Miskatonic Monday #195: The Cult of Gl’thol’tic

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: The Cult of Gl’thol’tic

Publisher: Chaosium, Inc.
Author: Jess Charle

Setting: Jazz Age Massachusetts
Product: Scenario

What You Get: Thirteen-page, 39.00 MB Full Colour PDF
Elevator Pitch: Small town murder mystery, plus the Mythos

Plot Hook: Can your god be summoned before they come for you?

Plot Support: Two handouts, five NPCs, and one map.

Production Values: Plain.

Pros

# The very definition of a ‘fixer-upper’ scenario

# One-shot with the players as cultists

# Call of Cthulhu Investigators as the enemy

# Small town mini-murder mystery

# Pretty map

# Paranoia

# Capiophobia

Cons

# Needs an edit

# Player Characters are not supposed to know they are cultists

# Murder mystery mostly incidental

# No staging advice

# No sense of the Player Characters being investigated

# No option for the Player Characters to act against the Investigators

# No pre-generated Player Cultists

# Bryce Wane. Millionaire Vigilante. Industrialist. Notorious playboy. Fights crime as ‘Rat Man’.

# Yes. You read that correctly.

# Bryce Wane. Millionaire Vigilante. Industrialist. Notorious playboy. Fights crime as ‘Rat Man’.

# No. Not kidding. Really is an NPC in the scenario.

Conclusion

# Potentially interesting scenario with Player Characters as cultists undone by severe lack of development

# Lack of pre-generated Player Cultists significant omission 

# Bryce Wane. Millionaire Vigilante. Industrialist. Notorious playboy. Fights crime as ‘Rat Man’.