MOB

$400,000 Stretch Goal - Out from the Shadows... (extra Silhouettes) We were rather surprised when we saw how few classic Mythos monsters were included on the original Silhouettes sheet. Dimensional Shamblers, Elder Things, Flying Polyps, and even Shoggoths were nowhere to be found. Now that we have a big poster map of Arkham in the box we know that more such Silhouettes will be all the more fun to use. Thus, if this Stretch Goal is achieved we will be adding a free printed page of new Silhouettes into each printed box set. All $20 backer levels and higher will get a free PDF of the new Silhouettes created by Simon Bray.

The cat is out of the bag! This Saturday Becca Scott and an all-star cast plays 'The Auction', one of the scenarios available right now in the Call of Cthulhu Classic Kickstarter! This game features Erika Ishii (Apex Legends, Destiny 2, and Critical Role's epic one-shot Shadow of the Crystal Palace), B. Dave Walters (Black Dice Society, L.A. By Night), Josephine McAdam (Shikar, The Mortuary Collection), Xander Jeanneret (Literary Bards, Relics & Rarities), as well as the ever-amazing Becca Scott (The Calyx) as the Keeper of Arcane Lore! Brought to you by Chaosium and Good Time Society. Back the Kickstarter here: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/chaosium/call-of-cthulhu-classic See it played with 7th Edition rules on Saturday at 3:40pm PST, 6.40pm EDT, 11:40pm GMT, and (Sunday) 8:40am AEST! : https://www.twitch.tv/thebeccascott P.S. the new series of Becca Scott's The Calyx (Call of Cthulhu actual play) started this week. Watch on Twitch TV or YouTube!

Simmering Tensions in Lunar Prax While momentous events wracked Dragon Pass and the Holy County throughout 1624, tensions continued to simmer in Lunar Prax. Thanks to the Zola Fel's precious gift of silt after the great flood, farmers the length of the Cradle Valley once again enjoyed a bumper harvest. But Governor Halcyon’s insatiable appetite to enrich himself from this bounty was continually vexed by his superiors’ relentless demands for men, beasts, equipment and slaves, all needed for the Reaching Moon Temple project in Dragon Pass. The governor also looked upon the Sun Lands greedily, but much to his ire the Articles of the Armistice prevented his tax gatherers preying there. This was something even Marusa the Red Witch couldn't beguile Invictus into modifying. The nomad incursions grew ever more bold. Late in Sea season, Duke Raus sought an audience with Count Invictus on his way back from Pavis. He bitterly recounted how when he told the Governor that nomads were now riding with impunity through his lands, Halcyon var Enkorth said he no longer had any troops to spare for such an unimportant, far-flung outpost. The governor churlishly suggested that if Raus was unhappy he should go hire mercenaries of his own! In frustration, the Duke dispatched a delegation of Grantlands landholders to Furthest, led by his daughter Lady Jezra. There they would plea for relief from Halcyon's boss, Tatius the Bright. His family fortune all but gone, in the meantime Raus had no choice but to offer the deeds to Ronegarth as collateral for Yelmalio Templar mercenaries, and place several treasured items in the Sun Dome vaults as further surety, including their family heirloom the Wand of the Seven Phases. Fortunately for the Sun Dome lands, Lord Belvani's diplomacy at the Paps and Lady Vega's vigilance on the borders kept nomad raids there largely in check. So while the people of Sun County enjoyed the new abundance, Count Invictus bravely kept hold of the Brass Jar to prevent the horrors of drought escaping once more. To Marusa's annoyance, he now rarely left the confines of the temple’s inner sanctum, and even the Goldenblood Light was barely able to ease his torment. Still lacking a means to seal Brass Jar, Hector the Wise had scoured the temple archives in vain looking for a solution that did not involve simply releasing Daga again. That Count Invictus would not countenance, though sometimes in his despair he felt it would be best if he just rode as far as possible into the Wastes as he could and let the container go.

The Dilemma of the White Calf At the height of the great harvest of 1623, a dazzling White Calf was born in the milking herd of a farmer from Yelm’s Griddle. In itself, this was an auspicious event, promising further bounty to come, but what exactly to do with the animal caused much debate. Lord Bevani said he wanted to take it to the Paps, a fitting gift for the high priestess, Egajia Chewer of Flesh. Lady Vega saw no need for further truck with the nomads and, citing the Gods Wall scroll that helped them so well with the Great Corvée, insisted the calf be offered in sacrifice to Busenari, cow goddess of old Dara Happa. Porthor, the temple cellarer, wanted it for the count’s own herd, and Thandran Clubfoot knew the farmers in Garhound would pay a pretty sum for such a beast, for white is Orlanth’s sacred color. The farmer involved was the recently-retired Templar Mars Melus, loyal honour guard of the Light Lady Yolanda. As a reward for his service at the Devil's Playground he'd been given this prime plot of dairy country to settle down in. To build up his herd of milkers, Mars wanted to keep the White Calf for himself. The baboon Melo Yelo, who had found his way back to Sun County from Angle Fort and now lived on Mars' farm in his care, wanted to eat it. But no one asked either of them. The argument went on and on until the Count overruled them all. Away on yet another visit to New Pavis (and with Marusa’s secret urging), Invictus ordered the wondrous calf be delivered up to the Lunar governor as a token of the Sun Dome’s loyalty. Lady Vega and Lord Belvani rarely saw eye-to-eye on anything, but both agreed this just could not stand, and when the Light Guide Laertes came to Yelm’s Griddle to collect it, the animal he found there was a just a normal calf, painted white. Mars protested his innocence, but the indignant Laertes had him arrested. He was fortunate only to receive a term of banishment to Pent Ridge for what the Light Guide called his "impious duplicity". Under their noses, Melo Yelo had sneaked the genuine White Calf away. Further down the road to Helmbold he was diligently passing it over to the local militia unit ("The Bird Men" from Eiskolli) when Lord Belvani and his Paps delegation appeared. Despite their protestations they were under orders from "her ladyship" the Guardian of Sun County herself, Light Captain's shining retinue over-awed the mere militiamen and they took the animal. Belvani ordered Melo Yelo be brought along to look after it. At the Paps, Lord Belvani duly presented the White Calf to the Respected Elders. This, he said, was a mark of the high esteem the Sun People had for the People of the Plains. With the White Bull secret society gathering momentum among the tribes and crossing all social and political bounds, the astounded priestesses considered the gift to be both generous and portentous. In gratitude Egajia Chewer of Flesh took Belvani aside to share a secret. Afterwards, as soon as his delegation reached Sun County territory, Belvani dismissed the other members of the party (even his little dragonewt servant The Gamon), keeping only Melo Yelo with him. Without returning to the Sun Dome they travelled directly to Pent Ridge, the Sun County salt mines located in the wastes of Vulture Country. [Later, the officially stated reason for the Light Captain's unscheduled visit to the prison was to secure the release of the "blameless" Mars Melus. But, Vega Goldbreath pondered, surely such a mundane order could have been made from the Sun Dome?] Belvani had brought Melo Yelo with him to Pent Ridge for a practical reason: the baboon's famous Yelmalio Helm. In the Devil's Playground it had shone clear and true into impenetrable Darkness, and Belvani was planning to go deep, deep into the mines. After what he'd learned at the Paps, Belvani urgently needed to talk to the disgraced priest Daystar, and Daystar was part of the prison's Dark Detail; inmates singled out for special punishment, who work, live and sleep in the tunnels and are forever forbidden to see the sun*. *Daystar's shocking crimes during the so-called "Summer of Love" (1593) were morally repugnant, and when they finally came to light were once the talk of Sun County. On the fall of Count Varthanis II aka the "Red Count", Daystar was tried in secret. No one knows why Count Solanthos chose to exile the defrocked Light Priest at Pent Ridge rather than have him immured in a retirement tower or simply executed. (nb there are more tantalising hints to behold about all of this in Nick Brooke's highly entertaining 'Sun County Backgrounds', part of the splendid Sandheart series in the Jonstown Compendium: http://bit.ly/2DMy10V)

Newsflash! HPLHS announces Deluxe Handout Set to pair with Chaosium's 40th Anniversary Kickstarter!

To help celebrate the 40th anniversary of the Call of Cthulhu tabletop roleplaying game, Chaosium's friends the H.P. Lovecraft Historical Society have announced another of their amazing prop sets. Using a full-page of the 'Arkham Advertiser' newspaper, the HPLHS have revealed a 'Deluxe Handout Set' is in production for the five supplements included in Chaosium's Call of Cthulhu Classic Kickstarter, currently underway. Featuring a "Broadsheet Newspaper" and "Nearly 100 Props", they promise this prop set will offer "levels of detail and realism to enhance fun and test sanity". "The HPLHS's Masks of Nyarlathotep Gamer Prop Set won Product of the Year in the 2019 ENnie Awards, so we're understandably very excited about what they'll produce here" said Chaosium vice president Michael O'Brien. Chaosium's Call of Cthulhu Classic Kickstarter launched on July 2nd and funded within ten minutes. It features the Call of Cthulhu 2nd edition rules, plus five of the earliest supplements for the game, now long out-of-print: Shadows of Yog Sothoth, The Asylum & Other Tales, Cthulhu Companion, Trail of Tsathogghua, and Fragments of Fear. "These early Call of Cthulhu supplements pioneered the use of handouts and props in tabletop roleplaying. With our Kickstarter a new generation of gamers will be able to play them without having to pay collector prices on Ebay. And thanks to our friends at the HPLHS, with the option of the finest handouts imaginable", said Michael O'Brien. The Call of Cthulhu Classic Kickstarter runs until July 24th, 2021. The HPLHS Deluxe Handouts Set will be available for purchase separately from the H.P. Lovecraft Historical Society, with a planned release around the 40th anniversary of Call of Cthulhu in late October 2021.

Nomads on the Move As life along the River of Cradles slowly returned to normal after the Great Winter, out on the plains the Animal Nomads began to bring their herds back to their traditional grazing lands. Though the Armistice of Prax forbade attacks on settled territory, Sor Eel’s abrupt departure with most of the Lunar garrison during the Great Winter tempted increasing numbers of nomad bands to raid along the borders. Vega Goldbreath increased patrols and vigilance in Sun County, so most of the raiders tried their luck in Pavis County or better still the Grantlands, where the Lunar forces were spread the thinnest. In the Grantlands, a growing reliance on mercenaries backfired when Halcyon var Enkorth reneged on paying them what they thought their due. Even before the Windstop the Grantlanders had led a precarious existence, and since then had suffered at the hands of the governor’s pitiless tax gatherers. The Longspear Slayers and Sir Holburn’s Axe brothers simply took to plundering themselves, forcing Duke Raus and other leading landholders to raise money of their own to pay them off. The Sun Domers knew from their Yelmalio kin among the nomads that the tribes were becoming restive. Years of overweening arrogance by the Sables and their repulsive leader, the Great Khan Inire the Red, was sure to one day come to a head now there wasn’t the same Lunar force in Prax to back up their pretensions. While Vega Goldbreath’s policy was increased watchfulness on the borders, to safeguard the Sun Dome’s interests Lord Belvani began making regular visits to the Paps, bringing the elders gifts of gold, grain, and salt. It's here he first heard stories of the White Bull society's spread among the tribes, and of its enigmatic leader, Argrath.

Having passed $300,000 in our Call of Cthulhu Classic Kickstarter it's on to the next Stretch Goal: $350,000 Stretch Goal - Arkham Poster Map Those character and monster silhouettes, not to mention any miniatures you may already own, deserve a big enough Arkham map to walk (and stomp) around on. Thus, if this stretch goal gets funded we will add a free printed color poster map of Arkham into each boxed set. All $20 backer levels and higher will get a free PDF of this map!

Ok, so we were just about to post a review of the old RuneQuest Classic title Plunder (1980) which noted it features "the only example of a cheesecake cover in Chaosium’s history" and then Loïc Muzy comes up with this for the forthcoming Cults of Glorantha book! A Stranger came ashore in 1313. He quickly proved himself greater than any mortal, and knew secrets known only to the gods. In a great magical war, he overthrew the Lord of Darkness, the Only Old One, and united the peoples around the Bay into the Holy Country. For three centuries, the Stranger did rule as the God-King Belintar. And he had quite the fan club!

No, canon is not "diktat" at all. “Your Glorantha Will Vary” is long-established principle in Gloranthan fandom. First espoused by the creator of the setting himself, Greg Stafford, in a nutshell what it means is you are free and welcome to take what you want from the incredibly rich tapestry of myth, magic, history and wonder of Glorantha for use in your own creations, your games, in the Jonstown Compendium, or elsewhere. Including posts here. The “official” canon for the world is found in material published by Chaosium/Moon Design Publications, with what is presented in The Guide to Glorantha and The Glorantha Sourcebook as definitive. And - unless he indicates otherwise - what @Jeff posts here is from a canonical perspective. However, canon only matters for official publications – for that which published by Chaosium Inc and its licensees. We strive to ensure that official publications stick to canon: however, that is a restriction on our (Chaosium's) interpretations of Glorantha, not yours. Your Glorantha can vary as much or as little as you want.

[Wearing mod hat]: Yes, “Your Glorantha Will Vary” is long-established principle in Gloranthan fandom. But when @Jeff posts, he's doing so from a canonical perspective. You are welcome to disregard that in your Glorantha (YGMV and all that), but then maybe you should let people know you are not interested in talking about published Glorantha, but just your own idiosyncratic derivative. That would make it easier for readers to decide whether they want to pay attention or not.

Invictus Challenged The wonderful harvest proved to be everything predicted, but Sun Dome relations with their Lunar overlords grew ever worse as the year progressed. Halcyon var Enkorth’s own natural rapacity clashed with his superiors’ insistence that the province now pay for itself. The new governor taxed Pavis County relentlessly and the Grantlands were simply bled without mercy. But by the terms of the Armistice of Prax, Sun County was exempt from direct Imperial taxation. Yet it seemed every time Count Invictus went to Pavis for ‘consultations’ even more concessions were offered up to the Lunars by Sun County. On one such visit the Count sent word to the Sun Dome that rather than traverse their lands by boat, Lunar troops would now be permitted to march through at will and even to bivouac in the Lands of the Sun! This proved to be too much for the Light Son Bakchos, Captain of the Sun Dome Temple's elite Golden Guard*. "What next?", he called out, "Will decent Sun Folk be forced to billet dissolute Lunar soldiers in their own homes?" Lord Bakchos said Yelmalio compelled him to speak only Truth. As he saw it, the truth was all the calamities and indignities now assailing the Sun Folk began with Invictus's failure at Harpoon. Surely the heavens were calling out for a better Count than he? Shouting for justness, Bakchos set off for Pavis to have it out with Count Invictus. The duel was fought in the forecourt of the Yelmalio temple in Suntown, with the Lunar governor and Marusa intently watching. Despite Invictus’ infirm condition and seeming unfitness to fight, his challenger was surprisingly defeated in mere seconds. As Bakchos was carried away, Laertes Coatilon deferentially presented the Count with a dossier. It detailed a litany of discreditable conduct by members of the Golden Guard and its captain, stretching back some years. This, the Light Guide confided, had been helpfully provided by Gimgim the Grim. Though he knew in his heart he too was a base fornicator, there on the spot Invictus summarily pronounced Lord Bakchos guilty of “outrageous conduct” and “gross moral turpitude”. Bakchos was promptly degraded, mutilated and banished to Pent Ridge, along with the few Templars who unwisely followed him to Pavis. Invictus then guiltily slunk back to Marusa. On his return to the Sun Dome Temple, the Count withdrew to the inner sanctum and the comforting radiance of the Goldenblood Light. *The Golden Guard are the elite First Square of the Sun Dome Templars, described in Tales of the Reaching Moon #20. While they regularly serve as an honour guard for the Count, their true role is to protect the Sun Dome Temple itself. On cult holy days the Golden Guard literally turn their backs on the ceremonies to face whatever foes might wish to do harm to the People of the Sun. Their symbol is a toothed sun-rune, typically mounted on lapis lazuli; the jutting projections around its edge signifying each individual brother, uniting in an outward-facing circle together to protect the centre at their backs. The blue of the lapis is evocative of the cold of night, when their vigilance is most needed. (See shield on accompanying pic). During the drama of the Great Winter they were doing their job, resolutely standing guard at Sun Dome Temple, which is why they haven't come into the account until now.

@Rick Meintslatest 'Out of the Suitcase" column - so what's scoop on Call of Cthulhu Classics?

"With the recent launch of our Kickstarter a lot of people have been asking what's scoop on Call of Cthulhu Classics? Since I did a lot of the work, I am happy to explain...", says Chaosium President Rick in his latest 'Out of the Suitcase' blog: https://www.chaosium.com/blogout-of-the-suitcase-16-so-whats-the-scoop-on-call-of-cthulhu-classics "This is great for Call of Cthulhu fans who don't own these long out-of-print releases but would like to. You don't have pay collector prices on Ebay for these any more. And for the fans who do already own them? Well, in these remastered supplements we're adding additional bonus content by the early authors, including designer's notes, bonus scenarios, articles from various sources, some history, plus a few other surprises."

The Goldenblood Light Dims Ever since the victory over the forces of Darkness at Yelmalio Hill the Goldenblood Light shone like a glorious star from the top of Angle Fort. But now, with the seasons properly restored, the high priest Gaumata decreed it must be returned to the Sun Dome Temple. Lord Belvani was alarmed to learn Count Invictus intended to personally bring the holy relic back in a stately procession. This was to include elaborate public ceremonies in New Pavis and other towns with Yelmalio temples along the road back to the Sun Dome. Belvani mistrusted Halcyon Var Enkorth. He feared the Lunar governor might once again use treachery or trickery to try get his hands on their most sacred treasure. So, on a night of the Black Moon, he secretly despatched the Light Lady Yolanda on a mission to get the Goldenblood Light out of the Rubble. Yolanda flew in on the wyrm Windwhistler.* She told the hapless but obedient Melo Yelo he had to remain there on top of the dome a little while longer to complete the ruse. A common lamp boosted with as many brightness enchantments Belvani could muster was then substituted for the Goldenblood Light. This deception was not successful for long – for a start, the new light was dimmer by a thousand-fold – but at least the relic was returned safely. Count Invictus was furious, and Belvani could have found himself in Pent Ridge had the cult spirits of retribution shown any concern with his conduct. The Count hurriedly returned to the Sun Dome. He took to spending hours every day in the temple’s inner sanctum, basking in the holy presence of the Goldenblood Light. Invictus said its heavenly radiance soothed him, bolstering his resolve to keep his hand where it needed to stay, keeping the Brass Jar sealed and Daga contained. Most of Invictus’ duties now fell to Belvani, though the Count frequently arranged for state visits to Pavis for further ‘consultations’ with Halcyon var Enkorth. These were actually an excuse for more secret, guilt-ridden assignations with Marusa. The Red Witch continued her wicked ploy of teasing him with the stopper. *Regarding Windwhistler's whereabouts until now, I added this sentence to the Temptation Resisted episode, in which the questers set off for Pavis to face the Eye: "Windwhistler the Wyrm returned to keep watch over the Old Sun Dome. "

I think Vadeli behaviour is something of a mirror to the Brithini. The Brithini live forever by being morally decorous and pure, by their own incredibly high standards. The proof it works is their immortality. They would never show their frustration, but it must gall the heck out of them that the Vadeli get to do all the forbidden fun stuff - positively revel in it, in fact, rubbing their abominable immorality in the Brithinis' faces - yet somehow get to live forever too...

The Return of the Red Witch Standing in for the count, Lord Belvani took part in the annual rite of the River Ritual in Sea season 1623. Praying for his success, the Sun Folk anxiously lined the river banks, showering the water with offerings. When the Light Son safely returned to Summons Hill the following dawn they knew the rift with Zola Fel was now conclusively healed. Everyone rejoiced; the hungry land at last would enjoy a bountiful harvest!rive Belvani assumed the pain of the Brass Jar was why Invictus left it to him to consummate the union with the naiad Kinope; he was unaware his Count actually felt unworthy because he was steeped in sin. For, once again, Invictus was in the clutches of Marusa the Red Witch. Through a covert line of communication via the Light Guide Laertes Coatilon – who had always been friendly with the Lunars – the priestess let Invictus know she could ease his suffering and hinted she had what was needed to seal the jar once and for all. Early in the new year, Count Invictus travelled to New Pavis, ostensibly to discuss certain changes in the alliance with the new Lunar governor. Throughout the protracted negotiations, each night he secretly slipped away to be with Marusa. Her ministrations made him temporarily forget his agonies, and although she teased and taunted him, she kept the magic stopper out of his grasp. Nor, despite all her silken entreaties, would Invictus let Marusa take the jar. The guilty count slipped back to Suntown early each morning, drained and filled with self-loathing.

Here we are, just 20 hours into this adventure and we have crossed the $200,000 threshold. The dice are rolling, and the stretch goal will be marked as "achieved". Thus, it's on to our next stretch goal: $300,000 Stretch Goal - HANDOUTS UPGRADE! Back in the day, the handouts in the early supplements left a fair bit to be desired. As just text on the pages in the middle of the book, you could pull them out and cut them apart (shudder). Most Keepers and players have grown used to something better than that, so here's what we can do when this stretch goal gets funded. We'll include all of the handouts in an upgraded format and collect them together as single sided pages. Printing extra copies from the PDFs won't stress you out, and little to no cutting will be part of the ritual. https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/chaosium/call-of-cthulhu-classic

On a cold and rainy day back in 1981 Chaosium unleashed its Call of Cthulhu tabletop roleplaying game on an unprepared world... To help celebrate the 40th anniversary of Call of Cthulhu, we've launched the Call of Cthulhu Classic Kickstarter, featuring a remastered version of this iconic boxed set and five of its first supplements (Shadows of Yog Sothoth, The Asylum & Other Tales, The Cthulhu Companion, Trail of the Tsathogghua, and Fragments of Fear). The Stars must have been Right, as the campaign funded in 10 minutes! We've now passed the first $100K Stretch Goal - the original Keeper Screen... ... and are rapidly approaching the second Stretch Goal at $200K: Dice! Since the 40th anniversary is a "ruby" one, we sourced a blood red ruby-colored set just for this occasion. A free set of these dice will be going into each and every Classic Boxed set (1", 2" and 2" limited). We will be shipping to backers from our fulfillment centers in the US, Canada, the UK, the EU, and Australia. Chaosium hopes you will join us as we celebrate Call of Cthulhu's 40th anniversary! Support the campaign here: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/chaosium/call-of-cthulhu-classic Chaosium President Rick Meints said, "Because we want to deliver these boxed sets in time for the anniversary later this year, we've already got all of these books and boxes ready to print. Within two weeks of the Kickstarter ending, we're going to be sending out ALL of the PDFs to the backers. All of the files will be off to the printer shortly after that. No waiting on writers, or artists or layout to get this done. We print. We ship."

Death fosters Life The Goldbreath sisters earned great respect for their efforts to restore the land after the tribulations of the past several years. And the Sun Folk were cheered when that Sacred Time Gaumata the Seer foretold a year ahead of peace and plenty, and that their earnest toil would at last be rewarded with an abundant harvest. The ebullient mood was dampened with the slow but shocking decrepitude of Haloric Glowbrow. As a reward for his actions in the Devil’s Playground, Count Invictus made Haloric the new Light Captain of Sun County. Unfortunately, within weeks of his arrival at the Sun Dome, both he and his honor guard – all returning heroes who had been with him inside the Chamber of the Eye itself – began to visibly age and shrink. By the start of the Sacred Time ceremonies these formerly radiant champions were all so bowed over and frail that they had to use their spears for support, hobbling to take up their posts like old, old men. Fearing some sort of chaos affliction, the high priest Gaumata sought guidance from Yelmalio. The answer from the heavens was blunt: "Death fosters Life, Life ends in Death. Each is half of the same power". Consulting the Wood Lord Rohir Oaklimb, Gaumata learned that by joining the elven heroquest, Haloric and his men saved the Great Seed but unwittingly had become part of the Aldryami cycle of Life and Death. By the end of winter, Haloric Glowbrow and several of his Sunspear Guards had withered and died: at the end, their bodies were like dry old twigs. But those that were married all left wives who were expecting, and the few who did survive gradually recovered when the seasons turned. Indeed, at harvest time the next year they were back in tremendous blooming health, only to have the cycle repeat the following winter. On Haloric Glowbrow’s untimely demise, Lord Belvani was finally made Light Captain. He had long understood that this role would be his when Invictus succeeded as Count, and had to gamely mask his bitter disappointment when passed over – even more so when Haloric’s unnatural infirmity meant Belvani ended up fulfilling most of the Light Captain’s duties anyway. But the new Count, too, was something of an invalid. Containing Daga in the Brass Jar took great concentration and fortitude, and caused Invictus continuous pain; after all, he was literally holding back a god. Lord Belvani began to take on many of Invictus’s responsibilities too. Even he was surprised though when it came time for the annual river ritual. Custom calls for a new Count to renew the alliance with Zola Fel’s daughter in the first year of his reign, but in Sea season 1623 Invictus commanded his Light Captain to take his place.

Another advance copy of the RuneQuest Starter Set! This one was sent to Chaosium's Australian HQ for James Coquillat's 'Chaosium Unveiled' series*. But I couldn't help bringing it to show my RuneQuest gaming group tonight. They all agreed - it's beautiful, and it's heavy! *catch all of the 'Chaosium Unveiled' series on YouTube.

In just under twelve hours the Stars will be Right for the Call of Cthulhu Classic Kickstarter! Sign up here to be notified the moment it launches: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/chaosium/call-of-cthulhu-classic

The Great Corvée For several weeks, a great sheet of water spread far over the flatlands of Pavis County and the breadbasket of Sun County, causing further misery for the people. But when the floodwaters finally receded, they saw that Zola Fel had left them with a gift: the fields were now covered in a thick layer of fertile silt. It was too late in the year for planting, so the hungry times continued, though the farmers all agreed that the next planting season offered incredible promise. In the meantime, famine was kept at bay by the elves. The Pavis Garden bloomed with vibrant fecundity under the unearthly radiance of the Goldenblood LIght, still shining out from the top of Yelmalio Hill. The Aldryami gratefully shared its miraculous bounty with the people of Pavis, and there was even enough to send produce downriver to the Sun Dome. With the nomads also returning to Prax with their herds, only in the distant Grantlands was there true starvation in the River of Cradles valley after that. When the waters abated, there was much to be done to take advantage of the precious soil deposited by the flood. Vega Goldbreath as Guardian of Sun County led the efforts to repair the damage in the Lands of the Sun. Using an ancient tattered scroll from the temple archives depicting the fabled Gods Wall in distant Dara Happa, Vega evoked the story of the Ten Sons and Servants. The entire population was mobilized into a Great Corvée, with even Light Sons and priests putting their hands to mattock and spade. Although initially scandalized to see the Light Lady taking on the role of Morkatos the Foreman, clad only in a kilt, in a remarkably short time the people cleared away tremendous quantities of debris, dug out irrigation channels and repaired the riverbanks. Although the Ernalda rituals could now be restored, Vega's Goldbreath's sister Penta had come back from her enforced slumber in the Underworld a changed woman. Rather than serve the living, she saw there was now a desperate need to succour the dead. Putting on mourning clothes, Penta Goldbreath turned to Ty Kora Tek. As Penta travelled through the land she gathered about her a sisterhood of widows. Together, they sought out the many restless ghosts and vengeful wraiths from the Great Winter, helping them find their solace. But the new Count believed it was his secret sin with the Red Witch that had sundered his marriage in this way, and made new vows of chastity.

By Jason Durall, RuneQuest creative director The Starter Set for RuneQuest: Roleplaying in Glorantha is coming! Between now and its release later this year, RuneQuest creative director Jason Durall's Design Diary will share insights about the development of this exciting new boxed set which will introduce the RuneQuest RPG and Greg Stafford's mythic world of Glorantha to all-new audiences. Diary #1: What to expect in the RQ Starter Set Diary #2: Cover Art reveal, and what's inside the box Diary #3: The new adventurers Diary #4: More about the new adventurers Diary #5: Welcome to Jonstown, setting for the Starter Set (guest post by Jeff Richard) Diary #6: Creating the Jonstown City Maps (guest post by Jeff Richard) Diary #7: Printer's proofs are back! Diary #8: A Gateway to Adventure Diary #9: Beyond the Starter Set A guest post from Chaosium President Rick Meints - he's got something exciting to share! Rick: I thought this might be of interest to those wondering where we are at with the RuneQuest Starter Set. This is the finished product express delivered this afternoon, direct from the printer. The rest are on their way to our five fulfillment warehouses (US, UK, EU, AUS, CAN), which will take some time to get all around the globe. As you'll see, no room for any dead air inside this box!

The Stars will be Right on Friday! Get notified when the campaign goes live: our 40th anniversary Call of Cthulhu Classic #Kickstarter launches July 2nd! A remastered version of the iconic boxed set and five of the game's first supplements. https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/chaosium/call-of-cthulhu-classic