The Bazaar #83: Rifts Horror (Reinforcing Horror Themes)
- Francois DesRochers
- Jun 24
- 14 min read
GENERAL
In the previous post we went over the plethora of sources a GM can pull ideas from to create some compelling adventures. But what about once you have the idea, or the trope you want to exploit (e.g. vampires, zombies, Cthulu-esque monsters). Well, the aim is to leverage the element of fear from your Players. So, let’s explore some more practical approaches to generating and presenting a horror-based adventure.
As one of the strongest emotions we can experience, fear is a slightly tricky space to play with. The use of anticipation and stringing Players along for the ride can have a huge payoff! We are genetically coded to fight or flight responses, despite our current assumptions of our place on the food pyramid. The problem space is trying to provide an experience that taps into those emotions without going overboard, or worse, coming across as a pastiche or cliché (e.g. Ghostbusters instead of the Exorcist).
Special Note – Player Issues. Do NOT ever (I mean ever-ever) leverage a Player’s personal issues within the game space. This needs to be clearly articulated in Session Zero (GM Field Guide #13: Session Zero) and carefully managed. If someone presents with a phobia of insects and spiders (ergo, me), I’m fine if the GM uses Xiticix or some other bug-related monsters. Dependent on the presentation I may self-induce some heart palpitations, and my Character will be pretty frickin’ motivated to kill them. Produce a tarantula, I’m liable to flip the solid wood dining room table. My ability to manage my reactions is not the same for others for other issues, be it body modification, torture, what have you. Don’t take them lightly. Discuss it with the person, away from the table, and go from there. For those that eschew the idea of tailoring the way you present your adventure to accommodate someone with a real-life issue, grow up; the other adults and I will continue the discussion below.
PHYSICAL ELEMENTS
General. One of the greatest disadvantages of horror settings for any TTRPG is the lack of the sensory cues and camera angles. Film , television, even video games can make great use of these with spectacular effect. To some extent, even radio programs had it better as they can leverage sound.
Lighting. A bit of a delicate balance to strike; dark for spooky, but have to be able to read character sheets, see dice rolls. I’m note a fan of dimmed lighting in the game space, but some groups can get away with it. Some games use the length of time a candle takes to burn as a basis for game mechanics. Play around with it, see what works.
Music/Score/Sound Effects. Some ambient background sounds and noises can be easily found online. Have something spooky or jarringly moody music playing on Spotify or a sound system in background. Dripping water, random hiss of steam or clang of metal, machinery that sputters as it starts or shuts down. Think of the background noise of any creepy movie and adapt to the adventure. Just watch out for any commercial breaks that may interrupt at the most inopportune time.
Timing. One of the biggest hurdles might be the timing of the GM’s delivery. Further explained below, one of the elements of a good horror adventure is putting the Players off their game. Skipping from one Player with abrupt cliffhangers can make Players feel like they have lost control of the scene. Ending a Player’s Action by describing what the monster appears to be about ready to do, then jumping to the next Player’s turn in Initiative order, builds on the suspense and leaves the Player wondering what is about to occur. This kind of tension has two risks: GM delivery and Player response.
Cadence and Pitch. Delivery of information is a critical element. A monotone description typically cheapens the impact, but if done effectively and consistently, can be a manner in shifting the script on the Players; monotone makes things less impactful, but also lessens the possible impact. If you can pull it off, the Players will note the delivery as a clearly discernible cue of something dicey about to occur. For most of us though, changing your tone and inflection to describe something horrific will definitely grab their attention. Make sure you try and maintain the same tone and cadence whenever describing the horrific.
ADVENTURE DESIGN AND DELIVERY
Breaking Down the Acts. Horror films/television episodes are typically delivered in three acts. Acts 1 and 2 are “victim oriented,” while Act 3 is monster-oriented. Make sure you keep this design aspect in mind when preparing the adventure. Ensuring the goose eggs of the adventure outline follow this structure helps navigate the monsters or non-combat encounters needed to build that tension preceding the culmination of the action.
Act 1. Have the first several goose eggs introduce the initial setting of the adventure, building up the monster through indirect means. Describe the results of the attack in terms of the bodies discovered, the effect on families and the region writ-large.
Act 2. Build up the atmosphere and tension, possibly with some non-combat encounters that provide clues to the PCs, or worse, red herrings.
Act 3. For the finale, make it all about the Player Characters tracking down/finding the culprit and cornering it into a climactic fight. Heroes will be heroes, and they should have a chance to confront the monster. Whether they succeed is entirely up to you the GM.
Pacing. Something to keep in mind in the delivery of the information and encounters. Like a series of cresting waves, action and tension needs to be built up to the final crash of water into the beach. This needs to gradually increase throughout the adventure, providing a series of calmer moments, punctuated by tense uneasiness or action. Like a beach with the incoming tide, we want those crests to build and build, until we have one massive wave at the climactic resolution. But like anyone who has seen a massive wave a surfer may be trying to ride in, as the wave crashes ashore, there is a distinct pull of the water back into the ocean, which may give rise to more waves of significance in behind. There's nothing better for a horror story than a plot element that leads the Characters into the next round of waves..
Disempower Players (Narrative Elements)
Select Your Trope. There are certainly no shortage of horror tropes to choose from in Rifts. Vampires in Mexico, Demon Lords in China, intergalactic monsters of Atlantis, Demons/Dyvaal of the Minion War. Or throw together a random demon/monster with its own special abilities or powers. By not allowing your Players the chance to meta-game the monsters, it keeps them wondering just what exactly they are facing off from. A perfect example would be Chaos Earth: Resurrection (See Scholar's Review #83: Chaos Earth: Resurrection). This book has scads of tropes, but they are presented in a way that screams (pardon the pun) for a horror-based approach.
Low Fantasy Adventures. Something worth mentioning is the relative power of the PCs. If you start the campaign off with Characters that simply waltz through your encounters due to high M.D.C., massive damage output, or regenerative powers, you rob yourself of the opportunity to leverage expectations and the fear element. I’m not saying you can’t have some high-powered PCs, but the more at risk the party is from healing/repairs, or supplies (e.g. missiles, E-Clip recharging), the better the elements can come through. Remember, we’re trying to impose a sense of isolation.
Limited Information. One of the greatest ways to build up the suspense is to limit the information the Players can garner from the game state. To some extent you, as the GM need to fight against a level of Meta-Gaming. Players are going to read the books and have an idea of what you are making them chase down. With their Player knowledge, there is an impact in the Characters’ reactions. Don’t ever use the name of the beast you are pitting against them.
Keyword Descriptions. Instead, provide them with a description of the various visual, aural and olfactory cues they might pick up. Unless they pass a Lore test to determine what they are looking at, don’t utter the name of the beasts unless they are fed the information. Concentrate on the senses other than sight; audible/sound (dripping, a crashing noise in the distance, high-pitched vibrations), touch (slimy, clammy, hairy, intense cold/heat), and in particular olfactory/smell (rotten milk or meat, intensely sweet, acrid). For visuals, use words like pulsate, undulate, chitinous armor, giving up certain pieces of the whole before the great reveal at the end. The best method is to combine something unexpected with what the Players would normally associate with the encounter. Create a visual that each Player will form in their head. They will naturally form an image that will most likely be much worse than the illustration.
Example
“The vaguely humanoid figure continues to lurch forward. Footsteps slap against the floor like wet sponge, footprints leaving splotches of glistening blood. The acrid tang of copper is overpowering, causing Max to gag.
Max swipes his vibro-blade, cutting cleanly, but it doesn’t seem to react. From the wound, globules of clotted blood pour out and slap against the floor and stick to your armor. Extending its arms like a long-lost lover, it continues towards Max, hands now grasping his shoulders. Dozens of mini-tentacles spring forth, reaching across to Max’s exposed neck. They scratch the skin like a hundred paper cuts.”
The GM suddenly turns to face another Player. “Greg, your Cyber-Knight is across the hall, facing off the High Cultist. You have Initiative; what do you do?”
Close and Personal. Something that is easily attributable to most every horror media is the theme of close in violence and threat of violence. Tunnels, dank ruins, inside a house, or surrounded by heavy foliage, all provide a hunting monster ample opportunity to lurk, ambush, and attack with little to no warning. This also provides the self-same monsters the opportunity to make a get away without being easily thwarted by the PCs. Heavy, long-range weapons have little benefit if the monster charges less than 10 feet (3 m) and is swinging a massive claw/club/sword before the PCs can react. Pitt you Player Characters against a monster in the sewers, with the lights turned low and some ambient noise (with irrelevant background dripping, paper flapping), knowing they need to hunt down a predator equal to or stronger than them. This claustrophobic setting will have your Players on edge the whole time.
Note: The above example never revealed the monster to be a Blood Wraith (Scholar's Review #66: Dark Conversions, pp 49-50), just descriptive text with particular emphasis on attack’s effect and lack of reaction to the damage it took. It also demonstrates the Timing aspect above, moving to another Player before I consider Max’s attempts to fight his way out.
Disempower Players (Mechanics Elements). The rules for Rifts already comes with a few mechanics baked into supporting horror-based adventures.
Horror Factor. I know there are some that opine that as true heroes, they should never be disenfranchised from the game-state due to a Horror Factor roll. I would argue exactly the opposite. The mechanics of Horror Factor takes into account the whole of the situation, including the dread and disgust a Character would be feeling at that time. A GM may provide a bonus for repeated exposure, but I would argue strongly against skipping this mechanic – especially if you are running a horror campaign.
Insanity Rules. There are certain valid criticisms to the Insanity rules presented in RUE. That said, they function as a mechanic the GM can leverage for a horror adventure. As described in RUE (pp 331-332), Save vs Insanity comes at a d20 roll of 12+, with a fairly comprehensive list of reasons. I’ve judiciously made use of the Random Insanity Table in certain extreme circumstances, but only after several occurrences of failing a Horror Factor roll, or extreme in-game results. I’ve also used it as a temporary debilitation based on adventure elements. I’ll typically allow the character the chance to overcome the effects of the Insanity Roll (end of session roll or off-table intervention). I always remember to apply a negative to the roll, if and when it gets triggered anew.
Encumbrance & Exhaustion. Something worth considering is keeping an eagle eye on the equipment and weapons the PCs are lugging around. If they are bearing close to their maximum in terms of weight according to their P.S. Attribute, consider applying negatives to their Initiative, possibly Strike and Dodge as well. Nothing onerous required; just knowing they must overcome a penalty reinforces the vibe.
Dehydration/Exposure & Encumbrance. Currently the official rules for dehydration and exposure can be found in World Book 20: Canada (arctic conditions) and World Book 27: Adventures in Dinosaur Swamp. I would leverage this information for the effects of putting the Players at unease regarding something typically glossed over: food, water, and shelter. Remember, PCs can’t spend all their time wearing body armor or stay within their power armor. There is nothing scarier to the Glitter Boy pilot than the time they are asleep and only wearing SDC clothing.
Poisons. The effect that non-toxic poisons can have on PCs really starts to impact their impression of the setting. This can also be used in terms of the attacks of the monsters you’ve elected to use. They don’t need to be overtly impactful, but again, negative modifiers to rolls, even a simple -1 on a d20, or -5%/-10% on a Skill Roll can really eat away at a Player’s confidence the PC will make it.
OTHER PALLADIUM BOOKS GAMES
Many of their game systems can be played this way, with a number of other books that actively reinforce many of the tropes and expectations. Don't shy away from using some of the elements from those games in your Rifts adventures either. Palladium Books have specifically designed their games to have this interoperability; you may feel the need to get Conversion Books to help you out.
Beyond the Supernatural. The game that pretty much promoted use of every trope imaginable. The GM for this setting is really overborne with choices of what monster or threat to throw at the Players. With an eclectic array of Classes to chose from, there is no wont of opportunities to introduce horror elements.
Dead Reign. You pretty much start off with a zombie apocalypse; a classic zombie trope. Zombies work a little differently in this setting. When I first played this setting, I refused to read anything outside of my character sheet. Dealing with and combating something you have zero visibility on makes the action much more palpable, visceral. It’s been a while since I felt that fear while trying to survive an encounter. Only through repetition and survival does the Player and Player Character get a sense of how to survive.
Mechanoids. Humanoids are facing a massively overpowered threat that is actively trying to destroy all humanoid cultures it encounters. This is a game of cat-and-mouse, and Players are the mice. This is a survival game that can really put the Players through their paces as they fight to survive against a foe they have little hope of defeating in a straight up battle.
System Failure. Another game that is replete with horror elements. Society is faced with a threat that steals away use of the very technology that created most modern advancements. With monsters that can appear in the blink of an eye if you do the wrong thing, Players can really get caught up in the horror vibes of this game.
Splicers. I've honestly not delved into this game to make any clarified opinion on it. Based on the concept and artwork, yeah, horror themes abound!
Rifts: Chaos Earth. The apocalypse has arrived, and civilization as we know it is coming to an end. The massive influx of magical energy and the demons & monsters that spew forth provide the GM with any number of opportunities to take a modern mentality and flip is on its head.
RIFTS
Some specific examples of the horror themes and tropes coming out from the expansive library of Rifts books, of which there are just under100 books; adjacent brings this into triple-digits. The vast majority of the following are specifically horror-themed or deal with the tropes Players would expect. You certainly don't have to play specifically for horror, but these help get you started down that road.
Rifts: Dark Conversions (CB 3). A book chock-full of unique monsters and others from the various Palladium Books game systems (Nightlords and their minions from Nightbane, Demons and Deevils, and a host of entries from Beyond the Supernatural) . Just about every entry provides the GM an opportunity to play up the horror themes and chase after the PCs.
Vampires
World Book 1: Vampire Kingdoms. Whether the Revised edition or the Original plus the
Vampires Sourcebook. The Palladium take on vampires in Rifts; they fit many of the tropes, but introduce new elements. In the grand scheme of things, very horrific. See Scholar's Review #4: World Book 1: Vampire Kingdoms See Scholar's Review #74: Vampires Sourcebook
World Book 28: Arzno - Vampire Incursions. The vampires have made it north of the Rio Grande. Lots of details to build a very cat-and-mouse series of adventures. See Scholar's Review #31: World Book 28: Arzno - Vampire Incursions
Rifts Madness. Where the setting is so bizarre and unfettered by the laws of nature, it drives the Characters insane simply through prolonged exposure.
World Book 29. The remains of New York City have become a playground for the mutated and the insane, turned into truly horrific creatures. The setting itself has an adverse effect on the Characters; hopefully you're not playing a psychic.
Rifts Alien Invaders. The completely bizarre and unknowable nature of an alien species that cannot be reasoned with.
World Book 2: Atlantis. Humans are very much at the bottom of the food chain. There are some heavy opportunities to reinforce some Lovecraftian horror.
World Book 4: Africa. The Four Horsemen personified into physical manifestations; or the Phoenix Empire, which views humans as nothing more than cheap slave labour. Any one of these could be leveraged into the unknown backdrop of a horror campaign based outside of Africa; perhaps the party must travel there to face the ultimate challenge?
World Book 23: Xiticix Invasion. This race of insectoid monsters are completely devoid of any human-like reasoning and response. Imagine fighting human-sized wasps? <shudder>
Conversion Book 2: The Mechanoids. A series of entries that develop on the original game that launched Palladium Books. The hatred-driven machine race has evolved, but their hatred for humanoids of all kinds have not. Even at their weakest, they are overtly deadly.
Shemarrian Nation. This secretive race of humanoids roaming the vast expanse of forests can really become a terrifying foe chasing after the Characters.
Rifts Zombies
World Book 12: Psyscape. The influx of Nxla and its Harvesters create a great dynamic where this super-powerful demon and their forces look to carve a space in our world.
Rifts Demons/Demonic Overlords
World Books 25 & 26: China & China 2. Where demon kings now rule the lands and have enslaved humans to be fodder and slave labor.
See Scholar's Review #29: World Book 24: The Yama Kings
See Scholar's Review #30: World Book 25: Heroes of the Celestial Court
Minion Wars. An over-arching plot line that exploits the Demons of Hades and the Deevils of Dyval. At war with one another, this dynamic can be leveraged to chase after the Characters with some true-blue demons.
CONCLUSION
The common catch phrase of “Show, don’t tell” is very much a thing. For a GM looking to create an immersive experience, you need to be able to provide vivid descriptions of what the Characters would be seeing, describing in a way the Players are able to understand, but not so much that you give away the plot or the solution. The idea of presenting Rifts as a horror themed adventure is very feasible; the setting and the monsters quite easily reinforce the themes discussed in the last post [link to previous post]. But what does this actually mean? Well, primarily it deals with one of the most effective elements of running any kind of campaign: the words you choose. This isn’t discrete to the horror genre or horror-adjacent. It’s the words you choose and how you approach describing details to your Players.
By using these sources for your adventure design, you lean into already successful tropes and themes. The type of story told through Rifts adventures are rife for using horror as inspiration. I personally believe that the dark and grim setting portrayed lends a natural dovetail for the horrific and the macabre. Make the monsters truly threatening, not just in the sense that they can kill the PCs, but that they are cunning and actively hunting, if not toying, with their prey (ahem, Player Characters). Don’t give away what the monster is right away, but provide a description of their grotesqueness and how it makes the PCs feel. Make the most use of dark, tight confines with random noises in the background, creating that tension we naturally feel when we imagine the closeness, the threat, and the catharsis of defeating a challenging encounter.
Return to All Posts
Please LIKE and SUBSCRIBE!
Commentaires