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Tabletop Game / Castlevania: Nocturne of the Tabletop

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Castlevania: Nocturne of the Tabletop is a fan-made Castlevania Tabletop Game by Brandon McCool. It was initially released in 2015 (being ported to Tabletop Simulator in the same year by Joseph Torres), and had several updates until 2019, when contact from Konami led to Brandon taking down the game’s website, and ceasing all involvement with its distribution.

The premise of the game is much like that of Castlevania II: Simon's Quest. The game starts with Dracula already dead, but having stricken the players with a curse that will kill them very soon. The players must go to Castlevania, collect Dracula’s remains from his monsters, reach the top of the castle, destroy the remains to bring Dracula back, and finally kill him in order to escape their fate.

One to six players will cooperate to take turns rolling and drawing events or monsters to gain experience, levels, and equipment through six stages to prepare for the confrontation with the castle’s master. Each stage end with a boss encounter to more strenuously test the players’ combat abilities. The player who defeats the boss will seize one of Dracula’s five relics—remains of the Dark Lord which each confer advantages to their holders. As time passes however, the curse upon the heroes grows stronger. The curse clock begins as 12:00 noon, but if it reaches 12:00 midnight, the curse will take the lives of the heroes immediately. Taking too much time in a stage, falling to traps or monsters, or even drawing certain event cards will cause the clock to advance.

Can the hunters kill Dracula in time, or will his curse take their lives—leaving Earth to his devilish thrall?

     List of playable characters 

Castlevania: Nocturne of the Tabletop provide examples of:

  • Ability Required to Proceed: Some events will require you to jump high, cross gaps, or even turn into mist to proceed. If you can’t complete the event, it’s left on the board to be completed later.
  • After Boss Recovery: All players regain full health once a boss is defeated.
  • Area of Effect: Eric Lecarde’s Mirror of Truth hits all enemies, no matter how far away or who they are engaged with.
  • Awesome, but Temporary: If a player is using Soma, he becomes one of Dracula’s forms, AND Dracula gets another form after that, Soma will return to the party with powerful permanent buffs. It’s a shame Drac isn’t gonna last much longer.
  • Backtracking: Players can move either way at will. Events can be left on the board to come back to, and Warp Tokens gained from beating each boss or from events further facilitate this. Averted in Classic mode.
  • Bag of Spilling: In Classic mode, hearts are reset to zero at the beginning of each stage.
  • Boss Room: Because where else would you fight the bosses? There’s one for each stage.
  • Cap: Hit points tap out at sixteen max. Hearts vary from character to character, as does the effective level cap (as players can only level for however many upgrades their character has).
  • Checkpoint: Characters who die are returned to the beginning of the stage which they perished in. In Classic mode, the players are given three save points to place as they will. They only function as checkpoints after a player passes by them.
  • Defeat Means Playable: If Soma is being played and comes up as one of Dracula’s forms, this can happen if Dracula comes back after he’s beaten. Soma becomes a ‘’lot’’ more powerful if this happens.
  • Dream Match Game: Hunters and horrors from throughout the Castlevania mythos are here for the fun. No explanation is given as to how they’re all here.
  • Dual Boss: Dracula & Death. This power couple can show up as one of Dracula’s forms. Each has to be taken down individually.
  • Extra Turn: Some events allow you to take another turn after you complete them successfully.
  • Extrinsic Go-First Rule: The rules say to have the first player be the, “player who has most recently been bitten by a vampire bat, mosquito, or other blood-sucking creature. (Or agree on a slightly less stupid way of deciding the first player, your call.)”
  • Final Boss: Dracula himself, naturally. He’s got seventeen forms he can pull out against you, and is by far the most powerful enemy you’ll face.
  • Hit Points: Every player gets 16 hit points, as in the original Castlevania. Enemies and bosses have them as well, in much higher numbers.
  • Item-Drop Mechanic: Defeated enemies can drop hearts, health-restoring items, and items that can be used to damage foes.
  • Locked Door: Some events require a good ol’ key. Other doors are magically sealed and will need the Jewel of Open.
  • Luck Manipulation Mechanic: Lots of items, equipment, skills, and Relics will let you re-roll under certain conditions. The chairs will even let you re-roll Dracula’s attempts to resurrect.
  • Multi-Stage Battle: Dracula is built to be like this, having up to seventeen forms to progress through at random. If he rolls poorly though, he may not get the chance.
  • Point of No Return:Once all Relics are collected in the keep and destroyed, there’s no escaping Dracula. Averted in Classic mode, where dying will send you back to the beginning of stage six or the last save point.
  • Pre-Final Boss: If you get the Malus event and fail to take him out of the castle, you’ll have to fight him when you get to Dracula’s keep.
  • Puzzle Boss: The tier 1 boss Brachyura has 10,000 health—far too much to feasibly take it down with brute force—and that’s before any level bonuses. All players have to climb to the top of the tower to drop the elevator onto it, causing 9,999 damage.
  • Random Event: Chock full of ‘em! An event card is drawn at the end of each players’ turn. It can be a monster, or a random event.
  • Replay Value: The extra variations, difficulties, and sheer number of playable characters allow for a lot of variety across multiple playthroughs. It’s also impossible to see all the locations, events, and items the game has in a single game.
  • Roll-and-Move: On turns you begin not already in combat, you’ll start with this. If you start in combat with a monster and finish it off, you’ll get your move after.
  • RPG Elements: Characters all have HP, EXP, levels, skills, and equipment slots.
  • Scoring Points: Played for Laughs. The “Konami Man!” Event gives every player an item and 5,000 points… which are entirely useless.
  • Sequential Boss: Dracula can become this if he rolls well for his resurrection.
  • Solo Tabletop Game: The game and its Classic variation can be played solo—though certain locations and events need to be thrown out.
  • Tragic Monster: One of Dracula’s forms is Soma Cruz. One of the playable characters is none other than Soma Cruz. If you draw him as one of Dracula’s forms, the rest of the players will have to fight their former teammate.
  • Turn-Based Combat: Zig-Zagged. Players in combat each take turns attacking their monsters, but on an individual player’s turn, the player’s and enemy’s attacks resolve at the same time.

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