There was a AMA on reddit not too long ago, that Sandy Peterson did. I haven't read it yet, but I'd thought you would get a kick out of it. As someone who loves Doom, Sandy was a pretty big contributor to Doom 2. He was a map designer, and did things differently. For example, while a bunch of the designers would build for multiplayer first, he would build a level around single playing. He was also designed some urban levels for the game (downtown for example) and even patterned some of the levels around real locations (suburbs). Also, he influenced the other designers to make there own urban levels, as he was the only one doing so up until the team saw his levels. Also, he designed the level Barrels O Fun...nuff said. last fun fact: Doom was influenced by a D&D game ID was playing. The game involved a portal to hell opening up, and the players had to stop demons that were coming through.
Good review, but also worth mentioning is the Cthulhu Dark Ages setting. This is set in Europe, 990 AD. Its as dark dingy and deadly as you would expect. With a party made up of farmers, beggers, minstrels & brigands theres nothing like the sense of dread you get in a pitch black, rain drenched forest with a pointy stick as your only protection.
I could watch this channel all day... another great, well-thought-out review chock full of contextual peripheral observations and intelligent insights. You have a cool tour-guide voice that makes me feel like I'm on a guided museum walkthrough, and a good one at that.
Hey, I just did a Retro RPG review on Call of Cthulhu too, wish I'd watched yours first. I've actually only GM'ed it once, within 2 sessions everyone was insane or dead, and having a ball doing so. Think I was running it right.
Cool and nice review! I love the CoC roleplaying game, since I was introduced to it! I am *currently* working on a little story myself, intent of being the best I've done, i'm not as good as other friends of mine at creating scenarios... Well, that's about it, nice video over-all! :)
Nice review. I really enjoy CoC, only thing i feel you missed out on is how it is to run a game. I think it's a bit harder to be a keeper than a dungeon master, cause many players don't know how to react to being normal fragile people in a roleplaying game. But like i said a very nice review. You got a new sub :)
I so meant to reply to this awhile ago, but better late than never. You are so right about the 'missing content'. At the time I did this it was my intention to make a 'how to' video on running 'Call of Cthulhu'. Perhaps I should make one. :D
What was that excellent Podcast from the Cthulhu players from back in 11-12 timeframe. They were a great group. Their podcast used to be featured on Chaosium's own website.
thank you for putting my mind at ease about my inferior copy of 6th edition. At the end of the day, I guess it all comes down to the quality of story content, and the skill of the keeper.
+eldersprig Its an interesting discussion to be sure. I can completely understand Sandy Petersen's point.... that Lovecraft was a futurist, and that he set his stories in as modern a time as he could, and from a Lovecraft perspective it makes a certain sense to place the game in modern times. However, my own take on things is in the video. No internet. No Cell phones. No modern conveniences... the real dawn of the modern age is a great setting for a HORROR STORY, as it more easily allows for ways to isolate the characters. If you notice in modern horror stories, there's always some BS reason why the cell phones don't work, or why the characters just don't dial 911 when the horror happens. Its even become a horror trope. Setting things in the 1920s completely diffuses this issue, so... from a horror telling perspective, there is a practical reason to do this. The next reason, for me, is purely aesthetics. I love that era. I love the music, I love the fashions, I love the culture. It takes players out of their element, and more readily allows them to be someone else. The bottom line is, Call of Cthulhu is a great game! You can play whatever era suits you, and your group.
+captcorajus Technically there is no reason to not place story at any time. Better have coherent story about setting what author understand, then try fit original settings because its original. After all Lovecraft mythos is based on ancient beings to say loosely. If someone want even future could be a thing.. hell.. why not go full Shin Megami Tensey or Soul Series style ;D
Hey, Captcorajust! I was wondering, where did you find that Yog Sothoth chant in the beginning? I've been looking for it but got no results. I love your vids! I'm a Lovecraft fanatic and D&D player!
Very good review of my favourite RPG! I can only add that the best of the "classic" editions is the French "L'Appel de Cthulhu - 30ème Anniversaire" - which sports original art by artists like Caza and is so crammed with additional content that it could be considered a 6.5 edition. Luckily I can read French!
Coming in late to this video, but the yscd youtube link, it only has 1 video. Did he move his content to another channel or just closed it down? Is there another RU-vidr you recommend?
So i must ask will you do a follow up to this and Maybe talk about Masks of Nyarlathotep and Horror on the Orient Express, and some of the Various Supplements and Adventures
+APaganPerspective Old Gods Yes on Masks of Nyarlathotep! I purposefully stayed away from mentioning that module with the idea of doing a full review on it at some future date. Between the research, writing a script, putting together the audio, and then the slides, it takes 3 or 4 days to make a video, so I'm sort of parceling out subject matter as I can, so it might be awhile. But yes!!
great review/overview of call of cthulhu. just got my 7th ed kickstarter package in the mail. had to laugh after looking at the part where you say something like "which should be shipping in a few weeks." lol more like 6 months...... ugh... like 3 years, but damn if the art and layout isnt perfect in the 7th ed keepers guide.
+alphaotakux Lol.. yeah, I know right? I read an article about that. Apparently, they miscalculated shipping for overseas orders on the first kickstarter, so they basically bankrupted themselves.
What's with the Dead Kennedys logo on the Gamma World cover art at the 5:15 mark? I guess it's supposed to mean that they were still "in" in the distant future, perhaps...
Hi Captcorajus. CoC is a great game, and I really enjoyed your video. However for RPGs still in continuous print, Tunnels and Trolls came out in 1975 (not including the privately published first edition which came out the year before), Chivalry & Sorcery and Traveller both came out in 1977, and Chaosium's own Runequest came out in 1978. I'm not 100% sure, but I think all these games have been in continuous publication since their inception. Aside from that nit-pick I think you nailed all the things that make CoC such a great game, and setting. I liked that your compared some of the editions, and noted some of the changes. Lastly, I realize there's a bit of a limit as to how much time you can spend on a review but I would have liked it if you could have addressed HPL's personal views on race (some of which bleed into his stories and even by his contemporaries standards were somewhat extreme) and acknowledge some of the unfortunate flaws of an otherwise outstanding writer and his works.
I just started a game of "The Cthulhu Hack" at Drivethrurpg. Real D&D light style, 44 page book, narrative driven. But I love pulling all kinds of sources from "The Call of Cthulhu" game! Thanks for the review
The thing about his actual writing is that it has a steep learning curve. Or rather that it has a learning curve at all. I would say that anybody wanting to read Lovecraft's work should have a dictionary ready and expect to want to stop to look up the meaning of a word every paragraph. Learned a lot of words in this way. However it is quite rewarding once you've done that and I find his work quite charming in a quirky way occasionally and every now and then he shocks me and reminds me how little I really know about the universe.
Yes, exactly! He does have a learning curve. He also requires a bit of patience, but there's always a payoff. Nothing exemplifies this more than the 'Case of Charles Dexter Ward.' Brilliant story. Brilliant writing. Dr. Willett's trek through the labyrinth halls beneath Joseph Curwen's house is one of the most horrific things I ever read, and its Lovecraft's intricate prose that drives home the horror of the scene.
+Guillermo Robles Thank you very much, I really appreciate that. I'll be honest, I never really got into those rpgs like I have others, and I would be stepping outside my area of expertise with those. I tend to talk about not only the module, but bits of trivia, and things, and I'm able to do that because I already sort of know what things I'm looking for when I choose the topic. I don't have that kind of knowledge with world of darkness. Though I really enjoyed Dark Ages more than modern day.
Arkham is loosely based on Oakham, Massachusetts. And no, I didn't find HPL's style difficult. It's a narrative, often first-person, style. Dialogue is infrequent compared to modern fiction. COC is the best game I've never played.
Great review. Just wondering if you could provide some links on where you found your photos that you used in the video. I run a lot of CoC and like using visuals, but have a hard time find good pictures to use. Any help/advice would be appreciated.
+Jeff Rothecker Thank you very much! In general I just do google image searches. The opening sequence is a bit different in that I used screen captures from a French CoC publisher's advertisement. For the life of me, I can't find the video now.
Just wanted to say I really enjoy your videos. My only complaint is that they don't come fast enough. Also, because I like these so much I did want to point out an error. I scanned the comments and did not see this mentioned, my apologies if someone else has already pointed this out. Lynn Willis did not die in 2008. He left Chaosium in 2008 after he was diagnosed with Parkinson's disease. He passed away in 2013.
I don't know how I screwed up those dates. Thanks.. I'll make a tag to fix it. Yeah, you're not alone with the frequency issue. One Video takes several full days of work. Research to check my facts (not always 100%, but I try), then writhing the script... recording the voice over. Editing it, and then accumulating the pictures, and editing the timing... its very labor intensive. I'm working to improving that however, so... please, stay tuned!
Honestly, 7th edition is pretty good. You probably won't be able to get a hold of editions 1-3 the boxed sets can be a bit expensive. All the editions are pretty much the same, with minor tweaks here and there, so the 8th edition is probably the best if you're not going to go for the newest edtion.
The interesting thing about Cthulu is that maybe it is real, consider the phenom know as "The Bloop", the sound was heard arround the area where Lovecraft predicted that r'lyeh is. Those who heard that sound thought it was a submarine from the size of a city, but analyzing the sound it definitively is an animal, a huge animal.
the 7e coc chase rules are the best i've ever seen.... i've been modifying them for all my other games... dnd and starfinder.. i'd love to see more vids on coc...
This is a couple years late, but you're pronouncing necronomicon very wrong (how would you pronounce "necromancy" or "necromancer"?). Other than that, great vid!
This has made me a bit less worried about buying an older edition to save some money. There is also an OSR/OGL version of CoC called GORE or Generic Old-school Role-playing Engine. It's free on RPGnow: rpgnow.com/product/28521/gore?it=1
Goblinioid games doing Call of Cthulhu? You have me curious. They have my single favorite Lovecraftian supplement for a non CoC product with Realms of the Crawling Chaos.
Well, I think it is more that Lovecraft and Indiana Jones shared inspirations (like the works of H. Rider Haggard) rather than Indiana Jones being inspired by Lovecraft. Speaking of inspiration; while the Cthulhu mythos is often seen as the creation of Lovecraft alone it was more of a collaboration between him and some of his friends, mainly Robert E. Howard (most known for creating Conan the Barbarian, and thus probably, directly and indirectly, the most important influence on early D&D) and Ashton Clark Smith (not as well known nowadays, but his work was one of the main influence on 2e's Dark Sun setting). The three of them would bounce ideas off one-another and included references to each-others' works in their writings. I've been toying with the idea of mixing D&D and Call of Cthulhu elements together to create something more like what Howard and Smith (and Catherine L. Moore) wrote, but nothing has come of it so far. There might already by RPGs out there that does this.
You forgot bout mentioning South Park that created a cult following to this. Never knew bout this game or H.P Lovecraft until I saw South Park. None the less awesome vid
There are so many great Lovecraft stories. I just tried to pick out a sample of 8 stories both short and novella style that highlighted him at his best. :)
@@captcorajus Lucky! I am just getting back in to CoC (D&D burn out) and have found the 7th edition rules fun. I am also playing some of the new Delta Green rules which is more streamlined.
I tried to really enjoy C'o'C - I really hated the chronic BAD dice rolls. I took a really young german chemist, just getting into photography. I really hated the cheap line "..and as you develop the film Negative to really lay the boots to hecklers and nay-sayers - the picture clears - and the scene is blocked by your thumb (over the camera lens)." It think it happened, like, 4 times in a row.
Oh, you know, I thought you were talking about the horror music, but you're actually talking about the 20's jazz. There are lyrics, and I got the music off of RU-vid by simply searching 1920's jazz music. Due to its age, all of that stuff is DRM free. :)
"The name of the hellish entity was invented by beings whose vocal organs were not like man's, hence it has no relation to the human speech equipment. The syllables were determined by a physiological equipment wholly unlike ours, hence could never be uttered perfectly by human throats ... The actual sound -- as nearly as any human organs could imitate it or human letters record it -- may be taken as something like Khlûl'-hloo, with the first syllable pronounced gutturally and very thickly. The u is about like that in full; and the first syllable is not unlike klul in sound, hence the h represents the guttural thickness." - H.P. Lovecraft According to Lovecraft, yes, its hard.
Yeah I have read Lovecraft and the rest Cthulhu Mythos authors. I know all about "how humans cannot pronounce that name correctly". But Lovecraft HAD written the name on paper with human recognizable letters and syllables. So as hard as it may seems, the correct way to pronounce it is CTHULHU. No "A" in there. Like it or not. Now, you may call it KATHOLOHOUKOULOUKOU. Its your right. But it doesn't make it right. Or I may call your name "captcorahzoussss" because some alien spices may not have the vocal equipment to pronounce "j" at all.
I'd really be interested in hearing how you pronounce it. The C is a hard K. The phonetic for a hard K is "Kah"... So. Kh-thoo-loo is the most common way it is pronounced. According to Lovecraft YOUR pronunciation is wrong because he does not pronounce the 'TH". The pronunciation that I'm using is from Chaosium's pronunciation guide, and this is a review of their game, so I suggest you take it up with them as to why 'everybody' says it that way. If you're passionate enough, perhaps you might even get a campaign started and change everyone's pronunciation to your way, which is clearly the proper way. As far as the pronunciation of my name goes, feel free you pronounce it however you want.
Thanks for letting me pronounce your name as I please. I will call you "captcorajus" because I know spelling and I have the vocal equipment to do so. And yes, I pronounce the name " Kh-thoo-lhoo" (with an "h" in last spell) because I pronounce as I read the letters. Only if it was a REAL language with REAL orthography rules (if you know what that means) that are based on language changes and word history and grammar I will pronounce differently. As there are words in many languages that are pronounced differently than the letters that are written, because there are grammatical reasons to do so. And if my pronunciation is wrong "according" to Lovecraft why don't you take his advice and call it "KHOO-LHOO" if he does not pronounce "TH" but instead you use Chaosium's pronunciation guide? If you want to be right follow the rules of the person who invented the name. Clearly he knew best. I understand you review Chaosium's game and maybe feel like using their pronunciation. But it does not make it right, you like it or not. And yes maybe someone has to start pronounce it the right way so people learn it right. I will so. Thanks for the advice.
Hi again. I found a party playing Cthulhu Wars board game and in their video there is Sandy Petersen talking. I call you to listen to him speaking and LISTEN how HE pronounces "CTHULHU". Now english is not my mother language and I may be wrong but I can swear I don't hear him pronouncing it like you. And I'm guessing he knows better. If you are interested (and maybe correct yourself) you could listen to him. Be well. :) ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-IwHafsImrh0.html (Starts speaking at about 1:47)
Yeah. If the main authors go away then so called true fans will likely to change everything for the better. Todays D&D doesn't have to much in common with original games developed by Gygax up to AD&D2ndE. I was never a fan of (A)D&D rules myself so I changed some things here and there basing my own home set on main concepts behind Basements & Rats. But those rules are mine and I wouldn't release them as D&D 6th or 7th Edition. Not everyone can be OK with free form where level refers to Attribute or Skill and there are Paths instead of classes. Both 4th and Next showed how far from original changes can go. 4:50 Yeah. typical characters from CoC. They just look at some random victim of ritual murder. No loss of Sanity. "A: Want to go for a bear? B: Yeah. Nothing to do here. I wont waste my ammo on some stiff babe, dude."
I have no fucking clue whats so scary about this mythos. It takes a lot of work to gather little information surrounding superstition. It's trying so hard to be scary that I've lost interest completely.
+Querty Beighteen It takes a certain approach to be successful. The system is inconsequential, and it basically providing an easy way to accomplish the task at hand. That said, its easier to demonstrate, than it is to speak of. Furthermore, you need players who are there to go along the ride with you. Mood music, candles, a few skulls on the table, a black velvet table cloth, and a certain attitude goes a long way. I always dress in black and slick my hair strait back, and speak in low hushed tones. You've got to have several build ups, and fake outs, before the real horror shows up, as the players are expecting it. I do not run this as a 'campaign'. Usually every few months or so as a 'one shot'. As such, I can get away with things I couldn't in a continuing narrative. For example, the last game session I took the character backgrounds and twisted them so everyone had an alternate, where they were actually WORKING with the evil, not against it. 1) I didn't tell the players that this was a factor. 2) I had it all printed out. When the in game trigger occured, whoever was there at that point got their alternate background... so the 'betrayer' to that point could have been anyone. After that point, the betrayer is fixed. But no one knows but the player I handed the write up to. The player played it perfectly too. Right at the point where he was isolated with a small group of characters, and THEY were engaged with a particular pit trap, one in the pit, the other trying to help him out.. he came up behind her like he was going to help and shot her point blank in the back of the head. Tossed her body into the pit with the other player, and they were both devoured by the thing within. it was glorious. lol The whole table went crazy, and the three surviving characters realized 'it was on'. Everyone has signed on for my sci fi one shot coming up in June. :)
It is really amazing how such a horrible writer invented such a great formula that others improved upon... lets face it, H.P Lovecraft works are barely readable due to his horrible writing skills...
Are you trolling? Lovecraft is eminently readable, and descriptive. His vernacular is a bit jarring, especially to modern day readers, but once you make that adjustment, a whole new world of literary possibilities are open to you.
captcorajus Nope, not trolling... he is barely readable, he just winds on and on, never getting to the point.Bought his combined works, and boy, was it a waste of money. Let's just put is this way - his works are like taking a stroll through a wonderful, amazing park - but not exactly through the park, rather walking around and around in circles... His style is repetitive, shallow, his descriptions are comparable to a teens essay... Don't get me wrong, I really wanted to like him, but his literary style is just pure garbage - ask any relevant literary critic to analyze his works and he is bound to come to the same conclusion. And btw i'm 32 years old, have a medical degree and read everything from Russian classics to modern day literature... So you just can't rule me out as your average internet troll, I am rather a fan of sci-fi, fantasy, and just good fiction...
As far as literary criticism goes, you might want to dig a bit deeper. Lovecraft is considered the father of modern horror. Not just for his literary work but for the thousands of essays and correspondence he wrote to other writers of the day. I know a lot of people with advanced degree, quite a few of them couldn't figure their way out of a paper bag. Their quite knowledgeable in their fields, but not very bright otherwise. Not saying that the case in your part. I'd also point out that when you pick up a work of collected stories on Lovecraft, that may not be the best way to get to know him. They have no context. Lovecraft when through phases in his writing style. He had his 'Poe period', his 'fantasy' period, and so on. He matured as he went along. I would point you back to my video, and the stories I suggested, also keeping in mind that the themes explored in them were UNIQUE when Lovecraft wrote them. They may seem 'tired' not, but that's because you've seen them used over and over again by modern day writers. 'The Case of Charles Dexter Ward' is an amazing piece, even if the pace is rather slow. Good Reading!
captcorajus I am in no way belittleling his contribution to modern horror, in fact I am pointing it out, you just can't come to term with my opinion that his style and technique is very weak, uninteresting - as for his works in this compendium are all his works, and I hadn't read his essays, undoubtedly they are interesting. As for The Case of Charles Dexter Ward I will read it tomorrow, and give my reply to you on it... Oh and btw, I did manage to get through "At the mountains of madness", and I have to admit it was a decent story, one where he actually gets somewhere, well, almost, because he gets lost in explaining, or rather repeating "how doomed we all are, insignificant, etc...
Another fantastic video. I haven't gotten around to actually playing Call of Cthulhu, even though I'm very interested in doing so in the near future as I'm a big H.P. Lovecraft fan. I have incorporated a lot of Lovecraft mythos into my AD&D game though, particularly the deep ones and Dagon.
