Miskatonic Monday #96: Field of Screams

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: Field of Screams

Publisher: Chaosium, Inc.
Author: Al Smith

Setting: Jazz Age Iowa for Pulp Cthulhu: Two-fisted Action and Adventure Against the Mythos

Product: Scenario
What You Get: Thirty-one page, 9.76 MB Full Colour PDF
Elevator Pitch: Sometimes the field of dreams is the end of them. 

Plot Hook: Ghosts on the field of play means the Investigators are going to dig deep.

Plot Support: Detailed plot, staging advice for the Keeper, three chase worksheets for the Keeper, two NPCs, one Mythos Entity/Mob, one Mythos device, and six pre-generated Investigators.

Production Values: Reasonable.

Pros

# Interesting historical set-up

# Engaging baseball-themed scenario

# Uses the chase mechanics for Call of Cthulhu, Seventh Edition

# Low investigation scenario

# Nicely designed Investigators

# Potential campaign set-up

# Underground city cruelly described

Cons

# Uses the chase mechanics for Call of Cthulhu, Seventh Edition

# Underwritten NPCs (especially for campaign play)

# Underwritten penultimate rescue scene

# Focuses too much on the chase over the penultimate rescue scene

# What if the Investigators fail?

# No Sanity rewards

Conclusion

# Interesting historical set-up

# Uses the chase mechanics for Call of Cthulhu, Seventh Edition

# Physical, low-investigation one-shot into the cruel Earth