Chaosium Digest Volume 24, Number 6 Date: Sunday, March 29, 1998 Number: 1 of 3 Contents: The Thief of Souls (Frank Sronce) COC DREAMLANDS Amber Waves: A Tale of Terror (Matt Cowger) CALL OF CTHULHU Announcement: GloranthaCon VII (Janice Sellers) MISC Editor's Note: Much to my happy surprise I've been totally overrun by articles in the last several weeks. I scarcely knew where to start when putting together this week's Digests. This week I've collected together all the shorter articles I have and put them out in a set of three digests. V24.6 contains an NPC for Call of Cthulhu (part of Frank Sronce's intriguing Dreamlands campaign, which has appeared several times before in the digest), a new Tale of Terror from Matt Cowger, and an update on GloranthaCon VII. V24.7 and V24.8 are exclusively about Mythos strategy--deck conconstruction and deep ones in V24.7, remortification in V24.8. I'm going to be breaking my biweekly schedule again to catch up. Next weekend you'll see 4-5 Digests, featuring a long scenario for Call of Cthulhu called "From Foreign Shores." Then, in two weeks, 4 digests will go out featuring another two Call of Cthulhu articles, an adventure called "Return to the Monolith" and a 1990s essay called "Gathering Darkness." Thanks to the authors for submitting these pieces, and also for waiting patiently until they go out! On a totally different note, fabian.kuechler@medien.uni-weimar.de (Fabian Kuechler) is *LOOKING* for new Call of Cthulhu articles. Fabian is putting together a fund-raising book for Tentacle over Bacharach, the German Chaosium/RQ convention, and he'd like Call of Cthulhu to be represented within. He needs essays and scenarios for Call of Cthulhu and quickly! There's no monetary compensation, but you'll get a copy of the book, and of course the pleasure of seeing your work in print. If you're interested in writing something drop Fabian a line. (I've already promised to write him a short essay about ghouls.) Shannon NEW ELECTRONIC RESOURCES: The Official Chaosium Inc Homepage http://www.chaosium.com That's right, it's the new Chaosium home page, with a brand-new address. Thus far it's much like the old Chaosium home page, but there are plans to add a plethora of useful and fun items for our games. Keep watching this site and if you have a link to the old sirius address please update it! The New H.P. Lovecraft Archive http://www.hplovecraft.com Speaking of new, easier-to-remind addresses, the site now has a new layout, a new (and highly controversial) background colour, and several new or expanded areas, most notably: Lovecraft's Personal Interests; H.P. Lovecraft Misconceptions; Letters; A Lovecraftian Bestiary; The _Necronomicon_ and Other Grimoires; The Truth About the _Necronomicon_; The Cthulhu Mythos; Lovecraftian Movies and Television Shows; Lovecraftian Games; and Lovecraftian Art. The "Official" Cthulhu Mythos FAQ http://members.tripod.com/~danharms/ And you can also check out Daniel Harms' page for the "official" Cthulhu Mythos FAQ. (Daniel is the author of _Encyclopedia Cthulhiana_, a new edition of which is going to the printers in the next week or two... if any one truly knows official 'tis he.) -------------------- From: fsronce@myriad.net Subject: The Thief of Souls System: Call of Cthulhu I've decided to write up some of the more interesting Heroes and Scoundrels from my Dreamlands campaign. Here's the first, who was originally inspired by the Myers story, _Xiurhn_. Kiz THE THIEF OF SHADOWS, Damned Soul STR 13 CON 30 SIZ 10 INT 16 POW 14 DEX 34 APP 0 EDU 0 SAN 0 HP 20 Damage Bonus: +0 Move: 9 Weapon: Garrote 95%, Damage strangulation Dagger 80%, Damage 1d4+2, often poisoned Armor: None, but the thief can only be damaged by striking him with a light source. A torch does 1d6 damage, a candle 1d3. If he fails to resist the light beam of a lamp-eft, the thief will take 2d6 damage. If a torch or candle is used to attack him, the fire will be snuffed out as it strikes him. Skills: Climb (even sheer surfaces) 95%, Conceal 80%, Dodge 95%, Estimate Value 90%, Hide 95%, Listen 80%, Negotiate Sale 80%, Sneak 95%, Spot Hidden 80%, all other skills 5%. Spells: None COMMON KNOWLEDGE ABOUT THE THIEF OF SHADOWS This figure is one of the most mysterious in the dreamlands. A thief of great skill, he is apparently protected by some sort of magic which cloaks him in darkest shadow and allows him to penetrate any locks or defenses. He never speaks, but has stolen many valuable treasures which have later entered the collections of the very wealthy. No one knows where to find him or how to hire him. He seems to choose his own targets, then sell them to the highest bidder. Rumor has credited many thefts to him, although he has been seen very, very rarely. No one knows his name, origin, or even true appearance. KEEPER INFORMATION It is said that many years ago a cunning robber named Thish set forth into the land of Mhor seeking to steal the ultimate prize, the dark jewel of immeasurable worth which is the soul of the Outer God known as Xiurhn. Thish's stolen talisman failed to protect him from that dark one, and he was lost. Yet he has not perished, for Xiurhn added the robber's soul to his collection. Xiurhn casts the souls of those who disturb him into the form of gemstones of great size, and then slowly and carefully carves them into shapes which it finds more pleasing. It does so by cutting away all of those unnecessary parts which clutter up mortal souls and leaving bare the essense within. The desires and emotions that Xiurhn finds uninteresting are discarded. This leaves only certain facets of their personality, now fantastically amplified. Thish's body reflects what was done to his soul. He is a shadowy figure, his form visible only as a patch of darkness in the shape of a cloaked man. Unable, or perhaps unwilling to speak, he travels the lands of dream in silence, always seeking a prize of great worth. He steals... for no purpose whatsoever. Whatever he steals, he sells. Then he discards the money, having forgotten what it is for. Thish is a pathetic thing; he rarely seeks human company, save when looking for something to steal... or to sell. He is deadly and ruthless when he sets his sights on a target. He will murder anyone to get it and he is extremely cunning. Physically, Thish can be considered to be a cross between a human being and a Shade. While he normally appears solid, when necessary he can flow through small cracks and glide along sheer surfaces like a Shade. Thish does not like to be reminded of his inhuman nature and thus is reluctant to use his inhuman powers too overtly. He has even been known to flee from armed men as though he feared their blades. It is not known whether or not death will end his torment--it may be that so long as his soul remains in the possession of Xiurhn, Thish will roam the dreamlands as the thief of shadows. - * - "It is said that many years ago, when the city of Ogrothan was struck by riot and rebellion, the high priest of Jun-Kalar came forth from his temple with his many guards and soldiers to calm the people. They came across a band of looters defiling a shrine and his soldiers set upon them at once. "The high priest dropped to his knees and prayed to the gods to forgive them for spilling blood on such sacred ground. All while the battle raged, he continued his fervent prayer. After all of the defilers had been slain, his soldiers stood by respectfully and waited for their lord to complete his supplication. Many minutes passed, but he stirred not at all. "Finally they moved closer and discovered to their horror that in the confusion of the battle the high priest had been strangled from behind and his limbs lashed together with silken thread so that his body remained in a position of prayer. The sacred key to the temple vaults was missing, and his corpse had been relieved of its many golden ornaments. "Thus ended the worship of Jun-Kalar in Ogrothan." -The Book of Black Fables ADVENTURE POSSIBILITIES The Thief of Shadows is a dark, damned figure. He signifies mystery and danger. He may be credited for a particularly unbelievable theft, or perhaps a sharp-eyed character may spot him moving along a rooftop. If the players manage to acquire some device of great worth, it is even possible that the thief will come to steal it. Since he is no longer even remotely human, it is quite likely that he will succeed. The players might also be hired to protect some such treasure from him, or even to try and capture him. Some people believe that the thief uses a magical cloak to perform his impossible feats, and would pay dearly to acquire it. -------------------- From: tenebrae@earthling.com Subject: Amber Waves: A Tale of Terror System: Call of Cthulhu AMBER WAVES A TALE OF TERROR (Suitable for use also with Pagan Publishing's _Delta Green_.) Summary: A plague of devastating tornadoes has ripped through south-eastern Kansas, causing massive destruction and loss of life. Arial photographs of the path of destruction show that the tornadoes' patterns zig zag unusually, causing all of the many twisters that savaged the area to go around the small town of Danvers--almost completely ringing the city in a circle of disaster but leaving it untouched. The few residents of the town of approximately 134 people who would talk to the press claim that the "Lucky Rock" was responsible for the good fortune of the town. A photograph of a large black boulder in the center of the town will accompany the article. Possibilities: 1.) Because of the lay of the land, and the depression that Danvers sits in, a strange metorological effect has occured that causes tonadoes to "jump" over Danvers. Even more interesting is the small government weather monitoring station on the edge of town. Actually the monitoring station is far from innocent and is in fact a research facility for a horrible new weapon that attempts to use atmospheric effects to cause destruction. The facility is funded by a secret government agency which will attempt to blackmail, then kill, anyone discovering the secret. The agency will be unwilling to leave the town due to the perfect location of it for testing (due to the aforementioned phenomenon) and recent successess, but are willing to stage a massive "accident" to the place should a cover up become neccessary. The few people in town that may know the secrets of the lab have had their silence bought or have vanished. The rest of the citizens of Danvers just try and forget the place is there. 2.) An ancient curse was laid on the place back in the mid 1800s, when settlers first congregated in the area. The local native population revered the rock and, while allowing settlers to place homes around it, warned them that "great disaster will come" should they try and move it. The settlers honored this agreement and built their town. Time passed and the tribe was forced to relocate and the legend eventually forgotten. Recently, though, the mayor of the tiny town, Harlan Worth, decided it was time to move the "Lucky Rock of Danvers" onto a gazebo where they would then make it a tourist attraction. A crane was brought to the center of town and the gazebo constructed (it can be seen in the background of the newspaper photo) Plans were made to move it the next day. That night the tornadoes struck; one interesting tidbit not mentioned in the paper was that the crane was literally snatched from the center of town and the wreckage left 10 miles to the north by a twister that passed over the city. The only reference to the completely forgotten curse can be found in the "Charter of Danvers Township", an old document in a dusty glass frame, hanging in the building that serves as the County Sherriff's Office/Town Hall/City Motorpool. The document hangs in a conference room that is little used. Should another attempt be made to move the rock, another calamity will occur, this time affecting the town. 3.) The entire town is, lock stock and barrel, a cult of Ithaqua. The current mayor of the town, Harlan Worth, is its High Priest. The night of the tornadoes will be discovered to be the summer solstice. That night the revelry celebrating their dark god got out of hand and a partial avatar of Ithaqua appeared, flailing madly about but not harming his worshipers (the non-worshippers in nearby farms weren't quite so lucky). The lucky rock is in fact an altar on which many a human sacrifice has occured. The townspeople are trying to downplay the event, and seem saddened by all the destruction--though they are just acting. The town itself is a picture postcard Kansas prarie town. People are friendly and polite to guests and go about their business in a normal fashion. There is nothing that would suggest that the town is a snake pit of Old One worship. Kids play baseball and pies cool on windowsills. Should the investigators find out what is going on, though... they will find themselves faced with a crazed and fanatical mob bent on protecting their secret and maybe picking up an extra sacrifice for Ithaqua. (c) Matt Cowger ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++snip++++++++++++++++++++++++++ + - + 'I am a firefly dreaming' Matt Cowger Tenebrae@Earthling.net http://home.gvi.net/~tenebrae + - + -------------------- From: Subject: Announcement: GloranthaCon VII System: Misc ANNOUNCEMENT: GloranthaCon VII May 22-25, 1998 Los Angeles, California U.S.A. Everything and everyone are coming together for GloranthaCon VII, which will take place in conjunction with the Gamex Convention at the LAX Wyndham Hotel in Los Angeles, California. FEATURED GUESTS Greg Stafford, the creator of Glorantha, and Robin Laws, the author of the new Glorantha RPG, will be Guests of Honor. Guests of Distinction will include Sandy Peterson, Michael O'Brien (MOB), Larry DiTillio, David Hall, David Cheng, David Dunham, and Steve Martin. HOTEL The convention will take place at the LAX Wyndham Hotel, 6225 W. Century Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90045; (310) 670-9000. Room reservations must be made directly with the Wyndham. The convention room rate is $84 (plus taxes)/night for a single, double, triple, or quad. The cut-off date for this rate is May 8, 1998. The Wyndham runs a free shuttle between the hotel and L.A. International Airport. For those driving, parking at the hotel is $6/day ($9 for valet parking) with convention validation, and free (but still $9/day for valet parking) for hotel guests. EVENTS Regular GloranthaCon events will include Stafford Reads, Trollball, Gloranthan Storytelling, and the Glorantha Auction. NEW GLORANTHA RPG DEMONSTRATIONS Our featured game will be the demos of the Glorantha RPG, the new game coming from Issaries, Inc. Robin Laws and a specially trained demo team will run and teach the game on Saturday and Sunday. Additional events already scheduled are Once Upon a Time in Glorantha (Gloranthan version of the storytelling card game); Three Heads are Better than One (a freeform LARP); two Gloranthan miniatures games; and seminars on Mythology of the Red Moon, Glorantha RPG, History of the Orlanthi, The Seattle Farmer's Collective Cultural Exchange, Secret History of Sun County Seminar, and the First Age. There is still some room for additional events. Anyone interested in running an event should contact Roderick Robertson at Roderick_J_Robertson@ccm.sc.intel.com REGISTRATION Please register through us for GloranthaCon. Preregistration is $27.50 through May 1, 1998. After that date registration is $33.00. Checks and money orders must be in U.S. funds and should be made out to "Strategicon." Please mail them to: GloranthaCon c/o Janice Sellers Chaosium, Inc. 950 56th St. Oakland, CA 94608 Preregistration materials will then be mailed to you. For further information, please contact Janice Sellers at janice@chaosium.com. --