Book picks similar to
Trail of Cthulhu by Kenneth Hite
rpg
horror
rpgs
role-playing-games
Call of Cthulhu: Horror Roleplaying
Sandy Petersen - 2005
CALL OF CTHULHU uses Chaosium's Basic Roleplaying System, easy to learn and quick to play. This bestseller has won dozens of game-industry awards and is a member of the Academy of Adventure Game Design Hall of Fame. In 2001 CALL OF CTHULHU celebrated its 20th anniversary. In 2003 CALL OF CTHULHU was voted the #1 Gothic/Horror RPG of all time by the Gaming Report.com community. CALL OF CTHULHU is well-supported by an ever-growing line of high quality game supplements. This is the softcover 6th edition of this classic horror game, completely compatible with all of previous editions and supplements for CALL OF CTHULHU. This is a complete roleplaying game in one volume. All you need to play is this book, some dice, imagination, and your friends.
Delta Green: Countdown
John Tynes - 1999
As our darkened globe spins through the eternal night, the lasting legacy of the human race is nothing but a scream - drowned out by the road of the destiny devouring us all. This is your last chance to show the cosmos what it means to be human: The will to fight.Delta Green: Countdown blows the doors of the world of Delta Green, reaching wider and digging deeper to map the terrain of the twisted pulp apocalypse we call the dawning of the 21st century. Brace yourself for the final world order: The Insects from Shaggai, alien parasites subverting the leadership of a nation; PISCES, the UK's attempt to harness the unknown; The Army of the Third Eye, terrorists fighting a bloody battle against alien invaders; GRU SV-8, a band of desperate operatives fighting darkness in the ruins of Russia; The Skoptsi, occult fanatics with an eight-hundred-year legacy; The OUTLOOK Group, where Majestic-12 tests its elite; Phenomen-X, a syndicated TV news show that pokes its camera in all the wrong places; Tiger Transit, a former CIA airline now in the clutches of a Tcho-Tcho drug cartel: The D Stacks at the American Museum of Natural History, where Dr. Jensen Wu classifies the unclassifiable; The Keepers of the Faith, traditionalist ghouls fighting the lean and hungry Heretic ghouls beneath the streets of Manhattan: and The Hastur Mythos, a twisted skein of surreal destruction weaving its way through humanity. Plus: new skills, new spells, new Mythos tomes, rules for psychics, a microbiologist's dossiers on paranormal lifeforms, profiles of international intelligence and law-enforcement agencies, dozens of useful NPCs, two scenarios, a short campaign, and more.
Delta Green: Agent's Handbook
Dennis Detwiller - 2016
government’s 1928 raid on the degenerate coastal town of Innsmouth, Massachusetts, the covert agency known as Delta Green opposes the forces of darkness with honor, but without glory. Delta Green agents fight to save humanity from unnatural horrors — often at a shattering personal cost.
The Complete Masks of Nyarlathotep
Larry DiTillio - 1984
Horrifying deeds and dangerous sorcery dog those who attempt to unravel the fate of the Carlyle Expedition. The non-linear narrative keeps players baffled and on their toes. This new edition is reset and corrected, and features many new illustrations, four new episodes, added keeper support material, and a new version of the lost Australia chapter.
Unknown Armies
Greg Stolze - 1999
Completely reorganized, largely rewritten, and jam-packed with new art, the second edition of Unknown Armies isn't just better. It kicks metaphysical ass! We've remixed the book based on the level of campaign you want to play: Street, Global, or Cosmic. At street level, you're outsiders to the secret world of magick, ordinary people entering a land of mystery and peril. At global level, you're mojo-wielding cabalists in the occult underground, pursuing your arcane agendas and plotting against your rivals. At cosmic level, you're in tune with the cosmos itself, fighting to shape the next incarnation of reality. Background material is divided up as well, so new players in a street-level campaign only read what the GM wants them to know. But the beats don't stop there: Much more information for new players, to get them into the mindset of the game and help them make better characters and stronger campaigns. * New character-creation options, including Trigger Events, Paradigm Skills, and power levels scaled to match the level of campaign you're playing. * Numerous rules tweaks, including a new initiative system, Fuzzy Logic skill checks, player-directed combat modifiers, amped-up martial arts rules, a new experience system, and more, all dedicated to upgrading UA's innovative percentile system into a lean and precise tool for fast play and player empowerment. * More magick for non-adepts: Authentic Thaumaturgy, new rituals and artifacts, and revised versions of Proxy Magick and Tilts allow the freewheeling use of symbolic, sympathetic magick by anyone with the will to make it happen. * Twelve schools of magick (up from seven in UA1) for obsessed adepts, including revised versions of published schools (Bibliomancy, Personamancy, and Urbanomancy) and two new schools (Videomancy and Narcotic Alchemy). * Fourteen avatars (up from eight in UA1) for archetypalists, including revised versions of published avatars (The Messenger, The Mother, The Mystic Hermaphrodite, and the True King) and two new avatars (The MVP and The Warrior). * More resources for the GM, including specific guidance on combat, wounds, skill checks, campaign building, and other critical issues. * New cover art and design, new interior art and design, and a hardcover binding to keep this game in line.
Investigator Handbook: A Core Game Book for Players
Mike Mason - 2015
LovecraftWill you stand against the horrors of the night?Whether learned professor, nosy journalist, or hard-hitting detective, investigators need all the help they can get. Let this book be your guide. The Investigator Handbook is an essential player’s aid for the Call of Cthulhu 7th edition roleplaying gameWritten for those who will be playing the roles of investigators, the Investigator Handbook contains expanded rules for creating players characters, a wealth of over 100 occupations and skill descriptions, as well as guidance on getting the most from the game. What’s more, there’s a range of organizations for your investigator to belong to, detailed information about the classic 1920s setting, equipment and weapons for both the 1920s and modern day, and expert tips and advice for all budding investigators.No self-respecting investigator of the Cthulhu Mythos should be without it!
Fate Core System
Leonard Balsera - 2013
Fate Core is that engine.
Fate Core is the latest evolution of the award-winning Fate roleplaying game system from Evil Hat Productions. We’ve streamlined and clarified the rules while maintaining the system’s trademark flexibility. Name your game; Fate Core can make it happen.
Inside, you’ll discover:
Easy-to-follow rules for character and world creation.
Rock-solid storytelling advice for players and GMs to produce the best play experience.
Clearly-defined systems to guide players both new and old.
New and improved approaches to character actions, aspects, compels... and more!
TELL YOUR TALE. ROLL THE DICE. EMBRACE YOUR FATE!
Savage Worlds Explorer's Edition
Shane Lacy Hensley - 2003
The rules give players plenty of depth to create their characters and keep bookkeeping to a minimum for the Game Master. If you’re looking for a game that’s fast and easy to set up, run, and play, Savage Worlds is for you!Savage Worlds handles pulp action, gritty noir, supers, hard scifi, space opera, horror, and anything you can imagine!
Numenera Corebook
Monte Cook - 2013
Humanity lives amid the remnants of eight great civilizations that have risen and fallen on Earth. These are the people of the Ninth World. This new world is filled with remnants of all the former worlds: bits of nanotechnology, the dataweb threaded among still-orbiting satellites, bio-engineered creatures, and myriad strange and wondrous devices. These remnants have become known as the numenara.Player characters explore this world of mystery and danger to find these leftover artifacts of the past, not to dwell upon the old ways, but to help forge their new destinies, utilizing the so-called "magic" of the past to create a promising future.
Legend of the Five Rings RPG
Shawn Carman - 2010
Bushido’s staunch and unyielding code of conduct binds samurai to duty, strengthening their character and defining their choices. While some samurai serve the greater good, others use the strictures of Bushido to manipulate the lower ranks and advance their own power.Eight Great Clans form the heart of Rokugan’s culture. Each is defined by its own principles, values, and agendas. Each sees the Code of Bushido in its own way. Each seeks to serve the Emperor with its own unique talents. Take up the soul of your ancestors — the samurai’s daisho — and fight for the glory and honor of your family and Clan. Now is the time for heroes, in a world where Honor is a force more powerful than Steel.The Fourth Edition of L5R is the ultimate edition of the award-winning role-playing game. Inside this tome, you will find:• A game unlike any you’ve played elsewhere. Honor and service are valued more than magic swords taken from wandering ogres. Prepare for the glorious life of the samurai!• A unique Character Sheet. Legend of the Five Rings rules have never been more easy to learn and to play. No more need to flip through pages of rules while fighting your enemies!• A toolbox approach to role-playing in Rokugan. Fourth Edition encourages gamemasters of Legend of the Five Rings to customize their game, adding or removing from their campaigns as they see fit, customizing the game to fit their story lines and players.• A broad history of the Emerald Empire and the beliefs of all the Great Clans, with play options not only the major clans but also for outlying groups such as Imperials, Minor Clans, and the infamous Spider Clan.Draw your blade and join the fight for Rokugan.
Apocalypse World
D. Vincent Baker - 2010
In the golden age of legend, when there was enough to eat and enough hope, when there was one nation under god and people could lift their eyes and see beyond the horizon, beyond the day. Children were born happy and grew up rich.Now that's not what we've got. Now we've got this. Hardholders stand against the screaming elements and all comers, keeping safe as many as they can. Angels and savvyheads run constant battle against there's not enough and bullets fly and everything breaks. Hocuses gather people around them, and are they protectors, saviors, visionaries, or just wishful thinkers? Choppers, gunluggers and battlebabes carve out what they can and defend it with blood and bullets. Drivers and operators search and scavenge, looking for that opportunity, that one perfect chance. Skinners remember beauty, or invent beauty anew, cup it in their hands and whisper come and see, and don't worry now about what it will cost you. And brainers, oh, brainers see what none of the rest of us will: the world's psychic maelstrom, the terrible desperation and hate pressing in at the edge of all perception, it is the world now.And you, who are you? This is what we've got, yes. What are you going to make of it?
Eberron Campaign Setting
Keith Baker - 2004
11,000 proposals and two years of development later, the Eberron Campaign Setting is the result of that search. This brand-new setting for the Dungeons & Dragons roleplaying game is an avenue for any D&D fan to experience swashbuckling adventure and explore mysterious new territories.Designed to introduce a new, fresh world with unlimited possibilities for exploration, the Eberron Campaign Setting includes everything needed to develop characters and run campaigns in this exciting new arena. It includes new character races, monsters, prestige classes, feats, organizations, and equipment unique to the world, and it introduces a new base class to the D&D game. It contains substantial information on new elements of magic, including spells, domains, items, artifacts, and more. Also included are historical and cultural details of the world, along with extensive illustrations and a wealth of maps that put the setting into vivid context. This title will also include both adventure hooks and a full adventure so that players and Dungeon Masters can immediately begin enjoying everything this rich new setting has to offer.
The World of Darkness
Bill Bridges - 2004
Only rarely do our experiences draw back the veil of shadows and reveal the horror in our midst. These glimpses into the supernatural can cause us to retreat into comforting lies - 'There are no such things as monsters' - or stir our morbid curiosity. Only a few, however, can overcome their fear and dare to look deeper.The World of Darkness Rulebook introduces a version of our contemporary world where the supernatural is real. Players join to tell tales of mystery and horror, where theme, mood and plot are more important to a character s experiences than his weapons or equipment. Inside are rules for character creation, task resolution, combat and any activity your character attempts as he delves into the shadows.