#tlotg

[divorcedfiddleford]

gobblewonker turned 10 years old a couple days ago which means we’ve had 10 years of Him... the fucking guy of all time. happy fiddleford friday here are some REALLY rushed doodles

[lureofthegallowsgame]

The Lure of the Gallows by Killian Faust is a modern urban fantasy interactive fiction novel developed using the Choicescript format and updated through COGDemos on a chapter-by-chapter basis. Originally posted as the first entry in a trilogy through Dashingdon, it is now adapted to be one novel with three main arcs.

In the unsuspecting small town of Washington Bay, Delaware, you have just become the last living seer after a fatal house fire killed your parents. When the town's designated Council of the Paranormal descends into havoc and refuses to pursue the investigation into the murders, you are forced to launch your own campaign to find the person responsible, even at the cost of your own life.

Across the country, in the modest tourist town of Melchior, Oregon, you are its most dangerous secret after the sudden disappearance of your father. Ever since you were a child, you have mastered the ability to control cell regeneration: with a wave of your hand, you can decay living organisms to the point of no return… or even revitalize them, if you so choose. In your greatest time of need, your father has vanished with only one, simple instruction: go to Washington Bay, and find the last Seer living there before it’s too late.

You are not alone: you have allies and friends, enemies and family. The truth of your ancestry is an ancient, terrible beast, and he has a familiar face. Yet as worlds collide and burn in fantastic light, you may find that the face you recognize the best, the one you’ve known in the mirror your whole life, could be the only thing you cannot turn away from.

And it could be the very thing that finally, truly kills you.

[PLAY THE DEMO]

There are two playable protagonists and nine romancable options:

✒ THE SEER || 19 || PLAYER CHARACTER

One of the playable protagonists, the Seer is capable of experiencing future events before they come to fruition. This ability is uncontrollable, which leaves them young and inexperienced when their mother, the only other seer they knew, dies so suddenly. Armed with grim premonitions and allied with merely a few friends, they must establish their own path and discover the truth about their own ancestry.

✑ THE NATURALIST || 19 || PLAYER CHARACTER

As the other playable protagonist, the Naturalist is a dangerously gifted supernatural with the ability to control cell regeneration in people, plants, and animals. Their ability is unmatched compared to their closest peers, and they have been properly marked as a threat to humanity. Tasked with finding a seemingly unremarkable seer living across the country, they are flanked by enemies and allies alike and haunted by the violent truth hanging over their head, breathing down their neck, and threatening the precarious life they built for themself.

♖LEO GIDEON || 19 || THEY/THEM || SHAPESHIFTER

The unfortunate heir to one of the most influential shapeshifter hierarchies in Washington Bay, Leo is wrought with overbearing responsibility and plagued by a familial downfall.

♙ELI ABERNATHY || 20 || HE/HIM & SHE/HER​ &​​ THEY/THEM || MAGICIAN

As the forgotten young magician of the once well-respected Abernathy bloodline, Eli is a temperamental yet steadfast ally in a time of true chaos.

♕ WARREN SINCLAIR || 20 || HE/HIM || INCUBUS

A societal outcast and proud of it, Warren devotes his lonely life to the history of the supernatural and all of its grim shadows despite the dangers that loom above.

☽ FINLEY RAMSEY || 19 || THEY/THEM || HUMAN

At first glance, there seems to be nothing remarkable about Finley, and yet they remain one of the most elusive marvels of the world.

☼ AMBROSE SOLOMON || 21 || HE/HIM || LIGHT MANIPULATOR

Driven by the purpose of his work and numb to the world around him, Ambrose is a dangerous person to have an unexpected truce with.

✩ LUNA MORALES || 20 || SHE/HER || SHAPESHIFTER

As a wayward daughter with a target etched into her back and a history of burned bridges, Luna trusts absolutely no one to a dangerously fatal fault.

∞ JULES PEARCE || UNKNOWN || HE/HIM & THEY/THEM || VAMPIRE

A frustratingly vague personality and a sharp contrast to their more stern partner-in-crime, Jules prides himself on the unknowable. It’s their specialty.

Ω HAZEL HUDSON || 19 || SHE/HER || SHAPESHIFTER

Under the order of her Alpha, Hazel has traveled far to reach you and unearth the secrets that torment the shapeshifter community.

☠ FAYE CATHAL || 20 || SHE/HER || BANSHEE

Plagued by the presence of the dead and the dying, Faye is intent on saving the lives that still have a chance, even if that means leaving behind the only life she's ever known.

WASHINGTON BAY, DELAWARE is a fictional town near the coast of Delaware that was established in the earliest days of European colonization. The ratio of humans to paranormal beings are about 2:3 according to the Council’s annual mandatory census surveys. The Council of the Paranormal is the officially elected group of representatives for the paranormal population in town. There are currently four members to reflect the highest supernatural populations: a shapeshifter, a vampire, a half-blood, and a spirited.

MELCHIOR, OREGON is a fictional town near the coast of Northern Oregon that was established in the early nineteenth century as a trading town for those crossing the national border. The town’s residents are overwhelmingly human compared to the supernatural population in a 3:1 ratio, and as such there is no official Council of the Paranormal. Rather, there are two representatives (a vampire and a shapeshifter, respectfully) that conduct supernatural business on behalf of the entire town.

IN THE UNITED STATES there are four different classifications of supernaturals: the Creatures, the Sorcerers, the Manipulators, and the Diviners. Worldwide, there are different names and systems in place to recognize the same variety of supernaturals.

Throughout the course of the novel, the player will encounter a variety of supernatural beings, and explore the limits of their own abilities...

For archival purposes, the original Dashingdon demo can be played here. The official Choice of Games forum page for TLOTG closed in January 2019, and as I’m moving to Twine, I have no plans to reopen the thread. I will update about the game on this blog pretty much exclusively.

There is an official Discord server for the game where the community shares information about their Seers/Naturalist, and I like to drop small sneak peeks for new content to keep things exciting. Everyone is very welcoming, and I monitor the server often; I do not tolerate misconduct. If you want to share your own Seer/Naturalist or simply enjoy what others are saying/see mild spoilers for new chapters, feel free to join!

I have a Ko-Fi that may occasionally be used for commissions if I have more free time during certain seasons. Every donation is simply extra money and I appreciate each and every one. :)

I track #the lure of the gallows and #tlotg if you are interested in posting something and want me to see it! Or you can tag the main blog, of course.

As always, I hope that I can use what little platform I have to promote important social issues, specifically ways that you, even as an individual, can help stay informed and take action.

Please take the time to appreciate this website and it’s resources! The main topic is BLM, but there are links at the bottom of the website to other social issues such as Help Palestine and Anti-Asian Violence Awareness. There are petitions and donation links that deserve as much recognition as possible.

[good-morning-warren]

Another comm from @kissingagrumpygiant thank you they're super cute as usual!!! Please check out @lureofthegallowsgame (and their brand new theme layout!!!) For the two characters (Eli, left. Warren, right.) Whom I promise you will adore.

[writingesgaypism]

This is! Literally just two people playing a stupidly simple game! That’s it. There’s no plot other than that. Anyway, go play @lureofthegallowsgame‘s game. Erin’s a delight, Leo is the light of my life, and you get to play as a seer which is cool asf. And Jude is just a gremlin.

---

“Okay,” Leo says, fry in hand but holding off on eating it just yet. “Anchorage.”

There’s a song playing, just audible over the low murmur of the other diners at Saint’s, but Jude is very much not listening to it. They keep their straw clenched between their teeth for a little longer, momentarily distracted by the playful tilt to Leo’s head. Blinking, they release the straw.

“Boston.”

“Columbus.”

“Uh, Dayton.”

“’Uh’ doesn’t start with D,” Leo teases.

“’Dumbass’ does,” Jude mutters, grabbing a fry for the express purpose of tossing it at them. “It’s your turn.”

“…El Paso.”

Jude ducks their head a little to hide their smirk. “Had to think on that one, didn’t you?”

“E’s hard! Can you think of a city off the top of your head that starts with E?”

“I don’t have to, we’re on F now.”

Leo narrows their eyes, but if they were going for stern they fail miserably. They’ve still got that dumb, pleased smile on their face, and the force of it scrunches up their nose just a little. Jude would be able to read the same thing in their dumb, pretty eyes if they could get themself to look for longer than a second, but that’s too big of a risk to take in public. Or in private.

“Well, go on, then,” Leo says. “You’re up.”

“Fresno…? That’s a city, right?”

“Yes?”

Jude takes a quick sip of their milkshake. “It sounds fake when I say it out loud. It’s G now.”

“Gary — Don’t give me that look; it’s a city in Indiana!”

“New rule,” Jude says, swiping a fry and sticking in in their shake. “No cities that are also people names.”

“You can’t change the rules mid-game,” Leo protests.

“I can and I did. Houston.”

“You did, but you shouldn’t,” they say. “Indianapolis.”

At that moment, their waitress swings by, one pen perched behind her ear and another in her hand for reasons Jude doesn’t quite understand. She smiles, asks if everything’s all right, and will they be needing anything else? Jude lets Leo handle her because they’ve always been better with people, but they do manage to thank her before she leaves.

They both reach for another fry at the same time and Jude pulls their hand back before they collide, trying to keep their smile from seeming awkward. “What were we on?”

Leo puts their fry in their mouth and finishes chewing first, obviously in no rush, watching Jude the whole time. Jude, in turn, refuses to make eye contact, instead focusing on the line of their jaw until they realize that’s… not better. Their gaze darts to the side and they put their straw back between their teeth. Very casual. Smooth, even.

“We were on J,” Leo says, and, dammit, they can hear the smile in their voice even without looking. “Also, it was your turn.”

“Jackson…ville.”

Leo snorts, nudging their leg under the table. “Skirting your own rules?”

“Take your turn before I die of old age, Leo.”

They laugh. “It hasn’t even been, like, a second, but fine. Knoxville.”

“Lansing,” Jude says, absently licking french fry salt off their thumb.

“You know, the further in we get, the more I’m starting to wonder if there actually are cities that start with every letter of the alphabet.”

“Why wouldn’t there be?” Jude asks.

“I don’t know,” Leo concedes with a grin. “I was stalling because I almost said Michigan. Memphis.”

Jude scoffs and stirs their shake. “Really? M isn’t even one of the hard ones. How is it that you, the honor roll kid, couldn’t instantly think of a city that starts with M?”

“First of all, just because I was on honor roll doesn’t mean I automatically know every city name. Second, I got… distracted.”

“Idiot. Nashville.”

“Omaha,” Leo says, then leans forward. “So you’re admitting that the honor roll thing was a non sequitur? Since you’re not arguing against my point.”

“Oh, that’s the part you’re concerned about me not following up on? Phoenix.”

Their smile tugs up higher on one side, mischievous and fond simultaneously. “Why, do you want me to tell you why I was distracted?”

“I —” Jude risks a quick look at Leo’s eyes, catches something between nerves and an affection so deep it almost pulls them under, and swiftly redirects their gaze to the diner’s checkered floor. “No. I want you to take your stupid turn.”

Leo fidgets, then tries to cover it by reaching for a fry. “Uh. Quincy.”

“’Uh’ doesn’t start with Q,” Jude says, in a poor imitation of Leo’s voice. “Reno.”

“Play fair, Jude. Sacramento.”

“I am?”

Leo hums, resting their chin on their fist. “Your turn.”

“Tallahassee. I’m playing fair!”

“You did change the rules part of the way through,” they point out, smile turning slightly conciliatory. “And… Union.? Yeah, Union.”

“Well… I didn’t try to disqualify you for it, so. Venice.”

“Which one?”

They pause in the middle of drinking, brows furrowing. They take a moment to swallow, then, “What?”

“Which Venice?” Leo says.

“Does it… matter?”

“I suppose not,” they reply, “but so far we’ve really only been doing American cities. Venice, Italy would’ve been an odd outlier, don’t you think?”

“I try not to,” Jude says dryly.

They reach over to ruffle Jude’s hair, laughing at any attempts to swat them away. “Aw, don’t sell yourself short. You think. Usually.”

“Not around you,” they snap, then make an odd, strangled sound. “Because. You lower my IQ with your presence! It’s — Take your turn.”

Angrily, they start in on their shake again, tapping their foot under the table. There’s a brief silence from the opposite booth, but Jude absolutely refuses to look up until the conversation moves on.

“Waterloo,” Leo says finally, something dangerously soft in their voice.

“I don’t — Is there even a city that starts with X?”

“Hmm, what was it you said to me when I was wondering about the feasibility of this little game?” They tap a finger against their lips and Jude very definitively does not notice in the slightest. “Something about… Why wouldn’t there be?”

Jude takes a breath to recenter themself, and reaches into their pocket. “I’m phoning a friend.”

“Oh, so that’s a rule now, too?”

They pointedly ignore Leo, sending a quick message to Warren and hoping he responds quickly. Or maybe it would be better if he was just a little slow. To give them more time to recover — No, there’s his reply. They tap out a string of heart emojis and set their phone on the table triumphantly.

“Xenia,” they announce. “It’s in Ohio.”

Leo leans back in the booth, taking a fry almost as an afterthought. They don’t look too closely at Warren’s answer. “All right, all right. Yukon.”

“How did I get stuck with X and Z?” they grumble.

“I don’t know,” Leo says, “but since you get to make rules, I’m making the rule that you can’t use the same get out of jail free card twice. You’re on your own with this one.”

Jude sticks out their tongue and Leo’s shoulders lose a tension that Jude hadn’t quite realized was there until it was gone. Their phone screen has already gone dark on its own, but they slide it slightly off to the side anyway.

“Oh, we’re so close, there has to be — Oh! Um! Zion?” They look to Leo for confirmation, beginning to smile at the amusement they find on their friend’s face before they catch themself and pretend to examine their poor, chewed upon straw.

Leo laughs easily, their own eyes never straying from Jude. “Zion it is.”

[good-morning-warren]

Another one from @kissingagrumpygiant because I have zero self control. As always the characters are from @lureofthegallowsgame from left to right Eli (teal hair), Verity, Warren, and the FINAL power ranger: Luna!!! So excited to have all 4 of them together.

[good-morning-warren]

Happy Valentines Eli & Warren! Sorry for missing your birthdays :(( lovely art by @kissingagrumpygiant and characters from @lureofthegallowsgame our beloved ❤

[lureofthegallowsgame]

The Lure of the Gallows (TLOTG) is an ongoing urban fantasy interactive fiction novel that utilizes the Choicescript format:

In the wake of a fatal house fire, you have become the last living seer in Washington Bay. When the town’s designated Council of the Paranormal descends into havoc and refuse to pursue the investigation into your family’s murder, you’re forced to launch your own campaign to find the person responsible.

Despite ancient and bitter family feuds, you are supported by three other paranormal teenagers: Leo, a shapeshifter with a history of unstable transformations; Eli, a magician with a nearly endless supply of power; and Warren, an incubus with a  reputation for using his abilities without reserve or remorse.

As the investigation leads you and your friends deeper into the dark depths of ancient family history, the corruption that plagued the town centuries ago resurfaces with vehemence, and an agenda that makes one thing clear: any remaining seer in Washington Bay won’t live to see the new year.

|| PLAY THE DEMO ||

The game is set entirely in modern-day Washington Bay, a fictional town near the coast of Delaware that was established in the earliest days of European colonization. It has a population of 35,000+ (technically considered a large town). The ratio of humans to paranormal beings are about 2:3 according to the Council’s annual mandatory census surveys.

The Council of the Paranormal is the officially elected group of representatives for the paranormal population in town. There are currently four members: Rhys Gideon of the shapeshifters, Sofia Abreu of the vampires, Lincoln of the spirited, and Josiah Reis of the half-blood population.

In the town itself, there are mostly shapeshifters, vampires, spirits, and a few other odd species (such as seers, magicians, or incubi). As for the rest of the world, there is a lot more diversity. Every type falls on the spectrum of four different classifications: the Creatures, the Sorcerers, the Manipulators, and the Diviners.

Throughout the course of the series, the player will encounter a variety of supernatural beings, and explore the limits of their own abilities... 

The official Choice of Games forum page for TLOTG closed in January 2019. I will contact the moderators to reopen the thread when I am available to interact with the community more. For now, I prefer to update via the official Tumblr blog.

There is an official Discord server for the game where the community shares information about their Seers, and I like to drop small sneak peeks for new content to keep things exciting. Everyone is very welcoming, and I monitor the server often; I do not tolerate misconduct. If you want to share your own Seer or simply enjoy what others are saying/see mild spoilers for new chapters, feel free to join!

I have a Ko-Fi that will, eventually, be used to open commissions when I finish the official demo and have extra time. I also started a Patreon, which offers exclusive content such as chapter sneak peaks and side stories. Every donation is simply extra money and I appreciate each and every one. :)

I track #the lure of the gallows and #tlotg if you are interested in posting something and want me to see it!

There is still work to do, and black voices still remain unheard. Black Lives Matter is not a temporary movement meant to be used for social clout or publicity for celebrities and companies. These are real people with names that cannot afford to be forgotten, even as the world turns to the next tragedy. Remember: it takes time for change. We cannot give up; we cannot turn away.

This website offers a variety of different actions you can take, including donations and petitions.

This Google Doc is a masterlist of resources such as petitions, therapy, bail funds, and more.

To my black followers: I hear you, I mourn with you, I stand with you.

[good-morning-warren]

Happy Birthday Leo!!! Apple crumble and vanilla ice cream, one of your favorite baked treats.