Call of Cthulhu: The Asylum - RPG Review
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 17 ก.พ. 2022
- Something sinister lurks at Greenwood Asylum and the investigators must discover the cause of these strange deaths. What they uncover is far worse than they'll expect. Here's my tips and criticisms for the classic Call of Cthulhu adventure The Asylum, which is more of a sandbox setting than a pre-written scenario.
I do apologize that what I intended to be a 20-25 minute video ended up being far longer. So sit back and enjoy.
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Here's the link for the NPC letter and modified maps that I used when I ran the adventure. The letter will need to be changed to fit your own group, but hopefully mine will provide some inspiration. - drive.google.com/drive/folder...
Guest starring Jack the NPC. - เกม
"yeah, in hindsight that plan didn't make any senes at all. but once everything went wrong and it blew up on our faces, not a single one of us could even remember whose plan it was or why in the hell we even agreed to it in the first place" - every group ever
I remember in a campaign I played some years ago, a player was late to the session, thus we had started without him.
When he joined the action he asked: "What is the plan?".
One of the other players responded: "What plan???".
We always just blame Steve
... yeah, I remember night, I was there for that one too.
famous last words--
"it seemed like a good idea at the time..."
Staccato Staccato 9i
Daily Reminder that Call of Cthulhu is HUGE in Japan. Like, bigger than DnD huge. There are some source books that only came out over there.
I use to volunteer at a place called “The New Orleans Home for the Incurables.” A real life crazy name you just cant believe still exists.
Needs to be a band name.
Holy shit.
Thanks for volunteering, I should do more of that.
Thats got to be a tween book series from the early 2000's.
"There is...a house....in New Orleans...they caaaaaalllllll the Rising Sun..."
For the squatters having eyes on the players as they march up to the camp, instead of the scouts having a horn I like the idea of them using bird-calls.
This gives the chance of a natural world, biology, or other skill for the players to cotton to the fact that they are being observed. "You hear another owl hoot. Again, this is in full daylight", "That crane whoop strikes you as odd. Shouldn't they have all flown south by now?"
A few months ago, my wife suggested during a game to use a owl hooting as a signal. I reminded her that she was a city girl and probably didn't know any owl calls or that the other characters probably didn't know any either. Just then we heard a real owl call outside our house!! We about fell over laughing!! (BTW, I still didn't allow it.)
"As a game master who has successfully run this adventure". I would kind of like to see a review of an adventure you have NOT successfully run. Not that I assume it is a common occurrence, but it sounds like it would make for a very entertaining addition to the war stories series.
I seem to recall that Seth said somewhere (maybe one of his livestreams), that he doesn't have many of those because he always vets the adventures before running them to make sure they are something that would work for his players.
That's correct. I try to vet them and fix any issues in advance and make sure they're a good fit for my players and I. I'm not going to run it unless I'm confident we'll have fun with it. Off the top of my head, the closest I had to a bust was Crash Dive. I thought I'd made all the necessary changes before the session to fix the problems, but was wrong. The game was fun in the end, but the portions I added far exceeded the module.
The "Successfully run" phrasing came from one of my early reviews (Madness in London Town). Basically, one prolific reviewer gave it a scathing review. This led to a bandwagon of other people hating on it. Like forum threads of people dogpiling it with complaints ranging from the perfectly legitimate to the ridiculously stupid. Problem was that it was obvious that most of them had never played it. None of them ever claimed to have tried. Some said it was unplayable. It certainly had its problems, but most of the complaints they had were super-easy fixes, and seeing reviewers who had clearly never played it label it as unplayable really bothered me. We played it and had a blast. So when I reviewed it, I said how I'd successfully run it as a small jab at the reviewers who never played it. The phrasing stuck because I liked the sound of it. About 2 years ago I did a review where I didn't say "Successful" and was flooded with questions if my not saying successful meant that it was a bust and yadda-yadda. End result, it I kinda have to say it in every review now.
@@SSkorkowsky Now I'm curious what you'd make of the "haunted house" section of the campaignbook "The Black Sepulchre". An NPC A that worked for B was also C's nephew, but C lived a hundred years or so after B. If I remember correctly. The chronology was not established (great when the backstory is about a dynasty), so most of it is conjecture. And some other issues as well, but that was the most glaring one. Took me about 2 hours to make sense of the entire chapter and then another 8 to come up with fixes and explanations to make the story fit together in a way that was palatable for the players.
EDIT: Read it up again, and the "nephew" is at the same time someone's son as well as their daughter, and B and C lived several centuries apart. Yeah...
@@SSkorkowsky I just hope you do the whole "...as a GM who hasn't successfully run..." as an April Fool's joke.
Do you mean one he hasn't run, or one that he misjudged and it turned into an absolute trainwreck? Either one would likely be hilarious.
Gotta love how the investigator's buddy stuck them with the equivalent of a thousand dollar tip via his letter.
Think of it as extra motivation to get their friend out of the asylum. If he dies, you're out $50.
Do not pass Start, do not collect $50... "Get out of the Asylum free" card?
For players who don't want the formal investigating agency angle involved, you might try this hook that an old veteran of the original module suggested to me years ago:
He had four PCs of diverse backgrounds. He and they were looking for an adventure to bring them together as investigators without an outside agency involved, so he did this:
He had the female PC, a young housewife named Annie, get a call from her NPC brother, asking for a favor. His Mother-in-Law, Lucy, had injured herself and needed someone to help her do washing work at the Asylum while she recovered. Annie agreed and was given a temporary job as washerwoman alongside Lucy at the Ayslum. Through interaction with Lucy, a trusted employee who had worked there since it opened, and observation of the place, Annie soon realized something was wrong and asked her husband, another PC, to come in under the guise of offering to repair some bad electrics in the place. After that, they asked their good friend, a college student with a mind for psychology, to pretend to be interested in an internship at the place. The fourth PC, an old soldier, decided to come in for a psychological evaluation, claiming war trauma. In short order, all four PCs were in the place with legitimate and varying degrees of access while arousing minimal suspicion that they were all in collusion. Half the fun was keeping their association secret. Proved the perfect introduction for the group and inspired them to form an investigatory agency afterwards.
You should watch my group flat out resist any "Call to Action" in favor of rping eating lunch, shopping, heading in a different direction, and leaving town all in the same session.
Love the image of Jack giving a preteen possessed by a yithian a piggyback ride. The only thing funnier would be if he comes across another yithian possessed NPC and turns out to be the same yithian from The Asylum.
And that yithian will also demand a piggy back ride!
@@Aliexster That just makes it funnier.
"Greetings prior conveyance. This vessel has suitable ambulatory capabilities. This being does not require your services."
Bad Moon Rising?
Nothing will make me stop what I am doing faster than the chance to hear "Hello Internet "
Me Too
So funny to hear about the box full of preserved red herrings.
Holy crap 42 minutes??? Going to cosy on up with a cup of tea and my Keeper Notebook for this one! I haven't seen it all yet but thanks for the great content and dedication Seth!
Yeah... I honestly hadn't planned for it to be this long. I was thinking 20-25 minutes. It wasn't until I recorded it that I realized I may have made a monster video.
@@SSkorkowsky We are glad you did :)
@@SSkorkowsky raaaar!
@@SSkorkowsky It was done well, so I don't have a problem with the length!
@@SSkorkowsky Ain't nobody complainin'.
Oh, wait, this is on the internet.
Somebody is complaining, but feel free to ignore them.
I ran this one years ago, having it as kind of a side scenario in my Providence campaign. I never noticed the references to Maine until after we were already well into the scenario, which annoyed me. I think it took us about five sessions. It was a meat grinder.
After several failed plans to have one of them committed so they could work from the inside, they finally get someone in and then couldn't get him out. When they creep in to rescue him, it all hit the fan. One of the women in the group went through the gate to the secret lab but immediately came back, alerting the guards which she didn't see. When the cop went through, they blew him apart with shotguns. Later, they were up in the cells and a new investigator was claiming he was the one they were there to rescue as none of them actually knew the investigator who had gone in. They managed to escape with only another investigator death and took the Yithian, who helped them with the formula to defeat the protoshoggoth. They literally melted it. It was insane. And a lot of fun.
My group also got the police involved.
Nice review as usual. I think my investigators got all the mythos tomes in the place. They did NOT turn into protoshoggoths.
The Dr was tough as hell. Being a goo monster he could squeeze through the barred windows and other small gaps when he needed to escape. So they hammered him down a couple times, but he'd get away and come back regenerated. He fled into the Secret Lab and brought back the lesser proto-shoggoth, which was even tougher but dumb. Only reason we didn't lose a PC to it was we were playing Pulp and the player dumped all his Luck in order to survive it. After they killed it, one of the PCs heard the Dr coming, so he hid and ambushed the Dr. By the time they found the books with the instructions and the Yith, they'd already destroyed the Secret Lab with a homemade bomb and a couple drums of diesel. The whole end portion once the monster was revealed was exciting as hell.
"In hindsight, that plan didn't make any sense at all" lmao. Always love the Frankenstein's monster-esque plans that TTRPG parties cobble together.
Your voices. That's all it is, your voices. The sudden shift from mobster to Zuckerberg-esque uncanny valley and back again had me cracking up so hard I probably damaged an internal organ. Also, "I got to give a piggyback ride to an ancient and powerful being." It hurts. Everything hurts...
Man, I absolutely LOVE the Yith in the body of a kid idea. The pinching hand is great, and I also really like how it doesn't even dislike its captor.
Seth, I've always appreciated your insistence that a good Keeper will alter published scenarios to fit their groups and update them to modern understandings of gaming. Just because an author write something doesn't mean that it will work for any particular group, or was a wise set of mechanics to pursue. The most sensible thing for industry and amateur writers to do is to write options into scenarios that help Keepers consider ideas that will work best for your group. This is one of many great contributions you've made to the community. In my opinion, it is the single most important one!
A Seth video on a day I got amazing news about a potential new job ! COULD THIS DAY GET ANY BETTTTTER !
Another awesome video! Dr. Freygan and his powers sound like he would make a great reoccurring villain (depending on how the adventure plays out of course). You could have it that he can change appearance as well (a la Batman's Clayface). Maybe even take over the identity of a character's friend or loved one, and play it out like The Thing.
"Give them a horn of something" You already have them a horrifying scream that is deafening, just have them use that. It's not as if a horn is more subtle, and the scream will be far more scary.
The boxer hunting group was a small movement in Maine that decided eschewing life in a creepy Stephen King city inhabited by Lovecraft demons was much less safe than using their punching skills to gather meat via boxing deer.
Pre-tenderized venison.
No school like the Old School! THIS was one of my first adventures, way back in the day. there is ZERO leeway for you. You either die a Hero, or live long enough to become a patient...
One thing I can say is that the change in Sanity Points system- MAY give you a shot at completing this one, these days.
Thinking on it, if I were to run it, I would have all the investigators start in the asylum (perhaps after a sanity blasting adventure), but them being nearly cured and on their last day or 2 before being released. They get to meet and bond with one of the inmates who is killed, see something weird, and are released the same day their friend is mysteriously dead.
32:00 FWIW, I think the "four mechanical repair rolls to crack the safe" thing stems from the 1st edition of the rules and was intended to show that it's a long, time-consuming process barring the use of explosives or something. Unless something (like an irate proto-shoggoth psychiatrist) interrupts them the PCs *will* get it open eventually - they can just keep testing every few minutes till they accumulate four successes - but it might take a long while. Later editions played around with the re-testing mechanics but in the early days you could make multiple attempts without (say) having to go improve your skills first - unless the Keeper specifically said otherwise, which would be a little silly in this case. If you're down to using mechanical repair you're destroying the safe's lock and maybe hinges, not trying to work out the combination. It's just a time-consuming brute force job using the right tools.
Not even a minute in we get one of the best jokes of the year thanks Seth!
You bringing up Jessica fletcher and Cabot cove Maine have just made me decide that we *need* a murder she wrote style call of cthulhu adventure... or at the very least build a jessica fletcher clone in call of cthulhu
Hell yeah! Check out Brindlewood Bay, it's a PBTA game about elderly women solving crimes.
@@evilscientistrecords And has a very strong Mythos feel behind the crimes. Don't sleep on the Unquiet Dark either, essentially Jazz Age prequel game that's up on Zine Month right now. Good stuff.
@@evilscientistrecords Cthulhu She Wrote
@@richmcgee434 cheers I'll check it out!
I love it when Jack goes "Hold on {Name}! We're coming to save you!"
Man, that is some nostalgia gold there. First adventure I ran after getting down with the Silver Twilight story arc. My players *hated* that proto-shoggoth.
I can't help but note that my old playthrough involved a considerably larger amount of dynamite than Seth's did. By the time my group was done with things the place needed a new asylum, and three of the six surviving PCs took the opportunity to fake their own deaths and start life under a new identity.
"Greenwood Asylum for the Deranged. Come for the groovy sounding name, stay because the staff won't let you leave."
The Asylum name makes me wonder if there are any mental institutions dedicated to "The Mostly fine but just in need of a vacation"
Those places are called hotels, not asylums, even if I understand how you may have confused them.
The Happy Valley Restatorium for the Criminally Quirky?
Now that sounds like a place in need of a secret horrific cult....
@@tylerforbes2842 The cult of MagicPixieGirlCutieGoth?
Resorts?
You could have the PCs be patients at the asylum but since they’re low risk, they could be allowed to get day passes to spend the day out in town. That way, they can still gather information - just under a time crunch
I played this adventure years ago, one of the few times I've ever actually gotten to play CoC that wasn't Delta Green, and what my keeper did was add a hook by changing up literally everything about the 5th victim short of his name.
He was an NPC we met a few adventures ago, and he went nutters due to the events of that adventure and got carted off to the asylum by his employer right after the fourth death and he learned that they were all transients without any family/friends to check on them. In his paranoia he sent us a letter begging us to get him out of there because he knew he was next. We decided to check it out because out of character we all know an adventure hook when we see them and none of us were the type to ignore one due to ic reasons.
When we got there he was already dead and we knew something was up so we got to work.
The player who got hospitalized was a player who was missing the sessions due to being off at Army Reserve training. The Keeper said he was keeping in contact with the guy and keeping him informed and they talked over what he was doing while we were in the city.
It took us five 5-6 hour sessions to beat, about 30 hours total. We really got into RPing with the locals.
It's always a good day when Seth puts out a new video!
It'd be cool if a module had either a conflict between some of the different cults showcased in different previous modules or even they and their normally rival gods working together out of fear of some even bigger big bad that's coming. Especially if the players dont realize it for a while and have a cool "What could scare a god?" moment.
What a interesting campaign, ever since I first saw the cover of this one way back in one of your older reviews I just had to hear you review this one. I'm glad you have finally review it Seth. Worth the wait :)
Have a damn good day :D
Seth, I've recently discovered your channel. I wanted to let you know that I really appreciate it. You produce excellent videos that are very helpful. In particular, I appreciate your approach with straight talk about RPGs without a lot of hoopla. I look forward to viewing more. -Jesse
Damn I love your videos! I've been reffing since 1979 and I love how you address a lot of the same things that I've had to deal with. Please never stop with these!
this channel always delivers
much thanks to you Seth!
Seth I miss your skits with the gang and would like to see them more in your videos.
With the bootleggers, I created an NPC named Francis. Francis had "seen the light" about what was going on inside the Asylum, not in full but he'd seen enough and it shook him up. The idea was that Francis was going to be hiding out at a local speakeasy and the players could interrogate him and if they could make it through the mental trauma and the hazy of hard hooch in his system they might learn some clues.
Unfortunately no one even bothered to ask about them. ;-;
I don’t even have any opportunity to play table top role playing games but I always enjoy your excellent videos. Thanks for all your effort. Much appreciated!
Woot, another Seth Review on CoC and at 42 minutes!! Grabbing some snacks and a drink and buckling up for a watch!
Weak hooks are fairly common in early CoC scenarios, 'Darklaw' the CoC scenario published in Imagine Magazine's horror issue has as it's hook, either someone sends the PCs an anonymous letter pointing them at the adventure location or the PCs walk past the location and 'decide it looks suspicious' and thus the investigation starts. 'Deep Trouble', a scenario published in GDW's Challenge Magazine however takes the cake. The PCs are reading the morning paper and if they pass a Mythos check realize that an article in the crime section references several mythos tomes and might be worth looking into.
The hook you crafted with the letter reminded me of a murder case that took place in Australia in the 1930s. The event that busted it open involved an abrupt end to a corresponence between two friends, an evasive answer from the person the victim was staying with and a missing persons investigation that ended with a triple murder charge for the perpetrator.
I enjoyed the zoom in self reflections. Keep up the good work.
When Seth mention the War of 1812, it got me thinking; how come we don't have more Call of Cthulhu scenarios set places like New Orleans. I can't think of a more perfect place for scenarios like that due to its reputation for mysticism and the occult.
Chaosium did a Sourcebook for New Orleans and there is Golden Goblin Press book full of New Orleans adventures
Problem is, it's already weird on it's own. The effect is much more stunning when set against a cornfield or sleepy beach town.
@@tylersitar Yeah, Mythos weirdness works best when it contrasts with a seemingly innocuous setting.
@@tylersitar i disagree. New Orleans for example was used in the short story Call of Cthulhu by HP Lovecraft, and the history perfectly lends itself to the Hastur / King in Yellow mythos. Plus you have shows like True Detective (season 1) to draw upon for more inspiration.
Hey Seth, I just want to thank you for getting me into Call of Cthulhu, now I run my own game and it’s the funniest ttrpg ever, thanks man!
Awesome to hear!
Always a good day when Seth uploads a new video!
Becoming a proto-shoggoth sounds neat! Doesn't sound like any real downsides either imho. As always, great video. As someone who doesn't really have anyone to play ttrpgs with, and always says he'll try and DM something (maybe ryuutama?) but always balks at the prep involved, it's nice to listen to your vids and get some enjoyment by proxy. Keep up the great work!
Hope you and your loved ones have a safe and happy 2022! :)
P.S. You ever try Red Markets or Base Raiders?
I'm not familiar with them.
I wish CoC had more settings like this. I love being presented with a location where Mythos phenomena is happening that allows me the freedom work it into my existing game. Potential plot hooks are certainly welcome, but I really love that OSR "this is where you are, this is what's happening, you figure out the rest" DIY attitude that is lacking in CoC.
Silent Legions is great for this!
Such a good Video. Made me pull out that scenario to look it over again! I'll be running 'The Auction' from the same collection at Chaosium Con and looking forward to doing it.
Aw thank you Seth! Ive been waiting to run this one as part for a campaign and now I got this decent video for a reference
It blows my mind that you’re still under 100k subs, man. Every video is, as my 4.5yo likes to call things, a banger!
Yayy great review Seth. I got this as well from backing the kickstarter. 😃
I once ran an asylum game with elements from the asylum and shutter Island. My solution to the story Hook problem was to run a session where one player played their usual character, one played another patient and one a sympathetic guard. That way every player would have a solid grounding in the mystery and the asylum when the player character got released and started ranting about mysterious goings on at the asylum.
Also meant once they got in there they could find the patient player character missing and the guard incarcerated as a patient and intentionally driven insane.
The adventure is never "done". It follows you in your dreams. It haunts your quiet moments and lurks in the dark corners.
I actually really like your alternate investigator character. Your vids are really good!
Your vids just keep getting better
"I like the paint job so I'm subjecting you to it." It was at this moment I realized you are my spirit GM.
Great idea with coloring the map and adding labels!
Love your channel thanks for putting out interesting stuff...
I've been binge-watching your vids. Thoroughly enjoyable even though I don't have an opportunity to play CoC.
Gotta love these... Keep 'em coming.
I ran this one recently for a group of friends. (Some of whom you may know) I found your review helpful. I almost feel like the entire squatters camp part could have existed as a completely separate scenario. At least for our group, I didn’t think it added much to the story. I think The Asylum needs some small tweaking, but is a lot of fun. The reveal at the end was a fun challenge. Thanks for the review sir.
I’m thinking Jack should do a review of the best Asylems of Cthulhu
That Yith Kid story was amazing! I love the Yith, they are my favorite
Seeing a video title with the name "How I Gave a Piggyback Ride to an Ancient and Powerful Being." would honestly be hilarious.
Hey Seth. I really enjoy your videos mate. I was thinking of using the scenarios from the books Fears Sharp Little Needles and The Things We Leave Behind in a modern-day Pulp Cthulhu campaign set in my own existential horror continuity (no Cthulhu or whatnot, my own eldritch being Chos'Choloth has a cult which is attempting to summon him into their dimension) but the big plot point is that Nyarlathotep has managed penetrate the dimensional barrier or 'the dimension between dimensions' and is slowly encroaching on this world with his influence, bringing Arkham Massachusetts into existence and the Necronomicon etc all for shits and giggles. He tried to get the PCs to join forces with him (which was an incredibly fun scene to RP) but they said no which didn't matter to him, as he knows with all their newfound knowledge they will surely cause plenty of chaos where ever they go. But sorry, I digress, you mentioned converting this scenario to Pulp Cthulhu any advice could you give overall for converting Call scenarios to Pulp? Besides just ramping up stats and stuff?
Oh my god, the Yithian voice is just 👌! Also, would you ever review the Delta Green campaign Impossible Landscapes? I love it, though I haven't run it, but I'd love to hear your opinions.
💕 I love Seth's videos .
The only negative is the prices on old books with the adventures goes up .
Love your videos as always! Have you played any more Delta Green? Love to see your take on some of the scenarios.
I’m tempted to get both the Malleus Monstorum and the Asylum And Other Tales just so I can learn about Arwassa. Sounds badass.
What PCs do sometimes is so funny - always checking the box lol
Greetings and salutations. Thank you for this review and all your great ideas for how to improve the scenario. I will need to listen to it again and take notes. I may have missed this question in one of the other comments, but from where did you get the miniatures you showed during the video and are they still available?
Truly an acclaimed scenario in the classic Chaosium library! I’ll have to get that copy in the Summer!
Ok I admit I'm being a smart ass right off the bat here but I have to ask? Have you ever UNSUCCESSFULLY ran an adventure? Boy that would make an AWESOME video:)!!!!!
I recommend the Strange Maine blog for Keepers who want to use the state.
I do not play RPG's, but I truly enjoy Seth's videos!
Woot missed the Cthulhu reviews!
I enjoy your videos, and really like that you actually play the modules. Also, I really hope Jack the NPC doesn't get his brains eaten someday by some nightmare. He's the best! Here is a bottle of 12 yr Macallan for Jack.
I feel bad for being neither a player nor a gm but I'm just here for Jack and those few times that Todd slips in to Seths voice.
You're a funny guy, dude.
Quite the dude guy, to be sure.
I think that, *sometimes, and in games specifically like this, having your players feel like their task is 'unfinished' even after completing a module can be a benefit to the atmosphere.
It gives that weird 'wait, are we sure we killed the bad guy?' vibe.
When Seth was talking about an alternate plot hook to get the players started on this adventure, I immediately thought of the Supernatural TV show. Every once in a while the Winchesters would get a message from a hunter they had worked with in the past, and that person would ask for their help. Then, funnily enough, Seth actually mentioned an NPC his players had run into on a previous adventure who had the last name of Winchester.
Assuming all of the PCs haven't only worked with each other when investigating the mythos, an NPC they had worked with in the past (either in game or not) seems like a great hook.
I used this as a base for a adventure in my sci fi world wars campain that we're doing, changed a bunch of stuff around to make things work with it like the big robot guards on power line tracks and tezla gun wielding orderlies
Famous Last Words: “Yeah, I’ve been to the Skorkowsky Channel for the Deranged on that there TH-cam thingamabob. They got such great videos that I’m thinkin’ of committin’ myself so I can finally meet my hero, Jack the NPC, in person and buy him a round fer providin’ his extra thoughts at the end. What could possibly go wrong?”
Thanking you kindly for your input Seth, it’s great to get your insights and opinions.
Would love it if you did a follow up review of Cyberpunk Red. You’ve covered the Starter Pack but super keen to hear your thoughts on the whole shebang with the hands on time you’ve had with it. On the fence about getting it myself and would love to get your opinions on it!
If not, no stress. Keep up the excellent work!
I'm torn on Cyberpunk Red. I've played several sessions, but haven't GM'd it. They did fix many of the issues with Cyberpunk 2020, and greatly streamlined it. However, some of those changes feel a bit too streamlined to me. Parts are... weird. I'm unsure the reasoning for those changes. Some of them I actively dislike. Some of my favorite things that made me fall in love with Cyberpunk 2020 are gone. I'll need to not just play, but run a few sessions to really make up my mind. However, we're deep into 2 other campaigns in 2 other game systems, at the moment, so I don't know when I'll be finishing one of those and running Red. I'm unsure how many of my complaints are about legitimate problems, or are simply the shallow complaints of a crotchety grognard who doesn't like edition changes and can't see the bigger picture of what the new edition offers. With more playtime I'll be able to focus my attention on what Cyberpunk Red is, versus what it isn't, and see how it come off for someone new to the game and without hundreds of hours playing the old edition.
@@SSkorkowsky You are a scholar and a gentleman for replying directly, sir. Much appreciated for the time and honesty!
As for the copy in 🗾, Lovecraft is surprisingly popular there. Found plenty in Hokkaido.
Have you ever checked out the Zweihander gaming system? I'd love to hear your thoughts and some advice on it. To me its like a mixture of Call of Cthulhu and Conan blended together.
Anyone else sorely tempted to play the mad doctor like Hannible Lecter? Counstantly gaslighting, misdirecting, charming, exceptionally intelligent and outwardly helping the investigators with their case/s.
"Oh, you noticed those enthralling designs? Fascinating aren't they? They were created by a patient and I'm having a devil of a time puzzling them out. What kind of mind could devise such things? I hope to find some clue or guide to help heal the poor soul."
Seems like something I'll be interested in once the updated version is released.
I backed the kickstarter too...with this and Black Devil Mountain, you could have a Pulp Cthulhu Maine mini-campaign in and of itself. It could be interesting if you rooted all of the PCs to being residents in Greenwood to familiarize themselves with the area, but then provided the hooks to start Black Devil Mountain.
The idea of having a friendly NPC send a letter from inside the asylum is a good hook! There is another scenario that uses this as the hook for a similar situation , "Genius Loci" from the "Doors to Darkness" collection. If anyone is looking to run "The Asylum" with this hook in mind, i'd recommend checking that scenario out if maybe just to get further ideas from it
42 minutes of Seth and Jack? Hot damn!
8:24 Gosh, what a look of pain on Seths face... I felt that... damn.
I had a friend incorporate this into Shadowrun. Confronting Dr. Shoggoth went poorly. As I recall, out of 4 'runners, one died, one went insane enough to not run away, and the other two burned the asylum down with everyone in it.
My ancient CoC run-through went similarly. Seven players (gods, our groups were huge back in high school) saw two die, one go mad but get rescued by the rest, and the other four blow the place into rubble with rather a lot of dynamite. Three of the survivors (who'd all been patients) took the opportunity to fake their own deaths and vanish, so when the cops and fire department showed up it was just one sane PC, the other one raving about eyes in the walls, and a few other NPC patients who'd survived the blasts and fire. The sane guy managed to convince the police two competing groups of bootleggers had done it after Doc tried to doublecross them.
Thank goodness for relatively limited 1920s CSI, right?
I bought The Asylum back in the '80s not long after it came out. Never got to run it for my group back then, but I really wanted. I will definitely get the 7e version when it comes out.
Love the image of his the doctor's smug smile *literally* slipping from his face and lying on the floor in front of the players before squirming back into his body. . .
The Yith-kid description being one single clip is impressive.
I think this would be a pretty nifty pbp game. Maybe have the players in two separate chat rooms based on if they’re inside or outside the asylum, only being able to communicate with each other from the other side with a third channel that has a low character limit.
“I can promise you that.” Priceless.
37:07 Can you imagine the horror of helping the sheriff and his men “solve” the squatter problem? Because they wouldn’t be eliminating just grown adults, they’d be exterminating families. Children, the elderly, they’d all have to be put down.
Now that’s a dark note to end an adventure on.
Those handouts reminded me of how long it's been since I've written anything in cursive.
Had to do it so much in grade school, I can still do it almost subconsciously via (slow) muscle memory. It's probably been over 25 years since I did so.
How long has it been since that was pulled from school curriculum in the US? Can't say I miss it, as I recall peoples' cursive writing would often get sloppier, and less legible, the older they were.