[re-opened] The Curse of the House of Rookwood

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ClosedThe Curse of the House of RookwoodPrivate3 / weekCESN
You are all descendants of a noble family, the Rookwoods, who have spread across Urth, a fictional realm of this game. You may have lost your titles or own lands far away, or maybe you're a relative by marriage and don't share the Rookwood blood. Regardless, you have received an invitation to attend the funeral of the old matriarch of the family who lived her last years mostly alone in the Rookwood Manor. You have rarely visited the rural country estate and, maybe some of you never even met the lady, but you were the only ones to show up for one reason or another.
I'm envisioning the setting to be something of a dark early renaissance fantasy setting, where superstition reigns but science is starting to question things. We can fit a bit of steampunk into it as well. We will see where the story takes us :D


May 9, 2022 4:46 pm
So this took a bit longer than I was expecting, but it's time to start the recruitment for the promised game :D
The Curse of the House of Rookwood is set in a world of shadows and monsters, in which a family struggles with very real personal conflicts while facing supernatural horrors. It's a game about a decaying nobility, gothic horror, urban fantasy, and supernatural conspiracy--but above all else, it is about the fraying bonds of a dysfunctional family and their efforts to save themselves from their own darker natures.

You, the Rookwoods are a privileged family, but unbeknown to you, that privilege comes at a cost. You are a family cursed with supernatural powers and troubled relationships. Will you work together to bury your skeletons, or will family drama bring your house to ruin?




✅ The Game System: The Curse of the House of Rookwood. I'll provide all rules, and simplify a few of the initial steps for this first test run, so you as a player won't need anything.

✅ The Pitch: You will be playing a group "regular" of people who were drawn into your dark family mysteries (on top of your already mundane family conflicts). To simplify the game start, you will know very little of your curse and your family history. These are part of the mystery you will reveal as you explore the old family manor.

✅ Adult Content or Controversial Themes: We'll be using safety tools to avoid anything uncomfortable, but anything dark or medieval-ish themed could be touched upon. I'll be running one of the suggested fantasy settings, as I think it will be easier and more inclusive for players that a specific historical setting. This setting refers to religious persecution, but that doesn't need to be a thing.

✅ Game Duration and Post Frequency. I'm aiming for 2-3 times a week, maybe more so we can have OOC discussing and clarifications given this is a new system. Being PbP, the game can easily last for a year, even though it's only a couple of real life sessions worth.

✅ How to Apply. I'm looking for players who are willing to drive the story as this system seems very suitable for a GMing style that is more about asking questions and less about providing answers (if you know what I mean ;) ). To apply, just drop a message here showing interest. Priority will be given to people who voted for the system, but everyone is welcome :D
I'll leave this open for a week or so as I finish up setting the game :)
Last edited October 26, 2022 2:49 pm
May 9, 2022 4:51 pm
I remember the initial post for this. I'm still interested.
May 9, 2022 5:26 pm
This sounds super neat and right up my alley. I am all for trying it out.
May 9, 2022 8:23 pm
Sounds cool. I love a good horror story and narrative driven games where players drive the story. I'd be interested eventhough I might have missed the first post you mentioned.
May 9, 2022 9:09 pm
still interested as well !
May 12, 2022 9:06 pm
Cool, four players is perfect :D

one last call for this game if anyone else is interested. I'll sent invitations sometime during the weekend
May 12, 2022 9:25 pm
I'd like to play if there's room
May 13, 2022 5:35 am
Awesome! I am excited to see how it goes!
May 15, 2022 11:49 am
Invites sent! I think 5 players will be manageable. Let's try out this systems then!

I'll keep the game private for now because of the paid material, but if anyone would like to follow, just let me know :D
Oct 26, 2022 2:49 pm
It seems like life doesn't stop even for GP, and we're down a few players. Because this is a small town family mystery sort of game, it would be great if there were 1-2 players who'd like to take over pre-existing characters. We are still on the 1st day (2nd scene) so not really much has happened yet.

As a reminder, this is a dark, mystery gothic horror sort of game, with the twist that you all have secrets that can tear the family apart (and someone knows about it!). Simple dice pool system where you "buy" the consequences of your actions with the successes.

So far, the family was summoned back to their Manor in the countryside, where every character experienced some sort of supernatural event and they are now trying to make sense of it all. The two characters available would be the the rakish cousin who fell from grace (hard) after his fiancee left him and the military loyalist brother who is "the last" hope for saving the family name.

The game is not public because the rules are not freely available, but I can add anyone who wants to have a quick look before deciding :D
Last edited October 26, 2022 2:51 pm
Oct 26, 2022 3:58 pm
I would like to have a peek, please. I got the rules (from the same source as you) and my group showed interest for it to be a last minute replacement for our regular game, but when I downloaded the rules I realized it was a bit too involved for a last minute thing. I still want to run it at some point but I always appreciate being able to play before I run
Oct 26, 2022 7:14 pm
Invite sent! I made a little post listing the important threads so you can look around without needing to look for things :)

I’ll give you some time to read and look around but let me know if you have questions
Oct 26, 2022 8:14 pm
This sounds cool! I'd be happy to join, if you'll have me. Of course, I understand if you want to leave things open a bit and do a lottery draw or something.
Oct 26, 2022 10:27 pm
It’s not a well known system so I don’t expect a lot of interest. I will keep it open for a few days but I can add you so you can also have a look and decide if it is something that you’d like to try :)
Oct 27, 2022 11:04 am
CESN says:
Invite sent! I made a little post listing the important threads so you can look around without needing to look for things :)

I’ll give you some time to read and look around but let me know if you have questions
Thank you

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