Picture this: you’re cruising down a dusty highway in a ‘67 Chevy Impala, classic rock blaring, a trunk full of salt, holy water, and questionable weaponry. Your mission? Hunt down ghosts, demons, and things that go bump in the night, all while saving people and maybe cracking a few sarcastic one liners. If this sounds like your kind of adventure, then buckle up, because the Supernatural Role Playing Game (RPG) is your ticket to living the Winchester life minus the constant threat of apocalyptic doom, hopefully.
Published in 2009 by Margaret Weis Productions and designed by Jamie Chambers, this tabletop RPG is based on the hit CW television series Supernatural, starring Jensen Ackles and Jared Padalecki as the demon hunting brothers Dean and Sam Winchester. The game lets you step into the boots of a hunter, battling supernatural threats in a world where ordinary folks are blissfully unaware of the monsters lurking in the shadows. In this blog post, we’ll dive deep into the game’s mechanics, setting, lore, and why it’s a must play for fans of the show (or anyone who fancies themselves a monster slaying badass). So, grab your EMF meter and let’s get started!
Table of Contents
A World Where Evil Lurks: The Setting
The Supernatural Role Playing Game is set in the gritty, monster filled universe of the TV show, specifically drawing from the lore of seasons 1–4, as the game was released before season 5 aired. The corebook’s first chapter, aptly titled “Be Afraid of the Dark,” sets the tone: the world is a scary place, teeming with ghosts, demons, vampires, and worse. Most people go about their lives oblivious to these threats, but hunters elite, often traumatized individuals like Sam and Dean stand between humanity and the darkness. It’s a world of dive bars, roadside motels, and abandoned warehouses, where every small town hides a sinister secret.
The game leans heavily on the show’s aesthetic and themes: family, sacrifice, and the moral gray areas of hunting. You might play as one of the Winchesters themselves or create your own hunter, complete with a tragic backstory (because let’s be honest, no one becomes a hunter without some serious baggage). The setting is firmly rooted in Americana, with locations like decrepit farmhouses, seedy diners, and graveyards straight out of a horror flick. However, as some critics have noted, the game’s focus on the U.S. centric world of the show can feel limiting if you want to hunt monsters in, say, Tokyo or London. Still, the corebook provides enough flavour to make every small town adventure feel like an episode of the show.
“Ghosts are real. Demons too, along with those bumps in the night and maybe even the monster under your bed. The world’s a scary place.” – Supernatural Role Playing Game Corebook
The Cortex System: Rolling Dice and Kicking Ass
At its heart, the Supernatural RPG uses the Cortex System, a flexible ruleset also seen in games like Serenity and Battlestar Galactica. If you’re used to the d20 heavy mechanics of Dungeons & Dragons, the Cortex System might feel like trading your longsword for a sawed off shotgun it’s different, but it gets the job done. The system uses a variety of polyhedral dice (d4 to d12, plus a d2 coin for those extra-special moments) to represent your character’s attributes, skills, and traits.
Characters have six core attributes: Agility (how nimble you are), Alertness (your situational awareness), Intelligence (brains over brawn), Strength (for when you need to punch a werewolf), Vitality (how much punishment you can take), and Willpower (your mental fortitude). These are rated by die size, from d2 (you’re basically a potato) to d12 (you’re practically superhuman). When you attempt a task, you roll the dice for the relevant attribute, skill, and any Assets (positive traits like “Tough as Nails”) or Complications (negative traits like “Haunted by Guilt”), then compare the total to a target number set by the Game Master (GM). It’s simple enough for newbies but offers enough depth for veteran gamers to sink their teeth into.
One of the coolest aspects of the Cortex System is its focus on cinematic storytelling. The rules are designed to evoke the fast paced, dramatic feel of the TV show, with mechanics like Plot Points that let players influence the story or pull off heroic feats. Want to miraculously survive a demon’s attack? Spend a Plot Point. Need to recall a crucial piece of lore about a wendigo? Plot Point. It’s like having a guardian angel or at least a really good scriptwriter on your side.
Pro Tip: The Cortex System’s use of different dice sizes makes every roll feel unique. A d12 in Strength means you’re basically Dean Winchester bench pressing a vampire, while a d4 in Alertness means you’re tripping over every hex bag in the room.
Character Creation: Building Your Badass Hunter
Creating a character in the Supernatural RPG is like crafting your own episode of the show. The game uses a point buy system, with separate pools for attributes, skills, and traits. You decide how powerful your hunter is based on the campaign’s power level think “Rookie Hunter” (just starting out) to “Veteran Badass” (you’ve got a rap sheet longer than Crowley’s). You can play as iconic characters like Sam or Dean, but most players will want to create their own hunter, complete with a name, backstory, and a reason they’re crazy enough to fight monsters.
Assets and Complications are where the fun really begins. Assets are your strengths, like “Cool Under Fire” or “Occult Expert,” while Complications are your flaws, like “Addictive Personality” or “Demonic Pact” (because who hasn’t made a deal with a crossroads demon?). These traits don’t just add flavour they mechanically affect your dice rolls, making every choice feel meaningful. For example, a Complication like “Vengeful” might give you a penalty when dealing with the monster that killed your family, but it also makes for some juicy role playing moments.
One unique feature is how Complications tie into the game’s lore, especially demonic possession. Characters with emotional vulnerabilities (like guilt or rage) are more susceptible to possession, which is a slick way to integrate the show’s themes into the mechanics. It’s like the game is saying, “Sure, you can be a tough guy, but your unresolved trauma is basically a neon sign for demons.”
Game Mastering: Crafting Your Own Supernatural Episode
If you’re the Game Master, your job is to create a world that feels like it could be ripped straight from the TV show. The corebook’s Chapter 7, “The Story,” is a 26 page goldmine of GM advice, covering everything from setting the mood to designing adventures. It suggests three playstyles: “Hitting the Road” (like the Winchesters, traveling from town to town), “Evil at Home” (fighting local threats, à la Buffy), and “Professionals” (more structured, like The X-Files). Each style comes with tips on pacing, atmosphere, and how to keep players engaged.
Designing an adventure is straightforward: pick a supernatural threat (say, a vengeful spirit), create a backstory (it’s haunting a creepy old mansion), add some NPCs (a terrified homeowner, a shady local historian), and sprinkle in clues (bloody handprints, flickering lights). The game encourages a mix of social interaction, investigation, and combat, ensuring every player gets a chance to shine. The corebook also includes a variety of pre statted locations (like a biker bar or an abandoned coal mine) and mundane encounters to flesh out your world.
However, the game isn’t perfect. Some critics have pointed out that the corebook lacks detailed guidance on integrating supernatural elements into everyday locations (what’s a haunted discount super-mart like?). And while the GM advice is solid, it’s not ground breaking veteran GMs might find it a bit basic compared to resources like Robin’s Laws of Good Gamemastering. Still, for fans of the show, the advice nails the tone and structure of a Supernatural episode.
Supplements and Expansions: More Monsters, More Problems
Beyond the corebook, Margaret Weis Productions released a few supplements to keep the hunt going. The most notable is Supernatural Role Playing Game: Adventures, a 2010 release that includes five ready to play adventures. These let you dive into new stories or continue with your existing hunters, offering a mix of classic Supernatural tropes like haunted houses and demonic conspiracies. There’s also Supernatural: Guide to the Hunted, which provides detailed stats for monsters and even an appendix, “Sympathy With the Devil,” that explores playing supernatural beings like werewolves or vampires (because sometimes, even hunters blur the line between human and monster).
These supplements address some of the corebook’s shortcomings, like the lack of new monsters (most enemies in the corebook are straight from the show). However, they’re not without flaws some fans have noted that the adventures feel a bit formulaic, and the monster supplement could’ve been beefier. Still, they’re a great way to expand your campaign without reinventing the wheel.
Reception: A Solid Hunt, But No Game Changer
The Supernatural RPG received a mixed but generally positive reception. Fans of the show loved its fidelity to the source material, with reviewers praising the corebook’s evocative design (complete with newspaper clippings and hunter’s notes) and accessible rules. One Goodreads reviewer called it “a great starter RPG for folks new to the concept,” highlighting its clear writing and cinematic feel. The game’s focus on storytelling over crunchy mechanics was a hit with players who wanted to feel like they were in an episode of the show.
However, critics noted that the game didn’t break new ground in the RPG world. Flames Rising wrote, “If you don’t know the show or are just looking for a game in which present-day heroes deal with supernatural menaces, this probably is not the game for you.” Others felt the Cortex System, while capable, wasn’t revolutionary, and the game’s heavy reliance on the show’s canon limited its versatility. Douglas Schules, writing for Transformative Works and Cultures, summed it up: “The Supernatural Role Playing Game doesn’t contribute anything too novel to the genre of RPGs.” Ouch, but fair.
Despite the critiques, the game found a loyal audience among Supernatural fans and TTRPG players looking for a modern horror experience. Its release at Comic Con 2009 and debut at Gen Con 2007 (where players got to test two adventures) cemented its place in the fandom, even if it never reached the heights of Dungeons & Dragons or Call of Cthulhu.
Why Play the Supernatural RPG?
So, why should you dust off the Supernatural Role Playing Game and gather your friends for a hunt? For starters, it’s a love letter to the show, capturing its blend of horror, humour, and heart. Whether you’re reenacting iconic moments (salt and burn, anyone?) or crafting your own stories, the game delivers the thrill of being a hunter. The Cortex System is accessible yet deep, making it great for both new players and seasoned GMs. Plus, who doesn’t want to roll a d12 to exorcise a demon while quoting Latin like a boss?
It’s not perfect the U.S. centric setting, limited monster variety, and slightly basic GM advice might frustrate some players. But for fans of Supernatural or anyone who loves urban fantasy with a side of snark, it’s a damn good time. Pair it with a playlist of Kansas and AC/DC, and you’re ready to hit the road.
So, grab your dice, load up on rock salt, and remember: saving people, hunting things it’s the family business. Just don’t forget to check under the bed.
If you enjoyed this article you might want to check out A Comprehensive List of Every Cortex System Book Ever Published Next
