Premise
Dateline- 1934. Following an incident in Red Hook and a government raid on the depressed coastal Massachusetts port of Innsmouth, the various municipal police agencies and Federal Bureau of Investigation have become aware that certain cases are... unusual. Having proven yourselves capable of handling such strange cases, J. Edgar Hoover himself has appointed you (through various means of coercion at his availability) as a special task force related to matters of the occult. Unlike dabblers and hapless amateurs, you have the full force of the U.S government behind you in your investigations- with all of the limitations it comes with. You can flash a badge or P.I license and demand access to records, expect access to state of the art forensics laboratories and the cooperation of local officials. Should the situation be dire enough, you can call in backup. At the same time, you must decide how much to reveal to your superiors of the truths you uncover. Acting oddly or "abusing" your privileges as an agent will draw disciplinary action.
Setting
Lovecraft country- New York, New England, Providence. Most stories at least begin with the great metropolis or seedy underworld of New York. It is the setting of a noir detective novel or movie, not the real world. The shadows are deeper, the colors more lush. Swarthy strangers lurk in alleyways, beautiful women hide terrible secrets, the rich are corrupt and the poor are desperate.
Investigators
Mostly police detectives and federal agents, though civilian consultants (Professors, Antiquarians, Scientists, Alienists- or bored Dilettantes that can pull some strings with the Bureau) are not out of the question. You should have a connection to New York, the occult or both. You should be competent and sane enough to handle important cases, but also flexible enough to cope with occult investigations.
Rules, character generation info
Each character gains one point in Cop Talk and Evidence Collection- even a tweedy professor has been taught how to look over a crime scene, and Hoover's backing opens doors in the department. Credit Rating should be in the middle class (3-4 point) range, at minimum. You should at least appear respectable to work in the Bureau.
Drives- Thirst For Knowledge and Revenge will require some finessing on the Keeper's part and so are discouraged unless there's a great reason.
Investigative build points depend on how many people commit to playing; with 4 or more, you'll have 16 each, with 3 there will be 18 each, with just 2 players, 24 each. Strive to cover most of the investigative abilities between all of you.
Health and Stability pools will be capped at 12 to maintain a degree of danger and suspense.
Once all the characters are put together, I'll put up a game thread!
I posted this on your gamer connection thread. Re-posting here:
If you've room for one more, I'd love to join. I've played lots of CoC but not ToC. I'm happy to pick up Player's Guide PDF. If the game is closed, I understand. Please let me know either way. Thanks!
Working up an idea now and should have something posted tomorrow night, just a character synopsis till things become more concrete.
I posted this on your gamer connection thread. Re-posting here:
If you've room for one more, I'd love to join. I've played lots of CoC but not ToC. I'm happy to pick up Player's Guide PDF. If the game is closed, I understand. Please let me know either way. Thanks!
Sure, man. Come on in!
Sure, man. Come on in!
Woot! Thanks... I will grab the PDF tonight and post something in the next day or so.
Just purchased the pdf. I'll read it over tomorrow and post a character idea. For now I got my mind on a homicide investigation officer who has seen too many of his cases closed as inconclusive and recently lost a partner in one such unexplained cases.
Just scanned through the player's guide. I'm leaning towards one of the two following ideas. If we have a smaller team then I'll probably choose the first character. If the team is a little larger (say at least four investigators) then I'll take the second. Both are appealing to me. James, I'm open to your input.
Trail of Cthulhu Character Ideas:
Okay, a couple of tentative bullet points on my character concept I've been knocking around while at the office today:
-Classically educated
-Annapolis Grad
-Served in the Naval Department of Intelligence attaining rank of lieutenant.
-Worked in the US consulate in Hong Kong
-'Honorably' discharged and packed off back to the US after a scandal
-Landed in NYC, any port in a storm
-Has been doing a hitch with the NYPD for some time now.
-Specializes in handling snitches and informants (bangers, cons, bindle punks, boozehounds, small time hustlers and other assorted lowlifes). He also has made use of his previous nautical expertise and keeps an ear to the ground in the docks via the merchant marines, some contacts in the fishing fleets and teamsters.
Now I will try and massage my concept using the ToC character creation rules...I'd forgotten how nebulous they were >,>
Take your time on character creation- hoping to see if anyone else that expressed interest will speak up.
I'm here. But I'm at a loss for how to build my character effectively.
I'm thinking of playing a dilettante. Wealthy beyond necessity, he spends much of his time attending courses at the local university and attending high-profile society events. At a recent party, he struck up a conversation with an FBI agent. The agent had a little too much to drink and let slip an investigation he was working on. My character became obsessed with the idea that there is something beyond what is known and sensed. After a few phone calls and face-to-face meetings, he would manage to uncover more about the nature of the investigations and offer his unique, varied set of skills from his never-ending education.
Any advice on skill selection and the such would be appreciated.
Any advice on skill selection and the such would be appreciated.
Same here. Not having played ToC I'm not exactly sure how the mechanics work during game play. This is helpful advice from the rulebook:
"It’s a good idea, both for mechanical and narrative reasons, to make sure your Investigator party covers as many ability bases as possible.Ideally, one Investigator will have any needed skill, and everyone has something cool that they do better than the rest of the group. When creating Investigators, go down the ability list and make sure you’ve got a good spread of talents, and that every Investigator has a potential starring role at something the story" (p. 25).
When creating a character maybe look at what has already been created (granted no one has posted yet) and try to make a character who will make a good compliment. Your dilettante is a good idea and will make a good compliment to the cops/FBI agents that will undoubtedly be part of the team. That's why I actually proposed two different characters. My cop will lean towards muscle/action skills and crime investigation while the professor will be more useful in the scholarly/academic realm and occult investigation. I'm hoping to get an idea on which character will fit the party bill better but I think I'll go ahead and create both; play one and have the other as back-up for the inevitable TPK! :)
That said, James... help!!
James, you're a madman. I just saw this, and I have to say that if you weren't full up already (at least it looks like you have a good size group) and if I wasn't already stretched thin, I would have to jump on this. A fairly straightforward system to play some HPL goodness? Wow. I'm going to have to pick up that pdf and keep an eye on this game. Maybe when the bodies start dropping, I'll have the time to jump in with something good.
What I have in mind so far...
* Once a by-the-book police officer
* Homicide detective for over a decade
* Responsible for investigating a series of unusual murders such as desmemberment, supposed ritual killing, etc.
* Came across strange evidence that were either refuted or disapeared.
* His personality slowly changed to someone more forceful, who would skip the rules if it seemed necessary to find the truth
* Recently lost his partner during an unsanctioned raid
* Spent a few months out due to shock. He was found apparently unhurt, but babbling uncontrolably.
* He can't remember what happened in the raid, but knows that, whatever it was, it was not 'from this world'
* Police Detective driven by sudden shock
Okay- so far we've got:
- Eradico: Police Detective or Professor
- Doug: Naval Officer?
- GM_Todd: Dilettante
- bigkilla: Private Investigator
- jmberaldo: Police Detective
One thing to keep in mind- your occupational abilities are just the ones that get points on a 2 for 1 basis; you can still buy other skills on a 1 for 1 basis to tweak your character. Even 1 point in an investigative ability is helpful and putting more than 4 is probably too much.
The difference between the private eye and the police detective (assuming you're going for the traditional private eye, not the pulpy Chandler-Hammett PI) is that the PI is more stealth focused and able to spend points on shadowing or disguise tests AFTER the roll at a 2 for 1 rate. Detectives tend to be more straightforward, just using the force of the law to get what they need (this is also pre-Miranda rights in the US; it's very easy to throw someone in jail, provided they aren't rich enough to discourage it).
As it is, you've got a good spread of interpersonal investigative skills and a few technical skills; not too much on the academic front yet- this may be a place where Todd's Dilettante can shine or Eradico's Professor can step in. Another thing to remember that comes in handy- you DON'T have to declare a language you've bought with the Language skill until it comes up. Maybe you want to declare something that just makes sense to the character, but you can leave some in reserve to just "happen" to know what language that Mythos tome is written in.
As for building your Dilettante, Todd, you can take them in virtually any direction. You may be a bored dabbler in the occult, with a few years at Yale under your belt and a practically useless degree under your belt just looking for a chance for the real thing outside of your old books. Or maybe he or she has a great collection for boats, planes and cars and knows a lot about mechanical repair and piloting. Perhaps they're an expert fencer. It may be helpful just to pick a few ideas from different occupations just to get a theme working.
James, you're a madman. I just saw this, and I have to say that if you weren't full up already (at least it looks like you have a good size group) and if I wasn't already stretched thin, I would have to jump on this. A fairly straightforward system to play some HPL goodness? Wow. I'm going to have to pick up that pdf and keep an eye on this game. Maybe when the bodies start dropping, I'll have the time to jump in with something good.
MWAHAHAHAHAHA!!
Yeah, I just get ideas for games and if I don't lose interest right away and keep thinking about it, I just try my luck. I feel like Trail might move at a pretty brisk pace just because the system was built to not get stuck gathering clues. Looking forward to trying this out.
What I have in mind so far...
* Once a by-the-book police officer
* Homicide detective for over a decade
* Responsible for investigating a series of unusual murders such as desmemberment, supposed ritual killing, etc.
* Came across strange evidence that were either refuted or disapeared.
* His personality slowly changed to someone more forceful, who would skip the rules if it seemed necessary to find the truth
* Recently lost his partner during an unsanctioned raid
* Spent a few months out due to shock. He was found apparently unhurt, but babbling uncontrolably.
* He can't remember what happened in the raid, but knows that, whatever it was, it was not 'from this world'
* Police Detective driven by sudden shock
Maybe he survived the raid in Horror at Red Hook? Or he was one of the G-Men raiding Innsmouth?
You guys need a reporter. Someone who served during the Great War, and was in the trenches and saw the horrors mankind can inflict on each other. A guy who returned to NY and started scribbling for one of the big papers, working the night shift and writing stories for the pulps in his free time. A guy who has learned some weird stuff from his contacts on the police force, and wants to see things for himself.
'just saying.
Each character gains one point in Cop Talk and Evidence Collection...
These two points are "extras" and I do not have to spend two of my professor's 16 investigative points in these categories, right?
edit: I'm choosing to play the professor based on the way our party is shaping up.
OK, here's my (Eradico's) character. It's also posted on the character profile page. I am open to suggestions on changes that maybe should be made, especially with regard to general abilities. Will add background info later.
Professor Thaddeus Blackwell--Acting consultant for Bureau of Investigation, New York division. Expert in antiquities, ancient religions and languages, and the occult.
Drive: Scholarship
Build Points: 16 Investigative / 65 General
Sources of Stability: Dr. Henry Armitage, Miskatonic University; Dr. Franz Cumont, Belgian archaeologist, member various European academies; Harry Woodburn, Chancellor, NYU; Priscilla Tomdale, niece.
Pillars of Sanity: Value for the Intellect; Aristotelian "Golden Mean"; Reality of Scientific Knowledge; Love for NYU campus, faculty, and students.
Archaeology 3*
Art History 2
History 3*
Languages 3* (TBD)
Library Use 3*
Occult 3*
Theology 2
*denotes occupational abilities
Bureaucracy 2*
Cop Talk 1**
Credit Rating 3
Interrogation 1
Reassurance 1
*denotes occupational abilities
**denotes +1 Bureau ability bonus
**denotes +1 Bureau ability bonus
Firearms 10
First Aid 5
Fleeing 10
Health 10
Sanity 12
Stability 12
Stealth 5
note: characters start with four free sanity, one health, and one stability point.
Each character gains one point in Cop Talk and Evidence Collection...These two points are "extras" and I do not have to spend two of my professor's 16 investigative points in these categories, right?
edit: I'm choosing to play the professor based on the way our party is shaping up.
Yes, those are extras outside of your build points.
OK, here's my (Eradico's) character. It's also posted on the character profile page. I am open to suggestions on changes that maybe should be made, especially with regard to general abilities. Will add background info later.
Professor Thaddeus Blackwell--Acting consultant for Bureau of Investigation, New York division. Expert in antiquities, ancient religions and languages, and the occult.
** spoiler omitted **
** spoiler omitted **
** spoiler omitted **
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** spoiler omitted **
Eradico, I'm having a little trouble tallying up your build points in investigative abilities. Are you putting half points on occupational abilities to get odd numbers? Remember that build points in occupation skills (general or investigative) are doubled- so your 1 point assess honesty yields 2 points in that skill. I'm not sure they let you put half a point in something. I'll read over my rulebook later to double check- maybe my math is off.
Eradico, I'm having a little trouble tallying up your build points in investigative abilities. Are you putting half points on occupational abilities to get odd numbers? Remember that build points in occupation skills (general or investigative) are doubled- so your 1 point assess honesty yields 2 points in that skill. I'm not sure they let you put half a point in something. I'll read over my rulebook later to double check- maybe my math is off.
I was kinda stumbling in the dark with the character creation rules... It would not surprise me at all if I made some mistakes. :)
I will double-check my math as well and post again tomorrow. I also hope to have my character background completed soon too.
So where is everyone else? I'm looking forward to this game, and want to see some interesting stuff.
Everybody's pretty new to the system, so it's probably a matter of catching up on the rules.
Here's Thaddeus after some finessing; the number in parentheses is the actual amount spent in the case of Occupational abilities:
Academic:
Archaeology * 4 (2)
Art History 1
History* 4 (2)
Languages* 4 (2)
Library Use* 4 (2)
Occult* 4 (2)
Theology 1
Total points- 13
Interpersonal:
Bureaucracy* 2 (1)
Cop Talk 1 (Free)
Credit Rating 3 (Free)
Reassurance 1
Total points- 3
Technical- Evidence Collection 1 (Free)
General:
Firearms 9
First Aid 5
Fleeing 10
Health 1 + 9= 10
Sanity 4 +8 = 12
Stability 1 + 11 = 12
Stealth 5
Total Points - 65
You don't have to take this build, it's just what I've shuffled around to fit the rules since they specify that half points are lost. I took Interrogation off your list since I didn't think it really fit a Professor's skill set while also leaving some room for one of the military/police/PI characters to shine and reducing Anthropology, Art History and Theology helps in maintaining that they are tertiary disciplines in your studies in Archaeology and antiquities.
Still lots of open skills to fill in, guys.
You don't have to take this build, it's just what I've shuffled around to fit the rules since they specify that half points are lost. I took Interrogation off your list since I didn't think it really fit a Professor's skill set while also leaving some room for one of the military/police/PI characters to shine and reducing Anthropology, Art History and Theology helps in maintaining that they are tertiary disciplines in your studies in Archaeology and antiquities.
James, I really like the changes. It's funny you thought the interrogation didn't match his skill set. I was thinking that professors grill their students all the time, especially during dissertation defenses. But that's more a debate skill than interrogate so I totally concur. Changes have been made to my character's main page. I still might play around with the general abilities.
Here is the character background I wrote. Let me know if anything needs to be changed or doesn't fit with the campaign:
The Bureau first contracted Blackwell for services during the infamous Red Hook case. During that investigation, Professor Blackwell was the first to associate braziers and altars found within the Red Hook complex to Chaldean and Akkadian mythology. In his opinion, especially prominent was iconography of Lilitiu demonology. Blackwell advised Detective Thomas Malone and the scholar was present during the climactic raid upon the Red Hook quarter in Brooklyn. Blackwell was temporarily trapped in a lower cavern where he reportedly saw phosphorescent lights and heard "strange ululations, morbid chanting, and ghastly piping." Since this time Blackwell, for reasons he cannot even admit, has shown an aversion to cats. After a period of convalescence, Blackwell served on several other Bureau investigations, especially those involving ritual killings and arcane cult activity.
Despite the bleak nature of his Bureau involvement, Professor Blackwell is generally pleasant and upbeat. Although seen as something of an eccentric by his fellow faculty, Blackwell (or "Tad" as his friends call him) is quite popular amongst his students who appreciate his infectious enthusiasm for his discipline.
Still lots of open skills to fill in, guys.
I'd vote someone have some forensic/medical skills, for sure.
Good work! Blackwell's background has my stamp of approval.
Anyone else have questions? Concerns?
Here goes my character. Do tell if I'm missing something.
I'll work on the background and details during the weekend.
Occupation: Police Detective
Drive: Sudden Shock
*Assess Honesty 4(2)
*Cop Talk 1+4(2)=5
Credit Rating 3
Cryptography 1
*Evidence Collection 1+4(2)=5
Forensics 1
*Interrogation 4(2)
Intimidation 2
*Law 4(2)
Streetwise 2
*Athletics 6(3)
Conceal 4
*Driving 3
*Firearms 10(5)
First Aid 3
Health 1+10=11
Sanity 4+4=8
Scuffling 6
*Sense Trouble 8(4)
Shadowing 4
Stability 1+8=9
Stealth 4
Source of Stability: (Parner's son), (Mentor), (Priest)
C'mon guys, keep posting those characters... Let's get this party started! :)
jmberaldo- Looks pretty good; I have your general skill total at 58 points, so you still have more to throw in unless my math is wrong.
I think if a few more characters don't come in soon I may just shelve this.
Don't shelve it, don't shelve it. Man, I'd really like to see this system in action. I downloaded the pdf of the free adventure "The Murderer of Thomas Fell" and I'm really taken with the simplicity of the system. I'd order that player's pdf and jump in, but this is a particularly crazy time at work for me. Maybe, maybe, after I get through this week I'll say the hell with it and do it anyway.
I think if a few more characters don't come in soon I may just shelve this.
Dang! That would be a real bummer. Hey Billzabub, you sure you can't jump in on this?
I think if a few more characters don't come in soon I may just shelve this.Dang! That would be a real bummer. Hey Billzabub, you sure you can't jump in on this?
If James isn't second-guessing being stretched thin, I'll see what I can figure out, but it'll be tough for me to get to anything before Friday at the earliest.
Not trying to second guess- if I shelve it now, I can always bring it back later. It just seems like interest is flagging a little and I think two players (even though the system supports a team that small) is a smaller number than you really want. I find 4 to be optimal- even three would work. But I'll give everyone a little more time before making the final call.
*bump*
Hoping for another commitment or two... C'mon guys, let's get our sanity blasted!!
Eradico, what if we create fake accounts who want to play? :D
Oh, wait... I shouldn't have said that out loud...
Eradico, what if we create fake accounts who want to play? :D Oh, wait... I shouldn't have said that out loud...
haha... too funny. Yeah, I'd really like this campaign to get off the ground.
Okay, I'm trying to get to this, but like I said, it won't be until after Friday before I can get that pdf, read through it, and come up with a character. I just wanted to let you know to count me as interested.
Okay, I'm trying to get to this, but like I said, it won't be until after Friday before I can get that pdf, read through it, and come up with a character. I just wanted to let you know to count me as interested.
Great news! I'm sure James doesn't mind waiting till you have a chance to check things out. Now we need one more...
Ia! Ia! Cthulhu ftagn!
So is this the point in which we start kidnapping people and making them play with us?
If Billzabub can find the time, we'll proceed. For 3 investigators, you each get 18 build points for investigative skills- so place two more points.
If Billzabub can find the time, we'll proceed. For 3 investigators, you each get 18 build points for investigative skills- so place two more points.
Yes! Thanks, James, really looking forward to trying this system.
jmberaldo,
Based on my reading of the rules you might want to put some points into "Fleeing." I'm guessing we will be better suited to run away than try and fight certain battles. ;-)
Hi everyone! Just saw the recruitment thread. Do you have room for one more?
You bet! Jump on in, imimrtl!!
Eradico: While I agree with you, my character doesn't. Too bad. He should know better (or not) ;)
Eradico: While I agree with you, my character doesn't. Too bad. He should know better (or not) ;)
Aha! Got it... A flawed protagonist in the tradition of Lovecraft!
Is it too late to jump into the bandwagon? :)
I have read some of the Lovecraft shorts and would like to play. Seeing as it's combined with pulp investigation, it's even juicier!
One question: The book classifies some games either as "purist" or "pulp". Which one would you say fits the game you wanna run?
It looks like you have four interested players, not including me, so I might step aside and catch up later. As I mentioned, work is tough right now, and I'm trying to stay current on the pbps I'm already in. I'll keep an eye on this, though, and will want to jump in at some point in the next few months.