Call of Cthulhu 7th & 14th December

[chris]

Hello all. Assuming that Pathfinder is still taking a break for a couple of weeks, sign up below if you are interested in a short go at the quick start rules for 7th edition Call of Cthulhu.

I'll be running the introductory scenario from the quick start booklet which is called "the haunting". I believe this scenario has a long history as an intro to many past editions too so some people may have played this story before.

I'll need two to four players - it looks like 4 is the most sensible maximum to allow good atmospheric roleplay. First come first served - no experience of tabletop roleplay or Call of Cthulhu necessary. I for one have never played it so we can learn together.

Best guess is that this will take about 2 sessions to run through depending if any character survives with sanity in tact for the second session.

I've suggested the 7th and 14th but am flexible on this if not enough interest in these dates.

We will create our own characters and I'll post details on how to do this soon. Please don't read the adventure if you choose to download the free quick start rules!

Previous players of this system should note that 7th ed has garnered some controversy from changing several things that have not changed in many years (apparently) so be prepared for some differences. It still has good reviews however and from what I can gather it has just be tidied up a lot.

Looks like a load of slightly spooky fun!

All the best
Chris

Current confirmed players:

1) Graham
2) Stephen
3) Mike
4) Matt

That's all spaces filled but I'm happy to run this again in future if there's further interest.

[graham]

Yes please. I would like to give this a go.

Graham

[chris]

Great stuff Graham

Stephen has also claimed a place so that's the minimum we need to run the game

2 places left!

[mike]

Brilliant – count me in please

And I have played CoC before (using an earlier version and I am assuming here that 7^th is similar – but, interestingly, I've never played through the introductory scenario) so if you need any pointers, feel free to ask

The basic rule set is a simplified version of Runequest with some sanity rules tagged on (and you WILL lose sanity – LOTS of sanity)



For anyone who hasn't played the system, basic rules as follows:

• The system is skill based – don't worry too much about stats, skills are far more important
• Skills are expressed as a number between 0 and 100 – the higher the number the better you are at that skill
• To make a skill check roll 1d100 under your skill score
• Combat is simply a set of skill rolls – forget attack bonuses and armour class, these do not exist
• To attack, use your skill with the weapon (e.g. if you have Club Attack at 55, you have a 55% chance of bashing someone over the head with a club)
• To defend against an incoming attack, use either Dodge (to avoid the attack) or Weapon Parry (to block it)
• Armour simply blocks incoming damage – mechanically this is similar to the way damage reduction works in Pathfinder/D&D
• And finally – combat is very dangerous, so avoid it if possible (most humans will have around 10 to 13 hit points and THAT IS ALL THEY WILL EVER HAVE – damage ratings are similar to Pathfinder/D&D)

Specifics for CoC:

• The traditional setting is 1920s earth, so weapons are available but most people (including the PCs) do not routinely walk around armed to the teeth
• Armour is mostly not available – a set of motorcycle leathers if you're lucky
• Magic is rare at best (and even if you know a spell, the sanity cost may not be worth it), so don't rely on magical healing to patch you up after a fight
• The monsters are generally a LOT tougher than you, so don't fight them unless you have absolutely no other option – PCs can usually handle a few cultists, or even a ghoul or two, but pretty much anything else is a TPK waiting to happen (remember, there is no shame in running away from the Great Cthulhu)

Some basic advice to players:

• Generally, if the "Big Bad Monster" turns up it's all gone wrong
• The main trick (and usually the point of a CoC scenario) is to prevent this from happening in the first place
• Investigation and roleplaying are is more important than combat ability
• It is usually better to stop the cultist summoning the "Big Bad" in the first place, rather than trying to fight it after they have done so

[mfranklin666]

Good Afternoon All -

Please sign me up if there is still a place.

I'm an old hand at CoC from back in the day ( 1st and 2nd ed !!! )

I have read "a couple" of HPL's books as well

See you on Monday.

- TTFN, Matt

[chris]

Great Stuff Mike and Matt, you are both in and that's all places filled
More details on character gen to follow when I get a moment but it also won't take long on the night if you have an idea of what sort of investigator you want to be.

[mike]

Great – see you all Monday

[chris]

Character Gen - apologies for the delay in getting details to you - I've been busy painting bedrooms this weekend and didn't get a chance to post details

I'll have all the stuff with me though and we can start by creating characters together. Do come with some ideas for your investigator!

See you tomorrow!

[Kev.]

Bugger missed this one going up. Dam & blast along with over bad words.

[chris]

No worries Kev. Very happy to run this again almost immediately afterwards. Just need one more person interested and we're good to go.

I suspect Maurice might also be interested?

The scenario will work best with max 4 players but very happy to run it twice:)