Miskatonic Monday #281: Dreams to Fill the Vacuum

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.

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Name: Dreams to Fill the Vacuum

Publisher: Chaosium, Inc.
Author Richard Watt

Setting: Detroit, 1995

Product: Scenario
What You Get: Thirty page, 23.75 MB PDF

Elevator Pitch: Dreams aren’t always the right things to have

Plot Hook: Talk of demons and cults are a sure sign of distress
Plot Support: Staging advice, eleven handouts, two floorplans, and  four NPCs.

Production Values: Good.

Pros

# Weird contrast of madness and mirage

# Easy to adapt to other times and locations

# Delightfully creepy, upfront antagonist

# Decent handouts

# Designed for experienced Investigators

# Easily adapted to Delta Green: The Role-Playing Game

# Could steer into the Dreamlands

# Oneirophobia

# Automatonophobia

# Melophobia

# Leophobia

Cons

# Designed for experienced Investigators

# Feels underwritten and more of a detailed outline

Conclusion

# The demons are real in a race to save a woman from her dreams

# Weird and woozy mix of action and aberration