Chapter Concept: Stitched in Shadows (Voodoo Doll-esque Killer)

The townsfolk called that coastline cursed. The tide pulled harder there, dragging homes into the sea, jostling ships into its jagged shore. The winds almost seemed to shriek at night… and a perpetual fog brewed.

Vincent was the quietest child in the orphanage. He was small, sickly, forgettable. Only able to win the favor of a stray, black cat with food scraps… Vincent was a child not many people took interest in. No one, except the Black Vale.

They arrived with smiles and strange symbols. They spoke of protection, of salvation. Relief from the constant storms, from the worry of being widowed by the coast. They requested in return no coin, but a child. The desperate women of the orphanage didn't hesitate.

The steamboat arrived through the mist that next morning. Small, rusted, and silent but for the chug of its paddles. Vincent stood alone on the dock, shoes worn and riddled with holes…holding his black cat, whom Vincent had named Chester, close. The orphanage behind him had already closed the front gate. No one watched.

Figures in heavy coats stepped off the boat. No faces. No voices. One crouched before him, gloved hand outstretched.

“You’ll be useful,” they said.

Chester hissed. Vincent felt his stomach knot.

They took him aboard, Vincent still clutching Chester in his coat. The boat turned back into the fog, its bell tolling once more. Behind them, the dock vanished like it had never been there at all.

What followed was years of being needed. They said he was special, not for strength or stature, but for something softer. A heart too open. A soul too delicate. Through Vincent, they claimed, the Bleeds ran stronger. With thread, pins, and his trembling flesh, the acolytes made war from a distance.

A needle to the spine toppled a general in a distant province.

A thread wrapped around the neck silenced a curious duchess in her sleep.

And after each act, they stitched him whole again. Gave him warm food. Whispered praise. They let Chester curl at his side, unbothered.

They told him he was important.

Until, one morning, he rose from his quarters… and they were gone.

No trace. No sound. No struggle.

Only the fog pressing at the portholes — and the scent of ash in the thread.

New Killer: The Effigy (Vincent Halloway)

“Every knot I tied was meant to hold you close… and still, you all ran.”

Overview:
Once a forgotten child, raised into a vessel for sympathetic rites, Vincent now moves through the Fog as The Effigy — a living conduit of pain, loss, and longing. His body, a patchwork of burlap, stitches, and pins. Button eyes sit in his sockets, and his once sewn-shut mouth is ripped open from perpetual weeping.. Aided by his loyal cat Chester, The Effigy weaves cursed threads across the trial grounds, ensnaring Survivors from afar and punishing those who try to abandon him.

• Movement Speed: 4.6 m/s
• Terror Radius: 32 meters
• Height: Average
• Weapon: The Needle – a dagger sized sewing needle.

Power: Woven Bond

Vincent commands cursed thread and sympathetic magic to tether Survivors to his presence — making escape a slow, painful unraveling.

Special Ability – Heave Chester

Hold the Power button to Heave Chester. When Heaving, The Effigy drops to all fours and begins hacking up a tangle of black thread. From this thread, Chester manifests. After being purged, Chester will travel between interactable objects, leaving behind a trail of black tread. Survivors who walk or sprint over these threads become Tethered. Chester can be dispelled by Shooing him, but this action causes Chester to swat and apply deep wound. Heaving Chester takes the Effigy 3 seconds to complete, and Heave Chester goes on cooldown for 15 seconds after Shooing the cat.

Tethered (New Status Effect)

If a Survivor becomes Tethered, a thin black thread appears between the survivor and the Effigy, connecting them from any point of the map. Being Tethered opens up the survivor to a Pinprick attack, and can only be dispelled by losing a health state, or Shooing Chester away. If the Effigy is stunned or blinded by a Tethered survivor, that survivor will have deep wounds applied.

Special Attack – Pinprick

Once at least one Survivor is Tethered, and while not in chase, The Effigy can use Pinprick. He raises his left hand, the thread from his finger leading to his target , and plunges the needle into his own abdomen.

The Tethered Survivor feels the pain no matter where they are. The attack ignores distance and line of sight, instantly injuring them or downing if already wounded.

Vincent staggers with the recoil. The backlash of magic leaves him stunned and unable to see scratch marks for 4 seconds. Pinprick then goes on cooldown for 20 seconds.

Perks

Frayed Patience

"Please don't leave yet."

When a Survivor with zero hook states is healed fully by another survivor, the healed survivor:

• Becomes injured and broken, immediately, lasting for 30 seconds. Full health states are restored if they are not downed by expiration. Frayed Patience has one use per survivor.

Scourge Hook: Keepsake

"A little piece of them, all for you."

4 Hooks become Scourge Hooks. When a Survivor is hooked on one:

• You gain the undetectable status effect until that survivor is unhooked or sacrificed.

Hex: Bonded in Blood

"If I can’t have you, then only It will."

While this Hex is active:

• If two or more Survivors work within 8m of each other (on gens or healing), a dull totem lights, and they receive a difficult Skill Check every 15/10/5s.
• Failing causes a scream and 10% regression or healing interruption.
• The totem will stay lit if the cooperative action is completed, and deactive if the action is abandoned.

Mori: The Last Stitch

Vincent kneels beside the Survivor, one hand reaching out to Chester, his needle in the other. He pushes the needle through his own chest. The Survivor arches in agony.

Chester slinks closer, thread in his mouth.The Effigy takes the thread and swiftly wraps it around their neck… and pulls. Holding out his trophy to Chester, the effigy Opens his overcoat to reveal a buttoned pouch, where he delicately stores his keepsake. The Effigy and Chester slink off with the decapitated body coming into sight.