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Monster of the Week

Monster of the Week

3–5 Spieler 2015

Über dieses Spiel

Monster of the Week is a tabletop roleplaying game about a group of monster hunters taking on the terrors that prey on humanity. Inspired by media like Buffy the Vampire Slayer, The X-Files, and Supernatural, players create hunters based on classic archetypes of the genre. They might take on the Chosen, a hero with a grand destiny; the Divine, an angel or holy warrior here to protect humanity; the Monstrous, fighting against their own evil nature; the Professional “man-in-black”; and many more! One player, the Keeper or Game Master (GM), takes on the role of the world those characters inhabit. They’ll create the mysteries the hunters must investigate, the environments they’ll explore, and the victims, meddling authorities, and of course, the monsters they’ll face. Every monster exists at the center of a mystery that the players must solve to even have a chance of taking them on; investigators can only discover the monster's weakness through play, and must exploit that weakness to defeat the monster once and for all! You might even connect the dots on your conspiracy board to find that all these monsters connect to a massive central mystery, and try to stop their reign of terror once and for all!

Kategorien

Horror Mystery Supernatural Modern

Mechaniken

Powered by the Apocalypse

How to Play Monster of the Week

Monster of the Week uses the game engine pioneered by Apocalypse World, in which players roll two six-sided dice and add a bonus from one of their character stats; a 10 or better is a full success, a 7-9 is a partial success or success with consequences, and a 6 or lower is a “miss”, not necessarily a failure, but certainly a bad outcome for the character. Characters trigger these rolls when they take specific actions in the game, like Investigating a Mystery or Kicking Some Ass. You’ll use these “moves” to solve mysteries and hunt monsters in a world not unlike our own!

Each monster has a weakness that investigators will need to uncover; without exploiting a monster's weakness, it's virtually impossible to defeat. To that end, they'll need to use their wits, skills, gear, connections, and resources to figure out what's going on and put a stop to it. Monster of the Week characters only have so much luck (which they can spend to improve the results of rolls) and can only take so much harm before they're doomed, so they'll need to make a plan, and play smart! The game is narrative-focused, meaning that while the GM does prepare a monster to hunt and a mystery to solve, the game is really about playing to find out what happens, and everyone at the table will always be surprised. It's impossible to pre-plan the story of a Monster of the Week game!

Before you make characters, decide with your group what kind of monster hunting team you'll be! Are you a family? An organization? A group of friends? This will help guide your choices as you go. To make a character in Monster of the Week, start by choosing a playbook, a monster hunter archetype that comes with a unique list of moves and skills to choose from. Name them and choose what they look like, then choose their ratings in the five stats, Charm, Cool, Sharp, Tough, and Weird. You'll make any choices unique to your playbook, plus get at least one (usually more) special move. Finally, kit your hunter out with gear. When you're finished, you'll introduce your characters to the rest of the table and create connections between them, so you start the game already having history and dynamic relationships among the team. The GM will introduce the mystery, and you're off!

Classes

The Chosen

The Chosen

As the chosen one who must fulfill a destiny, you cannot die. Literally, there’s an ability that says you can’t die until your destiny comes to pass. Other abilities further protect you from harm or reward you for creating big moments that tie into your larger fate.

The Crooked

The Crooked

This can be your criminal with a heart of gold or loner with a mysterious past. The Crooked comes with a shady background that can be invoked to bail the party out of a tight spot. Imagine a loyal crew ready to throw hands, a black market contact that owes you a favor, or the skill to hotwire a getaway car.

The Divine

The Divine

If you’d rather fight evil than investigate it, Monster of the Week’s Divine Role is for you. Your character has been sent from above to carry out a mission and given a magic weapon to see it through. You can heal your friends, but you can just as easily call upon divine power to smite evil. Of course, such mighty power comes with strings attached. You are bound to the heavenly mission assigned to you by your patron.

The Expert

The Expert

There’s always a cool mentor figure in supernatural action stories, an experienced monster hunter who has seen it all. As the Expert, you’ll be the one who knows exactly what you’re facing and how to end it. You could be a hunter who stockpiles weapons in a secret base, a researcher with a hidden library, or the genius who whips up the perfect gadget just in time.

The Flake

The Flake

No one believes the Flake until it’s too late. They run around town warning everyone of the impending alien invasion but can’t get people to see the truth until they’re all being probed. As the Flake in Monster of the Week, your unusual mind helps you piece together clues faster and find useful friends who see the world like you do.

The Initiate

The Initiate

The Initiate Playbook lets you add to the story by creating a sect of guardians. Maybe you belong to an ancient order of monks or a clandestine witch coven. Whatever you choose, your character comes equipped with skills, weapons, or magic granted by their sect. You can also have ally characters like a mentor or subordinate to help you out.

The Monstrous

The Monstrous

When you just gotta be edgy, here’s your half-monster class. You’ll have a tragic curse based on whatever monster you spawn from. This is great for those who love roleplay as you’ll get to ham up your dark emotions or need to feed. In exchange for your curse, you get awesome powers like flight, super strength, or mind control.

The Mundane

The Mundane

A normal person who suddenly discovers the existence of the supernatural. Now, with no powers whatsoever, they help the team out by… stumbling into things. The Mundane abilities tend to give you bonuses when you get in a sticky situation and when you need to run away from said situation. This is a great playbook if you want to play a comic relief character.

The Professional

The Professional

Monster of the Week’s Professional Playbook is great for Men in Black type characters. These government agents get specialized gear for taking on the supernatural. They also have multiple abilities for keeping their cool in scary situations and improvising a solution.

The Spell-Slinger

The Spell-Slinger

Bring the fight to the monsters with an arsenal of spells. Many of these cause damage directly to the enemy, but more creative uses can manipulate the environment. You also get bonuses to investigating magical mysteries and performing complex rituals that are often needed to resolve bigger threats.

The Spooky

The Spooky

Power comes with a price. If you like roleplaying that dynamic, play the Spooky Playbook. They can have psychic powers, visions of the future, or the ability to bend luck. The fun cost to these abilities is a dark urge that the Game Master can draw upon to complicate any situation you find yourself in.

The Wronged

The Wronged

Become a tragic warrior obsessed with destroying the creature that took everything from them. The Wronged gets a signature weapon, bonuses to tracking their prey, and several skills that keep them going when others would go down. If the image of a dark, brooding hunter inspires you, play as the Wronged.

Häufig gestellte Fragen

How do turns work in Monster of the Week?
Monster of the Week and many games like it don’t use traditional turns or “initiative.” Instead, the players and the Game Master, or “Keeper”, decide what makes the most sense based on what’s happening in the fiction of the game. For example, if one character opens a door to find a werewolf behind it, it’s their turn! If another character hears their friend screaming like they’re being attacked by a werewolf, it’s probably her turn next! Players work together to share the spotlight and make sure everyone gets to participate, but the rules don’t enforce a strict “turn order.” In general though, the Keeper (and the monsters they control) get to react to the players’ actions—especially when they roll badly!
In Monster of the Week, who can use magic?
Any character in Monster of the Week can use magic—or at least they can try! Every character has the “Weird” stat, which they add to rolls when they attempt to use magic. “Use Magic” is a move that every character has access to, but some characters may be more skilled at it than others! If you want to be good at using magic in Monster of the Week, you might choose a playbook like the Expert, the Initiate, the Monstrous, the Spell-slinger, or the Spooky.
What is the difference between a one-shot and a campaign?
Typically a one-shot will consist of a self-contained adventure that will take place all in one session, which will usually take a few hours to complete. They are meant to be completed in one sitting, and will usually have a very focused plot or objective. A campaign on the other hand, is a longer adventure that takes place over multiple sessions. Short campaigns may be only 2-3 sessions, while longer ones may be played over months, or even years!
What supplies do I need to play Monster of the Week?
Obviously this will vary from table to table, but here are some good places to start! If your game is played in person, most likely you will want to get a set of dice, something to write with, and paper to take notes. If your game is hosted online instead, you will probably need to make accounts on a few sites for things like character sheets, access to the Virtual Tabletop for maps and tokens, and sites like Discord or Zoom for video/voice calls during the session. You won't always need to have the rulebooks to start, but if you want to read through them to make sure you know all the rules, this might also be a good option.
What if I'm not comfortable with certain themes or content in Monster of the Week?
Monster of the Week can cover an impressive range of topics and styles, including violence, horror, romance, and many many more! However, if there are specific themes or content that you’re uncomfortable with, let your group and GM know before the game, and have an open conversation about these topics. Any group worth playing with should be respectful and understanding of your concerns and the game can be adjusted so everyone is having fun. Many tables also use “Safety Tools” which help ensure that these conversations are handled easily, and everyone has a voice at the table.
What dice do I need for Monster of the Week?
Monster of the Week uses two six-sided dice exclusively; it's nice to have a pair of dice for each player, but a table can make do with a single pair!

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