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SPOOKY SPELL PLOTTING POST
Hello all!! Thank you so much for coming to play.
I wanted to give you a space to plot together so I'm going to drop an overload of info below and a lil plotting form and then we can go to town. If I don't cover anything you want to know, give me a shout!
For some context, my intention is to set up a log as an open playground so you have space to play out whatever interests you about the mini spellcasting prequel arc. You can engage with the prequel log as much or as little as you'd like - there's no pressure, it's there as a CR platform for the involved teens as well as an opportunity to build up some context for any main event log or aftermath threads. Completely fine to plot out handwaved interactions for anybody who wants to limit their thread count!
Event start (aka the day the kids actually cast the spell) is due to be Weds 9th March, so I’ll forward-date this prequel log and put it up a few days ahead of that. I’m thinking Saturday 5th to give a few non-event days to tag around, but completed threads won't be needed to participate in the event log so tagging both simultaneously is a-ok. Now that I've got more of a sense of how this aspect of the plot is working I can also confirm that I will open it up again once the app round has concluded to see if anybody else wants in.
THE BASICS:
And some info about the key elements:
THE BOOK:
The book is shelved in the school library, tucked in amongst the magical reference section. It looks exactly as you'd imagine an old spell book would look: leatherbound, weathered, some mysterious-looking symbol stamped into the cover.
Inside, the majority of the pages are filled with scripts and symbols that don't seem to quite match anything translatable. The kids can check it against any other spell or language book they can find in the library or any app they can bring up on their phones and while they might find the odd rune or symbol or letter that matches up, they're combined in such a strange way that nothing ever properly translates.
It's also structured very oddly: hand written and chaotic. Script bunches together to form structures and patterns, curls in unsteady spirals, plays with empty space, covers pages with a dense layering of ink that would make the script illegible if it weren't already untranslatable.
THE SPELL:
The only exception to the above is a section of script that is written in English. The spine of the book will naturally crack open to these pages, so characters less inclined to sift through it can skip straight to the good stuff.
I'll write a more thorough description of the page and its text, but some key cryptic clues that characters will come across are:
🔦 The spell creates a secret place that sits inside another.
🔦 The place hides those it houses, maps lose their meaning.
🔦 The more people lend the place their power, the better hidden they will be.
Also evident is that the spell has specific requirements for the space it’s cast in: it must be pitch dark, it must be silent, and there must be at least two doors, one to be closed and one left open a crack.
These requirements will ultimately lead the kids to use the middle room of a basement warren, the only room in the house with two doors and no sound, where they can leave the door to the deeper room open a crack without letting in any light.
SUPERNATURAL INFLUENCE:
As we have a really nice mix of characters who need varying degrees of outside influence, we've got a supernatural offering that you can engage with as much or as little as you like. You're also free to have your character unaffected completely!
The book is enchanted to command and keep attention. Proximity to it will draw focus, and once the book is opened the trap closes. Each character's psyche determines how much or little the spell takes hold and what kinds of thoughts manifest as a result but basically, once someone sees the interior, the book will hook itself into a character’s thoughts which will warp towards it. That seed can grow in whatever way you find most fun to play with or most useful to get your character to cooperate.
If your character is the type to look at a magical book and think heck yeah let's go cast a spell, it might just stay rooted in their conscious thoughts all day, intensifying their excitement to mess with it more later. If they're the curious type, it might amplify that curiosity: a mild interest in the contents becomes a fascination becomes a need to experiment. If you want to play with darker themes, the spell might shift their thoughts to generate a more negative fixation: what if everyone else goes and I don't and I miss out on the best ever experience? What if this spell might be the only way to keep my friends safe one day? Wait, where did the book go? Somebody else has it? Unacceptable, time to find them.
THE LOCATION
The place they’ll choose to cast the spell is a big, uninhabited house in Sunset Falls, which has become a haunt and practice ground for the cool local magic kids. How they come to choose this location is completely up to you, depending on the teens.
If you have a teen who’s likely to have fallen into the same circles as Cool Magic Kids, they'll know about it. The school rumour mill will also have plenty of talk about things that have happened there for anybody keyed into that. Maybe your kid has explored Sunset Falls and got a Vibe off of this place previously - it’s damaged and overgrown in contrast to some of the other properties nearby, so looks visibly disused, as well as having an Intense magical aura.) These are just a few possible suggestions, feel free to toss around your own!
CASTING THE SPELL
This is a hefty section, brace yourselves!
As group threads can be unwieldy and I’d like to avoid putting any pressure on anyone to thread it out, the spell will focus on individual experiences. I'll include a prompt in the log to provide all the beats and you’re welcome to write up character experiences of the casting in response, but if you'd rather just hash out the key points here and use that to run into the event log that's also golden. If you decide to do a group thread leading up to the casting that’s completely fine of course! But it isn’t a must.
Notes:
🔦 once the first person speaks the spell words the spell is cast and everyone inside the room will be caught within it, so your character can opt to not actively participate at this stage and will still be trapped within the spell.
🔦 speaking the words severs any psychological hold the book had on a character, the effects of which can diminish as quickly or as slowly as you like.
🔦 after casting, characters will be solo as a default, but two or more characters can start out in the event log together by choosing the same door/taking the same action at the same time.
The Casting -
As per the spell's instructions, characters will position themselves in the casting room facing the closed door with their backs to the slightly open one. They must then shut off any light source in the room. At this point, each character participating will speak a short, memorised incantation from the spell book in their own time. Once they've done this, the darkness and silence of the room around them becomes absolute. No sound or light that anyone else creates will reach them.
After some time, each character who has spoken the incantation will come to ~feel~ as though the door behind them has fully opened. The spell advises they should then turn and go through it. They will find they are able to walk to it confidently through the dark if they choose to go, but they are equally free to decide they’d rather not and attempt another action: maybe finding a light, or trying to speak to somebody else, or feeling around for other characters or the closed door instead. Joke’s on them though! The spell has been cast, and anything they do now is an interaction with the spellscape.
Or the Not Casting? -
Characters who choose not to speak the incantation will remain in the original room, but if they turns on a light or try to speak to the other they'll find that they've vanished. The only people left in this room will be those who chose not to say the spell.
Once they leave the room through either door, they will be integrated into the spell: this room was the eye of the storm created by those who spoke the incantation, and they have left its safety. If they stay here however, they can be rescued before becoming trapped.
Hidden Option Number Three -
If you decide that you’d like your character to be involved in the prequel but not actually get trapped in the spell, I can facilitate this! Your character will need to 1. not participate in the incantation, 2. either stay put in the casting room after the others have left or not have gone into the room at all.
They will still be able to enter into the spellscape again after they’ve been retrieved from the house, but it’ll be as an outsider rather than one of the lost teens, so the experience will be slightly different. Let me know if you’re interested in this and I’ll factor it into my planning/probably ask to be put on your dance card for a prequel log thread between your character and Stephen.
PLOTTING
I’ve come up with a few headers that might be useful in putting together a plotting comment and some guiding questions, but feel free to go completely off script and add/remove sections as it suits you, or not use ti at all. The form is just here to give some structure if you want it.
And with that I’m finally finished! If you have any questions or want to hash out some more details or a specific scenario with me, pop on over and let me know here: QUESTIONS/PLOT CHAT.
I’ll be 👀ing your chats and ready and waiting for your questions, I hope this gives you some fun stuff to work with!
I wanted to give you a space to plot together so I'm going to drop an overload of info below and a lil plotting form and then we can go to town. If I don't cover anything you want to know, give me a shout!
For some context, my intention is to set up a log as an open playground so you have space to play out whatever interests you about the mini spellcasting prequel arc. You can engage with the prequel log as much or as little as you'd like - there's no pressure, it's there as a CR platform for the involved teens as well as an opportunity to build up some context for any main event log or aftermath threads. Completely fine to plot out handwaved interactions for anybody who wants to limit their thread count!
Event start (aka the day the kids actually cast the spell) is due to be Weds 9th March, so I’ll forward-date this prequel log and put it up a few days ahead of that. I’m thinking Saturday 5th to give a few non-event days to tag around, but completed threads won't be needed to participate in the event log so tagging both simultaneously is a-ok. Now that I've got more of a sense of how this aspect of the plot is working I can also confirm that I will open it up again once the app round has concluded to see if anybody else wants in.
THE BASICS:
Over the course of one to three days (we can figure out the timescale here), a spellbook is found and a plan hatched to cast the spell inside of it.
The location chosen is a big old spooky house in Sunset Falls, which the grapevine says is abandoned and a popular magic spot for local kids.
The teens go to the house after school one day.
The spell is cast. This was A Mistake.
And some info about the key elements:
THE BOOK:
The book is shelved in the school library, tucked in amongst the magical reference section. It looks exactly as you'd imagine an old spell book would look: leatherbound, weathered, some mysterious-looking symbol stamped into the cover.
Inside, the majority of the pages are filled with scripts and symbols that don't seem to quite match anything translatable. The kids can check it against any other spell or language book they can find in the library or any app they can bring up on their phones and while they might find the odd rune or symbol or letter that matches up, they're combined in such a strange way that nothing ever properly translates.
It's also structured very oddly: hand written and chaotic. Script bunches together to form structures and patterns, curls in unsteady spirals, plays with empty space, covers pages with a dense layering of ink that would make the script illegible if it weren't already untranslatable.
THE SPELL:
The only exception to the above is a section of script that is written in English. The spine of the book will naturally crack open to these pages, so characters less inclined to sift through it can skip straight to the good stuff.
I'll write a more thorough description of the page and its text, but some key cryptic clues that characters will come across are:
🔦 The spell creates a secret place that sits inside another.
🔦 The place hides those it houses, maps lose their meaning.
🔦 The more people lend the place their power, the better hidden they will be.
Also evident is that the spell has specific requirements for the space it’s cast in: it must be pitch dark, it must be silent, and there must be at least two doors, one to be closed and one left open a crack.
These requirements will ultimately lead the kids to use the middle room of a basement warren, the only room in the house with two doors and no sound, where they can leave the door to the deeper room open a crack without letting in any light.
SUPERNATURAL INFLUENCE:
As we have a really nice mix of characters who need varying degrees of outside influence, we've got a supernatural offering that you can engage with as much or as little as you like. You're also free to have your character unaffected completely!
The book is enchanted to command and keep attention. Proximity to it will draw focus, and once the book is opened the trap closes. Each character's psyche determines how much or little the spell takes hold and what kinds of thoughts manifest as a result but basically, once someone sees the interior, the book will hook itself into a character’s thoughts which will warp towards it. That seed can grow in whatever way you find most fun to play with or most useful to get your character to cooperate.
If your character is the type to look at a magical book and think heck yeah let's go cast a spell, it might just stay rooted in their conscious thoughts all day, intensifying their excitement to mess with it more later. If they're the curious type, it might amplify that curiosity: a mild interest in the contents becomes a fascination becomes a need to experiment. If you want to play with darker themes, the spell might shift their thoughts to generate a more negative fixation: what if everyone else goes and I don't and I miss out on the best ever experience? What if this spell might be the only way to keep my friends safe one day? Wait, where did the book go? Somebody else has it? Unacceptable, time to find them.
THE LOCATION
The place they’ll choose to cast the spell is a big, uninhabited house in Sunset Falls, which has become a haunt and practice ground for the cool local magic kids. How they come to choose this location is completely up to you, depending on the teens.
If you have a teen who’s likely to have fallen into the same circles as Cool Magic Kids, they'll know about it. The school rumour mill will also have plenty of talk about things that have happened there for anybody keyed into that. Maybe your kid has explored Sunset Falls and got a Vibe off of this place previously - it’s damaged and overgrown in contrast to some of the other properties nearby, so looks visibly disused, as well as having an Intense magical aura.) These are just a few possible suggestions, feel free to toss around your own!
CASTING THE SPELL
This is a hefty section, brace yourselves!
As group threads can be unwieldy and I’d like to avoid putting any pressure on anyone to thread it out, the spell will focus on individual experiences. I'll include a prompt in the log to provide all the beats and you’re welcome to write up character experiences of the casting in response, but if you'd rather just hash out the key points here and use that to run into the event log that's also golden. If you decide to do a group thread leading up to the casting that’s completely fine of course! But it isn’t a must.
Notes:
🔦 once the first person speaks the spell words the spell is cast and everyone inside the room will be caught within it, so your character can opt to not actively participate at this stage and will still be trapped within the spell.
🔦 speaking the words severs any psychological hold the book had on a character, the effects of which can diminish as quickly or as slowly as you like.
🔦 after casting, characters will be solo as a default, but two or more characters can start out in the event log together by choosing the same door/taking the same action at the same time.
The Casting -
As per the spell's instructions, characters will position themselves in the casting room facing the closed door with their backs to the slightly open one. They must then shut off any light source in the room. At this point, each character participating will speak a short, memorised incantation from the spell book in their own time. Once they've done this, the darkness and silence of the room around them becomes absolute. No sound or light that anyone else creates will reach them.
After some time, each character who has spoken the incantation will come to ~feel~ as though the door behind them has fully opened. The spell advises they should then turn and go through it. They will find they are able to walk to it confidently through the dark if they choose to go, but they are equally free to decide they’d rather not and attempt another action: maybe finding a light, or trying to speak to somebody else, or feeling around for other characters or the closed door instead. Joke’s on them though! The spell has been cast, and anything they do now is an interaction with the spellscape.
Or the Not Casting? -
Characters who choose not to speak the incantation will remain in the original room, but if they turns on a light or try to speak to the other they'll find that they've vanished. The only people left in this room will be those who chose not to say the spell.
Once they leave the room through either door, they will be integrated into the spell: this room was the eye of the storm created by those who spoke the incantation, and they have left its safety. If they stay here however, they can be rescued before becoming trapped.
Hidden Option Number Three -
If you decide that you’d like your character to be involved in the prequel but not actually get trapped in the spell, I can facilitate this! Your character will need to 1. not participate in the incantation, 2. either stay put in the casting room after the others have left or not have gone into the room at all.
They will still be able to enter into the spellscape again after they’ve been retrieved from the house, but it’ll be as an outsider rather than one of the lost teens, so the experience will be slightly different. Let me know if you’re interested in this and I’ll factor it into my planning/probably ask to be put on your dance card for a prequel log thread between your character and Stephen.
PLOTTING
I’ve come up with a few headers that might be useful in putting together a plotting comment and some guiding questions, but feel free to go completely off script and add/remove sections as it suits you, or not use ti at all. The form is just here to give some structure if you want it.
THE BOOK: Do you have any plans for how your character comes across it? In the library, or would you rather this happen via another character, or are you open? Is the book’s influence going to take a hold of your character, and if so how will that manifest? Is your character interested in the book itself or more interested in the idea of casting the spell?
THE SPELL: What about the spell appeals to your character/what might make them want to get involved with casting it? Does your character want a secret clubhouse? Is it the implication of a safe place? Are they interested to see what it means by more people=better hiding, or worried by that? Maybe they're just in it for the bonding experience, or tagging along because this spell looks risky as hell? Will it take persuasion to get them interested? An idea of this might help to see which characters might gravitate toward each other in the run up.
THE PLAN: How are these teens ending up at the spooky house? Does your character know about the house? Would your character propose casting the spell? Would they try to persuade others or attempt to go by themselves, paving the way for them to be followed? Will your character try to avoid getting involved and need coaxing? If you’ve got thoughts on this leave ‘em here.
THE CASTING: Will your character be speaking the words or not? Do you want your character to end up grouped with someone entering into the event log? Do you have an idea of how your character might react to the casting?
OTHER: Anything else you think it might be handy for people to know about your character, any interest in handwaved CR leading up to this, or things you’d like to play with that aren’t covered in the above sections, etc.
And with that I’m finally finished! If you have any questions or want to hash out some more details or a specific scenario with me, pop on over and let me know here: QUESTIONS/PLOT CHAT.
I’ll be 👀ing your chats and ready and waiting for your questions, I hope this gives you some fun stuff to work with!
QUESTIONS/PLOT CHATS
THE TEENS
no subject
THE SPELL: A little bit related to the above, Kaneki will be influence by the book and hopefully also influenced by other people willing to invite him, so he will tag along for this whole experience. He doesn't particular want anything from the spell at first but the more involved he gets, more the book's influence will kiiinda push him into it. And Kaneki will end up believing that maybe the spell can turn him back to being a human again.
THE PLAN: He won't really know a lot about anything LOOK HE IS JUST A POOR BOY WHO WAS AT THE LIBRARY. Again, he will need some coaxing into following and joining the spell, but to be fair once he starts believing he can become human, there will be little that will stop kaneki from going head on into this since that is literately the only thing he wants in the world (plus going back home, yet somehow becoming human is more important than that oops).
THE CASTING: he will speak the words because kaneki wants to be human and the book will warp his mind into believing he can.
OTHER: As you probably have realized by now, kaneki is not human (he used to be though!). He hides this fact, however. So unless someone can feel/smell/sense Kaneki's nature, he actually looks pretty human to everyone else. What he is (a cannibal being called ghoul) is Kaneki's biggest secret and source of all his many issues, but i'm totally up to have people find out about it somehow!
Peter Parker | MCU
Basically he has no reason to want to cast this spell and about 6000 reasons to NOT want to cast this spell. That's how it gets him! It stays in his mind by being like, hey Peter, you should keep thinking about this because only you can prevent
forest firessomeone ELSE from casting this spell. (Idk how entirely viable this is but that's what I'm spinning with right now as why it stays with him)THE SPELL: ABSOLUTELY he is not into this in his own head. He will take convincing, either by supernatural means or someone dragging him there. He will probably go along to try to convince others not to do this, or to try to make sure everyone is as safe as possible.
THE PLAN: I have no thoughts for this part yet actually orz
It's possible that because Peter is smart and spends time exploring he can figure out where this house is, or figure out where the book wants them to go, and relay this to the others. Remember that Peter's intention the whole time is to save everyone from as much bullshit as possible.
THE CASTING: Peter is going to back out of this. Look, he did the whole "fucks up a spell by talking during it" thing and he knows where that ends and you know what? Nah. NO, FAM, he is not going to do this again! How did he get talked into this?! Stupid book! Stupid magic! He's pretty sure he doesn't even like magic?
OTHER: I'm actually wondering if it might make sense for Peter to take HIDDEN OPTION NUMBER THREE here and come to his spider senses about this whole idea and try to bail before going into the room at the end to be like "hello I actually know a magic guy? What am I doing? Why am I not talking to the magic guy about this right now?!"
(no subject)
(no subject)
no subject
THE SPELL: She is here to cast the spell and will talk anyone she can into joining her. Who doesn't want a secret hideaway to hang out in?
THE PLAN: Harleen doesn't really plan. She just does. Which is exactly how this is going to go as well. If someone else doesn't propose the use of the spooky house she might do some digging around herself and come up with it.
THE CASTING: Again, she's doing it, you can't stop her. I'm open to having her end up with someone else.
OTHER: There will be no lesson learned from all of this.
no subject
( she doesn't watch horror movies )
Anyway, she'd be more interested in the contents of the book than the spells themselves. She'd probably want to figure out what it's about before giving it to an expert like Strange or Loki.
THE SPELL: Secret clubhouse! She really likes that idea as she still feels a little directionless here. While she has her group of Reliable Adults, she doesn't know how much she can lean on them. They're not her support network like her friends and family, so the idea of a private place where she can work things out sounds perfect.
THE PLAN: She is a plan girl! So yeah, she'd be down for proposing a location, timing, place, keeping it open for other people, please mark this on your google calendars don't be late okay, being late is the WORST. She probably won't make anyone do it if they don't want to though.
THE CASTING: She might? She'd be curious enough to try at least.
OTHER: She might message Strange or Loki beforehand? She's not that much of a rebel ok.
(no subject)
(no subject)
no subject
THE SPELL: alina is attracted to the idea of a safe place, and she's attracted to power, so both of these will influence her to cast the spell.
THE PLAN: alina will be VERY COMMITTED to finding spooky house to cast the spell, so if we need someone to go hunting and find the Perfect spot, she can do this while she's fantasizing about it and come back the next day at school like wE SHOULD DEFINITELY REALLY DO THIS AND I FOUND A SPOT.
THE CASTING: she will speak the words and have Immediate Regret as she is pulled into spooky house
no subject
THE SPELL: The concept of a special place is always nice to Bart. Titans Tower was that back in his original world. Creating a sanctuary doesn't sound all that bad....
THE PLAN: While he's leery of magic in general, he's probably not opposed to most of this, and would want to be around Just In Case. And hey, he's got a lucky black cat to help....
THE CASTING: Bart and by extension the kitten Kat-El Allen will definitely be there, although I'm not 100% sure which way he'll fall on the actual casting thing. Other than definitely being in the room.
OTHER: I guess he's up for all kinds of weird because, hey, it's a day ending in Y for the patron saint of ADHD.
no subject
THE SPELL: He's Loki HE'S GONNA CAST THE SPELL WITHOUT THINKING BECAUSE FUN but also he's curious as to how it might interact with his own magic and himself as a being of magic. Loki literally has a magic place inside his head where he communicates with himself and he's curious if the spell could help him actively access that.
THE PLAN: Normally he would just go off on his own and do this... but since it seems like other people are interested and he's supposed to be trying to make new friends, why not bond over creepy book.
THE CASTING: He'll be there, adding his own magic to the mix. While his powers function similarly to the older Loki, he doesn't have much control over them and tends to use them unconsciously.
OTHER: If Kamala's seeking help from A Loki, maybe this Loki will purposefully block her access to older Loki???