i'm trying to put together a good list of beliefs to have on hand -- i find putting them on notecards and passing a few out at the beginning of each session help get the players in the right frame of mind, and may even come back to help them.
here are some from my own child hood or things i thought were pretty common where i grew up.
wiping your hands off on your shirt or pants gets them just as clean as washing them with soap and water
girls give you cooties
all adults seem to know just about the same things
if you swallow chewing gum, it stays in your stomach forever. if you swallow too much gum, your stomach will fill up and you'll die
if you sneeze while plugging up your nose and shutting your mouth, your eyeballs will pop out
dogs can smell fear
you could survive on just Lucky Charms or Captain Crunch
teddy bears help you fall asleep at night
nightlights help keep monsters at bay
comic books are based on real people
only babies suck their thumbs or wet their beds... if you do either, you're still a baby
seeing mommy and daddy kiss is icky
a Cross or Crucifix will keep monsters at bay
people with glasses are smarter than people without glasses
just about everyone else's house/yard/parents are cooler than your own
if you step on someone's grave in a graveyard, that person's ghost will get mad at you
if you're outside at night, bats will fly down and get stuck in long hair.
if you keep making faces, your face will get frozen like that
[/list:u]
what beliefs would you add?
Hi there,
Check out this thread from a few months ago:
What scared you when you were a child? (http://www.indie-rpgs.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=929)
It includes lots of stuff about rituals and beliefs, as well as simple scary stuff.
Best,
Ron