The Game: The Love Boat meets Octodad

You are monsters and have eaten the crew of a cruise ship (except for the clueless assistant waiter Steve). Now the passengers have boarded and the ship is on its way. To keep your existence a secret, you have to take over the crew jobs despite having neither the education nor the anatomy for that…

The Lovecraft Boat is a rules-light, story-centered one-shot TTRPG for 3-6 players and 1 GM. It’s suitable for newbies and experienced players alike, needs almost no prep, and is ideal for a one-shot.

The Lovecraft Boat was written by Jasmin Neitzel and Andrea Rick and visually designed by Andrea Rick (you can find further credits on this info page).

It’s available in English (PDF) and in German (print + PDF).

---

The Rules

The Lovecraft Boat is a hack of Lasers & Feelings with a few additions by us (you may know the mechanics from our earlier game Magical Pets).

The GM can create your adventure and the passengers on the cruise ship with support from the random roll tables, or they can make up something themself. For example:

During a fashion show, nosy seniors want to repair the sonar device, which would lead to a hungry deity devouring the Earth.

Any other preparation is up to you and your preferences – from 100% improvisation to detailed notes, anything is possible.

In the beginning, players create their characters together and choose a few details of the cruise ship (random roll tables provide inspiration).

Now you’re ready to start your monstrous-maritime adventure! You play together to find out what happens. For risky actions, players roll a small pool of D6 to find out if everything works as intended or if further complications come into play.

---

The PDF

Format:

• 8 pages in DIN-long format (3.9 x 8.3 inches)
• 2 different layouts (2 pages for monitors in landscape format, 4 pages for smaller screens and for DIY printing)
• Full color
• PDF: Screenreader-ready with image descriptions, PDF tags, and external links

Contents:

• Character creation with relationship questions
• Instructions for play
• Random roll tables for the cruise ship, threats, and passengers.
• GM tips

You also need:

• 3 six-sided dice (D6)
• Something to write
• Appropriate consent and safety tools

---

More about the game

You can find more information about the game, its team, and external media links on this info page.