Chaosium Digest Volume 19, Number 7 Date: Sunday, May 18, 1997 Number: 1 of 1 Contents: Announcement: The Necronomicon Project (Alquier Laurent) CALL OF CTHULHU Creating Professional Adventure Cards (G. R. Hail) MYTHOS A Night in the Lonesome October: A Myth (Joseph Baptist) MYTHOS More CthulhuPunk Weapons and Gadgets (Dany St-Pierre) CTHULHUPUNK Editor's Note: Welcome to this week's issue of the Chaosium Digest. As you can see, there's a mass of mythos madness heading your way, from tips on making good-looking Mythos CYOA cards, to stats for big weapons usable in CthulhuPunk horror games. On deck, I've got a couple of new card files for Mythos. Expect to start seeing those next week. On a closing note, let me say that submissions for Chaosium's other games (Nephilim, Pendragon, Elric!) have been in a slump for the last two months. If you've been thinking about sending something this way, now would be a great time. Shannon NEW ELECTRONIC RESOURCES: The Eternal Champion ML mailto: majordomo@lists.io.com The old Eternal Champion ML, which discusses both the game Elric! and Michael Moorcock's novels in general, has moved. To subscribe to the new address, send mail to majordomo@lists.io.com with the message "subscribe eternal-l" in the body of the message. -------------------- From: alquier@eerie.fr (Alquier Laurent) Subject: Announcement: The Necronomicon Project System: Call of Cthulhu Ia everybody After months (nearly two years!) trying to find enough time, I am glad to announce the reopening of the Necronomicon Project. Along with a better design and navigation, the site now features new documents and illustrations. The URL is still: http://www.eerie.fr/~alquier/HPL/azif/n.html The Necronomicon Project is an attempt to give the "look and feel" of the content of the wicked book as described by Lovecraft. Its content is purely fictional. You would be amazed about the amount of email I receive asking if the pages are a translation of the real book! It is intended for readers who would be curious about the book or for gamers as a resource to use with scenarios of The Call of Cthulhu. As it is started, this Necronomicon is divided into seven Books, each concerning a different aspect of the Mythos. So far, Books One and Two are mostly complete. The others are readable but they need more text and a better navigation. Of course, I am still receiving contributions from anyone inspired by the project. Laurent -------------------- From: GRHail@aol.com (G. R. Hail) Subject: Creating Professional Adventure Cards System: Mythos Creating Your Own Professional-Appearing Mythos Adventure Cards grhail@aol.com Those of you who have traded Mythos cards with me have seen my homemade cards. I include one with nearly every trade. (I don't always have a spare available). If you like the appearance of my gift adventure card, here is how it was done. MATERIALS You need a computer, a graphics program, a laser printer, preferably at 600 dpi or denser, self-adhesive film, and several more blank Create Your Own Adventure cards than you need. Plan on ruining a couple of cards working out the best layout and procedures for creating printed cards. I did. Learn from my mistake though: print to transparency to check alignments of text upon cards before printing to adhesive film. For the graphics program, I use Freehand 7.0. I have a 600 dpi Hewlett-Packard laser printer. The smallest text size used on my self-created cards is 6 point. A 300 dpi laser print can't print 6-point type legibly, in my opinion, but a 600 dpi or denser dpi printer can. I use Letraset Copy F/X Invisible Self-Adhesive Film (Matte). Other companies probably make similar films, but note: this is Letraset's Invisible film. It is thinner than the visible film, and thus more suitable for placing on cards. Visible films have a milky appearance. A card created with visible film would be usable, but cards created with invisible film appear to have been printed professionally. The film is matte, not glossy, so as to be easy on the eyes. I bought the product (stock number 83171) at an art and drafting supplies stores. It's approximately US$2.50/sheet (the cost declines as you buy in bulk). One sheet will print nine cards. PROCEDURE ** Read All These Instructions Before ** Attempting to Print Your Own Cards If you don't use Freehand, the area of the card to be covered by film is sized 162 x 240 points. The area on the cards available for the text of your adventure is sized 120 x 150 points. In your graphics program create a rounded-corner rectangle tp fit the whole card, then outline it with a light grey line to guide in cutting the film. The film area is much smaller than the card to allow the edge of the card to protect the edge of the film and because the cards have a border that obscures text. Then, through trial-and-error, work out the placement of the individual adventure sections. Create Your Adventures An adventure requires a title, adventure points, sanity points, text, and the type of adventure it is. I closely follow the style examples from Chaosium's printed cards, except that I use Times or Jenson instead of a typewriter-like typeface. My adventures also have my name and URL at the bottom. Nine adventures fit on one page. If you don't have enough home-brewed adventures handy, visit the Unofficial Mythos Archive at http://www.io.com/~pardoz/mythos.html. There are probably about one hundred adventures available there. However you acquire adventures, lay them out nine per sheet. Print a Sample Sheet to Paper First Even better, print a sample sheet to transparency film. Proofread the cards. Test the adventures. Once the film adheres to the cards, spelling errors can't be corrected, new Locations can't be added, nor can the points for completing the adventure be changed. With scissors cut out one of the new adventures, then hold the paper against one of Chaosium's Create Your Own Adventure Cards to check that the adventure points, title, adventure text, adventure type, and sanity points appear in the proper place. If a sample has been printed to transparency film, alignment is a snap to check. Print to Invisible Film With my laser printer, the pages must be fed through one at a time. Film isn't paper. If the film you purchased comes with an instruction sheet, read it. The film may require a straight paper path to printer properly. If you don't understand what a straight paper path is, read the manual that came with your laser printer. With scissors cut one new adventure from the film before removing the backing. Work on a Flat Surface Apply the adventure film to the card by peeling a finger's width of the film from the backing. Peel from the end with the adventure points and title. Fold the backing underneath to create a flap. Align the adventure points to the white area on the Chaosium card and align the title to the silvery title area. When the film is aligned, smooth it against Chaosium's card. Gently hold this film in place against the card with one hand. Grasp the folded backing flap with the other hand. As you peel away the backing, gently rub the film against the card. It will align perfectly. If it doesn't align perfectly, practice on an old deck of playing cards. If the text printed to the film aligns correctly with the blank areas on Chaosium's card, apply the other adventures to blank Create Your Own Adventure Cards, otherwise, correct the alignment in your graphics program and throw away the mis-aligned film. WARNINGS The film, once applied to Chaosium's blank cards, can be removed only at the cost of ruining the finish of the cards and peeling up the artwork underneath. Laser print is not permanent. It will rub off. A fixative may help this, but I haven't tested any. Different laser printers handle manual feed paper differently. Precise alignment of film may not be possible. Be prepared for a few crooked or wrinkled sheets that can't be used. -------------------- From: JOEDOGBOY@aol.com (Joseph Baptist) Subject: A Night in the Lonesome October: A Mythos Adventure System: Mythos "A NIGHT IN THE LONESOME OCTOBER" +9# or +13* Victory, +3# or +4* Sanity Heroic/Corrupt Literary Adventure (with apologies to Roger Zelazny) Note: # indicates needed only for Heroic, * indicates needed for Corrupt Perhaps twice in a hundred years, when the stars are right, a group of CORRUPT CULTISTS* (at least two) known as "openers" and STEADFAST ALLIES# (at least two) known as "closers" gather to try to open/keep closed a GATE for the GREAT OLD ONES* (at least two). They ascertain the correct location for their ritual battle, a lonely place that once served as a CHURCH or CEMETARY. Throughout the month, during the WAXING MOON, they gather the SPELLS (at least two) and ARTIFACTS (at least two) that they will use in the struggle. One of the "closers" wields an ENCHANTED WEAPON, and their preparations may provoke a POLICE INVESTIGATION. When the FULL MOON arrives, the participants light a bonfire and summon any MONSTERS (at least two) that they think will help them. Will the "closers" suffer a CATASTROPHIC FAILURE, or will the Earth survive the DAWN OF A NEW DAY? - Joseph Baptist -------------------- From: Dany St-Pierre Subject: More CthulhuPunk Weapons and Gadgets System: CthulhuPunk This article describe some more weapons and gadgets for the CthulhuPunk setting. See also V19.1 DANY "CARNIFEX" ST PIERRE ** ASSAULT WEAPONS ** ASTRUM ACR (FLETCHETTES) This South American weapon uses saboted flechettes instead of normal caseless ammunition. This bullet is a very thin dart encased in a sabot. When fired, the sabot is discarded and the dart is launched at higher velocities than normal amunition. Unlike most assault rifle of this era, it does not have automatic-fire capability; instead, it fires either single shots or three round burts. Base Chance: 30% Damage: 2D6 Attacks per Round: 1 or 3 Range: 40 Shots: 24 Price: $2000 MAL: 00 Notes: this type of amunition double the basic chance of impale for the shooter. ASTRUM CAWS (12G) The CAWS was designed to meet a Chilentina police requirement for a short-range assault weapon with greater hit probality than a rifle, but more penetration than a shotguns. The Astrum CAWS fires either tungsten-alloy pellets or flechettes. Flechettes at base range always impale. Tungsten-alloy pellets are +1 to damage for a shotgun this caliber. This shotgun, along with the Astrum Meteor, is the best seller weapons of the Chilentina industries. Base Chance: 30% Damage: 4D6/2D6/1D6 but see text Attacks per Round: 3 Range: 10/20/50 Shots: 10 Price: $1,200 MAL: 00 FE-AC CARBINE AND FE-AR RIFLE (7.7MM) This is the cream of military firearms from Fabrique Europa, the massive cartel that combined europe's leading weapon manufacturers into a single corp in 2014. Both the FE-AC and FE-AR are equipped with integral telescopic sights and low-lights targetting systems. They also have integral HUD targetting circuitry, wich can be connected to HUD goggles or a helmet display. The FE-AR has an integral 20 mm mini-grenade launcher wich is identical to the NATARMS MML-20 (see below). FE-AC/FE-AR Base Chance: 25% Damage: 2D6+4 Attacks per Round: 3 or Burst Range: 20/70 Shots: 2 magazines of 30 rounds Price: $1000/4500 MAL: 00 FE ACAW (10G) Fabrique Europa's automatic close-assault shotgun is devastating in combat. It is found in the hands of SWAT teams and similar organizations all over the world. Base Chance: 30% Damage: 4D6+2/2D6+1/1D8 (Slug: 1D10+7) Attack per Round: 1 or burst Range: 10/20/50 Shots: 2 magazines of 10 rounds Price: $1200 MAL:00 NATARMS ACR (5.56 DUPLEX) This descendant of the NATARMS M-23 adds few innovation, concentrating instead on improving existing designs. It does use a novel caseless round, the Duplex. The goal of its designers was to double the performance of the old M-23 rifle. The end result is a more acurate and reliable rifle that does not differ much from its predecessor. Notes: utilize the stats of the Natarms M-23 (see below), and use normal rule for automatic fire, but multiply the number of hits by 2. NATARMS M-23 (5.5MM) The M-23 and its related configurations are the principal military firearms in the U.S. They are equipped with telescopic and low light sights and have integral HUD targetting circuitry. The M-23 is equipped to mount an MML-20 grenade launcher under the barrel. Base Chance: 25% Damage: 2D6 Attacks per Round: 3 or burst Range: 20 Shots: 2 magazines of 30 rounds Price: $4,250 MAL: 00 Notes: See Under-Barrel MML-20 Grenade Launcher, below. NATARMS MML-20 UNDER-BARREL GRENADE LAUNCHER Certain weapons can be equipped with these under-barrel grenade launchers. Base Chance: 20% Damage: 4D10 (5 yards radius) Attacks Per Round: 1 or burst Range: 10 Shots: 10 Price: $1,000 MAL: 00 SOG G7 CARBINE (5.5MM) The SOG G7 weapon is a compact bull-pup design popular with infantry in less-developed nations. SOG has licensed the design for manufacture in a number of last world countries. It is the most common assault weapon found in the streets around the world, since it is so widely produced that gunrunners find it an easy weapon to obtain. Base Chance: 25% Damage: 2D6 Attacks per Roud: 1 or burst Range: 20 Shots: 40 Price: $550 MAL: 00 ** MACHINE GUNS ** FE KMG (5MM) The FE 5.5MM KMG is a typical assault chaingun. Ammo can be loaded in chain-feed cassettes holding 100 or 500 rounds. Fitting a new casette takes a combat round and a succesfull mechanical repair roll. The KMG is equipped with integral HUD targetting circuitry. The weapons are heavy and bulky, and are almost never used without an articulated weapons harness, or equivalent cyberarm mods and a reinforced skeleton. Base Chance: 30% Damage: 2D6 Attack per Round: Burst, but an area effect may better simulate the extreme rate of fire of this weapon. Range: 20 Shots: see text Price: $8500 MAL: 00 Notes: For each -10%, the firer hit a supplementary 2 yards radius area effect. SOG LSW (6.5MM) Schneider-Oranien Gesellschaft is an up-and-coming German manufacturer of civilian and sporting arms. While their military hardware is less advanced than the weapons produced by Fabrique Europa, SOG weapons are popular with local police and last world armed forces. The SOG LSW is the most popular general purpose machinegun found around the world. It is also among the easiest to find in the black market. Base Chance: 25% Damage: 2D6+3 Attacks per Round: burst only Range: 110 Shots: 300 Price: $2000 MAL:00 ** LASERS ** NATARMS SUNBEAM PL-5 (LASER) The PL-5 is a smaller version of the RL-5. It is likewise available only through contacts in the U.S. Army or the Natarms Corporation. Base Chance: 25% Damage: 1D6/sec. Range: 40 Shots: 12 sec. Price: $1300 MAL: 00 NATARMS SUNBEAM RL-5 (LASER) The Sunbeam is limited to U.S. special ops teams and the NERCC's elite emergency response strike teams. Besides the built-in laser sight capability common to all laser weapons, the Sunbeam RL-5, a rifle configuration, is equiped with integral HUD targeting circuitry. Base Chance: 25%, but see below Damage: 1D10/sec. Range: 110 Shots: 140 sec. Price: $14500 MAL: 00 Notes: Rules for lasers. For each second the firer concentrates a beam on his target, it causes 1D10 Damage. Holding a beam on a target for an additional second drops a skill by 10%. Thus, to do 3D10 damage causes skill to drop by 20%. ** SNIPER RIFLES ** MOSKARM SVS 7.7MM A superb marksman's weapon, with adjustable buttstock, balance weights and a optional tripod mount. The SVD is equipped with integral HUD targeting circuitry. Base Chance: 30% Damage: 2D6+4 Attacks per Round: 1 Range: 200 Shots: 20 Prices: $4500 MAL: 00 NATARMS CW 55 (5.5MM) The covert rifle is a sniper's weapon that breaks down into separate barrel, barrel, buttstock, receiver, and clip mechanism. When dismantled, it fits into a briefcase, or can even be carried in special pockets in a overcoat. It takes five minutes and a successful mechanical repair roll to put the weapon together. Base Chance: 25% Damage: 2d6 Attack per Round: 1 Range: 90 Shots: 10 or 30 Prices: $3.750 MAL: 00 ** WEAPON ENHANCEMENTS ** Firearms in Plastic Polymer: Allows weapon to pass metal detectors without being noticed. Becomes unusable after fifty shootings. These weapons are illegal, and cost 50 times the price of the normal weapon. Silencer: Adaptable on various arms. May be used fifty times at maximum (roll 5d10), after what the silencer becomes ineffective. Costs a quarter of the price of the weapon. ** OTHER GADGETS ** Electrical gauntlet: Melee weapon which electrocutes an adversary (roll CON or be stunned for 1D10+10 minutes). Five uses before it needs to be recharged for five hours. $50. Flash lamp: Dazzles all targets within 15 yards facing it (roll CON or be blinded for 2d6 rounds). Each lamp can be used ten time before being recharged (five hours to recharge the battery). $100. Tear-gas Sprayer: Neutralizes the adversary for approximately 10 (1d10) minutes if a CON roll is failed. -------------------- The Chaosium Digest is an unofficial electronic 'zine about Chaosium's Games. In no way should it be considered representative of the views or beliefs of Chaosium Inc. To submit an article, subscribe or unsubscribe, mail to: appel@erzo.org. The old digests are archived on ftp.csua.berkeley.edu in the directory /pub/chaosium, and may be retrieved via FTP.