Fudgerylog » Cthulhu Mythos

Scenario-Writing Advice from Sandy Petersen

Gordon Cooper — Sun, 03 Oct 2010 18:20:57 +0000

Quite serendipitously, I discovered this article at Yog-Sothoth.com, The Lazy Man’s Guide to Constructing a Call of Cthulhu Adventure by Sandy Petersen, the designer of Call of Cthulhu himself. This advice may prove especially useful for this month’s Theme Challenge (q.v.).

On the Trail

Gordon Cooper — Fri, 06 Mar 2009 06:44:20 +0000

One could argue that I do not need any more role-playing games in my life. I own 87. Most of the games I wish to acquire are out-of-print or nearly so, but there is one new role-playing game that has really captured my interest, Trail of Cthulhu (q.v.), published by Pelgrane Press. It is a year old now, but the release today of one of its supplements, Shadows Over Filmland, has reminded me that I don’t have it my collection and I need it. (I also need the complete set of the publisher’s Dying Earth role-playing game, but that’s another topic.) This is the first game or supplement based on the Cthulhu Mythos that has held any interest for me since the classic Call of Cthulhu releases of the 1980s. My only reservation is the GUMSHOE role-playing system it utilizes. I’ve never been exposed to it, and I don’t know whether it is a true role-playing game, a story game, or a hybrid. If it’s the first, then I can almost guarantee I’ll buy it.

To Robert Burns, a Fellow Gamer in Spirit

Gordon Cooper — Sun, 25 Jan 2009 03:58:05 +0000

Burns Night is fast approaching, and for those admirers of the Scottish bard who have the luck to attend a proper Burns supper in his honor and who also happen to be gamers, I thought it would be a good idea to suggest an addition to the annual tradition in the form of a game to be played following the singing and recitals of Burns’ works (provided, of course, a céilidh does not ensue).

Since I just thought of this minutes ago, I haven’t the time to provide any detailed rules or scenarios for this year’s festivities, but wouldn’t it be a perfect way to spend part of such a celebrated evening playing a lively parlor game or role-playing game? The players are present and fed and their imaginations fired by Burns’ verses, why not take advantage of the situation and make a truly great gaming night of it?

I think a fine way to begin might be The Extraordinary Adventures of Baron Munchausen by Hogshead Publishing, if you can find it, or a game of Charades, to be followed by a Scottish-themed role-playing session. This would be the gaming highlight of the occasion and would preferably consist of a single-session scenario steeped in the atmosphere of Scotland’s past. Call of Cthulhu or Cthulhu by Gaslight or a Victorian mystery by way of Terra Incognita or whatever Fudge rules suit you best are the first ideas that spring to mind. Ghost stories set during Robert Burns’ lifetime are also appealing and have the added attraction of a time period rarely explored by role-playing games. Scotland is also a superb setting for medieval games, of course, which are far more plentiful, but I think special occasions call for special observations, which in this case means the exotic and unusual. Mystery, horror, and suspense are the order of the night. Perhaps next year I’ll have something more substantial to offer. Meanwhile, have a happy Burns Night!