Miskatonic Monday #292: Mystery Box

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: Mystery Box

Publisher: Chaosium, Inc.
Author: Ben Frayle

Setting: Jazz Age USA

Product: ‘Sidequest’ scenario
What You Get: Twenty-three page, 1.29 MB Full Colour PDF
Elevator Pitch: “Photography takes an instant out of time, altering life by holding it still.” – Dorothea Lange.

Plot Hook: How did a young woman go missing from a train?

Plot Support: Staging advice, six NPCs, and three maps.

Production Values: Plain

Pros

# Easy to slot into a campaign

# Can be run as a sidequest or full scenario

# Works with fewer (or even one) Investigators rather than more

# Decently done investigation
# Easy to adjust to other locations

# Scopopobia

# Francophobia

# Siderodromophobia

Cons

# Needs a good edit

# Does involve the Dreamlands

# No reactions from all of the missing
# No Sanity rewards for all of the missing

Conclusion

# In need of development and a polish

# A solid investigative horror scenario, whether as a sidequest or a full scenario