John Marston (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
bornuntotrouble) wrote2012-05-13 06:36 pm
bornuntotrouble) wrote2012-05-13 06:36 pm
OOC: Plotting post!
First off, let's get some of the major characters out of the way, just so y'all know who you're dealing with here.
Of course, if you want, you can skip straight to the missions. Ain't like I can stop you.
Missions withstrikethroughs have already been played out, say sorry.
Dramatis personæ:
Bonnie MacFarlane: the headstrong man of the MacFarlane ranch. Had six brothers - five of them are dead, and the other one's back East working for a bank.
Leigh Johnson: the Marshal of Armadillo, the only real town to speak of in the territory of New Austin. Strictly by-the-book lawman who's just a little out of his depth. Has a tendency to overestimate his opposition, but has no problem using lethal force. Has little tolerance for backtalk, sarcasm, and smartassery, especially on the job.
Jonah: One of Johnson's deputies. Dim-witted, belligerent, sarcastic, lazy, and the hero of every tale he tells. Also more than a little hick.
Eli: The other of Johnson's two deputies. Hard-working and friendly, but has a lazy eye and a lazier mind.
Nigel West Dickens: A flamboyant traveling salesman on a tour of New Austin, peddling his "miracle cures". Has a taste for the theatrical. Is a Large Ham, but the kind you like.
Seth Briars: A treasure hunter-turned-grave-robber, driven insane by his infatuation with wealth. Lost his wife, his children, and his business in his search for treasure. Hatespeople living people. Has a great affection for exhuming the dead (and talking to them. And feeling them up). He doesn't eat, he doesn't sleep, he doesn't wash, and he doesn't care.
Also doesn't like women. Not since Mammy died.
Irish: A barely-functional alcoholic arms dealer, known for his tall tales. Also (you guessed it) Irish. Also a total flake - he's always where the fighting's not, except for his last mission.
Now on to the missions.
Bonnie MacFarlane missions:
Obstacles in Our Path: This is a real simple tutorial mission. Basically, Bonnie says John sucks at riding horses and John calls her out on it. A race around the MacFarlane ranch on horseback ensues. Good for people who want to give their pups a brief glimpse of the American West or for the equestrian enthusiast to get some practice in.
This is Armadillo, USA: Another tutorial mission, this one with John riding into Armadillo with Bonnie to get some medicine. She drops him off there, and he gets the medicine. No, seriously, that's all there is to the mission. It's a good jump-off point for exploring Armadillo and the surrounding area, though.
Women and Cattle: Another tutorial mission, this one teaching the player how to herd cattle. Thrilling, right? Anyway, all there is to this mission is herding all the cattle out of the pen and getting them to an old oak tree.
Wild Horses, Tamed Passions: This is another tutorial mission, but this one's different because it's actually pretty exciting. It starts off with John, Bonnie, and Bonnie's dad getting some horses for the farm at a place not far from the ranch. Then John and Bonnie, acting on reports from a few ranchhands, go down to a place by the Hanging Rock to round up a herd of wild horses and drive them into a canyon. One of them, a Kentucky Saddler, escapes the trap, and John's charged with chasing it down, lassoing it, and breaking it - which he does. In the end, Bonnie lets him keep it (which is the point where you, the player, go, "FUCKIN' SWEET, I GOT ME A TOP-TIER HORSE IN THE FOURTH MISSION OF THE GAME.")
A Tempest Looms: Another tutorial mission! This one with a thunderstorm!
Long story short, John and Bonnie try to round up the farm's herd of cows in the middle of a lighting storm and get them back to the ranch before they stampede off a cliff. Because, well, they're cows.
The Burning: Tutorial mission! In keeping with its name, though, this one's actually pretty cool. It starts with John riding along with Bonnie to find her father, and it ends with him getting the ranch's horses out of a burning barn.
Leigh Johnson missions:
Political Realities in Armadillo: This is a simple one. John and the Marshal (Leigh) tail a gang leader to his hideout. Cue prolonged Western shootout. Marston shoots the gang leader in the leg once he's close enough, and the Marshal ties the poor soul up, put him on the back of his horse, and takes him back into town.
Justice in Pike's Basin: This is a very fun one. It's essentially one big, long, messy shootout in a basin that's being raided by cattle rustlers. John, the Marshal, and his two deputies ride in to stop them. Feel free to join in - it is, as they say, a target-rich environment.
Spare the Rod, Spoil the Bandit: This one's another collab-friendly one. It starts out with John, the Marshal, and his deputies riding to Ridgewood Farm to intercept a gang of bandits that're ravaging the place. They get there too late for the people in the barn, but just in time for the civvies in the farmhouse. After that, they ride over to Fort Mercer Station (the reason why escapes me this very second) and have a shootout with Bill's gang in which they capture Norman Deek, Bill's right-hand man.
Hanging Bonnie MacFarlane: Another collab-friendly one. Bonnie's gone missing at the hands of Bill Williamson's gang, and they want to exchange her for dear ol' Norman Deek. Marston & Co. ride to Tumbleweed, a ghost town the gang's repurposed as a hideout, and a shootout ensues, complicated by the fact that, well, the bandits are hanging Bonnie MacFarlane at the far end of town and the good guys have only got so much time to get her down/shoot the rope before she strangles to death.
The Assault on Fort Mercer: If this mission were any more collab-friendly, it'd put out a welcome rug and bake some chocolate-chip cookies and apple pies to go along with it. This is the climax of the New Austin chapter, where all of John's efforts finally pay off. It's an assault on Fort Mercer by Marston & Co. in an attempt to capture Bill, which (surprise surprise) fails in the sense that Bill's not in the fort. It succeeds completely in the sense that everything that is not John & Friends in that fort is totally totally totally sans a pulse by the time they're through.
Nigel West Dickens missions:
Old Swindler Blues: This'll happen right after "Justice in Pike's Basin", millicanonically speaking - at the suggestion of the Marshal, John rides out to Cholla Springs to find Nigel West Dickens critically wounded by his wagon. John takes the reins and rides the wagon to Armadillo's doc - dodging a few of West Dicken's less-satisfied customers on the way (a fancy way of say there will be guys on horseback chasing him and shooting at him).
You Shall Not Give False Testimony, Except for Profit: This one has John riding along with dear ol' Nigel to Ridgewood Farm to demonstrate the extraordinary effects of Nigel's tonic (described ever-so-lovingly by Marshal Johnson as "narcotics and bat piss") - it basically boils down to a few trick shots and some hand-to-hand fighting. If your pup(s) want(s) to demonstrate their extraordinary abilities to the citizens of Ridgewood Farm in this mission, they're more than welcome to - there's room for plenty in the back of the wagon.
Liars, Cheats, and Other Proud Americans: This one has John racing at Gaptooth Ridge to get money to armor West Dicken's wagon for the assault on Fort Mercer (even Clark Kent has to put on his skivvies one leg at a time). There's no violence involved in-game save for drivers ramming each other off the road, but I plan to make it a bit more violent in millicanon - guns will be drawn. If your pup wants to, they can support John from the cliffs above (or however they see fit, really).
Can a Swindler Change His Spots?: This one has John escort Nigel West Dickens to Plainview (which is what happens when Rockstar watches There Will Be Blood). While Dickens is hawking his wares, two cowboys ride up and declare him a fraud. This leads to a chase all the way to Gaptooth Breach, John and West-Dickens in their wagon, the other guys on horseback, chasing and shooting at them (well duh). John could always use reinforcements, and Nigel would likely kiss the feet of last-minute rescuers.
The Sport of Kings, and Liars: Pretty much the same as "Liars, Cheats, and Other Proud Americans" - it's a race, but instead of a chariot race, it's a horse race. The announcer tells the riders to play fair ("no shooting, stabbing, cliff-pushing, rock-throwing, cactus-grinding, neck-lassoing, setting fires, or other acts that causes a rider to unfairly lose his way, nor bleed heavily or black out") but where would the fun be in threading it out if they actually listened?
Seth Briars missions:
Exhuming and Other Fine Hobbies: At the suggestion of Nigel West Dickens, John meets Seth in a graveyard at a local church. After some discussion, it's revealed that Seth's help comes with a price. He wants John to help him capture an old associate of his, Moses Forth, who stole half of Seth's treasure map. In-game, they ride to where Moses is to see two deputies guarding him. John rides off with one of the deputies' horses, and Seth uses some Jack Bauer Interrogation Techniques on Moses to find out where the map is. Seth gives John a pardon letter to use to clear the horse thievery off his name, and that's it. Mission over.
A Gentle Drive with Friends: John and Seth take a little wagon trip to Tumbleweed to search for the treasure. They're intercepted by rival treasure hunters on the way. Shooting ensues. John, as always, could use reinforcements.
Let the Dead Bury Their Dead: After figuring out that the treasure Seth is seeking is inside the mansion on top of the hill, they have a running gunbattle throughout the town and mansion. Seth finds his treasure, but it's not what he expected. John could use reinforcements here.
Irish missions:
A Frenchman, A Welshman, and an Irishman: John meets a Frenchman and a Welshman trying to drown Irish. John shoots them both and makes Irish lead him to a Gatling gun stashed at a cabin by Lake Don Julio. Thing is, there's a bunch of outlaws that've set up camp around the cabin. Say it with me, class: a shootout ensues. John could always do with some backup.
Man is Born Unto Trouble: So it turns out Irish was being a lying sack of shit when he said that the Gatling gun was stashed in a cabin by the lake. But he totally knows where John can find one this time. For srs.
Anyway. It's at the bottom of a mine. John's job is to get it out of there and on to a wagon. There are several platoons of pissed-off miners trying to prevent him from doing that. Attractions include: underground shootouts, mine carts that behave like rollercoasters, and EXPLOSIVES.
On Shaky's Ground: The thing about Gatling guns?
They need ammunition to fire.
The Gatling gun Irish directed John to has no ammunition.
This displeases John.
All is well in Irish's world, though - he totally knows a guy (Shaky) in Thieves' Landing who can totally get them some ammunition for that gun. Totally.
Anyway: the mission is to rescue Shaky and fight your way to the ammunition stores. John would not mind some backup.
Oh, and the mission opens with a drunk Irish trying (and failing) to rob two nuns. Just putting it out there.
We Shall Be Together in Paradise: This is the very last mission in the New Austin chapter of the game. John takes a ferry with Irish across the Rio Bravo toMexico Nuevo Paraiso.
The thing is?
The Mexicans hate Irish.
They hate him so much, in fact, that they open fire on the ferry before it's halfway across the river.
So Irish does the smart thing - that is, he cuts the rope and lets it float downriver to a suitable landing, with the Mexicans shooting at John and Irish the whole time.
Backup would be greatly appreciated.
Stranger missions:
Some of these missions are one-offs. Some of them are multi-parters - that is, you visit a specific location to do a certain task or meet with a certain person a certain number of times before it's considered complete.
American Appetites: People are going missing in the hills out by the Hanging Rock. Can John figure out what's happening? Three-parter.
California: Sam Odessa's got a goal - to be known as the man who got his family from the Black Sea to the Pacific in three generations.
But he's going about it in all the wrong ways. Four-parter.
Flowers for a Lady: Billy West is gathering flowers for a bouquet for his wife - their 50th anniversary is coming up. John lends a hand, but things take a turn for the crazy. One-parter.
Funny Man: John meets a reporter trying to capture the "spirit of the West" who seems to have a knack for getting himself held hostage in gang hideouts. Four-parter, finale in Nuevo Paraiso.
Jenny's Faith: Faith can move mountains. And Jenny'll prove that, even if she has to lie out in the blazing New Austin sun for days. And even if one particular cowpoke gives her water and advises her to head back into town. One-parter.
Let No Man Put Asunder: This was supposed to be Alma's perfect day.
Except her groom's gone missing.
Can John find him? Please oh please?
One-parter.
Lights, Camera, Action: A movie director has two propositions for John Marston - win a land deed in a game of Liar's Dice in Thieves' Landing, and persuade his lead actor (a John Wayne expy) to return to the set, and he will be rewarded handsomely. Two-parter, finale in West Elizabeth.
Water and Honesty: A man with a dowsing rod wants to drill at the Pleasance House. Thing is, the owner doesn't want him there. So could John please get the deed from him? Legally or otherwise? One-parter.
Who Are You To Judge?: A man in Rathskeller Fork begs for John to bring back his lost love, who has been captured by gangsters in Tumbleweed.
Said "lost love" is a horse.
Yeah.
One-parter.
And if you're not in the mood for all this artsy-fartsy "plot" bullshit, well then, there's plenty of gang hideouts that need clearing! No exposition required, just you, John, a redshirt NPC, and a whole lot of bad guys that need killing.
And there's also plenty of dynamic in-world events that happen, but they're not meaty enough to make an OOM out of just by themselves.
So who wants what? Comment away!
Of course, if you want, you can skip straight to the missions. Ain't like I can stop you.
Missions with
Dramatis personæ:
Bonnie MacFarlane: the headstrong man of the MacFarlane ranch. Had six brothers - five of them are dead, and the other one's back East working for a bank.
Leigh Johnson: the Marshal of Armadillo, the only real town to speak of in the territory of New Austin. Strictly by-the-book lawman who's just a little out of his depth. Has a tendency to overestimate his opposition, but has no problem using lethal force. Has little tolerance for backtalk, sarcasm, and smartassery, especially on the job.
Jonah: One of Johnson's deputies. Dim-witted, belligerent, sarcastic, lazy, and the hero of every tale he tells. Also more than a little hick.
Eli: The other of Johnson's two deputies. Hard-working and friendly, but has a lazy eye and a lazier mind.
Nigel West Dickens: A flamboyant traveling salesman on a tour of New Austin, peddling his "miracle cures". Has a taste for the theatrical. Is a Large Ham, but the kind you like.
Seth Briars: A treasure hunter-turned-grave-robber, driven insane by his infatuation with wealth. Lost his wife, his children, and his business in his search for treasure. Hates
Also doesn't like women. Not since Mammy died.
Irish: A barely-functional alcoholic arms dealer, known for his tall tales. Also (you guessed it) Irish. Also a total flake - he's always where the fighting's not, except for his last mission.
Now on to the missions.
Bonnie MacFarlane missions:
Wild Horses, Tamed Passions: This is another tutorial mission, but this one's different because it's actually pretty exciting. It starts off with John, Bonnie, and Bonnie's dad getting some horses for the farm at a place not far from the ranch. Then John and Bonnie, acting on reports from a few ranchhands, go down to a place by the Hanging Rock to round up a herd of wild horses and drive them into a canyon. One of them, a Kentucky Saddler, escapes the trap, and John's charged with chasing it down, lassoing it, and breaking it - which he does. In the end, Bonnie lets him keep it (which is the point where you, the player, go, "FUCKIN' SWEET, I GOT ME A TOP-TIER HORSE IN THE FOURTH MISSION OF THE GAME.")
A Tempest Looms: Another tutorial mission! This one with a thunderstorm!
Long story short, John and Bonnie try to round up the farm's herd of cows in the middle of a lighting storm and get them back to the ranch before they stampede off a cliff. Because, well, they're cows.
The Burning: Tutorial mission! In keeping with its name, though, this one's actually pretty cool. It starts with John riding along with Bonnie to find her father, and it ends with him getting the ranch's horses out of a burning barn.
Leigh Johnson missions:
Political Realities in Armadillo: This is a simple one. John and the Marshal (Leigh) tail a gang leader to his hideout. Cue prolonged Western shootout. Marston shoots the gang leader in the leg once he's close enough, and the Marshal ties the poor soul up, put him on the back of his horse, and takes him back into town.
Justice in Pike's Basin: This is a very fun one. It's essentially one big, long, messy shootout in a basin that's being raided by cattle rustlers. John, the Marshal, and his two deputies ride in to stop them. Feel free to join in - it is, as they say, a target-rich environment.
Spare the Rod, Spoil the Bandit: This one's another collab-friendly one. It starts out with John, the Marshal, and his deputies riding to Ridgewood Farm to intercept a gang of bandits that're ravaging the place. They get there too late for the people in the barn, but just in time for the civvies in the farmhouse. After that, they ride over to Fort Mercer Station (the reason why escapes me this very second) and have a shootout with Bill's gang in which they capture Norman Deek, Bill's right-hand man.
Hanging Bonnie MacFarlane: Another collab-friendly one. Bonnie's gone missing at the hands of Bill Williamson's gang, and they want to exchange her for dear ol' Norman Deek. Marston & Co. ride to Tumbleweed, a ghost town the gang's repurposed as a hideout, and a shootout ensues, complicated by the fact that, well, the bandits are hanging Bonnie MacFarlane at the far end of town and the good guys have only got so much time to get her down/shoot the rope before she strangles to death.
The Assault on Fort Mercer: If this mission were any more collab-friendly, it'd put out a welcome rug and bake some chocolate-chip cookies and apple pies to go along with it. This is the climax of the New Austin chapter, where all of John's efforts finally pay off. It's an assault on Fort Mercer by Marston & Co. in an attempt to capture Bill, which (surprise surprise) fails in the sense that Bill's not in the fort. It succeeds completely in the sense that everything that is not John & Friends in that fort is totally totally totally sans a pulse by the time they're through.
Nigel West Dickens missions:
Old Swindler Blues: This'll happen right after "Justice in Pike's Basin", millicanonically speaking - at the suggestion of the Marshal, John rides out to Cholla Springs to find Nigel West Dickens critically wounded by his wagon. John takes the reins and rides the wagon to Armadillo's doc - dodging a few of West Dicken's less-satisfied customers on the way (a fancy way of say there will be guys on horseback chasing him and shooting at him).
You Shall Not Give False Testimony, Except for Profit: This one has John riding along with dear ol' Nigel to Ridgewood Farm to demonstrate the extraordinary effects of Nigel's tonic (described ever-so-lovingly by Marshal Johnson as "narcotics and bat piss") - it basically boils down to a few trick shots and some hand-to-hand fighting. If your pup(s) want(s) to demonstrate their extraordinary abilities to the citizens of Ridgewood Farm in this mission, they're more than welcome to - there's room for plenty in the back of the wagon.
Liars, Cheats, and Other Proud Americans: This one has John racing at Gaptooth Ridge to get money to armor West Dicken's wagon for the assault on Fort Mercer (even Clark Kent has to put on his skivvies one leg at a time). There's no violence involved in-game save for drivers ramming each other off the road, but I plan to make it a bit more violent in millicanon - guns will be drawn. If your pup wants to, they can support John from the cliffs above (or however they see fit, really).
Can a Swindler Change His Spots?: This one has John escort Nigel West Dickens to Plainview (which is what happens when Rockstar watches There Will Be Blood). While Dickens is hawking his wares, two cowboys ride up and declare him a fraud. This leads to a chase all the way to Gaptooth Breach, John and West-Dickens in their wagon, the other guys on horseback, chasing and shooting at them (well duh). John could always use reinforcements, and Nigel would likely kiss the feet of last-minute rescuers.
The Sport of Kings, and Liars: Pretty much the same as "Liars, Cheats, and Other Proud Americans" - it's a race, but instead of a chariot race, it's a horse race. The announcer tells the riders to play fair ("no shooting, stabbing, cliff-pushing, rock-throwing, cactus-grinding, neck-lassoing, setting fires, or other acts that causes a rider to unfairly lose his way, nor bleed heavily or black out") but where would the fun be in threading it out if they actually listened?
Seth Briars missions:
Exhuming and Other Fine Hobbies: At the suggestion of Nigel West Dickens, John meets Seth in a graveyard at a local church. After some discussion, it's revealed that Seth's help comes with a price. He wants John to help him capture an old associate of his, Moses Forth, who stole half of Seth's treasure map. In-game, they ride to where Moses is to see two deputies guarding him. John rides off with one of the deputies' horses, and Seth uses some Jack Bauer Interrogation Techniques on Moses to find out where the map is. Seth gives John a pardon letter to use to clear the horse thievery off his name, and that's it. Mission over.
A Gentle Drive with Friends: John and Seth take a little wagon trip to Tumbleweed to search for the treasure. They're intercepted by rival treasure hunters on the way. Shooting ensues. John, as always, could use reinforcements.
Let the Dead Bury Their Dead: After figuring out that the treasure Seth is seeking is inside the mansion on top of the hill, they have a running gunbattle throughout the town and mansion. Seth finds his treasure, but it's not what he expected. John could use reinforcements here.
Irish missions:
A Frenchman, A Welshman, and an Irishman: John meets a Frenchman and a Welshman trying to drown Irish. John shoots them both and makes Irish lead him to a Gatling gun stashed at a cabin by Lake Don Julio. Thing is, there's a bunch of outlaws that've set up camp around the cabin. Say it with me, class: a shootout ensues. John could always do with some backup.
Man is Born Unto Trouble: So it turns out Irish was being a lying sack of shit when he said that the Gatling gun was stashed in a cabin by the lake. But he totally knows where John can find one this time. For srs.
Anyway. It's at the bottom of a mine. John's job is to get it out of there and on to a wagon. There are several platoons of pissed-off miners trying to prevent him from doing that. Attractions include: underground shootouts, mine carts that behave like rollercoasters, and EXPLOSIVES.
On Shaky's Ground: The thing about Gatling guns?
They need ammunition to fire.
The Gatling gun Irish directed John to has no ammunition.
This displeases John.
All is well in Irish's world, though - he totally knows a guy (Shaky) in Thieves' Landing who can totally get them some ammunition for that gun. Totally.
Anyway: the mission is to rescue Shaky and fight your way to the ammunition stores. John would not mind some backup.
Oh, and the mission opens with a drunk Irish trying (and failing) to rob two nuns. Just putting it out there.
We Shall Be Together in Paradise: This is the very last mission in the New Austin chapter of the game. John takes a ferry with Irish across the Rio Bravo to
The thing is?
The Mexicans hate Irish.
They hate him so much, in fact, that they open fire on the ferry before it's halfway across the river.
So Irish does the smart thing - that is, he cuts the rope and lets it float downriver to a suitable landing, with the Mexicans shooting at John and Irish the whole time.
Backup would be greatly appreciated.
Stranger missions:
Some of these missions are one-offs. Some of them are multi-parters - that is, you visit a specific location to do a certain task or meet with a certain person a certain number of times before it's considered complete.
American Appetites: People are going missing in the hills out by the Hanging Rock. Can John figure out what's happening? Three-parter.
California: Sam Odessa's got a goal - to be known as the man who got his family from the Black Sea to the Pacific in three generations.
But he's going about it in all the wrong ways. Four-parter.
Flowers for a Lady: Billy West is gathering flowers for a bouquet for his wife - their 50th anniversary is coming up. John lends a hand, but things take a turn for the crazy. One-parter.
Funny Man: John meets a reporter trying to capture the "spirit of the West" who seems to have a knack for getting himself held hostage in gang hideouts. Four-parter, finale in Nuevo Paraiso.
Jenny's Faith: Faith can move mountains. And Jenny'll prove that, even if she has to lie out in the blazing New Austin sun for days. And even if one particular cowpoke gives her water and advises her to head back into town. One-parter.
Let No Man Put Asunder: This was supposed to be Alma's perfect day.
Except her groom's gone missing.
Can John find him? Please oh please?
One-parter.
Lights, Camera, Action: A movie director has two propositions for John Marston - win a land deed in a game of Liar's Dice in Thieves' Landing, and persuade his lead actor (a John Wayne expy) to return to the set, and he will be rewarded handsomely. Two-parter, finale in West Elizabeth.
Water and Honesty: A man with a dowsing rod wants to drill at the Pleasance House. Thing is, the owner doesn't want him there. So could John please get the deed from him? Legally or otherwise? One-parter.
Who Are You To Judge?: A man in Rathskeller Fork begs for John to bring back his lost love, who has been captured by gangsters in Tumbleweed.
Said "lost love" is a horse.
Yeah.
One-parter.
And if you're not in the mood for all this artsy-fartsy "plot" bullshit, well then, there's plenty of gang hideouts that need clearing! No exposition required, just you, John, a redshirt NPC, and a whole lot of bad guys that need killing.
And there's also plenty of dynamic in-world events that happen, but they're not meaty enough to make an OOM out of just by themselves.
So who wants what? Comment away!