● REICHENAU · c. 1340
The noise beneath the floor
He had told everyone. Everyone had agreed it was the river.
DO NOT TELL
DREADFUL
A roleplaying game about hunting things
that should not exist.
And what it costs to be good at it.
You have seen something you cannot explain.
Somebody has noticed that you saw it.
ISSUED TO WHOEVER
CURRENTLY HOLDS IT
THERE IS MORE
GOTHIC HORROR · INVESTIGATION
CORRUPTION · CONSEQUENCE
01 / A NECESSARY INTRODUCTION
The world is exactly
as you remember it.
That is the problem.
There are tax collectors. Bad weather. People who must be home before dark. The ordinary world carries on, as it always has.
It simply has holes in it.
You play one of the people who goes looking. You learn what happened. You do what must be done. And when you return, you write it down — even when it damns you.
WHAT IS DREADFUL?“How much of the monster are you willing to become
in order to destroy the next one?”
THE QUESTION IS NOT WHETHER YOU CAN WIN.
RECENTLY RECOVERED · 2026-10-09
In receipt of this
You are in receipt of this because somebody has confirmed that you saw it, and that you did not lie about it afterwards.
NOT YET EXAMINED · R-01
02 / FROM THE RECORDS
Some things were written down.
● SALT QUAY · 1641
The harbour return
A full crew. A discrepancy in the inventory.
● BRISTOL · 1889
On the paperwork
One hundred and four reports. Eleven burials.
DREADFUL · PLAYTEST DRAFT v0.29
The next file is yours.
Three to five hunters. One storyteller.