BioWare Blog: Running a Horror Game, Part Two

BioWare's Jay Watamaniuk gives us a breakdown of how the first night should go when running a horror-themed tabletop game in the second installment to his blog series.
Chapter 1: Arrival of Players

It is either a normal meet and greet (maybe they were invited to a dinner party at a posh house in the woods) and something is wrong that needs to be explored and searched (house in disarray, person they were going to meet is missing).

The initial set-up of your location contains documents or props that need to be pieced together or solved by the players to unlock some of the overall plot. A small example is a picture that has been torn up and scattered around your environment that needs to be put together to reveal a location of a key. You can create as many of these clues as you wish but as long as they all reveal part of the overall plot and the players gain something from putting the clue together (a key to a safe, a weapon, a new document etc.). This gives players something to do immediately and brings them into your story.