D&D 5E 'The Thing' Inspired Rime of the Frostmaiden Has Player Secrets [Updated]

Made popular in boardgames, such as Battlestar Galactica, the idea of players with secrets can increase the tension of games. Rime of the Frostmaiden introduces 'character secrets'.

“I think the most interesting part [of Rime of the Frostmaiden] is the character secrets... characters can play it one of two ways. They can keep their secret close to their chest and not reveal it to the other players, fostering and breeding paranoia, or they can reveal it anytime they want to, and then wrestle with the consequences of it. That’s left entirely up to the players.”

- WotC's Chris Perkins​

It's not clear if it's a full-fledged traitor mechanic like in some other games, or just an extension of the traits/bonds/flaws guidelines.

UPDATE -- this post (below) has some more information from EN Worlder ikj. "It's a card you can draw at character creation. If you like it you keep it. If you don't you can take another. I don't get the impression it's a 'traitor mechanic' so much as a way to add some interesting twists to character interactions and add some tie-ins with the plot."

In other news, the adventure is very inspired by John Carpenter's The Thing.

“The Thing is a story about an isolated group of people dealing with a monster in their midst, and much of the movie takes place at night. If you take that idea and apply it to a D&D campaign, there’s lot of potential there,” he said over email. “When your setting is a cold, dark, isolated place, the horror comes easily. I was struck by the fact that our previous excursions to Icewind Dale didn’t really lean in that direction, so here was a chance to show Icewind Dale in a different light.”

From Venturebeat.

 

[Retreater]

But that is clearly not what they are doing, if you read the article.

"Drawing inspiration from The Thing" does not mean "literally making it like the Thing". Characters have secrets that tie them to the plot, not pvp, just plot ties.

So I'm going to make a game that's drawing inspiration from The Fast and the Furious, but it's not going to have cars. Or family.

 

[Paul Farquhar]

If they are drawing inspiration from the Thing, which has the equivalent of PCs being replaced by a murderous monster, I don't see how "character secrets" can be anything other than PvP. I'm hesitantly open to see what they do - and maybe their inspiration is just "horror in a cold place" - but my interest level just dropped.

With this genre "they all went mad and killed each other" should be a real potential outcome (it's unusually what happened to the previous expedition). But you want it to be entirely avoidable with intelligent play. This is how I would do it:

Everyone takes a secret card. All the secrets are fairly inconsequential, but you trick the players into thinking one of the cards is a "you are the monster" card. Really, none of the PCs is the monster (it's an NPC), but you make them think one of them is.

 

[Paul Farquhar]

Actually it is not clear. Crawford even said the player with the secret is free to tell the other players. So it seems the purpose is a bit different.

That's easy. You don't let the players keep the cards. So, when a player "tells their secret" the other players have no way to know they are not lying.

 

[dave2008]

That's easy. You don't let the players keep the cards. So, when a player "tells their secret" the other players have no way to know they are not lying.

Sorry, I'm not understanding the point of your comment. My point was the mechanic doesn't really rely on it being a secret per Crawford's comments. I am sure there are ways to make it a secret, but that was not the point of my comment.

 

[Paul Farquhar]

Sorry, I'm not understanding the point of your comment. My point was the mechanic doesn't really rely on it being a secret per Crawford's comments. I am sure there are ways to make it a secret, but that was not the point of my comment.

Crawford said the players are free to tell their secret, but without the card as evidence, if Player A says "my secret is I'm an agent for the Harpers" the other players have no way to know they are telling their truth. For all the other players know, the card might have said "you are the wendigo, eat everyone" and they are lying about being a Harper Agent.

Without proof "sharing the secret" is meaningless.

 

[MarkB]

So I'm going to make a game that's drawing inspiration from The Fast and the Furious, but it's not going to have cars. Or family.

If I make a D&D game that's based on The Fast and the Furious, it's definitely not going to have cars. Airships, maybe, or fantastical monstrous mounts. Family is optional - I'm not going to force my players to make characters who are related to each other.

 

[dave2008]

Crawford said the players are free to tell their secret, but without the card as evidence, if Player A says "my secret is I'm an agent for the Harpers" the other players have no way to know they are telling their truth. For all the other players know, the card might have said "you are the wendigo, eat everyone" and they are lying about being a Harper Agent.

Without proof "sharing the secret" is meaningless.

Got it - I hadn't heard that. Of course, it is really easy to give them the card too

 

[Paul Farquhar]

Got it - I hadn't heard that. Of course, it is really easy to give them the card too

That's why the DM confiscates the cards imedietly after the players read them. It's particularly important when the actually is no "wendigo" card.

 

[univoxs]

If they are drawing inspiration from the Thing, which has the equivalent of PCs being replaced by a murderous monster, I don't see how "character secrets" can be anything other than PvP. I'm hesitantly open to see what they do - and maybe their inspiration is just "horror in a cold place" - but my interest level just dropped.

Vampire and WoD games in general can often revolve around the characters being at odd purposes but being drawn together by a larger threat. For my table, this has mnade some of the most memorable and enjoyable sessions.

 

[Oofta]

Secrets are fine, I encourage it in my own game. PvP? Nope, not for me. It's something I ban in the session 0 discussion.

I do sometimes play minor mind-games with players with secrets, potential possession and so on, but I make sure it never scales up to the level of actual PCs fighting each other.