Worlds of Pulp: Vampire Construction Tables
Publisher: Scaldcrow Games
Cost: $2.99
Page Count: 23
Release Date: 07/17/2015
Get it Here: DriveThruRPG.com
I was one of 49 backers for Scaldcrow Games’ newest RPG, Ron Fortier’s Cape Noire, and since that won’t be out for another nine months or so, I thought I’d pick up their latest offering just to see the potential quality of what I’m getting.
Vampire Construction Titles is exactly what the title states – random generation tables for vampire NPCs. To use the tables, all you need are 2d6. However, the charts will be different. Some will be 2d6, while others are d66, which is where you roll two six sided dice and instead of adding the numbers together, you read them as separate numbers, so you would have 4-5, not nine, as your roll result. These are all fairly standard forms of doing random generation charts, so unless you’re completely new to using them (and thus RPGs in general), this should all be extremely instinctive.
Each table in this collection is more than a simple die roll followed by a one or two word description. Each result gives a decent sized explanation of what you just rolled. For example, the first table (Species Detail) gives you a paragraph explaining what the vampire type you generated is all about. Sure, some of these, like Ghouls and Revenants, aren’t actually vampires, but you DO get a lot of information that will help fire up your imagination in regards to how you will use this new creature. With this particular chart I would have been happier if the Species were actually different vampires of legend, like Lamia, Aswang, Stirgoi or Lillin, but I’m still impressed by the sheer amount of detail in this piece.
Other charts in this collection include appearance, country of origin, destruction, weaknesses, exposition character, vampiric origin, modus operandi and more. Rolling all of the charts will give you a very fleshed out vampire to use in your horror RPGs. This would probably work best with Chill or Call of Cthulhu, where a vampire’s stats and abilities aren’t set in stone. With some effort, you could make these tables work with a game like Ravenloft or Vampire: The Masquerade, but you’ll have to leave some of these charts out.
Now many of you, like myself, prefer to create NPCs from scratch and thus don’t have a use for random generation charts like this. However, for younger, less experienced or less imaginative GM’s, something like this collection of tables is a fantastic way to help you learn how to homebrew characters and even adventures. There’s even a “character sheet” at the end of the collection to keep all your roll results organized and in one spot. So this is a very well thought idea that is well worth the price tag if you primarily play horror RPGs.
About my only complaint with the piece is that the cover layout looks really amateurish (there are like five different fonts on it alone for example), but the inside of the PDF is nicely done. So don’t judge a book by its cover – literally in this case.
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