Chaosium Digest Volume 4, Number 2 Date: Sunday, September 19, 1993 Number: 2 of 3 Contents: Review: Investigator's Companion I (Alan Glover) CALL OF CTHULHU Cthulhu Without Cthulhu (Sandy Antunes) CALL OF CTHULHU War Experience for the 1920s (Frederic Moll) CALL OF CTHULHU Hidden Lore in CoC Supplements (Alan Glover) CALL OF CTHULHU -------------------- From: aglover@acorn.co.uk (Alan Glover) Subject: Review: Investigator's Companion I System: Call of Cthulhu The Investigator's Companion (IC) has finally made it to gaming stores in the UK. I managed to get hold of one in London in early September. I suspect at least part of the delay in publication was due to the decision to split it into two volumes. The second is currently slated for December release in the Chaosium 10th August catalogue. I've been eagerly awaiting the IC, since my group and I are all new to CoC in the 1920s, and have been faced with many of the questions that the IC is intended to answer. How long do torches last? Which sorts need oxygen to burn? ... Until now I've been using a mixture of sources of information, including the 2nd and 5th Ed. rulebooks, the 1920s Sourcebook (of the same vintage as the 2nd Ed rulebook), and supplementary information from the 4th and 5th Edition Keeper's screens. Naturally, I don't allow players access to any of these during the game, other than to point out areas on a map or something similar. So, how good an alternative to all these various sources of information is the IC? Well, the first thing is to put the book in its correct place. It does not contain *any* scenarios, nor will it be of any use to Gaslight or Now players. It has a sole aim: to provide useful information for players running investigators in a 1920s setting. As such, the only time where allowing players to use it could be detrimental to a campaign would be when there is an excess of rules-lawyers who want to insist on one bit of kit, or price. However, a capable Keeper should easily be able to deflect this, even if it requires a strike at the factory concerned! Note that I said that the IC contained 'useful information for players.' This is another very important point. The book is intended for players to use; there is no mythos related information in it at all and there is only discussion of game mechanics and skills where some expansion or modification of the 5th edition rules has become necessary. For my play style, I will be encouraging my group to have at least a copy or two amongst them so that I won't have to keep nabbing my copy or breaking the flow of play with a historical question which would inevitably either need a snap answer (which I have to hope is proved reasonably right when I get a chance to check it) or a pause to find the information. However, some keepers who are more jealous of information may not wish to pursue such an open policy. The IC weighs in at 64 pages, and has a correspondingly low price of $10.95 - I paid GBP 6.99. I am pleased that the page count (and hence price) has been kept down... it eases my conscience when I start trying to get my group to get their own copies! The book features a comprehensive index on a double page spread near the front of the book, however I found at least one mistake in the indexing so be prepared to check the entry above or below for a correct page number to try. The IC is divided into four parts: i) The Roaring Twenties A Time of Prosperity (background), Social Unrest, Prohibition & Gangsterism and a Chronology ii) Research & Resources Public Records, Newspapers, Newspapers from outside USA, Libraries and Museums of Natural History, and some Consultants who might be prepared to get involved or offer advice. iii) Transport & Travel Getting around Town (Buses, Taxis and Bicycles), Rail Travel, Automobiles, Trucks & Buses, Motorcycles, Boats and Aircraft Travel and Performance iv) Equipment & Arms Everyday Items, Detective Gear, Camping Eqmt, Observation, Audio Recording, Communications, Climbing Gear, Self-Defence (various weapons, some more obvious than others), Firearms (inc. Handguns, Rifles, Shotguns, Submachine Guns and Machine Guns). A table is provided which is intended to allow other guns to be rated within the firearms rules. Entries are generally concise and to-the-point, with sample prices in most cases. There are some new skills (eg Ride Bicycle) and modifications and enhancements to the Firearms rules (a gun can now malfunction at a different number depending upon its condition: clean, neglected or dirty). Keepers should read the book thoroughly to note such changes and to decide whether to implement them in ongoing campaigns. Also of note to Keepers is the table on page 50 which gathers together stats for various 'weapons of convenience' such as letter openers. I, for one, have had to think rapidly in the past to decide what kind of offensive weapon a 'sawn-off pitchfork' would be... I settled for a two handed spear. I would have liked to see a quick summary table for Keepers indicating on which page tables which could affect play are to be found - my own solution for this will be a special bookmark, after the style of the very useful one included in the 5th Ed. Keeper's Kit which provides a spot index for the rule book. The presentation is fairly typical of current Chaosium titles, with side boxes for various information related to the current subject. Overall the layout is good, but for me it is partly spoilt by poor proofreading. The proofreader appears largely blind to instances where the word 'of' is missing. Major examples being 'A couple submachine guns' in the index and also on page 62. In reading it to write this review I spotted another two instances of the same error (pages 8 and 45). However, most people probably won't even notice. A comparison between the IC and the 1920s Sourcebook suggests that possibly more could have been lifted from the earlier publication. The earlier book has several more profiles of potential consultants such as Albert Einstein, Sigmund Freud and HG Wells. One final missing item, which I feel is a little more serious, is a bibliography of sources of information which were drawn from for the book. Don't forget that the 1920s Sourcebook is no longer available though, and that much of its content has been brought into the 5th Ed. rulebook. One other thing I would have liked to have seen is a calendar for the period. However, the 1920s sourcebook has one for 1920, and The Great Old Ones (#2321) has one for 1610-2080, so all is not lost. Overall, niggles aside, the potential usefulness of this book to a campaign feeling its way through the 1920s (especially one not being played in the USA) cannot be denied. I believe it could be best used with the Keeper having his own copy, and encouraging the players to have at least one further copy between them. Although I have compared the IC with the 1920s Sourcebook it should be borne in mind that the 1920s Sourcebook is a Keeper tool (and is also no longer available!); I would not be inclined to encourge players to use it, one reason being that it features a section giving stats for further beasts and monsters which were not in the 2nd Ed. rulebook. -------------------- From: Alex ANTUNES Subject: Cthulhu Without Cthulhu System: Call of Cthulhu Cthulhu without Cthulhu copyright (C) 1993 by Sandy Antunes, all rights reserved "Horrors, it cannot be!" cried the Doctor. "Yes, Dr. Martin, it is true," said the old professor calmly, pausing to relight his pipe. "People have run entire 'Call of Cthulhu' campaigns without ever setting eyes on the Big C personally. Why," and here his voice dropped to a conspiratorial whisper, "some of them haven't even seen a Shuggoth!" This pronouncement brought such an outcry to the young Doctor that the Professor had to club him over the head with his copy of the 5th Edition rules before he was silent. Yes, it's true. After you've seen Cthulhu, faced Hastur, and repelled an invasion of NightGaunts, where do you go next? You're jaded. You've seen the worst and most alien. Truly life has no meaning. But... most characters in the stories went insane after 1 (one! uno! eichi!) encounter; you're a REAL Investigator, you've faced them all. So, like a bad Godzilla movie, it's time for teamups: Cthulhu and Hastur versus the Investigators A Colour From Space uses Shuggoths to attack Arkham Cthulhu and A Colour From Space team up with Hastur and the Nightgaunts to attack Arkham However, not all CoC games require constant Mythos appearances to succeed. Horror comes in many forms. The appearance of the alien, the bizarre and the shocking can truly terrify, but, equally mindbending is normal reality when it is just slightly altered. History is full of examples. Subtle horror is a very powerful approach to a single adventure or a campaign. Herein, we shall focus on the realistic, that which is only slightly bent. Great Horror Subtle Horror Cthulhu Jack the Ripper Aztec Human Sacrifices Nurse Krachet Vampire Cults the IRS A good focus for subtle horror is the normal human. A single person provides a focus for the players. Initially, the person should not be presented as The Enemy; that's too easy. For horror, you must present an Everyman, and add the corruption and evil later. Upon first meeting the Enemy, the investigators should not be able to guess at the evil. The adventure then unfolds with subsequent clues as to the true nature of the evil. Naturally, as they discover the evil, the investigators realize the person is truly The Enemy. They should also at this time discover the great power of The Enemy. From here, the choices can be 1) destruction of the Enemy, or 2) redemption of the Enemy. The game evolves from both the slow revelation of the evil and the choice of solutions by the investigators. I would recommend you avoid using Cults. Cults are Cliche. Most players would find it easy to equate Cult as Mob, an unthinking hostile crowd of faceless people bent to destroy them. Such an enemy is scary, but easy to discount or to mow down with automatic fire. A single individual presents more of a challenge by being more personal, more involved, and more like the investigators themselves. The key is a slow building of tension. The investigators should be introduced to the ordinary, everyday scene, where perhaps only one detail or clue is unusual: the rash of murders, the butcher shops all having discounts or something similar. Only as they probe deeper do they realize how things have gone awry. A good plot does not involve the prime movers-and-shakers of the cosmos, but deals with the ordinary human. Again, this is best served by example: "Red Sea" BAD: Cthulhu plans to rise soon-- everyone starts having nightmares, then the island rises! [The investigators go there, face 'thulhu, have to make lots of insanity rolls, die horribly. *Ho hum*] OK: Cthulhu plans to rise soon. His cult begins gathering sacrifices for his appearance, following his dream-order that all sacrifices must have red hair. [Okay, the investigators can start to face this, sooner or later realizing 'thulhu is the ultimate evil and having to make an insanity roll. Those poor deluded cultists. *Yawn*] Good: Cthulhu plans to rise soon, or so Milton believes. So he's begun the preparations for his trans-oceanic trip. He's packed his suitcase with clothes, gathered some food for the trip, and now all he needs is three more still-alive severed heads from three left-handed red-heads and he's off to R'yleh! [But Milton was so... ordinary! Was it 'thulhu, or does such a demon lurk in the heart of every man? *shiver*] To sculpt an adventure of this nature, you must inspire yourself using every-day examples. Take a normal situation you've faced before, then, add the macabre twist. Been audited by the IRS? What if the auditor wasn't after your money, but hungered for your fear! Such an auditor might not be willing to stop the audit at the end of business hours. Or, had a student in your class that was particularly loath to make an effort? Perhaps they are bored, because they know it all. They read your mind. In fact, they know that you've just figured out their secret... pity they'll have to stop you before you tell anyone else. That waiter at the resturant that was late bringing your dessert? Well, it takes time to add the potion which will make you follow their every command, while they slowly fatten you up... hey, why is the cashier looking at you so hungrily? Good night, pleasant dreams! -------------------- From: Frederic Moll Subject: War Experiences for the 1920s System: Call of Cthulhu The following text is a summary of the rules we use in our group of French players during the creation of European investigators for CoC in the 1920s. The Great War (1914-1918) was a tremendous tragedy in Europe, but it also gave experience to future investigators who learned something during their military service. Prerequisites for servicemen: STR: at least 9 CON: at least 10 (CON may have been reduced due to wounds. See later in Miscellaneous) Years of service: Up to 4 years of service can be made if the minimal age of 16 was reached during this period. Ranks and "professions": Private: if INT is less than 12 NCO: if INT is in 12-14 range or APP (or CHA) less than 11 Officer: INT greater than 14 and APP (or CHA) greater than 10 Other "professions": Ambulance Man Administrator War Correspondent Technical Staff Arms of the Military: Infantry Artillery Air force (only for NCO, officer and Technical staff) Medical Service Intendance Armoured Press Skills: The following gains or losses for skills are given for 1 year of service, so 3 years of service give 3 times these gain/loss : Infantry: First Aid, Listen, Spot Hidden, Mechanical repair, Camouflage, Hide, Sneak, Speak (French, English or German): +5% Rifle, Knife: +10% Artillery: Listen: -5% Accounting, First Aid, Make Maps, Rifle, Speak (French, English or German): +5% Mechanical Repair, Operate Hvy machine: +10% Air Force: Pilot Aircraft: (Base is DEX + INT + POW + 10% per 2 years) Speak (French, English or German): +5% First Aid, Make Maps, Electrical repair and Mechanical Repair, Machine Gun, Handgun : +10% Medical Service: First Aid, Pharmacy, Treat Disease, Diagnose Disease, Drive Automobile, Fast Talk, Psychology, Speak (French, English or German): +10% Intendance: Handgun: +5% Accounting, Law, Library Use, Drive Automobile, Bargain, Credit rating, Oratory: +10% Speak (French, English or German): +15% per 2 years of service Press: First Aid, Library Use, Make Maps, Photgraphy, Psychology, Drive Automobile, Debate, Fast Talk, Oratory: +10% Speak (French, English or German): +15% Armoured: Speak (French, English or German): +5% Accounting, First Aid, Make Maps, Operate Hvy Machine, Electrical repair, Mechanical repair: +10% Gun or Machine Gun: +20% Miscelleanous: * War was a great psychological experience for the soldiers (and the civilians), so the loss of 1d4 points of SAN per year of service is a minimum (Heat of Battle, effects of shell shock, horrors of the war). But after that, the classical loss of SAN for vision of corpses or others things like that will be avoided, because nearly nothing can mentally harm an ex soldier. This also means that the task of finding a psychoanalyst is easier because the future investigator has been treated (and maybe he is still following a therapy...) * War veterans can also have kept souvenirs, such as a weapon : English: Lee Enfield .303 Bolt-action rifle for an ex private Webley-Fosbery .455 revolver for a NCO or an officer German: Mauser for private Luger 9mm for officer * Wounds may have lowered the CON, especially if the soldier was exposed to chimical attacks (at the Keeper's discretion) This is not a complete treatment of the war for investigators, but it gives flesh to their past and may sometimes explain quirks they have. These modifications can also be applied to American investigators but with a shorter duration of service because of their late entry in the war... As usual, any comments and/or criticisms are welcomed either in the Chaosium Digest or by e-mail. Frederic MOLL (fmoll@cix.compulink.co.uk) -------------------- From: aglover@acorn.co.uk (Alan Glover) Subject: Hidden Lore in CoC Supplements System: Call of Cthulhu Occasionally something that strikes me as a really useful bit of information shows up in the strangest place. Here's a list of some of them in various CoC supplements. I have not included the various spells introduced (and usually only used) in specific supplements. At present, this only includes the supplements I own and are still available/in print. Gaslight, Now and Dreamlands supplements are not represented since I concentrate on a wakeful 1920s setting. The Great Old Ones 2321 ----------------------- British Army Diving Suit (p115) Calendar for 1610-2080 (p141 et seq) Foreign character sheets Arkham Unveiled 2325 -------------------- Arkham trolley routes (p8) Miskatonic University directory (p57) Miskatonic Library plan (p66) Hypnosis skill (p73) Foldout map of Arkham Fatal Experiments 2328 ---------------------- New weapons; chapter begins p7 Return to Dunwich 2330 ---------------------- Lovecraft country map (p13) Foldout map of Dunwich Kingsport 2333 -------------- New occupation: Artist (p46) Foldout map of Kingsport Tales of the Miskatonic Valley 2334 ----------------------------------- Lovecraft Country - details and populations for the whole valley (last page) Foldout map of valley Fearful Passages 2335 --------------------- Table of new skills for discontinued ones (p3) Diving suit (p57) Hypothermia (p59) Escape from Innsmouth 2338 -------------------------- Supporting Character sheets (p152) Foldout map of Innsmouth Adventures in Arkham Country 2342 --------------------------------- Arkham street map (p39) Arkham Sanitarium plan (p73) Lovecraft country map (road/river/rail) (p125) Cthulhu Classics 3301 --------------------- Map of R'lyeh (p59) Rail lines 1920 (p142) Cthulhu Casebook 3305 --------------------- 10 Commandments of Cthulhu hunting (p121) Sinister seeds (p124) Death Reports (p127) Curse of Cthulhu 3306 --------------------- Lovecraft Country map (p24) (with Salem) Keeper's Notes page (last page) [an index of the interesting items in all of the CoC supplements would be very useful. anyone interested in taking on the task? -sda] -------------------- The Chaosium Digest is an unofficial discussion forum for Chaosium's Games. 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