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Dread (role-playing game)

horror tabletop role-playing game

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General referenceInterpretive dossier study · Crown Archives visual atlas
Record originEnglish Wikipedia
Text licenseCC BY-SA 4.0
Source revisionSep 11, 2026
Entity authorityQ21233465 ↗
Source-derived summary

Dread is a horror indie tabletop role-playing game designed by Epidiah Ravachol and Nathaniel Barmore, and published by The Impossible Dream in 2006. The game is unusual in that it uses a Jenga tower for action resolution. It won three ENNIE Awards.

The game

Dread is a short (one session) horror role-playing game. In addition to the book of rules, players also need to have a Jenga tower (not supplied with the game), which takes the place of dice for action resolution.

Dread has no fixed setting and can be used in any place or time in which a horror game is appropriate.

Character creation

The Host (gamemaster) designs a questionnaire of 10–12 questions, the last question being "What is your character's name?" The Host then uses the answers to assign each player to a stock role, such as Jock, Head Cheerleader, Nerd, Slacker, Rich Kid, and Best Friend.

Gameplay

Before play begins, the Jenga tower is set up. During play, when a character attempts to do a difficult task, the player is required to pull out a Jenga block. Doing so successfully means the character was successful.

Editorial summary

The public source identifies “Dread (role-playing game)” as horror tabletop role-playing game. This brief keeps that definition visible, then builds a research path around Dread, role-playing and game.

Editorial reviewA dependable orientation record for establishing vocabulary, names and a first evidence trail. The current lead gives the account dated anchors—2006—that can be checked directly. The linked authority record independently contributes the date 2005. Its value is orientation rather than verdict, with Dread, role-playing and game providing the first useful test.
Editorial analysis

Why this record matters

A short description can identify a subject without explaining its stakes. For “Dread (role-playing game)”, the useful work is to connect “horror tabletop role-playing game” to the records capable of establishing context and consequence.

Evidence profile

Named sources, stable identifiers and responsible institutions provide the strongest route from overview to verifiable evidence. The source revision retrieved here is dated Sep 11, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q21233465. 1 of 2 selected statements include explicit references; 0 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 2006.

Critical limits

Overview language is designed for orientation and should not be treated as a substitute for the evidence cited beneath it. The lead is largely declarative, so disagreement and counter-evidence require a deliberate search beyond the opening account. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.

How to read it

Use the entry as an orientation point, then follow its citations and revision history. Names, dates and institutional relationships should be checked against the original record.

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  2. Expand the search: follow Dread (role-playing game) primary sources, Dread (role-playing game) archive and Dread research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
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Source & attribution

This entry incorporates text from “Dread (role-playing game)” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.