NOTE: This is a beta version of the rules and not the final rules. ALL VOID CVLT games are LIVING GAMES (see VOID CVLT website for more) and released under version numbers. These rules are for VERSION 2 of this game. Version 1 has been removed but most of the rules for that version are in this beta text.

These rules are not complete and will change over time.

WHAT IS fear&reason?
fear&reason is a streamlined tabletop rpg that is meant to simulate the cosmic horror of the works of H.P. Lovecraft, August Derleth and countless others, as well as movies such as The Thing, Event Horizon, The Void, and more.

It assumes you know the basics of roleplaying games, if not you can find info [here]

Originally designed to be used with preprinted adventures from other horror based rpgs, the system is easily swapped for other low magic, high lethality systems.

BASED ON LASERS & FEELINGS AND CTHULHU DARK
This game is a mashup of Lasers & Feelings by John Harper and Cthulhu Dark by Grahm Walmsley. It doesn't pretend to be anything original, simply an homage to two great designers and fantastic games. See [Giving The Devils Their Due](about)

ORIGINAL PLAYSETS
A key feature of fear&reason is the playsets feature used to generate original adventures. Through the use of playsets, a GM can fine tune the mood and theme of the horror presented by customizing the aspects, professions, and goals available to the player characters.

Everyone needs a name.

This is the primary defining aspect of who this character is. Characters should be multifaceted, but beneath everything else, this is who they are. For example, they might present as even tempered normally but under the right circumstances you'll they are full of anger.

This is the concept or archetype for your character. These roles are the broadest generalization and not the complete description. For example, a Private Eye may not necessarily be a private detective but might be a police detective or insurance fraud investigator. The role defines both occupation and function in the party.

(Choose one or create your own): This is the driving force of the character, if an aspect is who they are, then a goal is why they do things.

This is a number from 2 to 5. A LOW attribute means you are better at FEAR intuition; gut feelings; wild seduction; raw emotional actions. A HIGH attribute means you're better at REASON technology, science, cold rationality, calm, precise action.

Write down FEAR and under that, write down your ATTRIBUTE number. Under your attribute, write down REASON.

Write the word DAMAGE you start with 0. Damage can be considered how healthy you are. 0 is good 6 is dead. Write down the word INSIGHT. You start with 0 Insight. Insight is how aware you are of the horrors of the cosmos. 0 is blissfully ignorant, 6 is broken and unable to function in day-to-day life.

• A single d6 BASE DIE is used to resolve actions.
• The BASE DIE can be modified with additional dice.
• Game Masters (GMs) decide which type of roll is needed based on the character's approach.
• Success is determined by comparing the dice results to the player's attribute number.
• FEAR- Roll above your attribute to gain success with actions involving emotions or passion.
• REASON- Roll below your attribute to gain success with actions involving logic, intelligence, wisdom, knowledge or a state of calm success is attained by rolling below your attribute.

YOU CAN EXPAND YOUR DICE POOL BY:

When your character's role aligns with the action you gain an automatic success. You can still roll to gather clues, ensuring at least one success, even if all dice fail.

• You can reroll one die when the action relates to your character's goal or aspect.
• This ability is limited to once per game session for both Aspects and Goals.

Both GM and players work together to influence the outcome of die rolls. “Control Player” or “Control GM” decides who ultimately gains narrative advantage to the roll.

To help another character, describe how your character contributes to the task in a way that fits the narrative. This grants the player you're assisting an additional d6 to their roll. If the roll still fails, both you and the assisted player each take 1 point of loss, either in Insight or damage, depending on the challenge you were trying to aid with.

If you find a clue (use markers to keep track) you may spend a clue marker to one of the following:

PAY CLUE THRESHOLD
Use to pay clue threshold of a scenario to overcome a situation, mystery, creature or move on to the next scene.

ASK A QUESTION
Ask the gm a question that they'll answer honestly. For example: “what are they really feeling?”, “Who's behind this?”, “How could I get them to x?” “What should I be on the lookout for?” “What's the best way to x?”, “What's really going on here?”

END COMBAT
You can pay one clue token to end the combat by killing, subduing, or incapacitate your opponent, or otherwise gaining advantage in the combat. Narrate how you do so.

RE-ROLL ANY ONE DIE
If a die roll does not produce the result you were hoping for, you may spend one clue token to re-roll one die. You may spend clues equal to the number of dice originally rolled and may not re-roll a second time.

CHANGE A DETAIL
You may change a detail in the fiction provided the following conditions are met: The detail must fit within the current fiction and cannot be used to 'wish' for outcomes that would significantly alter the course of the story. The change is only a minor advantage and does not retcon the entire fiction.

AVOID DAMAGE/STRESS
You may pay 1 clue to avoid 1 level of damage or stress from a failed roll and do not need to roll on the recovery table.

Player assembles dice pool

1. The chase is conducted over 3 rounds
2. If all dice rolled succeed, the chase is over and the players have fled, unable to be caught or followed
3. Write down the number of successes at each roll. If the roll favors the opponent (by having more failures than success) the GM may use a doom token to complicate the chase.
4. If after each roll there are more successes than failures, the player may pay 1 clue token to end the chase.
5. If there is a tie the player can pay a clue to end chase otherwise the GM can use a doom token to complicate the scene

Combat - don't fight cosmic horrors or you will most likely die.
Cosmic horrors often cannot be fought by physically assaulting them directly and will almost always result in death for the character. There are exceptions to this for minor horrors, but we encourage this to be the rare exception to the rule rather than the rule itself.

Combat is designed to be fast and dangerous, most combat will be settled in 1 round. More resilient foes will be resolved in 3 rounds or less. There are 2 combat types SINGLE ROUND COMBAT and 3 ROUND COMBAT.

Narrative control is given to the players or the GM who dictate how the combat played out.

• Combat Approach: Describe your attack style against humans - Reason for a calculated approach, Fear for a passionate one.
• Each success inflicts 1 damage; rolling your number earns a clue marker to end the scene.
• Each die that fails counts as damage the foe inflicts on you.

This type of combat is for minor foes such as henchmen, nameless cultists or fleshy cosmic horrors that are easily dispatched.

• Roll for combat as above
• After the roll calculate damage the character has taken.
• Minor foes only need one success to be defeated.

This type of combat is for opponents stronger than standard foes. This could be from the leader of henchmen, a cult leader, or as high as a cosmic horror. The GM TOOLS section will have information on how to construct foes. Foes have a damage threshold between 3 and 12. Some Cosmic horrors will need both damage threshold and clue threshold be met before they are defeated.

• Roll for combat as above
• After each roll, record damage. If foe is still undefeated, continue.
• Record each die successes and failures for 3 rounds.
• After 3 rounds, compare total success vs total failures.
• More success: Player overcomes opponent.
• More failures: Opponent gains the upper hand; GM can spend 1 Doom to try and kill.
• Tie: Player can spend a clue token to escape; otherwise, GM can spend a Doom token to capture or kill.

- If you roll your ATTRIBUTE, choose 2 damage to foe or -1 from your damage and gain a clue. - Clues can be spent immediately to end combat.

Insight is a measure of your awareness of the reality of cosmos that we live in. Living in blissful ignorance is much better than knowing the horrible truths.

INSIGHT
The effects of gaining insight are not meant to replicate any specific mental illness or replicate, make light of or otherwise attempt to tackle the real-world complexities of mental illness. The rules as presented are simply a way of mechanically making things more challenging while your awareness grows. Knowing more does not make your life easier.

DAMAGE
Damage is the measure of how much physical strain and injury your body has suffered. fear&reason has the potential to become very deadly for those foolhardy enough to rush headlong into danger. Clever ideas and creative gameplay are key.

If you gain INSIGHT or DAMAGE, you will roll on the RECOVERY TABLE chart for effects and for additional modifiers. This mechanic consumes character time, urging caution before confronting the lurking horror that harmed them. Recovery before further investigating is wise due to mortal danger. Characters risk mortal peril when investigating without full recovery, urging caution before facing the horror again.

Each time a roll fails , a DOOM counter is generated. Doom markers symbolize the characters stumbling upon forbidden knowledge.

Doom markers should always be visible to players, placed in front of them, serving as a constant reminder of the impending threat. The GM can expend one Doom Marker *AT ANY TIME* to force a roll to fail, aligning with the narrative.

Doom tokens are primarily tools for the GM to exert control after an initial failed roll. However, players always have the option to use clue tokens to mitigate any complications arising from Doom.

NOTE: Doom Tokens are THE ONLY TIME, outside of poor rolls by players, when the GM may take negative actions against the players. For instance, introducing a horrifying scene or revealing a creature that prompts characters to make Insight checks. This tool empowers the GM to advance the story or steer the machinations of the scenario's threat toward fruition.

What follows is a collection of tools used to run fear&reason that do not fit into the other categories geared for player characters. This by no means is to imply this is 'hidden knowledge'. It is simply a 'bucket' of tools and procedure's and players are freely encourage to understand the hows and whys of what the game master is doing while running the game.

Scenario playsets are a collection of tables that allow to play cosmic horror adventures in specific times and places. They allow for Game Masters and players to create adventures that can focus on themes within the time and place of the playset.

Playsets consist of, at a minimum, tables to generate:
Player Characters (Aspects, Role, Goal)
Foes & Adversaries (Threat, Wants to, McGuffin, Which will)
Key Locations (Name, Description)

PLAYSET GLOSSARY:
McGuffin: is the plot device that motivates the Foe or Adversary and advances the adventure.
Key Locations: are locations, generally between 3 and 5, where players may discover that directly relate to the foe and their plans. Key Locations also have a **Clue Threshold** that must be paid before advancing to the next Key Location.

Playsets produced by VOID CVLT will also include tables of suggested story hooks based on the foes produced by the generators in the playset that match thematically with adventures.

NEW ENGLAND 1920's Playset can be found here.

SCENARIOS
Scenarios in fear&reason are divided into scenes, each representing a specific place in time where characters engage with the unfolding narrative.

There are two distinct types of locations used for these scenes:

1. Regular Location: These places contribute to the overall drama and action of the scenario but do not contain crucial clues to advance the narrative.

2. Key Location: These locations play a pivotal role in advancing the story, as they are potential sources of important clues. Clues are uncovered through investigation and subsequent dice rolls. While some clues may be discovered without visiting key locations, these special places act as gateways, unlocking access to other key locations.

Each key location has a specific Clue Threshold that must be met to unlock another key location or progress to the Final Horror (refer to GM Tools). Characters can choose to leave key locations without unlocking subsequent ones and face the Final Horror. However, doing so may leave them without all the necessary tools or information to overcome the impending Final Horror.

NOTE: Key Locations are designed not to railroad players down a predetermined path but rather to guide them toward vital information or items that can be utilized in the confrontation with the Final Horror.

Creatures in fear&reason can be classified in two categories

MINONS (for humans)/MINOR HORRORS
Minion/Minor Horrors  have a cost of ½ the total number of PC rounded up. A minor creature up against 3 pcs will need 2 clues to be defeated.

COSMIC HORRORS
As a general rule most cosmic horrors cannot by  physically fought with mundane weapons or mundane attempts at physical HEALTH. They can be fought with clues found in fiction. This can represent a spell, symbol, ritual, physical item that is supernatural or imbued with supernatural energy.