Miskatonic Monday #279: The Oracle of Yuggoth

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 Oracle of Yuggoth

Publisher: Chaosium, Inc.
Author: Quico Vicens-Picatto

Setting: 23rd Century Pluto

Product: One-shot
What You Get: Twenty page, 9.13 MB Full Colour PDF
Elevator Pitch: Memory, mazes, and madness on Pluto
Plot Hook: “UNKNOWN”

Plot Support: Six pre-generated Investigators, one map, and one Mythos monster.

Production Values: Colourful

Pros

# Fantastic cover

# Highly detailed Investigators

# Interesting new Occupations

# Athazagoraphobia

# Mazeophobia

# Mnemophobia

Cons

# Needs a good edit

# Unpleasant Investigators

# Weird Sanity losses

# The Sanity losses never let up

# Highly detailed Investigators

# No plot or investigation

Conclusion

# Uncompelling Sanity-scouring slog

# No objectives or agency except to suffer for what they are and what they did