Free Nordic Horror Goodness

I have never played Vaesen, but the game looks gorgeous and you can snag the pdf today only at the amazing price of free.  

Here's info from the product page:

Welcome to the Mythic North – northern Europe of the nineteenth century, but not as we know it today. A land where the myths are real. A cold reach covered by vast forests, its few cities lonely beacons of industry and enlightenment – a new civilization dawning. But in the countryside, the old ways still hold sway. There, people know what lurks in the dark. They know to fear it.

Vaesen – Nordic Horror Roleplaying is written by Nils Hintze and based on the work of Swedish illustrator and author Johan Egerkrans. Vaesen presents a dark Gothic setting steeped in Nordic folklore and the old myths of Scandinavia. The game mechanics utilize an adapted version of the award winning Year Zero Engine.

Key features:
· Ten ready to use archetypes let you create a character in minutes – or use the included life path tables and let the dice decide.
· Quick and flavorful rules for combat, investigations and horror.
· Rules for developing the player characters’ headquarters during campaign play.
· A detailed gazetteer of the Mythic North setting and the town of Upsala.
· A score of bloodcurdling vaesen to encounter, all beautifully illustrated by Johan Egerkrans.
· An introductory Mystery called The Dance of Dreams.

Go here and grab your pdf today!

Alien 2233

The other day I posted about the Screamers Alien RPG content over at the RPG Marshal Blog. Today I wanted to share their mashup of Alien and the Metro franchise. It consists of three video games (four if you count the remastered release of the first two) and a series of short stories, novellas, and novels all taking place primarily in post-apocalyptic Russia. In the video games, characters play as rangers, living in settlements in the Moscow Metro, which survived the nuclear apocalypse. They must scavenge supplies, keep morale in their communities up, and evade hostile mutants. 

Alien 2233 is a combines the settings. The premise is that Earth was nuked after a Weyland-Yutani spaceship crashed. Just a few thousand people survived, by taking refuge in the metro tunnels beneath Moscow. Unfortunately for them Xenomorphs have also made it to the ruins of Moscow and are now hunter humanity. 

The free pdf is nine pages. The first page contains information about each franchise and then how to make them crossover. There are a few pages which include a map of the metro, brief descriptions of the various stations, discussion of the New UPP, and a new synthetic variation, the comrade. There are four pages of Xenomorph lore, which includes 5 new types (with stats).

• Xenobat - flying death from above
• Xenoshark - found in flooded sections of the Metro and rivers
• Xenogorilla - what's more frightening than a Xenomorph... one that can overturn a car or bust through a wall
• Xenorex - an alpha xenomorph and terrifying sight
• Xenopsy - these xenomorphs have mutated because of their exposure to radiation and humanity and taken on human characteristics. They also have psychic abilities. 

There is a page that discusses equipment and basically just gives equivalents between the Metro games and the Alien RPG. Finally there are 5 different adventure hooks.

Overall I have to say this is a nice little mashup. You can do an alternate take on the Alien RPG and use it as your setting. You could so just divorce it from Earth and use the idea for a colony world. If nothing out you have some horrifying xenomorph variants  you can lift. 

Screamers

Screamers is a sci-fi horror flick released in 1995. Like a lot of science fiction flicks, it's based on a story by Philip K. Dick.  The movie stars Peter Weller and focuses on killer machines on a ruined world. Paranoia is a big component of the story and their are a variety of Screamers. There was a straight to DVD sequel released in 2009 called Screamers: The Hunting. I've watched it and definitely don't recommend it, unless you just have to consume all media. The only notable thing is it features a pre-Arrow Stephen Amell.

While look for fan material for the Alien RPG I found a cool pdf that discussed incorporating Screamers into the game. You can find the original post here on the RPGMarshal blog. The pdf discusses two different ways to add Screamers to your Alien game. Additionally the story's factions, the NEB and UPP are presented. The pdf then presents a page of general rules for Screamers and then a one page write up for Type 1, Type 2, Type 3 (with mention of Type 3-b), and finally Type 4. If you play the Alien RPG or any other Year Zero Engine game you should check out the pdf. 

The Diner

The Diner is a collection of five gruesome scenarios for Horror: A Roleplaying Game. Let me just say, that even if I hadn't bought the rule system, I planned on picking up this horrific beauty.  The covers are fantastic and Rick Hershey of Fat Goblin Games outdid himself. It really has that video nasty VHS vibes and the coffee ring on the cover is a nice touch. The interior art is just as good.

The book begins with four pages of universal content about the titular diner aka The Last Stop Diner. There is a map included and a QR code to scan if you want to get a copy of the map for players. This is followed by a page of new stuff/equipment. We are presented a list of weapons found at the diner as well as weapon stats for hot liquids and gear stats for fire extinguishers and shitty weed. This is followed by a few pages of scenario rules. It basically lets you know what to expect. Each scenario has a set-up, three acts, an epilogue, discussion of using it in Franchise Mode, and relevant stats. Each act includes several action/rpg bits and lets you know relevant dice rolls and such. There is also a critical injuries for monsters table.

The first scenario is Mind Eaters. This scenario focuses on aliens and paranoia. The titular mind eater has possessed one or more patrons and a group of alien bounty hunters have staged situation to capture their prey. The Mind Eater get stats, as do the two alien bounty hunters, and their special gear.

The second scenario is The Night Shift. A vampire-like creature feeds in the diner and has a minion and hypnosis to cover things up. This crimson abomination and his zombie servant is statted out.

The third scenario is Eight-Legged Pandemic and definitely isn't for arachnophobes. Space spiders rain down from the sky. Their bite is venomous and can even turn victims into spider hybrids. There are stats for swarms, hybrids, and giant versions.

The fourth scenario is Demonomicon. A band called Gibbering Mouther has been using a sinister tome as a prop and accidently unleash a demon on the diner. The Demonic Entity is given stats.

The final scenario is Slime. This adventure is essentially the Blob at a diner. The characters are quarantined and must survive. We are given stats US Army soldier, a colonel, and the titular slime.

There are 10 characters presented: a near retirement detective, employees of the Last Stop Diner, and the band Gibbering Mouther. Each character is given stats and personal agenda items. There are also extra personal agenda items secretly given to the mind eater possessed character and crimson abomination's servant instead.

This book rocks and I recommend it to anybody looking for some simple to run horror adventures. Honestly with a little work, you could use them in any system, though as I mentioned before Horror: A Roleplaying Game is a simple and concise system. You can grab your own copy of The Diner from DMDave Publishing's online store. The pdf is 17 and the print copy is 22.

I was told this is the first in a line of one shot books like this. The first, The Gas Station, is nearly complete. It will be followed by The Sherriff's Office.

Horror: A Roleplaying Game

Horror: A Roleplaying Game is a release from DMDave Publishing. It's a system neutral game that uses the Year Zero Engine srd from Fria Ligan AB. This means the game is compatible with Alien RPG, Twilight: 2000, Blade Runner RPG, Vaesen, and a majority of Free League's releases. The book is roughly 64 pages, counting SRD, index and character sheet. The game is divided into the following chapters: Introduction, Character Creation, Skills and Specialties, Combat and Damage, and Travel. This is strictly a rules tome and has no art.

As mentioned in the introduction the game is designed to be extremely adaptable for horror movie rpg experiences. The mechanics are simple, combat is quick and deadly, and there are rewards for pushing your luck. However, failure comes at a cost. The game focuses on players and the story. The game doesn't use a full set of polyhedrals, and a collection of 10-15 d6's are suggested. The game has two main modes: Flick Mode and Franchise Mode. Flick Mode is fast and brutal. Stakes are high and most (if not all) characters aren't expected to survive. Franchise Mode is designed for multiple sessions and characters have a greater chance of survival.

There is no character creation in Flick Mode. Characters are provided by the GM. In Franchise Mode players will create a character using seven steps. The most important step is picking your archetype. Each Archetype has key attributes, skills, and specialties tied to it. They also have a pesonal agenda for players to pick an option from, as well as a weakness, dark secret, and signature item they will do the same with. Finally there is a gear section. The archetypes presented are:

• Ambitious Scientist
• Brave Adventurer
• Brawny Protector
• Cynical Survivor
• Devoted Caregiver
• Enigmatic Artist
• Fearless Youth
• Seasoned Detective

The game has 12 core skills. Each is tied to an attribute. When you try to do something you roll a number of dice equal to your skills, attribute, and sometimes gear. Each dice type should be a different color. A six is a success and more successes mean better outcomes. You can push your luck, though in the end you can only attempt something once. Note even if you fail a role, the story is still pushed forward... the are just consequences. There are several specialties that affect skills in different ways.

As mentioned before, combat can be fast and deadly. Maps aren't required and things are set up in range zones. This is one of the more robust chapters. It deals with movement, attack, vehicles, chases, damage, and many other topics. One important feature of the Year Zero Engine is that character suffer both (physical) damage and stress. 

The final chapter deals with travel, goes into driving vehicles a bit more, camping, and other survival mechanics.

This seems like a solid ruleset that I'd definitely love to dive in to. Right now there is one scenario collection book for the game, The Diner. I also picked it up and will be posting a review later today or tomorrow. If you are looking for a new horror rpg (especially one to do one shots with), I'd recommend picking this one up. You can get a physical copy of the rules for 9.99 and a digital copy for 4.99 from the DMDave Publishing online store.