The Inside Scoop on Gaming

The Cthulhu Companion (CC) was published by Chaosium in 1983 and much of the content was reprinted in the 4th edition rulebook. So why review a product that came out in 1983 ? Well there is a thriving market for OOP Call of Cthulhu (CoC) supplements with many appearing regularly on sites such as ebay.

The CC is a 64 page booklet with one of my favourite CoC cover paintings, showing an investigator type frantically climbing up a rope in a well with mysterious carved faces whilst tentacles reach up and grab his ankles. The same scene appears on the rear cover……..minus investigator and rope (shudder). The interior art is also of a high standard, some of which has reappeared in subsequent Chaosium products.

What about the content ? This is a fine example of those early CoC products where an amazing amount of material is crammed into a small number of pages. Around half the book is given over to 4 scenarios, the rest being a mix of background articles, rules and other keeper aids. The scenario and background articles have lasted well, but the more rules orientated material has been rendered obsolete. Fortunately only 8-9 pages deal with pure rules issues.

The non-scenario material breaks down as follows: -a long and interesting essay on the Cthulhu Mythos in Mesoamerican religion full of information usefull to keepers (5 pages) -a collection of notes on the Necronomican translated from the work of a fictitious Bulgarian scholar and tracing the mention of mysterious beings throughout occult tomes. This is a lot of fun to use as a hand out found by investigators amongst the effects of sid Bulgarian scholar (3 pages) -a collection of prayers and quotes which may be of use in game sessions (2 pages) - a long list of Lovecraftian adjectives which looks silly but I'll bet has pulled many a keeper out of a tight corner when struggling for words (2 pages) - information on prisons and insanity some of which has been superseded in the intervening years (4 ½ pages) - a set of "new" monsters long since incorporated into the core rules and probably of little utility nowadays (8 pages) - and finally some HPL poetry and a "humorous" song (2 pages - pretty much wasted space IMHO).

The four scenarios are written in the old CoC style and are strong pieces of concise writing which have aged far better than some of the scenarios in contemporaneous CoC supplements e.g. "the Asylum and other Tales". Like most of the older scenarios however, they do require more work on behalf of the keeper to extend the background material than do more recent CoC modules - e.g. only one has any information presented in player handout form. All four scenarios are gratifyingly non-linear. The first three scenarios were reprinted in the 4th edition rulebook.

The first scenario, "Paperchase" is a short adventure to be used with a single novice player. It is not particularly involved or dangerous, but works well towards the purpose of introducing a new player to the game system and theme of the game. It should not take more than a couple of hours to run even the greenest of players through this one, including rolling up their first investigator and explaining the rules and aims of play. (3 pages)

"The Mystery of Loch Feinn" is set in Scotland (yeah!) and involves an investigation into the disappearance of a Palaeontologist in the highlands and the legendary kelpy (that's Water Horse to the foreigners out there). This features a powerful supernatural enemy that could wreak havoc with many groups if used ruthlessly, but the scenario is written in such a way that it be played focusing on the human cultists as the main enemy and the monster used as a lurking presence in the background perhaps using some of its powers at dramatic moments. I generally think CoC is much more effective and scary played like an atmospheric b&w horror movie than as a 1990s gorefest. The early investigations will need to be expanded upon by the keeper and stats will have to be generated for most of the bad guys as they have been omitted. (7 pages)

In "The Rescue" the investigators look into mystery behind the death of a US government official and disappearance of his daughter in the wild woods of America. A communist plot ? Or are bad guys responsible ? This dangerous scenario, featuring a non-Mythos foe, is another winner. Once again there are no stats for a couple of NPCs which may be needed. (8pages)

The final scenario " the Secret of Castronegro" takes the investigators to New Mexico, where a series of cattle mutilations and disappearances have occurred. This scenario has at least a couple of boxes that can be used as player handouts although they are not specifically designated as such, but again requires a little expansion in this regard. Nonetheless this is another strong scenario featuring "reverse evolution", undying warlocks, evil familiars and much more. (13 ½ pages). This scenario was not reprinted in the 4th edition rules, but does appear in "Cthulhu Classics".

So is this a worthwhile buy ? The answer is a resounding yes. The CC has stood the test of time better than many of the early CoC supplements with only the rules articles being rendered out of date. When first published this was a straight 5/5, almost 20 years on I still rate it as 4/4. The CC is a regular item in ebay auctions however, usually going for a reasonable sum, so don't pay over the odds for it in an online 2nd hand store. Also you may not find the additional material enough to warrant buying the CC if you already have 4th edition rules.

the Cthulhu Companion
the Cthulhu Companion Capsule Review by Chris Ward on 25/07/01 Style: 4 (Classy and well done) Substance: 4 (Meaty) A great supplement from the early days of Call of Cthulhu that stands the test of time. 4/4 Product: the Cthulhu Companion Author: Y. Chodak (editor) Category: RPG Company/Publisher: Chaosium Line: Call of Cthulhu Cost: Page count: 64 Year published: 1983 ISBN: SKU: Comp copy?: no Capsule Review by Chris Ward on 25/07/01 Genre tags: Historical Horror	The Cthulhu Companion (CC) was published by Chaosium in 1983 and much of the content was reprinted in the 4th edition rulebook. So why review a product that came out in 1983 ? Well there is a thriving market for OOP Call of Cthulhu (CoC) supplements with many appearing regularly on sites such as ebay. The CC is a 64 page booklet with one of my favourite CoC cover paintings, showing an investigator type frantically climbing up a rope in a well with mysterious carved faces whilst tentacles reach up and grab his ankles. The same scene appears on the rear cover……..minus investigator and rope (shudder). The interior art is also of a high standard, some of which has reappeared in subsequent Chaosium products. What about the content ? This is a fine example of those early CoC products where an amazing amount of material is crammed into a small number of pages. Around half the book is given over to 4 scenarios, the rest being a mix of background articles, rules and other keeper aids. The scenario and background articles have lasted well, but the more rules orientated material has been rendered obsolete. Fortunately only 8-9 pages deal with pure rules issues. The non-scenario material breaks down as follows: -a long and interesting essay on the Cthulhu Mythos in Mesoamerican religion full of information usefull to keepers (5 pages) -a collection of notes on the Necronomican translated from the work of a fictitious Bulgarian scholar and tracing the mention of mysterious beings throughout occult tomes. This is a lot of fun to use as a hand out found by investigators amongst the effects of sid Bulgarian scholar (3 pages) -a collection of prayers and quotes which may be of use in game sessions (2 pages) - a long list of Lovecraftian adjectives which looks silly but I'll bet has pulled many a keeper out of a tight corner when struggling for words (2 pages) - information on prisons and insanity some of which has been superseded in the intervening years (4 ½ pages) - a set of "new" monsters long since incorporated into the core rules and probably of little utility nowadays (8 pages) - and finally some HPL poetry and a "humorous" song (2 pages - pretty much wasted space IMHO). The four scenarios are written in the old CoC style and are strong pieces of concise writing which have aged far better than some of the scenarios in contemporaneous CoC supplements e.g. "the Asylum and other Tales". Like most of the older scenarios however, they do require more work on behalf of the keeper to extend the background material than do more recent CoC modules - e.g. only one has any information presented in player handout form. All four scenarios are gratifyingly non-linear. The first three scenarios were reprinted in the 4th edition rulebook. The first scenario, "Paperchase" is a short adventure to be used with a single novice player. It is not particularly involved or dangerous, but works well towards the purpose of introducing a new player to the game system and theme of the game. It should not take more than a couple of hours to run even the greenest of players through this one, including rolling up their first investigator and explaining the rules and aims of play. (3 pages) "The Mystery of Loch Feinn" is set in Scotland (yeah!) and involves an investigation into the disappearance of a Palaeontologist in the highlands and the legendary kelpy (that's Water Horse to the foreigners out there). This features a powerful supernatural enemy that could wreak havoc with many groups if used ruthlessly, but the scenario is written in such a way that it be played focusing on the human cultists as the main enemy and the monster used as a lurking presence in the background perhaps using some of its powers at dramatic moments. I generally think CoC is much more effective and scary played like an atmospheric b&w horror movie than as a 1990s gorefest. The early investigations will need to be expanded upon by the keeper and stats will have to be generated for most of the bad guys as they have been omitted. (7 pages) In "The Rescue" the investigators look into mystery behind the death of a US government official and disappearance of his daughter in the wild woods of America. A communist plot ? Or are bad guys responsible ? This dangerous scenario, featuring a non-Mythos foe, is another winner. Once again there are no stats for a couple of NPCs which may be needed. (8pages) The final scenario " the Secret of Castronegro" takes the investigators to New Mexico, where a series of cattle mutilations and disappearances have occurred. This scenario has at least a couple of boxes that can be used as player handouts although they are not specifically designated as such, but again requires a little expansion in this regard. Nonetheless this is another strong scenario featuring "reverse evolution", undying warlocks, evil familiars and much more. (13 ½ pages). This scenario was not reprinted in the 4th edition rules, but does appear in "Cthulhu Classics". So is this a worthwhile buy ? The answer is a resounding yes. The CC has stood the test of time better than many of the early CoC supplements with only the rules articles being rendered out of date. When first published this was a straight 5/5, almost 20 years on I still rate it as 4/4. The CC is a regular item in ebay auctions however, usually going for a reasonable sum, so don't pay over the odds for it in an online 2nd hand store. Also you may not find the additional material enough to warrant buying the CC if you already have 4th edition rules.

the Cthulhu Companion