Haunts and Other Spooky Stuff (Pathfinder)
So, as I continue to flesh out a festival of fear for my players that is filled with haunts, I realize that some of these haunts are really... just traps. Very creative and potentially scary traps, but... traps all the same. I don't want to have a house full of zombies, but having a haunted house full of traps really isn't much better; just the other end of the encounter spectrum.
I also really like haunts because they have some kind of way to foil them that isn't just a skill check (for example, the ghostly maiden who ages onlookers that screams and vanishes when shown her own haggard reflection). To me, that's creative, and in turn, kind of spooky. You have to brave the danger in order to gauge what might stop it.
In other cases, a trap that demands a real sacrifice from the PC, with a high chance of failure, is scary and nerve-wracking. For instance, you walk into a room with some zombies, but catch the eye of a beautiful painting. You're stuck watching it while the zombies approach and start to damage you. You can escape, but again, the odds of making the save are kinda hard. It ramps up the tension, for me anyways...
My point for all that jabber is this: can you come up with an idea for some spooks and haunts that will turn a horror situation into survival horror? Not just with traps, but maybe entities, creatures and other things. I'll start with a few of my own thoughts:
The Wishing-You-Well: A spirit that cries for acts of charity when people pass by. If you've got nothing on you, you find the mild wailing kind of annoying. But if you have stuff in your inventory, you make a Will save (DC 17, perhaps). Failing the save compels your character to take out their most expensive/valuable item and hold it over the well. Players make another Will save at a slightly lower DC (15, for example). If you succeed, the cries go quiet, you recover your senses and return your item to your inventory. But if you fail, you drop it down the well. The only way to get it back is to go down and get it (be it in a storm cellar or having to climb down the dark narrow dried up well). There may or may not be something actually hiding down at the bottom...
Torch of Terrors Revealed: Functions like a normal torch, but every time the PC holding it enters a new room, make a roll. If 20-12, the torch reveals nothing in the darkness. If 11-6, the PC sees something moderately unsettling in the room that only they can see (ie. a bleached skeleton hung from the ceiling, carpets and tapestries sewn from fresh carcass skins,etc.). If 5-2, the PC sees zombies or other undead creatures shuffling around, moaning and groaning (alternatively, any actual monsters appear like normal, friendly NPCs). If 1, the PC believes any allies with him have turned into monstrous forms and are attacking him/her. These effects only apply if the torch's light is shining on the apparitions. The torch goes out after the same length of time as a normal torch, but can be re-light 2 rounds after it goes out. Unless identified with a Knowledge: Arcana or Knowledge: Religion check, the torch appears to be perfectly normal.
The Chitterbug: CR 2 (make your own stats, or use a standard large bug. The behavior is the key aspect) - A large beetle or insect (roughly the size of a domestic cat) with dark navy coloring, this scavenger follows noisily, but cleverly behind or close to wandering PCs in hopes of finding a meal from slain foes. Named for the chittering noise is makes when moving, the bug will move alongside or, if possible, directly above PCs. If the PC stops, the bug (and it's chittering noises) stop as well, only moving when the PC it's following does. If discovered, it hunkers down and raises it's outer hide in hopes of blending in or disinteresting potential predators. If attacked, it retreats out of sight as far as it can.
Along with causing PCs unease or nervous behavior, the Chitterbug's noisy movement can attract other nearby foes...
I also really like haunts because they have some kind of way to foil them that isn't just a skill check (for example, the ghostly maiden who ages onlookers that screams and vanishes when shown her own haggard reflection). To me, that's creative, and in turn, kind of spooky. You have to brave the danger in order to gauge what might stop it.
In other cases, a trap that demands a real sacrifice from the PC, with a high chance of failure, is scary and nerve-wracking. For instance, you walk into a room with some zombies, but catch the eye of a beautiful painting. You're stuck watching it while the zombies approach and start to damage you. You can escape, but again, the odds of making the save are kinda hard. It ramps up the tension, for me anyways...
My point for all that jabber is this: can you come up with an idea for some spooks and haunts that will turn a horror situation into survival horror? Not just with traps, but maybe entities, creatures and other things. I'll start with a few of my own thoughts:
The Wishing-You-Well: A spirit that cries for acts of charity when people pass by. If you've got nothing on you, you find the mild wailing kind of annoying. But if you have stuff in your inventory, you make a Will save (DC 17, perhaps). Failing the save compels your character to take out their most expensive/valuable item and hold it over the well. Players make another Will save at a slightly lower DC (15, for example). If you succeed, the cries go quiet, you recover your senses and return your item to your inventory. But if you fail, you drop it down the well. The only way to get it back is to go down and get it (be it in a storm cellar or having to climb down the dark narrow dried up well). There may or may not be something actually hiding down at the bottom...
Torch of Terrors Revealed: Functions like a normal torch, but every time the PC holding it enters a new room, make a roll. If 20-12, the torch reveals nothing in the darkness. If 11-6, the PC sees something moderately unsettling in the room that only they can see (ie. a bleached skeleton hung from the ceiling, carpets and tapestries sewn from fresh carcass skins,etc.). If 5-2, the PC sees zombies or other undead creatures shuffling around, moaning and groaning (alternatively, any actual monsters appear like normal, friendly NPCs). If 1, the PC believes any allies with him have turned into monstrous forms and are attacking him/her. These effects only apply if the torch's light is shining on the apparitions. The torch goes out after the same length of time as a normal torch, but can be re-light 2 rounds after it goes out. Unless identified with a Knowledge: Arcana or Knowledge: Religion check, the torch appears to be perfectly normal.
The Chitterbug: CR 2 (make your own stats, or use a standard large bug. The behavior is the key aspect) - A large beetle or insect (roughly the size of a domestic cat) with dark navy coloring, this scavenger follows noisily, but cleverly behind or close to wandering PCs in hopes of finding a meal from slain foes. Named for the chittering noise is makes when moving, the bug will move alongside or, if possible, directly above PCs. If the PC stops, the bug (and it's chittering noises) stop as well, only moving when the PC it's following does. If discovered, it hunkers down and raises it's outer hide in hopes of blending in or disinteresting potential predators. If attacked, it retreats out of sight as far as it can.
Along with causing PCs unease or nervous behavior, the Chitterbug's noisy movement can attract other nearby foes...