Not really a review... wasn't sure what kind of quality i was getting here, but after having read through this over the past couple of days, I'm feeling pleased that i forked over a couple of bucks for it. This will make for a good session or two of campy horror goodness. I like how there are plot twists included that could move the story in a different direction. Also, I could see this having potential as a Dread scenario with just a bit of modification.

Nice simple and adaptable to almost any settling. Catches the feel of a B=grade horror really well. Best part for me, is it is perfect for a one session game of any type. If you just want to run with an idea quickly and get some characters done up in no time, these rules are great!

Great value!

Great RPG. Simple rules and simply fun, the best kind of RPG

Useful but not really needed to play. Each card explains the featured power without the page flipping of the rule book. Makes keeping track of powers as easy as handing out a card.

Horror Rules From: Crucifiction Games Reviewed by: Ron McClung

Horror Rules is a new Role Playing Game Core book from Crucifiction Games.

Cheesy horror came to mind when I saw Horror Rules. Something with Bruce Campbell (early years) or some Scream Queen was all that I could think about. There are two ways to run a good horror game and I think they are equally fun. There is the serious and brooding game with mood lighting, candles and occasional spookie sound effects. These are fun in one-nighters, simply because the mood can't be kept more than one or two nights, and are good with the right people. The other kind is good for one night when you don't have anything else to do and you want to goof around and run around like Scooby Doo. Horror Rules is like the latter.

From the Front cover: “A complete (and completely different) Horror Comedy RPG”

It is a well-written, good spirited game geared towards fast and fun play. Its simplicity is pretty apparent upon opening the book, but the simplicity is part of its character. The character classes are general archetypes like Action, Con, Propellerhead and VIP. Each has a list of Occupations for the players to choose from, and a Character Power. There are a total of 6 Character classes or character types. As you can tell by the titles, each is tongue-and-cheek with a little sense of humor thrown in.

The powers are representative of his humorous approach, giving each player an interesting ability that is quite characteristic of the Type. For instance, the Con has the Character Power Looking out for Number One which gives the Con the ability to bail out of a bad situation only to reappear later somewhere else of the player's choosing. By regular RPG standards, some of these powers are pretty powerful, but for this game, it adds to the humor. However, the character can only use this power once per game. The skill system is another example of its simplicity and ease of play. There are eleven total skills, but the GM (or Rules Keeper) can make up more. The player has total flexibility as to what to spend his skill points on, and there is a maximum 4 level limit to all skills in the game.

Aside from the simplicity adding to its character, the system adds in Luck Points, which turns any failure to a success, and Second Thought points. A character doesn't get a lot of Second Thought - at most two at character generation time - and they are used when a player is really unsure of his next action. He simply spends the point and asks the GM if he has second thoughts about his next action. The GM must answer truthfully. I found that interesting and despite its simplicity, I can see how that can be fun for the GM and the player.

Finally, in character generation, the character can spend the "Point" on anything they want within a list of options - for example increase an ability score (Vital Statistic), more skills points, more Luck Points - OR the player can buy one Special Trait from the list of them. Each has an advantage but also a drawback. Most are pretty straight forward and common, but they add just enough spice to the character to make him interesting. The system is, of course, real simple. A d10 role vs. Helping Vital plus Skill level. The player must roll equal to or under the Target number. Simple, quick and easy to remember.

From the back cover: “You'll Die Laughing”

The Combat system is just as simple as everything else, relying on a d10 vs. Target Number. Each character gets multiple attacks in the 5 second round, using the Coordination ability (plus the weapon's rate of attack modifiers) to determine number of attacks. Because the roll is a one die roll, the combat system is easy flowing, and simple. I admire this. It accomplishes exactly what the authors intended. It can be brutal for the bad guys, because Critical Hits can out-right kill some if the rolls are right. I like this because I've always thought that Zombies should go down a lot easier than they do in a lot of systems. For player characters, it hurts elsewhere - in the Vital Statistics. Otherwise, damage is taken from Health Scores.

Supernatural abilities are represented either through the Special Trait Partially Psychic or through Faith. Again, this is fairly simplistic but leaves the GM a lot of room to create broader options with very little work. Also, within these pages are rules on Grip, the equivalent of the classic sanity rating. No horror game is complete without some kind of measure of mental stability in horrific situations. Once again, it is simple, easy to remember and very flexible. This includes options for Panic Reactions and totally losing your Grip, which gets into Meltdowns and going Off the Deep End. Many of these results are listed in tables, but not to worry, there is a quick reference sheet in the back that lists them all and can be photocopied.

The game also includes a short and simple list of modern weapons and vehicles.

The Rulekeeper section completes the second half of the book, starting out with a simple advisory on how to run good horror. A precious gem in this section, however, is a section about Plot Flaws. It encourages Plot Flaws, because it keeps the feel of cheesy comedic horror. It encourages Rulekeepeers, when players say "hey wait a minute, didn't you say....", to respond "Yea, don't you think that's a bit odd...?" I had a good laugh about that.

Another outstandingly original and yet again simple attribute is something called Stupid Thing Points. These points are earned by players when they do something their "Player's Intuition" says they shouldn't do. It promotes situations that are inherent to horror games but players aren't willing to go through because they know the GM is out to get them. Along with this is something called Plot Pushers. These are major events within the game that drive the core plot and are usually harrowing encounters that harm or maim a character. The interesting thing is that at a point when the players feel like they are at a dead-end, THEY can call for a Plot Pushers. This is a case when a Rulekeeper can say "They asked for it" and really give it to them. The reward, if they survive, is more Stupid Thing Points and a big clue in the plot. This gives incredible power to the players. I love it.

The last few chapters cover adventuring, creating monsters, some sample monsters and a short adventure. There are some very inspiring guidelines for the types of games that can be run in Horror Rules. The book itself is well put together, with fine penciled art throughout. The theme and feel of the book is definitely a game that doesn't take itself too seriously. The nice thing is that there is not extra fluff. For a book that is 100 pages, you'd expect to feel shorted. But you are not. It simply doesn't have all that extra fluff that a reader has to read through.

As a final note, I'd like to make a comment on the authors and their publishing company. I consider myself a Christian and a gamer, and it's nice to know that their are other Christian gamers out there that are just as passionate about gaming and having fun at it as I am. I was honored to write this review of their fine product.

In conclusion, I have to say that I was very impressed with Horror Rules and at the first opportunity I want to run it. One thing I get out of reading their work is that the authors are passionate about gaming. Their want to have fun is quite evident throughout this book. This is a very fun game, and I look forward to trying it out.

Ghostowns & Gunsmoke From: Crucifiction Games Reviewed by: Ron McClung

Ghostowns & Gunsmoke is a new Roleplaying Game Expansion from Crucifiction Games. Some time ago, I reviewed Horror Rules, which is an outstanding product. Since then, Crucifiction Games has released several expansions, one of which is Ghostowns & Gunsmoke (G&G) - their western horror setting book. It is available in both PDF and softback book.

From page #1: “Welcome to the Wild Wild Wicked West - Free Pine Box Fittings Every Thursday”

Assuming you are familiar with Horror Rules (which you would have to be to play this game), G&G brings to the game new Character Types, new Western Skills, new Special Traits, new rules for Western Mayhem, new Western Bad Guys, new Western Weapons and Gear, Ghostown & Gunsmoke Character Sheets, background and source material, and a complete Ghostowns & Gunsmoke adventure, "A Fistful of Livers."Part One of G&G covers the additions it brings to Horror Rules. The new Character Types include City Slicker, Doc, Gunslinger and Indian. They each have their own unique character powers like the Gunslinger's Dead Eye and the Doc's Patching Holes. Character skills include some new skills as well as skills from the core book that are renamed "to sound more Old Westy." Of the skills, several are new, including Bows n' Arrows, and Cowboy. Some name changes include Hackin' n' Whackin' (Melee Weapons), Shootin' (Gun), and Sawbones (Medicine.)  

G&G also adds a new set of Special Traits. These include Deathwish, Gamblin' Man, and No Speak'um English. Like in the core rule book, these are used to spice up the character and give them more depth.  New Weapons & Equipment covers the obvious - guns, ammo and stuff for the Wild West setting. This is a fairly comprehensive list, giving the players enough to work with.

G&G also brings something new to the game of Horror Rules. Now a player can Take a Gamble, using a special set of rules presented in G&G. These are used at a point when a player wants to take a gamble. Any situation is applicable - attempting a task without a skill in it, trying something risky with an NPC, or trying something heroic. When the player wishes to use this option, he must state that he wants to "take a gamble that..." and state the gamble he is going to take. For example, the player may say "I'm taking a gamble that there's a back door to this saloon..."  

The key part of any gamble is the Wager. Wagers can be any in-game commodity from weapons and gear to health, Grip, Second Thought Points or even character powers. Once the wager is agreed upon between the GM and the player, then comes the moment of truth - Laying Down Your Cards. The player makes a roll against his Gameblin' skill. If the player succeeds, he keeps his wager and succeeds at the task in question. Otherwise, he loses the wager or he can Double Down - try again against his skill only by doubling his wager. This in my mind, is brilliant. It is a very cool and fun mechanic.Another interesting mechanic is the good old-fashioned classic Wild West Quickdraw. Players may find themselves in a situation similar to the classic Western face-off. In this case, the game provides a quick and easy way to perform them in-game. It gets quite comical when two Gunslingers with the Dead Eye power face off. One option to determine who goes first in that case is whoever calls Deadeye out first wins the draw. Setting the Scene is a short section on the Western setting, with a few historical references as well as few facts of life about the West in that time. There is not a lot of detail but enough to give you an idea. This game is not about historical accuracy and reenactment, it's about having fun. One area I think they did well in is the sensitive area of Native Americans and their role in the old West.  

"During the Wild West era, Native Americans were largely misunderstood, mistreated, mistrusted and generally given the shaft. While we can't be proud of how we treated our brothers, we can't overlook or sanitize it either. Native Americans played an integral role in the settling of the West, and to fully embrace this epic time without including them would be a disservice."

It shows guts that they did not sanitize it and kept it real.   This section also gets into the superstitions and supernatural of the West, a little. It introduces a short description of the Society for Supernatural Inquiry, a group that can serve as an enemy or a ally to the players in their G&G adventures.  

The Ruleskeeper section, like the core book, supplies the Ruleskeeper with all he needs to "scare the pants off people." The Ruleskeeper is reminded that the Old West was a violent and dangerous place and to make sure the players know it. It sets the scene of a gritty and dark place that most everyone should be familiar with through movies or books, and then asks the Ruleskeeper to throw in the creepy and strange, the alien and weird. It also encourages the use of player cards for a game a poker or blackjack if the adventure calls for it, to set the mood. It also gives you general guidelines as to how to create a good Western Horror adventure, reminding the reader that they don't have to know Old West history to have a good adventure. 

At the end there are three creatures supplied (the haunting Buffalo Spirit, psychopathic Coyote Jack, and undead Miner 49er), and an adventure called A Fistful of Livers. This adventure opens in a small town in Core Butte, Wyoming, where something dark and sinister is taking place. It is a fun little introduction to the game of Horror Rules and the G&G setting.

The layout is fairly basic and nothing to go crazy about, but it is well written and a fun read. The art is on par with the rest of the Horror Rules line, which is basic black and white sketches. The art is better than some but not as good as most. However, you are not buying this for the art, you are buying this for the fun.

In conclusion, I enjoyed Horror Rules because if its simplicity, its focus on ease of play and fun, and its general fun nature. Ghostowns & Gunsmoke is not any different. Old West cheesy horror is as much fun if not more than modern cheesy horror. One of the things I like most about this and their other supplements is that it is very entertaining to read, especially from a gamer point of view. These guys have a fun and goofy sense of humor. It is a great expansion to a great game.

Another excellent adventure for Horror Rules. My group had so much fun playing Napawekka Lake. The players became so paranoid that whenever one of the cast members left the immediate company of the group, that cast member was suspected of being involved with some diabolical plot. The stand up cards are an excellent addition to the product. They made it easy for me to present the pictures of the cast members and bad guys to my players, The stats on the backs of the stand ups made it easy to keep track of the characters and also gave me a convenient place to record wounds and other essential information. As with other scripts in this line, this script contains pages of additional information in the form of plot twists and sequels so that I can use this same setting and a similar plot multiple times with the same set of players. Overall, this was a fun night of horror gaming.<br><br> <b>LIKED</b>: The stand ups are just a great idea and are fairly well executed. You get art on one side of the stand up, and the stats for the character on the other side. I found it useful to hang the folded stand up on the top of my GM screen, using a a paper clip to keep it from moving around. This displayed the art to the players while I could still see the stats.<br><br><b>DISLIKED</b>: This script didn't include any maps, which many of the other scripts do include. It's not really a big deal, but since this script involves the characters traveling along "The Trail to Napawekka Lake," it would have been nice to have a map of the trail to show to the players.<br><br><b>QUALITY</b>: Very Good<br><br><b>VALUE</b>: Very Satisfied<br>

This is an awesome little game. For the price it can't be beat. Humorous but not stupid. Easy but not stupid. A great game to play in between more serious rpg campaigns. Great tool to teach people how to play rpgs. Easy enough to learn and character sheets are minimal making you focus more on the game than stuff like, "Where do I record my flint and tinder or my juju points or my rear armour class?"<br><br> <b>LIKED</b>: It is easy to play and is extremely fun. Good price. Easy rules but there is a lot there to make even the most hardened of RPG vets say, "Man, that's cool!"<br><br><b>DISLIKED</b>: The artwork. Some is good but a lot is crap. <br><br><b>QUALITY</b>: Very Good<br><br><b>VALUE</b>: Very Satisfied<br>

These are pretty damn useful for the price. Good for getting new players involved because they aren't always having to remember the power for their character. <br><br> <b>LIKED</b>: Duh! It makes you remember less.<br><br><b>DISLIKED</b>: It didn't come with a cherry coke? I don't know. I can't really complain for a buck.<br><br><b>QUALITY</b>: Excellent<br><br><b>VALUE</b>: Very Satisfied<br>

Okay supplement with a few selection of basic taverns that will serve in a pinch in a fantasy RPG.<br><br> <b>LIKED</b>: Selection of taverns<br><br><b>DISLIKED</b>: Artwork was very juvenile.<br><br><b>QUALITY</b>: Acceptable<br><br><b>VALUE</b>: Disappointed<br>

Another great scenario for the world's greatest horror movie role-playing game. If you don't already have Horror Rules, pick up your copy. This scenario is just. I ran it at a con and were laughing so hard that the hotel security asked us to keep it down because some of the guests were complaining. This is just a great scenario; it is a bit predictable, but that's also what makes it so much fun to play. People see where it's heading, and you either go with it or fight it. Either choice is fun. Most memorable moment: when the group tossed grandma down the laundry chute and one the characters fell on grandma, which would have killed her, except one of the characters used his power to save her. And yes, shortly after that happened the hotel security guard asked us to keep it down.<br><br> <b>LIKED</b>: This is just like other horror scripts in that it's complete and ready to play. I'd recommend grabbing the ready-to-die characters supplement so you have enough characters, 'cause their all gonna die. And, like the other scripts, with all the twists and sequel ideas, you have enough material to run this scenario five or six times. So you'll need even more characters to kill off.<br><br><b>DISLIKED</b>: It would be nice if some of the included art was also provided in a full-page format so that it could be printed to show to the players for reference or atmosphere.<br><br><b>QUALITY</b>: Excellent<br><br><b>VALUE</b>: Very Satisfied<br>

Loads of horror fun in just a few minutes! You can have this game up and running in less than 30 minutes, but you could spend hours playing it before you've even scratched the surface. It's billed as a "mini-game," but it's really a complete game system. Take the already fun and easy Horror Rules combat system and turn it into a square-based combat system, and you have some idea of what Bad Blood is like. But it's more than just that, because you can design scenarios with Bad Blood, you can play head-to-head skirmish games with Bad Blood, you can even play a challenging solo game with Bad Blood. It's all here, and it's all easy without being simplistic. My 11-year old enjoyed playing the game solo. My 8-year old had a good time playing a cooperative game along side of me. My 6-year had a blast playing the solo game with a little help from me. Once again, Crucifiction Games exceeds my expectations.<br><br> <b>LIKED</b>: This is NOT a "mini-game" but a game system that ranges from a simple but incredibly fun solo game all the way to a full-blown scenario-base skirmish game.<br><br><b>DISLIKED</b>: I couldn't get the backs of the tiles to align with the fronts of the tiles, so the backs of the tiles all read "me mini-ga."<br><br><b>QUALITY</b>: Very Good<br><br><b>VALUE</b>: Very Satisfied<br>

This was a hoot to run at my local game convention just a few days before Halloween. The players really got into it, even though their characters all ended up dead. This script has all the extra twists and variations that are included with products in this line. It's a great scenario, and I'm looking forward to running it again.<br><br> <b>LIKED</b>: All the great twists and variations that turn this into five different scenarios that can be run with the same players.<br><br><b>DISLIKED</b>: I'm still looking for slightly better artwork, but at this price, I'm not really complaining.<br><br><b>QUALITY</b>: Very Good<br><br><b>VALUE</b>: Very Satisfied<br>

This is a great addition to Horror Rules. I ran several adventures at a recent convention, and I didn't have to create a single character; I just printed off a copy of each character in Ready-To-Die Characters and I was prepared for all the death and mayhem for the entire weekend. I even had a bunch of characters left over to kill when I got home.<br><br> <b>LIKED</b>: All the work in creating these characters is done for you, just print and play.<br><br><b>DISLIKED</b>: All of the art is recycled from the Horror Rules scripts, so many of my players recognized the characters from previous adventures. That's not a real problem, but highly recognizable characters, like "Brewski" from Summer Camp Nightmare, were highly distracting for my regular players.<br><br><b>QUALITY</b>: Excellent<br><br><b>VALUE</b>: Very Satisfied<br>

This is the Second in a series of horror mini games based on the absolutely brilliant Horror Rules RPG ( Highly Recommended!) The mini-game is a stripped down version of the RPG rules allowing players to engage in small scale skirmishes on the tabletop. It's 40 pages (rules, the rest maps, counters and cut out minis)and is everything you need to play ( except 10 sided dice). It is very similar in lay-out to Rotten Wood ( the first mini-game) and is easy to understand. This time the game concentrates on Vampires and their minions as the menace rather than Zombies.

The player takes on the role of a character (VIP, Action Hero, LabCoat etc.) each with their own specialities and weaknesses , and do battle with the undead. Unlike a lot of games ,the body count is high, and character's lives can be short and bloody! This adds to the feel of the game ( What's the point of a horror game where nobody dies?) The Crucifiction homepage also has some cool freebies and provides good support. There is also a site forum and a yahoo group to discuss ideas, rules etc.

Bad Blood also introduces some new concepts: Super Health- The bad guys can now take a real beating before being put down, unlike the Zombies who could be taken down with one wound! Automatic Weapons: Including Burst and Sweep fire <br><br> <b>LIKED</b>: The mini-game rules are fully compatible with the RPG ( combat has been streamlined a bit) so you can take as much or as little as you like from the RPG and add it to the mix. I tend to use the Horror Rules RPG with the combat from the Skirmish game to create a table-top RPG. The rules are really easy to get to grips with being basically split into two parts: The Basic Game and The Skirmish Game.

The Basic Game: This is a beer and pretzels game , simple to play and quite a laugh. It uses a 1" square grid marked map (supplied) and "Horror Marker" cards placed in each square representing encounters, pick ups etc. Just cut out your cardstock heroes and off you go. This is ideal for getting used to the game mechanics. If you?ve played Rotten Wood you will be familiar with this. You can even mix the two up and include zombies and maps in the game for some variety! A decent enough game but I prefer?..:

The Skirmish Game: This is more my thing. You can keep the map system if you like ( or create your own) or use a game table with your own scenery. The combat Rules are a bit more complicated than the basic game, but are still really easy to learn! Because of its? roots in the Horror Rules RPG it?s relatively easy to convert monsters to Skirmish Rules and as I said, I tend to mix this with RPG elements to create a table-top RPG/Skirmish.

This is a stand alone game , so you don?t need the Horror Rules RPG to play BUT I would highly recommend it. <br><br><b>DISLIKED</b>: It's a horror skirmish game for $5.00, what's not to like!<br><br><b>QUALITY</b>: Very Good<br><br><b>VALUE</b>: Very Satisfied<br>