Eternal

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Eternal Shadows
Horror Role-Playing
Version 1.1 by Byron D. Molix based on Adventure Game Engine rules written by Chris Pramas. You will need a copy of the Dragon Age Roleplaying Game to make use of this document.

Contents
Character Creation Backgrounds Classes Expert Scoundrel Warrior Focuses Talents Specializations Finishing Touches Optional Class: Everyman Equipment Gear Vehicles Option: Cinematic Money 1 4 5 6 8 9 11 16 24 26 29 31 Player Rules New Stunts Search Points Non-Combat Rules Combat Rules Shocked Condition Instability Damage Petrified Condition Advancement Game Master Section follows 32 33 35

Skull image drawn by Nathan Brown (www.room122.com) Augusta font (in cover logo) by Dieter Steffmann (www.steffmann.de) VTKS Relaxing Blaze font by Douglas Vitkauskas (www.vtks.com.br) Unique text and Intellectual property is Copyright (c) 2011 and made for fans by a fan, not for sale or auction. You may freely distribute, print and copy this work.

Introduction
My favorite game engines for horror are Call of Cthulhu and Gumshoe. The former because Ive had the good fortune to have excellent game masters, and it is by default, the oldest and most developed horror roleplaying game, and the latter because it does what it does very well, with simple mechanics and a focus on the story. So, I am going to take inspiration from what I like best of these, and other books, movies and other media as I see fit, to mold AGE into a horror game My goal is to add on just enough to get the genre front and center in your horror stories, and to not add so much that this becomes an entirely different and fairly incompatible game. I made some changes, but the things that matter: classes, abilities, focuses, and talents remain essentially the same, and are therefore compatible with other AGE sources.

Note: When rolling or purchasing abilities, it is important to note that Magic exists as an ability, but it is neither a Primary or Secondary ability for any hero class. Humans cannot improve Magic with ability advancements attained when going up a level.

Backgrounds
Backgrounds in Eternal Shadows are made up of two components: a career path and development picks. Your career path determines what weapon groups you may choose from at Level 1, a related benefit (usually) and your financial standing. The one thing that is not predetermined by career path or development picks is the number of languages spoken. As a rule, all characters begin knowing their native language(s). Players can ask the GM for additional languages (up to their characters Cunning score) that are particularly pertinent to their background. Example: Quebecois are fluent in both French and English, Americans from the Southwest can be fluent in both English and Spanish, while Americans from the Midwest are generally only fluent in English. An American who studied Latin, Aramaic and Ancient Greek in seminary school however can learn all those languages if his Cunning is 3 or better.

Character Creation
The process by which you create a character is slightly different from Dragon Age to Eternal Shadows. The steps are the same, first you choose your Ability scores, then you choose a background and from there a class. This allows you to select focuses and talents, and determine your starting Health total, Defense and Speed, and finally starting equipment. The differences come in the steps.

Career Path

Choose a career path that represents your characters beginnings and training. If you are playing an adolescent, ignore the line about resources. Weapon Groups lists the choices your character has for starting weapon groups. The number of weapon groups you may learn total at character creation is determined by your class. Special benefits sometimes have limitations or negative traits as well as

positive benefits. These apply equally to your character. Your character is also automatically literate in your native tongue. At the players option, he or she may voluntarily lower the characters Resources rating, choose not to take the Special benefit or choose to be illiterate because of their specific character background.

High Society Encompasses nouveau riche, old money, nobility, royalty and political office. Resources: You have impressive funds. Special: You begin the game with 1 contact. Weapon Groups: Handguns, Light Blades, Long Guns, Staves. Military Encompasses all law enforcement, security and military careers. Resources: You have meager funds. Special: You may choose military equipment as if you had impressive funds but you do not own any of it. Weapon Groups: All. Rural Encompasses farming, animal husbandry, and all careers associated with life in a rural community. Resources: You have meager funds. Special: You gain the Communication (Animal Handling) or Cunning (Agriculture) focus. Weapon Groups: Handguns, Light Blades, Long Guns, Staves. Tribal Encompasses nomadic and settled people who live in tribes. Resources: You have modest funds. Special: You gain Cunning (Survival). Your choice of equipment may be limited by the GM. Weapon Groups: Archaic Weapons, Bows, Light Blades, Staves, Thrown Weapons. Urbanite Encompasses all other careers associated with life in an urban community including service industry, and office work. Resources: You have modest funds. Special: N/A. Weapon Groups: Handguns, Light Blades, Staves.

Academic Encompasses college students, educators, health professionals and researchers. Resources: You have meager funds. Special: You can speak and read an additional language. Weapon Groups: Handguns, Light Blades, Staves. Criminal Encompasses all levels of crime: drug trafficking, gang membership, hacking, etc. Resources: You have modest funds. Special: You may choose black market equipment. You have a criminal record. Weapon Groups: All.

Note: If playing before 1920, High Society and Military also have Heavy Blades available to learn. If playing before 1600, use the standard Dragon Age weapon groups.

The Bully Abilities: +1 Constitution, +1 Strength Detective Abilities: +1 Perception Focuses: Cunning (Puzzles), Perception (Photography, Searching) Forensic Scientist Abilities: +1 Cunning Focuses: Cunning (Physical Science, Research) Remaining Picks: 1 Focus Hacker Abilities: +1 Cunning Focuses: Cunning (Computers, Technology), Dexterity (Security) The Kid Abilities: +1 Dexterity Focuses: Communication (Persuasion), Dexterity (Initiative, Stealth) Mercenary Focuses: Cunning (Tactics), Dexterity (Automatics), Perception (Artillery) Weapon Groups: Automatics Remaining Picks: 1 Focus Musician Abilities: +1 Communication Focuses: Communication (Performance), Cunning (Music) Remaining Picks: 1 Focus Politician Abilities: +1 Communication Focuses: Communication (Bargaining, Persuasion) Remaining Picks: 1 Focus Priest Abilities: +1 Willpower Focuses: Cunning (Religion), Perception (Empathy), Willpower (Belief)

Development Picks

Development Picks are what provides your starting adjustments. The freedom players have to decide these traits is based on the fact that in the modern world, you really can learn just about anything you wish to. For a normal game, players have 6 Development points to work with. The GM may decide that your characters should be made with a different number of points. When using Development Points the selections are up to the player, and are not limited by Career Path for example. They should however help tell the characters backstory. You may however not increase Magic without GM permission. It is encouraged you also have a background detailing the unusual lineage which allows such an increase in mystic power. Pts 1 2 3 a new Focus a new Weapons Group an Ability increase Pick

Archetype Packages

The following development pick packages are offered as examples. Of course you may make your own choices, but these are provided for inspiration. Actor Abilities: +1 Communication Focuses: Communication (Performance), Cunning (Cultures) Remaining Picks: 1 Focus

Religious Scholar Abilities: +1 Cunning Focuses: Cunning (History, Religion) Remaining Picks: 1 Focus Ship Captain Focuses: Cunning (Boating, Navigation, Survival) Weapon Groups: Handguns Remaining Picks: 1 Focus Student Athlete Abilities: +1 Constitution Focuses: Constitution (Running), Strength (Jumping) Remaining Picks: 1 Focus Thief Abilities: +1 Dexterity Focuses: Dexterity (Security) Weapon Groups: Light Blades Tycoon Focuses: Communication (Bargaining), Cunning (Evaluation, Research), Perception (Empathy) Remaining Picks: 2 Focuses or 1 Weapon Group Undercover Cop Focuses: Communication (Deception, Disguise), Cunning (Law, Streetwise) Weapon Groups: Handguns University Professor Abilities: +1 Cunning Focuses: Cunning (History, Occult Lore, Social Sciences)

Classes
There are 3 main classes in Eternal Shadows: Expert, Scoundrel and Warrior. These classes are named for their capabilities rather than the archetypes they are meant to represent. They are equally valid with high school students as they are for a military investigation unit. It depends on the focuses chosen and the level of the party.

The Expert

The Expert represents characters who solve most of their problems with brain power: scholars, doctors, professors, scientists, detectives, librarians, etc. That isnt to say that they are useless in a fight, however. Experts gain extra focuses and powers to help control combat due to insider knowledge. Most of the capabilities of an Expert come from their chosen Area of Expertise 2nd level power, which enhances their use of a single Cunning or Perception focus in various ways throughout the characters career. So it is a good idea to select this focus as soon as possible. They also gain Cunning focuses in later levels, so it is not as important to select those as the character levels up to maximum.

Expert
Primary Abilities: Communication, Cunning, Perception Secondary Abilities: Constitution, Dexterity, Strength, Willpower Weapon Groups: Brawling plus 1 other Starting Health: 15 + Constitution + 1d6

Class Powers

Level 1 Starting Focus: Gain a Cunning or Perception Focus I've Got a Hunch: if you have an appropriate focus and fail a roll by less than 5, the GM may give you a nudge in the right direction. This is not the same as the information you would receive from a successful roll, but it is more helpful than a failure. Starting Talent: you become a novice in one of the following talents: Medicine, Linguistics, or Lore. Level 2 Defensive Adventurer: You can perform the Defensive Stance stunt for 1 SP instead of the usual 2. Area of Expertise: choose one Focus in Cunning or Perception that you already possess. This becomes your Expert Focus. When making an advanced test with you Expert Focus, you may ignore one failed roll. It didn't happen. Level 3 New Talent: You become a novice in a new talent or gain a degree in a talent you already have. Level 4 Enemy Lore: you can expend any number of stunt points to create an Enemy Lore pool against a particular creature type during a single combat. As long as you are capable of communicating, any member of the party may use 1 point for a + 1 hit bonus, or 3 pts for a bonus 1d6 damage. You may not use this stunt on more than one creature type

per encounter, but you can refill the pool at a 2 to 1 ratio after it's creation, even if empty. Level 5 New Talent: You become a novice in a new talent or gain a degree in a talent you already have. Bonafide Expert: You can perform a test relating to your Expert Focus in half the normal time. Level 6 New Specialization: You may choose one specialization for your class. You gain the novice degree of its specialization talent. Jack of all Trades: You can perform the Resources at Hand stunt for 2 SP instead of the usual 4. Level 7 New Talent: You become a novice in a new talent or gain a degree in a talent you already have. New Ability Focus: Gain 1 Cunning focus. Level 8 New Specialization: You gain the professional degree in the specialization talent you gained at level 6. New Weapon Group: You learn a new weapon group of your choice. Level 9 New Talent: You become a novice in a new talent or gain a degree in a talent you already have. Master Specialist: You gain a +1 bonus to all tests in your Expert Focus. This bonus only stacks with your Focus bonus and situational bonuses. Level 10 New Specialization: You gain the master degree in the specialization talent you gained at level 6. New Ability Focus: Gain 1 Cunning Focus.

The Scoundrel

The slippery Scoundrel, the confidence man, the womanizing rogue. Also the sneak thief, safe breaker and the spy. If its shady or requires a deft hand and loose morals, the scoundrel fits the bill. Focused more on retrieval of information and goods, than a fight, the Scoundrel is still no slouch in a firefight or dustup. Scoundrels gain a choice of several focuses that are useful for either path, and their speciality, both in and outside of combat, is finding opportunities and exploiting them.

Scoundrel
Primary Abilities: Communication, Dexterity, Perception. Secondary Abilities: Constitution, Cunning, Strength, Willpower. Weapon Groups: Brawling, plus 2 others. Starting Health: 20 + Constitution + 1d6.

Class Powers

Level 1 Starting Focus: gain either Communication (Deception, Persuasion or Seduction) or Dexterity (Legerdemain, Security or Stealth) Starting Talents: You become a novice in 2 talents from the following list: Contacts, Grifter, Scouting, Spy or Thievery. Level 2 Opportunist: You can perform the Pierce Armor stunt for 1 SP instead of the usual 2. Level 3 New Talent: You become a novice in a new talent or gain a degree in a talent you already have. Quick Hands: You can perform the Speedy Search stunt for 1 SP instead of the usual 2. Level 4 Accurate Fighter: You may substitute your Perception for Strength on damage rolls. New Weapon Group: You learn a new weapon group of your choice. Level 5 New Talent: You become a novice in a new talent or gain a degree in a talent you already have. New Ability Focus: You gain 1 Communication or Dexterity focus. Level 6 New Specialization: You may choose one specialization for your class. You gain the novice degree of its specialization talent. Fast Talker: You can perform the And Another Thing stunt for 1 SP instead of the usual 2.

Level 7 New Talent: You become a novice in a new talent or gain a degree in a talent you already have. Level 8 New Specialization: You gain the professional degree in the specialization talent you gained at level 6. Everybody likes a Scoundrel: When accused of a transgression you can deflect the accusation with a well-timed jest or short counterpoint. This is a stunt that costs 3 stunt points. Make an opposed Communication (Deception) vs. Strength (Intimidation) test. Your accuser can't bring up the subject until the time or venue changes if you win. Level 9 New Talent: You become a novice in a new talent or gain a degree in a talent you already have. Equal Opportunity Jerk: You can perform the Enrage stunt for 4 SP instead of the usual 5. You can perform it for 3 SP if the target is attracted to you. Level 10 New Specialization: You gain the master degree in the specialization talent you gained at level 6. New Weapon Group: You learn a new weapon group of your choice.

The Warrior

The Warrior is the catchall for tough guys, soldiers, jocks and all other people who solve their problems best with an application of force, or the threat of same. Even in a world plagued by insane psychopaths and things hiding in the shadows, there is always a need for someone with predominately physical talents. On top of gaining the most weapon groups overall, and combat oriented stunts and stunt bonuses, warriors also gain the ability to overcome fear.

Warrior
Primary Abilities: Dexterity, Strength, Willpower. Secondary Abilities: Communication, Constitution, Cunning, Perception. Weapon Groups: Brawling, plus 3 others. Starting Health: 25 + Constitution + 1d6.

Class Powers

Level 1 Starting Talents: You become a novice in two Talents from the following list: Boxing Style, Conditioning, Dirty Fighting Style, Monster Slayer, Sharpshooter, Single Weapon Style, Thrown Weapon Style, TwoHander Style or Unarmed Style. Level 2 Tenacious Attack: 3 SP. You gain +1 to hit a specific opponent you choose until the end of combat. Level 3 New Talent: You become a novice in a new talent or gain a degree in a talent you already have. Level 4 Desperate Strength: If youve lost half your Health or more, you add your Willpower in damage to all targets you hit with a melee attack. New Weapon Group: You learn a new weapon group of your choice. Level 5 New Talent: You become a novice in a new talent or gain a degree in a talent you already have. New Ability Focus: You gain one of the following ability focuses: Constitution (Running), Strength (Jumping) or Willpower (Courage). Level 6 New Specialization: You may choose one specialization for your class. You gain the novice degree of its specialization talent. Fight Response: When Petrified by Fear, you can attempt a Willpower (Courage) test

vs. TN 12. If you succeed, you are not Petrified, but instead must attack the fear trigger immediately. Level 7 New Talent: You become a novice in a new talent or gain a degree in a talent you already have. New Weapon Group: You learn a new weapon group of your choice. Level 8 New Specialization: You gain the professional degree in the specialization talent you gained at level 6. Not This Time: You can re-roll a failed Fear check, but must accept the second result. Level 9 New Talent: You become a novice in a new talent or gain a degree in a talent you already have. New Ability Focus: You gain one of the following ability focuses: Cunning (Navigation), Perception (Searching) or Strength (Might) Level 10 New Specialization: You gain the master degree in the specialization talent you gained at level 6. New Weapon Group: You learn a new weapon group of your choice.

F ocuses and T alents

Focuses and Talents work the same in Eternal Shadows as they do in Dragon Age, however they have different names or different requirements. This is of course because of the changes in the classes, but also due to the ability of any class to learn much broader talents in a modern training environment. If a focus has an asterisk (*) behind its name, it is restricted and cannot be taken without GM permission.

Focuses List

Communication Focuses Animal Handling, Bargaining, Deception, Disguise, Etiquette, Gambling, Investigation, Leadership, Performance, Persuasion, Seduction Constitution Focuses Carousing, Running, Stamina, Swimming Cunning Focuses Agriculture, Archaeology, Boating, Computers, Cultures, Demolitions, Evaluation, History, Law, Medicine, Music, Navigation, Occult Lore*, Puzzles, Research, Religion, Physical Science, Social Science, Streetwise, Survival, Tactics, Technology, Writing Dexterity Focuses Acrobatics, Art, Automatics, Bows, Brawling, Defense, Driving, Handguns, Initiative, Legerdemain, Light Blades, Piloting, Riding, Long Guns, Security, Staves, Stealth, Thrown Weapons Perception Focuses Artillery, Empathy, Hearing, Photography, Searching, Seeing, Smelling, Tracking Strength Focuses Archaic Weapons, Climbing, Crafting, Heavy Blades, Intimidation, Jumping, Might Willpower Focuses Belief, Courage, Morale, Self-Discipline

New Focus Descriptions

Constitution Carousing: Partying without succumbing to the side effects Cunning Agriculture: Knowledge of and practical skill in farming. Includes botany and weather prediction. Archaeology: Knowing about ancient cultures, and architecture.

Boating: Knowing how to steer a watercraft with a tiller. Computers: Knowing how to program and get obscure information from a computer and/or the internet. Cultures: Knowledge of current world cultures and events, including traditions and mores. Demolitions: Making and disarming explosives, including finding ideal points to place them. History: Knowing important events and people from the past. Law: Knowing the laws of your home country, countries abroad and the world. Medicine: Aiding the ill and wounded, including diagnosis, treatment and surgery. Occult Lore: Knowledge about the truth of the supernatural world, monsters and magic. Puzzles: Knowledge of logic puzzles, riddles and other brain teasers. Also useful to create or decipher codes and ciphers. Religion: Knowledge of world religious thought, including tenets, goals and traditions of various faiths. Physical Science: Knowing about chemistry, physics, math and engineering. Social Science: Knowing about philosophy, psychiatry, sociology and the workings of the human mind. Streetwise: Knowing about the layout of urban areas, who to talk to and how to survive. Survival: Knowing about the wilderness. Including how to obtain edible food, water and shelter. Tactics: Knowledge of strategy, tactics and best applications of the same in history. Technology: Knowing how to use and repair mechanical and electrical devices. Dexterity Art: Ability to draw, paint or sculpt. Automatics: Fighting with weapons from the Automatics Group. Defense: Skill at avoiding incoming blows.

Driving: Maneuvering a ground vehicle or a powered watercraft with a wheel. Handguns: Fighting with weapons from the Handguns Group. Piloting: Maneuvering an air vehicle. Long Guns: Fighting with weapons from the Long Guns Group. Security: Opening locks and bypassing alarms without proper credentials or keys. Thrown Weapons: Fighting with weapons from the Thrown Weapons Group. Perception Artillery: Fighting with weapons from the Artillery Group. Photography: Taking effective or artistic photographs. Strength Archaic Weapons: Fighting with weapons of yesteryear no longer in regular use such as axes, pole-arms, spears, etc. Crafting: Construction of structures and items by hand rather than by assembly. Willpower Belief: The absolute confidence in your worldview. May represent faith, or selfassurance.

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Talents

The only difference between Talents in Dragon Age and Talents in Eternal Shadows is that the second degree of a talent is named the Professional degree. All of the talents that have the exact same effects as in the Dragon Age Role-playing game will have (same) written behind the name, although requirements are repeated to minimize flipping between documents. Ace Pilot Classes: Expert, Scoundrel, and Warrior. Requirements: You must have the Dexterity (Piloting) focus and Perception of 2 or higher. You have learned how to maneuver air vehicles with superb skill and agility. Novice: You can control a vehicle in fast motion without fear of injury. Lower penalties for dangerous maneuvers by 2. Professional: You gain a +1 to Dexterity (Piloting) tests to perform tricks with a vehicle. You add 1 Defense to your vehicle while behind the stick. Master: You add 2 Defense to your vehicle while behind the stick. Also, you may re-roll a failed Dexterity (Piloting) test, but you must keep the result of the second roll. Animal Companion Classes: Expert, Scoundrel, and Warrior. Requirements: None You have gained an exceptional pet that travels with you on your adventures. Novice: You have a pet that is loyal to you. It is trained with average skill, and you can use simple one-word commands. Otherwise it acts on its own. Professional: Your pet can follow more unusual commands, and is also more impressive than most of its species. Add 2 Ability points to different Abilities, choosing between Communication, Constitution, Cunning, Dexterity, Perception or Willpower.

Master: Your pet is like another character, and you can communicate with it on a level that borders on a supernatural ability to talk to animals. It is also an exceptional specimen of its type. Add 1 Ability point to any Ability. Special: If your pet is badly injured or killed, you suffer a Fear trigger with a -2 penalty, TN determined by the manner of injury or death. Battle Hardened Classes: Warrior. Requirements: Constitution 2 or higher. Your experience in combat has become a buffer against being sidelined by injury. Novice: You recover from being Shocked or Petrified one round earlier than normal.

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Professional: You can gain a +2 bonus to the Communication (Leadership) or Strength (Intimidation) check to help a comrade recover from Shocked or Petrified. Master: Your Shock value increases by 2. Boxing Style Classes: Expert, Scoundrel, and Warrior. Requirements: You must have Strength and Constitution 2 or higher You have attained signature skill in the sweet science of fisticuffs. Novice: The power of your attacks forces foes to give ground. You can move a target 1 yard in any direction when you hit with a punch. Professional: You have a devastating punch. You can perform the Mighty Blow stunt for 1 SP instead of the usual 2 when fighting without a weapon. Master: Your blows are truly amazing. When fighting without a weapon you gain the ability to re-roll your damage rolls. You have to keep the second result. Command (same) Classes: Expert, Scoundrel, and Warrior. Requirement: You must have Communication 2 or higher. Conditioning Classes: Warrior. You have conditioned your body to carry gear and properly wear armor. Novice: You have trained your body to handle the additional stress of wearing protective gear, large ruck sacks, etc. You can ignore the Dexterity penalty of Light armor. Professional: You can ignore the Dexterity penalty of Medium armor. Gain 3 Health. Master: You can ignore the Dexterity penalty of Heavy armor. Gain 3 Health.

Contacts (same) Classes: Expert, Scoundrel, and Warrior. Requirement: You must have Communication 1 or higher. Crack Driver Classes: Expert, Scoundrel, and Warrior. Requirements: You must have the Dexterity (Driving) focus and Perception of 2 or higher. You know how to maneuver a car like a professional. Novice: You can control a vehicle in fast motion without fear of injury. Lower penalties for dangerous maneuvers by 2. Professional: You gain a +1 to Dexterity (Driving) tests to perform tricks with a vehicle. You add 1 Defense to your vehicle while behind the wheel. Master: You add 2 Defense to your vehicle while behind the wheel. Also, you may reroll a failed Dexterity (Driving) test, but you must keep the result of the second roll. Dirty Fighting Style Classes: Expert, Scoundrel, Warrior Requirement: You must have Dexterity of 2 or higher. You are practiced at underhanded maneuvers in combat. Novice: When attacking an unsuspecting target, you gain an additional +1d6 damage on your initial strike in melee combat. Professional: You can daze an opponent by throwing dirt in their eyes. If you connect with the attack, they must succeed at a TN 15 Dexterity (Initiative) test or be blinded. You deal no damage with a successful attack, but the target cannot see, and suffers a -2 to all actions requiring vision for a number of rounds equal to your Dragon Die Master: You are particularly good at hitting vulnerable areas on an opponent. When you hit with a melee attack, you have the option of doing no damage but instead forcing the target to make a successful TN 13 Constitution (Stamina) test or become

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Shocked. Unlike normal Shock caused by wounds, the target must attempt the test to act normally at the beginning of each round, but there is no definite duration. Faithful Classes: Expert, Scoundrel, Warrior Requirement: You must have the Willpower (Belief) focus and a Willpower of 1 or higher. You have a rock solid faith, and use it as a resource to resist the pressures of misfortune, the evils of men, and the supernatural. Novice: You can draw on your belief to succeed when things look bleak. Lower all penalties related to being affected by Fear, or emotional distress due to loss by 1. Professional: You are capable of resisting Communication (Seduction) and supernatural attacks that are resisted by Willpower (Self-Discipline) with Willpower (Belief) instead. Master: Your faith is infectious, and you gain a +1 situational bonus when using Communication to console or counsel others as well as to convince others of the rightness of a plan. Grifter Classes: Scoundrel. Requirement: You must have Communication of 2 or higher. You are exceptionally equipped to convincingly lie to almost anyone. Novice: You are particularly convincing when you first encounter your mark. You gain + 1 to all Communications tests against a chosen target when you first encounter them. You must announce your target and intention to the GM. Professional: You can tell when you are being played. The GM gives you a hidden bonus of +2 on Perception (Empathy) tests versus Communications (Deceit). Master: You make a lasting impression whenever you play a role. Anyone

reencountering you who did not see through your role, automatically believes your previous deception without your needing to retest.

Linguistics Classes: Expert, Scoundrel, Warrior. Requirement: You must have Cunning 1 or better. You understand the pattern behind unknown languages with extreme facility. Novice: You can pick up a new language faster than most people. It takes you only a few weeks of interaction to pick up a conversational level of any Germanic, romance or Slavic language you are immersed in. Most other languages are learned within 6 months. Professional: You have the facility to master languages sufficiently alien to you within a few weeks, such as an Arab learning English, or an American learning Chinese. This includes deciphering the meaning of foreign writing such as hieroglyphics, given research materials. Master: You can speak any language you know with a native accent. Further, it takes you only a few hours to learn basic understanding, and a few days to become conversational when exposed to a new language. You still learn jargon or slang at the same pace as a native speaker.

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Lore (same) Classes: Expert, Scoundrel, Warrior. Requirement: You must have Cunning 2 or higher. Note: Applies to Agriculture, Archaeology, Cultures, History, Law, Music, Occult Lore, Religion, Physical Science or Social Science Cunning tests Medicine Classes: Expert, Scoundrel, Warrior. Requirement: You must have the Cunning (Medicine) focus You have nursing or doctoral training in the healing arts. Novice: Heal is a Minor action for you. Professional: Your patient gains an amount of Health equal to double the Dragon Die + Cunning when you use the Heal action. Master: When you use the Heal action, your patient gains back an amount of Health equal to triple the Dragon Die + Cunning. Furthermore, convalescing individuals under your care heal an additional 1d6 each day. Monster Slayer Classes: Warrior. Requirement: You must have Constitution 2 or better. You have turned a grudge into a talent and are without peer at hunting down and killing a particular enemy. Novice: Choose a specific type of enemy (bears, rapists, vampires). That enemy cannot easily escape your notice. You gain a +1 hidden bonus whenever using Perception (Tracking) on such a target. Professional: Now you have gained an insight into how your enemy thinks, and gain a +1 bonus on any roll to recognize their handiwork. Master: You have become your enemys worst nightmare. You always spend one less Stunt Point when using Piercing Attack, Mighty Blow or Lethal Blow against your chosen foe, to a minimum of 1.

Music (same) Classes: Expert, Scoundrel, Warrior. Requirement: You must have the Communication (Performance) focus or the Cunning (Music) focus. Quick Reflexes (same) Classes: Expert, Scoundrel, Warrior. Requirement: You must have Dexterity 2 or higher. Note: See Set 2 Ritualist Classes: Expert, Scoundrel, and Warrior. Requirements: You must have the Cunning (Occult Lore) focus and a Willpower of 1 or more. You have seen beyond the veil of reality, and can perform magic with the facility of ancient man. Novice: You have learned how to weather the effects of casting better than a beginner. Whenever you cast a spell you gain a bonus of +1 to resist the effects of strain. Professional: You have gained a modicum of mystic might. You gain 1 Magic ability advancement. Master: You have learned how to speed up casting of magic. You can accept a -1 penalty to your casting test to halve the casting time of any spell you cast. You gain 1 Magic ability advancement. Scouting (same) Classes: Expert, Scoundrel, Warrior. Requirement: You must have Dexterity 2 or higher. Sharpshooter Classes: Expert, Scoundrel, Warrior. Requirements: You must be trained in Bows, Handguns or Long Guns. You have potent accuracy with ranged weapons.

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Novice: When you take the aim action while using a Bow, or a firearm you gain a +2 bonus on your attack instead of a +1. Professional: You can reload a bow or firearm that requires a Minor action with a Free action, or a bow or firearm that requires a Major action with a Minor action. Master: You can perform the Lightning Attack stunt for 2 SP instead of the usual 3 when using a bow or firearm. Single Weapon Style (same) Classes: Expert, Scoundrel Warrior. Requirement: You must have Perception 2 or higher. Spy Classes: Expert, Scoundrel, Warrior. Requirement: You must have Perception of 2 or more You are extremely skilled at ferreting out information and secrets. Novice: You have an uncanny ability to find people's secrets. You gain a +1 hidden bonus on Perception (Search) checks when valuable information is at stake. Professional: You gain a +1 bonus whenever you use Perception (Empathy) to determine if someone is hiding something. Master: Once per session, you can invoke a master plan, giving yourself and all of your allies +1 stunt point whenever they generate stunt points. The master plan lasts for the remainder of the combat or for one hour. Survival Instinct Classes: Expert, Scoundrel, Warrior Requirement: None. Your friends may have called you lucky in the past, or you may be really perceptive, but regardless horrible accidents and pitfalls rarely occur to you. Novice: When you fail a Perception test related to ambush or being attacked while unawares, you may re-roll the test but must keep the second result.

Professional: When you fail a Dexterity test related to falling or becoming trapped, you may re-roll the test but must keep the second result. Master: Once per session, you may re-roll any test, but must keep the second result. Thievery (same) Classes: Expert, Scoundrel. Requirement: You must have Dexterity 3 or higher. Note: Applies to Dexterity (Security) Thrown Weapon Style (same) Classes: Expert, Scoundrel, Warrior. Requirement: You must be trained in the Archaic Weapons Group or Light Blades Group. Two-Hander Style (same) Classes: Warrior. Requirement: You must have Strength 2 or higher and be trained in the Archaic Weapon Group, Heavy Blades Group or Staves Group Unarmed Style (same) Classes: Expert, Scoundrel, Warrior.

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Specializations
Specialization are a concept introduced in Dragon Age Set 2. I have included them in the level structure, but for those who do not possess Set 2 information, including the rules for how to apply Specializations, or those who do not like the ones provided, I have included the following rule.

about how they deal with others not about the differences in their illicit businesses.

No Specialization Option

At level 6, when your character would ordinarily get the first degree of a Specialization Talent, you may instead choose to forgo any Specialization and instead replace New Specialization with the following benefits on level 6, 8 and 10. Level 6 New Primary Focus: You gain a Focus in one of your Primary Abilities. Level 8 Improved Ability: You gain an Ability advancement in one of your Primary Abilities Level 10 Talent Advancement: You advance a talent you already possess to Professional or Master degree. Along with the mundane specializations, there are a handful of restricted specializations. These can only be chosen with GM permission, as they depend on mystical explanations or provide capabilities that may derail most games.

Career Criminal

Warrior Specialization The mobster, gangster, gunrunner, drug dealer, career bank robber or other underworld figure is a career criminal. This person is not just a thug, hes a force to be reckoned with or appeased. There are numerous fields of criminal activity, but when it comes to made men, its always

Career Criminal Talent Class: Warrior Requirement: You must have Constitution and Strength of 2 or higher, and Cunning (Streetwise). Youve learned to control the underworld, not just survive it. Novice: You have learned from the best how to achieve dominance over those around you. You gain the ability to perform the Scare Tactic stunt. Professional: You've dabbled in just about every form of weapon combat. You no longer do half damage when using a weapon you are untrained with, although the penalty to hit still remains. Master: You can call in a favor once per story. This is automatic if the favor is an easy or moderate expenditure of resources or effort for the person who owes you.

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Otherwise you'll need to best them in an opposed Communication (Persuasion) test. If you ask for too much however, they will refuse you outright. Scare Tactic: You intimidate a likely target, forcing him to make an opposed test of your Strength (Intimidation) vs. his Willpower (Courage). If you win, he loses his next Major action. This costs you 4 Stunt Points.

Cat Burglar

Scoundrel Specialization Not every thief can be a cat burglar. It takes agility, resourcefulness, and a deft hand that can shock and amaze any who witness the results let alone the action in progress. Cat burglars are ghosts who bypass security, often without anyone becoming the wiser until the worth of a valuable is put into question and examined up close. Cat Burglar Talent Class: Scoundrel Requirement: You must have Dexterity and Perception of 2 or higher, and Thievery (novice) or better. You have become an expert at maneuvering through trapped areas, bypassing security and leaving again without a trace. Novice: You rarely trip alarms, even when rapidly placing your feet and hands. If you fail a Dexterity (Acrobatics) test, you can re-roll it, but must keep the result of the second roll. Professional: You have become known for quick entry and egress. You can make a Dexterity (Security) test in half the normal time. Master: Now you are an enigma. You gain a +1 bonus when using Dexterity (Stealth) or Dexterity (Legerdemain) to cover your tracks.

Detective

Expert Specialization Detectives, at least those who get to be this accomplished, are keenly observant individuals with the ability to calculate probabilities, and link logical clues in complex webs leading them to the bottom of any mystery. This includes consulting detectives and forensic investigators, private eyes and police detectives. Any type of sleuth applies to this specialization. Detective Talent Class: Expert Requirement: You must have Communication and Perception of 2 or higher, and Perception (Searching) or Communication (Investigation). Youve become an expert at finding clues, drawing out information from suspects and piecing things together.

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Novice: Your discerning eye picks out clues among mundane surroundings. You gain a +1 hidden bonus on all Perception tests when valuable information is at stake. Professional: People find it hard to lie when you interrogate them. Anyone who opposes one of your Communication (Investigation) tests with Communication (Deceit) suffers a -1 penalty. Master: Once per story, you can gain 2 Search Points for immediate use in gaining a clue that advances the plot.

Guardian

Warrior Specialization The Guardian fills the general action hero role in the horror genre. Its the guardian who kicks in tomb doors, engages rooftop assailants in the rain and protects the frailer comrades as they unravel the mysteries that will stop the threat once and for all. Guardians have to have great survival skill and stamina to resist everything evil in the night.

Guardian Talent Class: Warrior Requirement: You must have Dexterity and Strength of 2 or higher, and Cunning (Survival) Youve learned to put yourself before others, but also to be a more intelligent fighter to survive putting yourself in harms way. Novice: You can give out a battle cry which draws attention from your allies and spurs them into action! All enemies within 8 yards of you suffer a -1 penalty to hit any target except you until the beginning of your next turn, and allies who are Petrified within the same distance lower the duration of the condition by 1 round. Professional: If you fail a Cunning (Survival) roll, you can re-roll it, but must keep the second result. Master: You have reserves of strength that you can tap at will. Once per day you can enter Survivor mode with an Activate action. You receive a +2 bonus on Willpower (Courage) and Willpower (Morale) tests while in this mode. You also temporarily increase your Shock value by 2. Survivor mode lasts for 1d6 + 2 rounds.

Investigative Reporter

Scoundrel Specialization Whether a cub reporter or grizzled journalist, investigative reporters have experience in slipping past the PR veneer of entities up to secret dealings and displaying the truth to the world. They are not only good at ferreting out information, they excel at presenting it as well.

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Martial Artist

Warrior Specialization Some warriors go on an inward journey to self-discovery and power. These martial artists are dedicated to understanding themselves, which helps them against others. It also serves as a buffer against supernatural sources of fear. Martial Artist Talent Class: Warrior Requirement: You must have Dexterity and Perception of 2. You have attained mastery of your own mind and body and fighting technique. Novice: Your knowledge of fighting allows you to see openings and weaknesses in opponents. When fighting one on one, you generate 1 additional stunt point whenever you roll doubles and hit your opponent. You also may choose to add your Willpower to unarmed damage instead of Strength. Professional: You have attained a knowledge of yourself that allows you to suppress fears. You may always choose to make a Willpower (Self-Discipline) test instead of a Willpower (Courage) or Willpower (Morale) test. Master: Your knowledge of anatomy is as great as many medical professionals. Coupled with your knowledge of combat it makes your attacks amazing. You enjoy a +1 bonus on all Cunning (Medicine) tests. You may add your Perception to melee damage. Alternatively, you can choose to deal no damage on a hit and instead cause a target to lose a round of Actions. Note: To gain any of these benefits the subject must be human, a natural animal, or have all its major organs in the same placement as one of those two classes of creatures.

Investigative Reporter Talent Class: Scoundrel Requirement: You must have Communication and Perception of 2 or higher, and Cunning (Writing) or Perception (Photography). You have learned how to dig out news, and how to cast the facts in a light that maintains its relevance, and power. Novice: You can easily infiltrate most large organizations with a clever disguise. Average opponents only get to test to see through your disguise if you are found in a compromising situation: such as a restricted area, or alone in a managers office. Professional: You can use the Speedy Search stunt for 1 SP instead of 2, and the Object of Your Attention Search for 2 SP instead of 3. Master: Your work can move people long after other works are no longer considered relevant. Your writing or photographs will remain moving, relevant and powerful for a number of months beyond the month of publication equal to your rolls Dragon Die.

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Media Personality

Scoundrel Specialization The media personality, whether an actor, a news anchor, or a politician, is good at getting people to recognize him, and getting strangers to do what he wants. Whether this is due to a sense of camaraderie with a celebrity, fanatical obsession, or for some form of status or monetary reward, most people will help a media personality accomplish their goals. Media Personality Talent Class: Scoundrel Requirement: You must have Communication of 3 or higher, and Communication (Performance). Youve got fame and you know how to use it. Novice: You are famous. The GM decides whether your fame/notoriety is known by NPCs you meet, and what response they will have to your presence. Those who react favorably can be persuaded to your goals more easily, and this represents a +1 bonus to interaction tests. Those opposed to you give you a -1 penalty unless you prove their expectations wrong. Professional: Youve gotten good at making inroads with other powerful people. Once per story, if you can reach one of your friends in high places, you get an automatic favor. The favor will not fall outside of your contacts area of influence. Master: You are so famous that few will bar your way, no matter what they think of you. People who attempt to oppose your will suffer a -1 penalty to any interaction tests made against you.

Shrink

Expert Specialization The mental health professional is one who dedicates their career to aiding others in coming to terms with stress, fears, mental illness and disease. Sometimes, this is someone who just knows people, and has experience being the voice of reason and wisdom over numerous talks. Shrink Talent Class: Expert Requirement: You must have Cunning and Perception of 2 or higher, and Cunning (Social Science). Youve learned how best to help someone cope with their own demons.

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Novice: You are a cunning student of the human psyche. You can make a Cunning (Social Science) roll and diagnose disorders in others. You also gain a +1 bonus to Perception (Empathy) tests made over the course of a minute or more. Professional: You can help a character cope with a madness and fear over time. You roll a d6 instead of a d3, when figuring how much you reduce your patients Instability when you succeed at helping them. Master: You can greatly help the seriously disturbed. The Threshold needed for you to help someone lose Instability is lowered by 5.

Surgeon

Expert Specialization Medical professionals are amazing people, with knowledge of the human body and illness that allows for miraculous recovery from injury and disease. Surgeons, particularly those with this speciality, can save lives with a skill rarely seen. Surgeon Talent Class: Expert Requirement: You must have Cunning of 3 or higher, and Medicine (novice) or better. You are a surgeon, with the skill to improvise when necessary. Novice: You are especially skilled in trauma management, and when applying first aid to a dying character, you gain a +1 bonus to your Cunning (Medicine) test. Professional: You are well-versed in battlefield medicine, and can conduct surgery in the field and only suffer a -1 penalty to your Cunning (Medicine) test, rather than the -2 or -3 that comes from lacking proper tools and a sterile environment. Master: Your knowledge of anatomy is amazing, and you gain a +1 bonus to all Cunning tests that deal with analyzing bodies, alive or dead for health, physical condition, and mutations or aberrations.

Wiseacre

Scoundrel Specialization The wiseacre is the person who keeps everyones spirits up, or annoys them so much that they cant think straight. Either or. Most groups of people with hopeless prospects for survival have at least one wiseacre among them, the ones who qualify to truly own the name however can turn their mouth into a weapon of mass distraction for their enemies. Wiseacre Talent Class: Scoundrel Requirement: You must have Communication and Constitution of 2 or higher, and Communication (Deception). You have learned how to dig out and push peoples buttons. Its easy. See that there? Pick at it until they flip. Thats you. Novice: You gain a +1 bonus on your Communication (Deception) test to Taunt an opponent. Professional: You can use a witty comeback to bolster your friends resolve. Once per scene, if you tell a joke immediately after encountering a Fear test, everyone takes one less Instability.

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Master: You expend one less stunt point to enact the Jest or Enrage stunts, and can initiate a Taunt on one foe per combat without using stunt points.

Restricted Specializations Blood Sorcerer

Expert Specialization The quick road to magical power is always questionable. The blood sorcerer is a person that is only too eager to spill life essence to power his or her spells. Still, its almost impossible to reach such levels of power without being willing to do a little bloodletting.

you can gain Stunt Points on the use of Magic and utilize Spell Stunts. Professional: If you sacrifice an animal when casting a spell with a casting time of a minute or longer, you gain a +3 bonus to the Strain test. Furthermore, if you spill blood when casting any spell you don't have to worry about a backlash occurring on your person or near by you. Master: If you sacrifice a living person when casting a spell with a casting time of a minute or longer, you do not have to test Strain at all.

Hellblazer

Scoundrel Specialization A hellblazer is an occult investigator with the ability to bluff the world. They can stare evil in the eye and convince it that they know the third syllable of Baals true name and that they should be respected. Many of them are charlatans on a grand scale, but some are sorcerers as well. Those are the ones you really have to watch out for.

Blood Sorcerer Talent Class: Expert Requirements: You must have Cunning and Willpower of 2 or higher, and Cunning (Occult Lore). You have learned to unlock the potency of sacrifice for your magical calling. Novice: When you cut yourself or another living being as a prelude to casting a spell,

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Hellblazer Talent Class: Scoundrel Requirement: You must have Communication and Willpower of 2 or higher, and Cunning (Occult Lore). You have mastered the art of the deal against fate, supernatural creatures and cosmic terrors. Novice: You arent made of sterner stuff, but you can fake a jaded facade. You gain a +1 bonus to Fear tests when faced with supernatural creatures and phenomena. Professional: Fate itself owes you favors. Once per session, you can re-roll any test, but must keep the second result. Master: You have learned how to bluff your way through confrontations with the mystical. Supernatural foes cannot tell whether any spell you cast is real or a pantomime meant to scare them. Make a Communication (Performance) test vs. the enemys Perception (Seeing). If you win, they believe whatever you want them to believe, even going so far as to give themselves psychosomatic penalties and limitations.

Chosen One Talent Class: Warrior Requirements: You must have Strength and Willpower of 3 or higher. You were born to fight the darkness, and gifted with abilities beyond other mortals. Novice: You always generate 1 extra stunt point when you roll doubles and hit while attacking supernatural creatures. Increase your Shock value by 1. Professional: You gain a +1 to all opposed tests to track, detect or outwit supernatural creatures. Increase your Shock value by 1. Master: You always expend one less Stunt Point to use the Mighty Blow, Pierce Armor, or Lethal Blow stunt against a supernatural foe. Increase your Shock value by 1.

Chosen One

Warrior Specialization The unlikely champion, or the soldier groomed from childhood to protect humanity, slay evil, or serve as a fulcrum point of balance in a world tipping towards darkness. Chosen Ones are geared to fight against supernatural creatures, period. They are at their best when facing such foes, although they are not necessarily paranormal themselves. Paired with a template gifting them Ability increases or true powers, these warriors become unstoppable.

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F inishing T ouches
In addition to the Defense, Speed, and Health totals, characters have a Shock threshold. Defense A characters Defense is equal to 10 plus their Dexterity, plus Defense bonuses. Shields provide bonuses, and the Defense focus provides a bonus of +2. Subtract any armor penalties the character has which are not negated by Talents. Shock The characters Shock threshold is equal to starting Health divided by 3 (rounded up) plus Willpower. This value does not change when Health or Willpower increases, but may go up due to Talents and other benefits.

Optional Class: Everyman

Some people don't have a strong specialty either in combat or outside of it in everyday life. They are the waitresses, the farm hands, the nurses or average students. In other words, they are 100% normal, and have no better shot at looking anything up, gaining entrance to a restricted area, conning someone, or fighting off a threat. These characters are ordinary, and this optional class represents them. While Everyman, or Everywoman, characters don't necessarily shine when cornered and alone, they are great contributors to whatever situation they find themselves in. As they gain Focuses and Talents, the Everyman player should think about what makes them survivable, rather than what makes them bad ass. The Everyman gets several unique powers which help out in a group situation, but none that enhance their own combat capabilities when solo. For those of you who care about balance, forget it. This class is neither meant to be balanced with the other three, and by its very nature is not meant to be terribly potent at all. Still, I include it to serve up well rounded roles to fit the genre. You can reasonably fit almost any character concept into one of the three main classes. This is meant strictly for those concepts which fall through the cracks.

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Everyman
Primary Abilities: Pick 3, excluding Magic Secondary Abilities: The remaining 4 excluding Magic Weapon Groups: Brawling, plus 2 others. Starting Health: 20 + Constitution + 1d6. Talents: Everyman characters have access to any Talent that isn't restricted to a single class.

Class Powers

Level 1 Starting Focus: Choose any one Focus. Obscurity: You can blend into a crowd due to your plain ordinary appearance and manner. When attempting to hide in a group of ordinary people, you gain a +1 bonus to your Dexterity (Stealth) test. Level 2 Helping Hand: Your perspective and willingness to be a team player come in handy, providing a +1 bonus to the leader of a group action. Level 3 New Talent: You become a novice in a new talent or gain a degree in a talent you already have. Team Work is Grand: You can spend your Willpower in Combat Stunt Points once per encounter when a party member initiates a combat stunt. Your stunts need not target the same targets, and you do not automatically gain an attack. Thus, if you want to use Knock Prone and do not have any way to attack the target, it must be against a target your ally attacked as you trip the enemy. Level 4 New Ability Focus: Gain one new Focus of your choice. Level 5 New Talent: You become a novice in a new talent or gain a degree in a talent you already have.

Untapped Reserves: The Everyman can convert Search Points into Combat Stunt Points. If used with Team Work is Grand, they can convert them on a 1 to 1 basis, otherwise the conversion rate is 2 Search Points per Stunt Point. The maximum number of Stunt Points the Everyman can gain per round with this power is 4. This lifts the cap to 4 if the characters Willpower is less when used with Team Work is Grand. Level 6 New Specialization: You may choose one specialization you qualify for, regardless of class. You gain the novice degree of its specialization talent. Level 7 New Talent: You become a novice in a new talent or gain a degree in a talent you already have. New Weapon Group: You learn a new weapon group of your choice. Level 8 New Specialization: You gain the professional degree in the specialization talent you gained at level 6. Level 9 New Ability Focus: Gain one new Focus of your choice. New Talent: You become a novice in a new talent or gain a degree in a talent you already have. Level 10 New Specialization: You gain the master degree in the specialization talent you gained at level 6.

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Equipment
Money and Starting Funds
Weapon Damage Each character begins with their initial kit, plus a pool of cash. Beyond their initial kit, every character has a place to stay fitting with their backstory, access to vehicles again fitting with their backstory, and clothing sufficient to get by in the world. The GM will inform you if you receive anything else for free based on story needs. Min. Str -1 0 1 0 1 2 2 1 0 1 2 3 Range Interval 6 yds 20 yds 25 yds 20 yds 100 yds 125 yds 300 yds 5 yds 25 yds 20 yds 30 yds 100 yds 150 yds Handguns (Dexterity)* Derringer Small Handgun Medium Handgun Heavy Handgun Carbine Hunting Rifle Sniper Rifle Sawed-Off Shotgun Shotgun Light SMG Heavy SMG Assault Rifle Light Machine Gun 1d6+6 1d6+6 2d6+3 2d6+6 1d6+6 2d6+3 3d6 3d6+3! 3d6+3! 2d6+1 2d6+3 2d6+6 3d6

Long Guns (Dexterity)*

Automatics (Dexterity)*

New Weapons

Meager Modest Impressive

$500 $2000 $6000

* Firearms add Perception to damage instead of Strength. ! Shotguns are +1d6 damage at melee distance, but -1d6 damage at Long Range. Firing slugs instead of shot makes the damage 2d6+6 at all ranges.

Experts begin play with a portable means of communication if the era permits, a research tool (pads of paper, a computer, etc.), and a recording device (pad of paper, camera, etc.) Scoundrels begin play with a concealable weapon, and lock picks or a fancy wardrobe. Warriors begin play with two weapons of their choice (limited by law or availability)

Reloading Firearms Usually, it takes a Minor action to reload a firearm. In cases where individual bullets must be loaded by hand, or more than two cartridges fit into a particular shotgun it takes a Major action to reload. Machine guns with belts of ammo take a Major action to reload.

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Weapon

Damage

Min. Str 2 0 0 0

Range Interval 30 yds Special 150 yds 12 yds 8 yds 12 yds

Item Derringer Small Handgun Medium Handgun Heavy Handgun Carbine Hunting Rifle Sniper Rifle Shotgun Light SMG Heavy SMG Assault Rifle Light Machine Gun Mortar Flame Thrower

Cost $300 $500 $800 $1000 $400 $450 $2000 $300 $950 $1100 $1500 $2500 $2500 $3500 $50 $75 $30 $100 $500 $2500 $1200 $10 $250 $100 $500 $750 $30 $30 $75 $45 $500 $150

Artillery (Perception)# Mortar Flame Thrower Cannon Dynamite Stick Flash Bomb Grenade 2d6 (x2) 2d6+1 3d6 (x2) 2d6+3 2d6+8

Thrown Weapons (Dexterity)

# Artillery weapons do not add Abilities to damage normally. Some exceptions may exist.

Armor
Armor Armor Rating Garments Biker Jacket Ballistic Vest Riot Armor Riot Shield Makeshift Shield 2 3 5 Shields +2 Defense +1 Defense 9 12 -1 -2 -3 AR vs. Firearms Armor Penalty

Dynamite (per stick) Grenade Flash Bomb Biker Jacket Ballistic Vest Riot Armor Riot Shield Flashlight Mobile Radio Cellular Phone Smart Phone Portable Computer First Aid Kit Backpack Hiking Pack / Military Pack Lock Picks Doctors Bag Watch

Gear and costs

I have provided representative costs for most things you would be unlikely to find a decent price for on the internet. Likewise, fine clothing, food, wine, lodgings, etc., are not costed as those can easily be figured out with a simple price check.

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Descriptions

Assault Rifle: A restricted, military automatic rifle. Ballistic Vest: A bulletproof vest, heavy with ceramic or metal plates sewn inside. Biker Jacket: A thick leather jacket that provides some protection from vehicle crashes and melee hits. Carbine: A small rifle, usually bolt-action, that is used for hunting or defense. Derringer: A derringer is a very small, very concealable firearm that holds only one shot. Doctors Bag: A stethoscope, common pain reducers and other tools and drugs that allow a doctor to tend to patients in the field. First Aid Kit: A pack of bandages, antiseptic and other tools useful in cleaning and binding wounds. Not equipped for surgery or to help in diagnosis of disease or illness. Flashlight: A portable light that illuminates a cone 1 yard at the end and 4 yards long. Handgun: A revolver or semi-automatic pistol, no matter the size. Hiking Pack / Military Pack: A much larger backpack that can hold tents and larger equipment. Hunting Rifle: A large caliber bolt-action rifle or autoloader meant for bringing down game. Machine Gun: A large military grade automatic weapon that uses massive bullets and has a high rate of fire. It usually requires a mount of some kind to effectively deal with the weight and recoil.

Flame Thrower: A weapon that fires fuel supplied from a tank at enemies and lights the fuel on fire with an open flame. It takes a Major action to ready a flame thrower for action, but they can be used to bathe a target in continual flame. Mortar: A mortar is an explosive weapon that fires shells in an arc. It deals its damage to all within a 2 yard radius, and to those within a 4 yard radius of the blast point. Those within 4 yards but further than 2, may attempt a TN 14 Dexterity (Acrobatics) test to take half damage. Dynamite: Explosives on a timer fuse, they deal their damage to everything within a 2 yard radius. Each stick bundled together up to a max of 6 sticks, adds a multiplier to the damage and increases the radius by 2 yards. Thus, 2 Sticks are x2 damage and 3 yards, 6 sticks are x5 damage and 12 yards. Those on the edge of the explosion (2 yards from the edge or less) can attempt a TN 14 Dexterity (Acrobatics) test to take half damage. Grenade: A grenade, an explosive with a removal pin that starts a timer, comes in various varieties. The listed one is a fragmentation grenade which simply explodes in a 3 yard radius, dealing its damage to all present at the target site. Targets can attempt a TN 14 Dexterity (Acrobatics) test to take half damage. Flash Bomb: A flash bomb, also referred to as a Flash Bang, blinds all targets within 5 yards who are not protected. They stay blinded for a number of rounds equal to the Dragon Die of the throw, and suffer a -1 penalty for the next 4 rounds after that due to residual disorientation. Riot Armor: Full body ballistic armor worn by police forces and private security.

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Riot Shield: A four or five foot tall rectangular shield, made of transparent sturdy material or made of metal with a window at the top. Shotgun: A single or double-barreled breach loaded or pump-action weapon that fires cartridges of metal pellets. SMG: A sub-machine gun, a restricted automatic weapon that uses pistol caliber bullets. Sniper Rifle: A restricted, large, bolt-action rifle meant to attack targets at long range. Always has a telescopic scope. Telescopic Scope: This counters the Long Range penalty when used with an Aim action. Add $200 to the cost. Watch: A precision time piece that is water proof or has a mechanical mechanism. Weapon Mount: A weapon mount eliminates the Min. Strength requirement for a firearm but requires a full round to attach to a sturdy structure. A free standing variant is a tripod. Add $500 to the cost.

Vehicles
Vehicles have their own statistics: Defense, Speed, Handling, Travel Rate, Structure and Armor. Some of these are rated as bonuses or penalties, which would apply to tests, while others are simply numbers.

Operating a Vehicle

When operating a vehicle, heroes automatically know enough to get from place to place if nothing interferes. It is unlikely that a quarterback knows how to fly a helicopter, but for the purpose of the story, the character is capable of the feat. The player however is free to decide that they cannot because of their characters backstory. Regardless, it is only important to bother with operation checks when the consequences are there, or circumstances increase the difficulty. In this case, the Handling modifier is applied to the appropriate maneuvering test. Cunning (Boating) for tiller operated water craft, Dexterity (Driving) for land vehicles and speed boats, and Dexterity (Piloting) for air vehicles. The travel rate of the vehicle is the basic cruising speed, and has nothing to do with how fast the vehicle accelerates, or whether it is particularly quick for a vehicle of its basic type. That is reflected in the Speed ability. It is however, a good measure for figuring out how long a journey will take, or whether a particular foe can be outrun. Chase rules When engaged in a chase, compare the Travel Rate of the vehicles involved. If one vehicle has a significantly higher Travel Rate, then it can easily leave behind all the other vehicles, or it can easily keep up. When they are evenly matched, it comes

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down to a maneuvering check modified by vehicle Speed. The only way to shake a vehicle with a better Travel Rate is to best the operator in a maneuvering check modified by Handling. This is an alternative in a chase with evenly matched vehicles as well, but requires terrain to be effective. Vehicle Combat As far as Armor and Structure go, vehicles take damage just like people do, except that they cease to function at Structure 0. A mechanic has to apply repairs before it would begin to function again. However, there are two important rules. People obscured from outside the vehicle are protected by the vehicles body. They cannot be attacked directly in normal circumstances until the vehicles Structure drops to 0. If the vehicle has windows, attackers can choose to apply the Pierce Armor stunt to the occupants instead of to the vehicles vulnerable spots. Even in this case, the occupants receive the benefit of half the vehicles Armor rating, as if they were using the vehicle as their own armor and had been struck by the Pierce Armor attack themselves. A Vehicles unmodified Defense is equal to 12 minus any modifier for size (a truck is -1, a small plane is -2, a large plane is -3, a large ship is -4), plus its Handling and Speed ratings (or subtract if they are negative). Obtaining a Vehicle For the purposes of the game, vehicles are treated like useful props. If your background would support access to, or ownership of a particular vehicle, then you have the opportunity to have one. Anyone attempting to buy a vehicle in game, will have to deal with the situation as any other interaction over resources.

Example Vehicles

Motorcycle (land) Defense: 15, Handling +1, Speed +2 Travel Rate: 100 mph Structure: 20, Armor Rating: 7 Automobile (land) Defense: 12, Handling -1, Speed +1 Travel Rate: 100 mph Structure: 40, Armor Rating: 10 Sports Car (land) Defense: 14, Handling +0, Speed +2 Travel Rate: 100 mph Structure: 25, Armor Rating: 10 Pickup Truck (land) Defense: 10, Handling -1, Speed +0 Travel Rate: 100 mph Structure: 55, Armor Rating: 12 Delivery Truck (land) Defense: 9, Handling -1, Speed -1 Travel Rate: 100 mph Structure: 60, Armor Rating: 10 Helicopter (air) Defense: 14, Handling +2, Speed +1 Travel Rate: 100 mph Structure: 50, Armor Rating: 10 Prop Plane (air) Defense: 12, Handling +1, Speed +0 Travel Rate: 200 mph Structure: 50, Armor Rating: 8 Commuter Jet (air) Defense: 11, Handling +0, Speed +1 Travel Rate: 300 mph Structure: 60, Armor Rating: 10 Freighter (water) Defense: 7, Handling -1, Speed +0 Travel Rate: 30 mph Structure: 50, Armor Rating: 14

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Option: Cinematic Money

There isnt any reason that in a modern world, with ready credit and other support systems, that you need to count dollars and cents in your characters wallet. The general idea is that every characters Finances are determined by their Background, and this allows us to abstract their buying power. $1 - $25

Cost 7 8 10 12 14 16 18 20 22 24 $26 - $100 $101 - $400 $401 - $2000 $2,001 - $4,000 $4,001 - $10,000 $10,001 - $50,000 $50,001 - $250,000 $250,001 - $1,000,000 $1,000,001+

TN

Cinematic Buying Power

Those finance categories correspond to modifiers, and when someone needs to buy something nontrivial, they have to make a roll to succeed. For this rule, someone with Meager finances has a -1 penalty, someone with Modest finances has a +1 bonus and someone with Impressive finances has a +3 bonus. Whenever a character attempts to buy something for a listed cost it requires a Cunning (Research) test, modified by their finance modifier. If they beat the TN, they make the purchase without straining their finances. If they dont beat the TN, but are within 5 of the needed number, then the player has a choice to make. They can accept a -1 to all future Wealth tests, until the GM decides they have made up the difference, or they cant buy the item. This penalty is cumulative, and the player can go so far into debt that he cant purchase even the smallest of things. Haggling If the character wants to haggle over the cost, they can instead make an opposed Communication (Bargaining) test versus the vendors Communication (Bargaining), again using their finances modifier. The vendor gets a bonus based on how expensive the item is.

Example: Martin has Modest finances, and a Cunning of +1. He can buy anything that costs $800 or less if he rolls a 10 on the dice. Example: Rodrigo has Cunning 1 (Research), and is rich, with an Impressive finances rating. If he rolls a 10 on the dice, he can purchase anything that costs $10,000 or less. However, hed need to roll a 14 or better to purchase a rare luxury car.

Recovering Buying Power

Since its usually tangential to the story, the Game Master will let you know when youve worked off a debt, or had a large enough windfall to remove a penalty. Specifically, having a low buying power usually means that the heroes will have to scavenge or steal necessary items and resources to survive the onslaught of the zombie horde, the vampire attack, or the relentless murderer. The desperation is part of the genre, so dont worry about when your next paycheck is. Worry about seeing your next paycheck.

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Player Rules
New Stunts
Combat Stunts 4 Shrug It Off: Running on adrenaline, you can increase your Health by 1 + your Constitution. Exploration Stunts 2+ Bank Search Points: Whether through luck, perseverance or simply good karma, you gain a bit of insight for use later on in the game. The character can store half the amount of stunt points expended on this stunt as Search Points. 5 Lucky Break: Place a d6, or other token, in front of yourself as a reminder. You can choose to expend the die to roll 1d6 and replace your lowest die result from an Action or Reaction test with the new result at any time. This may allow a failed action to succeed, but the final result of the roll cannot be changed, even through character powers. The token disappears after a scene change or when expended.

only retain as many as the character's Cunning rating between sessions. Players can expend a single Search Point to gain a +2 bonus to an appropriate roll to divine a clue. If the character does not have an appropriate Cunning or Perception focus, this is often manifested as blind luck when it is successful. Players who expend 2 Search Points, but who have the appropriate Cunning or Perception focus to find the clue, automatically make the roll. The Player should roll their Dragon Die, just to see if they might glean more information than the minimum. Example: Jonah is a computers expert trapped in a building with several others. He has a Cunning of 2 and the Computers focus. One of the clues he could learn is the backdoor code to the building security room, which contains a grisly murder scene and a murder weapon. Jonahs player expends 2 Search points and Jonah remembers the obscure code he had stumbled upon before.

Search Points
In most games where clues are important plot points, often ones that will bring the game to a halt if they are not found and followed, a failed roll at a crucial moment can break the entire game session. This is particularly true when the clue itself self-destructs and is no longer there to lead the party onward. The solution to this problem is the addition of Search Points. Search Points are a metagame resource. The players earn them for role-playing well or with an exploration stunt. Players receive Search points when roleplaying impressively or when using the Bank Search Points exploration stunt. Any PC can gain an unlimited number of Search Points throughout a session, but they may

Non-Combat Rules
Aiding Others
When a leader of a group has substantial help in accomplishing a task, this is often represented best by speeding things along. Another possible benefit is to have the group effort produce greater quantities in a case where the result is a tangible product. Group 2-4 5-8 9+ Time Taken Half Third Fourth Quantity Made Half Again Twice Three Times

To qualify to help in a group, a character must either have the listed Focus, or have an equal or higher Ability.

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Example: Freda, who has Cunning 3 and the Research Focus, is in charge of digging up information about a particular demon. Anybody with the Cunning (Research) focus or Cunning of 3 or more can help her out.

Snap Out of It!

Characters may use a Minor action to attempt a Communications (Leadership) or Strength (Intimidation) test versus a TN of 12 plus the number of rounds a comrade has left of Petrified or Shocked. If successful, the affected character loses the condition immediately.

The character is unable to take actions except Move once per round for 1d3 rounds (determined by the GM). Characters who are Shocked cannot defend themselves very well and attacks that connect on them deal an additional 1d6 damage automatically.

Shocked

I nstability damage
When characters fail Fear tests, they gain a certain amount of Instability. This total is reduced by the characters Willpower ability, but the character always gains at least 1 point of Instability. As Instability rises, it denotes changes in the characters behavior or mental processes. Disturbed Once Instability climbs to 10 points or more, the character is considered to be in a paranoid or disturbed state. There are no fixed game mechanics governing this condition, but it is appropriate for a character to be role-played as jumpy, panicky, or downright paranoid and flighty. The GM may decide that Disturbed individuals suffer a -1 penalty on Fear tests caused by surprises. Deranged Once Instability climbs to 15 points or more, the characters mind is so riddled with fear and madness that their perceptions may be warped. It is again up to the GM, but it is appropriate for a Deranged character to suffer a psychosis, to suffer delusions, or to suffer a generic -1 penalty to all actions they undertake. This penalty is separate from, yet cumulative with the penalty associated with facing a Fear trigger after a failed test.

Combat Rules
Firearms
Because modern firearms are exceptionally quick to fire, all gun toting characters act together in their own initiative phase, then everybody else acts. If you run out of ammo or are disarmed, you keep your Initiative, you simply act in the later phase instead. Automatics Characters firing Automatics can use the Mighty Blow or Lightning Attack stunt multiple times for the same expense of Stunt Points. Mighty Blow must apply to the same target, while Lightning Attack must apply to different adjacent targets, representing continuous fire and walking fire tactics. Burst Fire is already figured into the damage rating of such weapons to begin with.

Shock

If a character receives damage equal to or greater than his Shock threshold in a single attack, he becomes Shocked.

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Insane If Instability reaches a total of 25 or more points, the character is clinically insane. This means that if the player is allowed to continue playing the character, their choices can be overridden at any time by the GM. The GM has veto on any action an insane character undertakes. In most cases an insane character wont take actions at all, instead rocking back and forth in an attempt to put order to the world and failing repeatedly. Some insane characters will take perfectly normal actions, such as acting on base desires, or attacking threats. The difference is that the GM will color the descriptions the player is given so as to give shape to the altered perceptions the insane individual is experiencing. Such a character may ingest raw organs, attack friends, etc. As the character is insane, these normal activities are made abnormal based on the characters inability to discern reality.

The character is unable to take actions except Move once per round for a number of rounds equal to 7 minus 1d6. Once they are able to undertake actions, they have the normal fear related penalties for the remainder of the scene.

Petrified

Recovering from Instability

There are three ways to recover from Instability: mental victory, natural recovery and with outside help. Mental Victory At the GMs discretion, you can lose a number of Instability from defeating a Fear trigger through your own actions. This only applies to groups taking down supernatural foes if the character has a material part in the victory. You get nothing for pushing a button to drop a zombie into a pit of spikes while a comrade lured it into the trap. Natural Recovery Characters who are not Insane lose Instability equal to their Willpower + 1 (minimum of 1) every week. The natural rest period helps them come to terms with the disturbing things they have witnessed. Characters who are not Deranged also lose that same amount the first night after encountering a Fear trigger. Their dreams help them process the fear and brush aside madness. Outside Help It is possible for a therapist or concerned friend to help a character deal with the issues that lead to mental breakdown. This process is covered in the GMs Section on Fear. Needless to say, for those who are already insane this is a long road to recovery, but one of the only ones open to them. Insane characters do not recover from Instability naturally.

Halting the descent into Madness

Players can voluntarily choose to become Petrified rather than advance into a higher category of madness. Instead of writing down the new Instability total when the character would cross over into Disturbed, Deranged or Insane, the player ignores the mental damage (not even taking a single point) and instead accepts the Petrified status. This can only be done once per threshold per scene. So if your character was about to cross into Deranged, and you choose to become Petrified instead you do not become Deranged. However, if you fail a later Fear test in the same scene, and the Instability increase would push your character to Deranged, you become Deranged.

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Advancement
There are a handful of changes made to the normal rules for character advancement. The first one is that Magic is not something a player character may choose to apply Ability advancements to during level up.

Post 10th level Upgrades

New Focus Ability Advancement New Talent Increase Talent Degree (with GM permission)

Gaining Health

(Diminishing Returns) Your game master will let you know if this rule applies in your game. Heroes in horror stories are often less hardy or lucky than those in even low fantasy tales. Thus, your heroes don't roll dice for Health bonuses after level 5. Instead they gain just the Constitution amount they have at the time they leveled up.

Advancement beyond Level 10

Characters who reach level 10 do not have to stop adventuring, assuming they remain alive. However, they do not reach super-powerful levels of competence either. In keeping with the genre, with heroes being fallibly human even when extremely experienced, they gain less whenever they attain the level mark. Whenever a 10th level character gains enough experience to "go up a level" she can gain a Focus, or an Ability Advancement. He may also become a Novice in a new talent, but may not advance a talent he already possesses. With express game master permission, an existing talent may be advanced to Professional or Master degree. Under no circumstances may a 10th level character increase his Health total through level up, or gain a second Specialization.

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Game Masters Section

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Contents
Game Master Rules Hidden Bonuses Futility Rule The Effects of Fear Overcoming Instability Advancement Awards and Rewards Supernatural Concerns Spellcasting Example Spells Sensitives and other Paranormal Activity Adversaries Creature Features Mundane Adversaries Beat Cop Detective / Escaped Convict Psychopathic Artist 38 40 Sly Sociopath SWAT Officer Supernatural Adversaries Demonic Figment Merman Mummies Phantom / Possessed Killer Sorcerers & Sorceresses Vampires Werewolves Zombies Running Horror Games Sub-Genres of Horror Types of Stories Building a Party Campaign Options General Advice Mysterious Magic Less is More 51 52 53 54 55 57 58 59 62 63 64 67 68 70 71

41 43 46 47 48 49 50

Hey, Players
Okay, youve had your fun. This is the section of the book that details what little needs to be kept hidden from you. Woe to those who venture beyond this point, and all that. Simply reading the table of contents can give you all sorts of nasty insight into the horrors your game master has planned for you. So, leave it here.

Introduction for Game Masters

Now that they are out of the way we can talk about whats coming up through the end of the book. I have endeavored to provide as much in the way of genre specific rules and options for you to use in crafting your own Tales of Terror. Ive put things together with an eye for both simple one-shot adventures and entire

campaigns. Really, anything that looks like an article is just that, a series of suggestions to help you build your game, not hard and fast rules. This is because with a system like AGE, the crunchy, fiddly bits are minimized. Even when an effect is outside the realm of normal game table behavior, (supernatural effects), its not codified and closed off. Without your own decisions and ideas, a horror game can get kind of stale. Especially one tied to an engine as easy to play as AGE. That said however, even simple changes to the system will make the game play out much differently. A constant +1 bonus makes a big difference in how combat works, or how investigation might play out. So when thinking about each option for your game, think about what you want to evoke and work from there. Ive done as much thinking on each option as I can and laid that all out in the articles and essays.

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Game Master Rules

There are a handful of genre rules marked as Diminishing Returns. These rules make sense in a world where heroes drop like flies and the power of the supernatural is overwhelming. They are not quite as useful in a pulp horror or action horror game, where the heroes are literally prime specimens and are capable of feats normal people would die simply attempting. There are several new and optional rules for this game which are left up to the Game Master to adjudicate. This includes whether to give your players a hidden bonus, whether to give Experts hunch related info, and what happens when a hero cracks. Just as AGE does not have movement locked to a grid with threat zones, Eternal Shadows doesnt have a specific rule or chart for every story element. You will need to use your judgement to run your game in the best way for your group.

Hidden Bonuses

Youve seen the term hidden bonus littered throughout the Talent section. A hidden bonus is a modifier you apply on behalf of the player when his character undertakes an action for which the bonus is appropriate. The player doesnt know they got the use of the bonus, because there is no clue for the character that it even applies. If you want to speed things along and provide no clue that an Action even took place, substitute a value of 10 for the characters roll.

Futility

(Diminishing Returns) When faced with a failed attempt, the party may reattempt those rolls where it makes sense to do so, but unless a radically different tack is taken, the third and later attempts suffer a cumulatively -1 penalty on each subsequent attempt. These penalties do not apply to individuals, but the entire party. A gifted PC cannot step in where a better trained comrade has already failed twice and succeed with no issues.

T he Effects of F ear
Fear Checks
Characters who encounter a horrible scene, suffer a deranged madman's ministrations or come face to face with the face of the supernatural must test versus Fear. These circumstances are called Fear triggers. The TN of a merely startling event or sight is 12. A TN of 16 is a maddening Fear trigger. Characters who succeed by more than the TN are fine, they have weathered the shock and moved past it. Those who succeed exactly are slightly shaken, but still fully functional. There are no long term or short term problems. Those who fail outright are not so lucky. Any character who fails a Fear check is

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affected by the scene, visage, or torture. This is represented by an accrual of Instability damage. Typically a mundane Fear trigger is 1d6 Instability, while a supernatural threat is 1d6+3, or higher. Supernatural adversaries with powers that detail Fear tests often will list the exact amount of Instability damage they cause. Affected by Fear: Any time a character fails a Fear test, that character suffers a -1 penalty to all actions related to the Fear Trigger for the duration of the scene. Characters who play up this penalty by undergoing nausea, vomiting at the first sign, or otherwise playing to the disadvantage should earn a reward for good roleplaying. Fleeing: Any character so in a state of shock that he flees, leaves the scene for the remainder of its duration. On one hand they do not have to deal with the Fear trigger that caused their Instability, so they lose 1 point of Instability right there. On the other, they suffer a -1 penalty on all similar Fear tests for the remainder of the game session. Fleeing due to a supernatural power is different and doesnt affect Instability. This refers to the character voluntarily fleeing the scene.

TN 12 13 14 15 16 Dead body Gory scene

Description

Shambling Corpses, Werewolves Witnessing a Horrifying Death Unnatural monster from Beyond

Long term effects of Instability

Characters who maintain a Disturbed or worse condition caused by Instability often have nightmares. Being shocked multiple times in the same day, or week, can rend the fragile psyche of almost any person to shreds. If your heroes on the whole become unhinged, you should begin to describe events in terms of their dementia or psychosis. If appropriate, you can do the same to only those individuals with Deranged or higher levels of Instability.

The TN set for a specific trigger can differ based on the type of game it appears in. A generic horror setting will have monsters in it. So, the appearance of a large, intelligent, malevolent canine is not near as frightening as it would be in a thriller setting with human antagonists and relentless murderers. The guidelines outlined in the table above serve to hit the broadest scope, from simple scenes of nausea inducing confrontation with mortality, to Lovecraftian horrors. Please adjust your Fear test TNs according to the genre of horror your game setting corresponds with.

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Overcoming Instability Mental health professionals can help a character cope with Instability over time. To do so, they must attempt an advanced Cunning (Social Science) test versus a TN of 14. The Threshold of the test is dependent on the highest Fear trigger TN that caused the character Instability damage. If the Threshold is met, the patient loses 1d3 + the professionals Cunning in Instability. However, if the mental health professional fails two checks in succession, the Advanced test ends with an increase of 1d3 Instability damage. Trigger TN 12 13 14 15 16 Uninitiated Doctor Threshold 5 10 15 20 25 +5

Advancement
Static XP scale
(Optional) Part of the fun in a fantasy game is the long journey to power. By the time your characters are legends, they have been on hundreds of adventures. However, in the horror genre, even the long running epic monster hunting campaign, your characters are legends for surviving, not for facing down thousands of foes over their careers as adventurers. So as an option, the amount of experience needed to increase in level is a static 2500 xp.

Awards and Rewards

When awarding experience for horror adventures you should definitely shift the challenge away from winning combats, to surviving encounters. If the party manages to thwart the antagonists, great, but any combat with a supernatural foe should be almost overwhelming for new hunters. It's a given. So you cannot rate the session on how close the heroes come to dying while dealing with the plot points and dangers. It is best to look at the eventual goal rather than the individual challenges along the way. If the party discovers early on that a local group has formed a cult to make themselves into vampires, and destroys a key component of that plan, they only have to face deranged humans instead of powerful undead. They should get the same experience as a group that faced the undead threat, and barely survived or took heavy losses. Finding a solution to avoid confrontation with dangerous combatants should be worth as much as the fight would have been. Likewise, finding a key clue

Uninitiated Mental Professionals While mental health professionals accept the oddness of their patients without question, most of them are firmly grounded in reality. This means that couching a fear of shambling corpses as a real thing wont get you anywhere. To the person attempting to help you, zombies are fictional. If the Fear affected character isnt smart enough to approach it as a fear of corpses with nightmares that have them being chased by moving corpses, then they likely wont get the help they need and instead will be treated for a mental disorder instead. However, if one can find a doctor who knows about the supernatural, things will go much smoother. This is represented by increasing the Threshold by 5 when working with an uninitiated doctor.

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should be rated on how necessary it is to reach the end of the story or on how difficult it would be to discover, based on the situation as well as the TN. Remember, characters using Search Points are expending resources. Dont penalize the players come time to tally up experience. As far as material rewards go, the horror genre is much different from the high fantasy genre. Most often the reward of a hero who staves off a werewolf attack, or brings in a deranged serial killer outside the law is rewarded with hateful stares and a trip to a criminal trial or hospitalization in a mental ward. There is no money in vigilante justice, and neither is there money in monster hunting. Some game masters may be tempted to reward players by littering useful tomes, magical manuals and relics about the landscape. Think carefully before doing this. Any tome that contains a universally useful spell, and every relic provide the hero wielding that power an unbalancing edge in all your future stories. Unless the relic slowly corrupts everyone who holds it, or the spells have limited appeal outside of the story they debut in, they shouldnt be there without some serious thought on your part as the Game Master. Lastly, unless the heroes stumble upon a store of cash in the basement of the villains abode, there is little they can do to be upfront about their windfall. If the heroes find a diamond necklace and take it to sell it for money, they are most likely going to face accusations as thieves. Assuming they can sell it on the open market without suspicion, the government will want its cut of the salvage or income. Be certain to apply this line of thinking to every attempt by your heroes to get rich quick on the belongings of their enemies. Even the murderous old man with the house on the hill has heirs, who rightfully own everything in the building the minute

their uncle falls down the shaft into the incinerator. Whether they are any better than their relation is not part of the debate, in the eyes of the law, it belongs to them and absconding with any of the possessions is theft, period.

Supernatural Concerns
Spellcasting
In some horror games, it is entirely possible for the player characters to discover tomes which conceal mystic knowledge sufficient to invoke magic. In such games, magic is something that requires formulaic adherence to instructions, but allows a wide margin for failure. What this means is that it is perfectly acceptable to raise a zombie over the weekend if you can understand the text you found. There is no talent or other artificial barrier keeping someone from casting a spell. The barriers are opportunity and understanding. Spells have Target Numbers, which must be overcome with a Magic test to enact their effects. They also have an associated amount of Strain, which is the potential price one pays with their own body for invoking the magic in the first place. It is entirely possible to take mental damage due to coming to terms with the fact that magic is in fact real, or that you have loosed some horror on the universe. The strain is simply the fatigue or pain the caster has to deal with, it does not cover every conceivable cost of being a sorcerer. Simple vs. Complex Spells Any ritual spell with a casting time of 1 minute or less and a Target Number of 13 or less is considered a Simple spell. This is an important distinction. More complex spells

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have dire consequences for failure in the casting.

The Process

After discovering a grimoire, the novice sorcerer must first attempt to read the spell. Unless the text is written in a language the character can read, this requires a Cunning (Research) test to translate it. Usually, this is an Advanced test. A good suggestion is to use a TN of 12 for an unfamiliar dialect with jargon to sift through, up to a TN of 15 for a dead tongue. TNs of 16 or higher should be reserved for alien languages with no modern reference material. The threshold should be 5 for a short document or scroll, up to 15 for a long book. Understanding Once the caster can read the spell, she must see if she understands what she needs to do. This requires an Advanced Cunning (Occult Lore) test versus the Spells Target Number with a Threshold of 10 for a Simple spell and 15 for a Complex one. Each test consumes 15 minutes. Failing two tests in succession ends the trial in failure. Success means that she understands the spell well enough to proceed without penalties. This test may not be retried until after the spell is attempted. The TN of the spell is increased by its Strain value if the caster has an imperfect understanding. Invoking the Spell Once the sorcerer begins casting the spell she must make a Magic test versus the Spells TN. The test is not an advanced test and takes the listed Casting Time, whether that is a Minor action or 6 Hours. If she failed to understand the tome before and fails to cast the spell, she may attempt to read the tome once more to see where she went wrong. She gains a +1

bonus to this second advanced Cunning test to understand. If she succeeds, the extra difficulty goes away. If she fails, she can never remove the extra difficulty without the help of another sorcerer; one who fully understands the spell. If however, she succeeded against all odds and successfully cast the spell, even with the flaw, she can continue without the extra penalty in the future. She simply sees where she went wrong through the successful casting of the spell. Resisting Strain Finally the sorcerer must roll Constitution (Stamina) versus 10 + the Spells Strain. Those who succeed dont necessarily feel anything in particular. If the Strain value was high, they may realize that they channeled a lot of power, but that is it. Those who fail take Strain in penetrating damage. This damage can only be healed by rest or supernatural means. Medicine is useless. Note, a sorcerer rolls versus Strain whether they succeeded at casting the spell or not.

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Spellpower

When a casting attempt succeeds, the spell manifests with a Spellpower equal to 10 + the Casters Willpower (Belief). If the casters own faith would get in the way of performing magic, and he has the Belief focus, he does not get to add the customary +2 bonus. Magic requires confidence and doubt is crippling! For those who are diametrically opposed to magic, their Spellpower is lowered by 2, regardless of or in addition to lack of faith. Targets of the spell that are allowed a Resistance Test must roll opposed to the Spellpower or succumb to its effects.

Example Spells
Banish the Spirit of Disease Casting Time: 30 Minutes Target Number: 11 [Complex] Strain: 4 The caster of this spell lays bindings soaked in aromatic oils on the body of the infirm one, and prays to the heavens to cast the demons of illness from the body. If properly invoked, an angel drives out the spirit of wickedness, and any diseases the target has begin to recede, from as simple as a cold to as pernicious as cancer. The more vicious the illness the longer the process takes, but the target will be completely healed within 5 days no matter how bad it was. Blessed Manna Casting Time: 1 Hour Target Number: 12 [Complex] Strain: 6 The caster permanently enchants a quantity of meal ingredients of substance magnifying the nutritional content. The spell enchants up to the Casters Willpower in pounds of ingredients, with a minimum of 1 pound. Food made from the ingredients is especially filling and feeds twice as many as it normally would. Manna also halves recovery times for the ill and wounded. It does nothing to counteract incurable diseases, the effects of old age, or to regenerate old scars or lost appendages and limbs. Special: If a practicing sorcerer consumes an entire pound of manna, and attempts a Willpower (Belief) test versus TN 15 they gain a Magic ability advancement, and they suffer a -2 to resist Strain for the next two months. This effect occurs instead of speeding healing, and this may be attempted only once every 2 months. All attempts to internalize manna until that time yield only the normal benefits.

Backlash

If the caster fails the roll for a simple spell nothing happens, it doesn't even begin to manifest. This is the reason many skeptics believe magic simply doesn't exist. When magic works on this scale it is usually subtle, when it doesn't work nothing happens at all. However, when casting a Complex spell, power is gathered over time or a large amount is gathered quickly. If that power is not channeled properly it has to go somewhere. So failing such a roll often summons a spirit, causes a physical backlash (raises the Strain by 3) or otherwise has an obvious effect. I encourage you as the Game Master isto be as evil as you can be at this time. Even if nothing horrific occurs, something strange enough to trigger a Fear check, or odd enough to make the sorcerer question their sanity should be considered. Feel free to pervert the intention of the spell, or inflict an ally with the detrimental effects.

Spell Stunts

Spell Stunts are not appropriate for most heroes in Eternal Shadows. Although the same stunts apply. This may change with specific talents.

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Crippling Gaze Casting Time: Minor Action Target Number: 13 Strain: 4 Test: Constitution (Stamina) vs. Spellpower The caster stares at his target while repeating the mantra of unholy words in his head. Once the spell manifests, the target must succeed at a Constitution (Stamina) test versus your Spellpower or double over in pain. The unlucky victim takes 1d6 + Magic penetrating damage, and loses their next Major Action. Eye of the Damned Casting Time: 1 Minute Target Number: 12 Strain: 3 The caster enchants an eyeball to serve as a spy for him, controlling it from afar. The eye, which suffers no penalties due to darkness, can pivot on its own axis and look up and down, but may not move. For a period of 24 hours, the caster can choose to switch his vision for the eyes monocular sight with an Activate action. He can shift back to his own vision with another Activate action. By voluntarily increasing the Strain by 1 when casting the spell, the duration is doubled if the spell manifests. This modification is capable of being applied more than once, but if the spell fails while the caster attempts to increase the duration, the eye disintegrates. The eye crumbles to dust the minute the spell duration lapses, or the spell is somehow canceled.

Gnostic Seal Casting Time: Minor Action Target Number: 11 Strain: 4 Test: Willpower (Self-Discipline) vs. Spellpower, Constitution (Stamina) vs. Spellpower The caster prepares an area by choosing a type of entity: human, beast, alien horror, spirit, demon and so on, and carving a corresponding seal onto a surface, or drawing it in place. Depending on the permanence sought, this can take a minute or hours. Once in the presence of the appropriate seal the caster can concentrate briefly and activate the seal (by casting the spell), forcing all members of the predetermined classification within 3 yards of the seal to make a Willpower (SelfDiscipline) test or freeze in place. With a word the field holding the target tight inflicts agonizing pain, sufficient to draw out answers to questions unless the target succeeds at a Constitution (Stamina) test versus the caster's Spellpower. The activation of the seal lasts for no more than 10 minutes times the Dragon Die, and entities affected by this spell are immune to a second application of it within the same day. Obsidian Tentacles Casting Time: Major Action Target Number: 15 [Complex] Strain: 4 The caster summons numerous pseudopods of chaotic darkness that rise up around a target point within 15 yards. The sorcerer summons a number of tentacles equal to their Spellpower minus 8. The tentacles immediately attempt to grapple the designated target but will assault anything living within 2 yards. They attack with a +4 attack rating, and have a Strength (Might) rating of 6. They should be treated as creatures that have 20 Health and Defense 13 if engaged in combat.

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On the first round of contact they restrict the movement of the victim, preventing movement. On the second round they squeeze the body, dealing 1d6+6 penetrating damage. On the third round, they begin to suck out the target's life, while maintaining an ongoing crushing grip. The tentacles drain the life force of the target for a number of rounds equal to his Will. At the end of that time, the target dies regardless of remaining Health, leaving behind a desiccated and pale corpse. Merely witnessing this spell causes most people to make a Fear test, usually versus TN 14. Watching the gruesome end is a separate fear trigger at TN 15. Shield of Ra Casting Time: Major Action Target Number: 13 Strain: 2 Test: Willpower (Self-Discipline) vs. Spellpower The caster of this spell brandishes a holy symbol of the Eye of Ra and chants the spell in ancient Egyptian. All supernatural creatures present must succeed at a Willpower (Self-Discipline) test versus your Spellpower or flee as if they had failed a morale test. Also, they suffer a -2 penalty to hit the caster for the remainder of the encounter. If they succeed they need not flee and suffer only a -1 penalty to hit the caster. Withering Utterance Casting Time: Minor Action Target Number: 14 [Complex] Strain: 6 Test: Willpower (Self-Discipline) vs. Spellpower The caster utters the ancient words and directs their power at nearby crops, or a single living creature. Crops wither within a matter of days, as if they were beset by drought. If a creature is the target, it must make a Willpower (Self-Discipline) test versus the caster's Spellpower. If it

succeeds, nothing occurs, otherwise it's Constitution, Dexterity and Strength are all lowered by 1. If this causes any of these abilities to go below 0, the target also suffers 1d6 penetrating damage. Every morning when the creature awakens from sleep, it must test again or lose even more capability. If all the target's physical abilities drop below 0, the creature dies.

Ritual Casting Modifiers

You can increase the perceived difficulty of casting magic spells simply by giving the caster bonuses for reference material. Keeping a shorthand reminder of the correct pronunciation of a chant on hand is worth a +1 bonus to the casting roll, while having the actual tome present to reference and work from is worth +2. The same should apply for using a consecrated dagger, or blessed materials to prepare a ritual space. The more appropriate and magical the item is, the higher the bonus, from +1 for using blessed oil to paint a magical rune, to +3 for having a sword proven to have anti-demon properties to draw the magic circle to banish a demon. Conversely, if the caster is suitably distracted by the circumstances, give them a penalty. A constantly distracting presence such as a babbling child or a threat of eventual future violence is a -1 modifier, while being held at gunpoint by someone who has every likely intention of murdering you is a -3. Keep things simple, and only use the best bonus and the worst penalty that applies in all situations. These modifiers then can potentially cancel each other out.

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Sensitives and other Paranormal Activity

Psychics, sensitives, mediums and other humans in touch with the supernatural side of the world yet not having the actual power of magic to control it, are a staple in many horror stories. There really isnt a great way to give characters the powers of a sensitive through a talent say, or a focus. Also, since sensitives rarely have any control over their powers, this is addressed here, in the GM Section. Essentially, if you want a character in your story to be a sensitive, they just are one. If that character is a PC, you should ask the player beforehand for permission or confirm they really are okay with that role. The reason for this is that, even if the player wants to be a sensitive, that means that there will be numerous times in the game when they have to test for Fear triggers everybody else is unaware of. This can

come about due to sensing the horrible murder of an individual, making contact with the surface thoughts of a sociopath or psychopath, or worse yet an inhuman thing that should not be. Furthermore, sensitives are not extremely accurate. So the player is going to get hunches and feelings about many things that turn out to be red herrings, false clues, and goose chases. However, it is your job to describe every vision or interaction in such a way that it is the real deal, and mislead your player even more than a clever antagonist. It needs to happen often enough, that the hero doesnt feel like they have a super power that obliterates mysteries, but not so often that they distrust their findings on nearly every occasion. Its a fine line you have to walk to provide clues to a sensitive, as well as to reign them in.

Sensitive Responses

All of that aside, Sensitives get a hidden bonus equal to their Magic score to all appropriate Perception tests, whether conducted by them or in secret by the GM. This also applies when two sensitives meet one another. Compare each characters Perception (Empathy) + Magic to a TN of 15. If the test succeeds, they can sense a kindred spirit in the other sensitive. If the test fails, they should be none the wiser. Sensitives tend to hone in on supernatural creatures, paranormal phenomena, and events dealing with loved ones and friends. To a lesser extent, any sort of strong emotional event, such as murder, being beaten, rape, psychedelic drug use , etc., is noticed by most sensitives. In some stories, sensitives can speak to the dead or sense events that already occurred or are likely to occur. As these are pure story reveals and plot hooks, there are no mechanics for these responses.

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Adversaries
Creature Feature: Invulnerability
Horrors, that is supernatural adversaries, are often nigh unstoppable until you discover a weakness, or put them in a vulnerable position. To reflect that, most such enemies possess an Invulnerability Rating. This rating is the total amount of Armor the creature applies to all normal incoming attacks, including their natural Armor Rating. They have a separate Armor rating for anything that applies only to attacks that bypass that creature's specific Invulnerability. These creatures can always bypass their own type of Invulnerability, but not necessarily the Invulnerability of other supernaturals. In other words, a pair of werewolves going at each other's throats will be short and brutal. A werewolf versus a vampire may take a while. Rating 9 12 15 18 Tough Bulletproof Nigh Invulnerable Invulnerable Description

Example: A werewolf has Invulnerability 12 and Armor 2. Silver bypasses its Invulnerability. These are absolute totals, it is unnecessary to add the two together to determine the amount of damage the werewolf ignores until silver bullets are brought out. Invulnerability by itself is not a defense against Penetrating damage, nor does it ignore the Pierce Armor stunt, but some creatures with Invulnerability also have specific immunities to certain types of damage that would be considered penetrating.

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Creature Feature: Berserker

Some enemies just wont stop fighting no matter what. These adversaries dont have Shock thresholds. This is important to note, rather than simply omitting them, they will also have Berserker listed as a Power. This is to avoid confusion about typos versus actual enemies that cannot be Shocked.

Mundane Adversaries
Beat Cop
The average beat cop is there to keep the peace. They may or may not have a sense of humor, but they are certainly skeptical of crazies complaining of monsters and sightings of serial killers. In most instances, a beat cop will be dispatched to answer calls for help, and take down statements from witnesses, unless of course they witness a crime in progress. Abilities (Focuses) +1 Communication +1 Constitution (Running) +1 Cunning +1 Dexterity (Staves) +0 Magic +1 Perception (Empathy, Seeing) +0 Strength +0 Willpower Combat Ratings Speed: 11, Health: 30, Defense: 11, AR: 0, Shock: 10 Weapons Billy Club +3, 1d6 Service Revolver +1, 2d6+4, 25/50 yards Powers Favored Stunts: Disarm and Takedown. Takedown: If a Beat Cop successfully charges a target, he can make a free action to Grapple the opponent for 2 stunt points. Weapon Groups: Brawling, Handguns, Long Guns and Staves. Equipment: Billy Club, Service Revolver, Radio, Notepad

Adversary Shock Values

When an adversary is some form of inhuman thing, it is perfectly okay to set a Shock value, rather than going by the formula of one-third Health plus Willpower. In fact, its perfectly fine to set a low Shock value for a creature with tons of Health and a high Shock value for a creature with a moderate amount of Health. A creature with a Shock value of less than 10 is relatively easy to stymie, and one with a value of 14 or more is hard to give pause. In the former case, if a creature has a lot of Health, this just means that it gives the PCs time to run. In the latter case with lower Health totals, it means that they are not quite Berserkers, but can take a ton of punishment before being put down, but arent hardy in general. When you do go by the formula, I think it is appropriate to round down for NPCs. You round up for PCs because Shock is a very debilitating condition in the game and there is no save. Often, PCs are outnumbered, so the Shock values of adversaries can be one less than a similar PCs value. Its one of the few breaks PCs get in the game.

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Detective

Police Detectives are tasked with taking in evidence, interrogating witnesses and suspects, and following the trail of clues to the end of the road. They can be great allies, or horrible enemies; as most detectives are smart, have great powers of observation, and are intuitive enough to know when heroes arent telling them the whole story. Many detectives are overworked, and lax in dogged pursuit of one case, but just as many are tenacious and dont accept fairy stories as explanations for hero presence at crime scene after crime scene. Abilities (Focuses) +2 Communication (Investigation) +0 Constitution +2 Cunning (Streetwise) +1 Dexterity (Defense, Handguns) +0 Magic +3 Perception (Photography, Searching) +1 Strength +2 Willpower Combat Ratings Speed: 11, Health: 25, Defense: 13, AR: 0, Shock: 11 Weapons Semi-Auto Handgun +3, 2d6+6, 25/50 yds Powers Favored Stunts: Defensive Stance and Lightning Attack. Talents: Quick Reflexes (Novice), Spy (Professional) Equipment: Semi-Automatic Handgun, Smart Phone (includes a camera, notepad and web browser)

Escaped Convict

Desperate and paranoid, the escaped convict is physically impressive, and determined to not go back to jail. Almost anything is excusable, as long as it keeps him out of the slammer. Most escaped convicts don't have any long term goals that intersect with the heroes, but the taking of hostages, and interference with the heroes' plans to elude a worse foe make for a great encounter in an already tense game. Abilities (Focuses) +0 Communication +2 Constitution +0 Cunning +1 Dexterity (Brawling) +0 Magic +1 Perception +3 Strength (Might) +1 Willpower (Courage) Combat Ratings Speed: 11, Health: 43, Defense: 11, AR: 0, Shock: 12 Weapons Brass Knuckles +3, 1d6+3 Powers Desperation: The Escaped Convict gains +1 on all opposed tests made to free himself from being grappled or entangled. In addition, he adds +2 damage to all melee attacks his Health is 21 or less. Favored Stunts: Defensive Stance and Mighty Blow. Talents: Boxing Style (Professional), Conditioning (Novice) Weapon Groups: Brawling, Handguns, Light Blades, Long Guns Equipment: Brass Knuckles

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Psychopathic Artist

Obsessed with producing a great display of visceral, visual media, the psychopathic artist is tough to predict, hard to catch and impossible to reason with. He has no remorse, or empathy. He has no sense of sympathy to play upon. So his desire to make abstract art from once living flesh is his only concern and only passion. It makes for a single-minded opponent, one dedicated to inhuman desires. Abilities (Focuses) -1 Communication +1 Constitution +2 Cunning (Evaluation) +2 Dexterity (Brawling, Defense) +0 Magic +2 Perception (Seeing) +1 Strength +1 Willpower Combat Ratings Speed: 12, Health: 27, Defense: 14, AR: 0, Shock: 10 Weapons Chloroform Cloth +4, * Knife +2, 1d6+2 Powers Blank Mask: Anyone attempting to use Perception (Empathy) on the Psychopathic Artist suffers a -3 penalty. Chloroform: The artist is always prepared with chloroform, anyone grappled while the chemical is used must make a TN 14 Constitution (Stamina) check each round or pass out. Favored Stunts: Defensive Stance and Disarm. Psychosis: The Psychopathic Artist gains a +4 bonus on Willpower (Courage) and Willpower (Morale) checks, but suffers a -2 Penalty on Willpower (Self-Discipline) checks. Weapon Groups: Brawling, Light Blades Equipment: Carving Knife, Bottle of Chloroform, Handkerchief

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Sly Sociopath

This monster is a serial killer who does it to prove he's better than everyone else, or to rebel against his upbringing. This individual hides in plain sight, and seems normal to his colleagues and neighbors. However, he is anything but, as his behaviors when undertaking "his work" are anything but normal. Abilities (Focuses) +2 Communication (Deception) +0 Constitution +3 Cunning +2 Dexterity (Initiative, Light Blades) +0 Magic +1 Perception (Hearing) +1 Strength +2 Willpower Combat Ratings Speed: 12, Health: 35, Defense: 12, AR: 0, Shock: 9 Weapons Pocket Knife +3, 1d6+1 Powers Favored Stunts: Mighty Blow and Seize the Initiative. Talents: Dirty Fighting Style (Novice), Scouting (Novice), Single Weapon Style (Professional) Weapon Groups: Brawling, Light Blades, Staves Equipment: Pocket Knife

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SWAT Officer

SWAT Officers often engage and capture dangerous criminals. If the heroes make the authorities paranoid enough with their repeated vigilante proceedings, it is likely theyll face a SWAT unit. Abilities (Focuses) +0 Communication +2 Constitution (Stamina) +1 Cunning +2 Dexterity (Long Guns) +0 Magic +2 Perception (Seeing) +3 Strength (Climbing, Intimidation) +2 Willpower (Morale) Combat Ratings Speed: 9, Health: 40, Defense: 12, AR: 5 (12 vs. firearms), Shock: 10 Weapons Automatic Pistol + 2, 2d6+5, 25/50 yds Punch +2, 1d6+3 Shotgun +4, 3d6+5 (+1D Melee, -1D Long), 25/50 yds Powers Breaching: SWAT Officers get a +2 bonus to kick in doors and rapidly enter unbarred windows. Favored Stunts: Disarm and Shrug it Off. Talents: Conditioning (Professional), Sharpshooter (Novice), Unarmed Style (Novice) Equipment: Shotgun, Riot Armor

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Supernatural Adversaries
Demonic Figment
The demon in the mirror, the monster that stalks victims and tricks them into killing themselves or simply chases them because it likes the ambience of fear is a Demonic Figment. These spirits prefer to engage in psychological attacks, and only manifest and physically assault victims when they grow impatient or have no choice. These demonic spirits are highly vulnerable to targeted mystic attacks that name them truly, or constrain spiritual entities. Otherwise, they are relatively free to terrorize their victims unimpeded. Abilities (Focuses) +4 Communication +0 Constitution +2 Cunning +3 Dexterity (Initiative) +5 Magic +3 Perception (Seeing) +1 Strength +4 Willpower Combat Ratings Speed: 13, Health: 30, Defense: 13, AR: 0/20 Weapons Punch +3, 1d6+1 Powers Berserker: The figment does not have a physical body, and can't suffer Shock. Favored Stunts: Lethal Blow and Skirmish. Invulnerability: Unless made material by a specific ritual, the figment is un-killable. This manifests as an Invulnerability rating of 20. Mirror Door: The Figment can enter or leave reflections. When in the world of

reflections it can show itself or observe invisibly. Destroying the surface containing the reflection does nothing to the figment itself. Scene Editing: The Figment can edit the perception others have of reality, inserting a single object, or character. There is no resistance test to disbelieve this reality distortion. If it is dream based, then the only thing the character can attempt is a Willpower (Self-Discipline) test vs. TN 15 to realize and wake up. Equipment: N/A

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Merman

Whether found at the bottom of the ocean, living in a stagnant lagoon, or in an underground cave system, the merman is not the stuff of sailors fantasies. Instead, these humanoids are piscine monstrosities with scaly skin, clawed digits on webbed hands and feet, tails for rapid direction change under water and wide maws underneath unblinking eyes. These creatures have existed since before history, and have kept away from teeming humanity for their own protection. However, some of them worship dark gods that demand continual sacrifice, while others feel threatened by men and must strike before they are themselves destroyed. Abilities (Focuses) -2 Communication +3 Constitution (Swimming) +0 Cunning +1 Dexterity (Stealth) +0 Magic -1 Perception (Seeing) +3 Strength (Intimidation) +1 Willpower (Morale) Combat Ratings Speed: 9, Swim 13, Health: 35, Defense: 11, AR: 0, Shock: 12 Weapons Claws +3, 1d6+4 Powers Favored Stunts: Disarm and Knock Prone. Night Vision: Mermen can ignore penalties to darkness, but suffer -1 to all rolls for 4 rounds in bright light while their eyes adjust. Water Breather: Mermen can breathe air and water equally well. Weapon Groups: Brawling Vulnerability: Mermen need to immerse themselves in water each day or take 1d6 damage that will not heal until after they rehydrate. Equipment: None

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Mummies
Egyptian Mummy
An Egyptian mummy was once human, and was laid to rest for all time in a slumbering state of undeath, surrounded by all of his or her prized possessions. Mummies that are disturbed awaken from their rest and seek revenge on those who removed them from their tombs. The same happens to any person that has removed its prized possessions. In some stories this happens the minute the object leaves the confines of the room, in others it begins after the object leaves the structure or arrives overseas in the home of the collector. The reign of terror a mummy brings only ceases after it has reclaimed all of its possessions and the offenders have been strangled to death. Abilities (Focuses) -1 Communication +4 Constitution (Stamina) +1 Cunning (History) +0 Dexterity (Brawling, Stealth) +2 Magic +2 Perception (Hearing) +3 Strength (Might) +2 Willpower (Courage, Self-Discipline) Combat Ratings Speed: 8, Health: 35, Defense: 10, AR: 4 Weapons Punch +2, 1d6+3 Powers Favored Stunts: Disarm and Mighty Blow. Berserker: Mummies do not suffer from Shock. Dark Vision: Mummies can see perfectly well in pure darkness. Horrific: Seeing the shambling form of the mummy is a Fear trigger with a minimum TN of 13, and results in 1d6+3 Instability if failed.

Locate Defilers: The mummy always knows exactly where any person who disturbed their tomb are located. This does not apply to every person involved, only those who handle the sarcophagus or treasures of the mummy before it leaves the confines of the tomb. As a side effect, it always knows where its prized possessions are as well. Petrified Flesh: Mummies have tough bodies that are hard to pierce, giving it an Armor Rating of 4. Weapon Groups: Brawling Vulnerabilities: Mummies take 1d6 extra damage from fires and catch alight on a 3 or better on a D6 due to their dry desiccated flesh, taking 1d6 damage each round. Equipment: None

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Mummified Priest

A mummified priest is a creature that was once a servant of ancient gods in the past, and has been preserved for all time with the mummification ritual. This makes him, or her, a powerful force of destruction if woken. Possessing the worst traits of an Egyptian mummy and a sorcerer, the mummified priest will not hesitate to seek revenge on the entire world for disturbing its rest. Most mummified priests possess rituals to summon mythological creatures to do their bidding, control animals, or control the environment. Mummified Priests are even more dangerous than normal mummies because they possess the ability to assume their original human appearance. This, allows them to slip away unnoticed and not appear to be an immediate threat. Abilities (Focuses) +1 Communication +4 Constitution (Stamina) +2 Cunning (Occult Lore) +0 Dexterity (Brawling) +5 Magic +1 Perception (Hearing) +2 Strength (Might) +3 Willpower (Belief, Self-Discipline) Combat Ratings Speed: 10, Health: 35, Defense: 10, AR: 4 Weapons Punch +2, 1d6+2 Powers Favored Stunts: Imposing Spell and Mana Shield. Berserker: Mummified Priests do not suffer from Shock. Dark Vision: Mummified Priests can see perfectly well in pure darkness. Horrific: Seeing the mummified priest revealed is a Fear trigger with a minimum TN of 13, and results in 1d6+3 Instability if failed. Human Appearance: Mummified Priests have the ability to appear as they did in life.

This illusion is only defeated if they receive 8 or more damage as their flesh shatters instead of pierces and splits open. Of course, the priest may drop the illusion at any time as an Activate action. Locate Defilers: The priest always knows exactly where any person who disturbed their tomb are located. This applies only those who handle the sarcophagus or treasures of the mummy before it leaves the confines of the tomb. As a side effect, it always knows where its prized possessions are as well. Petrified Flesh: Mummified Priests have tough bodies that are hard to pierce, giving it an Armor Rating of 4. Regeneration: Mummified Priests are desiccated corpses that continually repair themselves, giving it the ability to heal 8 Health per round not caused by a vulnerability. Spells: Spellpower 15, Cast +5, Resist Strain: +7 Talents: Ritualist (Master) Weapon Groups: Brawling Vulnerabilities: Mummified Priests take full damage from Magic, and cannot heal fire damage until the following day. Equipment: None

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Phantom

A deceased individual with an unfinished life goal can become a phantom, ghost or haunt. Phantoms are capable of moving objects with the power of their rage. This is their only connection to the living world. They are mostly hazards, but are presented as adversaries because they can be reasoned with, helped or banished in the right circumstances. Abilities (Focuses) -2 Communication +0 Constitution +0 Cunning +0 Dexterity +3 Magic +0 Perception -3 Strength +2 Willpower Combat Ratings Speed: N/A, Health: N/A, Defense: N/A, AR: 0, Shock : N/A Weapons Slam +2, 1d6+6 Powers Favored Stunts: Dual Strike and Lightning Attack. Intangibility: The phantom is permanently dispersed and unaffected by any physical attack. Poltergeist: The phantom can move objects using Magic instead of Strength. It cannot move people unless it bests them in a Magic versus Strength (Might) test. It can also attack targets with a slam attack. Equipment: None

Possessed Killer

Sometimes a murderer is so demonically strong and relentless, that it must be wondered if they are even human. In some of these cases, the killer has a human body, but a demon in charge. The possessed killer is inhumanly strong, difficult to keep down and driven. Only rarely does the inner human come to the fore, but never for long. It is possible to exorcise the demon and free the human, but it is not easy. There is also no guarantee that the victim was innocent to begin with. Abilities (Focuses) +2 Communication (Deceit) +2 Constitution (Stamina) +0 Cunning +3 Dexterity (Light Blades) +0 Magic +2 Perception (Smelling) +5 Strength (Archaic Weapons) +1 Willpower (Courage) Combat Ratings Speed: 13, Health: 50, Defense: 13,

AR: 0 Weapons Machete +5, 1d6+7 Powers Berserker: Possessed Killers are immune to Shock. Favored Stunts: Dual Strike and Mighty Blow. Possessed: The killer is actually possessed by a demonic spirit and must make a Willpower check versus TN 16 whenever the demon command an action that is diametrically opposed to the wishes of the underlying human being. If the killer succeeds, he can choose his own actions for the remainder of the scene. Regeneration: The killer regains 10 Health at the end of combat unless killed. Weapon Groups: Brawling, Light Blades Equipment: Machete

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Sorcerers & Sorceresses

A practicing sorcerer is a person who practices the arts of magic with true dedication. Often thought to be one obsessed with personal power as well, a sorcerer can be a scary opponent. Normal in appearance and able to hide in plain sight, the sorcerer can observe her victims and opponents before moving in to deal with them. Often black magicians gather into groups of 3 or more, and one sorcerer will often be of supreme power and capabilities. That sorcerer is the coven leader. Coven leaders wield vastly superior magical powers and influence in the mundane world as well.

Practicing Sorcerer

Abilities (Focuses) +1 Communication (Persuasion) +0 Constitution (Stamina) +2 Cunning (Occult Lore) +0 Dexterity (Defense) +4 Magic +2 Perception (Hearing) +0 Strength +2 Willpower (Belief) Combat Ratings Speed: 10, Fly 6, Health: 30, Defense: 12, AR: 0, Shock: 10 Weapons Dagger +0, 1d6+1 Mental Slam +4, 1d6+7 Powers Favored Stunts: Defensive Stance and Lightning Attack. Psychokinesis: The sorcerer can move objects she can see with her mind, using her Magic score instead of Strength. Anyone attempting to resist must test Willpower (Self-Discipline) versus her Spellpower. The Dragon Die is the number of rounds of immunity to being moved afforded if successful. She can also use a Major action to slam a target with her power, hitting with Perception +2 and dealing 1d6+3+Magic damage. Lastly, she can fly at 2 + Magic speed. Spells: Spellpower 14, Cast: +4, Resist Strain: +3 Talents: Ritualist (Master) Weapon Groups: Brawling, Light Blades Equipment: Dagger

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Coven Leader

Abilities (Focuses) +2 Communication (Leadership) +1 Constitution (Stamina) +3 Cunning (Occult Lore) +2 Dexterity (Initiative) +6 Magic +2 Perception (Hearing) +1 Strength +4 Willpower (Belief) Combat Ratings Speed: 12, Fly 8, Health: 50, Defense: 12, AR: 0, Shock: 10 Weapons Dagger +0, 1d6+2 Revolver +2, 1d6+8, 20/40 yds Mental Slam +4, 1d6+9 Powers Enhanced Speed: The coven leader can travel up to his Speed in yards in an instant, seemingly without crossing the space. He also can make one Move as a Free action once per round. Favored Stunts: Defensive Stance and Lightning Strike. Psychokinesis: The coven leader can move objects he can see with his mind, using his Magic score instead of Strength. Anyone attempting to resist must test Willpower (Self-Discipline) versus his Spellpower. The Dragon Die is the number of rounds of immunity to being moved afforded if successful. He can also use a Major action to slam a target with his power, hitting with Perception +2 and dealing 1d6+3+Magic damage. Lastly, he can fly at 2 + Magic speed. Spells: Spellpower 16, Cast: +6, Resist Strain: +4 Talents: Command (Novice), Contacts (Professional), Ritualist (Master) Weapon Groups: Brawling, Handguns, Light Blades Equipment: Dagger, Revolver

Vampires
Vampires are often considered the lords of the night, the nobility of supernatural creatures. Despite their reliance on blood for continued existence, and their numerous vulnerabilities and weaknesses, nothing is more obviously powerful in the realm of horror than a solitary vampire. Thus, an entire room full of them is an absolute horror.

Common Powers

The powers on the following pages are the most iconic ones of vampires from film and horror stories. Individual vampires can have additional powers including unique stunts, because of experience, supernatural development due to age, or even lineage from a powerful sire. Excellent powers for vampires to provide genre differences include Enhanced Speed from the Coven Leader, and the ability to transform bodily into an animal form.

Common Vulnerabilities

Vampires suffer 1d6 penetrating damage each round they are exposed to sunlight or are in direct contact with a holy symbol wielded by a person of the faith or relics (such as holy water) blessed by a priest. Vampires must make a Willpower (SelfDiscipline) test vs. TN 15 to cross running water, approach a brandished holy symbol, or approach a clove of garlic. Every dusk when a vampire rises, it suffers 1d6 penetrating damage. This is not physical, but provides a meter to measure the effects of the thirst on them. Tweaking Vulnerabilities Vampires in your game can have none of these vulnerabilities, all of them or anything in-between. Make the choice for your setting and stick to it. The entries following dont reference vulnerabilities, so

59

it is up to you to remember to apply them or tack them on to the writeup.

Vampire Thug

Abilities (Focuses) +1 Communication +3 Constitution (Stamina) +0 Cunning +4 Dexterity (Initiative) +3 Magic +2 Perception (Hearing) +6 Strength +1 Willpower (Courage) Combat Ratings Speed: 14, Health: 25, Defense: 14, AR: 0/12 Weapons Bite +4, 1d6+6 Slam +4, 2d6+6 Powers Berserker: Vampires do not suffer Shock. Biting Grasp: If a vampire hits with a grapple it can make a free bite attack with a +1 to hit. This costs it 2 Stunt Points. Blood Sucking: Half of all damage dealt to a target by bite becomes Health the vampire gains up to a total of original Health plus 10. Dark Vision: Vampires can see unimpaired in darkness, but suffer a -1 to all actions for 3 rounds after being exposed to bright light. Favored Stunts: Biting Grasp and Lightning Strike. Fire Resistance: Vampires take half damage from all sources of fire. Horrific: Seeing a Vampire exposed as a bloodsucking threat is a Fear trigger with a minimum TN of 13, and results in 1d6+3 Instability if failed. Invulnerability: Vampires are immune to 12 damage on every hit except attacks made with fire, and blessed items. Stunts that directly attack the heart with a wooden shaft or implement also bypass this invulnerability. Wall Walking: Vampires can crawl along surfaces while ignoring gravity. Weapon Groups: Brawling. Equipment: None

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Vampire Mastermind

Abilities (Focuses) +3 Communication (Deceit, Persuasion) +3 Constitution (Stamina) +2 Cunning (Cultures, History) +4 Dexterity (Defense, Initiative) +3 Magic +3 Perception (Empathy, Hearing) +6 Strength +3 Willpower (Courage) Combat Ratings Speed: 14, Health: 35, Defense: 16, AR: 0/12 Weapons Bite +4, 1d6+6 Slam +4, 2d6+6 Powers Berserker: Vampires do not suffer Shock. Biting Grasp: If a vampire hits with a grapple it can make a free bite attack with a +1 to hit. This costs it 2 Stunt Points. Blood Sucking: Half of all damage dealt to a target by bite becomes Health the vampire gains up to a total of original Health plus 10. Dark Vision: Vampires can see unimpaired in darkness, but suffer a -1 to all actions for 3 rounds after being exposed to bright light. Favored Stunts: Biting Grasp and Skirmish. Fire Resistance: Vampires take half damage from all sources of fire. Horrific: Seeing a Vampire exposed as a bloodsucking threat is a Fear trigger with a minimum TN of 13, and results in 1d6+3 Instability if failed. Hypnotic Gaze: The Vampire can use an Activate action to attempt to capture the full attention of anyone it makes eye contact with. The target must make a Willpower (Self-Discipline) test versus 13, failure results in a state of awe that prevents the character from taking Major actions or moving away from the vampire while it maintains its gaze. Invulnerability: Vampires are immune to 12 damage on every hit except attacks made with fire, and blessed items. Stunts that

directly attack the heart with a wooden shaft or implement also bypass this invulnerability. Wall Walking: Vampires can crawl along surfaces while ignoring gravity. Weapon Groups: Brawling, Heavy Blades and Staves. Equipment: None

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Werewolf

Werewolves are cursed individuals, who transform under the light of a full moon. In some stories it is the result of them seeing the full moon, and in others it is simply based on time, not direct stimulus. This creature is a physical powerhouse that has vicious attacks and high resilience to retaliatory strikes. In some cases the cursed individual can voluntarily transform, but in most, he or she becomes a beast with no human restraint, and no memory of the bloody rampages they undertake at night. In many stories men or women are cursed by a gypsy or a sorcerer. In others they are bitten by a werewolf and become one after surviving the attack. In still others,

the hopeless soul is the child or grandchild of a werewolf and the curse has resurfaced in them. Abilities (Focuses) +0 Communication +4 Constitution (Running) +0 Cunning +3 Dexterity (Stealth) +2 Magic +3 Perception (Smelling) +5 Strength (Claws, Might) +2 Willpower (Courage, Morale) Combat Ratings Speed: 15, Health: 30, Defense: 13, AR: 2/12, Shock: 15 Weapons Bite +3, 1d6+5 Claws +7, 2d6+5 Powers Favored Stunts: Lightning Strike and Skirmish. Horrific: Seeing a Werewolf is a Fear trigger with a minimum TN of 14, and results in 2d6 Instability if failed. Invulnerability: Werewolves are immune to most damage unless attacked with silver, or fire. This is an invulnerability rating of 12. Night Vision: Werewolves suffer one less penalty related to low light conditions. Regeneration: Werewolves heal all wounds done to them after an hour of rest. Transformation: Werewolves can assume human form or vice versa with a full round action, it prevents all other actions unless enraged in which case it occurs over the course of a round while other actions are permitted. Werewolves in human form have -3 to Constitution, -2 to Dexterity and -3 to Strength. Weapon Groups: NA, or Brawling and Handguns in human form. Equipment: None

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Zombie

Zombies, (xombies, zombis, etc.) are the walking dead. In most cases zombies are mindless abominations walking the earth after their natural span due to the interference of science, or the supernatural. Zombies that are raised by a necromancer are often fanatically loyal to their master. There isnt any reason to state one simple explanation for zombie reanimation. Nor is the zombie below the only variety that can be found. A few examples:

Voudons often make zombies out of enemies, but they dont have Armor or the Relentless power. Viral Infected zombies are often faster, with a Speed of 11, and Cunning of +0. Living Dead have the same mentally as they possessed in life, so they lack Mindless Automaton, but they have every other power.

Abilities (Focuses) -3 Communication +3 Constitution (Stamina) -2 Cunning +1 Dexterity (Brawling) +0 Magic +1 Perception (Hearing) +3 Strength (Might) +0 Willpower Combat Ratings Speed: 9, Health: 26, Defense: 11, AR: 3 Weapons Bite +1, 2d6+3 Claws +3, 1d6+3 Powers Berserker: Zombies do not suffer Shock. Favored Stunts: Knock Prone and Skirmish. Mindless Automaton: Zombies cannot be scared, and are never called upon to make Fear checks or Morale checks. Relentless: Unless put below 0 Health by an attack using a stunt, or given a coup de grace which removes its head, a Zombie will rise again with 10 Health two rounds after dropping to 0. Equipment: N/A

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Running Horror Games

Sub-Genres of Horror
Psychothriller
A psychothriller is a story, whether dramatic, romantic, or even a police procedural that takes a turn for the macabre due to the actions of disturbed people. Usually there is one psychotic individual, such as a serial killer, or insane person, who otherwise appears to be a normal neighbor, friend, employee or love interest. In this genre of story the heroes strive to catch the threat before he or she kills again. To run a psychothriller game, you should ignore the supernatural elements and concentrate on Fear tests and the depths of human depravity. Pump up the mystery elements and make the heroes, whether cops or simply a neighbor who has seen too much, chase the killer. Red herrings or a killer with an innocent facade are the best ways to play things to the hilt in this genre of game. If the killer threatens a poor housewife, but there is never any evidence, the housewife is isolated, even in a room full of potential saviors. Even better, if the killer convinces the heroes that she has already acted to murder someone, the heroes looks like they are the ones needing incarceration when they tear through a normal environment trying to expose the plot. Examples: From Hell, Misery, The Hand that Rocks the Cradle.

Slasher

A slasher story is one where the threat is often abruptly thrust upon unsuspecting protagonists, and that threat generally appears to be human, even if it isn't. In a slasher story, the threat is presented as a killing machine that cannot be reasoned with, and often is unstoppable by normal means including strategy, weapons and coordinated attacks. The ones who live are the "heroes" in this type of story, whether they had to betray their fellows or not. When running a slasher story you can toss in some supernatural elements, but ultimately the killer has to seem human, at least when on camera. If a large group of people are being murdered one by one, found with large gashes and flesh torn out of their bodies, it doesn't matter if a Werewolf is the thing doing the killing. It

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matters that nobody see or hear a werewolf if they aren't the one being ambushed. The Possessed Killer makes an excellent slasher villain, but any variant of normal human psychopath works just as well. Punch up surprise assaults when the heroes come face to face with the killer. Make the relentless killer difficult to put down, and set the game in a locale that is either out of the way, or has plenty of places to hide, to encourage the PCs to act accordingly. Even when a slasher is capable of killing an entire group by itself, it should always attempt to divide and conquer. The terror is higher if you compound helplessness with loneliness. Examples: Friday the 13th, Halloween, Texas Chainsaw Massacre.

Survival

Survival horror stories combine the terror of slasher horror with post apocalyptic overtones. The heroes are cut off from outside aid and are presented with a horrific threat that is not going to leave them alone. The kicker is that the PCs have limited resources and have to run or fight to simply stay alive. The threat can be almost anything, but just as with slasher horror it is a threat that cannot be reasoned with. This genre works with zombies, vampires, werewolves, insane people driven to aggressive acts of violence by an illness, you name it. Regardless of how bleak things look, there is always the hope that if the characters escape they will survive and be able to put this event behind them. Because the idea is that ordinary folks can escape from or combat the terror that is the threat, and that things are so bleak because the threat outnumbers normal people by a significant margin, you will need to give the threat an obvious weakness or otherwise make them easier to kill. Because they cannot be reasoned with, they have to be easy to outwit, easy to escape, or easy to eliminate without lowering their level of danger. I suggest looking at the Hordes of Enemies Campaign Option. Examples: 30 Days of Night, Dawn of the Dead, Dog Soldiers, Resident Evil Game series.

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Unholy Event

Unholy event stories hinge on an upcoming event of great magnitude or a recently past one. Often these are the types of events that would change the world, such as invasion by a secret race, the return of some cosmic entity bent on destruction, the widespread blossoming of magic, etc. In a pre-event story, the heroes have an opportunity to stop the threat from occurring. In a post-event story, the heroes are either trying to adjust or survive (much like survival horror), or they are trying to put the genie back in the bottle, or end the threat brought on by the event. This differs from survival horror in that usually there is just as much use for scholarly research and negotiation as there is for physical prowess and combat skills. Characters have time to study up on the unstoppable horror, rather than being on the run from the minute it is revealed. The GM should play up the apocalyptic nature of the event, whether the PCs are before it or after it. The result of failure is a bleak future with no hope. Examples: I Am Legend, Parasite Eve.

Supernatural Threat

Supernatural threat stories are those in which the only thing out of the ordinary is that the supernatural is real in some aspect and is currently affecting the heroes. This encompasses being attacked by vampires, being haunted by a ghost, being kidnapped or tormented by fey, etc. The lead up can vary immensely. The heroes can be monster hunters who are out to destroy the supernatural threat, or they can be ordinary folks who stumble into things and have to escape or end the threat. When running this sort of game, it is best to choose one sort of supernatural threat and run with it. You can easily combine them, but the incredible variance of possible threats means that if you add in too many secondary creature types in a

single story, you risk your primary threat becoming secondary. That isn't to say you can't do wonders with either a solo creature or a horde of them, because you can. When using multiple supernatural creatures, you often have to make them easier to combat. Much as with survival horror, being able to deal with the rank and file is a necessity. However, that usually means that the lead henchmen and villains have a special something that makes them hard to combat, not just more Health, but a unique power, or an artifact or weapon that makes them dangerous. If you can manage it, a good plan is just as good as the mystical equivalent to a howitzer. While the slavering hordes are relentless and usually mindless, the top dogs will be cunning and capable of taking their time to achieve their goals. Did I mention villains in such pieces should have goals? It must have slipped my mind. Nothing is more flimsy in a story where magic, werewolves and walking dead are real than a bad guy capable of controlling such things that just wants to destroy for destruction's sake. At least if the big bad is a nihilist, the sheer scale of his destructive desires will compensate. For example, Frankenstein's Monster is a horrible master villain without rewrites. He isn't truly evil, and as written in the Shelley story, he is boring to defeat and easy to outwit. Itd be so much better if Frankensteins Monster has grown up, mentally, and has desires to subjugate humanity as servants for his own regime of unaging resuscitated kindred, that he is well on the way to creating. In this scenario, at least he has a plan to thwart, and the intelligence and cunning to be more than a single fight villain. Examples: Dog Soldiers, Dracula, The Howling series, The Prophecy series, Underworld, Warlock.

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T ypes of Stories
Just like with other role-playing games, horror games thrive on location based stories, event driven stories, and antagonist driven stories. In horror, the location based story is perhaps the easiest to deliver for a one-shot, while the antagonist driven story is best overall for a campaign.

Location Based

Locations in Horror are often haunted houses, Native American burial grounds, sinister hamlets brimming with foul secrets, etc. The idea that the heroes would never have been involved if they hadnt stumbled into the location is the crux of the story hook here. This includes secluded lakes with murderous antagonists lurking in the background. The key to using location based adventures in horror is serendipity. Heroes who go looking for trouble in horror stories are rare, so you need to find a way for them to run across it. This is one of the harder things about a campaign game. Unless there is a driving force which requires the heroes to go somewhere and investigate or stay the night in an out of the way place, there isnt any real chance for a location based adventure. Of course, if you are running a dark and gritty version of Buffy the Vampire Slayer, then your problem is solved as far as that goes. Even a monster hunters campaign will work with this setup. If the PCs are motivated to seek out, track down and destroy the supernatural, then they will investigate strange locations on their own. You just need to give them locations to discover.

Event Driven

An event driven story in horror is one in which certain events that involve the heroes through lineage, past history, etc., begin to occur. The heroes dont have a choice but to be involved because the event revolves around them. These are easy to create, and easy to run, even in a long running campaign but hard to justify repeatedly. It has to be 100% plausible that the cultists need the hearts blood of the only descendent of the man who sealed their dark god away in order to open the gate. Also, it cant be the villain of the week, because the last thing you want is the players yawning and mouthing along when your villain explains that they are the key to his nefarious plans.

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Try to keep it fresh with event driven adventures is the best advice I can give. The adventure comes to them, so getting them involved isnt hard. Getting them interested is the only hard part after youve done this so many times. Having friends or total strangers ask for help is often good, at least a few times. Making the PCs the key to the plot will only work a few times, even if their Great Great Aunt Hilda was the premier monster hunter of the 19th Century.

Antagonist Driven

dragged in by the antagonists, is the end game. With antagonists, their global threat lives on past the end of the adventure. Whether the PCs see it immediately or stumble upon it again, the threat of an event driven story, such as a cult trying to summon an Outer God, can be succinctly ended by doing away with the cult. The threat of an organization that wishes to summon an Outer God, and has hundreds of operatives and multiple opportunities to do so is much harder to eliminate.

Antagonist driven stories work well over the short or long term because they involve an organization that undertakes evil activities, and will do so if the PCs do not interfere. These foes can know about the PCs or the PCs can stumble in. They can be enemies from generations back or brand new adversaries. It doesnt matter. The only thing of importance is that the PCs get wind of at least one plot, and uncover an organization with vast resources or far reaching goals that wont be foiled by a simple frontal assault, or getting everybody arrested. The group must have long term goals, and can drag the heroes around the world or keep them hopping in a single city. The campaign that is set up with antagonist based adventure structures allows for competent individuals who are seeking to overcome a secret society, as well as a ragtag band of misfits who happen to stumble into things and realize that if they told the authorities the only result would be their own incarceration or sentencing to a mental health facility. Using antagonists in a campaign structure requires them to be hidden enough, at least at first, that it allows the GM to slip in other adventure types given the proactive nature of the PCs in such a game. The only major difference between an event driven adventure and an antagonist driven adventure in which the PCs are

Building a Party
Most heroic groups in a horror story are often grouped together by happenstance, organized by a common background or thread, or tied by common goals types. For example, a group which all knows the same Viscount, who invites them to his estate are tied by a common thread. Those who work for the same organization share a common background. A group that is dedicated to eradicating a strain of blood-born viral infection share a common goal.

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The type of party, and thus the type of characters you allow will depend upon the story. Give it at least as much thought as your basic adventure structure and plot hooks, because it does matter. A secret cabal that is trying to stop a worldwide threat needs to be set up, not thrown together haphazardly. Beyond that, every group that desires longterm survivability probably needs a Warrior, as far as classes go. The expert can dig up information and provide unusually helpful combat support in the form of the Enemy Lore pool, but they are not frontline combatants. Scoundrels can persuade NPCs to do things their way or sneak in and out of places, but they are also not as good at head on confrontation or protection as a warrior is. Lastly, the optional Everyman class is good as a support character but again, is not a front line fighter. A party without any soldiers, cops, thugs, or jocks in it is likely to be overwhelmed by enemies at some point in the game. In a one-shot this is fine, and may indeed be part of the desired experience, in a long term campaign its a recipe for disaster. Conversely, in a game with mysteries, cults of elder gods, mystical congruences and other facts only discoverable by research, the Expert becomes indispensable. Any group without at least one Expert will struggle with those aspects of the game. In fact, this can be to your benefit if the point of the game is that the heroes stumble into trouble and stumble upon a solution. The Scoundrel and Everyman are provided to round out character archetypes, but they are in much more protected niches in generic modern games. In a horror game, there is less opportunity for a womanizer, a grifter, a second story man, or a military scout to shine. So as the GM you should make opportunities for these characters to shine.

This advice is doubly important if you have more than one everyman in the group. Everymen dont shine except when they are helping someone else. That is how the class is designed. They can be just as good with a gun as the warrior, but their unique abilities only come into play when they are not alone. Your best bet with a truly diverse party with multiples of these characters is to take a page from Scooby Doo, or Buffy the Vampire Slayer. There need to be opportunities for normal people to contribute, not just brains and jocks. Lastly dont be afraid to allow characters with starting levels higher than 1, or levels higher than the rest of the party members. Your story may depend on it, so dont do a disservice to yourself and the players.

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Campaign Options
Hordes of Enemies
In a game with hordes of enemies, the unimportant foes should have half the normal Health totals. The average adversary possesses between 20 and 30 Health. A good third of these, if supernatural, will have good Armor or Invulnerability as well. This makes a single one of them a frightening foe, a group of six or more is an unwinnable confrontation. So if you are going to be regularly presenting the PCs with more than one or two of a supernatural foe, take away half their Health. It really is for the best.

General Advice
Mysterious Magic
(or I just gave what to my PCs?) Magic in Eternal Shadows is straightforward in execution, and can seem stale if the discovery process and the execution remains the same in every instance. Some spells have material components, or require preparation, which can go a long way to providing the right atmosphere. Sometimes getting components is an adventure in and of itself, but more often than not PCs will rely on quickly cast spells that don't require anything but the forbidden knowledge to enact them. So what can you do as a GM to prevent this from becoming a dark fantasy game? Cheat. Magic is not a predictable force in a horror setting, so there is no reason that every single time the players point their finger at a foe and scream an appeal to Dagon, that the person pointed at will asphyxiate. You can develop a world in which authors usually do not know all the limitations of the rituals they seek to teach. In such a world, it is not always possible for the PCs to even know that Dagon's Strangling Grip does not work during the time of a Full Moon. Was it limited like that before? Probably not, and it doesn't matter. As long as you don't change anything past circumstances disprove, how could the sorcerer have known? Examples of this include mystic confluences needing to be high (casting the spell near a ley line or on certain significant dates of the year), as well as banned days (not working when the Moon's rays are the fullest, or not during the last week of the year, or not during harvest time, etc.), banned locales (you can't ask Dagon for anything inside a location consecrated to a religion), or even in certain circumstances.

Magic is Everywhere

In a game where everybody knows magic exists, it is more prevalent. Even if the consequences for failure are dire. If you plan to run such a game, you need only allow characters to increase their Magic ability as a secondary ability during level ups. This, with the more ready access to spells is all you need to go from a supernatural wasteland with unspeakable truths to a haven for spellcasters. Just remember, in such a world, the cops have magic too, and they prosecute hexes and curses just like they prosecute sabotage and murder.

Action Movie

For games in which the heroes are particularly competent and unfazed by the appearance of supernatural enemies, you can ignore any rule listed as Diminishing Returns. Lastly, give characters a bonus to their Shock value equal to half their Level, rounded down. These changes dramatically increase survivability of higher level characters. Choose carefully before making this change.

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For example, if a spell needs an element of darkness to draw on for power, you can't cast it in sunlit areas. If instead it depends on the presence of large shadows, you can't cast it in dark conditions. Then there is the no infighting rule. You cant use a spell powered by an entity to adversely affect its spawn, children, sworn allies, etc. Dagon prefers his fish people children not asphyxiated, thank you very much. Lastly, you can eliminate specific spells in certain situations, such as all spells empowered by Dagon cease to function if Dagon, or a related more powerful entity, is currently being summoned. The lines of power that lead to Dagon are temporarily closed, so the sorcerer needs to dip back into their bag of tricks for something new. This option can be the most difficult to get across. You can describe the inability to connect with the beyond, but the general feel of magic in Eternal Shadows is that the magician can't feel anything until they are done and the fatigue washes out of them. So what does it mean if the fatigue never comes, and nothing happens, even though the caster did everything exactly the same as before? Often when magicians get complacent they begin to rely on magic like a skill, so suddenly robbing them of their power in a pinch can be disastrous. However, I believe that if you are consistent with how things are limited, it only adds to the tension and horror. Once you deviate from a written spell, you need to be consistent with the changes. Nobody likes finding out that the Evil Eye spell they just learned doesn't work on anybody or anything covered with bright red, only for you change it to deep purple in a later adventure because your big bad is wearing purple. So much of game mastering is paying attention to detail and continuity. With an update to a spell that

you intend to enforce on the PCs you need to keep good notes.

Less is More

(or scare more & show less) There are many ways to tell a story, and a horror role-playing game is no exception. However, in horror, the terror that you can see is not as scary as the one that you have to anticipate. Essentially, the minute you show the bad guys hand, you need to step up the pace and finish the game, because the time when the PCs will jump at their shadows is over. This applies across all sub-genres of horror except survival horror, and that is because that one sub-genre is based entirely on people being assaulted relentlessly by a

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threat that comes upon them, often by surprise. Getting back to the main topic however, think about it for a second. In a psychothriller, the moment when you can confirm that the odd neighbor is the culprit is the moment when you no longer fear the killer. The murderer has a face, an identity, and presumably weaknesses you can easily begin to figure out. However, the cat and mouse requiring the PCs to sift through clues, and the taunting and knowing smiles when greeting the heroes, all of that build up is now up against a brick wall. You have to deliver the storys payoff quickly, or its not a psychothriller, its a crime drama. Now, theres nothing wrong with crime drama as a type of game, but you set out to scare the players with the depths of depravity an individual would stoop to, not to chase a serial killer all over the state. The best advice I can give on this is that descriptions and environmental occurrences that evoke a spooky atmosphere cause characters, and thus the players, to become paranoid and jumpy. Odd crunches off in the darkness outside the light of the campfire, branches scraping lightly against the windows, and thunder and lightning are all convenient environmental events that heighten paranoia and terror. Just as you should be using red herrings to prevent the culprits from being immediately discovered, you should be using spooky environments and locales to put the players on edge. If someone has to die due to a monster attack, it is imperative that it either take place off camera, or that the target be killed so swiftly that the responsible party is gone before the heroes can turn their flashlights onto the scene. The way most people describe something like a werewolf attack on a nearby NPC goes something like this. There is a crunching sound, a truncated scream, and then the PCs turn around and shine

light on the corpse of their former companion dangling limply from the jaws of a slavering werewolf with its hackles up, eyes focused directly on one of them, and a dull growl working its way up from its throat. Yes, smart PCs will immediately run. Yes, the players will have to make Fear tests, and yes the players may get a rise out of it all. However, there are certain benefits if the scene is instead described as follows. There is a sound of rushed movement, a truncated scream, and then the PCs spin around to highlight the body of their former companion, sprawled in the dirt leaking blood from a wide series of slashes across the throat. Their friend is weakly clutching at his neck when suddenly he stops moving entirely, and the night is suddenly very still. For the opening stages of the adventure, this is a much better description of an NPC having their throat torn out by a werewolf. It leaves the PCs with questions, not answers, and a distinct feeling that they are not in control of the situation or the immediate environment. Both of these effects heighten paranoia, and smart PCs will still run. Also, they still have to make a Fear test, albeit a slightly easier one, for seeing a gruesome corpse created before their eyes. What more could you ask for in the early chapters of the adventure?

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Eternal
When things go bump in the night, victims need to become survivors. Eternal Shadows is a genre-specific rules variant for the Adventure Game Engine published by Green Ronin Publishing. This core book contains classes suited for play in a modern world. It contains modern gear, including firearms, and vehicles, and a magic system more suited to the uncertainty and tone of the Horror gaming genre.

Shadows
Also included are numerous resources for the Game Master to evoke feelings of helplessness, mortality, and horror at the game table. This includes fear and instability, monstrous opponents, and changes to the combat system for both PCs and their foes. The shadows lengthen as heroes muster up the courage to fight. Do you dare join their number?

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