Dark Carnival 2025: The Neon-Nuclear Nyancat of Nekopolis (PICO)

Welcome back to The Dark Carnival!

Raleigh Tabletop RPGs' annual horror TTRPG event day is back for 2025 and better than ever! 8 fantastic GMs are here to run 8 sessions of spooky, scary, suspenseful, and even silly chills and thrills at RUMAH in downtown Raleigh.

This event is a sign-up for "The Neon-Nuclear Nyancat of Nekopolis," a game run using PICO by RTR member Randy P that will run during the second block of sessions from 4pm-8pm. Please see below for all the important details.

Session Title: The Neon-Nuclear Nyancat of Nekopolis
System: PICO
Players: 3-5
Materials: Dry-erasable character sheets with markers will be provided; although bringing paper and pencil for your own notes might be useful. The game uses d6s; the GM will have spares.
Description: THE NEKOPOLIS
A rain-slicked city somehow more wild than the deepest woods, the Nekopolis is a monster of concrete and neon, a haven for fur and claw. Cats rule this labyrinth of shadowed alleyways, holding court between crumbling tenement blocks, hunting and lounging and politicking without fear.
Ever since The Mysteriocalypse when all those tall, two-legged types vanished without a trace, bugs like you have thrived everywhere, even here in this sprawling cyber-noir deathtrap (mostly by taking to the spaces too cramped to risk an invasion of all but the smallest of kittens).
But when rumors of a new horror stalking the flickering streets arise -- one that has even the cats spooked -- it might just be up to you to save the day!

Theme/Tone: PICO is a light-hearted game of tiny bugs having big adventures, but it has space for darkness and tension, too. Expect to laugh and gasp in equal measure!

Content Warnings: Insects/Bugs as PCs and NPCs, Some Animals as Foes (Who Might Be Imperiled Or Even Fought Against). Jump Scares, (Bugly) Body Horror, Themes of Community Struggle/Hardship