Miskatonic Monday #120: Into the Unknown

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 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.

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Name: Into the Unknown

Publisher: Chaosium, Inc.
Author: Sean Johnston

Setting: Near Future Antarctica & Beyond

Product: Scenario
What You Get: Thirty-Four page, 1.02 MB Full Colour PDF
Elevator Pitch: Atlantis: The Lost Empire meets Pitch Black

Plot Hook: An elevator straight to a hell offers ‘the experience of a lifetime’. 
Plot Support: Staging advice, seven handouts, one map and two sets of  floorplans, no NPCs, and nine monsters and Mythos creatures.

Production Values: Underwhelming.

Pros

# Science Fiction horror one-shot

# Could be adapted to earlier modern time periods

# Hints at interesting future setting

# Decent descriptions

# Potential for Investigator versus Investigator action

Cons

# Needs a strong edit

# Linear and light plot

# No pre-generated Investigators

# More exposition heavy travel log than adventure

# Potential for Investigator versus Investigator action

Conclusion

# Serviceable set-up leads somewhere interesting with a plot that is more story than interactive.

# Into an unknown of what the Investigators are supposed to do.