In respect to my idea to relaunch some of my old campaigns in more of a Blue Book Style, I'm revisiting the actual plays and revising the Twenty Questions I've answered previously.
I started running Cthulhu 15 years ago (before the birth of either of my kids!) because it was getting too hard to run a fantasy campaign once a month , with a rotating casts of 3-5 players. The original question covered the first twenty sessions done over six years or so, with a rotating cast of over 12.
This revised set covers 41 sessions done over eight years, including the completion of Masks of Nylarathotep. The last entry of the campaign is August, 1925. So, I'm basing answers off of a six-month jump to March 1926.
All scenario numbers correspond with my Call of Cthulhu Campaign Log.What is the deal with all these different cultists?
Although there are some themes running through the campaign, sometimes we just never get back to some topics.
To be honest, the investigators encounters a number of random cults in their journeys. We've dealt with The (Catholic) Church of Contemplation, two separate Cthugha cults (Georgia, USA and Crete), some dark god being worshipped in Pa and NY during the Revolutionary War, and an unknown cult in Brooklyn. The group could only project subtle similarities to them, but the death of their colleague, Jackson Elias, connected a network of random cults. The Bloody Tongue in Harlem and Africa, the Bloated Woman in Asia, the Sand-Bat Cult, the Black Pharoah, and an associated Witch-Cult of the Black Man right under their noses in Queens. All the cults appear to be worshipping different visages of the same dark god of chaos.
Where can we go to buy standard equipment?
In August 1925, the three surviving investigators (journalist David Kavida, history professor Dr Bob Wintermute, and former teacher/current PhD candidate Steve O'Hara) took a trans-continental rail trip from San Francisco back to the East Coast, after being summarily ejected from the custody of the Imperial Japanese government. Kavida and O'Hara returned to New York City, while Wintermute returned to teach at Miskatonic Univeristy in Arkham, Massachusetts. . The duo in the greatest city in the world have access to all mundane items imaginable, and a good number of obscure and rarer equipment. Wintermute showed an uncanny knack for finding black-market weapons, both here and in a number of foreign lands.
Where can we go to get the weird stuff I need for this ritual I found in the book?
All the early encounters with eccentric curio shoppes have devolved into connections with the cults they've been perusing for the past year.
Who is the mightiest wizard in the land?
They've felled head cultists/Grand Wizards of the KKK with a single shot from a long-range rifle, so as long as they're mortal humans, the group has little fear. They've stopped high priests and priestesses from committing heinous activity, and stopping unspeakable acts. They've starred literal avatars of gods in the face (with varying results).
There is a certain trepidation, though, when dealing with New York philanthropist Ambrose Mogens, whom the group originally deemed "The 300-Year-Old Witch of New York" Unimaginable wealth and an apparently immortal soul is not something the group really wants to deal with, but they've managed to burn down his mansion in Queens and disrupt a number of plans throughout the Five Boroughs. Despite these acts, Mogens seems to actually like the investigators in some twisted way. Despite banning Wintermute from stepping a single foot on New York City, he may have been responsible for assassinating a high-ranking diplomat with only the note "You owe me." For O'Hara, it's even more puzzling, as Mogens has made a sizable donation to Colubmia, the majority of which is meant for his research towards his PhD in Physics.
Who is the biggest badass of them all?
Define badass?
Who is the biggest badass of them all?
Define badass?
5. David Kavida - The writer for the New Yorker joined the group in China and followed through with weapons and words, largely unfazed. His report on the New China Army and their successful plot to destroy Shaghai will probably earn him a Pulitzer, if forces don't go after him first.
4. Angela O'Hara - Steven's ex-wife with the remnants of a Pennsylvania Coal fortune. She's been called in for nagging wife/NPC back up early on, and with a phenomenal shotgun, has blown away walking dead, cultists, and sheriff's deputies with impunity.
3. Francois Guerin - the ex-French Foreign Legion soldier WAS the firepower before some errant grenades took him out on Grey Dragon Island.
2. Dr. Bob Wintermute - Some distant military training made him crucial with any automatic weapon.
1. Steven O'Hara - Professors of Physics usually don't get into this category, but he has been largely unfazed by all he has encountered, including getting fired from work and a messy divorce from his wife. Let's see: When the rest of the group got captured by cultists/KKK in Georgia (Episode 4-6), he was the only one to escape back North, assemble a rescue party and get everyone back home. He also was the man who blew off the the head of the Grand Wizard with a single shot... in the middle of the ceremony, right in the middle of his "James Bond" speech. He's also encountered the Mythos infused research in the physical sciences and not only understood it, but could improve upon it! Best yet, through it all, he's carried himself in a cool controlled manner more akin to a slow motion walk in Reservoir Dogs than a CoC game. Beyond a scandal called the Columbia Turkish Prostitution scandal, that has a badass ring to it, he's the most senior surviving member who regularly INCREASED his sanity!
And then there was the encounter with the Black Pharoah himself. The avatar sent the panicking author/parapsychologist to another place/time/dimension, and despite his utmost assurances to the Black Pharoah, that he would not purse Mr. Millheim, his first thought upon finding a safe refuge was "How do I rescue Nate," ... and that has been his underlying mission ever since.
The Ancient Byakhee (#14-16) and the the Minotaur of Knossos (#20) are the closest things to epic level conflicts. They've also fought Shoggoths and Asian deep ones, but the most terrifying creature was the "Eight-foot Orange Asian Man" allegedly created by Mogens.
Who is the richest person in the land?
The above-mentioned Ambrose Mogens, certain "retired" characters had contact with Mr Robert Carrington, a millionaire industrialist with an itching for knowledge of the supernatural.
Where is safe?
Arkham was safe, although the Bloody Tongue did break into and attack the investigators in Dr. Wintermute's house.
Is there a magic guild that I can join in order to get more spells?
The group is still putting around with spells, but they do know that they are organizations to have "played" with the Mythos for if not good, then neutral reasons (#2). They've also learned that the government is aware of some of the Mythos threats, and has dealt with them as early as the 1770's (#3)
Is there a magic guild that I can join in order to get more spells?
The group is still putting around with spells, but they do know that they are organizations to have "played" with the Mythos for if not good, then neutral reasons (#2). They've also learned that the government is aware of some of the Mythos threats, and has dealt with them as early as the 1770's (#3)
Where can I find an alchemist, sage or other expert NPC?
Dr. Bob Wintermute, Professor of History at Miskatonic University, has actively sought the consul of Henry Armitage and Harry Houdini, with mixed results. They are still in contact with Paul LeMond, physic medium, from his home in Buffalo, but most of the time it's recordings of his odd dreams that hopefully do NOT foretell the future. Rudolph Pearson, Professor of Medieval Literature at Columbia, Eric Bowsfield, Professor of History at Miskatonic, Dr Ali Kafour might still be alive in Cairo, Rear Admiral, Isaoge Taro, Imperial Japanese Navy, may or may not be an ally to the cause.
Where can I hire mercenaries?
Whether is was Smitty from a speakeasy, (#3, 18)? "Red" as a mercenary PC (#6), mob connections (#7, #17), Egyptian toughs, Francois Guerin from the Legion, retired sailors, soldiers, and pilots, or the New China Army or Imperial Japanese Navy heavy firepower is available world-wide.
Is there any place on the map where swords are illegal, magic is outlawed or any other notable hassles from Johnny Law?
So far the group has understood that in remote places, the long arm of the law is more like a midget trying to dunk a basketball. And don't piss off the Indians, living or dead.
Which way to the nearest tavern?
The Belvidere Club was the last safe haven for the invstigators, before it was mysteriously shut down my Treasury agents over a year ago.
What monsters are terrorizing the countryside sufficiently that if I kill them I will become famous?
Better worded as "What have the investigators NOT resolved?"
- The creature in the basement of "The Haunting." It did kill Adam Mosher, and then disappeared. (#1)
- Did Professor Merriweather's group die of natural causes at early ages, or were they hunted down? (#2)
- Why was General Sullivan really sent up into New York after the Wyoming Massacre (#3)
- There is still a Negro with a magic trumpet, and the mysterious man who gave it to him. (#7)
- Where did Dr Ephraim Harris run off to? Is he still angry that Steven destroyed his dimensional portal? (#8)
- Did the Great Raspini get vaporized in the same explosion that killed Jessica Carson's husband? (#11)
- Was the mysterious "IHME" cult a harmless gathering, or something more sinister? (#12)
- Was Pennywell an isolated incident with a group of rogue soldiers, or were they following orders from much higher up? (#14-16)
- Is the Yithian threat part of Paul's odd dreams (#17)
- I'm not even going into the whole "300-year-old Witch of New York" thing again or the 8-Foot Orange Asian Man.
While there are plenty of wars fought around the globe, the Prohibition era mob wars are just starting to heat up.
How about gladiatorial arenas complete with hard-won glory and fabulous cash prizes?
More like speakeasies and wild clubs to tout your glory and spend your cash?
Are there any secret societies with sinister agendas I could join and/or fight?
I think I covered those earlier in a pretty thorough manner.
What is there to eat around here?
It's New York City in the 20's. What can't you find? Although the investigators go up to Sheila's in Harlem for fried chicken.
Any legendary lost treasures I could be looking for?
- Did the Warlock have a second tower in Newtown, New York during the 18th Century (#3)
- Did the Wideawakes have any other items from "the future?" Did the Boston police acquire them, or are they squirrelled away at a different location? (#4)
- Previously mentioned trumpet that makes the dead rise? (#7)
- Can one rebuild, nay, improve on Dr Harris? Trans-dimensional portal? (#8)
- Just what is going on inside the Mogens Institute for Advanced Human Studies (#19)
- What exactly did Steven manage to maintain possession of from raiding the tools and tech on Grey Dragon Island (#37 and beyond)
It's Cthulhu. You can't enjoy your Type H treasure after you lose 60 SAN in one swipe.
But what's really going on?
The surviving investigators have been allowed to pursue there own dreams. Despite thwarting some of many faces of this dark god, other masks seem interested in them, near allies perhaps. And soon, too soon, the investigators could understand even more putrid gods hiding even closer, directly under their noses.
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