View source for Chill (role-playing game)

{{Short description|Tabletop role-playing game}}
{{Italic title}}
{{Infobox RPG
| title = Chill
| image = Chill RPG.jpg
| caption = ''Chill'' cover, Pacesetter Edition
| designer = Gali Sanchez, [[Garry Spiegle]], [[Mark Acres (game designer)|Mark Acres]], Louis J. Prosperi, [[David Ladyman]], [[Jeff R. Leason]]
| publisher = [[Pacesetter Ltd]], [[Mayfair Games]], Growling Door Games, Salt Circle Games
| date = {{ubl|1984 (Pacesetter Ltd) |1985 (Swedish version – {{lang|sv|italic=no|Äventyrsspel}}) |1990 (Mayfair Games) |2015 (Growling Door Games)}}
| genre = [[horror fiction|Horror]]
| system = Percentile based (d100)
| footnotes = 
}}
[[Image:maychill.jpg|thumb|200px|right|''Chill'' cover, Mayfair Edition]]

'''''Chill''''' is an investigative and modern [[horror fiction|horror]] [[role-playing game]] originally published by [[Pacesetter Ltd]] in 1984 that captures the feel of 20th-century [[horror film]]s.<ref name="RPGnet">{{cite web| url=http://www.rpg.net/news+reviews/reviews/rev_6099.html| title=Chill (Review)| year=2002|publisher=[[RPGnet]]|access-date=2007-10-06}}</ref>

==Setting==
''Chill'' is inspired by, and attempts to capture the feel of, 20th-century horror films, where usual foes are [[vampire]]s, [[Werewolf|werewolves]], [[Mummy|mummies]], [[ghost]]s, and [[ghoul]]s.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://rpggeek.com/rpg/542/chill-pacesetter-edition|title=Chill (Pacesetter Edition) &#124; RPG &#124; RPGGeek|website=rpggeek.com}}</ref> Players take on the role of envoys,<ref name="dragon90" /> members of a secret organization known as S.A.V.E. (''Societas Argenti Viae Eternitata'', or, The Eternal Society of the Silver Way)<ref>{{cite book| last = Melton| first = Gordon| author-link = J. Gordon Melton| title = The Vampire Book: The Encyclopedia of the Undead| publisher = Visible Ink Press| year = 1994| location = Detroit, MI| pages = 852| edition = 1st| url = http://www.visibleink.com/title.php?id=41| isbn =0-8103-2295-1}}</ref> that tracks down and eliminates evil in the world.<ref name="dragon90">{{Cite journal| last =Epperson| first =Jerry|title =Horribly Simple to Learn: Chill will leave you shivering for more | journal =[[Dragon (magazine)|Dragon Magazine]]| date=October 1984 | issue =90)| pages =62–63| issn =0279-6848 }}</ref>

==Pacesetter (First Edition)==
The game was introduced by Pacesetter Ltd in 1984.<ref name="RPGnet"/> The following year, [[Target Games]] released a Swedish version under the name ''Chock'' (Swedish for "shock" or "fright"), and in 1985, [[Schmidt Spiele]] released a French version. Pacesetter also launched the board game ''[[Chill: Black Morn Manor|Black Morn Manor]]'', also translated into French (''Le Manoir des Ténèbres'') by Schmidt Spiele.

The game components include an introductory folio, a campaign book, a book of monsters, a map of the world, 140 die-cut double-sided counters, a range stick, and dice. The [[boxed set]] also includes a 16-page adventure, "Terror in Warwick House".<ref name=dragon90 />

=== ''Chill Master's Screen'' ===
[[File:Chill_Master's_Screen.jpg|thumb|''Chill Master's Screen'']]
''Chill Master's Screen'' is a supplement published by [[Pacesetter Ltd|Pacesetter]] in 1984 for the game. The package includes an adventure based on [[Bram Stoker]]'s classic novel [[Dracula (novel)|''Dracula'']]. It is a three-panel [[gamemaster's screen]] printed on cardstock.

The screen is divided into three panels, decorated on the player side with three illustrations from the core book.<ref name="grog">{{cite web |date=2009-05-08 |title=Chill Master's Screen |url=https://www.legrog.org/jeux/chill/troisieme-edition/chill-master-s-screen-3eme-ed-en |access-date=2025-07-17 |website=Guide du Rôliste Galactique |language=fr}}</ref>  On the [[gamemaster]]'s side of the screen, the left part summarizes several rules points, the central part summarizes the monster disciplines, and the right part summarizes the resolution system and describes the effect of the different levels of success depending on the situation.<ref name="grog" /> The adventure book contains an 8-page scenario titled ''Castle Dracula'', which adapts the four beginning chapters Bram Stoker's novel ''[[Dracula]]''.<ref name="SG">{{cite magazine |last=Barton |first=William A. |date=Nov–Dec 1984 |title=Capsule Reviews |magazine=[[Space Gamer]] |pages=58 |issue=71}}</ref><ref name="HW">{{cite book |last=Schick |first=Lawrence |title=Heroic Worlds: A History and Guide to Role-Playing Games |publisher=Prometheus Books |year=1991 |isbn=0-87975-653-5 |pages=247 |authorlink=Lawrence Schick}}</ref><ref>{{cite magazine |date=October 1990 |title=News from Afar |magazine=Shadis |pages=47 |issue=5}}</ref>

Several ex-[[TSR, Inc.|TSR]] employees founded game company Pacesetter Ltd. in 1984, partly due to their unhappiness at the direction TSR seemed to be headed.<ref name="strong">{{cite web |title=Game:Chill Master's Screen Featuring Castle Dracula |url=https://artsandculture.google.com/asset/game-chill-master-s-screen-featuring-castle-dracula-pacesetter-ltd/dwEstZqwWLd09w?hl=en |access-date=2025-07-17 |website=Google Arts & Culture}}</ref> One of their first products was the modern horror role-playing game ''Chill'', and this was followed the same year by several accessories such as the ''Castle Dracula / Chill Master's Screen'', a product designed by Gail Sanchez, with a cover by Susan Collins.<ref name="HW" />

In Issue 71 of ''[[Space Gamer]]'', William A. Barton commented "the ''[[gamemaster|GM]] Screen'' should prove useful to most ''Chill'' CMs who like more than an ordinary binder to hide their notes, and the ''Castle Dracula'' adventure can be a fun – if potentially deadly – bonus for those times you can't get together an entire play group."<ref name="SG" /> A copy of ''Chill Master's Screen'' is held in the collection of the [[Strong National Museum of Play]] (object 117.672).<ref name="strong" />

===Other Pacesetter publications===
* ''Blood Moon Rising'' (adventure)
* ''[[Creature Feature (Chill)|Creature Feature]]'' (sourcebook)
* ''[[Death on Tour]]'' (adventure)
* ''Deathwatch on the Bayou'' (adventure)
* ''Evenings of Terror with Elvira'' (book of adventures hosted by [[Cassandra Peterson|Elvira, Mistress of the Dark]])
* ''Haunter of the Moor'' (adventure)
* ''[[Highland Terror]]'' (adventure)
* ''Isle of the Dead'' (adventure)
* ''[[Things (Chill)|Things]]'' (sourcebook)
* ''Thutmose's Night'' (adventure)
* ''[[Vampires (Chill)|Vampires]]'' (sourcebook)
* ''[[Vengeance of Dracula]]'' (adventure, published as a sequel to ''Castle Dracula'')<ref name="HW" />
* ''[[Village of Twilight]]'' (adventure)

Pacesetter ceased operations in 1986, bringing the publication of the First Edition of ''Chill'' to an end.

===Reception to First edition===
In the October 1984 edition of ''[[Dragon (magazine)|Dragon]]'' (Issue 90), Jerry Epperson had a few quibbles with various game mechanics. He questioned the economics rules that essentially gave characters access to unlimited amounts of cash. Epperson also wondered why a range stick was included, since there were no regulated combat maneuvering rules that would make use of the stick. And he found the introductory adventure included in the game was overly simplistic: "''Terror in Warwick House'' is much like a guided tour of a national monument. While it portends to be a dangerous place, one gets the feeling that those who fell victim to the sinister occupants before the player characters were called to the scene were either idiots or invalids. The clues required by the characters to dispose of the evil are practically spoon-fed to the players." But Epperson concluded that "these problems are not major flaws in the game’s design; any [[gamemaster|GM]] should be able to alter them with little effort. All things considered, the ''Chill'' game does just what it sets out to do. It doesn’t stall play with unwieldy rules or sub-systems, and it allows the GM to pace the storyline and preserve the intensity of a situation thanks to the game’s elegant simplicity. As an alternative to dungeon delving, superheroing, or chasing after Cthulhu, the ''Chill'' game is something you can really sink your teeth into."<ref name=dragon90 />

Two reviews of ''Chill'' appeared in issues of ''[[Space Gamer]]''. In the November–December 1984 edition (Issue No. 71), William Barton admired ''Chill'' for being less violent and less weird than other horror roleplaying games, saying, "''Chill'' is a viable alternative in supernatural gaming for those who desire less gunplay than is typical in ''[[Stalking the Night Fantastic|Stalking]]'' or prefer more conventional creatures than the sanity-blasting horrors of ''[[Call of Cthulhu (role-playing game)|CoC]]''."<ref name="SG71">{{cite journal|last=Barton |first=William A. |date=Nov–Dec 1984 |title=Capsule Reviews|journal=[[Space Gamer]]|publisher=[[Steve Jackson Games]]|issue=71|pages=46–47}}</ref> In the July–August 1985 edition (Issue 75), [[Warren Spector]] thought that "Though superficially simpler than ''Call of Cthulhu'', the clear leader in the horror field, ''Chill'' falls somewhat short of the mark."<ref name="SG75">{{cite journal|last=Spector |first=Warren |author-link=Warren Spector |date=July–August 1985 |title=Featured Review: The Pacesetter Line|journal=[[Space Gamer]]|publisher=[[Steve Jackson Games]]|issue=75|pages=4–6}}</ref>

[[Keith Herber]] reviewed ''Chill'' for ''[[Different Worlds]]'' magazine and stated that "I found ''Chill'' to be a well-thought-out, well-presented game that simulates the world of horror as represented in (particularly) the movies. The rules are flexible enough and complete enough to allow a gamemaster to set whatever tone or mood he desires his campaign to have and there is a large amount of written and filmed material from which to draw adventure designs."<ref name="dw37">{{cite journal | last = Herber |first = Keith |authorlink = Keith Herber | title = Game Reviews | journal = [[Different Worlds]] | issue = 37 | pages =27–28 |date=November–December 1984}}</ref>

In the January 1985 edition of ''[[White Dwarf (magazine)|White Dwarf]]'' (Issue 61), Angus McLellan gave ''Chill'' an average rating of 7 out of 10. McLellan felt the gameplay was fairly slow and lacking in scares; furthermore, ''[[Call of Cthulhu (role-playing game)|Call of Cthulhu]]'' had already paved the way for horror-based role-playing games.<ref>{{cite journal | last =McLellan | first =Angus  | title =Open Box: Dungeon Modules  | type = review  | journal =[[White Dwarf (magazine)|White Dwarf]]  | issue = 61  | pages =9–10  | publisher =[[Games Workshop]]  |date=January 1985 | issn =0265-8712}}</ref>

Paul Mason reviewed ''Chill'' for ''[[Imagine (AD&D magazine)|Imagine]]'' magazine, and stated that "if you fancy a game of investigation with gothic horror overtones, and you don't much care for H P Lovecraft's Cthulhu mythos, then Chill would be the game to buy."<ref name="Imagine23">{{cite journal | last = Mason |first = Paul | title =Notices | type = review | journal = [[Imagine (game magazine)|Imagine]] | issue = 23| pages =43| publisher = TSR Hobbies (UK), Ltd. |date=February 1985}}</ref>

In the December 1988 edition of ''Dragon'' (Issue 140), [[Ken Rolston]] reviewed two supplements published by Pacesetter just before it went out of business, ''Vampires'' and ''Creature Feature''. Rolston had a more favourable opinion of ''Vampires'', calling it an "excellent book... The graphic presentation is top-notch." Rolston was particularly enthusiastic about the writing, which he called, "exceptional" and concluded, "I highly recommend this supplement." He was less enthusiastic about ''Creature Feature'', saying, "This supplement lacks the graphic quality or refined presentation of the finer ''Chill'' supplements." Rolston thought the concept of allowing players to become monsters and prey on humans did have "an oddly redeeming appeal", but felt that "the replay value [is] negligible." He gave this supplement a thumbs down, saying, "''Creature Feature'' will not be of use to most GMs, but students of the hobby may find it interesting for a brief diversion or as a curiosity."<ref name=dragon140>{{cite journal|last=Rolston|first=Ken|author-link=Ken Rolston| date=December 1988 |title=Role-playing reviews |journal=[[Dragon (magazine)|Dragon]]|publisher=[[TSR (company)|TSR, Inc.]]|issue=140|pages=88}}</ref>

In his 1990 book ''[[The Complete Guide to Role-Playing Games]]'', game critic [[Rick Swan]] was not impressed by ''Chill'', calling it "A horror game for the easily frightened." Swan could not find anything to like in the game system, commenting, "The feat rules are puzzling ... the combat rules are stiff ... and the economic system is ridiculous." Swan concluded by giving the game a below average rating of 2 out of 4, saying, "''Chill'' is too shallow for extended campaigns, and lacks the depth to please anyone but the most undemanding players."<ref name=swan>{{cite book | last =Swan  | first =Rick | author-link=Rick Swan |title =[[The Complete Guide to Role-Playing Games]] | publisher =St. Martin’s Press | date =1990 | location =New York | pages =49–50}}</ref>

===Other reviews and commentary===
*''The V.I.P. of Gaming Magazine'' #4 (July/Aug., 1986)
* ''[[Casus Belli (magazine)|Casus Belli]]'' #22 (Oct 1984)<ref>{{cite web | url=https://archive.org/details/casus-belli-022/page/n3/mode/2up | title=Casus Belli #022 | date=1984 }}</ref>
* ''[[Casus Belli (magazine)|Casus Belli]]'' #23 (Dec 1984)<ref>{{cite web | url=https://archive.org/details/casus-belli-023/page/n33/mode/2up | title=Casus Belli #023 | date=1984 }}</ref>
* ''[[Casus Belli (magazine)|Casus Belli]]'' #38 (June 1987)<ref>{{cite web | url=https://archive.org/details/casus-belli-038/page/n19/mode/2up | title=Casus Belli #038 | date=1987 }}</ref>
*''[[Asimov's Science Fiction]]'' v9 n9 (1985 09)<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://archive.org/details/Asimovs_v09n09_1985-09|title=Asimov's v09n09 (1985 09)|via=Internet Archive}}</ref>
*''{{ill|Jeux et Stratégie|lt=Jeux & Stratégie|fr}}'' #46<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://archive.org/details/jeux-et-strategie-46|title=Jeux & stratégie 46|date=August 30, 1987|via=Internet Archive}}</ref>

==Mayfair Games (Second Edition)==
In 1990, [[Mayfair Games]] inc. purchased the rights, and the following year published a second edition of the game system called ''Chill Core Rulebook''.<ref name=dragon186 /> Over the next three years, Mayfair published fourteen sourcebooks for the setting and a collection of short stories:<ref name=dragon186 />

* ''Chill Accessory Pack'' (included ''Isle of the Dead'' scenario)
* ''[[Apparitions (Chill)|Apparitions]]'' (sourcebook with scenario) "The Visitation" pg.96
* ''The Beast Within'' (standalone RPG compatible with Chill where you play monsters)
* ''Chill Companion'' (sourcebook)
* ''Horrors of North America'' (sourcebook with scenario) "Once Bitten" pg.81
* ''[[Lycanthropes (Chill)|Lycanthropes]]'' (sourcebook with 2 scenarios) "The Beast of Exmoor" pg.84, "Long Hot Summer" pg.111
* ''Things'' (sourcebook)''
* ''Undead & Buried'' (scenario)
* ''Unknown Providence: SAVE in New England'' (sourcebook with 4 scenarios) "Weekend in New England" pg.30, "Death's Head Revisited" pg.47, "Bitter Remnants" pg.81, "Dark Providence" pg.93
* ''Vampires'' (sourcebook with scenario) "Vengeance of Dracula" pg.97
* ''Veil of Flesh'' (scenario)
* ''Voodoo'' (sourcebook with scenario) "Drums in the Night" pg.93
* ''Chilled to the Bone'' - anthology of short stories

Mayfair's game was translated into French by [[Oriflam]] in 1994.

===Reception to Second Edition===
In Issue 47 of ''[[Challenge (game magazine)|Challenge]]'', [[Lester W. Smith]] reviewed the Mayfair edition and noted the abundance of new material. Smith also liked the revamped game mechanics, and concluded, "Problems? None that I've found so far. If you liked the old ''Chill'', I suspect you're going to like the new one even better."<ref name="challenge47">{{cite magazine|last=Smith|first=Lester W.| author-link=Lester W. Smith | date=1990 |title=Challenge Reviews|magazine=[[Challenge (game magazine)|Challenge]]|issue=47|pages=92}}</ref>

[[Stewart Wieck]] reviewed ''Chill'' in ''[[White Wolf (magazine)|White Wolf]]'' #23 (Oct./Nov., 1990), rating it a 3 out of 5 and stated that "''Chill'' is a good, solid horror game, but the terror is not quite real enough."<ref name="WW23">{{Cite magazine |last=Wieck|first=Stewart|authorlink=Stewart Wieck |date=October–November 1990 |title=PBM Game Reviews |magazine= [[White Wolf Magazine]] |number=23 |page= 54|url=https://imgur.com/a/H8K0GEn}}</ref>

In the October 1992 edition of ''Dragon'' (Issue 186), [[Rick Swan]] reviewed three supplements that had been published by Mayfair Games: ''Apparitions Sourcebook'', ''Lycanthropes Sourcebook'', and ''Vampires Sourcebook''. Overall, Swan thought the material was not very original: "The designers have hardly let their imaginations run wild; the approach draws primarily from legends and movies, meeting the expectations of conservative horror buffs but rarely exceeding them. Dracula and the Wolfman are welcome; vampiric Martians and lycanthropic cattle need not apply." However, Swan found the books "consistently entertaining and filled with interesting material that is intelligently presented." He concluded, "Players and referees alike should get a kick out these engaging books... I would’ve liked stronger scenarios and a few more adventure hooks, but all in all, the fastidious research, evocative writing, and enthusiasm for the material makes for a winning combination. I’m looking forward to future volumes."<ref name=dragon186>{{cite journal|last=Swan|first=Rick|author-link=Rick Swan| date=October 1992 |title=Roleplaying Reviews|journal=[[Dragon (magazine)|Dragon]]|publisher=[[TSR (company)|TSR, Inc.]]|issue=186|pages=98–100}}</ref>

Christian Lindke compared the First and Second Editions in ''[[Black Gate (magazine)|Black Gate]]'', saying "There are many games from the 80s that — mechanically and tonally — seem extremely dated by modern gaming standards. ''Chill'' — the first Pacesetter edition — isn't one of them. It has a kind of classic feel to it, just like all the Hammer and AIP movies it was inspired by. It isn't a dark and serious horror game, but it is an adventurous one. If you wanted to pretend to be Peter Cushing's Van Helsing hunting Christopher Lee's Dracula, there was no better game than ''Chill'' during the early Pacesetter era. The later Mayfair game never captured the charm of the original and for a time it looked like fans of non-Lovecraftian horror were going to be left without a high quality horror RPG."<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.blackgate.com/2013/10/07/a-return-of-pacesetter-rpg-style-horror/ | title=A Return of Pacesetter RPG Style Horror – Black Gate | date=7 October 2013 }}</ref>

===Other reviews of the Second Edition===
*[https://archive.org/details/shadismagazine/Shadis/Shadis%20Magazine%20%2319.5/page/n75/mode/2up Review] in [[Shadis]]

==Third edition==
In 2012, Mayfair Games sold ''Chill''{{'}}s intellectual property rights to Martin Caron and Renée Dion. Two years later, Growling Door Games announced they had entered into a licensing agreement with Caron and Dion to publish ''Chill''.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://growlingdoorgames.wordpress.com/2014/06/14/press-release-growling-door-games-to-publish-new-edition-of-chill/ |title=PRESS RELEASE: GROWLING DOOR GAMES TO PUBLISH NEW EDITION OF CHILL |access-date=2014-06-15 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140911201149/http://growlingdoorgames.wordpress.com/2014/06/14/press-release-growling-door-games-to-publish-new-edition-of-chill/ |archive-date=2014-09-11 |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.tabletopgamingnews.com/growling-door-games-acquires-license-for-chill-rpg|title = Growling Door Games Acquires License for Chill RPG}}</ref> The following year, Growling Door Games published the third edition of the game. They subsequently published three sourcebooks and several scenarios from 2016 until Growling Door ceased operations in 2019.

* ''Chill 3rd Edition Core Rulebook''
* ''Chill Master's Screen''
* ''Chill Tokens''
* ''Free scenarios''
** ''A Lamp Gone Dark''
** ''Big Sky''
** ''Cold Dark Earth''
** ''Dead Hearts''
** ''El Cucuy Came for Carlito''
** ''High Tide''
** ''in the Domain of the Mariner''
** ''Let Sleeping Dogs Lie''
** ''Manhunt''
** ''Sunshine in Maine''
** ''Temple of the Skin Man''
** ''The Last Stop Boys''
** ''The Wild Hunt''
** ''Whispered Confessions''
* ''Good Fences Make Good Neighbors'' (free quickstart)
* ''Monsters'' (sourcebook)
* ''SAVE: The Eternal Society'' (sourcebook with 4 scenarios)
* ''Undead'' (sourcebook)

The third edition and two sourcebooks were translated into French by A.K.A. Games in 2017. A.K.A. Games also translated the ''Chill Master's Screen'', ''SAVE: The Eternal Society'' and ''Monsters'' into French. The third edition rulebook and supplements remain for sale directly from Martin Caron.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.drivethrurpg.com/product/148433/Chill-Third-Edition|title=Chill Third Edition - Martin Caron &#124; DriveThruRPG.com|website=www.drivethrurpg.com}}</ref>

In 2019, Salt Circle Games signed an agreement with Caron and Dion to release new material for third edition to be sold via the [[crowd-sourcing]] website [[Patreon]]. In 2020, Salt Circle Games began closed playtesting of an unannounced Fourth Edition of ''Chill'' and published a supplement for the third edition titled ''Horrors of the Unknown: Volume 1''.<ref>{{Cite web |title=DriveThruRPG |url=https://www.drivethrurpg.com/en/product/327561/horrors-of-the-unknown-volume-1 |access-date=2024-07-31 |website=www.drivethrurpg.com}}</ref> Salt Circle Games made new third edition character sheets available in 2021 and announced an upcoming setting supplement, ''Unknown Atlanta'', with no expected publication date.

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
* [https://www.facebook.com/pages/Chill-RPG/187313888120168?ref=hl Chill official page on Facebook]
*[https://www.patreon.com/chillrpg Salt Circle Games' Chill Patreon]

{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Chill (role-playing game)| ]]
[[Category:Horror role-playing games]]
[[Category:Mayfair Games games]]
[[Category:Pacesetter games]]
[[Category:Role-playing games introduced in 1984]]