Train of The Damned

Hello everyone, I'm Winter! I am back with another game idea, this time inspired by psychological horror and an RNG concept I've had. I'm running a special Halloween horror one-shot and looking for a group of players who want to dive into a tense, atmospheric nightmare with me while becoming over-the-table friends along the way. Below you will find the relevant story information, gameplay expectations, and what I am looking for in players. Story Distress letters were sent across the realm for help after a city's own forces were completely wiped out by an unknown threat. the source of the catastrophe has been traced back to a grand, historic hotel in the heart of the city. When you step inside, you realize the horror is much worse than you imagined. the hotel itself seems to be breathing. the walls are warm, the pipes groan like they are in pain, and every single time you open a door, the room itself shifts and changes, pulling from a randomized reality of deadly traps and encounters. you must navigate this shifting labyrinth, uncover what is happening to this building, save the city, and survive the night. Gameplay This will be a serious, narrative-focused dnd 5e horror one-shot built on an unpredictable RNG core. the main mechanic at play within the hotel is a randomized table of pre-generated rooms. when you open a door, your rolls will determine what you face next from a master list of designed encounters, running through a limited but highly intense selection. the potential for encounters includes a mix of combat against various monsters, dangerous traps, and psychological tests. while the oneshot isn't designed to completely wipe the party, it is meant to be challenging. The encounters range from moderately difficult to incredibly deadly, so please come in with the understanding that player character death is a very real possibility. you will need to take every room seriously and manage your resources carefully if you want to avoid dying before you even reach the final boss at the very end. restorative and healing magic is deeply corrupted inside these walls—attempting to use healing magic will actually deal necrotic damage directly to the caster. you will need to rely on your wits, your resources, and your party to survive. Character Creation & Safety Characters will be at level 5, and we will be using Standard Array for stats. We are using the DND 5e 2014 system. Since this is a dark psychological horror game involving intense themes and unsettling environments, safety at the table is incredibly important to me, so I have included a section for everyone to note 'triggers' if you have any in the application. If you are applying, please be comfortable with mature, terrifying environments! Details We will play over discord using roll20. I am in PST, but any North American timezone (PST/MT/CT/EST) is preferred. The session will take place on 10/31/26, Halloween day! The exact time of day itself is flexible and will be decided based on player availability. players must be 20+. As a dm, I love running serious, story-focused games with strong character investment. I know it can be hard to build massive character arcs or deep player bonds in a single evening, but I really enjoy tailoring games for people who appreciate roleplay and a serious tone over a mindless, arcade-style dungeon crawl. I have been DMing for a few years now, so I am not the most experienced. More than anything, I am looking for players who want to be friends beyond the table itself. I appreciate dnd the most when the table feels close, like true friends. Since this is just a one-shot, the time to build that bond during the session is limited of course, but I am specifically looking for people who genuinely want to stay friends after the game is over—whether that's through gaming together or just chilling in a vc. If you are a player who appreciates this style of game and actively wants to build a friendship, please apply below or message me for the application! https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLScCnwEwJ4t9qGuD1XiF-hSHf5mg5KkgDm38sAUC_bA2RNhxVw/viewform

SO... Every year around Halloween, I like to run a horror oneshot. I've been learning about new horror RPG systems and I want to run one of these! I have several HORROR options I want to pitch to you. 1 CHILDISH THINGS —immersive horror Keywords: PCs are children: ages 4-9, monsters, small secluded town, high immersion, nightmare-like, run away the terrors of the night to find your missing parents and classmates in your small secluded town. What is seen the shadows is easily misunderstood in the mind of a child… Roleplay: HIGH Combat: LOW Technology: MODERN DAY (but before cell phones) Player buy-in: For this game, you will need to be able to act, react, and talk like little kids. You will need to have some form of family in your backstory that you care about - and want to find when they go missing. Because this is horror, you won’t be able to FIGHT the monsters; rather you’ll need to RUN. This game won’t work unless you can react to things as a small CHILD, i.e. with FEAR. We only play after dark, preferably with your lights out, with headphones, and clutching your childhood blanket or stuffed animal. It should be an extremely immersive horror experience. **note: Before the first session, I ask you to list out your ACTUAL fears to me (clowns, spiders, being kidnapped, etc) so that I do not include them in the game. In addition, I ask all my players to read and sign a waiver, telling you (among other things) that if it’s getting too intense, you must TELL me right away so that everyone has a safe and enjoyable time. 2 MOBIUS —paranormal exploration Keywords: modern-day teenagers, trapped on an abandoned island, paranormal, time loops, strange and terrifying secrets hidden, investigation, time travel Roleplay: LOW (You don't need to be an actor/roleplayer to enjoy this game) Combat: MEDIUM Technology: MODERN DAY (but before cell phones) Player buy-in: You don’t need to be a good roleplayer to enjoy this mysterious game. There won’t be much combat, as anything truly dangerous you’ll probably have to run from. You WILL need to be curious, investigative. You’ll also need to be driven to escape and survive, because there won’t be an opportunity for you to create another character if you die; you’ll just have to take over one of the 3-4 NPC teenagers who came with you. In other words, be careful! **Helpful hint: The last time I ran this game, everyone signing up initially wanted to be “the quiet nerd type”…I would encourage you to go for something else if you think you can. :) 3 TEN CANDLES —tragic horror Keywords: modern-day teenagers, trapped on an abandoned island, paranormal, time loops, strange and terrifying secrets hidden, investigation, time travel Roleplay: MEDIUM Combat/Lethality: MEDIUM Technology: ANY (Our setting can potentially any era from real-world history) Player buy-in: 10 days ago, the sun went out. No one understands why or what happened. But then... that's when They started to appear. You can't kill Them. You can't understand Them. The only thing they fear... is light. But the electric grid (or village bonfire or whatever light source you have) has been mostly wiped out... and so has the rest of humanity. This is specifically a "tragic horror" narrative - there is no way to "win." This is a story of the last few people left alive, and their final struggles before ALL of them die at the very end. This is a powerful narrative-driven system where we really try to tell a compelling narrative together. This system is intended to be played in-person in a dark room with actual candles that are purposely extinguished as the game progresses... so I'm honestly not sure if this sort of style can be run online. Still... if there is sufficient interest, I'm down to see what can happen! WHAT SYSTEM WOULD WE USE? To be honest, I’m not entirely sure. I would prefer to assemble my players first. Then we can decide the system together. I’ve had great success in my decade of GMing running a heavily simplified system called The Bare Bones System, but I am open to running any of the following: - Dread - Ten Candles - Kids on Bikes - Everyone is John - The Bare Bones System Several of these systems imply that we might have a scenario not covered in my 3 ideas above. That is ok with me! :) YOU READ THIS FAR? Great! Can't wait to meet you! Leave an application below! :) THE APPLICATION (please copy/paste these questions into your reply) ****NOTE: I only come to Reddit once or twice a week, so DM me on Discord if you are interested! My Discord tag is moogamoogamooga Name: (screenname is fine) Approximate age: (specific or vague) How many years you've played TTRPGs, which systems, and how many (if any) years you've been a Gamemaster: Which past (or present) campaigns you've enjoyed the most, and why: What sounds appealing about a horror game to you? (BONUS: Have you ever been in a horror campaign before, as a player or a GM?): Tell me which campaign idea(s) sounds fun to you! What intrigues you about it? What do you imagine yourself doing?: Pitch your character(s). This can be as short or as long as you’d like: ****NOTE: I only check Reddit once a week, so DM me on Discord if you are interested! My Discord tag is moogamoogamooga

LOOKING FOR 3–5 PLAYERS — IN-PERSON TTRPG PLAYTEST Location: Millbrook / Prattville / Wetumpka, with the Montgomery area also an option Format: In-person tabletop RPG Genre: Fantasy adventure Experience: None required — new and experienced players welcome Character Creation: Required as part of the playtest. You'll be building your own character rather than having me build one for you. I'll be available to answer rules questions, but I specifically want to see how well a new player can navigate character creation on their own. Schedule: Flexible evenings or weekends System: UNBOUND, a custom TTRPG system I'm developing I'm looking for 3–5 players to help playtest UNBOUND, an anti-essentialist, leveled point-buy TTRPG built around one idea: Build the character you actually want to play, instead of choosing a class and being told what that character is supposed to be. UNBOUND doesn't lock you into traditional class archetypes. You build your character through Build Points, Perks, Limitations, and attributes, allowing you to develop in whatever direction fits your concept. Combat is dynamic, using Active Defenses, contested rolls, and armor as a percentage-based damage reduction system. Magic is intentionally flexible, and healing isn't restricted to one dedicated “healbot” class. The goal of the playtest is to actually put these ideas through their paces at a real table — see what works, find what doesn't, and have some fun while we're doing it. No prior experience with TTRPGs is necessary. You don't need to know any systems going in; character creation is part of the playtest, and I'll walk everyone through it. The Player's Guide, GM's Guide, and Martial Arts Handbook are already available on the UNBOUND Discord. Send me a message and I'll give you an invite so you can look them over before deciding whether you'd like to play. Interested? Message me. Even if you're curious but not sure yet, feel free to reach out and ask questions.