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Trail of Cthulhu $24.99
Average Rating:4.7 / 5
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Trail of Cthulhu
Publisher: Pelgrane Press
by Edward K. [Verified Purchaser]
Date Added: 09/10/2020 22:51:17

Ring Side Report-RPG Review of Trail of Cthulhu

Originally posted at www.throatpunchgames.com, a new idea every day!

Product- Trail of Cthulhu System- Gumshoe Producer- Pelgrane Press Price- $24.99 here https://www.drivethrurpg.com/product/55567/Trail-of-Cthulhu?affiliate_id=658618 TL; DR- Do you think Call of Cthulhu has too much Crunch? 88%

Basics- Should the story stop when the players just suck at rolling? Trail of Cthulhu believes that story trumps mechanics as story should drive the game. Let’s look at the pieces.

Overview-Trail of Cthulhu is a skill system like Call of Cthulhu, but unlike Call of Cthulhu you have two types of skills: investigative and general. General covers any contested rolls and investigative covers learning the horrors of the mystery. Let’s break that down.

Investigative Skills- You enter a room, ask to search the library for secret books, and you find all secret books. If you have ranks in the appropriate skills, you find all the books. That’s it. If you couldn't find the books, the story might stop. Trail of Cthulhu focuses more on you learning the mystery and less on you flubbing rolls to learn the mystery. You build these skills with points like ranks, but those points are spent to learn more, not just enough. Characters with even one rank would find all the books, then can spend points to learn more, like find the right places in the hidden books to skip something horrible or learn more secrets beyond the base mystery.

General Skills- Punch a guy, out run a monster, and hide from the cultists are all opposed rolls where the story isn’t the issue, so they become general skills. This system uses ONE d6. That’s it. You want to to a thing? Roll a d6 and aim for a 4. Before you roll, you can spend points from the pool to add to the roll. Some skills give you more damage or more hit points or sanity, but for the most part opposed rolls happen with skills or trying to do a thing that isn’t dependent on the story happening at all.

Honestly, that's it. There is sanity and HP, but for the most part the two types of rolls define the system. Let’s see my thoughts.

Mechanics or Crunch-I like crunch (heck I build point based Shadowrun characters for fun!), but for the most part, this is a quick, light system. My more roll-happy friends freak out when we play as they NEED to roll to search, but the option to make story happen as the goal is a good one. If you just want a game that happens fast without a ton of hassle because you didn’t spec into the right build at level 4 to cast the one spell to put the deepone to sleep, but you will want a horror game then this is the crunch for you. 4.5/5

Theme or Fluff- This game is put out by the premier Lovecraft people in the industry. They know their stuff. It feels right, but it also feels like Indiana Jones as they build Pulp and straight Lovecraft versions of the rules into it. If you want to punch the ghoul, then this can be your game, or if you want to go mad at the sight of a corpse, then this can also be your game. The book builds out a full world in a quick way to help new GMs get running right away. 5/5

Execution- PDF? YEP! Hyperlinked? YES! I have the two big things I want, but why am I not happy? Well… RPG books can be built one of two ways: mechanics first or theme first. This goes character build first. I don’t know what ANY of the math means until WAY far into this book. When I googled it it made perfect sense, and then 20 pages later I saw the explanation. That is not good. I like the world that is built with the book, but it's a pain to read; a three column design isn’t great. This book is modern, but some of the design decisions are just a bit off. 3.75/5

Summary- Slick and simple. This game is a fun one regardless of the book design. I like the game this makes. The solid focus on story first is nice. I would like a bit more crunch, but simple is fun sometimes. The story and theme of the book are top notch. The execution isn't. If you want a game that starts quick and plays quick but still has great Lovecraftian horror, then Trail of Cthulhu is worth checking out. 88%



Rating:
[4 of 5 Stars!]
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Trail of Cthulhu
Publisher: Pelgrane Press
by Nathan L. [Verified Purchaser]
Date Added: 07/02/2020 23:30:23

This is The Cthulhu game, in my opinion. GUMSHOE and Cthulhu go so well together.

Drives, Stability & Sanity.... The power of Investigative Skills; this game is absolutely amazing. The section on the 1930s, Ken Hite is the master and this book is a must for anyone who is a fan of the era, investigation games, or cosmic horror.



Rating:
[5 of 5 Stars!]
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Trail of Cthulhu
Publisher: Pelgrane Press
by Mathew D. [Verified Purchaser]
Date Added: 06/27/2018 00:51:31

Maps the narrative drive (via Investigative Abilities) and pulp theatrics (via General Abilities) of the inheritors of Lovecraft with verve and precision, and communicates the existential atmosphere of He Who Lies Dreaming via supporting materials of great variety and thematic depth. A very fine game indeed.



Rating:
[5 of 5 Stars!]
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Trail of Cthulhu
Publisher: Pelgrane Press
by eric t. [Verified Purchaser]
Date Added: 03/09/2015 23:23:16

Call of Cthulhu is a favourite amongst my group, and this game takes the original concepts while drastically improving the mechanics and allowing for a more focussed investigative horror experience. I quite like the simplicity and the way the rules work to help the players deal with the small things to keep the story moving smoothly.



Rating:
[5 of 5 Stars!]
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Trail of Cthulhu
Publisher: Pelgrane Press
by William C. [Verified Purchaser]
Date Added: 01/20/2015 02:11:06

Trail of Cthulhu is a fun and easy system for investigative and thriller games. One of the biggest weaknesses (at least in my opinion) with Call of Cthulhu is there is the potential of missing 1 single clue and being unable to advance at all in the scenario.

Trail fixes that problem by saying you will always get just barely enough to advance the plot along and your rolls and point spends are to develop a broader picture of what is going on.



Rating:
[5 of 5 Stars!]
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Trail of Cthulhu
Publisher: Pelgrane Press
by Roger L. [Featured Reviewer]
Date Added: 04/14/2013 05:28:35

Trail of Cthulhu (im Weiteren: ToC) ist vor ein paar Jahren angetreten, ein weiteres Cthulhu-Spielsystem neben Chaosiums Langläufer Call of Cthulhu zu etablieren. Inzwischen gibt es umfangreiches Material für Spieler von diversen Autoren. Wir haben die Gelegenheit genutzt, um uns das Basisbuch noch einmal genauer anzuschauen.

Erscheinungsbild

Farbliche Akzente gibt es kaum – gelbe Zierleisten, Sepia- und Grautöne in den Illustrationen. Alle paar Seiten findet sich eine Illustration, die meisten sind stimmungsvoll. Manche Bilder sind verwaschen und undeutlich. Dies ist wohl eine Imitation der Qualität unscharfer Schwarzweißaufnahmen.

Die verwendete Schriftart ist zwar leserlich, aber nicht schön. Seiten werden in mehrere Spalten gelayoutet, der Textfluss ist nicht an die Spaltenbreite angepasst. Relativ oft werden weiterführende Informationen mit Kästen eingeschoben. Viele Unterkapitel werden mit einem stimmigen Zitat aus Lovecrafts Literatur überschrieben.

Die aufklappbaren Bookmarks sind nicht fehlerfrei. Mehrere Verweise führen an die falschen Stellen im Buch.

Die rezensierte Version ist das Kauf-PDF. Es wurden seit 2009 keine Änderungen mehr am PDF vorgenommen, weder auf DTRPG noch auch Pelgranes Webseite.

Die Spielwelt

Die Autoren bieten eine Spielwelt an – die historische Epoche der Dreißiger Jahre des vorigen Jahrhunderts. Aber ich muss gleich sagen, dass die Module, die ich besitze, breit in der Zeit gestreut sind. Die Dreißiger können als Hintergrund beim Erzeugen eigener Geschichten dienen, aber generell eignen sich die meisten Epochen. Immerhin 22 Seiten werden dieser Dekade gewidmet, mit Anknüpfungspunkten für Mythosgeschichten.

Viel wichtiger für den Spielleiter sind jedoch die Rassen, fremdartigen Wesen und Quasi-Götter. Der ihnen gewidmete Abschnitt nimmt 84 Seiten ein. Am besten gefiel mir, dass für die mächtigsten Wesen mehrere Beschreibungen und Erklärungen geboten werden. Und diese widersprechen sich zum Teil! Dadurch lassen sich auch nach oftmaligem Spielen die Erwartungen der Spieler erschüttern.

Die eigentliche Inspiration sind natürlich Lovecrafts Geschichten und die anderer Autoren, die sein Material als Grundlage gesehen haben. Auch Chaosiums Veröffentlichungen können hier vom Inhalt her gut weiterverwertet werden. Damit schöpft man aus einem überreichen Fundus.

Die Regeln

In ToC kommt Pelgranes eigene Engine, GUMSHOE, zum Einsatz. Das Autoren des Regelsystems setzen voraus, dass das Entscheidende an einem Detektivspiel nicht das Finden der Hinweise ist, sondern sie zu interpretieren und zu einem Gesamtbild zu fügen. Die Geschichte soll nicht wegen einiger Fehlwürfe auf Grund laufen.

[box]Beispiel:

Die Charaktere haben einen Tatort erreicht, und tatsächlich ausreichend Zeit, ihn zu durchsuchen. Ein Charakter hat die Fertigkeit Evidence Collection. Der Spieler entscheidet sich, sein Fachwissen einzusetzen. Der Spielleiter erklärt ihr oder ihm, was er gefunden hat.[/box]

Die Autoren erklären als zugrundeliegende Motivation, dass es weder besonders spaßig, noch gutes Rollenspiel ist („Darf ich nochmal würfeln?“), den zentralen Hinweis eines Abenteuers zu verpassen. Daher muss auf die Ermittlerfähigkeiten für den eher erzählerisch geprägten Teil des Spiels nicht gewürfelt werden.

In der Spielpraxis zeigt sich, dass diese Variante gut funktioniert. Eine breitgefächerte Palette an Ermittlerfähigkeiten erlaubt es, jeden Mitspieler etwas zur Lösung beitragen zu lassen. Es wird empfohlen, die verschiedenen Spezialisierungen über die Gruppe zu verteilen. So gibt es viele Wissensgebiete über Sprachen, Architektur, Pharmazie bis hin zur Kenntnis eines Handwerks. Auch soziale Fertigkeiten wie gezieltes Umhören oder gutes Zureden werden so gehandhabt.

Ganz ohne Würfel ist es dann doch nicht getan. Ein sechsseitiger Würfel genügt, um alle im Spiel verlangten Proben abzulegen. Bei jedem Wurf auf General Abilities gilt das Prinzip, eine vom Spielleiter vorgegebene Zahl mindestens zu erreichen.

Jeder Charakter hat einen oder mehrere Pools an Punkten in verschiedenen General Abilities. Diese Punkte kann man später ausgeben, um die Schwierigkeit von Proben zu senken. Manche Würfe (Schwierigkeit 7 oder höher) werden so erst schaffbar. Das Verwalten dieser Pools stellt dann auch eine taktische Variante des Spiels dar – mehr Risiko wagen und Punkte sparen, oder mehr ausgeben und auf Nummer Sicher gehen?

[box]Beispiel:

Ein Ermittler will aus einer Grube herausklettern. Der Spielleiter legt fest, dass die Grubenwand steil und etwas glatt ist – Schwierigkeit 5. Die passende Eigenschaft wäre Athletics und der Spieler hat dort einen Pool von 3 Punkten. Der Spieler gibt einen Punkt aus und hofft nun mit einer Chance von 50% (4-6 auf W6) aus dem Loch zu kommen.[/box]

Punkte auszugeben senkt übrigens nicht die Fähigkeiten einer Figur. Der Charakter weiß nicht plötzlich weniger über die Reparatur von Elektrogeräten. Die Muskeln sind auch nicht geschrumpft – aber vielleicht erschöpft. Aber der Spielanteil dieses Spielers sinkt, und somit die Höhepunkte, die er setzen kann. Jemand, der alle Punkte aus seinem Driving-Pool in einer Verfolgungsszene verballert hat, muss danach kürzer treten, oder sich auf sein Würfelglück verlassen. Das Gleiche gilt für Charaktere, die nie Punkte in diese Fertigkeit investiert haben.

Zusätzlich zu gewöhnlichen Proben gibt es noch Wettbewerbe und den Kampf. Bei Wettbewerben verliert der, der zuerst patzt. Damit werden z.B. Verfolgungsjagden modelliert.

[box]Beispiel:

Der Ermittler rennt nun vor einem hinterher kriechenden Monster davon. Der Boden ist glitschig, was den menschlichen Charakter benachteiligt – Schwierigkeit 4. Das Monster hat keine Beine und gleitet dahin – Schwierigkeit 3. Der Davonlaufende beginnt mit dem ersten Wurf und gibt einen Punkt aus seinem Fleeing-Pool aus – Schwierigkeit 3. Er würfelt eine 5 und setzt sich ab. Das Monster würfelt eine 3 und bleibt dran. So geht es weiter, bis einer der beiden einen Wurf versiebt. [/box]

Beim Kampf muss die Schwierigkeit erreicht oder überwürfelt werden, um zu treffen. Kämpfe gliedern sich wie Wettbewerbe in Runden. Der Unterschied ist der Schadenswurf nach jedem Erfolg.

[box]Beispiel:

Der Ermittler konnte sich nicht absetzen und feuert einen Revolver auf das auf ihn zu gleitende Monster. Zielwert ist 4 (menschengross, kurze Entfernung), und er gibt einen Punkt Firearms aus. Bei einem Wert von 3 oder höher darf er einen W6 Schaden gegen das Monster werfen.[/box]

Mit ein paar Ausführungen zu Proben- und Schadenszuschlägen/-abzügen ist das Kampfssystem auch bereits vollständig beschrieben. Eine Battlemap oder andere Finessen sucht man hier vergebens. Gegenspieler sind meist mit sehr wenigen Werten umschrieben.

Die Basisregeln für das Erarbeiten von Hinweisen, für Proben, Wettbewerbe und Kämpfe sind auf zehn Seiten verdichtet. Das führt übrigens dazu, dass viele Abenteuer zusätzliche Regeln für nicht beschriebene Situationen einführen. Die Regeln für Schock, Wahnsinn und fortdauernde geistige Umnachtung nehmen im Vergleich auch noch mal zehn Seiten ein.

Ein paar Beispiele mehr hätten außerdem sehr zum Verständnis beigetragen. Es fehlt ein Beispiel zur Durchführung eines Kampfes.

Charaktererschaffung

Ein Ermittler hat eine Motivation (Drive), einen Beruf (Occupation) und ihn definierende Fähigkeiten (Investigative Skills und General Skills). Motivation und Beruf kann man aus Listen wählen.

Die Regeln unterstützen zwei Spielmodi: Purist oder Pulp. Ein paar Fertigkeiten, sowie mehrere der Berufe und Motivationen sind nur im Pulp-Modus verfügbar. Charaktere dürfen dann gerne auch etwas (überlebens-)fähiger sein. Im Purist-Modus geht das Fortschreiten in den Wahnsinn schneller, und die Möglichkeit, den Charakter zu gestalten, ist stärker an der literarischen Vorlage orientiert.

[box]Ein Psychiater (Alienist) ist als Beruf sowohl im Pulp- als auch im Purist-Modus erlaubt, wird für echte Puristen nicht empfohlen. Ein Pulp-Psychiater darf Punkte in den General Skill Hypnose (Hypnosis) investieren, den es nur in diesem Modus gibt.[/box]

Die Motivation ist das entscheidende Moment für die Anlage eines Charakters in Bezug auf das eigene Rollenspiel. Wie kommt der Charakter in die Geschichte? Ist er vielleicht so neugierig, dass er immer in solche Ereignisse verwickelt wird? Oder lastet eine Art Fluch auf der Familie, der das Handeln jeder Generation sich immer wieder in ähnliche Bahnen bewegen lässt?

Dieser zentrale Antrieb ist wichtig, weil ihn auch der Spielleiter nutzen kann. Eine Cthulhu-Geschichte ist schließlich keine Übung in maximalem Selbsterhalt. Der SL kann den Spielern einen Handel anbieten – setzt sich der Charakter gemäß seiner Persönlichkeit in die Nesseln, gewinnt er etwas geistige Stabilität hinzu. Er verhält sich gewohnheitsgemäß, was sich irgendwie auch als beruhigend erweist. Widersetzt sich der Charakter den eigenen Anlagen, verliert er geistige Stabilität. Der Spielleiter kann dieses Mittel zum Vorantreiben der Story zu nutzen versuchen, aber die letztendliche Wahl zwischen Pest und Cholera verbleibt beim Spieler.

Die Fähigkeiten werden über ein Kaufpunktsystem ermittelt:

Jeder Spieler erhält eine Anzahl Punkte, mit denen er Ermittlerfertigkeiten erwerben kann. Je mehr Spieler, desto weniger Punkte pro Spieler. Fertigkeiten, die sich mit dem Beruf des Charakters überschneiden, sind verbilligt. Auch die Fertigkeiten, auf die man würfeln muss, werden so gekauft. Leider verkomplizieren zwei Zusatzregeln den Prozess hier.

Die Basiswerte für geistige (Sanity) und körperliche Gesundheit (Health), sowie für die Widerstandskraft gegen Schocks und Traumen (Stability), sind ebenfalls wie Fertigkeiten zu kaufen.

Es müssen noch drei Leitsätze oder Prinzipien (Pillars of Sanity) gewählt werden, an die sich der Charakter klammert, wenn es hart auf hart kommt. Das mag ein starker Glaube sein, das Vertrauen in die Erkenntnisfähigkeit des Menschen, oder ein unverbrüchlicher Optimismus. Werden diese primären Glaubenssätze aber durch die Ereignisse in Frage gestellt, kann dies auch zum rapiden geistigen Verfall der Spielfigur beitragen.

Für das Kampagnenspiel sind jetzt noch Personen zu benennen, die dem Charakter etwas bedeuten (Sources of Stability). Diese können dem Meister als Plot-Hook dienen und selbst in Gefahr geraten. Mit dem Kauf oder Zuteilen der Ausrüstung schließt die Charaktererschaffung ab.

Spielbarkeit aus Spielleitersicht

Die meisten ToC-Abenteuer werden wohl als Oneshots angelegt sein. Tatsächlich eignen sich die meisten veröffentlichten Module hierfür. Manche der Autoren geben sogar Hinweise, ob man und wie man ihre Werke in einem Vier-Stunden-Slot auf einer Convention abhandelt.

Zwar gibt es ein Kapitel, wie man eine solche Geschichte selbst erstellt. So recht vollständig will mir diese Ansammlung von Tipps aber nicht erscheinen. Das Wichtigste an jedem ToC-Modul, die Hinweise (Clues), wird sehr lapidar in ein paar Sätzen abgehandelt. Wie man eine Story erstellt, die sich Schicht für Schicht entfaltet und einen der Lösung des Mysteriums näher bringt, bleibt unberührt.

Einige der Hinweise für Spielleiter sind kaum realisierbar. So raten die Autoren: „Avoid reading right from the scenario.“ Wer aber die angebotenen Kaufmodule kennt, weiß, dass dreißig oder vierzig Seiten Text keine Seltenheit sind. Der weitaus größte Teil davon entfällt auf Hinweistexte!

Zwar muss der deutschsprachige Spielleiter sowieso Übersetzungsarbeit leisten. Alle sich nur halbwegs einzuprägen erfordert sicherlich sehr viel mehr Vorbereitungsleistung, als ich für gewöhnlich investiere. Ich drucke mir eine Kopie des jeweiligen Moduls aus und streiche bereits gegebene Hinweise einfach durch.

Bis auf ein paar Tabellen gibt es nur sehr wenig nachzuschlagen. Ein paar Spielhilfen liste ich weiter unten.

Spielbarkeit aus Spielersicht

Meiner Erfahrung nach kommen die Spieler mit den Regeln relativ gut zurecht. Die Proben sind schnell erklärt und gehen ebenso schnell von der Hand. Wenn am Anfang der Charakterbogen durchgesprochen wird, können gleich die meisten Spielerfragen beantwortet werden.

Am Ende eines Abenteuers beherrschen die Spieler im Allgemeinen die Regeln für Ermittlungen und Kampf.

Preis-/Leistungsverhältnis

248 große Seiten Inhalt mit hohem Textanteil – da kann nicht jedes Regelwerk mithalten. Der Text dominiert das Buch, und es handelt sich generell um sehr gut geschriebenen Inhalt. Die über hundert Seiten zu Mythosmonstern und den Dreissigern eignen sich gut zum Querlesen auch für andere Systeme.

Spielbericht

Ich habe mich bis jetzt zweimal am Leiten von ToC versucht, beide Male waren es Kaufabenteuer: „The Rending Box“ (Klick) bei einer Runde im Verein und „Not So Quiet“ (Klick) auf der CatCon 36. Gespielt wurde jeweils mit den vorgenerierten Charakteren aus dem Modul selbst.

Meiner Erfahrung nach hatten die Spieler immer Probleme damit, Überblick über die Fähigkeiten der eigenen Ermittler zu behalten. Das kann zum einen daran liegen, dass die Spielfiguren in meinen Runden nicht selber erstellt wurden. Zum anderen ist es eventuell hilfreicher, die Spieler zu fragen, was sie erreichen oder bewerkstelligen wollen, wenn sie anfangen, sich intensivst mit ihren Bögen zu beschäftigen.

Es wurde auch nicht immer ernsthaft an die Sache herangegangen. Skurrile Szenen können entstehen. Die paranoide Grundstimmung eines Horrorszenarios wendet oft die Spieler gegeneinander. Auch das Ausspielen von aufkommendem Wahnsinn kann sehr viel Spaß machen.

Fazit

Ich persönlich spiele ToC gerne. Ich muss aber zugeben, dass die Regeln selbst mich nicht „anmachen“. Die Abenteuer sind in der Regel besser als das System. Genauso verhält es sich auch mit den Informationen zur Spielwelt. Das System hat gute Autoren, aber nicht notwendigerweise gute Regelautoren.

Das ideale Format für ToC ist für mich der One-Shot (oder zwei aufeinanderfolgende Sessions). Kampagnenspiel kann ich mir anhand der existierenden Abenteuer kaum vorstellen. Für actionreiche Horrorkampagnen ist man mit Realms of Cthulhu (Klick) für Savage Worlds sicher besser beraten.

Unsere Bewertung

Erscheinungsbild 2,5/5 Der Text dominiert eindeutig, hin und wieder ein paar gute Abbildungen. Spielwelt 4/5 Die beschriebenen Kreaturen versprechen viel Stoff für Geschichten. Regeln 2,5/5 Einfache Regeln, manchmal zu einfach. Charaktererschaffung 3,5/5 Solides Kaufpunktsystem. Schnell. Spielbarkeit aus Spielleitersicht 4/5 Einfach zu leiten. Man behält den Überblick. Spielbarkeit aus Spielersicht 4/5 Man kommt schnell rein und kann sich auf's Spielen konzentrieren. Preis-/Leistungsverhältnis 4/5 Quantität und Qualität stimmen. Gesamt 3,5/5 Spielt sich sicherlich anders als andere Cthulhu-Produkte. Sein Geld wert.



Rating:
[4 of 5 Stars!]
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Trail of Cthulhu
Publisher: Pelgrane Press
by Tony B. [Verified Purchaser]
Date Added: 02/01/2013 05:19:49

Having played and run Chaosium's Call of Cthulhu back in the ahem, well, a few years ago now, I wanted to see what the fuss was about with this updated version. Well, for a start, Trail of Cthulhu isn't an update of the original. Instead Ken Hite presents a much more focussed game saturated in Lovecraftian atmosphere that concentrates on what was best about Call of Cthulhu by pushing the investigation aspect to the forefront. Magnificently, he does this without sacrificing the power of the action sequences or the drama of the characters. The characters in particular, with their drives and obsessions, reflect the flawed heroes of Lovecraft's work beautifully, and give the GM plenty of hooks on which to hang spectacular and dramatic plot turns. Reading the book is a pleasure. Its tone is doom-laden yet somehow hopeful, and the rules are explained with simple examples used sparingly to clarify the few more complex concepts, such as the excellent Sanity rules. The artwork evokes the period and the uneasy feeling of horror lurking just out of sight. In summary, I can highly recommend this book to anyone with an interest in playing or running games of supernatural horror where investigation plays as strong a role as action, and the characters drive the plot rather than the reverse. Now, there appear to be nebulous tendrils unfolding from the impossible geometries in the corners of my vision, straining toward the only illumination in my suddenly chill room. I'll be all right as long as the light doesn't go ou--



Rating:
[5 of 5 Stars!]
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Trail of Cthulhu
Publisher: Pelgrane Press
by Michael H. [Featured Reviewer]
Date Added: 08/03/2011 13:44:19

I really love Trail of Cthulhu. I think it manages to capture the feel and style of HPL’s stories, particularly when played in Purist mode, with rules built to complement the stories. GUMSHOE is a perfect fit for investigative type adventures, and well-suited for a plotted out set of scenes. It also is simple enough to be run in a more “off-the-cuff” improvisational style and doesn’t require a great deal of prep on the part of the Keeper, an important consideration for those of use with other daily commitments. That said, I think ToC works best when played in Purist mode because, frankly, if I wanted to play a really pulp-inspired game, I think there are better systems (e.g., The Dresden Files RPG which is uses FATE) that I would enjoy more. It’s not that ToC’s pulp-mode is bad – in fact it’s pretty cool – it’s just that I think where the real magic lies is in a purist-style game where investigators are outclassed and the emphasis is on investigation and running away. Your mileage may vary of course.

One common criticism of the system that I’ve heard is that it’s very “railroady” meaning that players are locked in to a set of predetermined scenes and outcomes that they have little to no actual control over. However, this criticism seems to be based largely upon a complete misunderstanding about the purpose of the “you always find the core clues” approach to investigation: finding the core clues is not meant to force players in to one particular direction – in fact, the most critical part of the investigation, namely interpreting the clues and figuring out what they mean, is still 100% in the hands of the players. Instead what GUMSHOE is doing is putting the vital pieces of information into the hands of the players so that they can actually make decisions and do something – gone are the days where a failed perception check leads to the group not finding the secret door and thus never discovering the hidden laboratory. In addition, it’s important to realize that the typical ToC adventure is based on constructing a “spine” of events or scenes, but that this framework is not a rigid, linear one. Characters can bypass whole scenes or complete them out of order – in fact one of the purposes of Investigative Ability point spends is to provide additional information or details which let the story branch in various ways. Thus, the whole “ToC adventures are built on rails” is completely wrong and instead what you have is simply a system that guarantees that players will have enough information to solve the mystery but not that they will actually come to the correct conclusion or succeed in the end.

Another factor that make ToC simply a great RPG is the quality of the supplemental material that’s been published to support the system: all of the adventures published to date are excellent (I can especially recommend Graham Walmsley’s adventures if you enjoy HPL-inspired Purist adventures) as are the other supplements. While none of the material is essential, it’s all very interesting and useful and largely aimed at helping support campaigns rather than providing an endless series of splat books. In addition, some of the material put out for other GUMSHOE games might also be of interest; in particular the Book of Unremitting Horror is a great source book for adding very disturbing, odd, or horrifying creatures – this stuff is all original and very strange which makes it a good fit for the Mythos and will keep even the biggest Mythos expert on their toes.

Finally, I would be remiss if I didn’t mention that the huge volume of material that Chaosium has published over the past three decades can also be used with ToC. While the game mechanics are quite different (ToC does include a basic conversion guide in the ToC appendices on how to convert BRP to GUMSHOE), the vast majority of these publications are system-less fluff and source material and thus very handy.

In the end, ToC is a game I would highly recommend to anyone who is interested in Lovecraft’s stories, or horror investigation in general. The game’s system, setting, and supplemental material all work together to create an interesting and thoroughly compelling world to explore.

You can read the complete review on my blog: http://rpg.brouhaha.us/?p=4316



Rating:
[5 of 5 Stars!]
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Trail of Cthulhu
Publisher: Pelgrane Press
by Robert O. [Featured Reviewer]
Date Added: 08/02/2011 08:04:59

As a long time fan of HPL's works and Call of Cthulhu I was a little bit afraid seeing Trail of Cthulhu. Will it be able to win my heart? What else You can do with HPL? Well, from very start of TOC I knew: it is blockbuster. The power of TOC is that TOC do not try to compete witch CoC. It rises HPL gaming to another, higer level. TOC imrpoves detective aspects of Cthulhu hunt. Drives gamers from trail to trail, and gives them possibility to ”discover” their own trails. This gives to the players more responsibility for running the story, and encourage them to be more active. Have You ever wondered how the CSI could manage investigation with Yog-Sothoth behind their back? TOC gaves You an answer.



Rating:
[5 of 5 Stars!]
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Trail of Cthulhu
Publisher: Pelgrane Press
by Jeffrey V. [Verified Purchaser]
Date Added: 07/11/2010 18:23:20

Megan Robertson did a pretty in-depth job of addressing the nuts-and-bolts of the game, so consider what she said to be a baseline, and I'll just add my $.02 worth.

First, I still don't think that an entirely new game system needed to be created to deal with this one glaring problem. In fact, I had already dealt with it in a somewhat similar fashion in my own games -- simply ensuring that the necessary clues WERE found by the players (along with enough distractors to keep it from being obvious). However, having said that, if you DO have to design a new version of CoC, then this is a pretty good one.

It's worth noting that the folks who created ToC did so in a very thorough manner. They have excellent detail, provide great insight into the period of the 1930's, provide a ton of information in a very short amount of space (the sidebars could very well set the standard for everyone else to try and follow) and tie their system together very well. The sample adventure is excellent and could easily be adapted back into the original CoC with minimal difficulty. The addition of the "Special Advantage" concept allows players to "suddenly remember/discover" something germane to the investigation and speeds the investigative section of play very nicely, without being permitted to overwhelm normal play. This is another concept that could easily be added to the original CoC without significantly changing the game.

The addition of the "pulp" rules also makes for a more fast-paced, "Indiana Jones" style of game, which most players enjoy very much. The biggest problem here is that the rules want to force the Keeper to be consistent by either playing a Pulp style game or more of a "purist" type game more in keeping with HPL's original concept. Why the Keeper can't fluctuate between the two occasionally, I don't know, but it does seem to be somewhat discouraged. Personally, I always found it nice to vary things up a bit by giving the players something more "pulpish" to do occasionally instead of just sitting around the library tables watching each other for signs of incipient madness.... However, by the same token, the pursuit of "things man was not meant to know" OUGHT to be a serious business, and despite the occasional interlude of gun-slinging, the players need to be working to save the world from the outre menace.

As usual, DriveThru did a wonderful job on the scan, and the material in the rule book is legible and easily readable. The only weird thing is that when I purchased this, I actually got two versions -- the original, and one with bookmarks. The Bookmarks are excellent and should really be the only one offered in my opinion. Still, I suppose there are some folks who would object to that...somewhere in the world. At any rate, despite my personal ambivalence over the need for a completely new rules set, I give this one a solid "4" for attention to detail, excellent writing, and the excellence of DriveThru's reproduction.



Rating:
[4 of 5 Stars!]
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Creator Reply:
Thanks very much for this review. My only comment is that the Pulp and Purist options are specifically presented as options you can choose between; they are not interdependent. So, you can use the Pulp option for cars exploding when they get a bullet in the tank, and the Purist option of not being able to regain lost Sanity. We didn't mean to give the impression they weren't interchangeable.
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Trail of Cthulhu
Publisher: Pelgrane Press
by Megan R. [Featured Reviewer]
Date Added: 07/20/2009 12:24:18

The Introduction dives straight in to the basic premise, that ancient and insane deities exist and are still trying to invade Earth and that someone has to stop them, whatever the cost to life and sanity. It then moves on to the burning question: there's already a Call of Cthulhu RPG dealing with just that, so why a new game? The answer lies in the Gumshoe ruleset, developed by Pelgrane Press for the purpose of running games based around investigation and discovery, and built so that any adventure depending on certain clues being found will have those clues found! It's designed for people - Keepers and players alike - who want to concentrate on figuring out what the clues mean, rather than having to wonder if they actually have all the clues. This game also aims to enable two styles of play - the Purist style of intellectual analysis which enjoys watching the horror unfold knowing that it will end in madness; and the Pulp style which allows for a more physical approach, value the actual struggle against evil... and pays a bit more regard to character survival. The best games mix a bit of both - certainly Lovecraft's writing did! - but as parts of the rules favour one or the other style, they are marked so players can choose the bias they prefer, if any.

So, on to Chapter 1: The Investigator. That's your character, and creating him begins with the starting point that he did something else for his living (indeed, may still do) before starting to investigate the horrors of the Cthulhu Mythos. Each one gives you certain skills and areas of knowledge, and a credit rating; choose based on what you want your character to be able to do in the game. Each occupation also confers an in-game advantage. There's a balanced note on gender, explaining that the 1930s weren't quite as sexist as many imagine at least in terms of what women did (although probably in reactions to them), and anyway if you are happy with tentacled monsters slithering around New York, why bat an eyelid at a female cop (and the NYPD had a few by then anyway!). There's also advice on how to design new occupations, or tweak existing ones, if players find none that suits what they have in mind.

Occupation chosen, the next stage is to select what motivates the character. A range of 'drives' are provided, and while their use is primarily role-playing rather than mechanical advantage, it is important to know just why you want to go sticking your nose into the Things That Should Not Be. Next, you need to select your abilities for which a point-buy system is used. Abilities are divided into investigative ones (listed under the chosen occupation) including all academic, interpersonal and technical skills; and general ones consisting of everything else including health, sanity and stability. Plenty of detail and discussion ensures that wise choices can be made.

Next, Chapter 2: Clues, Tests and Contests explains how the game works at a mechanical level. Being built as a specialist investigatory rules system, Gumshoe makes the actual acquiring of clues simple, it is pieceing them together to work out what is going on and then determining a course of action to deal with it where the real challenge lies. To get the information needed, characters just have to visit locations, talk to people, read books and so on. Provided they look in the right place and have the right abilities they will get the clues, although points may be spent to get extra detail out of them. However, there are times when the outcome is not certain, something which applies to general skills not investigative ones, and then a test needs to be made, a test in which there is a reasonable chance of failure. These generally happen when success (or otherwise) is dramatically important or if the task being attempted is exceptionally difficult... and it is recommended not to use this when the very adventure depends on managing to do that thing. Or at least, to present other options rather than a stark suceed/fail - perhaps instead of failing entirely to accomplish the task, the character manages it but injures himself in the process. The key concept is never to allow a failed die roll, or even players doing the 'wrong' thing to completely derail the game.

The chapter then moves on to discuss opposed tests, that is where the character is competing against someone else, whether in a game of poker, an academic debate, keeping his trap shut when the police what to know what is going on and, yes, when the talking stops and fists and bullets fly. Narrative description rather than mere arithmetic and die rolls is king, and the ultimate goal of solving the mystery that is the plot of the adventure must remain in mind. Next comes that all-important sanity and stability, after all the real threat here is to your character's mind rather than his body. Both stability and sanity relate to mental health, but stability operates in the short term being instant reactions to something that may be shocking or scary but is got over quickly, while sanity is a measure of how well your character is able to resist, even blank out, the awful truth of the Mythos. And this is where the mechanical side of a character's drive comes in - that fundemental motivation will oft times suggest a course of action that is risky or worse, but that drive is considered so strong that resisting it in a coldly-rational way costs you stability points... but doing something ostensibly foolish because it fits your motivation gains extra points. A neat mechanic to promote both role-playing and thought. There's plenty more as well, including some inspired and devious ways to make a character going insane actually play out around the gaming table. Fortunately, means of recovery and the restoration of mental health are also discussed.

The rest of the work is aimed mostly at the Keeper, beginning with Chapter 3: The Cthulhu Mythos. Naturally, the most powerful Great Old Ones are not going to be in the least bit bothered by anything the characters try, so the only stats they are given relate to the effect they have on the characters' stability and sanity. Still, they are listed here in all their contradictory glory - who among you dare demand that they be consistent? It is a convenient tool for the Keeper whose players already know (or think they know) about the Mythos from reading Lovecraft or playing other games: you can pick and choose not just which Great Old One is behind your adventure but which aspect of those presented here that you'd like to use... not to mention that the texts the characters find may well present contradictory information. Listing done, the discussion moves on to tomes and magic, things that the characters are rather more likely to encounter on a day-to-day basis than the Great Old Ones in person. Quite a few tomes are listed, it's up to the Keeper to decide the precise contents and usefulness in a given adventure. There are also guidance notes for those wishing to develop their own tomes, a practice to be encouraged. Next comes some spells - with the chilling note that, at least at first, the characters are more likely to be on the receiving end than casting them themselves.But sufficient perusal of those tomes may eventually see characters casting spells, so rules and details are provided. The spells are followed by a cast of creatures, minions and the like with which to plague the characters. For each, the sort of clues that might lead to them are given, classified by the investigation skill that would discern that clue. Not all adversaries go on four legs, tentacles, or the like; so the next section deals with cults and cultists, those who have chosen to venerate and serve the Great Old Ones. For each cult, there is background as well as ideas for how they may come to the attention of the characters. Naturally, creative Keepers will come up with cults of their own, and guidance is provided to that end.

Next, Chapter 4: The Thirties gives a feel for the era in which this game is set, the 1930s. Many aspects are touched upon, including those - such as 1930s' attitudes to people of different skin colours - which the modern mind finds uncomfortable. In all things, it is up to the group to decide whether they want to be authentic to the 1930s or to rewrite societal values in the light of present-day opinions. Poverty, famine, war (and the threat thereof), political movements and the rise of the movies - it's all there and readily researchable in as much detail as you want. Rich strands can be drawn from the politics of the time, yet while Nazis can be convenient baddies, what if the only way to stop a Mythos plot is to ally with them? Hard choices can make for good, even memorable, games. There's also a section describing likely locales for adventure, suitable for Pulp and Purist alike. This is followed by information about the technology, weapons, equipment and money available to the characters.

Scene set, Chapter 5: Putting it all Together looks at ideas for both players and Keepers in how best to approach this game, both as a game and from the standpoint of the alternate reality you're trying to create together. Many of the tips work well for any type of game, particularly one in which investigation plays a part, never mind this one, so read and apply them. There's even better advice for Keepers on how to both plan and present adventures. It's a game of investigative horror, so both the horror and the investigative process need to be thought through. While much of this is naturally angled towards game masters running the Gumshoe system and specifically this implementation of it, there is so much here that would benefit any game master whatever game they are running that I'm tempted to recommend getting this even if you don't fancy Cthuthuloid adventures!

Next, Chapter 6: Campaign Frames talks about moving beyond one-off adventures or even a series thereof, and building a coherent campaign with an overarching plotline in which individual adventures are components building in stages towards the ultimate finale. There are all manner of ideas and resources to empower the creative Keeper to achieve this end. There are additional rules, investigative abilities and more which should prove useful... even if you are not running an ongoing campaign, but especially good if you are. Thoughts on the creative use of recurring NPCs, friends and foes alike, weaving real-world history into your adventures and adding a Mythos twist... all manner of goodies here.

OK, enough theory, Chapter 7: The Kingsbury Horror brings it all all together with a ready-to-run adventure. Starting with a series of gruesome murders (which, as it happens, are historical although probably not really connected with the Cthulhu Mythos!), the characters have a chance to prove themselves better investigators than Eliot Ness, no less! Loads of people to talk to, interesting places to visit and a steady stream of clues provide not just a cracking good adventure, but an excellent example of how to put one together for this system as well.

Appendices cover such matters as melding this game with classic Call of Cthulhu, using either Gumshoe or Chaosium's Basic Roleplaying (BRP) system as preferred, and even how to convert characters between the two systems. There are sources and resources to help you get into both the Mythos and the 1930s, as well as other fiction of suitable style to be mined for ideas. There's not just a character sheet, but also some useful forms to enable the Keeper to keep track of things. Short biographies of the main contributors (who all seem to require strait jackets!) and comprehensive indices round the book off.

Overall, this is a masterful melding of the Gumshoe system with classic Cthulhu Mythos gaming, an inspired match. There's so much goodness in this that I'll be back again and again, not just to play but to mine for ideas whatever I am doing.



Rating:
[5 of 5 Stars!]
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Trail of Cthulhu
Publisher: Pelgrane Press
by Chris B. [Verified Purchaser]
Date Added: 05/28/2009 22:05:48

How can you make the greatest RPG even better? Trail of Cthulhu is a pretty good try. Alternate systems for sanity and finding clues, and interesting takes on the Great Old Ones make for an interesting read.



Rating:
[4 of 5 Stars!]
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Trail of Cthulhu
Publisher: Pelgrane Press
by JD S. [Verified Purchaser]
Date Added: 05/23/2008 13:32:05

Very good material. While I have no intention of using the Gumshoe system, this product produces a very clear picture of the Cthulu mythos (of which I was a complete stranger), a good overview of the investigation campaign, and a viable overview of the 1930s.



Rating:
[5 of 5 Stars!]
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