Jul 30, 2016 8:29 am
Uncle Pumpkin-Head lore:
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, so I've been making up my own and asking for more ideas maybe FC wants to use some of them or maybe they have their own, but none of them are "canon" until they show up in game. So "Uncle Pumpkin-Head lore" is on the Halloween wishlist and I'm including the ideas here separately. Feel free to add to it and we'll see what happens.
First off, observations:
1) He falls from the sky.
If you happen to be standing around at one of his spawn points and can see through the black fog, you might catch a glimpse of him falling out of the sky and landing. Presumably this is just a system issue and that's just how things spawn at arbitrary locations so they will arrive on the ground instead of under it, but it's still an observable phenomenon.
2) He arrives at roughly the same time every year.
Presumably, this equates to roughly the same portion of Rubi-Ka's orbit.
3) He has many clones in a wide range of levels.
He also has various boss versions with special abilities and special loot, but they all look exactly identical and only the bosses have slightly different names. There's also the non-combatant Junior, apparently an immature version.
4) His arrival is heralded by black "fog" of indeterminate nature.
The areas of Rubi-Ka where he is landing are shrouded in this "cloud" of black "fog", regardless of whether it's a desert or a forest, so it's probably not actually water.
5) As soon as he lands, he's either searching for something or guarding something
Before last year, he was encountered in three places:
- stalking about in the wilds (tower fields), looking for something
- hiding in a random cave or building, possibly searching it for something
- guarding a particular spot with some of his best and rarest loot
6) Something changed last year
His clones were evenly spaced along certain conspicuous paths that looked like they were leading somewhere, but the trails dead-ended with no clear goal. He was still also found in random dungeons and caves, as well as literally staking out special places he wanted to guard.
Theories:
Maybe he lives on an asteroid that Rubi-Ka is close enough to for three weeks every orbit so he can leap off the minimal gravity of the asteroid and land on the no-fall-damage surface of the passing planet. He spends the rest of the year, when it's too far to jump, cloning himself with the meagre resources on his asteroid and producing his toys and candies to bring with him. The range of levels represents maturity of the clones, being produced all year and released all at once. The fog he sends ahead to shroud his arrival could be some sort of spore cloud he's trying to use to terraform Rubi-Ka so he can permanently migrate here. It also conceals him from the inhabitants who try to arrest his search, but doesn't impede his vision at all.
Maybe he's looking for The Most Sinful Pumpkin Patch, to leave his offerings in homage to The Gankingest Pumpkin-Head, the original source of all his clones, and he never manages to find it because we keep murdering and mugging him as soon as he lands. Maybe those trails of Pumpkins last year were an indication that finally made some progress in the search and was sending a message back home by standing in a pattern, holding enough Tertium Quids to be seen from space.
Maybe not all of them jump here from the asteroid, but just enough to mug leets and malles and minibulls and use the spore cloud to transform them into more Uncle Pumpkin-Heads in an attempt to overrun the local biosphere and conquer the planet. In that case, maybe he didn't bring those goodies with him, but took them from his victims or they're what's left after the victim was transformed, or he /is/ one of the transformed victims, still carrying the loot that failed to protect him from the pumpkin fog.
Maybe the asteroid was seeded by an alien space probe, possibly enemies of the Kyr'Ozch who also want to fight over Rubi-Ka, and that fog is more of the bacterial seed. It doesn't seem to work as well on Rubi-Ka, but up on that asteroid, it somehow grows pumpkins with ghostly limbs who are genetically programmed to harvest their own plants, turning the leaves into robes and the stems into scythes, and then invade the nearest civilization as a beachhead for their designers' future invasion.
Maybe he's the strongest of Neleb's nightmares, strong enough to escape from the Steps of Madness, but only when the wards are at their weakest. The fog is similarly metaphysical in nature, a manifestation of the spookiness of the season perceived by the general population of Rubi-Ka, which is what weakens the border in the first place and lets Ol' Gourdy out to play at scaring everyone, reinforcing the cycle until we can get our fears under control and fight him back into the darkness of Neleb's subconscious.
If Ol' Gourdy was in TSW, it would be a more Lovecraftian story, I think. Like, he falls through space when the stars align to bring offerings and supplications to awaken the Great Old Pumpkin that lies dead and dreaming in its home beneath the sea.
Speaking of TSW, maybe Uncle Pumpkin-head is what's left of Jack O'Lantern 27 milennia later. An echo of an old, old ghost, given enough physical form to swing a scythe and carry keepsakes of his memories once again by the pervasive nanite atmosphere on Rubi-Ka. And the dark clouds are manifested by the same nanos. All just manifestations of the general populace's latent meta-psychological capacities and old memories of spooky times and their avatar.
Lore items:
- there could be DNA samples we could analyze to reveal his origins
- he could drop maps with crossed off sectors of his search pattern
- he could carry rocks from his asteroid with traces of the process that created him
- he could drop an alien scanner that's not Kyr'Ozch or human technology and can be disassembled to determine what it's scanning for
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, so I've been making up my own and asking for more ideas maybe FC wants to use some of them or maybe they have their own, but none of them are "canon" until they show up in game. So "Uncle Pumpkin-Head lore" is on the Halloween wishlist and I'm including the ideas here separately. Feel free to add to it and we'll see what happens.
First off, observations:
1) He falls from the sky.
If you happen to be standing around at one of his spawn points and can see through the black fog, you might catch a glimpse of him falling out of the sky and landing. Presumably this is just a system issue and that's just how things spawn at arbitrary locations so they will arrive on the ground instead of under it, but it's still an observable phenomenon.
2) He arrives at roughly the same time every year.
Presumably, this equates to roughly the same portion of Rubi-Ka's orbit.
3) He has many clones in a wide range of levels.
He also has various boss versions with special abilities and special loot, but they all look exactly identical and only the bosses have slightly different names. There's also the non-combatant Junior, apparently an immature version.
4) His arrival is heralded by black "fog" of indeterminate nature.
The areas of Rubi-Ka where he is landing are shrouded in this "cloud" of black "fog", regardless of whether it's a desert or a forest, so it's probably not actually water.
5) As soon as he lands, he's either searching for something or guarding something
Before last year, he was encountered in three places:
- stalking about in the wilds (tower fields), looking for something
- hiding in a random cave or building, possibly searching it for something
- guarding a particular spot with some of his best and rarest loot
6) Something changed last year
His clones were evenly spaced along certain conspicuous paths that looked like they were leading somewhere, but the trails dead-ended with no clear goal. He was still also found in random dungeons and caves, as well as literally staking out special places he wanted to guard.
Theories:
Maybe he lives on an asteroid that Rubi-Ka is close enough to for three weeks every orbit so he can leap off the minimal gravity of the asteroid and land on the no-fall-damage surface of the passing planet. He spends the rest of the year, when it's too far to jump, cloning himself with the meagre resources on his asteroid and producing his toys and candies to bring with him. The range of levels represents maturity of the clones, being produced all year and released all at once. The fog he sends ahead to shroud his arrival could be some sort of spore cloud he's trying to use to terraform Rubi-Ka so he can permanently migrate here. It also conceals him from the inhabitants who try to arrest his search, but doesn't impede his vision at all.
Maybe he's looking for The Most Sinful Pumpkin Patch, to leave his offerings in homage to The Gankingest Pumpkin-Head, the original source of all his clones, and he never manages to find it because we keep murdering and mugging him as soon as he lands. Maybe those trails of Pumpkins last year were an indication that finally made some progress in the search and was sending a message back home by standing in a pattern, holding enough Tertium Quids to be seen from space.
Maybe not all of them jump here from the asteroid, but just enough to mug leets and malles and minibulls and use the spore cloud to transform them into more Uncle Pumpkin-Heads in an attempt to overrun the local biosphere and conquer the planet. In that case, maybe he didn't bring those goodies with him, but took them from his victims or they're what's left after the victim was transformed, or he /is/ one of the transformed victims, still carrying the loot that failed to protect him from the pumpkin fog.
Maybe the asteroid was seeded by an alien space probe, possibly enemies of the Kyr'Ozch who also want to fight over Rubi-Ka, and that fog is more of the bacterial seed. It doesn't seem to work as well on Rubi-Ka, but up on that asteroid, it somehow grows pumpkins with ghostly limbs who are genetically programmed to harvest their own plants, turning the leaves into robes and the stems into scythes, and then invade the nearest civilization as a beachhead for their designers' future invasion.
Maybe he's the strongest of Neleb's nightmares, strong enough to escape from the Steps of Madness, but only when the wards are at their weakest. The fog is similarly metaphysical in nature, a manifestation of the spookiness of the season perceived by the general population of Rubi-Ka, which is what weakens the border in the first place and lets Ol' Gourdy out to play at scaring everyone, reinforcing the cycle until we can get our fears under control and fight him back into the darkness of Neleb's subconscious.
If Ol' Gourdy was in TSW, it would be a more Lovecraftian story, I think. Like, he falls through space when the stars align to bring offerings and supplications to awaken the Great Old Pumpkin that lies dead and dreaming in its home beneath the sea.
Speaking of TSW, maybe Uncle Pumpkin-head is what's left of Jack O'Lantern 27 milennia later. An echo of an old, old ghost, given enough physical form to swing a scythe and carry keepsakes of his memories once again by the pervasive nanite atmosphere on Rubi-Ka. And the dark clouds are manifested by the same nanos. All just manifestations of the general populace's latent meta-psychological capacities and old memories of spooky times and their avatar.
Lore items:
- there could be DNA samples we could analyze to reveal his origins
- he could drop maps with crossed off sectors of his search pattern
- he could carry rocks from his asteroid with traces of the process that created him
- he could drop an alien scanner that's not Kyr'Ozch or human technology and can be disassembled to determine what it's scanning for
- Jezebelle
- GSP Dancer
- Posts: 1098
- Joined: Fri Jan 22, 2010 5:07 am
Halloween 2016 Ideas
by Jezebelle » Thu Aug 25, 2016 10:27 am
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.html
4) 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=view
download/file.php?id=5182&mode=view
download/file.php?id=6347&mode=view
download/file.php?id=6346&mode=view
All 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.jpg
33) 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.php
40) "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
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.html
4) 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=view
download/file.php?id=5182&mode=view
download/file.php?id=6347&mode=view
download/file.php?id=6346&mode=view
All 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.jpg
33) 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.php
40) "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
- Jezebelle
- GSP Dancer
- Posts: 1098
- Joined: Fri Jan 22, 2010 5:07 am
Uncle Pumpkinhead lore
by Jezebelle » Fri Aug 26, 2016 9:01 am
[the following is the supplemental message I sent with an updated version of the lore post above]
Dear Michizure and anyone else who may be involved in pumpkin-related content,
One of the favorite ideas in GSP's Halloween ideas list this year was Uncle Pumpkinhead lore. We've been mugging 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 currently in game, so I've been making up my own and asking for more ideas along with the general Halloween ideas. It came out to rather a lot, so I'm sending it separately from the full list.
First off, observations:
1) He used to have some connection to the Steps of Madness
Like many of the current players, I missed Uncle's original introduction and the Childhood Memories teddy bear and the grand opening of the Steps of Madness dungeon. I've heard that he was created by Neleb as some kind of terrorist attack on Rubi-Ka, but there doesn't currently seem to be anything in-game that supports that. Uncle Pumpkinhead doesn't seem to have had any connection to Neleb or the Steps of Madness for quite some time now.
2) He falls from the sky.
If you happen to be standing around at one of his spawn points and can see through the black fog, you might catch a glimpse of him falling out of the sky and landing. Presumably this is just a system issue and that's just how things spawn at arbitrary locations so they will arrive on the ground instead of under it, but it's still an observable phenomenon.
3) He arrives at roughly the same time every year.
Presumably, this equates to roughly the same portion of Rubi-Ka's orbit, or at least something cyclical. Is Rubi-Ka's orbital period even similar to Earth's? If not, that's going to take more explaining.
4) He has many clones in a wide range of levels.
He also has various boss versions with special abilities and special loot, but they all look exactly identical and only the bosses have slightly different names. There's also the non-combatant Junior, apparently an immature version.
5) His arrival is heralded by black "fog" of indeterminate nature.
The areas of Rubi-Ka where he is landing are shrouded in this "cloud" of black "fog", regardless of whether it's a desert or a forest, so it's probably not actually water.
6) As soon as he lands, he's either searching for something or guarding something
Before last year, he was encountered in three places:
- stalking about in the wilds (tower fields), looking for something, possibly something notum-related
- hiding in a random cave or building, possibly searching it for something
- guarding a particular spot with some of his best and rarest loot, possibly some relation to suppression gas levels
7) Something changed last year
His clones were evenly spaced along certain conspicuous paths that looked like they were leading somewhere, but the trails dead-ended with no clear goal. He was still also found in random dungeons and caves, as well as literally staking out special places he wanted to guard. The Steps of Madness dungeon did not appear to be one of those places, as far as I saw.
Theories:
Maybe he lives on an asteroid that Rubi-Ka is close enough to for three weeks every orbit so he can leap off the minimal gravity of the asteroid and land on the no-fall-damage surface of the passing planet. He spends the rest of the year, when it's too far to jump, cloning himself with the meagre resources on his asteroid and producing his toys and candies to bring with him. The range of levels represents maturity of the clones, being produced all year and released all at once. The fog he sends ahead to shroud his arrival could be some sort of spore cloud he's trying to use to terraform Rubi-Ka so he can permanently migrate here. It also conceals him from the inhabitants who try to arrest his search, but doesn't impede his vision at all. Maybe he comes from that asteroid now because that what where the last few escaped to after they were nearly exterminated when Neleb originally released them.
Maybe he's looking for The Most Sinful Pumpkin Patch, to leave his offerings in homage to The Gankingest Pumpkin-Head, the original source of all his clones, and he never manages to find it because we keep murdering and mugging him as soon as he lands. Maybe those trails of Pumpkins last year were an indication that finally made some progress in the search and was sending a message back home by standing in a pattern, holding enough Tertium Quids to be seen from space. Maybe terrorizing the citizens was only incidental to his true original purpose of finding that Primordial Pumpkin Lich that terrified Neleb so, however many centuries ago, that echoes of him are still a favorite nightmare and we should be very, very worried what might happen if their coordinated-from-space pumpking hunt ever completely succeeds.
Maybe not all of them jump here from the asteroid, but just enough to mug leets and malles and minibulls and use the spore cloud to transform them into more Uncle Pumpkin-Heads in an attempt to overrun the local biosphere and conquer the planet. In that case, maybe he didn't bring those goodies with him, but took them from his victims or they're what's left after the victim was transformed. Most of them then, probably /are/ one of the transformed victims, still carrying the loot that failed to protect them from the pumpkifying fog.
Maybe the asteroid was seeded by an alien space probe, possibly enemies of the Kyr'Ozch who also want to fight over Rubi-Ka, and that fog is more of the bacterial seed. It doesn't seem to work as well on Rubi-Ka, but up on that asteroid, it somehow grows pumpkins with ghostly limbs who are genetically programmed to harvest their own plants, turning the leaves into robes and the stems into scythes, and then invade the nearest civilization as a beachhead for their designers' future invasion. Maybe Neleb's nightmares about the pumpkin people were actually prophetic and he was trying to warn us, but fright is the only language he remembers, so he sent Meta-Physical nightmare projection Pumpkinheads out to scare us back then to warn us about the invading Pumpkinheads that are trying to replace us all now.
Maybe he's the strongest of Neleb's actual nightmares, strong enough to escape from the dream chamber of the Steps of Madness, but only when the wards are at their weakest. The fog is similarly metaphysical in nature, not an actual fog, but a psychological manifestation of the spookiness of the season perceived by the general population of Rubi-Ka, which is what weakens the border in the first place and lets Ol' Gourdy out to play at scaring everyone, reinforcing the cycle until we can get our fears under control and fight him back into the darkness of Neleb's subconscious.
If Ol' Gourdy was in TSW, it would be a more Lovecraftian story, I think. Like, he falls through space when the stars align to bring offerings and supplications to awaken the Great Old Pumpkin that lies dead and dreaming in some nefandous tomb city of cyclopean obelisks carved of solid notum.
Speaking of TSW, maybe Uncle Pumpkin-head is what's left of Jack O'Lantern 27 milennia later. An echo of an old, old ghost, carried through space by collective unconscious and racial memory, given enough physical form by the pervasive nanite atmosphere on Rubi-Ka to swing a scythe and carry keepsakes of his memories once again. And the dark clouds are manifested by the same nanites. All just manifestations of the general populace's latent meta-psychological capacities and old memories of spooky times and their avatar.
Or maybe Uncle Pumpkinhead didn't come from outer space or from Neleb's mind, but from some alternate reality only the strongest dreamers of the most benighted temperament can reach in their most desperate feverish nightmares, and Neleb, being just such a mad dreamer, visits him regularly. Once invited through the veil of sleep into our world, he got a taste of something he liked here, probably our fear, and makes a point of visiting again, and bringing all his friends, every time the veil is thinnest between the worlds.
Lore items:
- there could be DNA samples we could analyze to reveal his origins
- he could drop maps with crossed off sectors of his search pattern
- he could carry rocks from his asteroid with traces of the process that created him
- he could drop an alien scanner that's not Kyr'Ozch or human technology and can be disassembled to determine what it's scanning for
- his tattered robes could be etched with dream-sigils in a meta-language that somehow feels like it carries meaning even if you don't consciously know the symbols and assembling scraps of them could result in a decipherable tome of forbidden knowledge carried out of a dark dreamworld like the Pnakotic Manuscripts
I'm sure we could come up with more, but you're some pretty creative guys too, so you probably have ideas already. If any of this fits with what you have in mind, please feel free to use it however you see fit.
Again, thanks for reading, and thanks for all the work you do!
- Jezebelle
Dear Michizure and anyone else who may be involved in pumpkin-related content,
One of the favorite ideas in GSP's Halloween ideas list this year was Uncle Pumpkinhead lore. We've been mugging 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 currently in game, so I've been making up my own and asking for more ideas along with the general Halloween ideas. It came out to rather a lot, so I'm sending it separately from the full list.
First off, observations:
1) He used to have some connection to the Steps of Madness
Like many of the current players, I missed Uncle's original introduction and the Childhood Memories teddy bear and the grand opening of the Steps of Madness dungeon. I've heard that he was created by Neleb as some kind of terrorist attack on Rubi-Ka, but there doesn't currently seem to be anything in-game that supports that. Uncle Pumpkinhead doesn't seem to have had any connection to Neleb or the Steps of Madness for quite some time now.
2) He falls from the sky.
If you happen to be standing around at one of his spawn points and can see through the black fog, you might catch a glimpse of him falling out of the sky and landing. Presumably this is just a system issue and that's just how things spawn at arbitrary locations so they will arrive on the ground instead of under it, but it's still an observable phenomenon.
3) He arrives at roughly the same time every year.
Presumably, this equates to roughly the same portion of Rubi-Ka's orbit, or at least something cyclical. Is Rubi-Ka's orbital period even similar to Earth's? If not, that's going to take more explaining.
4) He has many clones in a wide range of levels.
He also has various boss versions with special abilities and special loot, but they all look exactly identical and only the bosses have slightly different names. There's also the non-combatant Junior, apparently an immature version.
5) His arrival is heralded by black "fog" of indeterminate nature.
The areas of Rubi-Ka where he is landing are shrouded in this "cloud" of black "fog", regardless of whether it's a desert or a forest, so it's probably not actually water.
6) As soon as he lands, he's either searching for something or guarding something
Before last year, he was encountered in three places:
- stalking about in the wilds (tower fields), looking for something, possibly something notum-related
- hiding in a random cave or building, possibly searching it for something
- guarding a particular spot with some of his best and rarest loot, possibly some relation to suppression gas levels
7) Something changed last year
His clones were evenly spaced along certain conspicuous paths that looked like they were leading somewhere, but the trails dead-ended with no clear goal. He was still also found in random dungeons and caves, as well as literally staking out special places he wanted to guard. The Steps of Madness dungeon did not appear to be one of those places, as far as I saw.
Theories:
Maybe he lives on an asteroid that Rubi-Ka is close enough to for three weeks every orbit so he can leap off the minimal gravity of the asteroid and land on the no-fall-damage surface of the passing planet. He spends the rest of the year, when it's too far to jump, cloning himself with the meagre resources on his asteroid and producing his toys and candies to bring with him. The range of levels represents maturity of the clones, being produced all year and released all at once. The fog he sends ahead to shroud his arrival could be some sort of spore cloud he's trying to use to terraform Rubi-Ka so he can permanently migrate here. It also conceals him from the inhabitants who try to arrest his search, but doesn't impede his vision at all. Maybe he comes from that asteroid now because that what where the last few escaped to after they were nearly exterminated when Neleb originally released them.
Maybe he's looking for The Most Sinful Pumpkin Patch, to leave his offerings in homage to The Gankingest Pumpkin-Head, the original source of all his clones, and he never manages to find it because we keep murdering and mugging him as soon as he lands. Maybe those trails of Pumpkins last year were an indication that finally made some progress in the search and was sending a message back home by standing in a pattern, holding enough Tertium Quids to be seen from space. Maybe terrorizing the citizens was only incidental to his true original purpose of finding that Primordial Pumpkin Lich that terrified Neleb so, however many centuries ago, that echoes of him are still a favorite nightmare and we should be very, very worried what might happen if their coordinated-from-space pumpking hunt ever completely succeeds.
Maybe not all of them jump here from the asteroid, but just enough to mug leets and malles and minibulls and use the spore cloud to transform them into more Uncle Pumpkin-Heads in an attempt to overrun the local biosphere and conquer the planet. In that case, maybe he didn't bring those goodies with him, but took them from his victims or they're what's left after the victim was transformed. Most of them then, probably /are/ one of the transformed victims, still carrying the loot that failed to protect them from the pumpkifying fog.
Maybe the asteroid was seeded by an alien space probe, possibly enemies of the Kyr'Ozch who also want to fight over Rubi-Ka, and that fog is more of the bacterial seed. It doesn't seem to work as well on Rubi-Ka, but up on that asteroid, it somehow grows pumpkins with ghostly limbs who are genetically programmed to harvest their own plants, turning the leaves into robes and the stems into scythes, and then invade the nearest civilization as a beachhead for their designers' future invasion. Maybe Neleb's nightmares about the pumpkin people were actually prophetic and he was trying to warn us, but fright is the only language he remembers, so he sent Meta-Physical nightmare projection Pumpkinheads out to scare us back then to warn us about the invading Pumpkinheads that are trying to replace us all now.
Maybe he's the strongest of Neleb's actual nightmares, strong enough to escape from the dream chamber of the Steps of Madness, but only when the wards are at their weakest. The fog is similarly metaphysical in nature, not an actual fog, but a psychological manifestation of the spookiness of the season perceived by the general population of Rubi-Ka, which is what weakens the border in the first place and lets Ol' Gourdy out to play at scaring everyone, reinforcing the cycle until we can get our fears under control and fight him back into the darkness of Neleb's subconscious.
If Ol' Gourdy was in TSW, it would be a more Lovecraftian story, I think. Like, he falls through space when the stars align to bring offerings and supplications to awaken the Great Old Pumpkin that lies dead and dreaming in some nefandous tomb city of cyclopean obelisks carved of solid notum.
Speaking of TSW, maybe Uncle Pumpkin-head is what's left of Jack O'Lantern 27 milennia later. An echo of an old, old ghost, carried through space by collective unconscious and racial memory, given enough physical form by the pervasive nanite atmosphere on Rubi-Ka to swing a scythe and carry keepsakes of his memories once again. And the dark clouds are manifested by the same nanites. All just manifestations of the general populace's latent meta-psychological capacities and old memories of spooky times and their avatar.
Or maybe Uncle Pumpkinhead didn't come from outer space or from Neleb's mind, but from some alternate reality only the strongest dreamers of the most benighted temperament can reach in their most desperate feverish nightmares, and Neleb, being just such a mad dreamer, visits him regularly. Once invited through the veil of sleep into our world, he got a taste of something he liked here, probably our fear, and makes a point of visiting again, and bringing all his friends, every time the veil is thinnest between the worlds.
Lore items:
- there could be DNA samples we could analyze to reveal his origins
- he could drop maps with crossed off sectors of his search pattern
- he could carry rocks from his asteroid with traces of the process that created him
- he could drop an alien scanner that's not Kyr'Ozch or human technology and can be disassembled to determine what it's scanning for
- his tattered robes could be etched with dream-sigils in a meta-language that somehow feels like it carries meaning even if you don't consciously know the symbols and assembling scraps of them could result in a decipherable tome of forbidden knowledge carried out of a dark dreamworld like the Pnakotic Manuscripts
I'm sure we could come up with more, but you're some pretty creative guys too, so you probably have ideas already. If any of this fits with what you have in mind, please feel free to use it however you see fit.
Again, thanks for reading, and thanks for all the work you do!
- Jezebelle
- Jezebelle
- GSP Dancer
- Posts: 1098
- Joined: Fri Jan 22, 2010 5:07 am
6 posts
• Page 1 of 1
Who is online
Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 41 guests