Two of us were already dead and Lydia was missing. Perhaps she fell overboard, though no one heard a splash. We remaining five began to wonder about the pact we made, to remain on the drifting yacht until morning, so that we could all make our way to shore together.
There could be no doubt now; this was foul play. And the slaughter showed no sign of ending. The question before us was “Who?”
Well, in truth, the question before me was “Who next?”
HHosting mysteries can be tremendous fun, but they are also some of the most complex plots to manage. An element of mystery should exist in any Dread game. It is the power behind the suspense and the product of the deception. However, stories in which the plot strongly focuses on the question of who committed which foul deed are a slightly different breed altogether. Especially when the players’ characters are themselves suspects.
You may have to pay extra attention to how you plan to isolate the characters when you create a mystery. Why haven’t the police been called or why haven’t they arrived yet? What keeps the characters from fleeing once they realize a killer is in their midst? And why hasn’t the killer fled yet?
Isolation also helps to narrow the field of suspects. If no one can enter or leave the mansion, then it is a safe bet that the murderer is still among them.
Of course, if the players’ characters are the police, that carries with it its own built-in isolation. Whom do the authorities turn to for help?
During a mystery, the players will spend quite a bit of time and energy examining the scene of the crime. Likewise, the host should spend a little more time preparing for this. To run a mystery well, you should be intimately aware of the details of the crime. However, it is more important that you know how the crime was committed and what exactly occurred at the time than to know every detail of the scene itself. This is because once you know the nature of the crime, the details will make themselves evident in play.
When compiling your notes for the game, take the time to write up what happened during the crime, even if there will be no witnesses left to tell the tale. Then, you can jot down a few of the more obvious details the characters will see when they first happen upon the scene. Do not worry about creating clues.
This is because the players should create the clues for you. During play, they will undoubtedly examine every inch of the scene looking for any hint to what happened. As they do this, think about the crime and the criminal. When the characters look to see if any of the furniture in the room has been moved, ask yourself if there would have been and why. Was a desk knocked over in the struggle and then set back up? Was a wardrobe moved to cover the blood splatter on the wall?
By having the players inspire the clues this way, you don’t spend the entire game dancing around the clues you have placed for them. It also gives you more control over the pace of the plot. You can always allow for more mistakes to be made by your criminal mastermind if things start slowing down.
In a mystery, much needs to remain hidden. However, in Dread, there is no way to hide the tower. Anything that involves the tower will happen in front of the other players. As the Aside sidebar points out, this is not an issue. What if you want to determine something that you don’t even want the player pulling to know about? The characters return to a campsite they visited earlier this morning, and something is amiss. You, as the host, would dearly love to have them pull to notice that the tent has been moved two feet to cover a fresh grave, but even asking for the pull would hint that there is something wrong. What do you do?
This is the perfect moment for an elective pull. If there is something on a character’s questionnaire that indicates she would casually notice the difference, then no pull is necessary. Otherwise it is up to the players to offer a pull to notice such details. The first few times you host games like this, you may have to remind the players of this option. Soon they should catch on, but in case they don’t, you may want to remind everyone of the elective pull rules before any game that would require such sleuthing.
To sustain a mystery and to create distrust among the players, you may want to pull players aside when you narrate a part of the story to them that only their characters witness.
While this does a lovely job of keeping the other players in the dark about things their characters wouldn’t know, it does break up the story for those not participating. Try to resolve these asides quickly and try to use them only when necessary. Also, encourage the players not involved to discuss and plot among themselves in character while you pull one player away from the table.
Some find it easier to pass notes back and forth instead. Just keep in mind that, while reading and writing a response, the host’s attention is no longer on the group as a whole. So these, too, should be kept to a minimum.
You will also want to make sure everyone witnesses any pulls that are made, whether their character is present or not. They don’t need to know what the pull is for, but just knowing a pull was made will thicken the suspense.
What if they successfully pull and nothing was actually different? In this case, just let them know that they are fairly confident that nothing has changed. They should be certain; after all, they pulled for it.
Mysteries also tend to use the rules for conflicts between players’ characters quite often. As accusations fly and tempers flare among the characters, players will be tempted to take it to the tower. Do not force them into this. Unless one character intends to do lasting harm to another, there is no need to use the tower. They can argue over guilt or innocence all night long, but when one of them decides it is time to overwhelm the other and lock them up, then tell the players it is time to get the tower involved.
You don’t want these sorts of interpersonal conflicts to dominate the game, but one or two flareups can be expected in the stress of a murder mystery.
In general, the character’s awareness and detective prowess will be of great importance during mysteries. Ask questions that will help you determine what a character will be able to notice without an elective pull. This will definitely save you time during the game itself. Ask about the resources available to the characters, especially if they are the authorities. Do they have a contact at a newspaper who can leak a story to agitate the murderer? Do they have access to their own crime lab, or do they have to rely on the overbooked lab in a neighboring city?
If the characters are going to be suspects, let them come up with their own motives. “Why did you want Karen dead?” “What did Robert do to you that you will never forgive?” “How did you plan to kill your boss?”
Then you should consider their opportunity. “What were you doing with the deceased the night before the murder?” “Why can’t you tell anyone where you were between the hours of nine and midnight?” “Why haven’t you told anyone you were the last one to see her alive?”
So, what if you want one of the players’ characters to be the murderer? This is a neat trick that sows the seeds of paranoia, and is a crop that your players will be reaping for games to come if done right. However, be sure that you don’t overdo it. It may be fun to pit the players against each other once in a while, but if it happens too often the focus of the game shifts from horror to who can pluck the most blocks from the tower.
If you are going to set one of the players’ characters up for murder, start in the questionnaire. You can be very up front about it, letting them know the instant they read the questions that they will be playing the role of the murderer. This way you allow the player time to plot and maneuver their defense or alibi.
For an example of how to accomplish this without letting the player in on the secret, check out the example story Beneath the Mask at the end of this book.