Oct 22: Ouija Boards

It is a little known fact that there are staff "witches" that are paid to bless one out every one thousand Ouija boards coming out of toy and manufacturing companies. That is at least the ones from America, the UK, most of Europe, and Russia. The Chinese ones are just pressed cardboard and a silly shaped plastic widget thrown into a box. Of course, most of the time, whenever one of these keyholes to the Other Side appear in a Crawlspace game, it'll be one of those rarities. If the Characters have any sense, when they see a Ouija board they will run like hell into the backdrop and hope to be murdered by Bigfoot or be abducted by aliens.

It is amazing how many people worry about random folks that they encounter on-line, but have no qualms about popping into chat rooms for the dead and demonic on a lark at a party. In the universe of grade B horror flix, there are as many "trolls" on the other side of a Ouija board as there is in an internet forum about upcoming superhero movies.

The GM/Director can use the Haunted House random generator to develop a random spirit or two when needed.

Oct 20: Haunted House Hunting in Crawlspace

Haunted houses for impromptu Crawlspace sessions are like cheese dips at parties, very popular and easy to handle, if full of potential trips to the hospital. Besides having a matrix for developing these scenarios, I avoid having to worry too much about the roles of the Characters by making them a part of a reality TV show. This way the players, err Actors can essentially be themselves or not without me having to come up with back story for them. The players have to decide their roles, or an Open Draw will decide for them.

Camera- Though everyone and his brother has a camera on their cell phones, this is the dude, or gal, that insist on carrying a shoulder-carried "professional-grade" camera on his shoulder. This better photographic quality gets to show the Talent's faces as they react to stuff that he is not filming.
Tech, flunky- This is the guy that gets to put up all the stationary cameras, run cables, fill up the van's tank, get coffee and sandwiches, etc... etc.
Tech, master- This guy, because of his mastery of owning a van, gets to run the "control" area.
Talent, big shot- This is the biggest ego, err the star of the group. Usually the one finding cold spots next to air conditioning vents and electrical spikes next to power lines.
Talent, putz- This is the guy that has his cell phone camera out. Then he always gets scared and just misses filming whatever just scared him because his cell phone camera was on him looking scared.
Talent, color- Usually known as the "psychic" or the "empath," but can be a special guest like a site historian or someone once involved with the place.

The GM/Director starts everyone back at the studio and then the team gets a call. This will be a lead to a site. The type of area depends on a Draw: 
Ace- An abandoned centuries-old mansion next to a cemetery (+2 for encounters).
King- The site of a murder or an fatal accident (+3 for encounters).
Queen-Jack- An old house with a well established family living there (+1 for encounters). 
Ten-Seven- An old hospital or a farm with a large house and stables and a barn (picturesque but no bonus).
Six-Three- An apartment complex, motel, restaurant, or a strip-mall
Deuce- A store or a fast food joint.
Joker- Draw again for locale but guaranteed encounters.

Once the gang is at the scene, the GM Draws for possible encounters:
King-Ten- Nothing
Nine-Four- An encounter that can be explained through regular means, but who wants to do that?
Three- Black card equals one encounter. Red card equals two encounters
Ace- Hearts equal a near complete apparition needing a favor, but it cannot speak directly. Clubs comes to wailing noises leading to clues to a murder. Diamonds moving items protecting hidden moneys. Spades an evil entity looking to kill someone or somebodies. 
Joker- A random Ace and two other cards. 

Types of Spirits encountered can determined according to the "Spirit Combat" rule on page 25 of the Crawlspace Deluxe rule book. A crafty Director can color things with another draw:
Three-Ten- An indigent Indignant ghost.
Queen-King- A Resident ghost that is easily researched and identifiable.
Ace- "The Infernal," see page 29 of the rule book.
Deuce- The Infernal posing as another kind of spirit.
Joker- A spirit that was killed by one of Characters playing in the session.

The impromptu plot can last for as many Drawn encounters as needed to make the night a complete session. Heck, I've had one that never saw a chair move, but the players kept things going for six hours. A haunted house or a haunted area can be very specific as well, but that varies from site to site. More on that later.

Oct 19: The Crawlspace Witch

93.3% of all witches are female through ancient, powerful, and inexplicably sexist metaphysics. Technically speaking, only the Draw of Joker will allow a GM/Director to fashion a warlock. Any Character can have the spells and ability listed in pages 24-27of Crawlspace Deluxe, but the Witch has kind of moved beyond the book. These ladies, and the very rare dude, do not have to learn the supernatural abilities of the Hidden World. Around puberty for these individuals the abilities start to manifest themselves-- This is almost always at very socially awkward times, like in Phys Ed class.

 Actors can be cast as a witch for a game, err filming session. This can be determined as a Whacko character would be. They earn Fame cards for making up to two of their own "spells." One of these Fame cards can be appointed to the Character's Charm STAT for the session.

This creature's preternatural aspect makes liking her awfully hard for most people. When Characters first encounter one, there is an Open Draw, only the person with the card closest to the witch's Charm STAT will not be repulsed by them. Of course the Character that Draws the same exact card, hates her beyond reason, though usually the actor is encouraged to make up many reasons. In game play, this means Characters not liking the witch are at a -1 on any Draw when she is around.

It isn't a leap of logic to conclude that making long-term friends and dating tends to be very challenging for the witch. This is most likely why secret covens like to pop up when witches do meet one another. There tends to be a lot of fuss among witches when they finally encounter a warlock. Most of the time though, a witch tends to bump into supernatural entities which become her "friends" of sorts.

Notice the orb?

Oct 18: Pitchfork Pictures

One of the main producers of the horror films that Crawlspace would-be stars find themselves living through (err acting in) is Pitchfork Pictures. This esteemed motion picture producer started in 1957 out as an English-speaking outlet for Radio Television Luxembourg Channel 17. When televised productions of Moliere and Euripides didn't bring in the expected audience counts, they decided to go Gothic horror. Despite being reputed for being lurid and exploitative, the firm has been around since.

The ever popular Count Vulgarr, the vampire known for being prettier than his victims, has had some seven scenarios (err films) . These films are known for being some inconsistent in the rules relating to the undead, but consistent in their effective use of camp and a bit of flesh to keep the crowds coming in. 

When Crawlspace Characters are in a Pitchfork Picture production he or she will receive a Fame card for every three sequences that the actor works in somehow showing a bit flesh. 

Oct 15: The Crawlspace Ghoul

You might not know this, but most ghouls have never even met a vampire. And while creepy sorts with ghoulish outlooks like to serve those guys, ghouls themselves aren't into eating bugs. They're into meatier stuff than insects and worms-- You know, like arms and legs. Having died and clawed their way out of their coffins also tends to make them not very photogenic, so answering the door when UPS shows up for a sleeping Nosferatu is very rarely in their job description.

Ghouls are folks that have reawakened after death and know only one thing, human flesh is delicious. This can happen because a curse that someone else cast upon them before their deaths. It can be karma for horrible deeds done in life by them. For some individuals, it can be sort of a family inheritance, say a hold-over from when Great-Great Grandmother consorted with devils to win a beauty pageant. 

As mentioned earlier, ghouls love human flesh. Not only do they like it, they need it. Eating corpses holds a ghoul together. The hungrier that one is, the more it decomposes. The fresher the flesh consumed, the more it does for them. When they are able to get sustenance from a living person, wounds heal and decomposition reverses, much of their living personality returns as well. Also as the body-eaters eat a corpse's brain he learns some of things that the meal knew in life. In Game terms, this means most ghouls have a whole lot of Perks.

Ghouls are hard to be around. Some sort of natural revulsion occurs when the still living sees one of the reawakened, no matter what kind of shape they are in. When the creature is almost human, every Character must make a Nerve Draw at 4. The hungrier it is, the more horrifying it becomes, so the GM should adjust the Draw likewise.

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Oct 14: The Crawlspace Werewolf

 Werewolves can be easily the most fun creature in any Crawlspace session, at least for the GM (err, writer-director) that is. Dude, or gal, turns into a ravenous beast with super-strength and speed, accompanied by wolf senses as well as sensibilities; then he gets to run around killing cast members. If all goes well, a couple of the Characters will kill it for the climax of the plot. 

Moonlight can cause all sufferers of cinematic lycanthropy to change into their wolf form. The more moonlight the smaller the chance of the afflicted making a Draw on Nerve to avoid the transformation  (Quarter moon, draw at 5; Half moon draw at 4; Waxing and Waning moons draw at 2; Full moon only a Joker). For certain individuals, their temper may trigger the change at any given time. 

Depending on the age of the werewolf, meaning how many flicks has it appeared in, it gets that many extra cards which is added to first its Physical STAT when in wolf form. It can only make Mental Draws at 1 though. When in human form, the Character gets a second card on the Charm STAT. In either form, the creature has the Is It the Sequel Yet no matter how many time it is killed, untill silver is used to kill it.

 The Stray
This variation of werewolf, retains its bipedal ambulation but can lope on all fours as needed. It also can make Mental draws at 2.

The Purebred 
 This sort of werewolf can turn at any time. It cannot not turn on a full moon. In its human form, it has an extra Charm STAT, but all Luck Draws are at -1. 

Oct. 9: The Libri Horrendus

The Horrendus Libri is said to have been written around 219 AD by the Mad Episcopal Lucas Of Antioch. While the other prophets of his time were arguing what was the true faith that would enlighten mankind in the Third century, Lucas was searching for more ancient truths. A prophet of the Arian faith, he wasn't happy, nor satisfied with the growing influence of the Nicene Christian or Catholic faiths of the world around him. Being fluent in Latin, the monk transcribed his native proto-Slavic language into a cypher where he could write down the mysteries that he solved. Delving past cryptic tenets of Judaism and eldritch pagan scripture, he unlocked horrible secrets. These secrets, more often than not, are best left forgotten, if not just left well enough unknown. Lucas is said to have lived until 999AD before a company of crusading knights stored his small castle, known as the Black Tower, and decapitated him. Later they burned his corpse to ensure that he could not somehow return. His written works lived on in the darker realms of occult study and the halls of under-funded academia.

It is also said that the man was able to cast sorcery or more specifically "grave-spawned magics of horrifying consequences" (according to Phillipus of Nicodemus IX) upon those that encountered him. Supposedly he lived on an island where the bodies of the dead buried there served him and acted as his body guards. It is believed that he is also the founder of many Satanic cults across all of the known world. During the legendary nearly eight hundred years of his life, it is said six copies of the unholy manuscript were completed. With the advent of the printing press, some twenty-two more issues of the dark work, entitled D' Libre Horribles, were reportedly cranked out-- a lot is said to have been edited out in these later works. 

This book, Le Libri Horrendus is at a glance a book full of gruesome and grotesque drawings, written in a secret code, with geometrical patterns that do not make sense. But for those that somehow get it, amazing supernatural abilities are just around the corner. In game terms, the Character can learn magical spells from reading it with a Mental Draw at 1, but suffer a -1 modifier on every Charm check per reading for that session.