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Pulp Cthulhu

Falconer

By Falconer
in Call of Cthulhu

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Mike M Participant

Mike M

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Okay - Pulp Cthulhu is focused on playing Call of Cthulhu in a pulp style - i.e. it's a supplement to the core rulebook and not standalone.

It features creating tougher characters (called heroes rather than investigators), with a tweaked generation system. A range of supplementary rules for pulp style play, giving both players and NPCs more "tricks" to call upon (usually at a cost - it's Call of Cthulhu after all). Tweaked Sanity and magic rules, inc. insane augmented skills. Optional psychic powers, and also Weird Science. Some new organisations for heroes to belong to, or to fight against. A range of pulp villains and monsters. Four scenarios, each with a slightly different flavor of pulp, and a chapter on designing pulp stories and plots, and running pulp style games. Remember, it's still Call of Cthulhu at heart, so while characters can take a few more knocks they can still die and are very likely to go insane; although, a couple of deep ones isn't likely to make them sweat - but they can confidently go toe-to-toe with a hunting horror or larger monster.

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Falconer Newbie

Falconer

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On 3/31/2016 at 4:47 PM, Mike M said:

Pulp Cthulhu  - has been written and is currently being relaid out. Due for release later this year.

Astounding Adventures was written for BRP and is completely separate book to Pulp Cthulhu, which is specifically for Call of Cthulhu.

Which would be better suited to a game inspired by Indiana Jones (esp. Raiders and Last Crusade)? I want to incorporate supernatural religious elements (artifacts, etc.) not necessarily related to Yog-Sothothery,

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Mike M Participant

Mike M

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34 minutes ago, Falconer said:

Which would be better suited to a game inspired by Indiana Jones (esp. Raiders and Last Crusade)? I want to incorporate supernatural religious elements (artifacts, etc.) not necessarily related to Yog-Sothothery,

 

Well, I'd say get both and combine the bits you like into the game you want. Pulp Cthulhu will cover it, but of course, it is designed for Call of Cthulhu. Astounding Adventures is not so focused on horror and is aimed for a more general setting. Pulp Cthulhu was written after AA and basically builds on or addresses some things differently to suit the Call of Cthlhu style of game, you could easily run a non-Mythos Indian Jones style game with it.

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Mankcam Advanced participant

Mankcam

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I run a Pulp Cthulhu game, we are doing the Masks of Nylarthotep campaign, but playing it more like Indiana Jones. 

Presently we use Call of Cthulhu 6E and replace Power Points as 'Pulp Points' - essentially 1pt per skill re-rolls. If the players are willing to dish out more 'Pulp Points' than you could allow cool stuff like enhancing chances of doing stuff, and reduce the cost of Pulp Point use depending upon particular character narrative traits. Then make Pulp Points recharge at the same rate as Hit Points, although liberally hand out regains in accordance to characters playing up their personality concepts. 

It works well for us. Call of Cthulhu has so much background for the 1920s that it is the best for Pulp Era games in my opinion. You can easily 'pulp' it up a notch, depending on how you present the story line.

From what I have seen of the Cthulhu 7E pdf it looks like it may be easier to do this then with 6E, given it already has the concepts of Luck and Pushing Rolls built into the system, although in a low-pulp manner. 

My gut instinct says to get the Call of Cthulhu 7E books and have a good look at that, then wait for the Pulp Cthulhu companion volume to be published, as that will obviously be designed to tweak it further in the direction of high pulp fare.

In the meantime, if you have the BRP book then perhaps just use Power Points as I described above and you should be able to see things get very pulpy.

 

Edited by Mankcam
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" Sure it's fun, but it is also well known that a D20 roll and an AC is no match against a hefty swing of a D100% and a D20 Hit Location Table!"

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jaysun Newbie

jaysun

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On 4/3/2016 at 6:03 AM, William Mize said:

As a long time pulp aficionado, I am going to buy the HELL out of this book when it comes out. I'm hoping for hardcover, but that's just me.

Who wouldn't want to run a scenario with The Shadow, Doc Savage and The Spider against Fu Manchu and the Cults of C'thulhu?

- Bill

Hear, hear! Pitting some of the old Pulp heroes against the Mythos would be fantastic.

I'm definitely looking forward to the release of Pulp Cthulhu.

"It's taken me all these years to realize that the Laws of Time are mine, and they will obey me!" - the Doctor

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Rick Meints Advanced participant

Rick Meints

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The 272 page Pulp Cthulhu book is done, and the files have been sent to our printer. We are awaiting proofs in a few weeks. Expected ship date is probably early July, but I need to get that confirmed with the printer. Kickstarter backers (3005 of them) can now download it via BackerKit. It will go up for sale on Chaosium.com very soon, once backers have had their chance to download it first.

CHA23107-Pulp Cthulhu Cover 2 inch.jpg

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Hope that Helps,
Rick Meints - Chaosium, Inc.

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Mankcam Advanced participant

Mankcam

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Looks great! 

I wonder if this title be available in hardcover?

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" Sure it's fun, but it is also well known that a D20 roll and an AC is no match against a hefty swing of a D100% and a D20 Hit Location Table!"

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TrippyHippy Participant

TrippyHippy

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From the looks of it, it ought to be a very popular supplement.

As it provides character generation information, a primer on the 1930s and groups to join, it almost serves as an alternative to the Investigator's Handbook. The rules essentially add Talents and toughen the characters up a bit (double HP and no ageing, lots of uses of Luck points, etc) but there is plenty of variety in Careers and in Archetypes (a new thing that allows for more skill points, for the most part). The bonus for me is the four (count them!) scenarios included in the book, and it's all well presented in full colour. 

The high octane style might not be to every CoC player's taste, particularly if they are used to more slow burning mysteries and thrillers, but this supplement does achieve what it sets out to do with aplomb and brio. In my view the chase rules would have been better included in this book rather than the Keeper's core rules, but this is a meaty book regardless. It does bode well for the future 7E line.  

 

 

 

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