Liminal Horror is a rules-lite, adaptable modern horror roleplaying game about normal characters and their struggles against the things that go bump in the night.
The game focuses on investigation, blending simple, old-school inspired rules with modern, narrative first principles, where survival is not guaranteed and those that do survive are often forever changed. It is a rules-lite, fail forward system that leverages creative problem solving in order to create memorable experiences at the table. Players act as 'investigators' navigating a modern world full of terrible and unknowable horrors.
For fans of Junji Ito, John Carpenter, Silent Hill, Resident Evil, Call of Cthulhu, Monster of the Week, or Silent Legions but wanting rules-lite adaptable system. It is a modern horror hack of Yochai Gal's Cairn (Into the Odd + Knave).
Gameplay: Fast and simple rules (the summary fits onto a single page). There are 3 stats (Strength, Dexterity, Control) and players makes saves when there is a risk of failure. Rolling equal to or under is a success. There are not rolls to hit (damage is dealt automatically).
Stress & Fallout: Play deals with horror themes. This is represented mechanically by Stress and Fallout. Fallout is how characters are changed encountering horrors. The design avoids using mental illness and trauma as game-play mechanics.
Wounds: A new system for detailing the lasting physical effects of injuries, including locations and severity.
This updated edition contains:
- Cleaner layout
- Clarified text
- A new Wounds system
- New Archetypes for quicker character creation
- Tools to align the focus more on “modern horror” than “cosmic horror”