![]() The Call of Cthulhu Keeper Rulebook (2015) is the game’s core rulebook, and more accurately, the only book you are supposed to need. I realize I have made the argument you can run Call of Cthulhu with only the starter set, which is not entirely true for my game. So, Do You Need the Call of Cthulhu Keeper Rulebook? Such a great cover! Image by Lee Gibbons, copyright probably Chaosium. A bug-eyed view of the 2010 Mask of Nyarlathotep cover. ![]() Other offerings include Horror on the Orient Express (1991) and Children of Fear (2020). Masks have been revised and reprinted multiple times. The blueprint of this mode is Shadows of Yog-Sothoth (1982) and later perfected in Masks of Nyarlathotep (1984). One of the characters in my game favored a combat umbrella, but that is a story for another day. Lovecraft’s writing is a bit on the nihilistic side, while this other mode leans towards a more pulpy approach if you like to don a fedora and perhaps a bullwhip. While Call of Cthulhu does episodic adventures very well, the other style of Call of Cthulhu games is the sweeping epic, sometimes spanning continents. Or perhaps I wanted this epic campaign, as this is the way I am wired, and I made the hints of a larger world irresistible.įeel free to roll a Psychology check. Scope and scale grew, and soon I was facing an epic campaign regardless of my modest intentions. This is also a story about how the best-laid plans fail as stories have a life of their own, particularly in collective storytelling. Our group finished The Devil Eats Flies, the first adventure of Berlin: The Wicked City, in approximately seven sessions, although I made some additional content. Each of these short adventures can be completed in a couple of nights with a focused group or a few more at a more sluggis pace. For example, Doors to Darkness (2016) and Mansions of Madness (1990) are anthologies of short adventures, and Berlin: The Wicked City is equal parts sourcebook and a collection of three adventures. The two players unable to meet for session zero easily made their characters using the fast-play rules, with me piping in on Discord.Įpisodic investigations are something Call of Cthulhu does well and is supported by Chaosium. Well, I handwaved it and checked the rules between sessions, but you get my point.Īfter very little fuzz, we were ready to go. The only reference I made to the actual rulebook during character generation was checking up on a couple of weapons. I have previously gushed about how good I think this starter set is, and I stand by my words. The Call of Cthulhu Starter Game comes in a sturdy box with all you need to get started. As always, my desire to read is greater than time allows, and we ended up creating investigators with me reading only the quick-start rules, the Paper Chase one shot from the Call of Cthulhu Starter Set (2018), and only a fraction of the Berlin: The Wicked City book. Me being me, I went shopping and soon had a nice stack of Call of Cthulhu books. ![]() I also wanted to root the game in European history, so the recent Berlin: The Wicked City (2019) was perfect. Instead, I wanted to run a series of episodic short adventures, which fits Call of Cthulhu well. Starting out with a new game, I wanted to step away from my standard setup of fantasy sandbox investigation and intrigue for several reasons. Not knowing anything about the mythos may even be an advantage as you start out with this game. I would argue it is easier to learn, features imagery and tropes instantly recognizable to anyone with the remotest interest in history and crime stories. Call of Cthulhu is a classic game, almost as old as that dragon game. Creating attractive starter games is probably expensive and risky.Ĭall of Cthulhu does better, as it should. This is not necessarily the publishers’ fault, it is just how it is, and I do not blame anyone for profiting, or at least saving some money. The market has allowed D&D to largely define how the hobby is perceived from the beginning. Which makes sense, in a way, as D&D is the juggernaut in the room. Sometimes I feel that RPG publishers rely on Dungeons and Dragons to teach people how to play roleplaying games. Here’s how I finally started my own Cthulhu game after thinking about it for years. Perhaps this game is something you want to explore? How do you get started? Lovecraft’s Cthulhu mythos is creeping into mainstream entertainment more than ever before. Call of Cthulhu is a game that rewards cowardice and missed perception checks. Call of Cthulhu, first published in 1981 by Chaosium, is one of the classic roleplaying games.
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