From John Henry, “Hammered Out Homebrew”
“You look on as a familiar memory plays out. You see the soldiers lining up, wearing the armor you designed. The armor doesn’t fit just right. As you give your proposal speech, you ask the soldiers to activate the magical aspects of the armor. With pride strewn across her face, your past version watches as the ill fitting armor perfectly conforms to the soldiers’ bodies. Then comes the crunch you were expecting.
As the sounds of screams and crunching bones start, you turn away. You see your own face but instead of the horror you know you expressed back then, you see a wide proud grin. No, this was not your greatest failure. Think of all the possibilities if you pursue this magic. This is where your ascent begins.”
“Void Fiend” by Fatmanicus, permission given for use by Fatmanicus
Bringing the horror aspect to tabletop roleplay games can be difficult, but with any aspect of these games there is the tried and true method to make it great. That is, to bring your players in on it. Disturbing imagery and jump scares can add to horror movies, but most would agree that the horror has to be connected to the characters in that movie to truly elevate. The tension of the supernatural or other forces comes with the trepidation of not knowing how it will change the characters. This same idea can be brought to your table to elevate your game.
Connecting your players to the horror vibe that you are trying to provoke is the easiest and quickest way to make them bite into that atmosphere. The introductory paragraph used here is roughly paraphrased from visions one character experienced. As you might be able to tell, she had experienced failure in her proposal in the past. It led to deaths and cover ups. Her character was ashamed of this but dark forces like to pull at shames like this and see if they can create something even darker. Making this personal pull for the character led to mixed feelings about her failures and led to some interesting decisions.
The important part, though, is that the player became deeply invested. By extension, so were the other players at the table. They saw – out of character – what was happening to their friend’s character and were slightly nervous about what might await their own characters. So rather than put effort into exceedingly gorey details or things that go bump into the night, I lead with a personal stake that made the way for the other aspects of horror. With the players on edge, tension could be enhanced by those other aspects instead of trying to create it with them.
To create this kind of connection with players will, of course, take work. You and the players need to make sure everyone knows what kind of vibe you are going for in these sessions of whatever game you are playing. Once you know the vibe, it is about establishing what aspects your players are comfortable with being pushed. Communication and safety tools are very important in these scenarios. We want players and GMs to be invested into the atmosphere, not outright want to leave it. Establish what are topics that are hard “Nos” from everyone and what are “Maybes,” but be open to easing back if your players feel uncomfortable.
Once you have established what everyone is comfortable with, you need to establish what specific things with which you will be playing. My adventure, “A Look at Your Reflection” specifically asks for a major regret from each character to establish what will tempt them. This is hardly the only option, however. The other aspect could be to pull at them through the character’s loved ones, and by extension their responsibility for them. They could discover that while they are away adventuring, their child is being turned against them by an outside force that only means to use them. Playing with the guilt of that scenario could create the tension you want. While the character may be powerful, the horror of what could happen to their loved ones will set up the edge well.
Players should be aware that what you put into a scenario like this determines what you get out of it. The more effort you put into the connection your character can have to the horror, the more you will likely get out of it. A regret – like the one used in the opening of this article – is ripe for RP and pulling at the character, but the absolute minimum given for a character will usually make them feel less important in TTRPG sessions that have horror or tension as the main goal. So, establish those safety tools and create that tragic character.
As far as during the session, the horror should be used as a hook like any other beginning to an adventure. Start strong but do not give away the whole game. As the sessions go on, you can use moments of danger and of comfort to play into the horror. If connection to the character is material, it could be at risk or further endangering characters during a time of combat or other danger. A demon riding away with a loved one amidst a battle, the illusion of their dark visions taking up space in combat and tempting them closer, or having an object in the midst of combat that if broken will show the unspeakable deeds in which the character participated. In moments of calm you can use the connected horror to subtly remind the characters they are not safe or to incite conflict within the character’s ranks or with another group. A reflection may show visions the character saw, so they may see a sweet scene that brings to mind what they failed to do or they could realize the actions of another have worsened the situation.
Also, don’t be afraid to allow or inject some levity sometimes. There must be a calm to fall from, after all. It can also be good to make sure the players and GM do not grow numb to the feeling that’s trying to be evoked.
Regardless of where your horror games take you, good luck and happy screams!
John’s TTRPG experience: He has played D&D off and on for 14ish years. Starting in 2019, he has consistently run campaigns and one shots. Starting soon after that John started publishing his homebrew to the internet. He has written enough homebrew that he has plans for a book of it to be released sometime in 2023(DrivethruRPG). He has also played Monster of the Week, many RP board games, Call of Cthulu, and Pathfinder. You can see other of his work on Instagram!
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