Keeping up with the spirit of the season, I figured I’d do a short review about one of the neatest and possibly lesser known horror RPG’s. Project Nemesis is a fan driven modern dark horror game inspired by all the literary masters of horror, primarily Lovecraft. It uses the quick and deadly One Roll Engine (ORE) from Godlike and Wild Talents which was created by Dennis Detwiller and Greg Stolze (whom you may recognize from such horror game classics as Delta Green and Unknown Armies).
It matches all my criteria for a good game. It’s fast, flexible and easy to learn. The drawback (IMHO) is that it can be really deadly. I mean “bang”! Game Over, Man! One good hit and you are out or dead. The system is very flexible and can be adapted to just about whatever style of campaign you want and it can be tweaked to improve survivability of player characters with little or no problem.
Here’s the system in a nutshell. It uses a pool d10′s. With one roll, you determine initiative, damage and hit location. It’s all based on matching numbers with two criteria. Height which is the higher the number the better. And Width, the more matches the better. So four 10′s is pretty damned awesome.
And this is pretty well supported by the community. There are plenty of the usual support materials you would expect from a professional game publisher like adventures, monsters and all sorts of add ons and extra rules tweaks.
I could go into more detail but why? Here’s one of the neatest things. It’s free. And as bonus fans have worked out other genres and coversions using the ORE. So go check it out.
I don’t normally throw in on the RPG Blog Carnivals but this time I just couldn’t resist. I’m also going to do something I don’t usually don’t do. I’m going to talk about my character.
We’re playing Legacy of Fire with Paizo’s Pathfinder rules and let me tell you about my character. Caleb Blackstone, Cleric of Asmodeus/Infernal Sorcerer. And yeah, he’s Lawful Evil. He’s part Denny Crane and part Edmund Blackadder. The DM had some reservations about an evil character but then the new Monk ended up evil too. And he trusted us not to be dick’s and use being evil as an excuse to back stab the party. That’s not saying there haven’t been disagreements.
I’ve put my neck on the line just like they have. I almost got excommunicated once. I’ve healed and done those cleric things. OK, so the thing with the undead didn’t quite as planned but I tried. I might have introduced the party as my retainers or henchmen a couple of times. I have never betrayed them. Not even the paladin.
That’s right we have paladin in our party and he hasn’t killed me yet. Not saying that he hasn’t threatened to. Of course my response is usually to scream like a little girl and yell out, “Sarenrae, goddess of redemption! Maybe I can be redeemed.” Of course, my hobby is to corrupt the paladin. I’m the little devil on his shoulder, whispering in his ear. “So, why is this act good and this one not?” “Don’t want revenge on that guy?” “Come to the Darkside!” “So you can smite evil but not chaos? Why?”
In one of our adventures, we rescued a guy that was a purveyor of “exotic” slaves. The rest of the party took payment in cash. I took it trade. I also burned my 7th level Feat on Leadership to get a hot half-elf chick bard. Needless to say, the paladin wasn’t all that happy about having a slave around. My response, “Hey, if it were Evil, it wouldn’t be legal!” But the bard has saved our bacon a couple times so she’s been a good addition to the party.
When someone asked about Rovagug, I was more than willing to stage an impromptu play about his imprisonment with me starring as Asmodeus and my bard in the role of Serenrae.
Serenrae: Rovagug is so powerful. I can’t face him alone. Help, Asmodeus. You’re my only hope.
Asmodeus: Yes, little Dawnflower. I shall help rid the world of this destructive force.
Serenrae: Oh, Asmodeus. You’re so big and strong. How can I ever repay you?
Asmodeus: You know, I am immune to fire.
Serenrae:
I think the paladin’s ears turned purple. “You are so going to Hell.”
“Duh. And I’ll be pitching and not catching.”
There was also that time we rescued the paladin. He had been captured and we didn’t know who did it but we lead a daring raid. And I got into a lot of trouble. He had been captured by the local church of Asmodeus. This lead to some interesting problems. They were calling me a heretic. I was calling them incompetent idiots. The paladin was much more valuable alive (At least, for my needs and that’s what was important). There I was killing my brethren (or competition as we call them in the Church) and me berating them for hiding out underground like a bunch of penniless vagrants. Followers of the Dark One should proud. His temples should large and out there in the public. Not hidden like some sort “cult”. Then we got to the temple. The place was mess. Blood, old sacrifices and melted candle wax everywhere. Other party members shout things like “I search for secret doors!” or “I loot the bodies!” I shout out, “I start cleaning the place!” I ended up getting banished from town and used as a pawn in a scheme, thanks to this whole incident. I could have betrayed the party. But no. The party is a dangerous bunch of hombres. I could deal with these little problems by doing nothing and having friends go on a happy murder spree.
This character has been one the funnest to role play. He ain’t min-maxed but damn he is fun. And yes, we are playing a little fast and loose with the rules as written but we’re having fun. So the simple rules for playing Evil. Have fun. The party and the DM are not your enemy. Don’t ruin other people’s fun. And role play! Most importantly, make sure everyone has fun.
One of the key things to running a horror game is setting the mood. Just about every horror RPG has some hints about setting the mood for your game. There’s the usual GM tricks of just using good description but I want to talk about bringing in the other senses and letting the player’s imaginations go into overdrive. And there’s nothing that says you can’t use any of these tricks for other genres as well. Of course, your mileage may vary but here’s what I’ve learned over the years.
One of the first things people mention is lighting or even using candles. First, candles. No. Not on the gaming table and chances are you’re not going to get enough light to read dice, rule books and character sheets anyway. Yeah, it’s spooky but just not an environment conducive for gaming. Especially, if somebody knocks over a candle. You know like so many glasses or cans of soda that end up all over the table. A house fire is not a good thing. Just keep the light levels high enough that everything is still legible but still dim enough that there are a few shadows in the room. Don’t turn on the flood lights.
Music. For our group, this is a death knell. After a few minutes, someone will ask to have it turned off. For us, it’s more of distraction than mood setter. But that doesn’t mean you can ‘t use music. Since a lot of folks lug along a lap top to game sessions, it’s handy for the GM to have a few mood tracts. The player characters walk into a bar. The GM blares out some music from his laptop. This couple of seconds of music can help describe the place that they just walked into. Red Neck Joint, Biker Bar, Techno Club whatever. You can use music as a tool to set up a scene or mood then just turn it off. And don’t pause your own game just because you like a song.
Sound is so under utilized in most games. Audio manipulation programs like Audacity or sites with whole libraries of sound effects or even music are a great resource. You could describe what a character hears when he listens to the door or you could just play a little sound bite and let their imagination run wild. It’s Halloween. For just a few bucks, you can pick a CD of spooky sound effects and go wild.
The easiest prop to come up with is documents. Everybody has some sort of word processor and access to a printer. But there’s some good sources for fake documents like propdocs.com. Buy a cheap notebook and turn it into the diary of mad man. Fill it full of insane rantings, strange doodles and clue now and then. Be sure to mess it up with some cigarette burns and coffee stains (or perhaps unidentified stains). Just don’t leave where your boss can find it. You might have one of “those” meetings with your HR department. The Internet is great source for images and with a few minutes with Photoshop or Gimp, you can take normal picture and make it spooky. Or, heck, just take the pictures yourself and spooky them up. For the more creative and artistically skilled, there’s plenty of little handy tips on creating other types of props like tomes, idols and Deep Ones in a Jar over at the miskatonic.net.
I mentioned the Internet as a source for props. It can be a prop too. I have to admit, I got this idea from The Hunt Begins (the Quick Start for the Supernatural RPG). If you’re dealing with Urban Legends or Vampires or whatever monster. There’s probably a website out there. Go ahead and email some links to your players. Let them research on their own and see what happens. You know what works, just make sure that there are actual clues on the sites you send your players.
I have another idea but this comes with a BIG warning. Make sure people know that it is FAKE! There are plenty of free blogging services out there. So use one. Make a fake blog of a contact or patron of the party or perhaps the diary of the mad man. BUT LIKE I SAID MAKE SURE PEOPLE KNOW THAT IT IS FAKE! With the sensitivity of some people, they might think that what you are posting is real. You don’t want a visit from the authorities because “you” posted about the demons living next door and having to take matters into your own hands. So let me say this again. IF THERE IS A CHANCE THAT THIS WILL BE SEEN BY ANYONE OUTSIDE OF YOUR GAME MAKE SURE THAT PEOPLE KNOW THAT IT IS FICTION!!!!!!!!!!! You have been warned.
Last, I want to talk about smell. While this sense is the most connected to memory. I do not suggest leaving a few pieces of chicken on the back porch for a week then taking it your game. “You walk into the room and you smell…” Ta Da! No, just don’t do it. Especially, if game at friend’s house.
The monster of the week is to Horror Games what a Dungeon Crawl is to fantasy games. You know the drill. Kick down the door. Kill the Monster. Take its stuff. In horror games, it goes a little like this. Investigate something strange. Figure out what the monster is. Research/Gear up. Kill the monster. This can get old pretty quickly in a horror game. After facing the same creature a couple of times, the player characters are going to ready and have their anti-monster kits at the ready. While this is pretty much your standard adventure format, you really should to keep the player characters on their toes.
1. Sometimes Killing The Monster Is Just The Beginning: Yeah, you killed it. But that opened up a whole can of worms. Why was it here? Why did it have that mysterious artifact? Why was searching that old church? Why did it target this one family? Make the mystery more important than the monster.
2. Make The Monsters Individuals: They have their own plans, agendas and emotional baggage. Sometimes an evil monster needs love too. Plus not every vampire and werewolf has to have the same weaknesses and strengths. Change it up a bit.
3. It Really Was Old Man Smithers: One instance of this should curtail the more trigger happy player characters. Throw in a well planned hoax in or maybe a real estate scam. It also enforces the old adage, “Don’t assume anything.”
4. Make It Personal: Maybe a player character has grudge against this monster. Or maybe that special someone has been turned into a monster.
5. The One That Got Away: OK, maybe you didn’t kill it. Maybe it had you and your crew against the ropes and could have offed you easily. But it let you go. Does it have bigger plans? Was it just playing with you?
6. The Hunter Becomes The Hunted: The player characters are used to hunting down the monsters and saving a few locals while they are at it. But what if it’s just a trap, tailored to them.
7. The Lesser Of Two Evils: Sometimes the first monster isn’t as bad as what coming next. Unlikely allies in a struggle against a greater evil. It could make for some interesting role playing.
8. It Doesn’t Have To Be A Monster: Sometimes the monster doesn’t have to be a monster. It could be a cursed artifact or some other object. It could a car, a house, a sword or just about anything. Since you really can’t “kill” an object they going to have to come up with some other way to deal with it.
9. Alternate Reality/Time travel: With all sort of supernatural mojo in the world, an occasional time warp or interdimensional rift might the characters in. Sure they might end up in place full of monsters but they really going to worrying about how to get home.
10. No Monster At All: Give the player characters a vacation or let them have a party. You know relax, maybe meet some new contacts or possibly some more enemies. Or just get thrown in jail for public intoxication. Let them have fun.
Since I’m writing about horror games this month, this little idea cropped up in my head. Yes, Star Wars is all about heroic cinematic action but that universe is just ripe for a Mythos Makeover. Just look at some of the creatures. Try and tell you don’t lose 1d4 Sanity every time you see a mynok or the sarlacc.
Let’s start with this. Midichlorians are the microscopic minions of Nyarlathotep and are the true power of the Force. They grant the infected with some brief glimpses of insight and intuition. If their true potential is ever tapped, they cause the host to slowly go insane. The Jedi Order starts indoctrinating its candidates at an early age to resist the mind warping power of The Force (“He is too old to being the training.”). They teach detachment from mortal passions that could be exploited by the Midichlorians. Despite this some are driven mad by the power of The Force. Even Jedi Masters develop some psychoses over time such as odd speech patterns. Despite training from early age, some are still driven mad by The Force and fall to the Dark Side. The Dark Side is lead by the Mythos Cult known as the Sith. They are power hungry and devious. Once giving themselves completely to the insanity of the Dark Side, the Sith undergo physical changes as noted by the Emporer.
You might think that the Death Star is just a moon-sized space station, but deep within its bowels lurks an eldritch horror with power to destroy worlds and feeds off the souls of the living. And those Clone Troopers maybe some extraneous DNA got mixed in there, what’s really under that armor. Better watch out for those little cannibalistic Ewoks too.
It’s not a full blown idea yet but the concept is there.
In case you haven’t heard on the good old blogosphere, the FTC has stepped into policing reviews on blogs.
OK, we all know why they are doing it. If you’ve surfed around the net long enough you seen them. Let’s call ‘em spam blogs. It looks like a blog but it rails on the benefits of some product that you’re sure you’ve seen pop up in spam folder. These guys are weasels. They’re the same type of folks who ignore do not call lists. Use an “unsubscribe” email as a confirmation that it is a good email. If things get dicey folks like that are just going to move their virtual operations off shore.
When I started this blog, I had no idea that I would ever have to worry about an 80+ page documents put out by the Federal Trade Commission. I’ve no problem with idea behind the guidelines. In my short time as a blogger, I have gotten a total of two products for free and yes, I did mention that in the reviews. That’s just ethical. The bad part is that for some odd reason, me or another small time blogger ends up on somebody’s shit list. There’s a chance that they could have the Feds climbing up their ass with a microscope. And chances are that person won’t have the money for a good lawyer. You know how that’ll end. I fear some people might get zapped by some overzealous bureaucrat just because they were in the wrong place, at the wrong time and forgot to mention that they got a free bit of swag.
So maybe I’m wearing my tin foil hat right now. But then again, I think it’s better to be safe than sorry. If you’ve been paying attention there’s been some pretty crazy stuff when it comes to enforcement. Like the grandmother going to jail for buying cold medicine or federal charges for orchids (This story even goes into some current proceeding at the House Judiciary Committee). Now, I haven’t read this book yet but I’m really starting to get interested in it. It’s called Three Felonies a Day. Check it out.
I’d like to pose some questions for all the armchair lawyers out there. If I get some products for free but pay for others out of my pocket. How long should I keep the receipts to prove to the Feds that some of the reviews aren’t “paid endorsements”. Since this technically isn’t a criminal type offense, I don’t think that normal burden of proof would apply to such a case. Also, if I get a free product then comment on it somewhere, should I start attaching a signature that reads “Paid Endorsement”?
There are people who are abusing the system but my fear is that this regulation isn’t going to catch that many of them. Just simple folks.
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