the MONSTROUS

I feel the hunger, the lust to destroy. But I fight it, I never give in. I'm not human any
more, not really, but I have to protect those who still are. That way I can tell myself
I'm different to the other monsters.
Sometimes I even believe it.

A Monster of the Week hunter playbook.

To make your Monstrous, pick a name. Then follow the
instructions below to decide your look, ratings, breed, curse, NAME:
natural attacks, moves, and gear. Finally, introduce yourself
and pick history. LOOK:
Look
Pick one from each line, and write under look on the right à
Ratings
• Man, woman, concealed, transgressive. Whenever you roll a highlighted rating, mark experience.
• Sinister aura, powerful aura, dark aura, unnerving aura,
pleasant aura, energetic aura, evil aura.
Charm: c -2 c +1 c0 c +1 c +2 c +3

• Archaic clothes, casual clothes, ragged clothes, tailored Basic moves: Manipulate Someone Highlight: c
clothes, stylish clothes, street clothes, outdoor clothes.
Cool: c -1 c0 c +1 c +2 c +3
Ratings Basic moves: Act Under Pressure, Help Out Highlight: c
Pick one line, then mark each rating on the right à
Sharp: c -1 c0 c +1 c +2 c +3
c Charm-1, Cool-1, Sharp=0, Tough+2, Weird+3
Basic moves: Investigate, Read a Bad Situation Highlight: c
c Charm-1, Cool+1, Sharp+1, Tough=0, Weird+3
Tough: c -1 c0 c +1 c +2 c +3
c Charm+2, Cool=0, Sharp-1, Tough-1, Weird+3
Basic moves: Kick Some Ass, Protect Someone Highlight: c
c Charm-2, Cool+2, Sharp=0, Tough=0, Weird+3
Weird: c -1 c0 c +1 c +2 c +3
c Charm=0, Cool-1, Sharp+2, Tough-1, Weird+3
Basic moves: Use Magic Highlight: c
Breed
You're half-human, half-monster: decide if you were always
half-monster or if you you were originally human and Curses, Pick One:
transformed somehow. c Feed: You must subsist on living humans – it might take
the form of blood, brains, or spiritual essence but it must be
Now decide if you were always fighting to be good, or if you
from people. You need to act under pressure to resist taking
were evil and changed sides.
feeding whenever a perfect opportunity presents itself.
Define your monster breed by picking a curse, moves, and
c Vulnerability: Pick a substance. You suffer +1 harm when
natural attacks.
you suffer harm from it. If you are bound or surrounded by it,
Create the monster you want to be. whatever you choose you must act under pressure to use your powers.
defines your breed in the game. Some classic monsters with
c Pure Drive: One emotion rules you. Pick from: hunger,
suggestions for picks are listed below, but feel free to make
hate, anger, fear, jealousy, greed, joy, pride, envy, lust,
your own version! Descriptions of the curses, natural attacks,
cruelty. Whenever you have a chance to indulge the emotion,
and moves follow.
you must do so immediately or act under pressure to resist.
Monster Breed Suggestions c Dark Master: You have an evil lord who doesn't know
• Vampire: Curse: feed (blood or life-force). Natural attacks: you changed sides. They still give you orders, and do not
Base: life-drain or teeth; add +1 harm to base. Moves: tolerate refusal. Or failure.
immortal or unquenchable vitality; mental domination.
Natural Attacks, Pick Two:
• Werewolf: Curse: vulnerability (silver). Natural attacks: c Base: teeth (3-harm intimate)
Base: claws; base: teeth. Moves: shapeshifter; claws of the
beast or unholy strength. c Base: claws (2-harm hand)
• Ghost: Curse: vulnerability (rock salt). Natural attacks: c Base: life-drain (1-harm intimate healing)
Base: magical force; add hand range to base. Moves: c Base: magical force (1-harm magical close)
incorporeal; immortal.
c Add +1 harm to a base
• Faerie: Curse: pure drive (joy). Natural attacks: Base:
magical force; add ignore-armour to base. Moves: flight; c Add ignore-armour to a base
preternatural speed. c Add an extra range to a base (intimate, hand, or close).
• Demon: Curse: pure drive (cruelty). Natural attacks: Base:
claws; add +1 harm to claws. Moves: dark negotiator;
unquenchable vitality. My Natural Attacks
• Zombie: Curse: pure drive (hunger), feed (flesh), or siphon
(brains). Natural attacks: Base: teeth; add +1 harm to teeth.
Moves: immortal; unquenchable vitality.
Moves
You get all the basic moves, and two Monstrous moves. c Unquenchable Vitality: When you have taken harm,
you can heal yourself. Roll +Cool. On a 10+, heal 2-harm and
Pick two Monstrous moves:
stabilise your injuries. On a 7-9, heal 1-harm and stabilise
c Immortal: You do not age or sicken, and whenever you your injuries . On a miss, your injuries worsen.
suffer harm you suffer 1-harm less.
c Mental Dominion: When you gaze into a normal
c Incorporeal: You may move freely through solid objects human's eyes and exert your will over them, roll +Charm.
(but not people). On a 10+, hold 3. On a 7-9, hold 1. You may spend your hold
to give them an order. Regular people will follow your
c Unnatural Appeal: Roll +Weird instead of +Charm when
order, whatever it is. Hunters can choose whether they do it
you manipulate someone.
or not. If they do it, they mark experience.
c Unholy Strength: Roll +Weird instead of +Tough when
c Dark Negotiator: You can use the manipulate someone
you kick some ass.
move on monsters as well as people, as long as they can
c Preternatural Speed: You can go much faster than reason and talk.
normal people. When you chase, flee, or run take +1
c Flight: You can fly.
ongoing.
c Shapeshifter: You may change your form (usually into
c Claws of the Beast: All your natural attacks get +1 harm.
an animal) – decide if you have just one alternate form or
c Something Borrowed: Take a move from another several, and detail them. You gain +1 to investigate a
playbook that is not currently in play. mystery when using an alternate form's superior senses
(e.g. smell for a wolf, sight for an eagle).

Gear
If you want, you can take one handy weapon.
Optionally, pick one handy weapon: c Shotgun (3-harm close messy)
c .38 revolver (2-harm close reload loud) c Big knife (1-harm hand)
c 9mm (2-harm close loud) c Sword (2-harm hand messy)
c Magnum (3-harm close reload loud) c Huge sword (3-harm hand messy heavy)

Introductions
When you get here, wait for everyone to catch up so you can do your introductions together.
Go around the group. On your turn, introduce your Monstrous by name and look, and tell the group what they know about
you.

History
Go around the group again. When it's your turn, pick one for each of the other hunters:

Hunter History Notes

You lost control one time, and almost killed them. Ask them how they stopped you.

They tried to slay you, but you proved you're a good guy. Ask them what convinced them.

Romantic obsession on your part. Ask them if they know, and if they reciprocate.

Close relations, or a distant descendant. Tell them which.

You saved them from another of your kind, and prevented reprisals against that
individual (maybe it's another good one, or maybe it has a hold over you).

They are tied to your curse or monstrous origin. Tell them how.

You fought together against the odds, and prevailed.

They saved you from another hunter who was prepared to kill you. Ask them what
happened.

Luck
You can mark off a Luck box to either change a roll you just made to a 12, as if you had rolled that; or change a wound you
have just taken to count as just 0-harm. If your Luck boxes all get filled, you've run out of good luck.
Okay c c c c c c c Doomed
Harm
When you suffer harm, mark of the number of boxes equal to harm suffered. More than four harm is especially dangerous.
Okay c c c|c c c c Dying Unstable: c (Unstable injuries will worsen as time passes)

Leveling Up
Experience: c c c c c
Whenever you roll a highlighted rating, or a move tells you to, mark an experience box.
When you have filled all five experience boxes, you level up. Erase the marks and pick an improvement from the list below.

Improvements:
c Get +1 Tough, max +2 c Take another Monstrous move
c Get +1 Cool, max +2 c Gain a haven, like the Expert has, with two options
c Get +1 Charm, max +2 c Take another natural attacks pick
c Get +1 Sharp, max +2 c Take a move from another playbook
c Take another Monstrous move c Take a move from another playbook
After you have leveled up five times, you qualify for advanced improvements in addition to these. They are listed below:

Advanced Improvements
c Get +1 to any rating, max +3. c Retire this hunter to safety.
c Change this hunter to a new type. c Erase one used luck mark from your playbook.
c Make up a second hunter to play as well as this one. c You have freed yourself from the curse of your kind: your
curse no longer applies, but you lose 1 Weird.
c Mark two of the basic moves as advanced.
c You turn evil (again): retire this character, they become
c Mark another two of the basic moves as advanced.
one of the Keeper's threats.

My Breed Notes (moves, holds, Haven, etc)

This is a hunter playbook for Monster of the Week. Find out more at http://genericgames.co.nz