Just For Fun / The Magnus Protocol

Smirke's Fears and Incidents

The assorted incidents of the OIAR, and the connections they'd have to the Fears as classified by Robert Smirke.

001: First Shift

• The case Sam and Alice read would likely be the Stranger due to the dolls involved, but the watching might also be the Eye.
• The case of "Arthur" could be the Stranger due to the distorted human figure, or the End due to the connection to the death and loss of the original Arthur.
• The case of RedCanary would most likely be the Eye due to the connection to the Magnus Institute and the eye-focused method of punishment inflicted on the spelunker.

002: Making Adjustments

• Daria's body dysmorphia closely ties her case to the Flesh, which has been associated with the concept as far back as MAG 90.
• The case can also be connected to the Spiral, what with the intricate patterns and symbols in the tattoo that Daria doesn't recognize as well as the fact that the Spiral seemed to have a particular affinity for art in Archives, including the vase in MAG 38 and the Worker-of-Clay prominently featured in MAG 126.
• The constant process of seeking perfection always just out of reach is reminiscent of the Hunt in its aspect of pursuits that can never be completed.

003: Putting Down Roots

• The corruption and wretched transformation of the doctor's body, as well as the mold-like traits, indicate the Corruption. The connection is furthered by his hallucinations of his former wife, as companionship through infection was a common throughline of Corruption cases in Archives.

004: Taking Notes

• The violin's demand for blood points towards the Slaughter, which is also strongly associated with music. The effects of playing the violin without feeding it are also very similar to the music of Grifter's Bone in MAG 42.

005: Personal Screening

• The contents of Voyeur aren't described in detail, but the title and the idea of being watched during ones worst moments point towards the Eye.
• Additionally, Tom's obsession with seeing Voyeur and his willingness to ignore clear red flags may indicate towards the influence of the Web as well.
• The empty movie theater with a sole worker, Tom's comments about his particularly lonely life and lack of familiar ties, and his disappering without trace seems to point the influence of the Lonely.

006: Introductions

• The physical harm and pain inflicted by Needles, and the victim's fear of living with the mutilation he suffered, are tied to the Desolation.
• It could also tie into the mutilation aspect of the Flesh.

007: Give and Take

• The unsettling volunteers and their behavior would fit the Stranger.
• The crushing press of volunteers and items could be the Buried, but even before that the financial and social pressure of being so desperately understaffed matches its influence.
• Some of the donations brought in by the volunteers seem to match a variety of different powers.

^{Full list}

• "A rather large false plant in a somewhat disconcerting ceramic pot modelled on a shouting human face".
  • The plant being an imitation of something real as well as the use of a depiction of a human face could be the Stranger, though the pot also brings to mind the manifestation of the Spiral in MAG 126.
• "A large bearskin rug" with notably sharp teeth.
  • Skins are heavily associated with the Stranger, however the fact that it's the skin of an apex predator and the teeth are sharper than normal may indicate the Hunt.
• "A large chandelier of dark glass".
  • Most likely the Dark.
• "An oversized gramophone with a collection of records of […] religious plainsong.
  • Unclear.
• "A crudely-carved rocking horse".
  • Maybe the Stranger?
• "A grandfather clock that leaked some sort of dark oil".
  • Maybe the Dark?
• "A heavily vandalized set of the Encyclopedia Britannica".
  • Unclear.
• "An extensive collection of abstract canvas artworks".
  • Could be the Spiral, especially due to its aforementioned association with art.
• "Two large, soiled crinoline dresses".
  • Maybe the Buried, both with the dirt and the fact that crinolines are heavy and uncomfortable to wear.
• "A chaise longue with cushions filled with some sort of coarse sand".
  • Unclear.
• "A taxidermied vulture".
  • The Stranger.
• "A rusty antique printing press".
  • Unclear.
• "A collection of old medical equipment that had seemingly been recently used".
  • The Corruption.
• "Some sort of leather kite".
  • Maybe the Stranger for the use of skin?
• "An oddly curved brass telescope".
  • Possibly the Spiral or the Eye?
• "A wheelbarrow full of shifting fossils".
  • The shifting is indicative of the Spiral, but fossils could indicate the End or even the Extinction.
• "An armload of swords".
  • Most likely the Slaughter.
• "Lengths of rope".
  • Unclear, but maybe the End for the grislier uses of rope?
• "A tin bathtub filled with moldy food".
  • The Corruption.
• "A stack of old dental retainers".
  • Unclear.
• "A brace of half-butchered pheasants".
  • The Flesh.
• "Jars of what appeared to be pickled hands".
  • Likely the Flesh.
• "An ancient diving suit filled with sawdust".
  • Maybe the Stranger, for a stuffed humanoid figure?
• "A broken picnic hamper".
  • Unclear.
• "Bloodstained china".
  • Unclear.
• A jar of "imperial coins".
  • Unclear.

• Though if they aren't, being treated as valuable donations despite being nonsensical garbage would also tie back to the Stranger as an empty mimicry of what the volunteers are 'supposed' to do, much like the brick salesman in MAG 150 (although that particular manifestation was the Lonely, not the Stranger).

• The Hilltop Donation Center sharing a name with the House on Hilltop Road implies a connection to the Web.

008: Running on Empty

• Terrence's experience beginning when he finds himself unsettlingly alone? The Lonely to a T.
  • Not to mention that his divorce leading to the loss of most friendships made him a prime victim for the Lonely.
  • The strange people making noises that sound like words until you start paying attention is also a feature of the Lonely in a couple of statements.
• The literal and metaphorical hunger of the place trying to feed on Terrence somewhat fits the Flesh, but is nearly identical to the manifestation of the Extinction seen in MAG 156.
• The "people" Terrence encounters could match the Stranger, especially since many of them have identical features to one another.

009: Rolling With It

• The cursed dice are heavily implied to be made of actual bone, much like the game pieces provided by Death in MAG 29. One former Death was even found with a pair of dice in MAG 64. Death, of course, is a servant of the End.
• Although the statement giver said he never felt compelled to roll the dice and it was always his own choice, there's still something reminiscent of the Web in that no one can actually refuse to roll, even those who know what will happen when they do.
• Some of the low rolls' effects are reminiscent of the Desolation, bringing loss and physical injury.
• The statement giver himself, separate from the dice, seems to have fallen into a role similar to Mikaele Salesa, someone who serves as a courier for an item of ruin and fear while being spared their effects himself for his service despite not being specifically avowed to a fear.
• While it's likely little more than a clever turn of phrase, it can't be ignored that the statement giver pointedly refers to his last victim's roll of snake eyes "staring back at us," calling to mind the Eye.

010: Saturday Night

• Mr. Bonzo is classic Stranger, carrying on the connection between inhuman figures and circuses/clowns started by Nikola in Archives.
• The high amount of carnage that seems to be associated with Mr. Bonzo (the first wearer having his arm broken by a guest, the serial killer that wore a Mr. Bonzo costume for his last murder, the OIAR using him to take out targets, etc) all bring to mind the Slaughter.
• Nigel Dickerson's imprisonment to Mr. Bonzo, both the legacy and the physical monster, bring to mind the more metaphorical aspects of the Buried. That the sketch that birthed Mr. Bonzo had a recurring joke of telling guests that they had been "berried" also brings it to mind.

011: Marked

• All the talk of the ocean and "the deep" bring the Vast to mind.

012: Getting Off

• Another Mr. Bonzo appearance, so another one for the Stranger and/or the Slaughter.

013: Futures

• The themes of self-destructive addiction and the insectoid monster at the end makes it obvious it's a Web case.
• The way Zorrotrade (specifically it's Personal Projection Short-Selling feature) rewards it's users based on how much misfortune they suffer seems to tie it towards the Desolation.

014: Pet Project

• The incident is almost a perfect match to the Corruption, substituting the usual insects with reptiles.
• The makeshift CCTV observing the specific room where the snake infestetion reminds the vouyerisim of the Eye.

015: Well Run

• This one is a perfect match for the Hunt.
• The hunters engaging in cannibalism brings to mind the Flesh, and Lady Mowbray forcing her "pray" into hunting each other makes you think the Slaughter.