Questions tagged [call-of-cthulhu]
For questions about Call of Cthulhu editions up through 6th Edition. (For 7th, use [call-of-cthulhu-7e] instead.)
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How do you keep the horror spooky when your players are a bunch of goofballs?
I've been out of the Call of Cthulhu game for a while, because when I run games, my players are just constantly cracking jokes and derailing the game with references and wisecracks. We have fun, of ...
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I am looking for a specific Call of Cthulhu scenario that involves Yog-Sothoth
Sometime in the past I've read a scenario, that I would like to find again. What I remember about the scenario, is that it involved Yog-Sothoth, and a theater.
I think (but I am not 100% sure), that ...
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Player does crazy elaborate things, without the GM knowing where it will lead
Background Information:
System is CoC, the game is a multi year long campaign, set in the 1920s.
The Players character has a chemistry and firework background. The character has no strong weapon/...
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Is Falling applicable to Mouse Guard and similar classless games?
I've got a strong inclination to purchase Falling in preparation for running some classless games like Mouse Guard or Call of Cthulhu.
Are the steps inside largely applicable to a game like Mouse ...
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Is there a system for determining the difficulty of a combat encounter with a monster is in Call of Cthulhu 7e?
Is there a system to determine how difficult an encounter with a monster or group of monsters is in 7th edition?
user71562
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Are there official or unofficial rules for drugs and addiction?
I’m playing the 7ed version of Masks of Nyarlathotep. I decided to have my character a laudanum user as he’s an opium addict, because I was certain there were rules about narcotics and drug addiction ...
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What is this Call of Cthulhu scenario set in England or Scotland, where a a dilettante asks the characters to look for his missing daughter?
Around a month ago, I've read somewhere about a scenario, which right now I can't seem to find.
All I remember, that it's setting was either in England or in Scotland, and it has two key antagonists. ...
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How can I implement a False Hydra monster in Call of Cthulhu?
I would like to run False Hydra but in Call of Cthulhu.
A False Hydra is a creature with a skill to erase someone from everyone's memory after devouring them, what's more, it can be seen only in ...
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Call of Cthulhu - Eberron Crossover Advice [closed]
I am running an Eberron Campaign in the 3.5 ruleset. However, I am trying to bring in aspects of the Cthulhu mythos. I want to give my players a doctored copy of the Necronomicon, altered to be ...
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How to bring together characters from different walks of life?
Let's take a random, straightforward Call of Cthulhu scenario, where someone, Miss Jane Doe, hires you (the party) to find their brother who has been missing for 3 months. (Another fine example would ...
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How does a ghost hunter use the screwdriver and string in the “gost [sic] hunting kit?”
Using a pre-generated character — Maximilian Hirst, parapsychologist — I have a ghost hunting kit consisting of a thermometer, string, screwdriver, and bible. Neither the GM (nor I) could come up with ...
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In Call of Cthulhu 7e, how does one increase their HP Max?
I’m recently starting to play Call of Cthulhu 7e, and really enjoying it. My Investigator is also enjoying it so yay, this Keeper is happy. However, we just finished our first Scenario and she asked ...
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How would a police raid on Ju-Ju House work in Masks of Nyarlathotep?
I've just started Masks of Nyarlathotep with a few friends, and they are half-way through the "America" chapter.
The best outcome for this part of the campaign, according to the book, would be to
...
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Is a Hound of Tindalos stopped by a curve if it has already materialised?
The constraints upon a Hound’s arrival in the present day out of the time stream are clear: it can only materialise through an angle of 120 degrees or less. An entirely curved environment — hiding in ...
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How can I simulate paranoia in a Call of Cthulhu One-Shot?
I'm a new GM to Call of Cthulhu. I want to play a One-Shot where paranoia and hallucinations play a big role (English isn’t my first language, so sorry if some phrases are weird).
My idea is ...
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Can a player character increase stats?
I'm a new GM. With friends, we had two sessions, and after each of them, I've let them roll for skills increase. But recently one of them asked if he should roll for STR because his character is weak ...
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How can I as GM control off-topic moments and get the players to maintain a serious tone?
My friends and I started playing RPGs at the same time without the help of any experienced person.
I am the GM but I struggle to make the players focus on anything that can progress the story in some ...
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Skills the player has, but the character doesn’t vs. skills the character has, but the player doesn’t
This question results from a small debate I had last weekend with our gamemaster during a session on Call of Cthulhu.
A player wanted to check if an NPC is alive or not. The players had put zero ...
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Does an Investigator have 1 year’s or 5 years’ income at the beginning in the ’20s?
I'm going to run a game set in the Call of Cthulhu (6th edition) on the 20 ages (I'm going to throw the players inside The Masks of Nyarlathotep).
Because of this, I've acquired the Investigator's ...
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How can the Investigators banish Abhoth permanently?
In Dunwich: Return to the Forgotten Village, the God Abhoth dwells below the ground, spreading its filth and decay.
Normally, Mythos Gods are associated with Call/Dismiss spells. The Call spell ...
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What do I need to start playing Call of Cthulhu 3rd edition?
I'm new to the Call of Cthulhu games and I have been recently looking at all the editions for the games. For some reason the 2nd/3rd caught my eye particularly because of the retro look of it and I ...
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Are there rules for surgical amputations in Call of Cthulhu?
I am converting a campaign from Trail of Cthulhu to Call of Cthulhu, and I need rules for deliberate surgical amputation. Specifically:
Skills used, chances of success and what happens if it goes ...
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What's the differance between max sanity and start sanity?
I just started playing Call of Cthulhu, and decided to pick up the 7th Edition. When creating my character I got confused about the sanity numbers. Theres a max (99-Cthulhu Mythos), start (POW) and ...
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Dealing with too powerful forms of transport
I am preparing a game with Call of Cthulhu mechanics using S.T.A.L.K.E.R (the game based on the book Roadside Picnic) as a setting. The game's main locale is an unnatural area that is surrounded by ...
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Do you know any scenario involving Yog-Sothoth? [closed]
I am looking for a published Call of Cthulhu campaign or at least a scenario involving the Yog-Sothoth or his cult. Well known Shadows of Yog-Sothoth campaign, despite its name, resolves more around ...
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How can you increase Power stat during play?
I remember that in original Basic Roleplay you can increase your power stat through use but how does it work in Call of Cthulhu 5e? My friend mentioned having to best someone in mental combat but I ...
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Do Call of Cthulhu manuals depend on the core rulebook version?
I'm planning to buy a few manuals for Chaosium's Call of Cthulhu, but I can't find anywhere if the other manuals (say e.g. Cthulhu by gaslight) and adventures are strictly tied to an edition or if ...
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Playing a cultist [closed]
Is there any commercial setting or scenario to play a cultist in a Cthulhu related game, like Call of Cthulhu or Trail of Cthulhu? Playing the bad guys is a theme that usually come up sometime in most ...
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Encouraging players to not ignore the story
I recently GM'd my first game where I ran a single session Call of Cthulhu game in which the investigators were travelling from Arkham to Boston. They encountered a few mysterious events on the road ...
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Dealing with skill spamming in Call of Cthulhu (6th/7th edition)
Right now I am GMing a Call of Cthulhu campaign for my friends. There is one thing that both me and my players do not like - skill spamming.
In Call of Cthulhu to make your chars stronger/better you ...
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Help me hide/protect a location in my Call of Cthulhu game
I'm currently writing up a campaign for Call of Cthulhu 7th Edition set in modern day. I've never GMed this system before or any earlier editions, and my knowledge of Cthulhu Mythos and its canon is ...
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What mechanics from other rpgs could I introduce into my Call of Cthulhu game to make it scarier? [closed]
I will use an example to illustrate my question. If I wanted to make my player`s characters more complex and support/motivate my players to actually role-play, then I would take the char belief ...
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Is there any reason not to always try to knockout rather than damage?
I was re-reading the rules of Call of Cthulhu (5th Edition) today whilst preparing an adventure and saw the knock out rules:
Use this rule to render a target unconscious rather than to do physical ...
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Identify a Call of Cthulhu scenario where players start with a blank character sheet
I recall reading about a published Call of Cthulhu scenario which had the following premise:
The characters started in an area where they were the only people around
A dead body was in front of them ...
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Do I need to buy Call of Cthulhu 7th edition if I have the quickstart and previous editions?
I've just picked up the quickstart for Call of Cthulhu 7th edition, which I thought was great. Given that it seems to cover off most of the essential game crunch (conflict resolution, and character ...
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How do I handle group rolls?
I'm currently preparing a Call of Cthulhu (6th edition, core rulebook) adventure. After having played a practice CoC session some time ago, and studied the rules, I found myself uncertain of how to ...
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An explanation of magic in Call of Cthulhu [closed]
I've been searching for an explanation on how magic works in CoC but I haven't found a big recap on how to use it, what it is and how an investigator can use it.
If someone had a link for me or an ...
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How to execute horror when there is safety in numbers
Questions such as this one and this one cover how to execute horror in a role-playing game fairly thoroughly. This process must be modified, however, when the traditional trappings of a game session ...
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How many GMs is enough to run a Mega-Game?
My two friends and I are going to spend quite a bit of time preparing a mega-game. It will be a weekend long gaming session with around 20 players, and the three of us as GMs. We are trying to figure ...
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How can I keep the Cthulhu mythos new and mysterious to experienced players?
I am currently preparing a Call of Cthulhu adventure, and I am hoping to be able to play the game on a regular basis in the future. But I am having concerns about keeping the mystery in the game from ...
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Cthulhu Campaign - How to create a more satisfying climax?
I'm in the midst of creating a campaign for my CoC group. By now, most of the material we played basically came down to these endings:
a) Run away and hope whatever it was doesn't follow you anywhere....
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How to find the line between an investigation and railroading
I'm a fairly experienced GM creating and running a series of Delta Green games (a modern supplement for Call of Cthulhu). While my players and I enjoy the game, there are parts that bog down and get ...
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Making a rules-light non-combat version of Call of Cthulhu
I'm familiar with the very basics of BRP system and I have 6th edition CoC corebook, but right now my schedule doesn't allow me to even glance through it. Aside from the obviously essential skill ...
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Why wouldn’t I just run away from the eldritch horror?
I am struggling with character motivations in Call of Cthulhu or similarly investigative horror settings. For some reason I seem to have issues imagining the reasoning behind characters who really ...
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Do I need to play the original Call of Cthulhu before Achtung! Cthulhu?
Previously I've wanted to get into Call of Cthulhu, but hadn't ever gotten around to it. I found out about Achtung! Cthulhu, created by Modiphius, which can be played within the Call of Cthulhu world. ...
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What happens if my players capture a cultist at the start of Masks of Nyarlathotep?
I'm about to run Masks of Nyarlathotep for the first time. In the very first scenario, Jackson Elias is murdered by cultists, which kick starts the adventure. However, the scenario assumes that the ...
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Call of Cthulhu V6 Dice
I'm GM of a Call of Cthulhu 6th edition table and I've got a question about dice.
Most of the time they're (and I'm) just using dice from my "ol collection" with pretty much every existing standard ...
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Call of Cthulhu 6th or 7th edition? [closed]
I am trying to put together a couple of Call of Cthulhu games for my local gaming group and to run some games at Mid South Con. Now I am not familiar with the system or anything, I have heard older ...
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What are the changes between editions?
What changes are there between each edition so that I can update earlier edition modules more easily?
I have many modules for Call of Cthulhu that I have picked up over the years but I only own 3rd ...
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Why the bad guys don't just teleport somewhere drop a bomb and teleport back?
This question could be also How to avoid teleport/drop bomb/teleport back attacks? or How to avoid the use of Dimensional Shamblers as bomb carriers?
Background
Recently my group of players thought ...
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