klecser

Is it allowed/wise to pick a cult that is unaffiliated with your occupation?

Earlier in character creation I picked Ernalda as my Cult. But, I want my character to be heavy infantry and Ernalda is not listed as a typical cult.

I've been role-playing for a long time and I don't believe in limiting character creation options. But at the same time, I don't know Glorantha, or this game very well yet and I'm just wondering if there is some game-ruining reason that makes picking a cult occupation outside of the listed a dumb idea. I also have an "optimization" mentality that has been pounded into my head, and BRP is slowly breaking me of that.

Or, let me ask this in another way, because I have "DND Mindset" Disease right now. Do Farmers go on adventures in this game? And that causes me to look at "Farmer" occupation and equate that with "boring." I know that isn't fair. DND teaches me that Farmers are not adventurers. Should I broaden my mindset as to who QUESTS in this world?

On 5/6/2019 at 7:29 AM, Jeff said:

I ran a wonderful session of RQG in Poland last week to a group of great players. None had ever played RQ (in any form before) - two were familiar with Call of Cthulhu, one was familiar with D&D, and one just started playing RPGs two days before. We played the Cattle Raid from the GM Adventures Book and used the Pregens.

A few suggestions: 

1. Don't overexplain stuff. The key concepts that players needed to grasp were: how do skills work? how do Runes work? how do passions work? How do I augment? Once they were familiar with that, they were 90% of the way there.

2. Only tell them about the spells they have. That's three special Rune spells and about an equal number of spirit magic spells. Let them know about Heal Wound and Divination - none of the other Common Spells really matter in the initial play. Tell them Rune spells are powerful and you aren't going to get your Rune points back until there is a holy day at your temple. Spirit spells are easier to recover and every day you will wake up refreshed.

3. Walk them through the first combat with something they are very likely to beat, but will show them that combat is dangerous. Rock Lizards, Saber-toothed Cats, Pig Dogs - all are good options. SR just gives them the order of action.

4. Give them non-combat conflict with their characters. Play up those Runes and passions. Make sure their characters have a backstory and connections between them. Give them a moral dilemma they have to wrestle through.

5. Tell them a little bit about THEIR gods but use the god's title as much as its name. Storm King says more than Orlanth to most people. Same thing with clan and tribe. You are a member of the Clearwine clan (Ernaldoring) who are the most powerful clan of the Colymar Tribe, the most important tribe in Sartar. Most players grab that quickly.

IMO, the best current starting scenarios are either Broken Tower or Cattle Raid. Both are easy to run, teach elements of the setting, and have lots of different ways of resolution.

As others have said, I'm thinking that Defending Apple Lane, as much as I love it as a scenario, may be a bit much for a one shot game. I really like the idea of "escorting the cattle to market." Thanks Jeff. I don't take it for granted that designers respond!

On 5/5/2019 at 4:20 PM, The God Learner said:

And don't forget to introduce a duck!

 

I feel like a Baboon should be included too.

Thanks to everyone for this amazing response! I got swamped at work, so I'll try to digest this over the next couple days!

Bump for Part 4!

My Call of Cthulhu group has been seeing my videos for "How To Build A Runequest Character" and they naturally want in, at least for a one-shot to try it.  I would likely run Defending Apple Lane and use the Pre-Gens.

My players are open-minded, but their experience is rooted almost exclusively in DND and Call of Cthulhu. Given the rarity of combat in our CoC campaign and the differences between this game and DND, I anticipate a steep learning curve for them. I will have a learning curve as well, as this will be my first time running RQ. Yet, I have 20+ years as a GM under my belt and I know how to anticipate a lot of the general challenges. I'm also a teacher by profession, so helping people understand and choosing the best questions comes naturally to me.

I'm expecting that we are going to actually do this in a minimum of two sessions: One to learn the rules basics and one to start play. I know that really doesn't happen for FLGS-based one shots, so I'm curious as to how you all teach the Basics as efficiently as possible.

My biggest fear right now is attempting to explain the three tiers of the Magic system and players having a character that they feel is ineffective because  of this. Some of the slipcase characters seem fairly complex to my untrained eye and specialize in calling Spirits and casting magic and I'm not sure how to "pitch" that to whoever plays one. Combat will obviously be a huge part of DAL. Another challenge is that we will only have one rulebook, so I anticipate printing full spell text from the PDF for players to use (for personal use only!  )

How do you teach Runequest efficiently to one-shot groups? Which pre-gens are the obvious choices for new players? Do you feel like a "pre" session is unnecessary with specific in-session choices to support understanding?

As always, thanks in advance.

I am not surprised.

1 hour ago, Valyar said:

He sold indirectly quite a lot of your products... this included

 

I'm sure Seth, like many of us, recognizes the benefits of fans doing PR for the games they love.

And I second Beyond the Mountains of Madness, but we already knew that was in the pipe. We can't make Chaosium produce it faster than human power allows.

I saw it. My comment is not that people shouldn't make requests. My comment is directly in reaction to seneschal's implication that Chaosium isn't doing everything they can to reprint old material. I'm pointing out that they are doing quite a bit. Seneschal seems dissatisfied. Whether with the line up or the speed. And they are entitled to their opinion. But I don't think the facts support the suggestion that Chaosium isn't doing enough. Human hours are limited.

20 hours ago, seneschal said:

The point of the thread isn’t that we don’t want new material.  Chaosium and its licensees are already pumping that out.  But if you’ve got a 40-year back catalog of product (writers, artists, editors already paid for), and presumably it was good stuff (since Call of Cthulhu is an enduring success), why not double-dip, er, I mean maximize your profits by making the best of it available again?  “Cthulhu’s Greatest Hits!”

The simple answer to this is that they are already doing what you are requesting. Chaosium has released many examples from its current production schedule, and it has and will include old stuff. We just got a new absolutely glorious update of Masks that likely represents tens of thousands of combined hours of work. And the existing production schedule is ambitious. Maybe they haven't chosen the exact modules you would have chosen. But you're not at the helm. There is significant work that goes into revising and reprinting and the human power is limited. I think it is important to empathize with Chaosium staff first and foremost. That doesn't mean we shouldn't make requests, of course.

6 hours ago, Gundamentalist said:

If you want something out of the box and less work, I'd recommend something not on your list, 'Day of the Beast'. It's playable with just the PDF and is on a lesser scale than MON or HOTOE.

Day of the Beast is not available as a PDF currently and it routinely goes for 100 plus on eBay.  Sold out on Noble Knight.

I'm really enjoying this thread. The analytical drive in me suggested that a lot of the combat percentages were inflated based upon my rookie understanding of the rules. This isn't out of the ordinary in RPGs, but it bothers me because it makes drawing models from pre-gens for creation less satisfying.

I haven't run any of those in their entirety yet (I've only run pieces of MoN and HotOE as part of my own campaign) so I can't give you a specific recommendation. I'm just posting to say that it makes me happy that you've played the game and enjoyed it with a group. I'm excited to hear about your continuing experiences.

Hey all, I will update this thread periodically as I upload more videos. The goal of this series is for me to showcase character creation for new players through the eyes of an experienced role-player new to Runequest.

Many of the older scenarios, that may be out of print in their original form, were reprinted in future publications that are available as PDFs. So I don't think it disingenuous to say that there is 40 years worth of material to draw from. Just because something isn't in print doesn't mean that it doesn't exist in updated forms.

The idea is to communicate to new Keepers that there is LOTS of material to draw from. If the goal is to grow the game, you highlight the positive.

Anyone who wants to learn some Keeper tricks should watch Mike in action. Compare the text of the adventure to how it shakes out and you'll see some key decisions he makes, in response to his players, to make for a unique experience. He's also excellent at creative test outcomes/requests on the fly.

There is specific text in Defending Apple Lane that references a use of the Battle skill. I don't have my materials on me right now, but I remember it being there.

If you are a new Keeper to Call of Cthulhu, whether a veteran role-player or new to the hobby, you may be wondering what the "tiers" of engagement are for the game. Here is my view of what I recommend at different levels. There is a lot of experience on this board, so CoC vets, please feel free to chime in.

Also remember that if you purchase the PDF in advance directly from Chaosium.com, you get a coupon for that cost off the physical book version when released. Chaosium is really good at packing boxes so it will stay safe through the mail!

What should I get first?

Whether a veteran role-player or new to the hobby, you should pick up the Call of Cthulhu Starter Set. It contains everything you need to get started, plus more. You'll get dice, the basic rules of the game, a solo adventure to help you to start prepping character creation, three scenarios, handouts, character sheets, pre-generated characters and more.

If you want to see what's inside, here is my expose of why this particular Starter Set revolutionized the ttrpg industry:

Veteran role-players may say: "Why should I get a Starter Set? Starter Sets are dumb and not useful." Chaosium is reinventing the Starter Set for the role-playing hobby, in my opinion. This isn't like Starter Sets you've seen for other large RPGs that shall remain unnamed, with a lot of flash and little substance. This Starter Set has depth. The scenarios are all classic scenarios, but with two key changes: 1) the production values and art have been upgraded tremendously and 2) the writing has been massaged to progressively teach Keepers and players how Call of Cthulhu "works" as they play through these scenarios.

Two key differences between Call of Cthulhu and other role-playing games are that CoC is investigation-focused, not combat-focused. That means that even experienced role-players are going to find something new with this game. Rather than "gearing up" for an encounter you "knowledge up" in CoC. This also means that CoC is a handout/clue-focused game in which players are handed papers and objects that add to the immersion. The Starter Set includes models of what this is like so you, as Keeper, whether veteran or new, can see what the "prep" looks like for this game. There is more prep than most role-playing games, but that prep is VERY rewarding when you see players reacting to the immersion.

What is the next best product?

In my opinion, Arkham. It is a huge sandbox of a classic setting of both literature and this game. It embodies Classic Era Call of Cthulhu. You could spend hundreds of hours telling stories from this book and the basic rules in the Starter Set.

Check it out...

What scenarios will help me continue beyond the Starter Set?

 I recommend these two scenario collections as being excellent for new Keepers: Deadlight and Other Dark Turns and Gateways to Terror. 

If you only have one Keeper and one player, the one-to-one scenario collection Does Love Forgive? is tailored to you.

Doors to Darkness is also designed for new players and Keepers. These scenarios work well as is for new Keepers, and experienced Gamemasters will see opportunities to flesh them out even more.

If you are a solo player, consider Chaosium's range of "Alone Against the..." scenarios. I think that Alone Against the Tide, which started on the Miskatonic Repository, is excellent. I also recommend the recently released Alone Against The Static. It has a much more skill- and psychology-focused scenario that will appear to players that enjoy psychological horror.

Ok, we played and really enjoyed it! What next?

The Keeper Rulebook, for sure. This is the Core ruleset, and will also give you a very rich introduction into the Mythos, how it works, and what your players could encounter (or try to avoid!).

The Keeper Screen Pack is another great resource that is also a good value. A solid Keeper screen, two scenarios, a gorgeous map of Arkham, plus more.

I'd also recommend that you check out Seth Skorkowsky's YouTube Channel. Seth is, I think it is fair to say, the preeminent Call of Cthulhu YouTuber. He has an 11 Part series walking you through the rules of the game, with tips on how to make them "pop" for your players.

Also CJ Leung's videos on How To Play are excellent!

I think that James Coquillat is a top Call of Cthulhu Keeper and you can learn a LOT from watching him work. Here he is running The Necropolis (from Gateways to Terror) at Nexus Online for new players. Here he is running Dead Light (from Deadlight and Other Dark Turns) at Pax Online for an All-Star cast. These are both shorter-than-average RPG sessions for Intro scenarios. You can learn a lot about many key Keeper skills, like time management, player involvement, player story contributions, tension-building, descriptive language, and quick mechanics explanations that don't slow down game play. Plus more. James is a master.

What if I just want to play, but want a great collection of ways to immerse myself in the setting and genre?

Chaosium has you covered:

After that?

Well, that's up to you! By that time I think you'll be developing your own tastes of what you like.

Cults of Cthulhu is not only a scenario collection, but a detailed guide of both some example Cthulhu cults, and rules for the creation of cults.

The beauty of Call of Cthulhu is that there is nearly 40 years worth of material to draw from. Everything produced in the past for CoC is compatible with 7th edition with very little conversion time. This game isn't about stats so much as characters and situations. Out of this huge past catalogue, I think a solid intermediate scenario collection is Mansions of Madness.  It also just got the first part of a 7th edition release! Mansion of Madness Volume 1: Behind Closed Doors.

I also particularly like A Time To Harvest as an accessible mid-range campaign for improving Keeper skills and showcasing a good variety of the sorts of scenarios and encounters that make Call of Cthulhu great.

One of the great challenges of Keeping any role-playing game is how critical the use of description is to immerse players. The Malleus Monstrorum is indeed great as a collection of Cosmic Terror monsters and deities. But I'm going to recommend it here because it contains some great advice about how to provide evocative descriptions to your players. Doing your best with those descriptions can really make or break your ability to help your players get into the terror and squirm in their seats. I recommend this discussion between Call of Cthulhu line editor Mike Mason and some great Scandinavian Call of Cthulhu authors for some deep consideration into playing monsters: YouTube Discussion on Effectively Playing and Designing Monsters in Call of Cthulhu.

The Miskatonic Repository is an amazing fan-content community on DriveThruRPG! Heck, I've published a scenario there called Test Subjects. Check it out!

Check out licensees like New Comet Games and Golden Goblin Press. Check out Seth Skorkowsky's Channel or my Channel (RPG Imaginings) for more product unboxings, scenario reviews, product overviews and Keeping advice.

Daniel Harm's The Cthulhu Mythos Encyclopedia is an invaluable resource for Keepers wanting to understand the lore of the Mythos better. 

There are also two major Podcasts with an incredible backlog of tips for running the game: The Good Friends of Jackson Elias Podcast, and The Miskatonic University Podcast. Both have major authors/designers of Call of Cthulhu as hosts.

What is the absolute cream of the crop?

If you don't know Call of Cthulhu's history, it is important to consider that this game holds what is considered to be one of the greatest role-playing campaigns of all time: Masks of Nyarlathotep. The newest set, updated for 7th Edition, is a remarkable product. If you're looking for something fancy to treat yourself with, this might be it.  It was one of the early pioneers of role-playing campaigns that gave players freedom to decide what order to tackle locations and challenges. "Sandbox" started here.

It doesn't stop there. Horrors On The Orient Express and Beyond The Mountains of Madness are two other massive campaign classics.

My personal opinion is that the 2020 release of Dr. Lynne Hardy's Children of Fear campaign is destined to become a modern classic. It has the advantage of being a great campaign that is a more economical buy-in, since it is contained within a single volume.

Both of these campaigns are for you if you are looking to challenge your Keeper skills. They are more complex to run than most other campaigns, but the potential rewards are great.

Why should I purchase direct from Chaosium?

I fully support helping your FLGS often. Lord knows I've purchased from FLGS' in my area when I didn't really need a product just to support them.

Chaosium is a small publisher. They do a great job to get product into the hands of their fans. There are quite a few perks you get from purchasing direct from Chaosium. @DreadDomaindid a great job of summarizing them:

On 3/31/2021 at 9:31 PM, DreadDomain said:

I buy direct from Chaosium for a few reasons:

• To support them
• I get the PDF for free and I get it immediately even if the hardcover is not yet available
• Customer support has been good and responsive
• Delivery is fast, packaging is solid
• I can access my PDFs from the store at any given time and redownload them
• I trust the store (and access to my PDFs) will not disappear anytime soon.

You can head to RPG Imaginings to see examples of how well they pack their products: 

What about different "eras" of the game?

Call Of Cthulhu is a very flexible system. Part of the reason for that, in my opinion, is that it focuses more on theme and feel than setting. Cosmic horror is about how people feel. So, it can be set at any point in human history. Although the 1920's are the "default" era, many gamers prefer playing Modern, 1990s, 1970s, 1950s, 1930s, WW2, Gaslight, French Revolution, Dark Ages, etc...

@EldorfDragonsbane  has some great commentary on eras for Keepers:

Quote

One tip I love to remind both new players and new keepers is while the core game is set in the 1920's it isnt set in the 1920's you may have learned about in school. Think of it being set on an parallel earth where the Great Old Old Ones and Magic exist, for the most part it mirrors our world but at the same time it is different, certain events did happen, while others might not have. Who's to say that the Great Depression didnt start a year later or a year earlier, when you are running the game its your world to do what you want with, you can play it as accurate to history as you want, or you can have some divergence. The key thing to remember is to have fun both playing and running the game, who cares if certain things aren't realistic.

What if I need more help?

Most of all, feel free to ask questions here. We would love to help you get started, or extend your experience!

Part of the reason I don't use miniatures is the cost, so projects like this are most welcome!

1 hour ago, Sumath said:

I'm really not convinced I would distinguish between 'sneaking' and 'moving quietly' for game purposes.

I'm guessing that the TC views "sneaking" as a combination of being quiet while moving and being concealed while moving (a combination of sound and sight). And there is a game situation where a Gamemaster expects both to be tested.

13 minutes ago, MOB said:

Please also check out the post made by @Ellie Akers in the RuneQuest forum. A lot of what she said is applicable here too:   

 

Ellie's post inspired me to post here.

1 hour ago, TrippyHippy said:

I'm not sure it's true that most new players to any game actually go looking for it online though. I think the percentage of players who discuss games online is but a fraction of the whole. 

I agree. I could have been more clear there. What I should have said was: Amongst the subset that go online for more information, official forums are a common place to go. We still have a huge responsibility in curating our local groups/tables as well.

I want Call of Cthulhu to grow and thrive and be a welcoming place for the influx of new players. I believe that means that experienced players have a responsibility to do a little bit of PR for the game, whether we like that or not. Many of you may feel inclined to ignore me. More power to you. But I’m posting this because I’m trying to actively grow this game and make sure that new players here get the help they need. There are simple steps we all can take that can help us maximize new players.

Let’s start with what I consider to be a reasonably agreed upon fact in gaming: 

Most new players to any game usually go the official Boards/Forums of the company that produces it to seek out answers to questions and ideas. 

I think that begs the next question: How can we use this board as a vehicle to support and keep new players? 

I think there are two things that we need to keep pursuing.

1)    Veterans of the game need to be active on this board.

There is nothing inherently wrong with lurking. If you don’t feel comfortable posting, don’t post. But how might posting here help to affect the feel of this board? Responses on this board do not come rapidly. There are often very few responses to new topics. I don’t think that helps us welcome people to the game.

“Most people are on Yog-Sothoth. New players should go there.”

Yog-sothoth is a fine thing and I’m there too.  But the truth is that most new players don’t know about Yog-Sothoth and are more likely to come here first when they have questions and need ideas. That means that veterans need to respond just as quickly here as there. There is nothing more disheartening to new or veteran players than to ask questions and be ignored. A new player that doesn’t find Yog-Sothoth and then doesn’t get an answer may not feel inclined to continue with the game.

“You’re saying I should quit Yog-Sothoth?”

No, I’m saying that we should be BOTH here and there! Right now, most of the community is there. The responses come quicker there. And I’m of the opinion that the presence here hurts our mission to attract new players. You can disagree and that’s fine. I just want us to do what’s best, not what passes for ok.

2)    We need to gush a “your game is your game and that’s ok” attitude.

Gamers that don’t curate the image of their game often find that their game doesn’t grow. We can control the attitude towards Keeper and player preference that exists on this Forum. Most people here do a great job of welcoming new people. One of the things we need to keep striving for is the recognition that different people have different playstyles no matter what game we are talking about. And that’s ok. There is no one “right” way to play Call of Cthulhu. And while I hear that message loud and clear from the Chaosium design team (it’s something I love about them), I think we can do even better to espouse “Your Game Will Vary” here. “How well does my post welcome different approaches to the game?” is a question we can all ask. And if it isn’t welcoming, it may not be encouraging people to stick around. You are entitled to your opinion. Your opinion also sets a tone. How can we be sure that tone makes new players stick around?

Please consider ways that we can be part of a positive image for Call of Cthulhu.
 

Thank you for the suggestions Mike. Good point that I could port any Scenario into the Dreamlands. And perhaps "re-skin" it with a Dreamlands feel.