The Inside Scoop on Gaming

I was really worried when i first picked this up. CoC LARP?! Yeah riiiiight. Not only would it require a budget comprable to your average hollywood studio budget, but magic and the rules, and the skills...The keeper would be making san rolls...for him/herself.

I am overjoyed to say that i was VERY much wrong about Cthulhu Live. The system is tremendously easy to learn, using only 4 traits, and then the characters skills. Character genereation is a SNAP, and some basic templates are provided for all the CoC (un)usualls.

Now onto stuff for the keeper. Here's where the bad points are. This game is not for a small group. The amount of NPC's stories call upon streches the limits of a medium sized group. And that's just human characters. Some of the nifty mythos bugaboos can take up to 4 people to bring to life. Yes, all the favs are here, even those amorphus little cuties, the shoggoths. And without expensive CGI. A few sheets, some lumber, and some foam rubber can create some pretty good looking nasties, but you have to have the prep time. At times it may seem like you're putting on a small play instead of a LARP, but from what i've seen , it's worth it.

It also comes with two "scripts" one involving a zombie producing goop in a mining area, and the other involves bizarre expieriments occuring at a sanitarium. My only real gripe with the pack in scripts is the high fatality rate,and the scene changes can be murder unless you're well prepared.

Overall it's great, if you want a involved LARP, that takes some definate work to start and run, but is porbably WELL worth the effort. It's more suited to one shots, but a campaign could be feasable, just not Masks of Nyarlathotep ((but if your willing to try, be my guest, and i hope you like your padded cell))

Style: 5 (Excellent!)
Substance: 5 (Excellent!)

Cthulhu Live
Author: \robert McLaughlin and others Category: game Company/Publisher: Chaosium Cost: $16.95 Page count: 155 ISBN: 1-56882-041-0 Capsule Review by Perry Lyons on 03/10/98. Genre tags: none	I was really worried when i first picked this up. CoC LARP?! Yeah riiiiight. Not only would it require a budget comprable to your average hollywood studio budget, but magic and the rules, and the skills...The keeper would be making san rolls...for him/herself. I am overjoyed to say that i was VERY much wrong about Cthulhu Live. The system is tremendously easy to learn, using only 4 traits, and then the characters skills. Character genereation is a SNAP, and some basic templates are provided for all the CoC (un)usualls. Now onto stuff for the keeper. Here's where the bad points are. This game is not for a small group. The amount of NPC's stories call upon streches the limits of a medium sized group. And that's just human characters. Some of the nifty mythos bugaboos can take up to 4 people to bring to life. Yes, all the favs are here, even those amorphus little cuties, the shoggoths. And without expensive CGI. A few sheets, some lumber, and some foam rubber can create some pretty good looking nasties, but you have to have the prep time. At times it may seem like you're putting on a small play instead of a LARP, but from what i've seen , it's worth it. It also comes with two "scripts" one involving a zombie producing goop in a mining area, and the other involves bizarre expieriments occuring at a sanitarium. My only real gripe with the pack in scripts is the high fatality rate,and the scene changes can be murder unless you're well prepared. Overall it's great, if you want a involved LARP, that takes some definate work to start and run, but is porbably WELL worth the effort. It's more suited to one shots, but a campaign could be feasable, just not Masks of Nyarlathotep ((but if your willing to try, be my guest, and i hope you like your padded cell)) Style: 5 (Excellent!) Substance: 5 (Excellent!)