[1] In 1993, at Gen Con 26, Mike Nystul sold a 88-page spiral-bound, pre-publication version (referred to as the "black book") of his self-published horror RPG called The Whispering Vault.

[1] Buoyed by positive comments, Nystul formed Pariah Press the following year to publish an expanded and professionally printed edition.

Now armed with supernatural powers and able to summon ghostly servitors, their mission is to hunt down the Unbidden: rebellious gods who have escaped into the Realm of Flesh — what humanity calls "Reality".

[3] For both combat and task resolution, players try to achieve success by rolling a number of dice equal to their relevant skill level.

"[5] In the August 1994 edition of Dragon (Issue #208), Lester Smith reviewed the "pre-release" version of the game that had been sold at Gen Con, and admired the "powerful new mythology" and "strong atmosphere of brooding horror" that Mike Nystul was able to evoke in such a slim volume.

However, he did find several important elements missing, including "the keys of humanity", which apparently were supposed to explain the motivation for the player's characters.

"[3] In the following edition of Dragon (Issue #218 – June 1995), Rick Swan called The Whispering Vault "Only one of the smartest, spookiest horror RPGs that ever clawed its way from a crypt.