One of the things I love in horror movies is the act 1 buildup of suspense. This is often achieved by having the characters explore the aftermath of a bad situation or the den of a monster. Think about the Aliens film where the marines explore the colony. They see evidence of struggle and a couple clues, but most importantly they can’t find any civilians. I am often tempted to do something similar in DW. have the players explore a silent crypt, abandoned town, empty lair until they get in deep and trigger the danger. Maybe they break the seal on the mummy’s tomb, spend the night in the abandoned inn, or disturb the nest in the back of the cave. Now they are in trouble, the trouble hinted at by the earlier exploration: inscriptions of curses or gnawed bones and shed skins.
My worry is that the exploration part, act 1, will either be boring for the players or will cause them to worry too much and slow down to a crawl. Has anyone found a good way to handle this?
I don’t see why that would be boring.
I don’t see why that would be boring.
Is the exploration something you are willing to share narrative focus with the player on?
If so, you could use a custom move similar to Jason’s labyrinth move. You could even couple that with establishing questions aka “I want everyone to give me a detail about the colony which suggests it was evacuated quickly”.
Is the exploration something you are willing to share narrative focus with the player on?
If so, you could use a custom move similar to Jason’s labyrinth move. You could even couple that with establishing questions aka “I want everyone to give me a detail about the colony which suggests it was evacuated quickly”.
great idea
great idea
Ask pointed questions. Ask them why their character knows those claw marks aren’t human. Ask why this one character has a bad feeling and when did they last have it.
Use the start to build not only tension, but backstories
Ask pointed questions. Ask them why their character knows those claw marks aren’t human. Ask why this one character has a bad feeling and when did they last have it.
Use the start to build not only tension, but backstories
I wouldn’t worry about “boring.” If nothing else, practice and techniques (like asking questions, or using the “painting a scene” technique) should help with that.
I think the trickier part is preventing your PCs from turtling and being too grindingly cautious. Some players will personalities be naturally do this when you start foreshadowing. That said, it’s Dungeon World: if you use your GM moves (especially on a 6-) and your grim portents, you should be able to propel things along nicely even if the PCs start to freeze up.
I wouldn’t worry about “boring.” If nothing else, practice and techniques (like asking questions, or using the “painting a scene” technique) should help with that.
I think the trickier part is preventing your PCs from turtling and being too grindingly cautious. Some players will personalities be naturally do this when you start foreshadowing. That said, it’s Dungeon World: if you use your GM moves (especially on a 6-) and your grim portents, you should be able to propel things along nicely even if the PCs start to freeze up.
I think if you’ve already had the conversation about the tone of the story, you can rely on engagement from your players.
A martial arts instructor friend once told me that if you are ever in a dangerous situation where you can threaten to break an arm, try your best not to actually do it. Once the arm is broken, your power is gone. The threat of pain and suffering is more captivating.
Most horror movies pivot at some point and just become adventure movies. The adventure is still fun but once the monster is displayed in all its hideous glory, it’s no longer very scary.
I remember several Call of Cthulhu games in which the players went several sessions just getting creeped-out by the fish-like villagers. I know I was never bored. After all, I was playing a game about receiving the willies. Why would I want to skip that part?
I think if you’ve already had the conversation about the tone of the story, you can rely on engagement from your players.
A martial arts instructor friend once told me that if you are ever in a dangerous situation where you can threaten to break an arm, try your best not to actually do it. Once the arm is broken, your power is gone. The threat of pain and suffering is more captivating.
Most horror movies pivot at some point and just become adventure movies. The adventure is still fun but once the monster is displayed in all its hideous glory, it’s no longer very scary.
I remember several Call of Cthulhu games in which the players went several sessions just getting creeped-out by the fish-like villagers. I know I was never bored. After all, I was playing a game about receiving the willies. Why would I want to skip that part?
The trick is probably to keep showing them suggestive details, so their brain is working on what happened. If they’re up against “empty”, “empty”, “nothing” then you’re in trouble. You need to create the flavourful details that make the absence OMINOUS.
The trick is probably to keep showing them suggestive details, so their brain is working on what happened. If they’re up against “empty”, “empty”, “nothing” then you’re in trouble. You need to create the flavourful details that make the absence OMINOUS.
Stealing ideas.
Stealing ideas.
Vincent Quigley, is the Labyrinth Move written up someplace?
Vincent Quigley, is the Labyrinth Move written up someplace?
Joachim Erdtman
It’s been talked on the podcast before and I have seen people hack it.
If Jason Cordova is okay with me paraphrasing it it goes like this:
When you attempt to navigate the labyrinth, describe how you do it, and then roll +STAT.
*On a 12+, hold 2.
*On a 10+, hold 1.
*On a 7-9, hold 1, but you also encounter a guardian.
*On a miss, you encounter a guardian.
*On a 1-3, also lose all hold.
If multiple party members navigate in turn, their hold is pooled together for the entire party. To find one of the labyrinth’s treasures, spend 1 hold and describe the room it is found in. You may spend 3 hold at any time to find the entrance to the heart of the labyrinth.
In this situation, I would modify the labyrinth’s treasure for a sign of the missing crew or something like that, and the heart of the labyrinth with the breeding lair of the aliens.
Joachim Erdtman
It’s been talked on the podcast before and I have seen people hack it.
If Jason Cordova is okay with me paraphrasing it it goes like this:
When you attempt to navigate the labyrinth, describe how you do it, and then roll +STAT.
*On a 12+, hold 2.
*On a 10+, hold 1.
*On a 7-9, hold 1, but you also encounter a guardian.
*On a miss, you encounter a guardian.
*On a 1-3, also lose all hold.
If multiple party members navigate in turn, their hold is pooled together for the entire party. To find one of the labyrinth’s treasures, spend 1 hold and describe the room it is found in. You may spend 3 hold at any time to find the entrance to the heart of the labyrinth.
In this situation, I would modify the labyrinth’s treasure for a sign of the missing crew or something like that, and the heart of the labyrinth with the breeding lair of the aliens.
Joachim Erdtman and like I said you can pair this with ”Etablish/paint the scene” type questions to get even more narrative player buy-in.
Joachim Erdtman and like I said you can pair this with ”Etablish/paint the scene” type questions to get even more narrative player buy-in.
In a campaign, I’d love to to do this as the second or third plotline. Take a place that the party is familiar with, and wreck it.
Evacuate a small town or outpost while the party is away or have it suffer some horrible non-Euclidean catastrophe
Bars or hangouts get a trashed by an otherworldly power, a body that may or may not be human gets dumped there or nearby
In a campaign, I’d love to to do this as the second or third plotline. Take a place that the party is familiar with, and wreck it.
Evacuate a small town or outpost while the party is away or have it suffer some horrible non-Euclidean catastrophe
Bars or hangouts get a trashed by an otherworldly power, a body that may or may not be human gets dumped there or nearby