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[CoC] Let's learn Call of Cthulhu 7th Edition, and Probably Die!

NeadenNeaden Registered User regular
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Cthulhu Calls you!

Call of Cthulhu is one of the oldest and most well-known tabletop roleplaying game. Call of Cthulhu (CoC) brought Lovecraft's horror stories into roleplaying games, allowing you to portray a character who may very well die, or go insane. The game is currently in it's seventh edition, and the quickstart rules are available for free. Call of Cthulhu is a classic for a reason, and while it is no longer my go-to Lovecraft game it's still one of my favourite RPGs.

Rolegate is a new website designed for PBP games that incorporate some tools to help the game go smoother. I'm currently playing in another game on the site, and want another chance to try it out, as well as expose more people to it. The site is not complete yet by any means but the creator is active with changes and involved with the community on the Discord.

Combine these two things together and you get my Call of Cthulhu beginners game on Rolegate The password is PA. This will be an opportunity for us to learn, grow, and possibly go mad when we realize the glory of Azathoth together! Ia Azathoth all glory to the blind idiot god at the center of all things! No prior experience with Call of Cthulhu is necessary as we'll all be learning together. The game will not be as deadly as many CoC scenario's either to let people learn, though death will be a possibility. Assuming the death occurs before the climax of the game though we will find a way to keep you involved in the game.

The setup: It is 1924, and your group, for one reason or another, is travelling from Arkham Massachusets to the nearby town of Ipswitch. Unfortunately, the early summer weather takes a rapid turn for the worse as a thunderstorm begins to strike and the roads are quickly becoming impassible, it looks like you might have to find a place to shelter for the night. But don't worry, how bad could that be? Characters can be built according to the rules in the Quickstart. The game will take place in a more rural area, so certain skills may not be as effective. Besides that, any period-appropriate character will be fine. I would appreciate if you guys could come up with a reason why you all know each other and be travelling together to Ipswitch, though it didn't have to all be the reason.

Note: This is using a pre-published adventure for 7th edtion, so no searching out spoilers!

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Posts

  • KadokenKadoken Giving Ends to my Friends and it Feels Stupendous Registered User regular
    edited July 2018
    Could Jim actually be apart from the rest, travelling in a buggy he stole in Boston to get to New York? Also character made. I accidentally put the password in the chat not understanding what was going on.

    Kadoken on
  • NeadenNeaden Registered User regular
    Kadoken wrote: »
    Could Jim actually be apart from the rest, travelling in a buggy he stole in Boston to get to New York? Also character made. I accidentally put the password in the chat not understanding what was going on.
    That would be fine, it just is a bit simpler if everyone knows each other, and has a reason to trust each other. But so long as all the players have buy-in it should be good.

  • KadokenKadoken Giving Ends to my Friends and it Feels Stupendous Registered User regular
    edited July 2018
    You could have the thing just completely shut down on the way to Ipswitch in the storm, forcing me to look for a ride from others. Also with my education score I may not know much about America and need someone to help me about (hence the New York connection) thing.

    Should I keep the IRA thing? Or would it be simpler to just be an Irish street tough running from the law or something? It's not like I'm using the IRA thing as an excuse to know explosives or some shit. It's also really early in their existence for the idea I have of them which comes from the Troubles proper.

    Edit: I got rid of it. I’m just a criminal running from the law now.

    Kadoken on
  • admanbadmanb unionize your workplace Seattle, WARegistered User regular
    Oh I missed your original notice for this. I'm interested.

  • AustinP0027AustinP0027 Registered User regular
    When you say beginner, how open to inexperience are you? I’ve played zero, and have only just glanced at the quick start.

  • NeadenNeaden Registered User regular
    When you say beginner, how open to inexperience are you? I’ve played zero, and have only just glanced at the quick start.

    Beginner as in zero is a-ok. CoC is a pretty intuitive I think, and we are only going to be using the free quick start rules. The big difference between it and a lot of other RPGs is the mindset, you can't fight every monster and your PC might die horribly, but that is part of the fun. This particular adventure doesn't require and knowledge of Lovecraft, but it you want something to read to get in the mood I think The Dunwitch Horror is the best.

  • AustinP0027AustinP0027 Registered User regular
    Alright, I’ll spend some time coming up with a character then.

    Is this similar to other RPGs where a diverse group is best or does the “can’t fight it all” mean more flexibility for whatever people spin up?

  • AustinP0027AustinP0027 Registered User regular
    edited July 2018
    Have a char sheet out there now, just need to write up more info/bio/background on them.

    Figure I’ll try to build a politician of sorts.

    Also if there’s feedback, please share. Felt good about stats, but skills I’m really iffy on.

    AustinP0027 on
  • KadokenKadoken Giving Ends to my Friends and it Feels Stupendous Registered User regular
    edited July 2018
    I like it!

    I think me as a real life person would dislike your character as a person and Jim as a low tier gangster would hate him. I think that means you did a good job making his bio.

    Kadoken on
  • AustinP0027AustinP0027 Registered User regular
    Glad that part came across at least. That's what I picture a 1920's politician was mostly like.

    That said, I'm still not sold on the skills fitting. I guess I'm particularly concerned that the "rural" setting means that I've loaded a whole bunch of people skills in that aren't going to be used because we'll be out in the middle of no where in a field or something (like I said, no knowledge of this setting or the direction the games normally take)

  • AustinP0027AustinP0027 Registered User regular
    @jdarksun Just FYI, I don't think you actually joined the game. It only shows Kadoken and I in it. Might be a requirement to complete/submit the character sheet (which you can go back and edit later)

  • NeadenNeaden Registered User regular
    Glad that part came across at least. That's what I picture a 1920's politician was mostly like.

    That said, I'm still not sold on the skills fitting. I guess I'm particularly concerned that the "rural" setting means that I've loaded a whole bunch of people skills in that aren't going to be used because we'll be out in the middle of no where in a field or something (like I said, no knowledge of this setting or the direction the games normally take)

    This particular adventure has a decent mix of things, there will be people to talk to, books to read, things to flea from etc.

  • KadokenKadoken Giving Ends to my Friends and it Feels Stupendous Registered User regular
    edited July 2018
    See, I’m approaching this as a horror story and one I have a good chance to die in. So I’m not worried about optimizing myself for the adventure at hand and instead gave him what he probably would know as a Dublin gangster. I fully expect Jim to probably be one of the first to die. He’d be the dude checking out the weird noise with his webley in hand and then the rest of the party would find only his severed hand with the gun still there and boiled flesh beside it. That’s fine and I look forward to it.

    That and I got another character lined up after. A big ape of a thug whose the son of Jewish immigrants and works for the hasidic mafia.

    Kadoken on
  • AustinP0027AustinP0027 Registered User regular
    That works out really well because when it actually comes to danger time, pretty sure David will fall back to the old family mantra of “send the poor people in first”.

  • KadokenKadoken Giving Ends to my Friends and it Feels Stupendous Registered User regular
    edited July 2018
    Adding “secret marxist-leninist” to bio.

    Hey could I invite a friend to this game? I promised to give him a heads up if there was ever a CoC or horror game like this and he would do the same.

    Kadoken on
  • NeadenNeaden Registered User regular
    Kadoken wrote: »
    Adding “secret marxist-leninist” to bio.

    Hey could I invite a friend to this game? I promised to give him a heads up if there was ever a CoC or horror game like this and he would do the same.

    Sure, doesn't look like we've hit the cap yet. You may share the super secret password.

  • KadokenKadoken Giving Ends to my Friends and it Feels Stupendous Registered User regular
    I invited him.

  • DraevenDraeven Registered User regular
    you guys already start this ?

    Morskitter wrote "Spikes, choppas, tentacles, magic? Can't hold a candle to Sergeant Pimp here."

  • KadokenKadoken Giving Ends to my Friends and it Feels Stupendous Registered User regular
    We still have three slots.

  • DraevenDraeven Registered User regular
    is there a set night / day you guys want to play ? just need to know i don't want to agree and than hold you guys back because of my Real life shit.

    Morskitter wrote "Spikes, choppas, tentacles, magic? Can't hold a candle to Sergeant Pimp here."

  • KadokenKadoken Giving Ends to my Friends and it Feels Stupendous Registered User regular
    It’s asynchronous like the thread RPGs played here.

  • DraevenDraeven Registered User regular
    Ahh, so you lay out a scene and we participate when we have the time. Ok...ill look into a chracter

    Morskitter wrote "Spikes, choppas, tentacles, magic? Can't hold a candle to Sergeant Pimp here."

  • DaemonisDaemonis Registered User regular
    Do you still have a slot? Need a bit time to read the rules though :)

  • NeadenNeaden Registered User regular
    We still have room. You'll have to go to Rolegate and join the game there, so far only two people have joined.

  • dresdenphiledresdenphile Watch out for snakes!Registered User regular
    I am interested. Let me think on it and see if I can't get something whipped up while slots are still open.

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  • KadokenKadoken Giving Ends to my Friends and it Feels Stupendous Registered User regular
    If my friend doesn’t make a character on time to take up a slot I’ll just tell him he was too late.

  • El SkidEl Skid The frozen white northRegistered User regular
    So to be clear, is this a PbP style game where there's no time restrictions, or do we have to meet on this site at certain times?

    I love me some Call of Cthulu, but my schedule is much more suited to PbP-style games where you just post once in a while whenever you can fit it in.

  • AustinP0027AustinP0027 Registered User regular
    PBP is my understanding.

  • NeadenNeaden Registered User regular
    It's asynchronous like pbp.

  • El SkidEl Skid The frozen white northRegistered User regular
    Cool, I joined and will look into making a character soon- I can also be a sub if we're already at the player cap :)

  • KadokenKadoken Giving Ends to my Friends and it Feels Stupendous Registered User regular
    edited July 2018
    So I noticed Lucy O’Hara, Skid’s character, has a credit rating of 20. I would have chosen that for Jim, but I thought you had to use one of the 80, 70, and the other value spread for that. Can I do that so I can put a 40 for one of the other skills?

    He is a criminal with no connections yet.

    Kadoken on
  • AustinP0027AustinP0027 Registered User regular
    Huh, that had me re-read the quick start and found this section.
    After assigning points to the Occupation Skills,
    select your Personal Interest Skills. ese are skills that
    your character has acquired outside of work. Pick four
    non-occupation skills and boost them by 20% (adding 20
    to the skill base values listed on the investigator sheet).

    I'm assuming that's what he applied. Not sure if that's valid for credit rating or not (I don't why it wouldn't be specifically).

    Also, pretty sure I didn't do that, so I need to go add some more 20's to my sheet.

  • El SkidEl Skid The frozen white northRegistered User regular
    Lucy O'Hara is ready to go. If you could look over the character and let me know if it looks okay that'd be great.

    Only thing I think I'm missing are stats for a pistol- I'd like her to start with one if possible.

  • NeadenNeaden Registered User regular
    Since this is a teaching game I don't want to assume to much familiarity with the inspirations either, so a brief word on Lovecraft, cosmic horror, Call of Cthulhu, and the concept on canon.
    During his lifetime Lovecraft wrote fairly prlofically and collaboratively. He included characters based off his friends in his work, helped new authors by punching up their prose, cowrote stories with friends or for pay (including a story with Houdini), and freely mixed in elements from past writers and real life. His famous story The Call of Cthulhu for instance references a real world earthquake along with a number of real books and mystical philosophies. Unlike later authors like Tolkien this means that Lovecraft himself had no real intention of creating a single, well defined world with his stories. Later authors, chiefly Derleth, would try to synthesize and categorize Lovecraft's monsters and gods. I feel this is a mistake, and Lovecraft is best when you view each story on it's own. A big part of his appeal to me is that he is that you don't know what's going to happen, or what could be real. As soon as a story reveals that the monster is a vampire for instance, as a reader you know a lot about it. It becomes familiar. Lovecraft was rarely familiar, but many later authors can be. I think Call of Cthulhu is played best when the players and characters don't know what to expect so I do not intend to take any particular Lovecraft story or interpretation as canon. What that means to you is don't assume Cthulhu is going to exist, or if he does exist don't assume he will be anything like the stories or plushies.

  • NeadenNeaden Registered User regular
    For skills. From the QS there are 9 values to use divided among your eight skills and credit rating, so based on these rules you should have a minimum of 40 in credit rating. You can then give +20% to 4 non occupation skills. If you essentially want to swap a no occupational skill for credit rating to represent being poor I don't think it will be unbalanced. You'll be obviously down and out though, and some NPCs might be less helpful.

    For a pistol you can just include it in your inventory and it will deal 1d10 damage. For now we don't have to worry about ranges and such.

  • El SkidEl Skid The frozen white northRegistered User regular
    edited July 2018
    Neaden wrote: »
    For skills. From the QS there are 9 values to use divided among your eight skills and credit rating, so based on these rules you should have a minimum of 40 in credit rating. You can then give +20% to 4 non occupation skills. If you essentially want to swap a no occupational skill for credit rating to represent being poor I don't think it will be unbalanced. You'll be obviously down and out though, and some NPCs might be less helpful.

    For a pistol you can just include it in your inventory and it will deal 1d10 damage. For now we don't have to worry about ranges and such.

    I actually just did the skills all wrong. I'll correct that now.

    El Skid on
  • KadokenKadoken Giving Ends to my Friends and it Feels Stupendous Registered User regular
    He also did big racisms and homophobias.

    Unlike 40k, I know only the broad strokes periphery of Lovecraft. Like I know tidbits about the different gods, I know Lovecraftian vampires are gas monsters, and stuff like that. So I’m coming in this not knowing much.

  • AustinP0027AustinP0027 Registered User regular
    I would say I know less than that. I have the general idea of what Lovecraftian things are roughly about, but no specifics at all (other than knowing Cthulhu's face generally has tentacles?)

  • El SkidEl Skid The frozen white northRegistered User regular
    I have played quite a few lovecraftian games, but don't know alot about the mythos/lore. I could probably know more, but I never sat down and memorized what each of the gods are and what made them specifically horrifying or anything. That's probably why I am still so sane IRL >_<

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