Call Of Cthulhu Monster

[Jacinda Saleeby]

Mostmonsters and entities have characteristics includingSTR, CON, SIZ, POW, INT, and DEX. However many do nothave an APP or EDU, since these qualities are meaninglessin such alien and horrific creatures. Keepers have full reignto alter, modify, and rethink these entries. Lovecraft did notcodify the monsters in his stories, so neither should you ifyou wish to present dramatically different versions.

When considering what a being canlift or throw, use a standard human asa guide. The average human of Build 0could lift someone of equal build off thefloor, perhaps carrying them over theirshoulder. Something of 1 build smallercould easily be lifted, and a thing of 2builds smaller could be thrown. With astrain, a human of Build 0 might just lifta person of Build 1. The most a personof Build 0 might do to a person of Build2 is to unbalance them or disarm them.

Mythos gods and some Mythos monsters aremultidimensional, existing in our plane of reality as well asothers beyond our reasoning, and thus cannot be truly slain.While hit points are given, should such a creature as an OuterGod or Great Old One be somehow reduced to 0 or negativehit points, the thing is not killed or rendered unconscious,but is dispelled or forced back from whence it came. Meredamage will not destroy or even harm these powers. If theyare forced or persuaded to leave, they can return.

In combat, monsters can use the same range of maneuversopen to humans. The Keeper should visualize the monsterand imagine how it might take advantage of its physical formin combat. If it has tentacles, hands, or pincers, it might seizehold of its opponent. If it has a prominent mouth then itmight bite and hold onto its prey. Large creatures mightsimply trap their opponents with their bulk, crushing the lifeout of them. Opponents that are seized or grabbed are helduntil they succeed in an opposed STR roll or maneuver oftheir own to free themselves.

Unless a monster is trying to escape or being especially crafty,you should respond to investigator attacks by fighting backrather than dodging. When fighting back, a monster shouldgenerally use its basic Fighting skill. A monster that has morethan one attack per round may also dodge or fight back thatnumber of times before its enemies are granted a bonus diefor outnumbering it (see Outnumbered). Thus aghoul with three attacks can fight back three times beforeits attackers gain a bonus die to their attacks. Some Mythosentities can never be outnumbered by investigators.

Suitable spells for each monster are suggested, althoughothers may be known if the Keeper wishes.In many cases, the Mythos monsters described hereworship one or more of the Outer Gods or Great Old Ones,and it should be assumed that they would know at least onespell to contact, call, or summon their masters.

Chapter 12: Grimoire of the Keeper Rulebook (opens new window) details many suitable spells,however Keepers are encouraged to adjust spells and use thedeeper magic versions; after all, these beings are not somefumbling human wizard seeking the mysteries of magic, butrather the very embodiment of the Mythos in all of its horrificsplendor.

1. What's the easiest way of understanding difficulty of encountered creatures? Is there some equivalent of a "challenge rating" for this? I get that this game is a lot less combat focused, but I also want to avoid having my players run into an enemy that just squishes them immediately.

2. As far as I can tell, there isn't supplemental material devoted entirely to new monster stats like a "monster manual." Do any of the supplements I'm seeing for sale have a lot more monsters in them?

BRP-derived games are a different beast than D&D but there are some things to look for when evaluating monster toughness. Look at the creature's damage bonus; that's how much hurt it can lay on your adventurers. Its attack skill percentage (for example Bite 56 percent) gives you an idea how likely it is to deliver that hurt. Finally, the monster's hit points and armor points tell you how much damage the heroes will have to do to it to take it down. Armor subtracts from damage, so if the player-characters do 6 points of damage to a creature with 3 armor points, the monster only suffers 3 points of injury.

I haven't had a chance to peruse 7th edition material but Call of Cthulhu core rule books have tended to have a generous selection of monsters. In addition, books such as the Malleus Monstorum have an extended listing of terrors. In general, investigators will most often run up against human cultists and human-sized critters. There are plenty of other threats but they are so huge and mind-blowing that characters' best option is to avoid or (rarely) outsmart them.

This means it is relatively easy to re-skin a monster; just find a creature of the same relative size, and simply rename its attack, tweak its special powers and abilities, and create your own description.

Don't think you have to have a new 'monster' for each session either. D&D players may quickly tire of bashing kobolds, but in CoC you can get a lot more mileage out of the same creature (Deep Ones/Ghouls/Mi-go/cultists), just by changing the conditions or numbers of opponents. Fighting one Deep One on a sunny beach is a lot different than encountering a swarm of the batrachian horrors in a light-less, flooded tunnel.

A lot of the beasties in CoC can easily take an investigator apart if they go in guns blazing. This is one game where you have to work smarter, not harder. And while cultists, et al, can die as easily as the investigators, the investigators are not running around in Greyhawk or Forgotten Realms. They are in our world, with all of the various laws and legal snafu to deal with, so they can be arrested for manslaughter.

The PC's are fragile. Startlingly so. They begin life with a few more HP's than the average 1st-level D&D characters, and as they gain experience they gain... ZERO additional HP's. An ordinary gun might kill them in a single shot (or it may just wound them, allowing (evental) recovery). A big gun will PROBABLY kill (or at least disable) them in a single shot.

Players who go in expecting PC's to be action-adventure heroes will be frustrated and disappointed. Plowing through lots of monsters, lots of monster-encounters? YeahNO. That's a kamikaze run... and probably one that fails to get very far INTO the run. FWIW there is a variant, "Pulp Cthulhu," that supposedly (I've never played it, so I only report on what I hear) leans more in the "heroic action-adventure" direction.

Mostly you will face humans of varying stripes... neighbors who don't WANT to believe there is an apocalyptic horror-ward in the basement next door. Politicians who want the problem solved QUIETLY, because it's an election-year and because they don't want a panic on their hands. Jaded cops who have seen these drugged-out hallucinating hoodlums before, weren't impressed then and are less-impressed now. Innocent teens who just worry that "Bobby went in on a DARE and I haven't seen him since." And every rare once in a while, a human whose mind and soul have become tainted with that horror ... obsessively fighting it, fleeing from it, enslaved by it, etc etc etc. Figuring out which humans are which is part of the problem the PCs face...

CoC PC's are typically called "Investigators" for a reason -- they mostly investigate, problem-solve, etc. They are hoping NOT to face any monsters, just the deluded humans who are giving the monsters entre into human society (or entry to our dimension) .

PC's who end up fighting the actual monsters tend to want weapons like flamethrowers and dynamite, stuff that is outside the normal civilian-scale weaponry. Often they want more of it than they can get.

Players in my old RQ group had a Call of Cthulhu campaign where they treated it more as a Pulp campaign. Some of them were veterans of the Great War and knew where to get hold of ex-army ordinance. They used flamethrowers, grenades, tommy guns and depth-charged the Deep Ones.

Attacks per round: 2

Fighting attacks: Thebyakhee may strikewith claws or crashinto its victim,delivering grievouswounds.

Bite and hold (mnvr):If the bite strikeshome the byakheeremains attached to the victim and begins to drain his or herblood. Each round the byakhee remains attached, includingthe first, the blood drain subtracts 3D10 points of STRfrom the victim, until death occurs (at STR 0). The byakheecharacteristically remains attached with this attack untilthe victim is drained of blood, unless the victim can make asuccessful opposed STR roll. Escaping death, let the victim restand regain blood (by transfusion as well), at up to 1D10+5 STRper day. A Byakhee may hold only one victim at a time.

Do byakhee possess the ability to fold space? Someconjecture that this power manifests via a certaininternal organ, sometimes known as a "hune." Thereare some who would find great interest in the potentialapplications such an organ could have as a weapon ormethod of transport.

Attacks per round: 5. Dark young may only use a Trample attack once per round.

Fighting attacks: In its masses of tentacles, a typical dark young has four thicker sinuous tentacles with which it attacks. Each of these thicker tentacles can strike out to injure. It may also kick out with its hooves, simply crush, or strike with its massive bulk.

Grab (mnvr): The Dark young can use its tentacles to grab and capture up to four victims. If a victim is grabbed, he or she is held to one of the horrible sucking mouths and drained of 1D10+5 STR per round. This STR loss cannot be restored. While being drained, a victim is capable only of ineffectual writhing and screaming.

Trample: The dark young can also trample with its massive hooves, typically hooting and bellowing as it rears up and attempts to trample as many opponents as it can (up to 1D4 humans if they are situated close together).

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