10 Noteworthy Characters From The Call Of Cthulhu Roleplaying Game Archives

Dungeons & Dragons may be the most famous roleplaying game, but among my friends, Call Of Cthulhu-- an easy-to-learn horror game based upon the weird short stories of H.P. Lovecraft-- was the game of choice. What makes it special is that you portray an average dope with the best of intentions who finds his or her self coming face to face with mysteries and forces well beyond his or her comprehension and abilities. In most roleplaying games, you portray superhuman wizards or warriors; in Call of Cthulhu, you portray librarians and professors. An excellent credit rating is almost always more valuable to your survival than your ability to cut a guy in half with an axe. Rare indeed is the Call of Cthulhu character who, at the conclusion of two investigations into the unknown, is not insane, crippled or dead. A well-aimed rock or a whack to the back of the head with a flashlight can take a character out of the game in an instant, so players have to be extra cautious. It's this kind of realistic frailty which adds to the suspense. Here's a fun video review of the game. This is the original 72-minute "Terror Of Cthulhu" soundtrack, an ambient mix I created for our games which would play on repeat at a low volume in the background. Click here to download. And below are 10 characters from the days when we all lived near enough to one another and had time enough to play this game. Half of the characters are noted as either dead or insane. The most infamous of all is the last one, "Dacey." Surely, it is worthy of being framed. This is a character who, either through luck (unlikely) or an occasional dishonest die roll (likely), managed to survive four or more games and become a major pain in the ass while his ever-changing roster of companions dropped like flies. He also looks vaguely like Stexe. I was running the game, and although I was always fair, I admit that even I got to a point where I was rooting for his demise.