Moralinth: Creating tone & atmosphere
- Adam Donovan
- Oct 16, 2018
- 7 min read
Setting the right tone and atmosphere is more important in some TTRPGs (Table-Top Role-Playing Games) than others, and individuals who run these games use many different tools to produce the right effect at the table.
Custom voices for NPCs, mood music and hand-outs are all common gaming "props" that can be employed to great effect.
Moralinth, like other games that have a suspenseful, dramatic element (in this instance horror, corruption and insanity), rely heavily on the inclusion and maintaining of the correct atmosphere.
There are a few ways this can be achieved, and a part of the Core Rulebook is dedicated to just such an endeavour:
UNDERSTANDING THE GAME'S THEMES:
Most games, Moralinth included - have a selection of recurring themes that help cement the idea of the game-world in the minds of the players and the narrator/gamesmaster/dungeon master/referee. Understanding what these elements are and how they effect the game works as a good foundation for setting the tone. For example, some of the themes in Moralinth are:
Twisted Victoriana Though it is set on a different world, the setting for Moralinth is deliberately designed to be heavily reminiscent of the Victorian Era, circa late 1880’s. Apart from obvious variations (the different geography of the world, The Blight and the Enclaves) and the more specific ones mentioned in 'Chapter 11 – Victorian Gothic', Narrators are encouraged to pull inspiration and ideas from any historical information or even fictional works from between approximately 1840 to 1900 – in other words, what would be considered “The Victorian Era”.
Subtle Horror, Subtle Magic Moralinth is not a game of monsters rampaging through the cobbled high-streets or mages flinging fireballs at one another. Most of the horror of the game is contained or personal in nature, though that does not mean that cosmic horror is not part of the game, simply that it is not something that is exposed to the populace. The only true horror universally accepted is that of The Blight, a condition that can be as easily explained by science as it can faith or mysticism.
Logic vs Magic Though the competition between the ways of science and the ways of The Church are just as prominent in Moralinth as the Victorian Era that it emulates, a conflict that is specific to the Moralinth world is a more convert struggle between the ways of logic and the ways of magic. Magic is returning to the world and heralds the beginning of the decline of The Age of Reason, though The Dark has reawakened into a time when interest in faith wanes and curiosity into the ways of science and technology have never been stronger. Even The Church chafes against the perpetual onslaught of technological progression and the Estanian Empire is at the very height of its industrial revolution.
The Dark Although an entire chapter is dedicated to this topic (being 'Chapter 14 – The Dark') it is worth reiterating here just how much this ancient and alien force actually effects the world of Moralinth. Apart from the obvious changes that come with the presence of The Dark such as the manipulation of reality through magic, the existence of Creatures of Darkness, power held within occult items such as Cyphers and Artefacts and actual environmental manifestations such as The Gloom, there are plenty of more subtle, insidious ways that The Dark interacts with the world of Moralinth. This ancient force that comes from somewhere beyond the void slowly infects all things until every blade of grass, every cry of a newborn or a drop of rain upon a flower contain a trace of its’ existence. It is for this reason that things are inherently flawed in Moralinth, from ideas and events to people and the Gods they worship. No matter how progressive or satisfying a situation may seem, it will, eventually, fall away to entropy and chaos. Things unravel and fall apart, and to quote Yeats: “the centre cannot hold”.
PROPS & TOOLS:
As mentioned earlier, apart from a working knowledge of the underlying themes of the game, some commonly-used additions come in the form of props and other tools which can help with immersion and creating (as well as maintaining) the often difficult mood of a horror-based game. Some of the ones commonly used in Moralinth include:
Lighting Mood lighting can be exceptionally mood-inducing in role-playing games. Consider using softer lighting when playing Moralinth. Turn off all overhead lighting and use lamps or non-direct light sources. Where possible use candles or tea-lights but of course, be mindful of naked flames and try not to make things so dark that it is a struggle to read the character sheets or see dice rolls. Some people also find that burning incense – apart from filling the area with a different aroma and further removing the room from its normal role in everyday life – presents an excellent visual aid as well, having the smoke gently waft around the room gives things a slightly more ethereal and dream-like feeling.
Music & Ambience Much like lighting, music and other forms of ambience manipulation can have an excellent effect around the gaming table. Ensure that any music played is fitting with the genre (slow, creepy music especially piano or classical pieces work best) and not too distracting. Avoid any music with lyrics unless they are in a language everyone is unfamiliar with – the idea of the music is to have the players subconsciously listening to it, rather than actively paying attention to it and thereby removing their focus from the game. There are plenty of places to source music and sound effects from, and it does not necessarily need to be an expensive thing to set up. One could create a playlist for example, in something that can stream music like Spotify or YouTube.
Physical Props A number of physical props could enhance a game of Moralinth, and while not vital can help to add to the immersion of the scene. Many Narrators like to give out handouts to players, and these sort of physical props are certainly to be encouraged, but see if any of these also suit your gaming group: - Different coloured counters to represent each character’s Might, Speed and Intellect pools. - Something to keep track of Insanity and Corruption points - A memorable item to indicate the use of Horror Mode (ornamental skulls are especially effective) - Set dressing such as drapes, table-clothes, tarot decks, old books, etc. - Battle-maps and miniatures (though assure these are theme-specific) - A dice-roller or dice-tower, to ensure everyone can see the dice rolls
Make sure not to clutter the area too much with an extensive collection of props however; you want to set the scene, not clutter it. Speak to your players about what other type of props they might like to see.
INSPIRATION:
There are a great many sources of inspiration for the project that became Moralinth, including literature, film and television, music and various games including – of course – tabletop roleplaying games. Listed below are a selection of these inspirations which are heartily recommended for reading, viewing, listening and gaming pleasure, this is only a small portion of the inspirational sources found in the Moralinth Core Rulebook:
Literature Dracula (Stoker) : Abraham Stoker’s most well-known piece, “Dracula” is the story of the vampire count that has become synonymous with the story of vampirism across the world, made into many films, plays, novellas and even computer games. The name of Dracula is among the most popular in gothic literature and has gone through many incarnations through the years since its original publication in 1897. A now-classical story where the titular Count Dracula attempts to move from his ancestral home in Transylvania to London, England to spread the undead curse, it is a story of loss and betrayal, love and lust that is written from many various character viewpoints in a journal-like fashion. It encompasses many aspects of the gothic horror genre, but like many others the main focus is in the conflicts of good versus evil, mortal versus immortal and hope versus ruin. The Count is, like an Moralinth Adversary, considerably more powerful than those who stand against him, but he is not without his weaknesses and, in the end, the conjoined forces of the protagonists are able to best the immortal creature.
Film & Television TV: Penny Dreadful (2014-2016): Though many works from television and cinema are inspirations for Moralinth, perhaps the one that so completely encapsulates it is the Showtime production “Penny Dreadful” by John Logan. Spanning three seasons, this program explores many aspects of the gothic horror genre and is set in the late Victorian Era. Recreating and retelling the stories of many famous literary horror icons like Dracula, Frankenstein and his Creature, Dorian Gray, a Coven of Witches, and Satan as well as introducing new characters like the troubled clairvoyant Vanessa Ives and the gunslinger Werewolf Ethan Chandler, these twenty-seven episodes are a joy to watch as the well-written stories and superbly-acted characters unfold in their journey to confront and challenge dark forces while trying to protect themselves from madness and corruption. Obviously the parallels with Moralinth should be fairly obvious and rightly so: I cannot urge Players and Narrators enough to explore this dark and dramatic series.
Music The Piano works of Lucas King: A relatively unknown and talented composer from York in England, Lucas King has an impressive array of original musical compositions under his belt, but the ones that suit Moralinth the best are his ‘dark piano’ series. Especially impressive, they are categorised under different mental conditions such as “melancholia” “depression” or “fear” and do an excellent job of presenting these conditions through the medium of music. Little could be written here would do these heartfelt pieces justice, so a recommendation would be to fire up YouTube and have a look for yourselves.
Video, Board & Tabletop Games TTRPG: Call of Cthulhu: Chaosism Inc’s Call of Cthulhu roleplaying game based on the works of H.P. Lovecraft is a behemoth of the roleplaying genre, now on its’ 7th edition since its original publishing in 1981. Focusing on everyday people facing off against eldritch horror all the while trying to stave off madness should be familiar to anyone browsing this book by this point. Although all versions of Call of Cthulhu are excellent inspiration for playing Moralinth, a specific mention should go to “Cthulhu By Gaslight” by William A. Barton is especially poignant as it takes place in London in the 1890s, a perfect mirror for life in the Enclaves.
Hopefully these various tools and ideas will assist in creating the right mood and atmosphere for your Moralinth games, and further reading of the Core Rulebook will go into greater detail as to how to set-up and establish this mood, how to maintain it and how to bring the consensus of the table back around should immersion begin to slip.
That's it for today's blog, hopefully you pick out some useful bits from the above!
Happy Gaming,
- Adam
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