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- Joined
- Feb 4, 2023
IT'S HAPPENING AGAIN
Well, hi. If you don't know me, I'm chap. If you do know me, words can't express how sorry I am. Once upon a time, I ran a game right here on BMR called Dawn Chorus. If you're not familiar and don't feel like digging through all those posts, it was basically a supernatural horror/surreal mystery in the same vein as the television show Twin Peaks. The game took place in Dawn Chorus, Tennessee, a fictional small town in the Southern Appalachian mountains. It followed the various inhabitants of this haunted little town as they contended with the unknown; ghosts and monsters and ancient gods and all sorts of other horrors.
Anyway, things happened, I left the site for a little while, the game fell apart as games are want to do, and that was that... well, until now, anyway.
I've wanted to bring Dawn Chorus back for a bit now. I've talked about it a lot, but I've really struggled figuring out how to do it again. The storyline had become a sprawling and complicated, a lot of the original players were no longer available, and I didn't know if I had the time or energy to pour myself into such an ambitious, huge project again. So, I thought about it. And I thought about it. And I thought about it. And I came up with this.
It's called Dawn Chorus: Anthology.
Let's take it from the top.
THE PREMISE
I guess, to start things off, it's best to go ahead and rip away the band-aid: This could be considered a reset of sorts. Really though, it's more like a complete change of format. I decided, if I couldn't figure out how to bring the game back as it once was, why not try something totally unique and weird and different? What if we tried to run the game as an anthology series?
The concept is pretty simple: Each season of the game would focus on a different place at a different point of time in Dawn Chorus' history. Think of it like American Horror Story, but less gaudy and obsessed with being shocking. For example, one season might focus around the doctors, nurses, and patients at the local hospital in the 1960s. The next season, the story could be about the wagon trains that settled the land in the early 1800s. That means every season would feature a new cast of characters, a new point in time, a new setting within the larger Dawn Chorus, and a new story to tell.
That's the main goal in all of this: To tell new, interesting, complete stories every season with a singular, purposeful focus. I think this will help with a lot of the issues that plagued the original incarnation of the game; it should be less overwhelming, more concise, a smaller scale, and have a definite beginning, middle, and end. Each season would last three to six months in real time and cover a predetermined amount of time within the game world.
So… what would the first season be about? Ladies and gentlemen, allow me to introduce you to The Merrywood Apartment Complex.
Well, hi. If you don't know me, I'm chap. If you do know me, words can't express how sorry I am. Once upon a time, I ran a game right here on BMR called Dawn Chorus. If you're not familiar and don't feel like digging through all those posts, it was basically a supernatural horror/surreal mystery in the same vein as the television show Twin Peaks. The game took place in Dawn Chorus, Tennessee, a fictional small town in the Southern Appalachian mountains. It followed the various inhabitants of this haunted little town as they contended with the unknown; ghosts and monsters and ancient gods and all sorts of other horrors.
Anyway, things happened, I left the site for a little while, the game fell apart as games are want to do, and that was that... well, until now, anyway.
I've wanted to bring Dawn Chorus back for a bit now. I've talked about it a lot, but I've really struggled figuring out how to do it again. The storyline had become a sprawling and complicated, a lot of the original players were no longer available, and I didn't know if I had the time or energy to pour myself into such an ambitious, huge project again. So, I thought about it. And I thought about it. And I thought about it. And I came up with this.
It's called Dawn Chorus: Anthology.
Let's take it from the top.
THE PREMISE
I guess, to start things off, it's best to go ahead and rip away the band-aid: This could be considered a reset of sorts. Really though, it's more like a complete change of format. I decided, if I couldn't figure out how to bring the game back as it once was, why not try something totally unique and weird and different? What if we tried to run the game as an anthology series?
The concept is pretty simple: Each season of the game would focus on a different place at a different point of time in Dawn Chorus' history. Think of it like American Horror Story, but less gaudy and obsessed with being shocking. For example, one season might focus around the doctors, nurses, and patients at the local hospital in the 1960s. The next season, the story could be about the wagon trains that settled the land in the early 1800s. That means every season would feature a new cast of characters, a new point in time, a new setting within the larger Dawn Chorus, and a new story to tell.
That's the main goal in all of this: To tell new, interesting, complete stories every season with a singular, purposeful focus. I think this will help with a lot of the issues that plagued the original incarnation of the game; it should be less overwhelming, more concise, a smaller scale, and have a definite beginning, middle, and end. Each season would last three to six months in real time and cover a predetermined amount of time within the game world.
So… what would the first season be about? Ladies and gentlemen, allow me to introduce you to The Merrywood Apartment Complex.
THE YEAR IS 1984...
While the rest of the United States experiences a period of growth and economic prosperity, times are tough in the small town of Dawn Chorus, Tennessee. Jobs are becoming more scarce as local industries falter and several of the nearby factories close up shop. The once bustling downtown has become a shadow of its former self, just rows of empty buildings and boarded up shops as people flock to the sprawling shopping malls in nearby towns. The town's dwindling population finds itself in a state of purgatorial stasis, living in the ruins of a dying community.
In the heart of Dawn Chorus' downtown, right along the town's main thoroughfare, an unassuming brownstone apartment building called The Merrywood sits at the center of it all. Surrounded by reminders of their town in decline, the building houses a diverse group of tenants who have managed to build a tight-knit community in spite of the tough times. However, after the sudden death of one of the complex's oldest tenants, strange and bizarre supernatural happenings begin to occur around the building. It starts small: Objects moving on their own, strange noises in the night, shadows at the corners of your eyes... but as things grow more sinister, the tenants begin to fear for their safety and their sanity. With no where else to go, they band together to investigate the mysteries of their home.
As they delve deeper, the tenants uncover unsettling truths about The Merrywood's past and the history of their little town...
While the rest of the United States experiences a period of growth and economic prosperity, times are tough in the small town of Dawn Chorus, Tennessee. Jobs are becoming more scarce as local industries falter and several of the nearby factories close up shop. The once bustling downtown has become a shadow of its former self, just rows of empty buildings and boarded up shops as people flock to the sprawling shopping malls in nearby towns. The town's dwindling population finds itself in a state of purgatorial stasis, living in the ruins of a dying community.
In the heart of Dawn Chorus' downtown, right along the town's main thoroughfare, an unassuming brownstone apartment building called The Merrywood sits at the center of it all. Surrounded by reminders of their town in decline, the building houses a diverse group of tenants who have managed to build a tight-knit community in spite of the tough times. However, after the sudden death of one of the complex's oldest tenants, strange and bizarre supernatural happenings begin to occur around the building. It starts small: Objects moving on their own, strange noises in the night, shadows at the corners of your eyes... but as things grow more sinister, the tenants begin to fear for their safety and their sanity. With no where else to go, they band together to investigate the mysteries of their home.
As they delve deeper, the tenants uncover unsettling truths about The Merrywood's past and the history of their little town...
THE MERRYWOOD
The Merrywood Apartment building rises from the pavement like a sunken monolith, eight stories of Art Deco architecture looming over the small town of Dawn Chorus. Its brownstone exterior is flecked with decades of grime and neglect, a testament to the passage of time and the erosion of the building's once-grand facade.
The entrance foyer, once beautiful, now lays in a state of disrepair, the marble floors cracked and stained, the chandeliers hanging askew from their chains. The hallways, dimly lit and narrow, stretch like claustrophobic tunnels, their walls lined with peeling paint and yellowing wallpaper.
Within the building's belly lay a labyrinthine basement, its twisting corridors and unfinished burrows choked with cobwebs and rusting pipes. The maintenance office, a cramped and dreary space, is tucked away in a corner, its walls adorned with torn posters of bikini-clad models and moldering schematics. In the nearby common area, a worn-out sofa sags beneath the weight of years of use, an ancient television set that only ever hisses static sitting in the corner of the room, the air thick and musty.
At the center of the building, an old, rickety elevator groans with every ascent. The stairwell, which spirals up the building's spine, hasn't been touched by a cleaning hand in years, filled with dirt and debris, each step creaking beneath the weight of every footfall. There's an eerie, almost haunted feeling to the entire building, as if the walls themselves hold some dark secret, some long gone memory that refuses to be forgotten. And yet, despite its creeping sense of dread and decay, the Merrywood Apartments remain a beacon of hope for those in search of a cheap place to call home...
The Merrywood Apartment building rises from the pavement like a sunken monolith, eight stories of Art Deco architecture looming over the small town of Dawn Chorus. Its brownstone exterior is flecked with decades of grime and neglect, a testament to the passage of time and the erosion of the building's once-grand facade.
The entrance foyer, once beautiful, now lays in a state of disrepair, the marble floors cracked and stained, the chandeliers hanging askew from their chains. The hallways, dimly lit and narrow, stretch like claustrophobic tunnels, their walls lined with peeling paint and yellowing wallpaper.
Within the building's belly lay a labyrinthine basement, its twisting corridors and unfinished burrows choked with cobwebs and rusting pipes. The maintenance office, a cramped and dreary space, is tucked away in a corner, its walls adorned with torn posters of bikini-clad models and moldering schematics. In the nearby common area, a worn-out sofa sags beneath the weight of years of use, an ancient television set that only ever hisses static sitting in the corner of the room, the air thick and musty.
At the center of the building, an old, rickety elevator groans with every ascent. The stairwell, which spirals up the building's spine, hasn't been touched by a cleaning hand in years, filled with dirt and debris, each step creaking beneath the weight of every footfall. There's an eerie, almost haunted feeling to the entire building, as if the walls themselves hold some dark secret, some long gone memory that refuses to be forgotten. And yet, despite its creeping sense of dread and decay, the Merrywood Apartments remain a beacon of hope for those in search of a cheap place to call home...
QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS
When would the game start?
The game begins on July 1st.
How's this all going to work?
So, up front and honest, the original incarnation of the game was pretty much all-consuming for me. It took a lot of time and it was pretty much the only writing project I was working on for a while there. I don't have the time, energy, or availability to do that again, so we're going to try something a bit different this time around.
The name of the game is collaboration. At the start of every season, I'd introduce five 'mysteries' (think of them as plot hooks). We'd take those blueprints and, as a group, plot it all out before we ever start writing so that we have a basic framework to work from. We'll tell a story together; beginning, middle, and end. Those plans can change as the story progresses and new ideas form, but we'll have a structure to fall back on if need be.
The goal here is to take a lot of the backend work off my plate while also giving the players as much free rein as possible. While I'll still technically be running the game as the GM, I like the idea of all of us being on equal ground to tell the story we want to tell. In a lot of ways, I'm just laying the groundwork and leaving it up to the group as a whole to expand upon those ideas.
So, wait. This is an anthology? What if I'm interested in this season, but not the next?
Yep! An anthology. As in, every season, we'd be creating new characters, switching to a new setting, and telling a new story. You can look at each season as its own, self-contained short story. The only constant is the town of Dawn Chorus itself. If you're interested in this season and not interested in the next, that's fine! No big deal! This whole thing is built with the players in mind and I want it to work for everyone. If you're not interested next season, you're under no obligations! You can play a minor character or sit that one out. Come and go as you please, there is no full on commitment.
I'm interested, but I don't know if I'll be available for the full season.
Hey, that's cool! Life comes first. If you're interested in the game, but you're not sure if you can fully commit, I'm open to the idea of having players play minor, side characters. Think of yourself as a guest who can come and go as you please during open scenes. You won't be as involved in the main storyline, but you can still write with us as time allows.
How long is a season? How is a season structured?
Each season will last between three to six months in real life, ideally. That should give us plenty of time to tell a whole, complete story from beginning to end. It would vary how much time we cover in game, but I'm thinking it would most likely be a week or two per season? As for how its going to be structured... I'm still working out the kinks there, but I have a vague idea. I'm thinking we'll start with an event to introduce all of the characters and concepts, transition to a more freeform sandbox where multiple storylines can be happening at once, and then end with another event where all the plot lines (hopefully) converge.
Will there be tons of locations and NPCs like last time?
Nope! We're going way, way smaller scale. There'll be one main location, a few others here and there, and a small handful of NPCs. More can be added at the discretion of the players, but we're really going to try to keep things dialed back compared to the original Dawn Chorus.
What are the post frequency and length expectations?
So, the last go around, there was no set in stone rules for post frequency or lengths. The game was very slow paced and it wasn't a big surprise to see 2k word posts get plopped down like it was no big deal. We're simplifying that a bit this time.
First off, post lengths. I'd like to keep things shorter with quality over quantity in mind. Most posts could stay in the 300 to 1k word range, which I think is fairly standard. I think this removes some of the unspoken expectation for massive posts. Meanwhile, I'm hoping this will lead to a bit of a faster pace as well as a happy side effect. That being said, I'm still uncomfortable with the idea of enforcing a hard post frequency rule. Personally, I'll be aiming to do a couple posts a week, short and sweet.
However, it should be said that this isn't an excuse for low quality posts. I want everyone to bring their absolute best. Write posts that matter, posts that advance the plot or reveal character motivations. Shoot for the stars, baby.
Who can join?
Just about anybody, I reckon! If you're interested in the idea and you think you'd be a good fit, feel free to let me know! Returning players will be get priority, but as long as we're not full, we'd be happy to make room for you!
How many players are you looking for? How many characters can I play?
As of right now, the idea is to run a maximum of 10-12 players (including myself), but that can be adjusted up and down depending on interest. Each player will be allowed to play two characters.
Who can I play?
Anyone that would be tangentially involved with The Merrywood! Tenants, obviously. Guests. Friends. Maintenance workers. If you can come up with a convincing enough reason for your character to be there, I'll allow it.
What about the smut?
This is, for all intents and purposes, a non-sexual roleplay. Sex can absolutely be referenced and alluded to, things can even get a bit hot and heavy between characters, but actual full-on, hardcore smut? Yeah, we're just going to fade to black. In other words, if you're just looking for a place to write sexy stuff about sexy people doing sexy things, this might not be the right fit for you.
So, like... is the OG Dawn Chorus ever coming back?
This is going to sound like a cop out, but… eventually, probably, most likely, maybe? I'd like for it to come back, that's for sure. But if/when it does, it's going to need some pretty big changes to make it work and I don't know what those changes would look like given where the game left off. All that being said, I don't want this new idea to come off as if the old Dawn Chorus is outright dead. Give it time, give it space, we'll see what happens.
When would the game start?
The game begins on July 1st.
How's this all going to work?
So, up front and honest, the original incarnation of the game was pretty much all-consuming for me. It took a lot of time and it was pretty much the only writing project I was working on for a while there. I don't have the time, energy, or availability to do that again, so we're going to try something a bit different this time around.
The name of the game is collaboration. At the start of every season, I'd introduce five 'mysteries' (think of them as plot hooks). We'd take those blueprints and, as a group, plot it all out before we ever start writing so that we have a basic framework to work from. We'll tell a story together; beginning, middle, and end. Those plans can change as the story progresses and new ideas form, but we'll have a structure to fall back on if need be.
The goal here is to take a lot of the backend work off my plate while also giving the players as much free rein as possible. While I'll still technically be running the game as the GM, I like the idea of all of us being on equal ground to tell the story we want to tell. In a lot of ways, I'm just laying the groundwork and leaving it up to the group as a whole to expand upon those ideas.
So, wait. This is an anthology? What if I'm interested in this season, but not the next?
Yep! An anthology. As in, every season, we'd be creating new characters, switching to a new setting, and telling a new story. You can look at each season as its own, self-contained short story. The only constant is the town of Dawn Chorus itself. If you're interested in this season and not interested in the next, that's fine! No big deal! This whole thing is built with the players in mind and I want it to work for everyone. If you're not interested next season, you're under no obligations! You can play a minor character or sit that one out. Come and go as you please, there is no full on commitment.
I'm interested, but I don't know if I'll be available for the full season.
Hey, that's cool! Life comes first. If you're interested in the game, but you're not sure if you can fully commit, I'm open to the idea of having players play minor, side characters. Think of yourself as a guest who can come and go as you please during open scenes. You won't be as involved in the main storyline, but you can still write with us as time allows.
How long is a season? How is a season structured?
Each season will last between three to six months in real life, ideally. That should give us plenty of time to tell a whole, complete story from beginning to end. It would vary how much time we cover in game, but I'm thinking it would most likely be a week or two per season? As for how its going to be structured... I'm still working out the kinks there, but I have a vague idea. I'm thinking we'll start with an event to introduce all of the characters and concepts, transition to a more freeform sandbox where multiple storylines can be happening at once, and then end with another event where all the plot lines (hopefully) converge.
Will there be tons of locations and NPCs like last time?
Nope! We're going way, way smaller scale. There'll be one main location, a few others here and there, and a small handful of NPCs. More can be added at the discretion of the players, but we're really going to try to keep things dialed back compared to the original Dawn Chorus.
What are the post frequency and length expectations?
So, the last go around, there was no set in stone rules for post frequency or lengths. The game was very slow paced and it wasn't a big surprise to see 2k word posts get plopped down like it was no big deal. We're simplifying that a bit this time.
First off, post lengths. I'd like to keep things shorter with quality over quantity in mind. Most posts could stay in the 300 to 1k word range, which I think is fairly standard. I think this removes some of the unspoken expectation for massive posts. Meanwhile, I'm hoping this will lead to a bit of a faster pace as well as a happy side effect. That being said, I'm still uncomfortable with the idea of enforcing a hard post frequency rule. Personally, I'll be aiming to do a couple posts a week, short and sweet.
However, it should be said that this isn't an excuse for low quality posts. I want everyone to bring their absolute best. Write posts that matter, posts that advance the plot or reveal character motivations. Shoot for the stars, baby.
Who can join?
Just about anybody, I reckon! If you're interested in the idea and you think you'd be a good fit, feel free to let me know! Returning players will be get priority, but as long as we're not full, we'd be happy to make room for you!
How many players are you looking for? How many characters can I play?
As of right now, the idea is to run a maximum of 10-12 players (including myself), but that can be adjusted up and down depending on interest. Each player will be allowed to play two characters.
Who can I play?
Anyone that would be tangentially involved with The Merrywood! Tenants, obviously. Guests. Friends. Maintenance workers. If you can come up with a convincing enough reason for your character to be there, I'll allow it.
What about the smut?
This is, for all intents and purposes, a non-sexual roleplay. Sex can absolutely be referenced and alluded to, things can even get a bit hot and heavy between characters, but actual full-on, hardcore smut? Yeah, we're just going to fade to black. In other words, if you're just looking for a place to write sexy stuff about sexy people doing sexy things, this might not be the right fit for you.
So, like... is the OG Dawn Chorus ever coming back?
This is going to sound like a cop out, but… eventually, probably, most likely, maybe? I'd like for it to come back, that's for sure. But if/when it does, it's going to need some pretty big changes to make it work and I don't know what those changes would look like given where the game left off. All that being said, I don't want this new idea to come off as if the old Dawn Chorus is outright dead. Give it time, give it space, we'll see what happens.
And... I think that just about sums everything up?
If you're interested or you have any questions, please feel free to comment below or send me a PM!
Hope to talk soon, yeah?
If you're interested or you have any questions, please feel free to comment below or send me a PM!
Hope to talk soon, yeah?
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