In the last year or two (no one really knows, for sure), strange encounters and sightings have radically increased! It started small, like these things always did, with the usual suspects- people who, for one reason or another, experts and society at large could easily shrug off or dismiss. But, ignoring it like a hoax didn't work, anymore... Not only was it slowly, noticeably, escalating, but a pattern was emerging. Not with the people reporting incidents, themselves- it quickly grew to where there was no pattern, with them- but, it was always at night, and always in an area thick with fog, or myst; regardless of the season, or if the area normally experienced such weather. Still, nobody began to take it seriously until property was damaged, and animals and people started going missing. People have stopped going outside, especially after a message began appearing in seemingly random places:
When the fog is thick, too thick to see, lock your doors and don't go out.
If you find yourself caught in an alien stair, Run faster than fast, hope your legs don't give out!
Nobody knows who is responsible for this message, or it's precise meaning- some think it's just a warning, from people working to try and understand what's going on. Others think something is spreading this message to taunt and frighten people.
Whatever is going on, it's not showing any signs of stopping...
I'm interested in running a horror game in a setting where supernatural elements are overlapping with the "normal" world, but, unlike an Urban Fantasy setting, or other horror themed settings, this overlap is recent, and not constant. Thus, it's not necessarily a common knowledge fact that this is happening, but people are aware of it, to some extent or another. Society being the way it is, people are still very reluctant to acknowledge what's going on, but are unconsciously adapting, i.e., people have stopped going out at night, etc. (expect a mix of more traditional monsters like things that could be compared to current mythologies like vampires and werewolves, but also "cryptids"; more "modern" monsters like The Dover Demon, Sasquatch, Chupacabra, and all manner of things that simply haven't been given a name.
Psychics are rare to this setting, but they are present. No high powered psychic abilities, but, maybe some low level stuff, like sensing emotions or reading surface thoughts, with a lot of concentration, maybe even the ability to consciously sense other minds, subtle things. No magic, just, people working with what skills and resources they have either to investigate what's going on, or just survive, depending on the role a player wants to take on and how the scenario plays out.
Players are encouraged to make use of tropes as a jumping point for building distinct characters, with some obvious caveates; Tropes are not stereo types, per se, I do want to see some actual character. On that note, embrace being someone who's good in particular situations, and maybe average at best in others; avoid the extremes of "Can only do one thing" and "capable of many things but good at precisely none of them". Other than that, give other players a chance, ok? No speed posting.
Edit: Some information I think will help potential players better envision the setting came about in a PM, and I'm going to post my response here. Hopefully, this helps build interest as well ^_^
Alright, so, I'll go through this one thing at a time-In general, the world is basically ours, typical to horror settings. You've got the first bunch of things right. Those gifted people are rare, and, typical to a horror setting, people are just going about their day to day lives, most of them either not taking current events seriously, or in denial to one extent or another. what I'll refer to as the "Nightmare Zone" manifests in places, mostly at random, and is capable of repeat manifestations, and can even expand it's boundaries (again, look to typical horror movies; Jason, Micheal Meyers, and Even Freddy Kruger start in fairly small, localized areas, and their range has expanded over time). For a good, specific example of people's awareness, again, a good example being the early Friday the 13th films; people are, at most, vaguely/generally aware that something is wrong, but nobody wants to talk about it, for better or for worse. People are disinclined to listen to witnesses/survivors because they don't want to.
as to your questions, point #1: Yes, some are deliberately seeking some of these things out to destroy them. Like the occasional psychic, they're rare, but they've all had direct encounters and survived. Not all survivors are hunters, but all hunters are survivors. Nancy's and Tommy Jarvis's, sometimes Ash's, that kind of thing. To a very limited extent, some governments are hastily throwing together "X-Files" type outfits, scrambling to muster some kind of discreet response, and prevent panic.
Point #2: Do they live in harmony with the supernatural? Eh, yes and no. Does a cattle rancher live in harmony with wolves? A sailor with the storm? The monsters that tend to appear are just that: monsters. Nobody tries to be friends with these things, and the monsters certainly aren't showing any interest in such things. Horror movie logic; nobody who's forced to confront this is going to think about how to make peace with this, just get through it, and hope it doesn't come back.
A lot of these really boil down to "Just apply horror film reality and logic", but I'm going to keep going.
Point #3: Yes, the people with abilities are very much in the minority, and regarded in a similar fashion to the "nightmare zone" and the resulting monsters; nobody wants to believe it.
I really already answered point #4-5 earlier in this response, but I can elaborate on #5- It's entirely likely some have had interactions without realizing it, but these would be instances where, say, they were out walking late, or something, and they "got a bad feeling", maybe after that ran home, feeling like they were being followed, maybe they hear strange noises, or find strange foot prints, real urban legend material, but little else. Are they locked in their homes? Not against their will; it's been an unconscious response, at large, to try and hide from "the danger", even if they don't know what it is, or even if it's real. Nobody is being instructed by emergency broadcasts to take precautions, local governments aren't enforcing curfews, people are just doing this, but again, some are more in denial, and thus, taking it less seriously than others. Finally, yes. Many, at their most extreme responses, are absolutely not going out of their homes after nightfall, and never alone, if they can help it. Some places are liable to also become no-go zones, like Camp Crystal Lake, as an example.
TL;DR: "The normal world has become a horror film, and just doesn't know it yet."
Character Name: Physical Description: Age: Role: Several roles can be filled in this setting, but I'll describe a few as examples elsewhere Psychic: Y/N (if yes, include information in the Background) Skills/Abilities of Note: A short list of traits or attributes that would be particularly useful to the character/make them an asset to a group, somehow help chances of survival. These must be within reason, and similar to psychic abilities, should be incorporated into the Background. Willpower: Strength of will, relevant to the effects of the Nightmare Zone. A willpower rating, on a scale of 1-10, is assigned per a discussion with the GM/Co-GM, prior to character approval. Fear: This is a negative sort of points; the GM/Co-GM hand these points out throughout a scenario, and if your Fear score matches or exceeds your Willpower, bad things are about to happen (example: The Evil Dead; characters who figuratively got to this condition were attacked and possessed by The Evil, becoming Deadites) Background: Previous Encounter/s: Y/N Encounter Summary: Only fill this out if the character has had previous encounters Resources: contacts, items/equipment a character would reasonably have/access to. Odds of Survival: This is basically hero points; Each player starts with one, and can be issued more at GM/Co-GM discretion, provided they are in agreement on the decision, throughout play. Ways to earn better "Odds" include, but are not limited to- good role play (consistent characterization/behavior in character), clever ideas or actions, exemplary behavior out of character, well made character, etc. In addition to being able to earn Odds by impressing the GM/Co-GM, players can PM either the GM or Co-GM to nominate other players to receive bonus Odds (within reason). Odds can be traded in to avoid death in an otherwise deadly situation, or change circumstances to their advantage (example: Players are isolated, and unarmed in a cabin by the lake. A man, his mind warped by the effects of the Nightmare Zone, is trying to get in and kill them all with a chainsaw! The phones aren't working, so you can't call for help, and he's sabotaged the cars. A player who has a cell phone[Resource!] could potentially sneak out, and, maybe, find a spot where they can pick up a signal, allowing them to call the police
