NOWHERE LAND | The Null Handbook - TTRPG de Portails & Domaines

Difficulty

Beginner to Intermediate

Sessions

8-15 sessions

Players

3-5 recommended

Theme

Orpheus/Eurydice, Faustian Bargain, Coming of Age

Inspirations

Shaman King, Bleach, Stranger Things, Spirited Away

Content Warnings

Depression, Suicide themes, Loss, Bullying

There and Back Again is the foundational campaign of Nowhere Land—a meta-narrative that serves as both an introduction to the game world and a complete story arc. High school students discover a portal on their school's rooftop, follow a depressed classmate who seeks to bring back his dead girlfriend, and must navigate the impossible geography of Nowhere Land to save him, themselves, and perhaps grant an impossible wish.

The Premise

It's an ordinary Tuesday after school. A TTRPG club meets in a classroom—the players themselves, playing a game within a game. Through the window, they notice Yuki Harada, a withdrawn senior known for his depression since his girlfriend Mei died in a car accident last spring.

They watch him climb to the rooftop. They expect the worst. They follow to stop him. But Yuki isn't there to jump—he's there to cross. Through a shimmer in the air, a distortion that shouldn't exist, a doorway into nothing. And without thinking, they follow him through.

"I've been here before. When I was young, I came through. I know there's a fountain—a well—where wishes come true. I'm going to bring her back. You shouldn't have followed me."

— Yuki Harada, in The Passage

Campaign Structure

"There and Back Again" is divided into five acts, following the classic Orpheus journey structure while incorporating modern isekai tropes and the unique mechanics of Nowhere Land.

Act I: Before the Fall

Sessions: 1-2 | Setting: The Outside (Real World)

A day in the life of high school. Strange occurrences at school—unexplained rain every night, teachers going missing, slime creatures appearing after classes. The players witness Yuki's apparent suicide attempt and follow him through the portal. Introduction to Drift mechanics begins here.

Act II: The Passage

Sessions: 2-4 | Setting: The Passage Domain

Arrival in Nowhere Land. The players meet their first domain, encounter Welcomers, and must decide whether to follow Yuki deeper or try to return home. Introduction to Potentials, the Count, and basic survival.

Act III: The Descent

Sessions: 4-8 | Setting: Multiple Domains

Following Yuki's trail through 2-3 domains, each representing stages of grief or challenge. Faction encounters, difficult choices, and the gradual revelation of what the Abyss actually is. Players may encounter the Encyclopedist, the Doctor, or agents of Khore.

Act IV: The Abyss

Sessions: 8-12 | Setting: The Abyss Domain

The players reach the Abyss—either deliberately to stop Yuki or accidentally through their own Drift. Here Potentials don't work. The quest for the true Fountain begins. False fountains, swarm creatures, and the final confrontation with Yuki's choice await.

Act V: The Return (Or Not)

Sessions: 12-15 | Setting: Variable

The resolution depends on choices made. Did Yuki find the Fountain? Was Mei restored? Did the players convince him to let go? Can they return to the Outside, or are they now Travelers forever? Multiple endings based on accumulated decisions, Drift levels, and relationships built.

Key NPCs

Yuki Harada

Role: The Guide, The Orpheus, The Catalyst

A 17-year-old senior who visited Nowhere Land as a child and returned with fragmented memories. His girlfriend Mei died six months ago, and he's spent every day since researching dimensional travel, lucid dreaming, and ancient myths about returning from the dead. He knows about the Fountain because he saw it—in a fever dream, or perhaps a real journey—when he was eight.

Drift: 3 (Rising) | Polarity: Ketsu (Binding) | Goal: Reach the Fountain and wish Mei back to life

Mei Tanaka (The Memory)

Role: The Eurydice, The Goal, The Question

Mei exists in the campaign as memory, vision, and possibly—depending on the ending—restored life. As players learn more about her through Yuki's stories, they must decide: was Mei someone worth sacrificing everything for? Or has Yuki built a shrine to an idealized version of someone who was simply... human?

Ms. Okada (The Bullied Teacher)

Role: The Warning, The First Victim

A young substitute teacher who was relentlessly bullied by students. She died on school grounds—officially a heart attack, actually something worse. Her ghost, or rather her Alptrauma, manifests as slime creatures that appear after school, targeting only teachers. She is an early encounter showing what Nowhere Land's influence does to unresolved trauma.

The Count (Multiple Appearances)

Role: The Trickster, The Bargainer, The Truth-Teller

The Count appears throughout the campaign in various guises: a homeless man near the school who speaks in riddles, a merchant in The Passage who offers terrible bargains, a child in the Abyss who knows the way to the Fountain. Each appearance tests the players and offers choices that shape the ending.

Act I: Before the Fall (Detailed)

Opening Scenario: A Day at Mizuki High

Act I takes place entirely in the Outside—the real world. Players create characters who are high school students, members of the same TTRPG club. The Trickster should run this as a slice-of-life scenario with growing unease, introducing subtle wrongness before the portal opens.

Scene Structure

Scene 1: Morning Arrival

Players arrive at school. Establish relationships, introduce NPCs, show normal life. Note: it rained last night. It's been raining every night for two weeks. Nobody talks about it.

Scene 2: Strange Occurrences

Throughout the school day, introduce anomalies: a teacher who was at school yesterday is now "on leave" indefinitely; equipment in the science lab moves on its own; students report seeing "something" in the puddles.

Scene 3: TTRPG Club

After classes, the club meets. They're playing a game (perhaps Nowhere Land itself—meta!). Through the window, they see Yuki on the rooftop. He's been there before, staring at the sky. Today he's walking toward the edge.

Scene 4: The Crossing

Players rush to the roof. Yuki isn't jumping—he's stepping through a shimmer in reality. Without thinking, they follow. The portal closes behind them. They are now in The Passage.

The Slime Alptrauma: Ms. Okada's Vengeance

The nightly rain carries something with it—slime creatures that form from the puddles after dark. They only appear after school hours. They only target teachers. They are the manifestation of Ms. Okada's Alptrauma—the nightmare echo of a bullied teacher who died on school grounds.

Slime Alptrauma Mechanics

Appearance: Translucent ooze that takes vaguely humanoid shape, with darker masses where eyes would be
Behavior: Passive unless a teacher is present; then relentlessly pursuing
Weakness: Direct sunlight, salt, speaking Ms. Okada's name with compassion
Connection: The slimes emerge from the portal's influence bleeding into reality near the school

The Slime Alptrauma is an optional encounter for Act I, foreshadowing how Nowhere Land's influence affects the Outside. Players may investigate before the crossing, or encounter the creatures again in The Passage in a more dangerous form.

Themes & Motifs

🎭 The Orpheus Question

Can love conquer death? Should it? The campaign asks players to confront whether Yuki's quest is noble or selfish, whether Mei would want to return, and what the cost of resurrection truly is.

📖 The Meta-Narrative

Players play characters who play games. The layers of reality—Outside, Nowhere Land, the game within the game—ask questions about escapism, imagination, and what it means to "go there and back again."

⚖️ The Faustian Bargain

The Count offers deals throughout. Every shortcut has a price. The campaign tests whether players will pay any cost for their goals—or recognize when a price is too high.

💀 The Nature of Death

Death in the Abyss is permanent. Death outside can be reversed—at a cost. The campaign explores what makes death meaningful, and whether escaping it is truly victory.

Multiple Endings

The Resolution Tree

"There and Back Again" has multiple endings based on player choices, Drift levels, relationships built, and how they handle Yuki's quest. Here are the primary branches:

Ending A: The Reunion

Yuki reaches the Fountain and wishes Mei back. She returns—but changed. Players must guide both back to the Outside, navigating a reality that remembers Mei as dead. A bittersweet ending about the cost of getting what you wished for.

Ending B: The Release

Players convince Yuki to let go. At the Fountain, he wishes not for Mei's return but for peace—his own, or hers. The ending focuses on acceptance and moving forward. Players return to the Outside having learned something about loss.

Ending C: The Settlement

One or more players choose to stay in Nowhere Land—their Drift too high, or their connections to the Outside severed. They become Settlers, beginning new stories as natives of the impossible geography. The campaign becomes a prologue to a new chapter.

Ending D: The Loss

Yuki dies in the Abyss—permanently. The players escape but carry the weight of failure. This ending is tragic but meaningful, emphasizing that some wishes cannot be granted, some losses cannot be undone.

Ending E: The Twist

The players discover something unexpected at the Fountain—perhaps Mei was never human, perhaps the Fountain has a will of its own, perhaps Yuki himself is not what he seemed. This ending opens more mysteries than it closes, leading to sequel campaigns.

Campaign Resources

Downloads & Materials

📄 Campaign PDF

Full campaign guide with all acts, encounters, and handouts

🗺️ Maps & Handouts

School floor plans, domain maps, NPC portraits

🎵 Spotify Playlist

Curated soundtrack for each act and mood

📝 Character Templates

Pre-generated high school student characters

"Some doors are meant to stay closed. Some loves are meant to end. But if you could walk through a door that led to the impossible—if you could bring back what death took—would you? And what would you become on the way back?"

— Campaign Tagline