Gloria Nocturna: Player's Handbook

 Gloria Nocturna is a grim, late-18th-century gothic horror tabletop role-playing game about faith, duty, corruption, and survival in a world where darkness is not metaphorical—it is real, intelligent, and advancing. You play members of the Black Order, a disciplined religious-military organization tasked with confronting supernatural threats, heretical cults, monsters, and human depravity in a decaying fictional world balanced between 🌿Tranquility and the 🕷️Gloom. This is not heroic high fantasy. Victory is costly. Faith is tested. Magic is terrifying. And every decision leaves a mark.

The Black Order & Its Missions

 The game supports investigation, moral tension, brutal combat, and slow-burn horror. Players take the role of special detachments assigned to missions such as: Hunting monsters and cryptids; Purging cult activity and occult cells; Securing cursed sites and ruined towns; Escorting relics, scholars, or witnesses; Investigating heresies, outbreaks of madness, or Gloom manifestations; Holding strategic locations against supernatural threats

The Ruleset: Jack’s Cinematic d12

 Gloria Nocturna uses Jack’s Cinematic d12, designed to be fast, readable, and grounded in natural language. Each player needs only one twelve-sided die (1d12). Tests are resolved using: Target Numbers, Skill Tests, Attribute Tests, and Opposed Defense Rolls. There are no nested subsystems, advantage stacks, or arithmetic overload. If something makes sense in the fiction, the rules support it cleanly. The system emphasizes realism, pressure, and cinematic consequence, not optimization puzzles.

No Hit Points. Real Consequences.

 Combat is dangerous, fast, and meaningful. Violence is not a resource—it is a risk. Characters do not have abstract hit point pools. Instead, Gloria Nocturna uses:🩸Physical Wounds (Minor, Moderate, Severe, Critical), 🧠Mental Trauma (Shaken, Impaired, Unstable, Broken), Armor that degrades, Psychological and moral consequences.

 Magic Is Terrifying

 Magic in Gloria Nocturna feels dangerous, dramatic, and consequential. It is never “free,” and it is never routine. Spellcasting is not casual utility magic. The rulebook contains over 600+ spells across 24 schools of magic. Casting magic carries mental and spiritual backlash. Unlike "high magic" fantasy games, using magic out in the open attracts attention—sometimes unwanted. Illusions, miracles, curses, and reality-warping events all leave traces.

Inside the Player’s Handbook

 This single volume contains everything needed to play: 12 Character Classes (comprised of 12 Attributes, 5 Attribute PRISMs, 24 Skills); Extensive equipment lists, spell lists and casting rules; Character creation, advancement, and role-play guidance; Setting lore focused on player action, not exposition bloat; No separate Player’s Guide, GM book, or spell compendium required.

Tone & Audience

Gloria Nocturna is intended for mature players (18+), or teens with parental guidance. It is not a Bible study, but it is thematically serious—drawing on faith, law, corruption, and human weakness to explore dark questions through play. This game is ideal for players who: Are tired of D&D-style hit point attrition; Want something darker than standard medieval fantasy; Prefer grounded horror over power fantasy; Enjoy role-play with real stakes and consequences.

⚠️ Playtesting Edition Notice

 This is the Playtesting Edition of the Gloria Nocturna: Player’s Handbook. As such, the rules are subject to change. Some sections may be incomplete or require editing, clarification, or formatting polish. This book is provided in digital format so it can be updated as development continues. Buyers will be able to download revised versions as updates are released, leading up to the finalized, polished print edition. By purchasing this edition, you are directly supporting the development of Gloria Nocturna. Purchasing this Playtesting Edition helps push the game toward its final print release.Playtesters are encouraged to: Leave honest 5-star reviews on DriveThruRPG; Provide feedback using the contact information included in the book; Playtest Gloria Nocturna directly with the author; Your input helps shape the final form of the game.

Gloria Nocturna is not about saving the world.

It is about standing your ground when the darkness arrives—and deciding what you are willing to become in order to stop it.