How do you scare your PCs?

[BlackMoria]

My laugh. I've got a certain 'evil' laugh that I use....a sort of 'be afraid, be very afraid, you fools' laugh.

I have used it for sometime. But I didn't realize the impact until after a play session, one of the players stated that my 'laugh' gave them chills. Because everytime I used that laugh, very, very bad things happen to the party. Very bad things. The player said he dreaded hearing that laugh.

On another occasion, I did a 'haunted village' play session. I played up the feeling of oppressiveness, a sense of foreboding, the aura of fear and death....and a unseen but felt malignant 'presence'. Certain party members thought they saw things moving out of the corner of their eye or heard things that others couldn't hear or felt things that others couldn't feel. After several real hours of this, the party members couldn't take it any longer and fled the village, never to return.

Of course, the 'haunted village' was the adventure I developed. **Sigh** No matter what I did, I couldn't get my players to get their characters to go back. Hoised on my own petard, so to speak, so my adventure never got played out. The players said the experience was too creepy and disturbing. Obviously, the rare moment when all the factors combined to make a unforgetable impact on the players.

 

[Arkham]

Easily.
I sit down and say, "Ok, Undermountain tonight?"

 

[Gunton The Terrible]

I found I coud scare my players with simple terms.

When they announce an action or path they will take I occasionally say, "Really?" with an evil smirk and delight in my eye.

Or simply Email them "Sorry, no game this week."

 

[howandwhy99]

Lots of things have scared me as a player, but I don't think I have ever seen an out and out SCREAM without the GM sneaking up behind a player. In game I think tension is the best barometer for how scared the players are. If they are brainstorming like crazy just to find a way for their PC's live, you've managed to scare them.

I agree that atmosphere lends a lot to the situation. Typical D&D doesn't really have that feel of horror. But saying that, Olgar our DM did run us through Ravenloft I6 on Halloween as a one-shot. He went all out adding to the fear factor and really improved the game.

I would think any combat should be scary, otherwise it's sort of a mop-up you could gloss over. For scaring PC's I believe "Fear of the Unknown" works best, so I prefer plenty of monsters the players have never heard of. An overpowering monster with a weakness you don't know seems pretty staple of D&D. My favorite is using a monster that is less powerful than the PC's, but far more intelligent. That way you can use all your dirtiest tricks, but still give the PC's a chance win.

For example - (this uses intelligence and fear of the unknown):
A "Blue" goblin psion is tired of the PC's attacking and convinces his strike team to use an unorthodox tactic against their formidible enemy. Each is shaved, slicked in grease, and has squid tentacles strapped to their chin. When the PC's are in a dead-end room, the psion arcane locks the door, creates magical darkness within, and sends mental messages to the PC's about how hungry it is. The goblin strike team wades in sans weapons to grapple their foes and tie them up. (a la midget mindflayers) Throw a few well placed hold persons in and you have a party.

Yeah, absolute darkness where you remove the gameboard is always a fun one.

 

[Wraith Form]

How do I scare 'em? Easy. One word:


Speedo.


Yup, gets 'em every time...

 

[Ketjak]

The biggest thing I scared the PCs with was...

Y'know, campaign worlds always have these huge impressive sites scattered around. This was one of them. It's a huge temple (I even had a picture of it to show them) that's about 8 or 10 stories tall. The thing is made out of about four or five huge pieces of stone. The temple reeks of the highest quality Dwarven stonecrafting. It's ages old, has an important history, and plays an integral part in the world's politics. It was the party's base for a while. Well, they're sent to go fetch an item and at the end of the dungeon, there's a puzzle and they go through a portal. The portal dumps them out right in front of the temple where they see it's now rubble.

And I ended the session there.

That's cool - what was the next session like?

 

[palleomortis]

Ok, guys, I don't want them screaming or anything. I mean, the whole bikini thing kinda creeps ME out.

 

[palleomortis]

Ok, guys, I don't want them screaming or anything. I mean, the whole bikini thing kinda creeps ME out.

 

[klamo]

You could just....have some kinda monster kitty cat just rip someones head off and see what happens!!

 

[palleomortis]

MONTY PYTHON ALL THE WAY!!!! (Nice choice of avatar klamo, nice to see you are figuring the thing out.)