Miskatonic Monday #57: The Last Valley

Between October 2003 and October 2013, Chaosium, Inc. published a series of books for Call of Cthulhu under the Miskatonic University Library Association brand. Whether a sourcebook, scenario, anthology, or campaign, each was a showcase for their authors—amateur rather than professional, but fans of Call of Cthulhu nonetheless—to put forward their ideas and share with others. The programme was notable for having launched the writing careers of several authors, but for every Cthulhu Invictus, The Pastores, Primal State, Ripples from Carcosa, and Halloween Horror, there was a Five Go Mad in Egypt, Return of the Ripper, Rise of the Dead, Rise of the Dead II: The Raid, and more...

The Miskatonic University Library Association brand is no more, alas, but what we have in its stead is the Miskatonic Repository, based on the same format as the DM’s Guild for Dungeons & Dragons. It is thus, “...a new way for creators to publish and distribute their own original Call of Cthulhu content including scenarios, settings, spells and more…” To support the endeavours of their creators, Chaosium has provided templates and art packs, both free to use, so that the resulting releases can look and feel as professional as possible. To support the efforts of these contributors, Miskatonic Monday is an occasional series of reviews which will in turn examine an item drawn from the depths of the Miskatonic Repository.

—oOo—

Name: The Last Valley

Publisher: Chaosium, Inc.
Author: Andy Miller

Setting: Down Darker Trails

Product: Scenario
What You Get: forty-two page, 36.18 MB Full Colour PDF
Elevator Pitch: Cowboys and dinosaurs, oh my!
Plot Hook: Lost in swirling fog in 1870s Utah whilst hunted by unknowable monsters from the past.

Plot Support: Detailed Utah background and history, three monsters (dinosaurs), two NPCs, two maps, six handouts/pictures, and six pregenerated Investigators.

Production Values: Decent enough, but could have been better organised.

Pros
# Cowboys and dinosaurs, oh my!
# Potential convention scenario
# Potential one-shot

# Well done pregenerated Investigators
# Enjoyable introduction to the Lost Worlds genre

# Solid background to Utah
# Creepy, fog-bound hunt

# It can happen to Arkham, it can happen to Utah

# Action driven scenario

# Potential to divert a campaign in a weird direction

Cons
# Linear
# Utah background underused

# Maps difficult to use

# No Sanity losses for failure?

# Potential to derail a campaign in a weird direction

Conclusion
# Cowboys and dinosaurs, oh my!
# Maps and Utah difficult to use

# Potential to derail a campaign in a weird direction