# Road's End/Eerie Manor; Chapter 3 (2016)



## jdubbya

Chapter 3? If we keep this up we'll be like the "Friday the 13th" franchise. What are they up too now? Chapter 18? "Jason takes Putin " or something?
But I digress. This is the third collaborative haunt venture with my buddy lewlew. We're going to post the haunt in a few different parts as it would be a lot more work to do it all at once after Halloween. This will be Part 1, aptly called "the build" and will give you some of the ideas behind this year's venture and some of the behind the scenes work. Our theme this year revolves around a vampire crypt. More of the back story later but we came up with the idea shortly after last Halloween. We had a breakfast meeting in February and Mark had the layout all down on paper. It included an expanded footprint, with some outdoor space, a corn/pallet maze and of course Mark's amazing crypt entrance which has it's own thread in the prop forum
http://www.hauntforum.com/showthread.php?t=42775

We began assembling props, masks, costumes and materials and the off site mock build began in September. We had to do a lot of repainting over the colorful clown markings of last year and the entire palette is a dark gray/black.
Wall panels sorted by size in the warehouse


















The structure starts going up


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## jdubbya

*The build cont'd*

One of the first scares guests encounter is in the main hallway, which Mark designed to be a catacomb that would hold a mix of static props and live actors. There are two sets of three shelves each, skinned in foam finished to look like stone. There will be three live actors that will reach out and down toward guests as they make their way down the narrow entrance hall.


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## jdubbya

The face panels


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## jdubbya

The catacomb hall









walls being finished










one of the three drop panels









headers going up










The throne room. Will post pics of this when it's all done. Should be very cool!


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## jdubbya

*Some mausoleum pics*

This thing is unbelievable!! Going to be a most impressive entrance portal to the haunt structure

After spraying the entire thing, we dry brushed each panel to highlight it




























Set part of it up to get an idea of scale


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## jdubbya

*Meanwhile, back at the dubbya's...*

The patio coffin scare is coming together. Three coffins against a wall. Two have static figures in them while one will have a live actor who pushes his way out as guests walk by. The real scare comes when another actor bursts through the locker disguised as just another wall.














































The header above the locker has been painted to match the walls and it's seamless. Gonna be a perfect scare!


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## jdubbya

*the corn maze*

Mark designed a short but disorienting corn/pallet maze to take guests past another small graveyard scene with three monks and his smoldering crypt. The maze will hide three more actors who will keep people on their toes before they re-enter the building. 25 pallets and two trucks full of corn



















and one of my favorite parts


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## jdubbya

*Almost time!*

The structure as it sits today. Ready to be dismantled and moved to our house in two days. We'll take pics of this process as well as the various scenes rooms once all the details are added. Thanks for tuning in. Much more to come!


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## Hairazor

You guys really know how to put together a haunt, keeping my eye on this


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## RoxyBlue

Always look forward to seeing my favorite little cemetery each year

Damn, you guys have done another epic project!


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## jdubbya

Hairazor said:


> You guys really know how to put together a haunt, keeping my eye on this


Thanks, but I take very little credit for this. Mark comes up with the floor plan and always has a great layout. This year the endeavor is a lot more involved with the addition of the foam entrance and other outdoor scenes. It flows very well with the theme and offers a lot more opportunities to get some great scares in! We need 30 people to make it all come together and we have all but one lined up. I left out several details of the build and scares but will include those in the next segment. We're thinking it will be two hours of solid screams. Can't wait!!


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## jdubbya

I'll add that after Halloween, Mark will use the catacombs as shelving in his garage! (minus the foam fronts of course!)


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## jdubbya

RoxyBlue said:


> Always look forward to seeing my favorite little cemetery each year
> 
> Damn, you guys have done another epic project!


Thanks RB! The graveyard made a comeback this year after last year's carnival arcade. We have a lot of details to add so folks will have something to look at while waiting to go through.

The haunt this year is truly a major project. I know Mark is feeling it. We'll be living on Advil the next two weeks. Lots of work in the coming days but in the end we'll have a great time!:jol:


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## heresjohnny

That is just an amazing effort. I would want to spend hours just hanging out in it afterwards. And Advil sounds like a good idea.


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## Pumpkin5

:jol:Wow Jerry, I am speechless, you and Mark have come up with such a creative and inspired haunt. I love all the scares you have planned, but the sheer volume of work you have accomplished boggles the mind. Your crypt entrance is unbelievable, I simply cannot wait to see what it looks like on Halloween night. I swear one year I wish ya'll would do it the weekend before Halloween, so I could drive to PA and get scared myself. I love, love, love your coffins...it is all just amazing.


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## Pumpkin5

:jol.S. I would bring Advil AND alcohol!!!


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## SCEYEDOC

JW, that is looking AWESOME! You two may as well be planning for part 5 or 6 as you are having way too much fun with all these ideas and talents to be stopping any time soon. I'll be keeping a watch on the progress. Also way to go PENN ST for a great win yesterday!


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## IMU

That's a crap-ton of haunt building! DAMN.


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## bobzilla

WOW!
Bravo, guys!


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## jdubbya

heresjohnny said:


> That is just an amazing effort. I would want to spend hours just hanging out in it afterwards. And Advil sounds like a good idea.


We actually do hang out in it for awhile afterwards, soaking it all in one last time and getting some last pics. We also pick up a crap load of candy dropped in moments of sheer terror.



Pumpkin5 said:


> :jol:Wow Jerry, I am speechless, you and Mark have come up with such a creative and inspired haunt. I love all the scares you have planned, but the sheer volume of work you have accomplished boggles the mind. Your crypt entrance is unbelievable, I simply cannot wait to see what it looks like on Halloween night. I swear one year I wish ya'll would do it the weekend before Halloween, so I could drive to PA and get scared myself. I love, love, love your coffins...it is all just amazing.





Pumpkin5 said:


> :jol.S. I would bring Advil AND alcohol!


Thanks Jana. It is definitely inspired and the amount of work is hard to describe but it's coming together nicely and we're happy with where we're at right now. We'd really love to have other haunters see our efforts as much as we'd like to see theirs. Yes on the alcohol too!



SCEYEDOC said:


> JW, that is looking AWESOME! You two may as well be planning for part 5 or 6 as you are having way too much fun with all these ideas and talents to be stopping any time soon. I'll be keeping a watch on the progress. Also way to go PENN ST for a great win yesterday!


Thanks doc. We are having fun and we have talked about a couple of future themes too!



IMU said:


> That's a crap-ton of haunt building! DAMN.


Yup!



bobzilla said:


> WOW!
> Bravo, guys!


Thanks Bob. It should be a lot of fun.


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## jdubbya

*The rebuild*

The haunt was transported to our house yesterday in three trailer loads. We had several helpers which was not only beneficial but a lot of fun as well. We had the whole thing set up by 4:30 p.m. and even managed to start hanging a few props.


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## jdubbya

The structure is only 11 feet wide by 24' long. You can see how close our houses are and how narrow the driveway is but we pack a lot into that limited space. Today we covered the roof with tarps and plastic (a day late as it poured last night!) We got much of the lighting done and the main coffin/throne room dressed out. We're ahead of schedule so kicking back for a couple days and will hit it again on Thursday to finish lighting and prop placement. Coming together nicely and more pics to come! Thanks for the feedback. It means a lot coming from you guys!


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## jdubbya

The outside front of the haunt, before the addition of the foam block mausoleum entrance, which goes up on the 30th. Ominous even now!










The first hallway, which holds the catacombs seen on the right.










Some of the detail in the throne room. Under our haunt lighting it's truly spectacular!










The monks graveyard










Looking out from the monk's graveyard towards the back of the structure and the corn maze they have to navigate to get back inside. There will be three scare actors in the corn.










More to come of the foam façade once it's in place. We're doing a dress rehearsal on the 30th with most of our actors, full lights/sound/etc. One of the local news crews is coming over to film. Hoping to get some great still shots that night, then of course on Halloween, more good pics and video.


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## RoxyBlue

^Wow!


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## sookie

Looks amazing!


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## jdubbya

The mausoleum was put up today. lewlew and I moved the panels by trailer. It looks amazing and is a perfect entry into the haunt.




























The large gargoyle still has to go up tomorrow.

The graveyard prior to the lighting test


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## jdubbya

Took a few pics to check lighting. This is one I had to share. It shows the inside of the entrance mausoleum and some of the detail. Many more to come! Doing a dress rehearsal tomorrow night and one of our local news crews is coming over to get some film. It's also kind of a friends and family night where people can come over and go through the haunt, give us their impressions and our actors can work out any bugs. Last minute tweaking and then ready for the big night! Mark and I walked through the whole thing tonight and we're happy with the results. Can't wait for the TOT's and their families to see it!


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## Pumpkin5

:jol:I absolutely LOVE this haunt! The mausoleum is epic, such a wonderful way to begin this haunted adventure for your guests. You guys really paid such attention to the details and you have surpassed any goal you may have set for yourself. I am completely blown away. You guys should win some kind of haunt award, seriously, it is outrageous! The catacombs (so creepy) offer the perfect place to scare the bejesus out of TOT's.


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## bobzilla

What P5 said! ^^^^
Truly epic!


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## RoxyBlue

One word, no, two - professional quality!


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## haunter1973

*cool haunt*

Very awesome haunt, you guys gonna do a video walk through?:devil::jol::xbones:


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## jdubbya

Did a dress rehearsal last night and about 100 folks went through. Rave reviews all around, with most saying it was better than most paid haunts. Here is some news footage from last night

http://www.yourerie.com/news/local-news/man-turns-home-into-haunted-house


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## matrixmom

Brad Pitt has nothing on JW!!! Great little interview....


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## jdubbya

http://www.yourerie.com/news/local-news/local-man-turns-home-into-a-haunted-attraction

From Halloween night


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## jdubbya

*Road's End/Eerie Manor 2016; The Crypt of Count Draven"*

This was the third collaborative haunt between myself and fellow forum member lewlew (Mark). This year we darkened things down several shades and went with a vampire crypt theme. Planning began back in February and culminated in our biggest and best walk through ever. The layout consisted of a front yard display, Mark's amazing foam block mausoleum entrance, the main building, a scene on our patio, the monks graveyard in the driveway, followed by the corn maze, then back into the building, through a pitch dark maze and into the throne room. There were three drop panel scares, a plexi window scare, catacombs that held a variety of vampires and a hidden locker scare. We overheard at least two people that said they wet themselves, and the screams and laughs were non stop for over two solid hours. Our crew of 31 actors entertained and scared close to 800 guests. We went to great lengths with detail this year and it didn't go unnoticed although there were many people who were too terrified to take it all in. All in all an epic Halloween capped off by perfect weather and an appreciative crowd. Too many pictures and details to get them all in here but these are some of our favorites. Thanks for looking!


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## jdubbya

Mark and I both agreed that we'll be scaling back next year. We know we can't get any bigger but as Mark said, we'll be just as intense as ever!! I've said it before but it bears repeating that without Mark, Eerie Manor would be a simple front yard display. His imagination, enthusiasm and energy are the driving force behind our joint venture and once again, our haunt was a fantastic part of our community's Halloween celebration. All during the build and subsequent set-up and tear down we discussed future haunt ventures and ideas and while we're both whooped after this year we know it won't be long before we start planning for 2017. We already have some theme ideas in mind. Happy to call Mark my haunt partner and friend!
Oh, we'll have a video slide show at some point but we wanted to get the pics up before too long while folks are still in Halloween mode. Thanks again for looking and for the support, interest and encouragement along the way!


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## RoxyBlue

Absolutely stunning and as good or better than a professional haunt, guys. You really outdid yourselves this year. I would have loved seeing it in person.

And your graveyard is still my favorite


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## Pumpkin5

:jol:Wow!! Jerry and Mark, you guys KILLED it!!! What a gorgeous feast for the senses....I can just smell the fear in the air.   Just an unbelievable haunt with so many fine details and wonderful interpretations. I loved the vampire theme, but your graveyard is still wonderful, the monk's tomb with all the cornstalks is a personal favorite, I just can't pick one thing. Wonderful attention from the media that you guys so deserve, I enjoyed every single picture and video. Well done guys, well done!!! You bring Halloween like no other.


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## jdubbya

RoxyBlue said:


> Absolutely stunning and as good or better than a professional haunt, guys. You really outdid yourselves this year. I would have loved seeing it in person.
> 
> And your graveyard is still my favorite


Thank you so much RB! Several people told us it was better than haunts they paid to go through. One of our staffers was offered donations, which she politely declined. She's no longer with us btw We are so fortunate to be able to share this with so many people. Makes it all worthwhile. The graveyard will always be my favorite part. Always.



Pumpkin5 said:


> Wow!! Jerry and Mark, you guys KILLED it!!! What a gorgeous feast for the senses....I can just smell the fear in the air.   Just an unbelievable haunt with so many fine details and wonderful interpretations. I loved the vampire theme, but your graveyard is still wonderful, the monk's tomb with all the cornstalks is a personal favorite, I just can't pick one thing. Wonderful attention from the media that you guys so deserve, I enjoyed every single picture and video. Well done guys, well done!!! You bring Halloween like no other.


To kind Jana. Thanks so much. Mark and I commented that any one scene would constitute an entire haunt. We layered on the details that I know went unnoticed by many but they added so much and the people who did catch them gave us nice comments. The monk's graveyard was like a dream scene. Mark's vision for this literally came to life. I think what we enjoyed about the entire layout was the flow and continuity. Every scene played into the next and it all tied together from the monks warning the crowd to the back story to the final throne room. We could not have asked for a better haunt. The vampire theme was perfect for us. So glad we did clowns LAST year!


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## heresjohnny

Just wow, that is such a huge accomplishment.


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## FoolishMortal42

Fantastic haunt! The lighting and sets are movie quality. You also had some great masks. All around very well done. Can't wait to see the video.


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## Spooky1

You guys do an amazing job. It's a beautiful haunt.


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## jdubbya

heresjohnny said:


> Just wow, that is such a huge accomplishment.


Thanks! It's a ton of work but worth every scream!



FoolishMortal42 said:


> Fantastic haunt! The lighting and sets are movie quality. You also had some great masks. All around very well done. Can't wait to see the video.


Thanks FM. Unfortunately we didn't get any actual video this year, in spite of our good intentions. Too much going on. We almost need a dedicated media person some year.



Spooky1 said:


> You guys do an amazing job. It's a beautiful haunt.


Thanks! We're happy with the way it came out.


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## jdubbya

Pumpkin5 said:


> :jol: Well done guys, well done!!! You bring Halloween like no other.


Not sure about that but we definitley put our twist on things lol! This forum is home to some awesomely talented folks who all do Halloween up right. So much inspiration here, and the willingness of others to help is just amazing. I've always seen Hauntforum as being a more dedicated bunch of enthusiasts. I'm in awe of many of the displays and haunts showcased here and each year the bar is raised for so many of us. Glad to be able to share our efforts with you all.:jol:


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## stick

Great job to you and all that help to build set up and work this beautiful Haunt jdubbya.


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## Hairazor

Beyond awesome as usual, you guys totally Rock It!! Love the theme


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## highbury

PRO level detail, dub! This display is soooo good!! I love the dark, vampiric feel. Super creepy.


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## jdubbya

stick said:


> Great job to you and all that help to build set up and work this beautiful Haunt jdubbya.


Most of the credit for the build and set-up goes to lewlew! We're lucky in that we had several helpers the day we broke it down and moved it to my house for reassembly. Also on tear down day, which goes much faster. The cast were largely friends and family, many of whom have haunted with us for the past several years. We had to recruit several new helpers this year due to the increased layout but it was really fun and they all took ownership of their "zones" and did a great job!



Hairazor said:


> Beyond awesome as usual, you guys totally Rock It!! Love the theme


Thank you! This was a fun theme and it seemed to be really well recieved.



highbury said:


> PRO level detail, dub! This display is soooo good!! I love the dark, vampiric feel. Super creepy.


Thanks highbury! Mark and I are both pretty detail oriented and sometimes it's hard to know where to stop since we figure much of it is lost on patrons anyway but for us, that's a big part of the fun. If anything, I leaned away from some of the detail and touches that Mark wanted but in the end, they looked amazing. I think future ventures will see a huge focus on the details. They help set the tone for the haunt and the stuff we did this year really worked in terms of the creepy vampire look we wanted.


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## mellington

Fantastic! You guys are an inspiration!


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## Lord Homicide

jdubbya said:


> Chapter 3? If we keep this up we'll be like the "Friday the 13th" franchise. What are they up too now? Chapter 18? "Jason takes Putin " or something?


 lmao!


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## SCEYEDOC

Jerr, that is a jaw-dropping haunt you guys built. Super impressed down here in SC. I am sure your patrons appreciated all the hard work and memories you and Mark created. I completely get your sentiments on scaling back. Like our 2015 haunt, we knew it would be tough to go any bigger. Smaller can be just as intense and scary when laid out properly. I have no doubt y'all will be able to do more with less, with Mark's superior planning and your go get 'em attitude. Thanks for posting the great pics, especially of the build. It takes a lot to build a home haunt that hosts nearly a thousand TOTers. Your dedication to scaring the crap outa kids is second to none. Can't wait to see what you two come up with next year.


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## Pumpkin5

jdubbya said:


> Not sure about that but we definitley put our twist on things lol! This forum is home to some awesomely talented folks who all do Halloween up right. So much inspiration here, and the willingness of others to help is just amazing. I've always seen Hauntforum as being a more dedicated bunch of enthusiasts. I'm in awe of many of the displays and haunts showcased here and each year the bar is raised for so many of us. Glad to be able to share our efforts with you all.:jol:



:jol:I agree with you Jerry, I feel like the haunters on this forum are a bit more special than most...I think we do it for the love of the holiday and to share Halloween with our communities. I have had bucket-loads of help from other forum members that are here and they have enriched my haunt and given me ideas, and supported my dreams of bigger and better. This is one special place for sure, I agree....we are better because of us.


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