Jason thompson



Yüklə 367,41 Kb.
səhifə1/4
tarix27.04.2018
ölçüsü367,41 Kb.
#49214
  1   2   3   4

JASON THOMPSON

415-412-0876

www.mockman.com
INTRODUCTORY NOTE:

This is an excerpt from the script of the first chapter of volume 1 of "King of RPGs" (www.kingofrpgs.com), my RPG comedy/action/manga parody graphic novel coming out in December 2009 from Del Rey Manga/Random House. I submitted this script, along with storyboards of the art, to the artist, Victor Hao.


As this sequence begins, the main characters, college students Mike (a JRPG nerd) and Shesh (a former MMORPG addict with a dark past) have just sat down to play a game of "Mages & Monsters" GMed by the fanatical GM, Theodore.
PAGES 30-31
Panel 1. Big montage panel. On the left, we see Theodore dramatically standing behind the GM's screen, holding his hands up in a dramatic pose as he reads from the prepared text (so his eyes are looking down, at his laptop). The edges of the speakers are also visible. On the right and around Theodore, we see the texture of an antique map of some coasts and islands (perhaps a Photoshopped antique map of the Caribbean or East Indies with the names fuzzed out). Another part of the montage is a jungle scene, with great leafy palm trees, and a Tyrannosaurus (and perhaps other dinosaurs if there's room) roaming among the foliage. Lastly, standing out from the jungle in yet another part of the montage, we see a tall totem-like statue, the Idol of Life, which combines a sort of Catholic saint iconography with Egyptian and Babylonian motifs. The statue is holding a bowl in its hands and water is trickling out of the bowl and down to its feet. It's supposed to be an impressive, shiny statue -- perhaps it's glittering.
THEODORE:

FAR TO THE SOUTH LIES THE DREAD ISLE OF SYRINAIS, WHERE FEW HAVE GONE AND FEWER HAVE RETURNED!
THEODORE (second linked balloon):

STRANGE MONSTERS ROAM ITS TRACKLESS JUNGLES…BUT TALES SAY THAT SOMEWHERE ON THE ISLE LIES THE IDOL OF LIFE, WHOSE HOLY WATERS GIVE STRENGTH TO THE LIVING AND LIFE TO THE DEAD!
Panel 2. Long shot which goes between the pages. A Tokugawa-era Japanese sailing vessel, a large galleon-sized ship, rides storm-tossed seas towards a jungle island crowned with tall mountains. (The jungle island is on page 31; the ship is on page 30.) The skies are dark and cloudy, the sails are full with wind, and great waves crash about. Weird fish and hungry sharks are perhaps visible in the waters. There's a bit of sea-spray and light rain in the air.
THEODORE (OS):

NOW, AFTER A MONTH ON DEADLY SEAS, A BRAVE CREW OF ADVENTURERS DARES TO GO IN SEARCH OF THE UNKNOWN…!
Panel 3. The player-characters are arrayed on deck, looking towards the island, with the ship's rail in the foreground. In the background, a crew of sailors in vaguely feudal-Japanese attire climbs the rigging and attends the sails. There are five player characters, and each one has a small inset image pointing to them, showing the corresponding player, who is generally less dramatic-looking (like on minicomic page 9, top panel). For this particular panel, the characters should all look pretty clearly different from their real-world player counterparts, but in later "in-game" panels in this chapter it's okay to mix the features of player and character to a certain extent.

The characters' name, race and class -- but not the name of their player -- is displayed in small caption boxes.

* A handsome woman with elf ears and battle scars on her face, with her hair in long braids. She wears ancient Welsh/Irish/Celtic attire, with a suit of chain mail armor, and she wields a longsword. She is gazing dramatically out to sea towards the island, totally heroic and in-character, ready for a challenge.

Aerfen mac Arduin • Slough Elf Fian

(PLAYER: Jen)

* A woman in dark, sexy Gothic attire, possibly with a slight Arabian Nights edge to it. She wears long dark gloves with long sinister fingers. A full-sized coffin is strapped to her back with belts; the bottom of the coffin looks a bit like the butt of an old 18th-century flintlock pistol and has a trigger on it, making it look sort of like a coffin-gun. The back of the coffin, which we can't see in this panel because she's facing forward, has a design like an ankh with a pentagram at the top. Of all the characters, she looks the most like the person playing her, which is Callie; she has the same hairstyle. She is looking out to sea with a sinister, vaguely knowing smile. She has no weapon. (NOTE: It may be difficult to show the "gun" element of Callie's coffin due to the fact that she's facing the camera in this shot, but please try your best to make it visible in this panel, or on page 32 panel 4, before she actually opens the coffin on page 32 panel 5. I'm thinking that maybe the base/bottom of the coffin looks like a giant flintlock pistol, but it's ultimately your design choice.)

Sophonisba • Human Death Mage

(PLAYER: Callie)

* A man in the armor and distinctive helmet of a Spanish Conquistador, with a big shield and sword strapped to him. His shield is decorated with a flag with a design which looks vaguely like the center of the Mexican flag, albeit with the bird standing on a cross. He is a handsome guy in a brawny adult way, with a beard and mustache. However, since Bill Harminc is playing him, he's standing there reading a "Mages & Monsters" book, generally oblivious to the actual events of the game, just thinking of more ways to tinker with his character.

Bill • Human Paladin/Conquistador

(PLAYER: Bill)

* A pretty woman who looks very anime, with long hair in the back and front, which is flying in the wind. She is wearing a modified version of Japanese miko garb, with a headband holding her hair in place, and she wields a long bamboo-handled broom as if it were a weapon. She also has a tanto blade strapped to he belt. Since she is played by Mike, she is casting a sidewise, blushing glance at Callie.

Kamiko • Human Shamaness

(PLAYER: Mike)

* A really scruffy-looking, skinny guy wearing leather armor and a leather cap on his head, held together crudely with stitches. All kinds of little belts and pouches are slung all over his body, with throwing knives and little round things that might be bombs and so forth, but his main weapon is a hammer (not too large). His face is rather gnarled up and scarred, giving him a sort of blunt snub nose and messed-up, sharp teeth. (In the game world, he's supposed to be hideously ugly, but during most of the scenes in which he's drawn, his face should look more or less like Shesh's with just a few scars and scratches, so it doesn't become distracting.) His leather cap serves the same purpose design-wise as Shesh's hat does, covering up his hair and focusing attention on his face. He's played by Shesh, and so he is a bit confused with the whole situation, looking at his own hands as if uncertain of his own reality.

Grathkamog • Human Rogue

(PLAYER: Shesh)
AERFEN/JEN:

SYRINAIS AT LAST!
SHESH/GRATHKAMOG (word balloon or standalone FX):

?

PAGE 32
Panel 1. Closeup of Aerfen.
AERFEN/JEN:

THE IDOL OF LIFE SHALL PROVE MY WORTH AS A FIAN WARRIOR!
Panel 2. Closeup of Bill, reading his book.
BILL/BILL:

A PALADIN GETS 3 VALOR POINTS PER LEVEL BUT A CONQUISTADOR GETS 2 VALOR POINTS PER LEVEL. DOES A PALADIN-CONQUISTADOR GET 2.5 VPS PER LEVEL?
Panel 3. Closeup of Grathkamog, still looking a bit confused.
GRATHKAMOG/SHESH:

UH…SO WHAT CAN I DO?
Path 4. Bigger panel. Back at the gaming table, Theodore and Jen try to encourage Shesh to get into the spirit of things.
THEODORE:

ANYTHING YOU CAN IMAGINE!
JEN:

YEAH! LIKE TALK TO SOMEONE IN CHARACTER, OR GO SOMEPLACE, OR LOOK AT STUFF…
Panel 5. Medium panel. Back in the game world, on the deck of the ship. In the background, Grathkamog, unable to get out of MMORPG mode, is talking to one of the random sailors, who is looking at him with confusion, perhaps with a "?" next to his head. In the foreground, Kamiko is trying to make conversation with Sophonisba, who is amused by her presumption.
SHESH/GRATHKAMOG:

UH…HEY…DOES ANYONE HAVE ANY QUESTS?
MIKE/KAMIKO:

I NEED THE IDOL OF LIFE TO HEAL THE SUFFERING CHILDREN OF MY VILLAGE! WHAT DO YOU NEED IT FOR, SOPHONISBA?
Panel 6. Callie pulls the trigger of the gun-coffin and it swings open, revealing a partially mummified, hideous corpse wearing a valuable-looking crown.
CALLIE/SOPHONISBA:

I NEED IT TO RESURRECT MY MENTOR, THE DEATH MAGE, GAZNAK THE HELL-SPEAKER.




MIKE/KAMIKO (perhaps with a big sweatdrop behind his/her head):

OH…THAT'S GREAT…
PAGE 33
Panel 1. Real world. Shesh is already a little bored, although mostly still curious about how to play the game. He talks to Theodore.
SHESH:

CAN I KILL SOMETHING? CAN I KILL THE SAILORS?
THEODORE:

YES, BUT…THEY'RE YOUR OWN SAILORS! YOU NEED THEM TO PILOT THE SHIP!
Panel 2. Real world. Bill, with one hand on a game book as usual, discusses the situation pragmatically. Shesh nods in agreement. Theodore, on the other hand, is in his real-world form, and is annoyed with Bill.
BILL/BILL:

GOOD IDEA, GRATHKAMOG. IN THE GAME MASTER'S GUIDE, PAGE 348, IT STATES THAT THE AVERAGE SAILOR EARNS 5 SILVER PIECES PER DAY. AFTER A MONTH AT SEA EACH SAILOR WOULD HAVE 150 SILVER PIECES.
THEODORE (annoyed):

BILL, YOU'RE A PALADIN/CONQUISTADOR! YOU'RE SUPPOSED TO BE LAWFUL GOOD!
Panel 3. Game world. In the foreground, Grathkamog has his hand around a hapless sailor's throat and is preparing to hit him with a hammer. Meanwhile, Bill is preparing to strike the sailor with his sword. In the background, a bunch of other sailors are fleeing for the lifeboats, which are tethered at the edge of the ship's rail. Grathkamog has noticed this and is annoyed by their behavior.
SAILORS:

AGGGH! THEY'RE GOING TO KILL US!
SAILORS:

LAUNCH THE LIFEBOATS! ABANDON SHIP!
GRATHKAMOG (annoyed):

HEY!
Panel 4. Real world, Mike and Theodore. Theodore, looking kind of pissed but at the same time as if he expects this behavior, makes a decree about the sailor problem.
THEODORE:

BECAUSE KAMIKO HAS THE HIGHEST CHARISMA, THE SAILORS ARE ALL LOYAL TO HER. IN FACT, IT'S HER SHIP.
MIKE/KAMIKO:

WOW! MY OWN SHIP! OOH, CAN I NAME THE CREW?
THEODORE (not really looking like he cares):

SURE, GO AHEAD.
Panel 4. Game world. The side of the ship, by the waterline. Giant octopus-like tentacles are creeping up the side of the ship from the water.
MIKE (OS):

OKAY, THE SHIP'S COOK IS NAMED YUKARI! SHE'S OF ROYAL BLOOD BUT SHE HAS AMNESIA!
THEODORE (OS):

THE BEACH IS JUST TEN MINUTES AWAY. AERFEN, MAKE A NAVIGATION ROLL!
JEN (OS):

I GOT A 5!
Panel 6. Game world. Kamiko is standing on the ship's deck near the rail, blissfully writing descriptions of the crew, one of whom stands next to her, an anime-looking guy with bichromatic eyes. Meanwhile, unseen to both of them, a gigantic octopus tentacle has come over the rail of the ship and is about to smash into the crewman's head.
MIKE:

CREW MEMBER #38 IS NAMED KILIKA! HE HAS BICHROMATISM! HIS BLOOD TYPE IS--
PAGE 34
Panel 1. Game world. The previous page's last panel, a half-second later. The giant tentacle squeezes around "Kilika's" head and splatters it into bloody chunks which splash all over Kamiko, and also Grathkamog whose head is in the foreground. Both are startled.
FX:

SPLAT
Panel 2. Game world. Big panel. The ship is under attack by a giant squid/octopus-like monster which is climbing up the side of the ship. Half of its tentacles are like an octopus' tentacles, and the other half look like the necks of geoduck clams with nasty-looking leech-like teethy heads at the end…google the movie "Deadly Spawn" and you'll find some nice images. One tentacle has reached around the mast and is pulling it down, snapping it into wood splinters, as a hapless sailor falls from the rigging. One of the leech-heads is eating a sailor. The sailors are panicking. It's total chaos. In the middle of the chaos are the player characters, who look surprised. Aerfen is at the ship's wheel.
SHESH/GRATHKAMOG (happy that something has happened):

YES! COMBAT!
SAILOR:

AGGGHH!
THEODORE (OS):

OUT OF THE DEPTHS RISES A 50-FOOT-LONG SLIME KRAKEN!
Panel 3. Real world. Four or five 20-sided dice fly through the air against a background of speedlines, like in Pokémon anime battle scenes.
THEODORE (OS):

EVERYONE ROLL INITIATIVE!
Panel 4. Game world. Big panel. Everyone fights the slime kraken. In the background, Aerfen hacks off a tentacle with her sword. In the foreground, Grathkamog narrowly dodges a tentacle, while in the background, Callie blocks a tentacle with her coffin, although the coffin's outer surface is partially broken in the process. Bill the paladin is standing on deck in the middle of the chaos reading a game book and puzzling over the rules. One of the leech-heads grabs and bites Kamiko. (If there's not room to show everybody, Callie could be off-camera.)
THEODORE (OS):

THE KRAKEN GOES FIRST! KAMIKO IS EVISCERATED FOR 35 POINTS OF DAMAGE!
BILL/BILL:

IF THE SHIP IS SWAYING IN THE STORM, DO I GET THE +2 BONUS FOR ATTACKING FROM A HIGHER ELEVATION?
PAGE 35
Panel 1. Game world. Grathkamog swings his hammer at the kraken.
SHESH/GRATHKAMOG:

TAKE THAT!

(NOTE: A 20-sided die with a “6” facing up is also inside the word balloon, to indicate that Shesh rolled a six. See the thumbnails. The same thing also occurs on page 56.)
Panel 2. Real world. Shesh has just rolled a die and is reading from it. Theodore is calmly giving his ruling.
THEODORE:

YOU MISS THE KRAKEN! ITS ARMOR CLASS IS 18!
SHESH:

BUT IT'S 50 FEET LONG!
THEODORE:

I MEAN, YOUR BLOW BOUNCES OFF!
Panel 3. Big panel. Again, everyone is fighting the slime kraken. The ship is visibly breaking up into pieces and the deck is leaning. In the foreground, Grathkamog finally manages to thwack the slime kraken's tentacle with his dinky hammer, but it does almost no damage. Sophonisba gleefully unleashes an enormous magical blast from her outstretched arms, blasting part of the monster. Meanwhile, in the background, Aerfen also injures the beast. Also, in the background, a bloody but still-alive Kamiko (we just need to show that she’s still alive, I think) crawls on her hands and knees while wearily casting a healing spell (a glowing light in her hand, and perhaps the kanji for “life”) on her injured midsection. Alternately, she could be given a small word balloon or hand-drawn text reading “H-healing…”
CALLIE/SOPHONISBA:

ULTRA DEATH CANNON!
THEODORE (OS):

THE KRAKEN TAKES 97 POINTS OF DAMAGE!
SHESH/GRATHKAMOG:

AHA! I GOT A 19!
JEN/AERFEN:

I'VE FOUGHT WORSE IN THE SLOUGHS BACK HOME!

(NOTE: This line is optional if space doesn’t permit.)
Panel 4. Real world. A followup to panel 2. Shesh puts his hand on his face in frustration as Theodore gives his ruling on the hit.
THEODORE:

GOOD JOB, GRATHKAMOG! YOU HIT! YOUR HAMMER DEALS 2 POINTS OF DAMAGE!
SHESH/GRATHKAMOG:

GODDAMN IT!
Panel 5. Game world. Long shot of ship at sea. The vessel is collapsing as the battle rages and the waves crash.
THEODORE (OS):

THE KRAKEN REGENERATES 10 HIT POINTS! OH, AND EVERYONE MAKE A SEASICKNESS ROLL!
SOMEONE (OS):

AGGGHH!
PANEL 36
Panel 1. Game world. Small panel. Long shot of ship at sea. The ship is now no more than a few floating timbers from which a long plume of smoke rises.
Panel 2. Game world. Big panel. We pan out to show that the players characters have stumbled ashore to a sandy beach, walking through the surf. The ship is burning in the distance at sea, as in the last panel. The curve of the beach shows some palm trees and jungle in the distance. Callie is floating to shore on her coffin, which now has a big hole in the top, near where the corpse's head is. Kamiko looks back at the ship with regret.
MIKE/KAMIKO:

M-MY SHIP…MY SAILORS…
SHESH/GRATHKAMOG (soaking wet and pissed off):

ARGH! ALL THAT LOOT AT THE BOTTOM OF THE SEA!
Panel 3. Game world. Big panel. The interior of the jungle, with great palm trees rising to cover the sky. Vines hang from the trees, and plants and grasses and bushes of all kinds grow profusely. A faint mist creeps along the ground. In the background, the small figures of the characters peer into the intimidating jungle, while Aerfen looks at a map.




JEN/AERFEN:

OKAY, TIME TO EXPLORE! THERE'S NO TURNING BACK NOW…
Panel 4. Real world. Jen and Shesh are talking to one another "in character" (inasmuch as Shesh is capable of this) at the gaming table, but a misty fog is floating around them. Also, there are sound effects of birdsong.
JEN:

GRATHKAMOG, THE FOG IS ROLLING IN, EH? AND THE NATURE SOUNDS ARE A NICE TOUCH!
SHESH:

YEAH, IT EVEN SMELLS JUNGLE-Y!
FX/SHESH:

SNIFF SNIFF
FX:

KAW KAW CHIRRUP CHIRRUP
Panel 5. Real world. Medium shot of the gaming table. Theodore has placed two buckets of dry ice on chairs or boxes so that the fog spills out all around the gaming table. He's also holding a weird bong-like device, showing it off. The players are all just staring at him with blank cartoony expressions (with the exception of Callie, who's used to this sort of thing, and Bill, who as usual is reading his books). The speakers are clearly what is generating the birdsong sound effects.
THEODORE (OS):

THAT WOULD BE MY SMELL SYNTHESIZER! THE FOG IS JUST PLAIN OLD DRY ICE!
FX:

CHIRP CHIRP KEEE KEEE

PAGE 37
Panel 1. Game world. Grathkamog squats on the beach, looking annoyed and complaining, while Aerfen looks on.
SHESH/GRATHKAMOG:

THAT FIGHT SUCKED! I ONLY DO 1D6 POINTS OF DAMAGE!
Panel 2. Game world. Aerfen tries to talk to Grathkamog in character, but Shesh doesn't really get it.
JEN/AERFEN:

BUT SURELY YOU HAVE OTHER SKILLS, O GRATHKAMOG? TELL ME, FROM WHAT LAND DO YOU HAIL?
SHESH/GRATHKAMOG:

UH…I'M A ROGUE…
Panel 3. Real world. Bill, in the foreground, reads a game book, while Shesh looks on from the background. There's still a little fog around the table, perhaps (see page 28).
BILL (with a bored, sort of contemptuous look):

YOU HAVEN'T LEARNED THE ROGUE'S COMBAT POWERS! FOR INSTANCE, ON THE ROGUE'S HANDBOOK, PAGE 223, YOU GET +5 TO HIT AND DOUBLE DAMAGE AFTER KILLING AN ENEMY IN A SURPRISE ATTACK!
Panel 4. Game world. In the background, Grathkamog (still looking pretty grouchy) joins Bill in reading his books, which all of a sudden are piled up on the beach. In the foreground, Sophonisba and Kamiko join Aerfen in looking at a map of the island.
SHESH/GRATHKAMOG:

FOR REAL? LEMME SEE THAT.
JEN/AERFEN:

THE MAP SAYS THERE'S A VILLAGE NOT FAR FROM HERE. IT'S THE ONLY HUMAN DWELLINGS ON SYRINAIS…IT WAS FOUNDED JUST A FEW YEARS AGO BY MISSIONARIES WHO CAME TO WORSHIP THE IDOL OF LIFE.
CALLIE/SOPHONISBA:

VERY WELL. LET'S GO.
Panel 5. Game world. The beach, covered with footprints leading into the jungle. In the background is the jungle, and perhaps, the tiny figures of the player characters just on the edge of vanishing into the foliage. Small word balloons dwindle off into progressively smaller word balloons until the text is illegible, as if the sound were fading out as the characters walk into the distance.
THEODORE (OS):

OKAY, TELL ME YOUR MARCHING ORDER!
SHESH (OS):

MIKE GOES FIRST!
MIKE (OS):

NO I DON'T!
SOMEONE (OS):


SOMEONE (OS):


PAGE 38
Panel 1. Game world. Medium panel. Setting-establishing shot. The characters walk warily through the misty, creepy jungle in single file, from first to last: Aerfen, Kamiko, Sophonisba, Grathkamog, Bill. Perhaps snakes or monsters lurk in the corners.
Panel 2. Game world. Grathkamog and Sophonisba. Grathkamog, who is walking right behind Sophonisba so that the crowned head of the corpse is visible through the hole in the coffin, looks at the coffin and comes up with a pragmatic idea. Sophonisba, hearing him talk openly about it, looks back at him with an annoyed expression.
SHESH/GRATHKAMOG:

HEY, IS GAZNAK'S CORPSE WORTH MONEY? I WANT TO TAKE OFF HIS CROWN!
CALLIE/SOPHONISBA (annoyed):

HIS CROWN'S NAILED ON! DON'T TOUCH IT, OR I'LL KILL YOU!
Panel 3. Real world. Shesh and Jen are now both openly contemplating messing with the corpse of Gaznak (Shesh "just because" and Jen for roleplaying reasons), while Callie, who is annoyed to be messed with, turns to Theodore to complain. It isn't necessary for Mike or Bill to be visible in this panel.
SHESH:

WHAT IF I SMASH THE CORPSE?
JEN:

YES, IT'S EVIL, I WAS THINKING ABOUT THAT TOO!
CALLIE (protesting to Theodore):

DON'T LET THEM SMASH MY CORPSE!
Panel 4. Real world. Theodore delivers a ruling about the corpse of Gaznak, causing Shesh to complain. Meanwhile, Jen tries to keep the game moving.
THEODORE:

THE CORPSE OF GAZNAK IS A MAGICAL ARTIFACT! NOTHING CAN BREAK IT! IT'S ONE OF THE HARDEST SUBSTANCES KNOWN TO MAN!
SHESH:

WHAT A RIP-OFF!
JEN:

ARE WE AT THE VILLAGE YET?
Panel 5. Game world. Big panel. The characters stand outside a great stockade wall, looking inside through a hole which has been smashed in the stockade from outside. Within is a village of simple wooden huts built on (short) stilts and thatched with palm leaves. Everything is overgrown with vines, the buildings are damaged, and wreckage lies everywhere. It clearly hasn't been lived in in years. A few weird-looking little monsters and lizard-things (actually mutated humans, so it's good if they have some subtle humanlike traits) crawl among the wreckage…just two or three, enough to be creepy, but not big enough or numerous enough to be really alarming.

The text “BEWARE SNYRG” is scrawled in dried blood on one of the building walls, not central, but visible in the shot.

(NOTE: The following detail may be cut if space doesn’t permit. On one of the buildings is a worn-out flag or tapestry marked with the same religious/nationalist symbol as on Bill the paladin's shield.)
SHESH/GRATHKAMOG:

CHECK THE MAP AGAIN…
JEN/AERFEN:

I THINK WE'RE TOO LATE…
PAGE 39
Panel 1. Game world. Kamiko peers inside the interior of a ruined, shadowy church, with bits of palm leaves and vines hanging from the ceiling, and rows of collapsing pews. The scens is a bird's eye view from the church rafters.
MIKE/KAMIKO:

IT LOOKS LIKE IT'S BEEN DESERTED FOR YEARS!
Panel 2. Game world. Interior of the ruined village; we see more of the wrecked buildings and heaps of rubble. In the foreground, Aerfen looks warily over her shoulder, expecting trouble, and Sophonisba looks at the ruins and makes a disdainful remark. The other characters are perhaps visible in the background searching the ruins.
JEN/AERFEN (suspiciously):

I DON'T LIKE THIS…
CALLIE/SOPHONISBA:

THEY WERE FOOLS TO SETTLE HERE…
Panel 3. Real world, gaming table. Theodore asks everyone to make a die roll, and they all roll, but nobody succeeds. Not everyone needs to be visible in this panel, some of the word balloons can just be coming from offscreen.
THEODORE:

OKAY! EVERYBODY MAKE A LISTEN ROLL! YOUR TARGET NUMBER IS 10!
BILL:

5.
CALLIE:

4.
SHESH:

2.
MIKE:

3
JEN:

7.
Panel 4. Real world, at the gaming table, but Aerfen and Kamiko appear as their characters in the foreground, while Theodore (as himself) is visible in the background. Theodore pauses for a second, then decides to just act as if someone made the roll, so as not to have to change his plans.
THEODORE:

…………………………
THEODORE (second or linked balloon):

UH…OKAY, AERFEN, YOU HEAR THE SOUND OF SOMEONE CRYING.
JEN/AERFEN (a little melodramatic):

HARK! I HEAR SOMETHING IMPORTANT TO THE PLOT!
MIKE/KAMIKO (genuinely concerned, into it):

CRYING?!
Panel 5. Game world. Bigger panel. The characters gather around the door to a cramped little root cellar, from whence the sound of crying issues. Aerfen is about to cautiously open the door, while the others stand around with their weapons ready, being careful.
WORD BALLOON COMING FROM DOOR:

SNIFF… SOB…
JEN/AERFEN:

EVERYONE BE CAREFUL…
Panel 6. Game world. Interior of the opened root cellar. Crouched inside is a sweet-looking little girl, rubbing her eyes as she cries. She looks up with a pitiful expression at the player-characters, who are not in the shot.
LITTLE GIRL:

SNIFF… S-SOB…
PAGE 40




Panel 1. Real world. Shesh, Theodore and Mike at the gaming table.
SHESH (cynically):

I KILL HER.
THEODORE & MIKE (horrified):

WHAT?!
SHESH:

C'MON! IT'S A TRAP, DUDE!
Panel 2. Real world. Shesh and Theodore.
SHESH:

THAT'S THE WAY THE GAME WORKS, RIGHT? YOU PLAY THE MONSTERS! IT'S THE PLAYERS VS. THE G.M.!
THEODORE (offended):

IT'S NOT "THE PLAYERS VS. THE G.M.!"
Panel 3. Real world. Closeup of Theodore, who has a holier-than-thou expression.
THEODORE:

I DON'T JUST PLAY THE MONSTERS! I ALSO PLAY THE MILLIONS OF PEOPLE IN THE GAME WORLD WHO BEAR YOU NO ILL WILL WHATSOEVER! YOU HAVE A COMMON MISPERCEPTION, I'M AFRAID!
Panel 4. Game world. Kamiko steps forward and, filled with empathy, picks up the little girl, protecting her from the others (who are standing around watching the situation).
MIKE/KAMIKO:

HOW COULD YOU EVEN CONSIDER HURTING SUCH A SWEETIE? DON’T YOU HAVE ANY MATERNAL INSTINCTS?
MIKE/KAMIKO (second balloon or linked balloon):

WHAT’S YOUR NAME, LITTLE GIRL?
Panel 5. Game world. Closeup of the sad little girl. In the background, in a sort of flashback/fantasy image, we see the little girl hiding in the half-open root cellar as monstrous shadows, rampaging through the village, are projected against the rough wooden wall outside.
LITTLE GIRL:

M-MY NAME’S SUZY…
LITTLE GIRL (second balloon or linked balloons):

TH-THE BAD THINGS FROM THE JUNGLE GOT EVERYBODY ELSE!…I WAS SCARED SO I HID…I’M SO HUNGRY…FOR WEEKS I HAD WATER BUT NO FOOD…
Panel 6. Real world. Mike and Callie.
CALLIE:

I SAY KILL HER.
MIKE (shocked, just like in panel 1):

WHAT?!

PAGE 41
Panel 1. Real world (as is this entire page). Wider shot of gaming table. Jen stands up from her chair and, in a friendly manner, asks Mike if he wants to go away from the table with her for a second while the other people stay there.
SHESH:

FINE, WHATEVER. LET'S TAKE HER WITH US.
JEN:

HEY MIKE, YOU WANT TO GET SOME CHIPS?
Panel 2. Real world. Long shot of the game room with its various activities. Mike and Jen walk away from the table where the other characters are playing, over towards the tables full of snack food and drinks.
JEN:

IS SHESH HAVING FUN? I THOUGHT HE’D BE MORE INTO THIS…
MIKE:

UH…WELL…HE USED TO BE A HUGE GAMER…
Panel 3. Medium-long shot. Mike and Jen are at the snack table, getting some drinks and pretzels. Mike sighs and looks sad. Jen looks a bit surprised (little excitement marks around her head), as she makes a mistaken assumption.
MIKE:

BUT THEN HE GOT HIS…"INTERNET PROBLEM"…
JEN:

OH! ARE YOU SERIOUS?! I HAD AN UNCLE WHO WAS THE SAME WAY!
JEN:

HIS WIFE NEARLY LEFT HIM! HE STARTED WITH MAGAZINES AND THEN HE MOVED ONTO THESE “ART NUDES” SITES AND--
MIKE:

NO, NOT THAT! ONLINE RPGS!
Panel 5. I think this panel should not show Jen and Mike themselves, but rather, an aspect of the room to set the scene…a closeup of the snack table littered with half-eaten snack food, “meat jerky,” chips, pretzels, empty soda cans, Pretz boxes, etc.
JEN (actually a bit relieved) (OS):

YOU'RE KIDDING!
MIKE (OS):

YEAH. NOW HE CAN'T PLAY THEM ANYMORE. HE'S CHANGED A LOT. ER…SORRY…I SHOULDN'T BE TELLING YOU THIS…
Panel 6. Mike and Jen; Jen is central. Jen is saying something positive and encouraging while Mike tries to smile and laugh, but something's still on his mind.
JEN:

WELL, THAT'S NOT SO BAD! I HEARD THERE'S ONE GUY IN OUR DORM WHO KEEPS PET MAGGOTS! AND ANOTHER GUY WHO'S SUCH A RPG NUT THAT HE HURT PEOPLE OVER A GAME! YOU KNOW, IT COULD BE A LOT WORSE!
MIKE (relieved, but nervously, as if he knows something Jen doesn't):

HA…HA…
THEODORE (calling from OS):

HEY! GUYS! YOU'RE AT THE DUNGEON! COME BACK!
PAGE 42
Panel 1. Real world (as is this entire page). Long narrow panel across top of page. Mike and Jen return to the gaming table, where Shesh and Callie have gotten into an out-of-character conversion. Meanwhile, Theodore tries to keep them on track.
SHESH:

YEAH, I GOT THE FULL CAFETERIA PLAN WITH 1500 MEAL POINTS…
CALLIE:

THE 900 POINTS PLAN IS BETTER…
THEODORE (pretending to cough to get their attention):

AHEM! AHEM! THE LITTLE GIRL LEADS YOU THROUGH THE JUNGLE!
The rest of the page is a double row of identical-sized closeups of the characters, with thought captions showing their inner feelings.
Panel 2. Closeup of Jen, who is glancing at Shesh (OS). She doesn’t have a crush on him, but she likes him as a friend, and she also needs Mike and Shesh for a purpose.
JEN (THOUGHT CAPTION):

IF SHESH AND MIKE LIKE TO GAME, MAYBE THEY’D MAKE GOOD PROOFREADERS FOR MY FANTASY NOVEL…
Panel 3. Closeup of Shesh, looking totally bored.
SHESH (THOUGHT CAPTION):

I'VE NEVER BEEN SO BORED IN MY LIFE…
Panel 4. Closeup of Mike, who is blushing and glancing at Callie (OS).
MIKE (THOUGHT CAPTION):

CALLIE IS SO CUTE! I'M SO GLAD THAT I PLAYED!
Panel 5. Closeup of Callie, who has a smug, coolly confident expression.
CALLIE (THOUGHT CAPTION):

THESE THREE GUYS OBVIOUSLY PLAYED JUST TO BE WITH ME. SINCE THEODORE'S PAYING ME TO LURE PEOPLE INTO HIS GAME, I'M DOING QUITE WELL…I SHOULD ASK FOR A RAISE…
Panel 6. Closeup of Theodore, who also has a (in this case unjustified) smug expression, but one which is more happy and full of anticipation.
THEODORE (THOUGHT CAPTION):

YES, PLAYERS…I CAN SEE THE EXCITEMENT IN YOUR EYES! AND THIS IS JUST THE BEGINNING!
Panel 7. Closeup of Theodore's fingers typing on his laptop. Visible on the screen is a text file, and also a dungeon map, in the graph-paper style as seen on page 7.
THEODORE (THOUGHT CAPTION):

I'LL BLOW YOUR MINDS WITH THE JOY OF ROLE-PLAYING! I HAVEN'T EVEN USED 10% OF MY FULL TECHNIQUES!
PAGE 43
Panel 1. Game world. Huge panel. In dramatic poses, the characters stand near the entrance to a vast vine-covered ruin, similar to Angkor Wat, built into the side of a deep canyon. Countless dark caves and entrances pit the crumbling walls of the chaotic, anthill-like, scary structure. The little girl from the village clings to Kamiko's back and shoulders, like a papoose, looking anxious.
FX (wind or drama sound):

HWOOOOOOOOO
Panel 2. The next two panels are similar to the middle panels of minicomic page 12. Real world. In the background, the main characters are trying to play the game, but they are distracted by the sounds of gamers at another table, in the foreground. At that foreground table, one nerdy-looking young gamer is loudly slurping a huge soda, while another is sloppily eating chips ("Cheatos"). They are playing a collectible card game.
THEODORE:

YOU TREAD CAUTIOUSLY INTO THE RUINS! STEPS LEAD DOWNWARD INTO DARKNESS AND SILENCE!
FX:

SLURP SLURP MUNCH SCARF
MIKE:

SUSPENSION OF DISBELIEF IS WEARING THIN…
Panel 3. Again, this panel is similar to minicomic page 12. Real world. Closeup of Theodore, who smiles as he dramatically opens a big toolbox (perhaps helpfully labeled "TOOLS"). Within, and in the heaps of mysterious equipment which has been behind Theodore this whole time, we see hammers, tent stakes, candles, a box of matches, nails, and other pieces of hardware, and perhaps the top edge of a cage.
THEODORE:

NOT A PROBLEM! JUST GIVE ME A SECOND!
PAGE 44


Yüklə 367,41 Kb.

Dostları ilə paylaş:
  1   2   3   4




Verilənlər bazası müəlliflik hüququ ilə müdafiə olunur ©muhaz.org 2024
rəhbərliyinə müraciət

gir | qeydiyyatdan keç
    Ana səhifə


yükləyin