Miskatonic Monday #123: Cat’s Cradle

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.

—oOo—

Name: Cat’s Cradle

Publisher: Chaosium, Inc.
Author: Aaron Sinner, Todd Walden, and Christopher Olson

Setting: Jazz Age Boston

Product: Scenario
What You Get: Fifty-four page, 31.62 MB Full Colour PDF
Elevator Pitch: Suffer the little children’s wrath

Plot Hook: Nightmares linger in the wake of your descent into the Corbitt house. 
Plot Support: Staging advice and two Keeper aids, twenty-four handouts, four new spells or spell variants, three NPCs, and one Mythos creature.

Production Values: Decent.

Pros

# Sequel to The Haunting

# Deep investigative dive into the backstory to The Haunting
# Advice on making the horror personal

# Advice for the Keeper to run Cat’s Cradle with other sequels to The Haunting.

# Focused investigative sequel

# Creepy, creepy children

Cons

# Needs an edit

# Scenario does involve children

# Better aids for the Keeper than handouts for the players?

# Photographic anachronisms?
# Good clue links to locations, but not from locations

# Better sequel than standalone scenario

Conclusion

# Solid sequel to a classic scenario, The Haunting, which both explores the backstory to the scenario and personalises the consequences of the Investigators’ actions in the Corbitt house.

# Creepy, creepy children should leave the Investigators with paedophobia