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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Mishihari Lord" data-source="post: 2536759" data-attributes="member: 128">I once ran a haunted castle adventure (AD&D 2E) in which I really didn't intend to creep out the players, but did anyway.  I think the key was using things that could not be explained by the rules.  It was fear of the unknown, but in a meta-game sense.  Some of the elements of the adventure were1)  Throughout the castle there were people and things that you see but only in your peripheral vision and only in a ghostly fashion.  If you looked right at them they weren't there.  Later in the adventure these things became clear and real-world objects faded.  Part of the point of the adventure was to return to the real world.2)  A room full of very realistic statues of people, apparently arranged as if in a dinner party.  They never moved while anyone was looking, but statues that no one was observing were frequently in different positions when the characters looked at them again.  The longer the characters stayed in the room the closer the statues got, the angrier their faces looked, and several of them became armed with (stone) knives.  There was a growing impression that they were being observed by something filled with malice.  The statues detected as totally non-magical.3)  A room full of crates.  In the second round in the room a crowbar levitated and attacked the PCs.  It had a THAC0 of about 10 and did 1d6 damage per hit.  If struck it fell to the ground but rose again in 1 round.  This one seemed like no big deal to me, but the players were thoroughly freaked.One of the hazards of this technique is that it really irritates gamist players who want everything by the rules so that they can use optimal tactics.  Know your players before using it.</blockquote>

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