TEXT: Lovecraftesque cue card
  Narrator
  YOUR ROLE: Shape the Horror through 
  evocative and intriguing contributions.
   
  Introduce the scene (where, when, who, what).
  Ensure Scene Requirements are met.
  Describe the environment and characters  
  other than the Witness.
  Adjudicate any conflicts.
  Decide when the scene is over.
  Do:
  Bring a sense of sinister atmosphere.
  Reuse and build on existing Clues, characters,  
  locations and other details.
  Pause often to allow the Watchers to contribute.
  Ask the Watchers questions; build on their answers.
  optional:
  Give a Watcher an incidental NPC to play, if 
  needed to avoid talking to yourself.
  Don’t:
  Tell the Witness what they’re thinking or feeling.
  Lovecraftesque cue card
  SceNe requiremeNtS
  investigation scene
  Reveal a Clue.
  Force Majeure scene
  Declare where the Final Horror will take place 
  and force the Witness to begin the Journey into 
  Darkness that will take them there.
  the journey into Darkness
  Move the Witness to the location of the Final 
  Horror on the final step of the Journey.
  the Final horror
  Reveal a terrifying monster or worldview-
  shattering revelation.
  epilogue
  Reveal the fate of the Witness  
  and of the horror.
  Lovecraftesque cue card
  Watcher
  YOUR ROLE: Add atmosphere  
  without taking over.
   Elaborate on the Narrator’s descriptions, 
  providing detail, texture and atmosphere.
  Answer any questions that the Narrator asks you.
  Play NPCs if asked to by the Narrator.
  Do:
  Follow the Narrator’s lead; let them set the  
  direction for the scene.
  Elaborate a bit more than you personally find 
  comfortable.
  Answer questions impulsively, with the first 
  idea that comes to mind.
  Don’t:
  Initiate narration of anything new, or introduce 
  Clues, without using a Special Card.
  Push the scene in a new direction, or take over 
  from the Narrator, without using a Special Card.
  Lovecraftesque cue card
  WitNeSS
  YOUR ROLE: Play the Witness as  
  though they were a real person. 
  Say what the Witness says and does.
  Speak the Witness’s thoughts and feelings, 
  especially their fears and rationalisations.
  Introduce new details about the Witness 
  through their actions, words and 
  thoughts.
  Do:
  Portray the traits on the Witness’s index card.
  React to events as you think the Witness 
  would – heroic and curious or fearful and 
  meek.
  Don’t:
  Narrate details about the environment, 
  Clues, or other characters.
  cue cards
  Print or copy for a table reference
  
  sPeciaL cards
  Lovecraftesque Special card
  a hoStile Group
  ONGOING EFFECT
  You may play this after a scene that 
  involved a group of people who seemed 
  unfriendly, hostile or oddly friendly.
  part 1 onwarDs
  Threaten or warn off the Witness.
  Steal, sabotage, destroy.
  Attack someone other than the Witness.
  part 2 onwarDs
  Make a direct physical attack on the 
  Witness.
  Pursue the Witness en masse.
  (Gang, cult, secret society, family, etc)
  Lovecraftesque Special card
  Sorcery
  ONGOING EFFECT
  You may play this after a scene if 
  something was revealed that seems like it 
  could be sorcery.
  part 2 onwarDs
  Allow the Witness to see for themselves 
  bizarre, rationally inexplicable 
  occurrences.
  Launch a sorcerous attack on the Witness, 
  capturing, weakening or injuring them.
  part 3
  The Final Horror must be something other 
  than a sorcerer.
  (Sorcerer, witch, coven)
  Lovecraftesque Special card
  iNhumaN creature
  ONGOING EFFECT
  You may play this after a scene if evidence 
  of an inhuman creature was revealed 
  (footprints, spoor, a sighting).
  part 2 onwarDs
  Allow the Witness to see something that 
  could not be human.
  Reveal victims of the creature – terrified, 
  warped, injured or killed.
  part 3
  Have the creature attack or pursue the 
  Witness.
  The Final Horror must be something other 
  than the creature.
  (Servant or enemy of the true horror)
  Lovecraftesque Special card
  aN aNcieNt civiliSatioN
  ONGOING EFFECT
  You may play this after a scene that 
  included ruins, ancient objects or other 
  archaeology.
  part 1 onwarDs
  Reveal clear signs of pre-human life.
  part 2 onwarDs
  Introduce clear evidence of pre-human 
  civilisation and technology.
  part 3 onwarDs
  Reveal the still-living creatures from the 
  ancient civilisation.
  (Ruins, relics)
  
  sPeciaL cards
  Lovecraftesque Special card
  objet d’art
  ONGOING EFFECT
  You may play this after a scene that 
  included a mysterious or unpleasant 
  sculpture, painting or other piece of art.
  part 2 onwarDs
  Reveal inexplicable occurrences that only 
  happen when the object is present.
  Reveal clear evidence that the 
  blasphemous thing the object depicts is 
  quite real.
  Lovecraftesque Special card
  victimS
  ONGOING EFFECT
  You may play this after a scene which 
  included an injured and/or dead person, 
  without a clear explanation for how the 
  injury/death happened.
  part 1 onwarDs
  Reveal terrible effects on a victim – injury, 
  mutilation and/or death.
  part 2 onwarDs
  The Witness may see a victim coming 
  under attack.
  part 3 onwarDs
  The Witness may become a victim.
  (Terrible harm caused by the horror)
  Lovecraftesque Special card
  Spatiotemporal 
   diStortioNS
  ONGOING EFFECT
  You may play this after a scene where 
  someone shows up somewhere unexpected 
  or is absent from their presumed location.
  part 2 onwarDs
  Have characters appear in places that they 
  have no way to get to.
  Have characters disappear when there is 
  no possible way out.
  part 3 onwarDs
  Allow the Witness to breach the normal 
  rules of space or time.
  The Witness sees someone appear from 
  nowhere or vanish.
  (Non-Euclidian space, time travel)
  Lovecraftesque Special card
  viSioNS
  ONGOING EFFECT
  You may play this after a scene that 
  mentioned or included dreams, visions or 
  hallucinations.
  part 1 onwarDs
  Reveal Clues well beyond rational 
  explanation, but only seen in visions.
  part 2 onwarDs
  Begin making elements of the vision real, 
  whether rationally explicable or not.
  part 3 onwarDs
  The Journey into Darkness may take place 
  in a vision.
  (Dreams, hallucinations)
  
  sPeciaL cards
  Lovecraftesque Special card
  repriSalS
  INSTANT EFFECT
  When you are Narrator you may play this 
  card to introduce reprisals against the 
  Witness for their meddling. This could take 
  several forms:
   
  ☉ Threaten the Witness or deliver a 
  warning.
   
  ☉ Steal, sabotage or destroy something.
   
  ☉ Attack or pursue someone (including 
  the Witness).
  When you play this card you may breach 
  the rules against directly showing violence 
  against the Witness or someone else.
  Lovecraftesque Special card
  replace the WitNeSS
  INSTANT EFFECT
  Play this card during Part 1 or 2 to:
  1. Take over as Narrator if you weren’t already.
  2. Gain the Scene Requirement: “Take the 
  Witness out of play.”
  3. You can do this by killing them, capturing 
  them, rendering them helpless, moving the 
  story forward in time or to a distant location.
  4. Create a new Witness using the normal 
  setup rules.
  5. Optionally, give the new Witness  
  information known by the previous Witness 
  (e.g. through an exchange of letters).
  6. Start a new scene using your existing Clues 
  and a new Witness who stumbles on the 
  same horror.
  Lovecraftesque Special card
  FlaShback
  INSTANT EFFECT
  Play this card during Part 1 or 2 to:
  1. Take over as Narrator if you weren’t already.
  2. Initiate a new flashback scene to a time 
  before the current story started. This is an 
  Investigation scene.
  3. Reveal a Clue that is relevant to the current 
  situation.
  Lovecraftesque Special card
  early reveal
  INSTANT EFFECT
  Play this card during Part 1 or 2 to:
  1. Take over as Narrator if you weren’t 
  already.
  2. Reveal a Clue that cannot be explained 
  rationally.
  3. Return the role of Narrator to its original 
  owner.
  4. This Clue is in addition to the Clue 
  that would normally be revealed in an 
  Investigation scene.
  
  sPeciaL cards
  Lovecraftesque Special card
  a bizzarerie
  ONGOING EFFECT
  You may play this card after a scene 
  that included phenomena of interest 
  to science, or which appeared to defy 
  conventional scientific theory.
  part 1 onwarDs
  Introduce strange effects not explicable 
  by science, targeted on objects, plants or 
  animals.
  part 2 onwarDs
  Extend the strange effects to humans 
  other than the Witness.
  part 3
  Extend the strange effects to the Witness.
  (Stange, inexplicable effects)
  Lovecraftesque Special card
  StraNGe WritiNGS
  ONGOING EFFECT
  You may play this card after a scene 
  that included mysterious, possibly 
  incomprehensible writings.
  part 2 onwarDs
  Reveal inexplicable effects that happen 
  when the writings are read or their 
  instructions followed.
  Reveal that the things that the writings 
  described were not fictional after all.
  (Book, scroll, carvings)
  Lovecraftesque Special card
  SpecimeN
  ONGOING EFFECT
  You may play this card after a scene that 
  included the complete or partial remains 
  of an unknown creature.
  part 1 onwarDs
  Reveal clear but indirect evidence of a 
  creature unknown to science.
  part 2 onwarDs
  The Witness sees something that could be 
  the creature, but obscured.
  Reveal terrible effects on a victim – injury, 
  mutilation and/or death.
  (Fossil, bones, preserved body)
  Lovecraftesque Special card
  eldritch techNoloGy
  ONGOING EFFECT
  You may play this card after a scene that 
  included an object of unknown function.
  part 2 onwarDs
  Reveal inexplicable occurrences that only 
  happen when the object is present.
  Reveal inexplicable effects that the object 
  can cause when activated.
  
  sPeciaL cards
  Lovecraftesque Special card
  Warped bodieS
  ONGOING EFFECT
  You may play this card after a scene that 
  included people who look unusual, move 
  strangely, or appear to be concealing 
  something.
  part 2 onwarDs
  Reveal inhuman physiological traits.
  Reveal deformity, mutilation or 
  debilitating effects.
  part 3
  Extend deformity, mutilation or 
  debilitating effects to the Witness.
  (Monstrous traits, deformities or disease)
  Lovecraftesque Special card
  a StraNGe locatioN
  INSTANT EFFECT
  Play at any time to:
  1. Take over as Narrator if you weren’t 
  already.
  2. Reveal a previously unknown location.
  3. Shift the action there.
  4. Start a new Investigation scene with you 
  as Narrator.
  (An inaccessible place, other dimension,  
  or hidden location)
  Lovecraftesque Special card
  aNachroNiSm
  ONGOING EFFECT
  Play this card after any scene that included 
  someone with strangely old-fashioned 
  behaviour or possessions.
  part 2 onwarDs
  Reveal implausibly detailed knowledge of 
  times long past.
  Reveal ancient writings that appear to 
  refer to a present-day person.
  Reveal ancient images that appear to 
  depict a present-day person.
  Lovecraftesque Special card
  deFeat the evil
  INSTANT EFFECT
  Play this card during the Final Horror 
  to name a mysterious thing that has 
  been narrated during the game and 
  the meaning of which has not yet been 
  revealed. The Witness realises that this 
  thing is the key to defeating the Final 
  Horror.
  The mysterious thing must be appropriate 
  to the task. A strange ritual could banish an 
  elder god, for instance.
  Only include this card in games  
  with a tone of heroic horror.
  
SOURCE: textdata/thevault/Lovecraftesque/Lovecraftesque Cards.pdf