Hinckley

*Jack Baxter knocks down the tablets narrowly missing crushing fellow tourists. He knocks on the wall. Nobody answers. He looks for a doorbell. There isn't one. He examines the ground which is now covered by the tablets he just knocked down. It would be easier to examine the ground if the tablets were not there...*

*The scratching sound returns, a little more persistent this time. It is coming from the area where the tablets were found...*

Character information has been sent to our new players. I'm going to give them a little time to catch up before I re-open the thread...

Bob cannot play, so I'll be asking Milacoll. I will send you character information once I know who is willing to play. Thanks.

Game paused while new players catch up.

So, I actually need two characters to be replaced: DJ and Stanton. I'll contact the next reserves on the list...

*As if taunting the notion that it was a setup, a faint scratching is heard near the stone tablets. With the fog having cleared and the moon full and bright, there is a clear view, yet the group sees nothing to cause the sound...*

*Sheldon looks but does not find a mailbox.* "This couldn't be! This is so similar to my grandmother's handwriting! How odd..." *The group reaches the conclusion that the shape was drawn on the parchment to give someone a clue that would release the sword.*

Everyone knows that if they venture off into the jungle, despite the security guard's warnings, they forfeit their security deposit and trip insurance. So, they all-wisely-decide to stay in the general vicinity of the main entrance to Phasma Diabolus.

*Tony follows the footprints back to the edge of the encroaching jungle. The trail ends abruptly, a short distance from the underbrush.* *Diesel takes some cough medicine and carries the sword around to each member of the tour for them to touch it. It burns nobody...*

*Sylvia and Jack look over the rocks, turning up no other clues or oddities.* *Donna peers up the stairs but sees nothing but darkness...* *Sheldon requests to take the sword from Diesel...*

*The sword appears to be brand new, made pure smooth silver with no unusual markings.*

*Tony goes poop.* *Sylvia bodily lifts the two remaining tablets into the niche revealing the shape on the parchment in the center. One of the smooth areas next to the pillars drops to the ground revealing a silver sword.* "What an amazing discovery we've made!" Cries Johnson Willoughby, who then clearly pees his pants a little...

*Diesel and Fred agree and arrange the two stones: They seem to fit. They begin to look for another niche to put the other tablets in...*

*The writing on the parchment is English.* *Which way would you like to insert the stones into the niche?* *The parchment reads: "He Slivers Lotus Vase." Underneath that: a small shape is sketched: *

*Diesel feels the monument up while his in-laws look on disapprovingly. The smooth surface of the stones next to the pillars seems natural. The area behind the four tablets is almost completely smooth. Unlike the areas next to the pillars, it is not a completely square slab. It seems to be an indentation or niche. The smoothness of the rock is natural here as well.*

(Would it be possible to put your character avatar in your sig? Thanks.) *Sylvia arranges the four tablets flat on the ground.*

*Penny and William move the rock revealing a piece of parchment with writing on it.* *They also notice that although the faint set of footprints leads to the rock, one doesn't lead away...* *A closer look at the tablets reveals that there are 4 identically shaped "tablets" that seem lightweight enough to move around.* *There are no marks or symbols on the building or the pillars. In fact, some areas of the building seem remarkably smooth compared to the others.* *The pillars are beautifully ornate. It is a shame that, over time, some of the small sculpted parts seem to have eroded away or fallen off...* *The archway is beautiful and impressive. It's seems a bit more wobbly than one would hope it to be...* *To see the shoreline, you would have to take the bus back to the harbor...*

*since the rock and footprints are stationary objects, it helps more to look at them directly.* *Perhaps your camera is better suited for etchings, shadows and oddities...* *megablock* *You wait for a response from Penny before investigating the small rock further...*

There is an odd set of animal tracks heading from the staircase off into the woods. A closer look at human footprints reveals a faint trail of prints leading to a small rock near where Penny is standing.

Thanks for your patience guys! Chapter 2 is up. As you search around please be patient waiting for answers. Life is crazier than crazy right now and will be through the end of the week. It'll still be crazy after that but not crazier than crazy. Thanks again for your patience in this! I hope everyone is still around and willing to play. I'll try not to leave so much space between chapters again.

As the tourists, guide and security guard exited the bus, there was a beautiful site to behold. Phasma Diabolus stood before them cloaked in a very light, dissipating, fog. "The ruins were originally discovered during the construction of a French prison colony in the mid-19th century." Johnson Willoughby told his tour group. "I bet some of those original excavators wished for some modern plumbing. Well, don't worry because MOTEE Tours has state of the art facilities for your enjoyment. Please take some time to take in the outside of this beautiful temple before we journey in for the tour. Stretch your legs, use the facilities and feel free to look around. Your tour will begin in about a half hour." Before the group could begin looking around, they heard a commotion from the bus. They turned to see Security Guard Fred Thomas escorting Jack Baxter off the bus. "I'm coming, I'm coming." Jack protested. "I didn't hear that there were facilities out here. I thought it'd be my last chance to use the john..." The momentary distraction passes and the group begins to explore the main entrance to the temple... ________________________________________________ Rules for Game play (borrowed mostly from Dragonator's Mystery Manor) There are to be 21 participants. If you commit to the game you are committing to contributing to the story and sticking with it to the end. I am trusting you all not to drop out halfway through, as that is never any fun. The winner will be announced at the end of the game. Players will be scored along the way on certain criteria and completion of objectives. This will not be clear until the end. Ask questions for clarity along the way, but don't be surprised if the answers are cryptic. Of course, to win, you must survive… Attempts to solve the mystery or objectives can be postulated in the game itself. The truth will be revealed at the end. If someone solves the mystery before then, the mystery will play out and that player will be given points for solving it. Throwing out constant solutions will only get you killed. If an objective is to find out who stole something and you end up posting a guess of every other player, your latest post will be taken as your solution and you will be killed anyway, so just don't do it. You must search for clues. This means that an action must be specified. For example, you wish to search a room for hidden objects. The following is an example of how not to go about this: "I wish to look for suspicious or hidden objects in this room". Instead, you must be able to specify what you want to do. For example: "I would like to open the drawers of the cabinet." It is not required for you to specify exactly what you are doing and what you are looking for, but a generalised statement will not find you anything. Act like a detective and you will be fine. Dynamic Actions: Actions you wish to carry out without all of the other players' knowledge can be PMed to the game host, Hinckley. You may or may not be allowed to do what you request. Attacking: I have setup a system for attacking and defending that is needlessly complicated and I won't try to involve you all in the specifics. At a certain point, you may want to attack another player. PM me your attack and I will answer if it is plausible or not. Some characters just would not attack another player, based on their character description. Some characters are stronger than other when it comes to defense and counter-attack. So think before you attack. Life points: I am using TheBrickster's life points system, however I will not bother you all with the details. Just be careful and do your best to live. Host response time: Please be patient. You may bring the story to a point where you need the host to further game play. I will be on top of this game as much as possible. Please be patient with me between chapters as well. The game host is always right. Please don't question the rules or the info you are given. Take the info I give you and work with it. If you're terribly confused, please say so or ask questions. But, if I don't give you any further info, please be patient with the info you are given and try to work with what you have. Stagnant game: If you find yourself trapped in a room, it is because you need to find a clue or you've missed something. Don’t argue with the game host. You’ll be there until everything that needs to be discovered has been discovered. This game is meant to be fun, so enjoy yourselves! Please try to avoid editing your posts, as it can lead to suspicion against you. Just consider what you want to say before you say it or even proofread and you'll be fine. Failure to follow these rules will result in a warning. A second failure will result in the humorous death of your character. Cast of characters: Pleas note: more character info will come to some players from the host before each chapter starts. Sylvia Berent played by Svelte Chris Owen played by The Crazy One Siegourney played by Siegfried Stanton and Richard Sexton played by Stash2Sixx and Ricecracker Donna and William Falcon played by Dannylonglegs and WhiteFang, along with DJ and Diesel Nolan played by DJForce and Dragonator Jack Baxter played by Jim Butcher Penny Maltese and Zachary Fortem played by Peppermint_M and Zepher Quentin Mantino played by Quarryman Sandy Sanders and Sheldon Wills played by Snake...SNAKE?...SNAKE!!!!!?? and Shadows Samantha Cole played by I Scream Clone Tony and Ingrid Peck played by TinyPiesRUs and iamded Fred Thomas played by fallentomato Diana played by Sir Dillon Tour Guide Johnson Willoughby played by TheBrickster Reserve list 1. Zapper Brick 2. Striker 3. Bob the Construction Man 4. Millacol88 5. Tereglith 6. Eskallon 7. Hewki9 8. BigCam 9. GeneralArmendariz 10. Ben Kenobi

You guys, I'm so sorry about the delay on this. The chapter is written, I've just run out of building time. We have a new manager at work and a lot of changes, so our bosses took us out to dinner tonight and it went really late. The set for the next chapter is almost built. And then all I need to do is photograph. Thanks again for your patience and I'm looking forward to the game resuming. you guys!

Thanks for your patience, everyone. Chapter 2 should be up tomorrow evening...late.

That's a very smart man!