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RC and Moon Pie posted:I'll throw in a suggestion for Glyn Williams' Arctic Labyrinth, which is also broad in what it covers, but some of the early expeditions of guys like Hudson, Ross and Frobisher weren't picnics, either. Frozen in Time: The Fate of the Franklin Expedition by Owen Beattie and John Geiger is a must read for anyone interested in the Franklin Expedition.
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May 2, 2018 17:54
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Terra-da-loo! posted:I've been getting super into AMC's The Terror lately, but having spoiled the ending to the novel it's based on for myself, I've decided I'd much rather read some non-fiction about the incident. I highly recommend Cherry Apsley-Gerrard's The Worst Journey in the World, a first-person account from a Scott Expedition survivor.
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May 2, 2018 19:49
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pookel posted:I highly recommend Cherry Apsley-Gerrard's The Worst Journey in the World, a first-person account from a Scott Expedition survivor. I’m gonna second this. It’s a wild read.
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May 2, 2018 20:03
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Solice Kirsk posted:He liked to contact old victims and leave creepy messages. Getting off on power over others might be his whole thing, so we may not get anything. I'm just hoping we do. He also liked to do things like rearrange small things, or take small things that won't be immediately missed just to gently caress with them for days or weeks after the attacks. He'd also make a meal and eat it at their table after the attacks as well. So I also think he's going to stay silent. The only thing I can think of is that he MIGHT want other people he did something to (or their families if they're dead) to know it was him that had that power over them.
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May 2, 2018 20:06
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Does anyone have any good articles or local legends that I could use for tabletop RPG ideas? It's a Supernatural-style ghost and monster hunting campaign across America, but I'm tired of just using ghosts and vampires. Some other ones I've got are Count Carl Von Cosel surviving as a necromancer in Key West and creating a platoon of patchwork zombies and an MRA warlock using stolen black magic to try and redirect the fire underneath Centralia to destroy a building in Philadelphia through human sacrifices of the entire remaining population (made more complicated by the megalomaniacal warlock he stole the tomes from coming after him). I like stuff that can be connected to an interesting real world area or legend, instead of just interchangeable fictional small towns in the Midwest.
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May 2, 2018 21:33
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chitoryu12 posted:Does anyone have any good articles or local legends that I could use for tabletop RPG ideas? It's a Supernatural-style ghost and monster hunting campaign across America, but I'm tired of just using ghosts and vampires. Some other ones I've got are Count Carl Von Cosel surviving as a necromancer in Key West and creating a platoon of patchwork zombies and an MRA warlock using stolen black magic to try and redirect the fire underneath Centralia to destroy a building in Philadelphia through human sacrifices of the entire remaining population (made more complicated by the megalomaniacal warlock he stole the tomes from coming after him). HH Holmes' murder house? Not really a legend because it existed, but something based off it might be fun.
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May 2, 2018 22:02
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Also for the Carl Von Cosel thing, I plan on having one of the enemies in the final encounter being the zombified Elena Hoyos. She looks exactly the same as she did in her casket after he was done "fixing" her decomposing body. Imagine this trying to strangle you to death: 
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May 2, 2018 22:05
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chitoryu12 posted:Does anyone have any good articles or local legends that I could use for tabletop RPG ideas? It's a Supernatural-style ghost and monster hunting campaign across America, but I'm tired of just using ghosts and vampires. Some other ones I've got are Count Carl Von Cosel surviving as a necromancer in Key West and creating a platoon of patchwork zombies and an MRA warlock using stolen black magic to try and redirect the fire underneath Centralia to destroy a building in Philadelphia through human sacrifices of the entire remaining population (made more complicated by the megalomaniacal warlock he stole the tomes from coming after him). Memphis, TN has Voodoo Village. Lots of talk about that place growing up. Nothing supernatural in real-life, just people fed up with white kids running around looking for a scary time. Edit: The legends quote:In Memphis though, the word conjures up a series of buildings behind a fence, surrounded by sculptures and symbols. Aleph Null has a new favorite as of 22:10 on May 2, 2018 |
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May 2, 2018 22:06
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chitoryu12 posted:Does anyone have any good articles or local legends that I could use for tabletop RPG ideas? It's a Supernatural-style ghost and monster hunting campaign across America, but I'm tired of just using ghosts and vampires. Some other ones I've got are Count Carl Von Cosel surviving as a necromancer in Key West and creating a platoon of patchwork zombies and an MRA warlock using stolen black magic to try and redirect the fire underneath Centralia to destroy a building in Philadelphia through human sacrifices of the entire remaining population (made more complicated by the megalomaniacal warlock he stole the tomes from coming after him). By me, off the top my head is Munger Road in Carol Stream. http://www.hauntedplaces.org/item/munger-road/ Another one in nearby Glendale Heights is the train viaduct that runs under Bloomingdale Road. http://www.hauntedplaces.org/item/bloomingdale-road-bride/ Maybe you can use something since they’re both (loosely) railroad related. Also, poke around that site, it should give you plenty of seeds (you’ll probably need to google more to get the full legend)
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May 2, 2018 22:11
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Bachelor's Grove.
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May 2, 2018 22:24
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The Georgia Guidestones https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Georgia_Guidestones
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May 2, 2018 22:34
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chitoryu12 posted:Does anyone have any good articles or local legends that I could use for tabletop RPG ideas? It's a Supernatural-style ghost and monster hunting campaign across America, but I'm tired of just using ghosts and vampires. Some other ones I've got are Count Carl Von Cosel surviving as a necromancer in Key West and creating a platoon of patchwork zombies and an MRA warlock using stolen black magic to try and redirect the fire underneath Centralia to destroy a building in Philadelphia through human sacrifices of the entire remaining population (made more complicated by the megalomaniacal warlock he stole the tomes from coming after him). The Jersey Devil and the Mothman are two favorites of mine. You could also base something off of the story of Elizabeth Bathory if you're inclined. I also very much like the potential the Wendigo could provide in a story too. Transmogrifier has a new favorite as of 22:37 on May 2, 2018 |
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May 2, 2018 22:35
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chitoryu12 posted:Does anyone have any good articles or local legends that I could use for tabletop RPG ideas? It's a Supernatural-style ghost and monster hunting campaign across America, but I'm tired of just using ghosts and vampires. Some other ones I've got are Count Carl Von Cosel surviving as a necromancer in Key West and creating a platoon of patchwork zombies and an MRA warlock using stolen black magic to try and redirect the fire underneath Centralia to destroy a building in Philadelphia through human sacrifices of the entire remaining population (made more complicated by the megalomaniacal warlock he stole the tomes from coming after him). A local legend in my area is of a tribe of crazy albinos living on a disused back road called Constitution drive. Growing up I heard stories that if you went to explore the area you'd return to your car find things like a severed pigs head thrown through the windshield, lots of footprints, etc. If someone stayed too long they would never be heard from again, of course. Total bullshit, and iirc a reclusive old man lives in the dilapidated old house that is one of the sources of the legend. http://pennsylvaniaparanormal.tumblr.com/post/143058253928/constitution-drive-this-desolate-allentown-pa Ofc my friends went and checked it out at like 2 am when I was a teenager. We were pulled over by a cop and told we were idiots and to clear off. I feel like folklore about tribes of crazed inbreds is Americana as gently caress though, so maybe it'll be of use to you Revins has a new favorite as of 22:48 on May 2, 2018 |
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May 2, 2018 22:45
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Oh hey there’s a story I haven’t heard in a while. Never went myself but I had friends who were bored enough to try going for a visit. 
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May 2, 2018 22:48
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There's a couple cool little spooky spots/stories in Chicago. The Drake Hotel Resurrection Mary The Devil danced at Kaiser Hall
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May 2, 2018 23:03
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chitoryu12 posted:Does anyone have any good articles or local legends that I could use for tabletop RPG ideas? It's a Supernatural-style ghost and monster hunting campaign across America, but I'm tired of just using ghosts and vampires. Some other ones I've got are Count Carl Von Cosel surviving as a necromancer in Key West and creating a platoon of patchwork zombies and an MRA warlock using stolen black magic to try and redirect the fire underneath Centralia to destroy a building in Philadelphia through human sacrifices of the entire remaining population (made more complicated by the megalomaniacal warlock he stole the tomes from coming after him). I've always loved the Water Babies of Pyramid Lake. Having camped out there for years I can attest that there are some really insanely creepy noises at night. quote:Since even before settlers arrived there were long tales of ghostly, demonic spirits inhabiting the clear waters, such as serpents and a type of water imp that were known as Water Babies. These specters are said to look like babies with visages twisted by rage and hate, and they are claimed to lurk under the surface waiting for victims to wander too close, which they will then drag down to their deaths. The story of how these bizarre creatures came to be varies. One version propagated mostly by early European settlers was that the Paiute had the disturbing habit of disposing of unwanted or deformed newborns by throwing them into the lake to drown. This was allegedly done to weed out the weak and keep the tribe strong, and it is these abandoned, murdered babies that prowl the water. It is a ghoulish story to be sure, but is likely based on exaggeration aimed at making the Natives look like savages. The Paiute themselves say that the Water Babies are the result of a great serpent who one day emerged to feed on the baby of a mother who was washing clothes. The demonic serpent then took the form of the baby and began devouring the mother as well, only stopping when it made a deal with the village shaman that it would be allowed to prowl the lake in exchange for letting the mother live.
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May 2, 2018 23:05
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ruddiger posted:There's a couple cool little spooky spots/stories in Chicago. Ha, I never knew The Drake was supposed to be haunted.
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May 2, 2018 23:11
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chitoryu12 posted:Does anyone have any good articles or local legends that I could use for tabletop RPG ideas? It's a Supernatural-style ghost and monster hunting campaign across America, but I'm tired of just using ghosts and vampires. Some other ones I've got are Count Carl Von Cosel surviving as a necromancer in Key West and creating a platoon of patchwork zombies and an MRA warlock using stolen black magic to try and redirect the fire underneath Centralia to destroy a building in Philadelphia through human sacrifices of the entire remaining population (made more complicated by the megalomaniacal warlock he stole the tomes from coming after him). Have you checked out any of the Delta Green sourcebooks?
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May 2, 2018 23:41
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Ooooo, I love urban legends. The Massapequa Devil House! http://www.massapequaobserver.com/haunted-houses-in-massapequa/ It was a fine Long Island tradition to drive by it to spook ourselves out. The daytime pictures in that article don't do it justice, it's much creepier at night. Bonus content in that article is the Amityville Horror house. It's been remodeled to not look quite so like the original one, and the current owners also changed the address to avoid attention. Could be fun to drop clues for your players and see if they could figure out why 108 Ocean Ave (not 112) is significant. I also recall late night drives to Tiny Town in Merrick, NY. As the name suggests, the houses are tiny (some only 12 feet wide), and strangely laid out on super narrow concentric circle streets right in the middle of an area of normal houses on normal streets. Back in the day, it was rumored to be populated entirely by retired dwarfs, midgets and other circus "freaks", who would throw things at your car or otherwise threaten you if you went to gawk at the houses at night. Despite what this thread would have you believe, truth sometimes is more boring than fiction; they're just tiny cottages from a Methodist campground in the 1800's (drat you internet, always spoiling the magic). But when it's 1am and you're a high-as-balls 18 year old packed into a car with someone who is terrified of little people, it was a spooky ride. Maybe be kinda interesting for your pc's to find a Tiny Town that isn't just an urban legend, and really is populated by a strange, insular community of crazy circus folk?
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May 3, 2018 00:01
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Kiss Kiss Bang Bang posted:The Georgia Guidestones https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Georgia_Guidestones Oh hey I've been there! When we visited, there was a kid laying in the center of them staring up at the sky. Good stuff. Also pretty much all of northeast GA is haunted. Probably cuz there's nothing better to do if you die there. 
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May 3, 2018 00:19
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Judas Horse posted:Oh hey I've been there! When we visited, there was a kid laying in the center of them staring up at the sky. Good stuff. quote:Also pretty much all of northeast GA is haunted. Probably cuz there's nothing better to do if you die there. We did have a moon tree in the town I used to live in, though. This is more interesting than unnerving, though you could certainly put a spooky twist on it. In 1971, Apollo 14 carried a variety of tree seeds to see if microgravity affected their ability to germinate. On re-entry the can broke open, the seeds got all mixed up, and NASA thought, "ehhh, gently caress it". They gave the seeds to the Nat'l Forest Service, who planted them all over the country. And whaddya know, they sprouted and thrived, and I can testify that 47 years later one is still going strong in eastern Virginia. And now those trees are just biding their time for the sentient plant takeover. (I'm just spit-balling. I've never watched Supernatural, never DMed, and I think there's a reason I'm not an author.)
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May 3, 2018 00:58
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Tennessee has the Bell Witch. Might be worth a look.
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May 3, 2018 01:00
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chitoryu12 posted:Does anyone have any good articles or local legends that I could use for tabletop RPG ideas? It's a Supernatural-style ghost and monster hunting campaign across America, but I'm tired of just using ghosts and vampires. Some other ones I've got are Count Carl Von Cosel surviving as a necromancer in Key West and creating a platoon of patchwork zombies and an MRA warlock using stolen black magic to try and redirect the fire underneath Centralia to destroy a building in Philadelphia through human sacrifices of the entire remaining population (made more complicated by the megalomaniacal warlock he stole the tomes from coming after him). The Beast of Bray Road already sounds like a good RPG hook from name alone. The Beast of Bladenboro was most likely some kind of wildcat but supposedly it was some kind of vampire cat Either supernatural or some kind of alien This one isn't actually too far from where I lived, I still know people who swear it's some kind of demon like the Jersey Devil This one I can't find a specific name for, but Quebec has a very rich tradition of werewolves as well, with the cause being going 7 Easter's in a row without communion. I'll stop for now because I love this kind of thing and I can go on all day.
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May 3, 2018 01:01
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chitoryu12 posted:Does anyone have any good articles or local legends that I could use for tabletop RPG ideas? It's a Supernatural-style ghost and monster hunting campaign across America, but I'm tired of just using ghosts and vampires. Some other ones I've got are Count Carl Von Cosel surviving as a necromancer in Key West and creating a platoon of patchwork zombies and an MRA warlock using stolen black magic to try and redirect the fire underneath Centralia to destroy a building in Philadelphia through human sacrifices of the entire remaining population (made more complicated by the megalomaniacal warlock he stole the tomes from coming after him). https://www.barnesandnoble.com/p/ha...7RoCVjgQAvD_BwE Includes a piece on my local legend, the White Lady of Union Cemetery and a lot of others. You can browse the book and find things that you can find more about online.
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May 3, 2018 01:11
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Your Gay Uncle posted:I've always loved the Water Babies of Pyramid Lake. Having camped out there for years I can attest that there are some really insanely creepy noises at night.
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May 3, 2018 01:11
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You could look into some of the old paranormal threads too to see if anything pops out. Even some of the ghost stories have really cool elements that are worth cribbing.
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May 3, 2018 01:16
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JacquelineDempsey posted:I'd never heard of that, and it looks cool as hell. One site I just looked at says it's visible from Hwy 77. Do you just pull over and walk up to it, or...? Just wondering how accessible it is. You can just walk up to it! There's nothing around it and it's on a gravel road when I went. Really interesting spot to just see a bizarre Georgia Stonehenge when I was driving to an interview at a horse ranch. Also I do not doubt it at all with Virginia. I've been there a couple of times (including on a greyhound) and it just feels cursed as gently caress.
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May 3, 2018 02:01
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There's that Weird US site/books series, though I think it's been a while since the site was updated. The bits aren't particularly deep, but there's just enough to be the start of an interesting local folklore adventure.
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May 3, 2018 02:10
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If you don't want to choose what kind of paranormal story you want, just set it somewhere in the Uintah Basin near Skinwalker Ranch. Werewolves, ghosts, UFOs, lake monsters, government conspiracies, that place has it all.
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May 3, 2018 02:31
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This is some good poo poo.catlord posted:There's that Weird US site/books series, though I think it's been a while since the site was updated. The bits aren't particularly deep, but there's just enough to be the start of an interesting local folklore adventure. That's actually where I first learned about Carl Tanzler. I even bought the book Undying Love, which goes into insane amounts of detail and even his personal journal entries. You can use the Wikipedia page on him to get the gist, but the book is the definitive source on the case and I compiled information from several sources for the RPG: quote:The “count” was really Carl Tanzler, born Georg Karl Tänzler in Dresden, Germany on February 8, 1877. In 1920, he married Doris Anna Shafer and had two children: Ayesha Tanzler in 1922 and Crystal Tanzler in 1924. He made trips across the world, interested in making flying machines and boats, and found himself in Australia when World War I broke out. As a German, he was imprisoned in a concentration camp, followed by a castle-like prison on Trial Bay. He was one of several inmates plotting an escape with a sailboat, by which point he had already been under the pseudonym “Count Carl von Cosel” after a supposed ancestor, Countess Anna Constantia von Cosel. When the war ended, no prisoners were permitted to return home; instead, they were all shipped to a prisoner exchange in Holland. Tanzler returned to Germany and lived with his mother for 3 years before she suggested that he immigrate to the United States to live with his sister, who already moved to Zephyrhills, Florida.   
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May 3, 2018 03:17
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The only local lore I have in my neck of the woods relates to Abe Lincoln's obscure childhood friend and mental health on the frontier. Matthew Gentry, a close friend of Lincoln (and distant relative of mine), went insane while Lincoln was visiting and tried to kill himself and his family. He was considered a brilliant, if depressed, young man until that point. Given that it was still frontier Indiana all they could do was tie him up. Lincoln visited years later on the campaign trail for Henry Clay and found his old friend miserable and off in his own personal hell, howling into the night. Some eccentric locals, especially those of the Gentry family, like to claim Matthew's ghost hangs around the Lincoln Boyhood National Memorial. Mostly those stories are just told because Gentry going insane was the impetus for Lincoln's trip to New Orleans, because everyone was convinced Lincoln would lose it if he hung around because his life in Indiana was a parade of poo poo. Lincoln wrote a poem about his visit with Matthew in 1846, and it's understandably morbid. But here's an object more of dread Than ought the grave contains - A human with reason fled, While wretched life remains. https://www.nps.gov/libo/learn/historyculture/matthew-gentry.htm
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May 3, 2018 04:11
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How about the largest Pauper's Cemetery in the world? An entire island in Long Island Sound dedicated to burying those with no way to pay for it. If your loved one was one of the over ONE MILLION people buried in one of the mass graves there, you weren't even allowed to visit until 2015.
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May 3, 2018 04:16
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catlord posted:There's that Weird US site/books series, though I think it's been a while since the site was updated. The bits aren't particularly deep, but there's just enough to be the start of an interesting local folklore adventure. I second this. There's also the Big Book of X series. I have urban legends, hoaxes, and whatever the conspiracy theory one is. Packed full of information and creepy art.
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May 3, 2018 04:45
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That Carl Tanzler stuff is all quite insane, but for some reason this bit in particular really stood out to me.chitoryu12 posted:Finally, on July 3, 1952, Carl Tanzler was found 3 weeks after his death. It’s unknown whether he died in the arms of the Hoyos effigy, as some have claimed, or on the floor behind one of his organs. He was 75 years old. Am I to understand that this Frankenstein motherfucker had multiple organs? Like, the piano? It wasn’t enough that everyone who walked within 20 yards of him automatically heard this poo poo playing in their head, he had to be ready to get spooky no matter what. What an insane creep.
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May 3, 2018 04:50
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Ariong posted:That Carl Tanzler stuff is all quite insane, but for some reason this bit in particular really stood out to me. That's exactly what the obituary said. Undying Love is an excellent book if you're interested in the true depths of his insanity. A Kindle copy is $4 and it uses excerpts from his journal to really paint how his brain was twisting everything. quote:I prepared, as always, her little Christmas tree, decorating it with silver tinsel, cotton snow, and with small wax candles instead of electric bulbs. I placed the tree on a bench beside her bed with little gifts, such as picture books, chocolate, cakes, cookies, perfume, soap, face powder, etc., which she liked when alive. For me, she will never die but will live on with me, and I shall always treat and respect her as a living person. quote:Of course, there was no risk of infection whatsoever, as Elena’s body was now aseptic. Her nostrils were sealed with cotton but her ears were now open. While seated close to her, I noticed what seemed like a faint breathing movement of her breast…I got my stethoscope to listen to her chest for a while. There was no regular heart beat, but there was the sound of flowing liquid into the vessels, then a pause, then a sound of flowing again, with some kind of an irregular flutter in between. Her body was still warm to the touch since the incubation, but she had already lost considerable blood temperature. It was only natural that she was gradually cooling out again. To slow this down as much as possible, I covered her over completely with the silk quilt, at least for the duration of the cool weather.
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May 3, 2018 05:04
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chitoryu12 posted:Does anyone have any good articles or local legends that I could use for tabletop RPG ideas? It's a Supernatural-style ghost and monster hunting campaign across America, but I'm tired of just using ghosts and vampires. Some other ones I've got are Count Carl Von Cosel surviving as a necromancer in Key West and creating a platoon of patchwork zombies and an MRA warlock using stolen black magic to try and redirect the fire underneath Centralia to destroy a building in Philadelphia through human sacrifices of the entire remaining population (made more complicated by the megalomaniacal warlock he stole the tomes from coming after him). All I can think of here is the Maco light (which is lame), and the Beast of Bladenboro (a chupacabra clone), Setting wise we have the stories about Acid Park (all verifiably untrue but college kids don't know that), the Brown Mountain lights and my personal fave the Devil's Tramping Ground
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May 3, 2018 05:52
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I've been to Bachelor's Grove cemetery. At least during the day it isn't very scary. Tons of folklore associated with it though. If you want stuff like the Weird state book series, check out the Weird NJ website: http://weirdnj.com/
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May 3, 2018 06:54
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I used this in a game once, and it worked pretty well. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_(doll) Also, this is entirely natural, but there's a lot that could be done with it. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Devil%27s_Millhopper_Geological_State_Park
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May 3, 2018 09:27
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Everything this guy wrote about his coworker:
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May 3, 2018 20:41
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duz posted:Everything this guy wrote about his coworker: jesus christ
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May 3, 2018 20:54
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