Dread Scenarios

[exile]

Dread seems to get a little bit of attention on these boards. I have actually played in one game of it and run two.

In the game I played, the characters were all minions who finally came to the realization that their mad scientist employer was completely off his rocker, a danger to the world. They all died horrible deaths getting the information needed to stop him into teh appropriate hands.

In the scenario that I ran (same scenario, two different groups), the characters were all out for a yacht trip when their ship sank. They made their way to a tropical isle where a local drug lord used them for slave labor and sent parts of their bodies back to their families (along with ransom notes). In both scenarios most of teh group escaped the isle, with 1-2 characters dying messy deaths.

Now, one of the groups is clamoring for me to run a new Dread scenario. Does anyone have any inspiration that could be quickly conveyed here?

Chad

 

[Crothian]

Pick a horror movie and run. There is a new movie called Quaritine that looks terrible but the idea works for a Dread game. A bunch of people get trapped in a building as the DCD/police won't let anyone out nor tell them anything. And they have to survive with whatever is trapped in with them. In the movie it looks like everyone dies.

The first Dread game I played has us in some sort of religious like camp for betterment of self. It turned out once people reached a certain level of enlightment they were being killed off for the insane leader who thought it would give him immortality. What I liked most about this one is it was not supernatural at all.

 

[Ruslanchik]

I've never played Dread, but I have read a bit about it. I keep imagining a scenario like this:

The players design characters that are notable for some reason--low-level celebrities, business leaders, politicians, etc. None of the characters know each other, but may know of each other. They are all invited to a dinner party at a mansion out in the middle of nowhere. This is, of course, your classic spooky mansion with grand ballrooms, long hallways, 50 rooms, a secret dungeon, and secret passages throughout. They have each received the invitation from a person close to them that they trust but are told nothing about who is hosting it or what exactly might take place there.

The characters only ever interact with the staff--it is never made clear who is hosting the party--and the staff becomes increasingly more detached, taking longer and longer to respond to requests and whatnot, before they disappear altogether. Eventually spooky things start to occur: loud noises are heard in the halls, the lights go out, and characters start to disappear (NPCs first, those who drop the tower next).

Ultimately, the group has to work together to survive the night and make it out alive!

I'm not sure what the baddie should be, but there are, of course, unlimited possibilities. You could always make one of the PCs the baddie. There should definitely be details added to create distrust and paranoia. Having one of the PCs be a psycho cannibal or something would definitely help with that.