MOB Posted February 24, 2016 Share Posted February 24, 2016 (edited) Announcing Chaosium's first Organized Play Campaign for Call of Cthulhu! A Time to Harvest is a campaign unfolding over six months, which will be offered free to all members of The Cult of Chaos, Chaosium's Game Master and Organized Play Program. “It’s a tightly focused campaign, set in Lovecraft Country, which is inspired by and builds on H. P. Lovecraft's tales", said Mike Mason, line editor for Call of Cthulhu. Written by established Call of Cthulhu authors Brian Sammons, Charles P Zaglanis, Glynn Owen Barrass and Mike Mason, A Time to Harvest is an an ideal campaign for novice Keepers and players alike, with plenty of advice throughout, but veteran players will also find it engaging and fun too. "Things are not always what they seem and the players will have to navigate the various twists and turns. It’s also pretty fast paced, with plenty of action putting the investigators into dangerous situations. Whether around the learned halls of Miskatonic University, the streets of Arkham, or the wilds of Vermont, the players will have plenty of opportunities to explore, investigate, and face threats not of this world!”, said Mason. Todd Gardiner, Chaosium's Director of Organized Play said, "We are so excited to provide this opportunity for Keepers to bring play to gaming groups, stores and homes where they live. As we ramp up to the release of the seventh edition of Call of Cthulhu, bursting out on the scene with a new gaming initiative shows out commitment to reaching new players. Do you and your allies have the mettle to face off against new horrors, about to be unleashed?" A Time to Harvest will be made available as free PDF downloads in six monthly installments to Cult of Chaos members, commencing Saturday April 16th. Interested Keepers need to first join The Cult of Chaos. Membership is free. Initial campaign materials will be sent out in March. Participation in this Organized Play campaign is completely free. For more details contact todd@chaosium.com or dustin@chaosium.com Edited February 24, 2016 by MOB 4 Link to comment
Prime Evil Posted February 24, 2016 Share Posted February 24, 2016 This is a very interesting idea and may help Chaosium products to gain a higher profile with the newer generation of gamers. Most grognards know just how much fun CoC can be, but many "young 'uns" have never seen the game. A couple of questions - is this a US-only initiative or is it intended to be an international organized play campaign? Judging from the Cult of Chaos page on the website and the fact that the position of "Director of Organized Play" is now a thing, are their plans afoot to extend the organized play program with campaigns for RuneQuest, HeroQuest, and / or Basic Roleplaying? If so, how far away are those plans Link to comment
Sean_RDP Posted February 24, 2016 Share Posted February 24, 2016 Yes people love organized plau opportunities. Two or three hours a week of CoC (or RQ) would find a great many people signing up to do it I think. Its 2300hrs, do you know where your super dreadnoughts are? http://reigndragonpressblog.blogspot.com/ Link to comment
MOB Posted February 24, 2016 Author Share Posted February 24, 2016 2 hours ago, Prime Evil said: This is a very interesting idea and may help Chaosium products to gain a higher profile with the newer generation of gamers. Most grognards know just how much fun CoC can be, but many "young 'uns" have never seen the game. A couple of questions - is this a US-only initiative or is it intended to be an international organized play campaign? Judging from the Cult of Chaos page on the website and the fact that the position of "Director of Organized Play" is now a thing, are their plans afoot to extend the organized play program with campaigns for RuneQuest, HeroQuest, and / or Basic Roleplaying? If so, how far away are those plans The A Time to Harvest campaign is world-wide! Not quite ready to share the details but yes, we've got OP plans in the works for our other game lines too. 2 Link to comment
oberonkestral Posted February 24, 2016 Share Posted February 24, 2016 Looking forward to this roll out as it will really establish the Organized Play structure and set the tone. I assume the adventures are for 7th Ed, but will they have 6th ED advise for player who haven't made the move? Especially as the physical books for 7th are still "between ports" so to speak. --michael Link to comment
Wookilar Posted February 24, 2016 Share Posted February 24, 2016 I just emailed Dustin about this re: 7th ed books. He informed me that Chaosium has been holding off launching this event due to the new books delivery being later than anticipated. We are expected to have them in our hands with time to prepare. As for converting from 7th back to 5.6/6, I thought I saw something on Chaosium for conversions, but after a quick look I can't see anything. Maybe it was on the forums? Either way, mechanic wise there aren't really any large issues you can't solve on your feet. Story trumps after all. Link to comment
Mike M Posted February 24, 2016 Share Posted February 24, 2016 Conversion between editions is easy and can be done on the fly. The new Rulebook has an appendix on things you need to be aware for converting 6e scenarios and PCs to 7e and so on. Link to comment
oberonkestral Posted February 24, 2016 Share Posted February 24, 2016 4 hours ago, Mike M said: Conversion between editions is easy and can be done on the fly. The new Rulebook has an appendix on things you need to be aware for converting 6e scenarios and PCs to 7e and so on. Thanks Mike, that's what I thought. I have read the 7th Ed PDF's pretty throughly and am comfortable with either edition, but figured we'd want to use the OP as a means of promoting 7th edition in all it's coolness. --michael Link to comment
Mike M Posted February 25, 2016 Share Posted February 25, 2016 On 24 February 2016 at 10:00 PM, oberonkestral said: Thanks Mike, that's what I thought. I have read the 7th Ed PDF's pretty throughly and am comfortable with either edition, but figured we'd want to use the OP as a means of promoting 7th edition in all it's coolness. --michael Yes absolutely, the OP campaign is specifically intended to promote 7e. 1 Link to comment
Wookilar Posted March 6, 2016 Share Posted March 6, 2016 Other than being part of the Cult, how do we sign up for this? Do we need to send Todd an email or will there be another blanket email going out to all Cult members? Link to comment
MOB Posted March 7, 2016 Author Share Posted March 7, 2016 10 hours ago, Wookilar said: Other than being part of the Cult, how do we sign up for this? Do we need to send Todd an email or will there be another blanket email going out to all Cult members? If you're in the Cult already, you don't need to do anything further at this stage. All registered members of the Cult of Chaos will be invited to sign up to run the OP Campaign and receive the first installment by the end of March. 1 Link to comment
MOB Posted March 7, 2016 Author Share Posted March 7, 2016 (edited) FYI, we'll be posting this FAQ about A Time to Harvest on the Chaosium website shortly, and will add to it as other questions arise: A Time to Harvest – Organized Play Campaign for Call of Cthulhu - FAQ Q: What is the "A Time to Harvest" Organized Play Campaign? A: A Time to Harvest is a Call of Cthulhu campaign unfolding over six episodes, with each episode released on a monthly basis. The campaign is set in 1930, with the players taking on the roles of students from Miskatonic University in Arkham who are drawn into a dark web of intrigue. Each episode follows on directly, building the story and taking the students to a variety of locations in Lovecraft Country and beyond. Q: What edition of Call of Cthulhu is the campaign written for? A: Call of Cthulhu 7th edition. Q: What if I don't have 7th edition yet and still want to play? A: The full Call of Cthulhu 7th edition rules are available in PDF, epub, and mobi formats from www.chaosium.com now. The hard copy rule books will available from mid-April 2016. Q: What is the launch date? A: The campaign officially kicks off on Saturday April 16th, 2016, to coincide with the release of the physical copies of Call of Cthulhu 7th Edition. We don't expect Keepers to begin running the campaign until sometime in May (when they have read it through and have the new rulebook in their hands), although of course, you can start as soon as you wish. We'll be sending out episode 2 in mid May. Q: If I want to take part, what do I need to do before then? A: Anyone who wishes to be a Keeper (Game Master) in the campaign needs to join the Cult of Chaos, Chaosium’s Organized Play and Game Master program. Joining up is simple and free: http://www.chaosium.com/gamemaster-program Q: If I’m already member of the Cult of Chaos, do I need to do anything to register? A: If you're in the Cult already, you don't need to do anything further at this stage. All registered members of the Cult of Chaos will be invited to sign up to run the OP Campaign and receive the first installment by the end of March. Q: If I’m going to be a Keeper, how will I receive updates and instructions? A: Each month a new episode of the OP campaign is released, which we’ll send you by email. We’ll also host discussions about the campaign for Keepers and players in the Call of Cthulhu area of BRP Central – The Chaosium Forums (http://basicroleplaying.org/forum/7-call-of-cthulhu) Q: How does the Campaign unfold? A: Each episode follows on sequentially towards the OP campaign's climax. It is a linear progression, although within each episode, the investigators usually have a range of things/routes to take - some episodes being more sandbox than others in this fashion. As to frequency of play, that's up to you as the Keeper. Ideally, you will run one episode per month (either weekly, fortnightly, or monthly), but obviously some groups may take longer or shorter. Each episode contains what's needed for that month - preparing an episode is basically down to how long it takes you to read it through and make whatever notes you require. Month One provides episode one but also general campaign information of use throughout the campaign, thus you’ll have a lot of key info upfront. Q: What is the minimum age for participants? A: Keepers/GMs in the Cult of Chaos must be eighteen years and over. For players, A Time to Harvest should be fine for most teenagers - if necessary, the Keeper can of course tone things down according to their play group (equally, ramp things up for older and "hardened" gamers). Q: Where can I play this? Is playing at home acceptable, or does it have to be in a game store or at a convention? A: Playing at home is perfectly acceptable! Your friendly local game store is an ideal place to help spread Call of Cthulhu to new players, so also highly recommended! We will even be providing sign-up flyers to help you recruit players. A convention may not be ideal, since the campaign is being sent out in monthly installments and the story is meant to build on what happened in previous sessions. Q: Can I play in the campaign online? A: Absolutely! We've heard of people planning to play through Roll20, for instance. Some groups may even stream their play through TwitchTV. Q: How many people does the campaign accommodate? A: The campaign will work best for groups of 4 to 6 players, plus a Keeper. Q: What does it cost to participate? A: Participation is completely free, for both Keepers and players. Q: Who has written the campaign? A: The authors of A Time to Harvest are Brian M. Sammons, Charles P. Zaglanis, Glynn Owen Barrass, and Mike Mason (mike@chaosium.com), all well-established Call of Cthulhu writers whose other works you might be familiar with. Mike is Chaosium’s Call of Cthulhu line editor. Other people directly involved in the OP program at Chaosium are Todd Gardiner (todd@chaosium.com), Dustin Wright (dustin@chaosium.com) and Michael ‘MOB’ O’Brien (mob@chaosium.com). Q: Will there be a book release of A Time to Harvest at some stage? A: Yes, Chaosium will publish the whole campaign as a full color supplement down the line, after the OP campaign has concluded. We’d love to incorporate feedback from the Organised Play run in the book version. Q: Err… is organized play possible for a game where characters can easily die or go insane? A: Fortunately the player characters are Miskatonic U grad students... an infinitely renewable resource! Edited March 7, 2016 by MOB 3 Link to comment
mibagents Posted March 9, 2016 Share Posted March 9, 2016 For those of us running A Time to Harvest online, will there be any electronic visual aids, such as maps, handouts, or tokens? And if not, do we have permission to screenshot the maps and other pics in the material to use in our online games? 1 Link to comment
Mike M Posted March 9, 2016 Share Posted March 9, 2016 Hi - the campaign will be sent out in PDF format. I've asked that the handouts and maps also be supplied in a separate PDF pack for ease of use. 2 Link to comment
MOB Posted March 9, 2016 Author Share Posted March 9, 2016 4 hours ago, mibagents said: For those of us running A Time to Harvest online, will there be any electronic visual aids, such as maps, handouts, or tokens? And if not, do we have permission to screenshot the maps and other pics in the material to use in our online games? For personal use, no worries! 1 Link to comment
Baniak Posted March 21, 2016 Share Posted March 21, 2016 Hello everybody, this is my first post to this forum, so be gentle with me As I read "ATtoH" will be set in Arkham in 1930. Is it possible to switch to another city (like Boston) and time (e.g. 1920s)? Or is it necessary to run the campaign in that specific place and time? Cheers Link to comment
nclarke Posted March 21, 2016 Share Posted March 21, 2016 No-one has seen the scenario so no-one knows if it could be set anywhere else, time or place. Nigel Link to comment
soltakss Posted March 21, 2016 Share Posted March 21, 2016 1 hour ago, Baniak said: Hello everybody, this is my first post to this forum, so be gentle with me As I read "ATtoH" will be set in Arkham in 1930. Is it possible to switch to another city (like Boston) and time (e.g. 1920s)? Or is it necessary to run the campaign in that specific place and time? I am not sure about the specific scenario, but I have often changed the location and time of scenarios in the past. Generally it isn't a problem. One lunatic asylum is much the same as another. If, however, a scenario involved climbing the Empire State Building then you would have to find another tall building to climb if you moved the scenario from New York to another city. Simon Phipp - Caldmore Chameleon - Wallowing in my elitism since 1982. Many Systems, One Family. Just a fanboy. www.soltakss.com/index.html Jonstown Compendium author. Find my contributions here. Link to comment
K Peterson Posted March 22, 2016 Share Posted March 22, 2016 Sounds like a great idea. I wish Chaosium had had this kind of 'initiative'/gaming-outreach program years ago, for 6th edition. New management helps, I guess. Link to comment
mvincent Posted March 22, 2016 Share Posted March 22, 2016 5 hours ago, K Peterson said: Sounds like a great idea. I wish Chaosium had had this kind of 'initiative'/gaming-outreach program years ago, for 6th edition. New management helps, I guess. 'Organized Play' wasn't really a thing until recent years, so it's possible that no one even suggested it back then (especially since 'Organized' is literally the antithesis for 'Chaos'). I'm very happy to have it now. fwiw: In 2014-2015 I sent some letters to Chaosium asking about an official organization for Chaosium referees. It's almost certainly coincidence that they actually created one, but I still consequently view them as the most responsive, obliging game publisher I've ever interacted with Link to comment
Mike M Posted March 23, 2016 Share Posted March 23, 2016 On 21 March 2016 at 0:36 PM, Baniak said: Hello everybody, this is my first post to this forum, so be gentle with me As I read "ATtoH" will be set in Arkham in 1930. Is it possible to switch to another city (like Boston) and time (e.g. 1920s)? Or is it necessary to run the campaign in that specific place and time? Cheers The campaign takes place over a small number of locales - Miskatonic University in Arkahm is one, but there are others of equal importance. The plot of one scenario centers specifically on the university (rather than Arkham) and so you could change this to another university elsewhere but I think you'll loose some of the key features and I'm not sure what you will gain. As I said, the campaign moves to different locales in each of the episodes. Link to comment
Baniak Posted March 29, 2016 Share Posted March 29, 2016 On 22.03.2016 at 10:25 AM, Mike M said: I'm not sure what you will gain. Well, I'm running my own campaign in 1921 at the moment, so I was wondering if it's possible to put my PCs in Time for Harvest, which is set in 1930s, without skipping a whole decade. On 20.03.2016 at 2:40 PM, nclarke said: No-one has seen the scenario so no-one knows if it could be set anywhere else, time or place. I found this in the description of the TfH: The campaign is set in 1930, with the players taking on the roles of students from Miskatonic University in Arkham who are drawn into a dark web of intrigue. Link to comment
Sean_RDP Posted March 29, 2016 Share Posted March 29, 2016 On 3/22/2016 at 5:04 PM, mvincent said: 'Organized Play' wasn't really a thing until recent years, so it's possible that no one even suggested it back then (especially since 'Organized' is literally the antithesis for 'Chaos'). I'm very happy to have it now. Actually even if we discount 20 years of the RPGA, which was not exclusively TSR/WoTC until 2007 or so, Mongoose attempted a Living RQ type of thing at one point. So the idea has been around for a while. It is nice to see Chaosium jumping on board. I anticipate this being a lot of fun. Its 2300hrs, do you know where your super dreadnoughts are? http://reigndragonpressblog.blogspot.com/ Link to comment
dadcubed Posted March 29, 2016 Share Posted March 29, 2016 First forage into GMing CoC and an Organised Play situation. Should be good. No where can I get a hard copy of CoC 7th Ed in the UK? Cheers Link to comment
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