GAME INFORMATION

[maladied]

that muffled monotone
Feast… Blood… Find…

PREMISE

The MESSAGE is scrambled and distorted, but it doesn’t come from any familiar voice, or even a voice to begin with—not that it matters, as you feel the words all the same. Resonate with them. It’s not a command; it’s a request framed as a statement. The message creates an oppressive weight on your chest with its grief. Underneath the grief, however, is a simmering, insatiable hunger. A hunger you can feel in the back of your mouth.

It momentarily cripples you, immobilizes you, and forces your eyes shut, but only for a fleeting moment. Once that moment passes, both the grief and hunger vanish completely and do not linger. You feel like yourself again, but when you open your eyes, you’ll find yourself in a field that you do not recognize surrounded by unfamiliar buildings.

THE GAME

Hello there, PESTILENTEM is a short-term horror-themed murdergame in which characters find themselves summoned to a [ setting ] where they have an opportunity to uncover the mystery surrounding an illness that has infected them and their world. This is a plot intensive game with multiple endings that depend on the actions of the players. In other words, characters will need to work together to solve the mystery if they wish to have the best possible outcome. Please be aware that this means that a "golden ending" will not be guaranteed.

GAMEPLAY
Similar to games like chasma and onceuponacomm, Pestilentem is loosely based on the Mafia party game with some changes to the formula. Each week, at least one character will be murdered, and those remaining will have to work together to try to figure out what happened. Please be aware that whoever is accused of the crime will be executed whether or not they are the true culprit of the crime.

This game will also feature multiple hidden roles; more information will be given to those who are chosen for those roles. If you are not selected for a role, or have no interest in one, then there’s still plenty to the game to keep you busy.

SCHEDULE CADENCE

GAMEPLAY LOOP

MON - THU:
Each Monday will begin with a new weekly mingle and have new ways for characters to interact with the setting. Mini-events will take place on WEDNESDAYS, and other updates will be posted as needed throughout the week as they occur.

Monday weekly mingle will be posted at: 12PM EST | 9AM PST | 5PM GMT.

FRIDAY:
To respect the work schedules of mods and players alike, we will not be hosting any investigations on this day. Instead characters will receive a brief announcement regarding the week's victims and are welcomed to talk amongst themselves about any oddities.

Announcement will be posted at: 3PM EST | 12PM PST | 8PM GMT.

SATURDAY:
Trial will start at: 12PM EST | 9AM PST | 5PM GMT & end at: 9PM EST | 6PM PST | 2AM GMT.

There will be a break, roughly four hours into trial, to allow players to step away if needed. Mod breaks will be staggered so that we may continue with mod tags throughout all trial. We ask for players to be available for trials, but in the event that you need to miss a trial, please let us know at least 48 hours in advance so that we may plan accordingly.

Character attendance is mandatory, and they will have nine hours to investigate, test theories, and try to solve the murder and vote for a culprit before time is up. OOCly, players must submit their character's vote to a screened post. Once the votes have been tallied, we will announce who has received the majority of votes.

SUNDAY:
Executions will begin at: 1PM EST | 10AM PST | 6PM GMT, though this time may change as needed to accommodate involved parties. Attendance is not mandatory unless your character has been chosen as executioner, but these events will be open to the public to witness.

MISC.
A game CALENDAR has been created for players to have a visualization of the game's cadence. All times listed on the calendar are in PST.

F.A.Q

FOR Q & A's

Is there something to do after I die?
Yep! We have a graveyard for characters to continue playing and participate in. You can have open threads within the graveyard and/or have private conversations with other dead characters. There will also be specific opportunities for dead characters that the living does not have.

What’s the pacing of the game? How active should I be?
The game will be running off a 1:1 schedule and given the nature of the game being plot intensive, if players wish to have the best possible outcome, then it’s likely that it will be quick moving. We’d like to see players participating in as many opportunities as they can manage whether it be weekly mingles, private threads, weekly events, or any combination of the three.

Again, we’d like to remind players that, should you have a role, we will ask for a level of higher activity and for you to be around for coordination purposes, etc. The game functions best when all players are active and engaged, so please keep that in mind when applying, but also be mindful of your personal time management.

Private conversations?
Also referred to as “PC”s, are situations where two or more characters will want to spend time together, share information, or generally interact in a non-public capacity. Please check the PRIVATE CONVERSATIONS PAGE for more information.

Do I have to be present for every trial?
Short answer: Yes, and your character’s vote will act as your activity check.

Long answer: If something comes up and you are unable to be present for trial, please let us know in advance. We’d appreciate as much notice as possible but understand that an emergency happens that can result in last-minute conflicts. If you do not let us know in advance, then your character will be killed off in-game.

How long will the game last?
The game will last a total of six weeks with a soft opening on October 31st, but it will officially start on November 3rd and end December 15th (or so help me god). The first week, including the soft open, will be considered “Week 0” as it will function as a tutorial for the rest of the game.

I still have questions!
Then perish—just kidding. We’ll be operating primarily on Discord, so please be sure to create a group chat with Naru, Amb, Milky, and Caitie when needing to ask any sort of question, express concerns, and the like. We also have a FEEDBACK POST where the comments are screened, should you want to communicate that way.