Initial log following advancement to Tier 4

The Monk seems to always be present now, the Scientist flickers about the map, my scans have seen Zombies through the walls, but they disappear almost as soon as they arrive. It's like they're just waiting to get the jump on me, haven't gotten me yet though. I've been strangled multiple times by ropes from the ceiling, but a few warning shots will get a quick release.

Met a scrawny chap over by the water, had a little home there. He fired a warning shot at me as I approached, but I don't think he considered me too much of a threat, as he let me investigate after that. He walked off down the tunnels, haven't seen him since.

Tier 4 seems to be its highest level of activity, though I hesitate to say it's the worst of it.

Testing some theories, I left a handful of civilians near where the Monk usually arrives. I watched the girl jump from the roof again, the phrase "you need me" still concerns me. Perhaps this curse is linked to memetic theory of sympathy? The idea of a thing and it's association wrapping back around into it's properties? A history of being so frequently abandoned leaving it spiteful perhaps, or maybe something worse.

Regardless, returning to the Darkness I saw that every citizen was still alive, oddly enough. After the Monk made his departure, they all bolted for the door leading into the tunnels, from there I saw the worst of this place yet, and though I doubt it the worst I hope to ever see.

One was hoisted up into the ceiling, viscera and gore raining down as his body was pulled into the concrete. Another slowly disappeared, the last of her being a shadow on the wall from my flashlight. Another was burned on the spot. One, however, seemingly withered into a Stalker, firing that beam at me as I hid behind a beam for cover, before all at once he disappeared entirely.

This place has the power to render a man into red mist in seconds, but yet it doesn't. Not to me. Rather it pokes, prods, and scratches at me, why? Why is it so willing to rip apart civilians, but not me?

Does it want me to watch? Is it trying to impress me?

Recent outing was a far cry from the previous interaction. No suicidal girls spawning, no zombies through the walls, even the scientist only popped his head in to see if I was still around a handful of times.

Of course, it still played the occasional trick on me. Dropping the floor out from under me, possessing an NPC in the dark room to run through the tunnels, stringing me up by a barnacle every so often.

But it didn't feel hostile. It was like it was playing with me. Like this was just a game between the two of us.

What changed?

I saw a glimpse of a chair in the dark room. A spotlight shining down on it. I can't quite tell what to think of it just yet, but I hadn't seen this place act as such. I tried to be quick on my feet, and thinking quickly I remembered that odd plush doll hidden in every Construct map beneath the ramp. I ran to go get it and brought it in, but the chair was gone before I could set it down there. I very well may be onto something if it was so quick to shy away. The Monk took its place.

From here on out, I intend to keep that doll in the tunnel out back. If it ever occurs again, I'll be ready. Very rarely does this place offer a question with an answer that fits so well. Though, perhaps I've gone too far in my assumptions.

Discovered a few interesting properties of the Dark Room just now. While I had seen civilians run off and die violently, I had yet to see anything from other key figures.

This place has an odd fascination with Dr. Kleiner and Father Grigori, I have my theories as to why. As well there is a singular piece of graffiti of the Gman. I spawned the three of them in the dark room, and I waited.

Father Grigori shot Kleiner in the head after a few moments, and just like that he ran off into the corner of the room. Notably, the corner that The Monk stands in...

Curious.

Gman, on the other hand, took two shots to the chest and stood still. It's typical for him, however what I was not expecting from him was to take off into the tunnels. He ran down a path that I had seen Combine take previously, and made haste for the mirror room. Only to stop in front of that damned graffiti. I didn't expect him to actually have something there for it.

He stood for awhile, never moving.

Such a specific fascination, and I believe I may have something of an answer. A theory, really, but something.

The Grigori, Kleiner, Breen, and Gman all hold some special significance to the original Construct. Early Gmod revolved around these 4 characters. Gman is a posterchild of the old school humor of the game, while Kleiner was almost universally used as a playermodel. Breen became iconic in much the same was as Gman though his importance revolved moreso around that of Youtube proto-memes. Grigori's role was always in flux however, as he was oddly popular as either a punching bag, a roleplay character, or an ominus figure. There was also plenty of fun to be had at the fact he resides in the Animals section, but regardless.

These four characters each had extreme importance to the legacy of Construct, a map that has become a welcome mat for the game. Stepped on, then passed over the moment you enter the threshold.

I say this for a reason, of course. The entities of this map tie themselves back to these characters. The Scientist and The Monk are obvious. The Scientist watches from a distance, walking behind a corner or outright vanishing upon getting too close. The Monk features prominently in the Dark Room as well. And then we come back to the suicidal girl. If you are there with her when she jumps, you can hear Breen's voice saying "You Need Me" before you die mere moments after her.

It could've used any line but why that one? "You Need Me"

What if it's Construct itself? The concept of it in its entirety. That's why it doesn't kill you, that's why The Scientist is always watching, that's why it won't let you block off the Dark Room. Call it a curse if you want, but a curse implies that this was done to it. I think its trying to reach out. Trying to make us come back. Trying to get our attention.

"You Need Me"

What if it wants us back? What if it misses the old days? What if it's trying to reach back out to us in the only way it can. Spiteful and sorrowful it needs us, and pleads that we need it all the same. It wants to play a game, and so it defines the rules. Only it can place folk in the dark room. Only it can shine lights in the dark room. We are not allowed to block off the dark room.

Its a theory, but there's something here. Something it wants to say. But what?

Strangely enough, the Mirror room seems almost entirely unaffected by the curse. I half expected to see something behind me, but not once. In fact, an odd assortment of buildings seem to be specifically exempt. The tunnels, the spawn zone, the mirror room, the Whiteroom... All of them entirely untouched.

Why are the affected zones so specific?

Scanning the entities is tricky business, but I've managed to catalog them best I can. From what I can tell there are two versions of these scans. One checks for physical, the other for existential. Existential is always present, but physical is a bit more refined. Existential scans (should) always show any NPC that is there, as well as their range of sight, category of object/creature and the like. Physical scans are a bit more finicky, it checks if what you're looking at is real or not. If it can be shot, hurt, or even touched. Essentially, it separates ghosts from men.

I say this for a few reasons, firstly Semper. That statue freak doesn't show up for anything at all. The implication is that he is, or at least has tricked the scans, a part of the map rather than an entity in his own right. This is concerning, but it does mean that he is mostly inert save for more extreme circumstances. I've heard of this thing, urban legend. Whether he came here, was trapped here, or is merely a manifestation of the real thing I have no idea but for the moment he's not much of an issue.

He doesn't show on any scan whatsoever. Invisible. If he ever chose to attack, there'd be no way to detect him other than specially designed equipment. Pray it doesn't come to that.

The Monk stays in his corner. I don't know much about him, but he's the main entity of the Dark Room thus far. I doubt he's the cause of it, but he certainly holds some significance. Notably though, he has an existential scan, but no physical.

He's a ghost. Can't be touched, no hitbox, no nothing. Bullets won't even enter his skin. Now, this does imply some things about exactly what he is: An Illusionist. This doesn't mean that he can't become a threat, but he can't be successfully engaged in standard combat. He barely exists within our comprehension of existing. He's a phantom.

Those two are the only scanning anomalies I've seen thus far. Everything else has some questionable properties, but is certainly much more real than those two.

I tried something, and I got something else.

Using a few tricks I froze the suicidal girl in place, careful to specifically not break off her pathfinding but using a mesmerizing trick to entirely stop her movement. I tried using another trick from that same sleeve to link her health pool to a second civilian, allowing me to kill her without the damage being reflected. My intentions were to kill the suicidal civilian and see if anything notable occurred, it seemed like one of its tests.

However, this failed. She could not be linked. Whatever change she's undergone make her impervious to this particular spell. I shot the civilian in the head, just to get rid of it though it sounds grim when I say that out loud. The girl was still frozen from my mesmerizing, and simply said "Glad someone had the courage to do that" and was burst into electricity before disappearing. That voiceline is only linked to the breaking of a bust of Breen in the opening chapter of HL2, not a standard voiceline for a civilian. She left behind a cone with a light on top. I've heard of this thing, a curse detector some called it.

Intriguing.