Horror Help!

[Queshire]

So I was a co-gm for this role playing scenerio, only the main gm had to leave to go camping leaving me in charge. It's supposed to be a horror sceneario, but I don't know the first thing about horror! I haven't even seen a scary movie all the way through! Help me Mythic Scribes! You're my only hope! What do I need to know to do horror well!!!!

 

[Lawfire]

It is not what you see, rather what you do not see that is frightening. Sounds, can really help. If you use audio during your sessions, try to find some fitting music or sound effects. Try to set a mood and stick with it, avoiding interruptions would be even more important than with a "regular" session.

Blood and gore is not frightening to me. I find suspense and the unknown to be the ticket.

I just said a whole-lot of nothing, but maybe you can get something out of it. There has to be a horror master around here somewhere.

 

[Zero Angel]

Danger and suspense.

Lawfire said blood and gore is not frightening, but exploring an abandoned cathedral with blood and gore and nothing but the echoes of the PCs boots and the faint drip of water (...or blood?) in the distance could build up the suspense to a great level. At any time the PCs are expecting to be wasted by whatever left the remnants, but they only end up killing a rat or two (dire probably) or maybe a lesser crazed goblin only to find some babbling lunatic huddled in a corner talking about the destruction but making no sense.

What happens next?!?!?!

Tap into your dark side!

 

[Lunaairis]

Depending on the situation, using characters back stories against them can be rather frighting; As well as breaking the group up. I apologize if that's not really helpful, as I've only done a horror situation once before.

 

[Lawfire]

Danger and suspense.

Lawfire said blood and gore is not frightening, but exploring an abandoned cathedral with blood and gore and nothing but the echoes of the PCs boots and the faint drip of water (...or blood?) in the distance could build up the suspense to a great level. At any time the PCs are expecting to be wasted by whatever left the remnants, but they only end up killing a rat or two (dire probably) or maybe a lesser crazed goblin only to find some babbling lunatic huddled in a corner talking about the destruction but making no sense.

Well said, Zero Angel. I should have been clearer. Overly graphic killing, for some sort of shock value often backfires, in my opinion. Your example leads into my first statement. It is not the blood seen that is frightening (in of itself), it is the unseen cause that can cause the short hairs to stand up.

 

[Zero Angel]

Well said, Zero Angel. I should have been clearer. Overly graphic killing, for some sort of shock value often backfires, in my opinion. Your example leads into my first statement. It is not the blood seen that is frightening (in of itself), it is the unseen cause that can cause the short hairs to stand up.

That's fine. I should have worded my post better to sound like I was agreeing with you more. I only meant to say that I agree that blood and gore in and of itself is not frightening, but that you can use blood and gore effectively.

 

[Queshire]

Thanks for all the advice guys! ^^ Now that I've calm down a bit, I'm really starting to feel excited about this! My idle hours watching Doctor Who shall pay off!

 

[Steerpike]

The number one thing, in my view, is to know your players. If you know your players, and know what scares them, then your path is laid out.

I had one player in a group who was freaked out by grisly, occult-type rituals, so when they were sent to find a missing group of dwarves and came across an abandoned temple, I had two of the dwarves' bodies ritually hacked apart, their pieces scattered in a pattern across the basement room, arcane symbols hastily smeared about in their blood, and so on. In that case, it was a bit gory, but I knew one player was freaked out about that stuff.

Throw in all the of the other stuff mentioned - unknowns; random, unexplainable noises or occurrences; use music if you can. Set up very normal situations, but where one or two things are out of place in a weird or unsettling way.

Also, if this is a game played with dice and you're all sitting around a table, roll the dice at random times, or when the characters take an action (like walking into a new area, or examining something). After you roll, examine your notes and write something down. Don't say anything. You're really doing nothing, but in addition to in-game occurrences to scare the players via their characters, this works on the psychology of the players themselves, who never like to see a DM rolling dice for no apparent reason and then muttering over their notes. You can even ask for an occasional random stat. "Hey, John, what was your intelligence again?" Then you roll, and frown. Write something down. A little of that will have an effect on players.

You could also look at implementing some sort of optional sanity rules.

 

[Butterfly]

It's not the darkness we fear but our endless imaginings of what lurks within it...