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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Abstruse" data-source="post: 6208101" data-attributes="member: 6669048">Here's something I really wanted to go into on both episodes of the podcast (the last one and the next one on Thursday) but didn't have time to go into - One of the best ways to get horror in your game is through the unknown. Ravenloft literally has it baked into the core of the setting in every edition that exact thing in the Dark Powers.What are the Dark Powers? Depends on what writer and what DM you ask. I run them as a combination of the writing staff of the Twilight Zone and a cat. They love ironic echo punishments and they love playing with their toys to aaaaalmost the point they die buy still keeping them alive and giving them hope they can escape before pulling them back in to play some more.How do they work in the rules? They are literally an in-game justification for DM fiat. You cast a cleric spell? Only works if the Dark Powers want it to. Fight a monster and it doesn't have the same weakness it used to? Dark Powers twisted them when they went through the Mists. Cast an arcane spell? Might work right, might not. Why? Dark Powers. Also, you can force a Powers Check on pretty much any but the most benign arcane spells.Want to put the fear into your players? Don't worry about the monsters, make them fear the Dark Powers.</blockquote>