Indie RPG Club: Delta Green, Saving the World By Ending Your Own

Sign up to play with a consistent group! We’ll explore various ttRPGs of different settings, genres, and rule-types on a semi-regular basis, three sessions at a time. A horror, investigative ttRPG will be our next game.

What is Delta Green? Why this game?

Delta Green, foremost, is an investigative horror ttRPG. It rose to prominence as a modern setting for Call of Cthulhu during the original run of the The X-Files, and in 2016, it was published as a stand-alone game. It should be no surprise, therefore, that you play as government agents working to protect the world from supernatural threats inspired by the Cthulhu Mythos.

But this is not the full story. Because when Delta Green – which, officially, does not exist –asks you to eliminate eldritch abominations, that’s not the only task. Any civilians encountered in fulfilling your mission will need to be deceived. Any evidence of your involvement should be blatant enough to obfuscate the truth from your loved ones. And if any witnesses were there to see what you did? Deny that you had anything to do with their disappearance. 

In this game, you don’t play Mulder and Scully. You play the Cigarette Smoking Man. The Truth is not out there.

How will the club play this game, logistically?

For this first cycle of games, we’ll use the Need To Know quickstart rules and play through pre-published modules. This is to get a handle on the rules and to see if we like the tone (and setting) of the game.

If the club wishes to continue playing this game (polled around Session #2), we’ll go for another three sessions, and look into longer modules or some of the published campaigns. If not,  we’ll announce the next RPG we’ll be playing!

Will I have fun with this system? What makes it different?

A key thing worth mentioning for this game is that it’s much darker – in published content – than typical Lovecraftian games. Part of this is because it’s set in contemporary times (so it’s naturally close-to-home) but  it’s also because of what it asks you, the player, to explore.

The game doesn’t want you playing an archetype – no wealthy dilettante or crusty antiquarian. Instead, it asks you to think about the elements of their humanity that they hold dear. That’s because the way your agent continues to live – mechanistically – involves sacrificing the stability and strength of these relationships to cope with the indescribably horrors they see – or commit – in the course of their career. The game wants you to witness the human toll of your work, both on others and yourself. It asks you, in the end, which is more horrific: things you can’t explain or things you don’t want to explain?

What is the Indie ttRPG Club?

Foremost, this group is about playing tabletop RPGs and co-creating interesting stories for the challenge and the thrill. We will explore different systems and settings to see what they can teach us about the hobby and the different stories we’re able to create together. If you’re not quite feeling the vibe of the selected game, stay tuned for future announcements!