Author’s Note: I hope you enjoyed this choose-you-own-adventure Halloween story! I had a lot of fun working with Twine to create it. Hopefully you found a way to survive!
The rooms and monsters within the story come from different episodes I’ve read from throughout the semester.
The giant spider is based on Arachne, a Greek woman who was turned into a spider after challenging Athena to a weaving contest. Versions differ about whether or not Arachne won the competition, but the transformation was because of her hubris (pride) in challenging the gods. Thus, by flattering her, you can talk your way past the fearsome spider.
The flaming field of grass comes from the stories of the Japanese hero, Yamato. At one point, Yamato is stuck in a burning field, and he uses his sword to put out the flames. In my version, you can use the blanket from Arachne as a shield against the flames.
The monster in the forest is a Wendigo, which I learned about in a Crash course Mythology video about monsters. The Wendigo is a mythical monster from Native tribes in Canada. They are humans who have surrendered to their own wickedness and have become cannibal monsters. In some tribes, the transformation can be reversed with fire, which is seen as purifying.
Finally, the eye-stealer in the mansion comes from a Blackfoot story that I read last week about a man called Thunder, who steals eyes and displays them in his house. The only way to defeat him is with a raven’s medicine (or power) so you need to team up with a raven to get past him in my story.
The overarching concept is that of Daedalus’ Labyrinth, which is where the minotaur is kept in the story of Theseus.
Bibliography:
Here’s some more information about Arachne.
Crash Course Myth: Monsters, Horses, and Dragons. Web source.
Romance of Old Japan by E.W. Champney and F. Champney. Web source.
Blackfeet Indian Stories by George Bird Grinnell (1915). Web source.
Image: Stone Labyrinth. Source – Wikipedia.
Sarah Lusk
Hi Erin!
I loved that this story was so interactive! I think it really help to diplay the twists and turns and unpredictability that Daedalus’ Labyrinth is known for. Great job combining all these different stories and monsters from different mythologies! I did notice one typo, (Blank raven instead of black raven) but other than that it was an amazing story!
Laura McCree
This was amazing! I haven’t seen anyone do this yet with a weekly story, and I loved the Halloween treatment. The “monster mash” collection of spookies actually worked really well together. I actually went back and played twice just to encounter each of the monsters, but I think Arachne was my favorite. I was very curious to figure out how and why my character was the only one to experience the full horror of the haunted house, but the story was great even without that answered. Super fun!