Character DossierThere are 7 characters:
[[Caretaker]]: (if:$CaretakerVar is true) [// - Care has been taken//]
[[Lacie]]: (if:$LacieVar is true) [// - She might be the only normal one//]
[[Charlie]]: (if:$CharlieVar is true) [// - Always in motion//]
[[Mr. Bram]]: (if:$BramVar is true) [// - Jerk//]
[[Sangrii]]: (if:$SangriiVar is true) [// - Conflaguration of evil...//]
[[The House]] - //Chief Officer//: (if:$HouseVar is true) ['' - An Alien?'']
[[The Detective]]: (if:$DetectiveVar is true) [//'' - A Program?''//]
This story is a more fleshed out story based on my haunted house and Distopian Earth story from the first Twine assignment, now called No one saved The Queen...
Basic story: Enough governments worldwide take advantage of a pandemic to steal complete power from the enough of the biggest countries of the world that the dynamics of all life on earth shift to totalitarian control. It isn't long before an oligarchy of leaders becomes just a few, and finally a monarchy under the watchful eye of an agorophobic and inbred queen lauded as a benevolent beauty. In really Queen Klaunch was a physically crooked woman who had total control over all. The people of earth were reduced to a quarter of the population at the start of the pandemic, huddled into walled city states, and when the food trucks stopped arriving they rose, not prepared for the one-sided fight that was ahead.
Plans were hatched, and the night before millions walked into their deaths (they had no millitary training - they were slaves!) space ships descended. Humans were seeded on Earth, as well as 6 other planets, although one was physically lost early on, and the oldest died. Few survive, plugged into ai-driven virtual reality... they think they are part of life on the other planets, but alas, they are not. Worse their planet will die soon, and if the other Humans don't band together and come to their aid they will all die - they might just anyway, time is of the escence and Humans are not good at moving //quickly//. This storyline is relevant as one of the main characters in this dossier is on that 6th planet.
Anyway, the humaliens landed, and the war was... by-and-large forgotten about. Many of the governments were "guided" by these new Humans back to social government types, and an easy peace was quickly found, important becuase Human civilization on Earth was nearly extinct. Until the time of this story (maybe 2060s?) civilization hasn't been able to move forward, so much as stabilize... and that's where we started The Caretaker and the introduction to the Gable House.
[[Important characters to the Gable House storyline ->Character List Homepage]]
(set: $CaretakerVar to false)
(set: $LacieVar to false)
(set: $CharlieVar to false)
(set: $BramVar to false)
(set: $SangriiVar to false)
(set: $HouseVar to false)
(set: $DetectiveVar to false)
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(set: $CaretakerVar to true)
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The Caretaker is the only player character to be in both halves of the story.
Player Character - protagonist or antagonist depending on which paths and story lines the player chooses
Character Type: Flat but grows so also dynamic
Physical Traits: //Probably// gaunt and pasty, but the physical attributes would be customizable, to a point. The character is a poor college kid during a time when food and money are scarce, so being overweight is a sign of hoarding and opulence - this character would not be very big. Mid 20s, motivated by comforts at hand more than promises and plans, which also shows in their dress and any items they may have like a book bag, etc.
Personality: The caretaker character is designed to be stubborn and close-minded until the second part of the story where they have seen so much that they change to be a better person... if the player chooses that path for them. Playing the first game as the Caretaker you don't have a choice but to lead a boring life and end the game, or become consumed by a powerful entity, not just becasue that is the point of the game, but also because the choice between medication and lab-animal is the only two options that the character was interested in.
Important note - this character will remain nameless unless the player chooses the best possible path, at which point the player will be instructed to give them a name right before they sacrifice themselves.
Bio: //Probably// a middle child, not the prodigy in a family that was only supposed to have two children, max. The only time that the Caretaker has left their walled district is to visit the apothecary, who lives in the badlands between districts, away from society. The district where this story takes place used to be centered around Boulder, Colorado, and most people in it (including the Caretaker) haven't been to most of the district because it is mountainous. The character is only in college until soemthing better comes along, which is a slap to the face for their mom who sacrificecd everything she had to put them in college... this is the door that is used to get into the Caretaker's psyche.
Motivations: Feeling good right now. That's kind of it, at least for the first half of the story, and then either redemption or complete dark side. This character represents the very black/white nature of addiction, which would be reflected in their motivations.
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[ [[Return ->Character List Homepage]] ](set: $LacieVar to true)
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Lacie is not a character for the first half or so of the story, but one of three main characters in the second half.
Player Character - protagonist
Character Type: Static, but round
Physical Traits: Pretty, average build in America 2024, large-gague earlobe piercings with buddha plugs that say "some things never change". Wears the modern fashions of her time; somewhere between 1980s goth-punk and Fallout Chic. She preferrs dresses in the summer, layers of baggy clothes in the winter; has big front teeth and freckles and shoulder-length purple hair.
Personality: She loves the mountains and hates shoes. Lacie is a thinker more than a doer, she is knowledgable, wise and also considerate. Being so intelligent has gotten in her way, however; she is often distracted or daydreaming, or both, which made relationships difficult until Charlie. She has always had an affinity for nature and animals, but she has only ever been able to read about them. As far as she knows the majority of species went extinct due to the pandemic. (ultimately that is not the case, and her shift to finding and preserving them becomes the force that ultimately allows her and Charlie and their child to survive - that's a later story) The absence of animal life has always been a profound hole for Lacie, but she doesn't really know what's causing the hole for a long time. Because of this everything she does and says is always a little meloncholy, like a dark lining to a pretty white cloud.
Bio: She comes from a very well-off family, but has made it a point to avoid that lifestyle, which is very hard for her. She would prefer that her parents spend their grand amounts of money helping people in need, but instead they buy her a house with it. She is not old enough to remember the war, nor the times before it, but she has a chip on her shoulder from the shit she gets for her family name, and their part in all of it.
Motivations: Her first motivation is help as many people as she can, next is her quest for knowledge, and finally is her drive to do the best that she can for her family. That final drive cannot be understated, however, it is third on the list, but she still places a lot of priority on family. Finally she is motivated by herself, which should be higher on her list, but she is a work in progress. Eventually she becomes motivated to use her vast wealth to help animals.
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[ [[Return ->Character List Homepage]] ](set: $CharlieVar to true)
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Charlie is not a character for the first half or so of the story, but one of three main characters in the second half.
Player Character - protagonist
Character Type: Round and dynamic, unless the player takes the darkest path with The Caretaker, and then Charlie becomes flat and static, because the darkest path is murduring Lacie.
Physical Traits: When Charlie is introduced as a character they are physically quite similar to The Caretaker. Gaunt and pale, but also leaning to the masculine side of androgenous - the intention is to never outright assign a gender to Charlie. Charlie remains thin throughout as they grew up very poor and can't imagine overeating or wasting, but over time Lacie has many very postiive effects on Charlie, most notably the effect of taking away the sullen and gaunt aspects of their physical appearance.
Personality: Charlie can be dangerous, but is, above all, patient. They are also gentle and confident, which brings about a quiet strength. Charlie is an introvert and dogmatically bitter towards most people. While Lacie is compassionate and thoughtful, Charlie often speaks out of turn, and says the wrong thing, generally to the effect of hurting the feelings who whoever they are speaking to, making relationships for Charlie very difficult until Lacie. Charlie is also a liar and a bit of a klepto. If the player chooses to take The Caretaker's dark path, they can also choose to take Charlie's dark path, which let's that dark streak out, and they murder The Caretaker, and then wander the catacombs until they come across the devil.
Bio: Charlie's parents were trapped in 5-points, a neighborhood in Denver when the pandemic hit, and were trapped there until they died not long after Charlie's 16th birthday. Even before the walls went up 5-points was the most dangerous part of the city to be in, and when resources got tough, it got worse. The riot that their parents were killed in was also the riot during which they they escaped the city, only to realize that the majority of the world was at peace. Charlie was raised to adulthood by a hermit who lived in the remnants of an old robot factory - it was kind and uneventful... but good.
Motivations: Charlie is motivated by his love for Lacie, and at the same time captivated by a need to deserve the affections of Lacie
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[ [[Return ->Character List Homepage]] ](set: $BramVar to true)
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Player Character - antagonist? For the first part of the story Bram is the person who lives in the house, and is in fact a construction contractor who is also working on rebuilding and fixing up the house. He is an ass, but also doesn't really deserve his ultimate fate.
Character Type: static and flat
Physical Traits: Mr. Bram has no hair on his head to "keep him streamlined when swimming" but Mr. Bram is also 5'3 and 280 pounds, very little of which is muscle. He wears shiny shoes, tight white v-necked t-shirts, always wears sunglasses and checks himself out in every reflective surface. Bram always smells like too much cologne - the bad one that brings up bad times. Finally he is always smiling, always.
Personality: Mr. Bram has a very big, dominant personality that is somehow at the same time shallow and geared towards sex, alcohol, drugs and money most of all. He thinks he is a dominant alpha-male, but he is scared, which is obvious to everyone but him. He's quick to pick a fight, but rarely actually engages in physical contact, and just as rarely wins, usually just walking away and drinking, leaving the person he was arguing with confused. He is often arrogant and boastful, but doesn't really have any acheivements to his name. Most importantly he will steal from you if you let him.
Mr. Bram's death is the climax of the first half of the story, and unavoidable as the house has not only been completed by this point, but also drained all that it can from him. His personality is not so much changed at this point, but magnified as he has nearly lost the little bit of mind that he had.
Bio: Bram's opening scene is trying to sleep with Lacie, who at the time is barely 18. He doesn't really have a backstory, and his future is sleeping with the wrong person and getting murdered for it. He has a lot of previous experience flipping houses, which is why he has ended up at Gable House, however he also does not have legal permission to live there.
Motivations: Mr. Bram is motivated by sex, alcohol, drugs and money. Other people mean very little to him, to the point that he isn't really bothered to care about his image.
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[ [[Return ->Character List Homepage]] ](set: $SangriiVar to true)
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Non-Player Character - antagonist
Character Type: Static and round
Physical Traits: Generally seen as a 30s ringleader with a tall tophat and handlebar mustauche, but also often seen as either a floating/disembodied or imagined set of eyes. Sangrii can also appear as any of the spirits who live in the house, which includes a family "turkey" dinner (the "turkey" was dad) and a whole host of homeless people. By the time that Mr. Bram is crazy Sangrii has the ability to look like Bram as well.
Personality: Chaotic decietful evil with the intention of hurting everyone. Sangrii also speaks as multiple voices with multiple trains of thought, making it difficult to fully comprehend what their intentions are at times. As the player attempts to fix the house, The Caretaker sits and watches, and Sangrii scares and harms at every turn.
Bio: Sangrii is the personification and combination of a series of ghosts that remain in the Gable House including a ringleader, his psychotic son who was a surgeon, all of the illigitimate patients, the proceding family (mom, two kids and a nephew somehow), a few strays and slowly Mr. Bram. Sangrii was the name of the ringleader, and the form that the demon usually chooses to appear as. In part one of the story Sangrii is the force driving Mr. Bram mad, and in the second part is the force that you are fighting as Charlie and Lacie.
Motivations: Pure bloodlust - Sangrii is the tool that //Chief Officer// uses to scare the people who live within Gable House, which is what //Chief Officer// feeds on.
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[ [[Return ->Character List Homepage]] ](set: $HouseVar to true)
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Non-Player Character - Prime Antagonist for the entire Universe
Character Type: Very round and very dynamic
Physical Traits: In this current form //Chief Officer// is an entitiy trapped in a magic container deep in the catacombs beneath the house. Trapped in the container, his physical form is deep panic and apathy. At the end of this entire story arc he is let out of containment, and at that point he manifests as a bat-like creature, ultimately flying away.
Personality: //Chief Officer// is a monopoly-capitalist who turned to magic and other dark arts in a vain attempt to bring his wife back from the dead. He is selfish and entitled, wanting nothing less than everything at this point. Upon hearing that Humans can now access all of the other planets he becomes singleminded about escaping. That said, he is also changable and fairly easy to persuade provided you have evidence to suggest he need change his mind. During this story he has been locked in a magic box for nearly 200 years, so he is... angry. But during other times in his adventures he was commanding, strong and just, he was a hero and he was a peddler
Bio: He is something akin to a vampire and evil sorcerer. //Chief Officer's// tragedy is that he is given many more chances to be a good person than everyone else is given by any metric, and in the end he chooses to be evil. He was not born on Earth, but a different one of the 7 planets, which he ruled single-handedly until the people there heard of the war on Earth. IT is a long story, but ultimately he ended up back in Salem, Mass. in 1690, so some kind witches trapped him, handing him down from family member to family member, until at some point he ended up in the catacombs of a Victorian-era house on the outskirts of Boulder, Colorado.
Motivations: In his current form he must consume fear to survive, and the house that is holding him is falling apart, so his first motivation is to solve that problem, his second motivation is to eat, and finally (ultimately his only) motivation is to escape.
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[ [[Return ->Character List Homepage]] ](set: $DetectiveVar to true)
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Non-Player Character neither antagonist nor protagonist
Bio: The detective is a character on each planet in the whole serieis, and therefore would appear in each separate story (be it game/book/rap album/movie/tv series, whatever). The detective is not a living person, however - he is a program meant to maintain the population currently stuck in VR on the dead planet. Similar to agents in The Matrix, but benevolent. He is the oldest character in the series, but doesn't seem to have acumulated knowledge for that period of time, and doesn't seem to be able to connect the knowledge that each version of the detective have.
From a narative point of view he serves a few purposes... maintain the sleeping human population, but also alert of the rest of the planets that the VR humans are going to die, (I haven't figured out how yet...) but he monitors what the other human planets are doing so that the VR simulations are accurate and up to date. And finally, most crucially, his presence and interaction with any character alerts the reader that said character is actually in the simulation.
For the sake of clarity for this assignment, The Detective is the only character in this list who is on the VR planet. He is in the list, becuase something in the way that he monitors the other planets is how he will let everyone know that the VR humans are in trouble, and also how //Chief Officer// learns of all the other humans.
Character Type: flat and static
Physical Traits: Each version is different to a point so that they fit into the world they inhabit, but he is always a gruff old guy. He likes long jackets.
Personality: A cross between Tom Waits and Anthony Hopkins. He is very curious, stoic and distant. He cares deeply about all humans, and is very concerned about what is happening on earth, particularly surrounding the Gable House and those in it.
Motivations: He has two main motivations - 1 to actually be a part of society, a "real person", and 2 to make sure all the humans are okay.
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[ [[Return ->Character List Homepage]] ]Those are the 7 major characters, although there are also many side characters, many of whom provide interesting anecdotes of story, but not much else.
An example of this sort of side character is the hermit who raised Charlie, who died sometime in the past few years... but Charlie does not know this; their communication at this point is entirely based on recording video-letters and mailing them to each other. While Charlie is on earth, the hermit is actually a person in the VR system who believes they are the hermit. So the communications between them are genuine, but if Charlie went out to find the hermit, all they would find is a very old corpse.
Review?
[[Caretaker]]
[[Lacie]]
[[Charlie]]
[[Mr. Bram]]
[[Sangrii]]
[[The House]]
[[The Detective]]
[[Start Over ->Initialize]]