Before we begin our review of Rural Gothic, we would like to thank the author, Umberto Pignatelli, and the publisher, Smart Bonsai Games, for providing us with a digital copy of the game. It is a horror roleplaying game with simple rules, in which players take on the roles of inhabitants of a small town investigating supernatural mysteries in colonial America from the 1700s to the early 1900s.

If after reading this review, you want to purchase a digital copy, you can find it on the DrivethruRPG site for $4.99 (approximately 4.50 euros).

The game consists of two pamphlets (one for the Chronicler — the narrator — and the other for two to four players) and a character sheet for the inhabitants of the town. Rural Gothic draws inspiration from narratives such as Sleepy Hollow and The Witch, as well as some stories by R. E. Howard and H. P. Lovecraft.

Creating the Characters

In Rural Gothic, characters are defined by their Traits. These evocative descriptors identify their abilities and strengths. The most important trait is the one that defines the character Concept. This trait usually represents the character’s profession or an archetype, such as the Disillusioned Guard or the Pious Peasant. Secondary Traits, on the other hand, represent additional talents, skills or qualities, and serve to reinforce the character’s concept. Examples might include ‘expert hunter’ or ‘marksman’.

A Trait could be supernatural, such as ‘exorcist’. If so, you must fill in the eye icon on the character sheet next to the trait and write ‘+1’ next to it.

Another important character element are Assets: character-defining objects, relics or companions that the character depends on. They are not intended to represent all of the character’s possessions, only those that are crucial to the story. A maximum of two resources must be invented for character creation. The character sheet is completed with two numerical values: Luck, which can be used to re-roll dice to achieve the best possible outcome or to introduce a narrative element with the Chronicler’s permission, and Endurance, which measures the character’s physical and mental strength. At the start of the session, each character has an Endurance score of 4 and a Luck score of 2.

The Game Rules

Much of the game involves conversation, during which players describe their characters’ actions and the Chronicler describes how the game world reacts. When characters face a threat, players must create a pool of six-sided dice, with one die for each of the following conditions:

• Is it reasonable for an ordinary person to overcome the threat
• When one or more resources provide an advantage
• Whether one or more of the character’s traits are relevant
• If a companion provides substantial help

At this point, roll the dice pool and keep only the highest value. Compare this with the results table. If the highest value is 1, it is a critical failure: the character will suffer the consequences of the threat, as well as a setback. When the highest value is 2 or 3, it is a failure, and the character will suffer the consequences of the threat. If the highest value is 4, the result is a partial success: the threat is defeated, but the character suffers a setback. A result of 5 guarantees full success, and if a 6 is rolled, in addition to overcoming the threat, the character also gains an advantage.

The players’ pamphlet lists the setbacks and advantages of each character, as well as how to spend Luck points and the character growth procedure.

The Tips for the Chronicler

Even the Chronicler’s pamphlet is essential in its structure, but it provides everything needed to set up a session. All the tips provided detail the tools available to the Chronicler and some optional rules that can be used (such as when you want to play without the use of dice). Well highlighted and clearly and thoroughly explained is the use of Terror, the most powerful tool in the hands of the narrator. It is to compose a stack of tokens.

Specifically, a token must be added to the Terror pool when:

• The die with the highest result against a threat is that of a Supernatural Trait
• A citizen escapes death
• Terror grows according to the game rules
• A citizen sees something terrible or highly disturbing

The Chronicler can use Terror Tokens from the pool to increase the difficulty of Supernatural Threats. Each token reduces the citizen’s dice pool by 1, but only if there is a consistent narrative justification for doing so.

I found the ‘Tips and Tricks’ section particularly interesting and useful for maintaining tension throughout the game. In just a few lines, some useful tips that could also be applied to other roleplaying games (not just horror ones) are summarised.

Review of the Aesthetics of Rural Gothic

Aesthetically speaking, Rural Gothic is very interesting. Despite its small size, the game immediately draws you into its atmosphere.

The contrast between black and white and the fine illustrations by Tessa Basanese, combined with the layout by Matteo Ceresa, make the pamphlets intriguing without compromising their readability. The overall effect is curiously disturbing yet harmonious.

Rural Gothic Review Conclusions.

Undoubtedly, Rural Gothic is a game that can be explained quickly, but players need to be fully aware of what they are going to play, especially since security systems are lacking in both pamphlets. However, the nine points summarizing the setting are sufficiently explicit in conveying the basic setting and general tone of the game.

The cost, the short time required to prepare a session and the small space taken up by materials are all good reasons to appreciate it.

If you have a group of horror and folklore enthusiasts, interested in the American continent between the late 17th and early 19th centuries, and you want to set up narrative sessions quickly, then Rural Gothic is the game for you.

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