Miskatonic Monday #202: Prowler at the Threshold

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: Prowler at the Threshold

Publisher: Chaosium, Inc.
Author: Jane Routley

Setting: Modern day United Kingdom

Product: One-shot
What You Get: Twenty-Six page, 3.31 MB Full Colour PDF
Elevator Pitch: A prowler from the past comes to call...

Plot Hook: A painting can bring a price or pain.
Plot Support: Four pre-generated Investigators, five NPCs, seven handouts, one floorplan, one map, and six Mythos monsters.

Production Values: Decent.

Pros

# Student share scares

# Roleplay as students

# Gives classic Call of Cthulhu elements a new twist

# Easy to adjust to any UK city

# Easy to adjust to the nineties, eighties, seventies, or sixties
# Prowler presence nicely handled

# Scope of the scenario pleasingly constrained

# Household items as weapons!

# Scopophobia

# Necrophobia

# Capiophobia

# Phasmophobia

# Artphobia

Cons

# Needs a slight edit

# No clear explanation of the set-up for the Keeper

# Solution could have been included as a handout to find

# No tensions between the students

# House does not feel British

Conclusion

# Student shared scares as a prowler plays pranks and plants paranoia about the house.

# Solid one session student-based horror with well done background and unnerving sense of the unknown in an enjoyable twist upon classic Call of Cthulhu elements