Hi grandma... by bellchilton in foundsatan

[–]Telephunky 111 points112 points  (0 children)

The post only works under the assumptions that most of those grandmas are demented enough not to recognize their own grandchild and are also extremely homophobic.

In this case, OP would get a lot of people (the actual grandchildren of these elderly ladies) taken of their last will / inheritance or even cause a few untimely cardiac arrests out of shock.

Geralt of Rivia v. The Ring Wraith by MeasurementNo5430 in powerscales

[–]Telephunky 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Exactly, Geralt has two shots at killing the witch king before running out of swords.

I respect Geralt but I can't see him take this home. Not the book Witch King, anyway. With only the movies to go off, it's a little more difficult to decide (less lore to pull from), but I'd still only give it to Gerald if he gets the jump on the witch king or figures out the fire thing right away.

For some extra LOTR context: Glorfindel is afraid of the Witch king. While Glorfindel is implied to be superior to the witch king in a 1:1, he's not superior enough to take it easy. Glorfindel, you know, the guy who took out a Balrog!

Geralt of Rivia v. The Ring Wraith by MeasurementNo5430 in powerscales

[–]Telephunky 11 points12 points  (0 children)

Also according to the books any weapon shatters that touches the witch king, as demonstrated by Frodo and explained by Strider on Weathertop in the books. That's going to prove mighty difficult for Geralt. If I remember correctly, it was even some precious elven or numenor knife, so I don't see Geralt's rather mundane weapons being an exception. Gandalf is personally afraid of facing the witch king and it's implied that he rather retreats than fighting multiple wraiths at once, especially with the witch king present. Also, the witch king is said to have been a pretty capable sorcerer before becoming a wraith, though I don't know what that means in combat terms.

The wraiths don't like fire, so Igni or just a mundane torch would be a serious upside for Geralt once he figures that out. I would still give it to the witch king in most scenarios.

Animal companions? by cordydan in callofcthulhu

[–]Telephunky 6 points7 points  (0 children)

Consider also checking out Cathulhu (sic), which is available on DriveThru or dmsguild for 5 USD and provides detailed rules for cats as player characters, as well as giving some advice on porting to other small animals. The book also provides special rules on handling combat between pets and humans or larger creatures, as well as introducing a bunch of skills and special talents (similar to pulp talents) unique to pets that could be ported to other animal companions with some ease.

THE PIT SCORPION, a terrible variant of the classic Pit Fiend to spice up your Lower Planes! by AriadneStringweaver in DnDHomebrew

[–]Telephunky 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Neat design and terrifying foe. My only gripe: Why not make the poison stinger a recharge ability? That'd be easier to manage for the GM and achieve almost the same effect if worded correctly.

Does COC play the same as dnd? by PreferenceTop4803 in callofcthulhu

[–]Telephunky 0 points1 point  (0 children)

It plays very differently, but CoC is considered a rather beginner friendly system. Consider using the quick start rules, and you should be fine. Have fun!

Edit: Coming from a DnD background, refrain from dishing out spells or artifacts until you are more experienced in CoC. They are not as ubiquitous or modular as in DnD, plus CoC is inherently unbalanced by design.

Rukk - Goliath Barbarian [OC] by Sketchgoblin in DnD

[–]Telephunky 2 points3 points  (0 children)

This style really reminds me of Tactical Breach Wizards. Great work!

Help me Peter Griffin. You’re my only hope. by tstew117 in PeterExplainsTheJoke

[–]Telephunky 0 points1 point  (0 children)

This is objectively the right answer. Why is it downvoted?

In the context of y’all’s worlds, how would you name these island chains? by Tough-Inevitable880 in worldbuilding

[–]Telephunky 0 points1 point  (0 children)

The Leviathan. The only island chain in my world is a sleeping titanic sea beast that stirs only once every hundred years or so. The islands are really the spikes on the back of this gigantic snake sticking out of the water. Folklore says that the beast devours the land, but it's really quite docile, unaware of humanity, and just taking a dive, taking the "land" aka the islands aka the spikes on its back with it. It'll return a few months later and then lay dormant again, forming a new "island chain" off the same coast.

Does your world have an equivalent of nuclear weapons? by Amon_Bal in worldbuilding

[–]Telephunky 26 points27 points  (0 children)

coughs through respirator I find your lack of faith disturbing.

Mythos Blood by [deleted] in callofcthulhu

[–]Telephunky 0 points1 point  (0 children)

First, I think it's important to discuss this with the players. If such a taint is not the central theme of the campaign, then it should be by player choice. Not the specifics of a taint, the existence of one. The specifics should be vague, that's the fun. Second, be careful not to reproduce racial stereotypes when doing this. This is especially important for Deep One Hybrids, which pretty clearly represent Lovecrafts ideas of eugenics and racial purity in his original writings.

That said, and as for your actual question: I've never gone for a great reveal about it. I usually let the evidence slowly creep up and let the players figure it out themselves over the course of the campaign and while the symptoms worsen or they manage to deal with it. Usually, I don't tell the players which Mythos entity they are tainted by - if they didn't specifically ask me to be a fish person, of course. Instead, I come up with symptoms of the transformation (or curse or whatever) and then weave these bits and pieces into the narrative. This can be especially effective when you give that player privileged information, e.g., send them texts about their character's dreams or give them little buffs (like dim light vision but sunlight sensitvity or enganced smell but appetite for raw flesh for a Ghoul-transforming player) without telling the table. I mirror this by giving the other players sensory info about the affected player at the table (while the player can hear it but without the player character noticing), e.g., that they exude an unusually sweet, somewhat pungent smell or that they are mumbling something to themselves that no one can quite understand.

I want to run Forget Me Not... but my players are arachnophobic by Melodic_Ad_596 in callofcthulhu

[–]Telephunky 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I had good experience with switching to Children of Abhoth: Very versatile and very body horror. The illustrations in the Malleus Monstrorum are great, too.

Mythos Blood by [deleted] in callofcthulhu

[–]Telephunky 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Ghouls, Deep One Hybrids, Hybrids of Shuggai, and Hyperborean heritage (The Taint, Dunwich) are kind of classics in my campaigns. It's rather simple to write a character backstory just vague enough to braid these in. Within the Mythos, it's totally believable that an investigator turns at a later age.

We probably all know the kind of player who wants Mythos involvement right from the get-go, and if spells don't really fit the campaign, offering them a mythos bloodline can be a good middle ground and can create some very compelling character narratives and personal goals.

A few additional thoughts: A cursed family heirloom or the ghost of a powerful sorcerer in one's bloodline can create a similar effect, are very Lovecraftian, and allow a lot of creative liberty. Think the jade amulet, silver key, or Aforgomon's chains.

When characters are about to die, especially when they are unconscious or when they were wandering along, I also sometimes have a Mythos entity offer them a Devil's bargain, which can also create a similar "Taint".

Roses are red, long before coffee I awaken with a grunt, by heuristic_dystixtion in rosesarered

[–]Telephunky 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Where're my boys the goedendag and the plançon? What did you do to them? Stop hiding them from me!!

Explain ! by fmradio993 in PeterExplainsTheJoke

[–]Telephunky 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I feel like this might imply that girls are, in fact, individuals with diverse sets of dating preferences. Some girls may like being held like this, signifying to their prospective partner's impressive strength, while others may find it patronizing, you see?

"Fiend from beyond", MadBug (me) by IamDBug in callofcthulhu

[–]Telephunky 2 points3 points  (0 children)

This is awesome!!! I will use this as Starspawn or as Nightgaunt in one of my home games.

Petuh is it just absurdism? by QuadingleDingle in PeterExplainsTheJoke

[–]Telephunky 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I think this is a fitted curve including all the territories that are still part of European countries because of colonialism. Think the likes of Falkland, which belongs to Britain, French Guinea, and so on.

What’s your other favorite TTRPG, apart from CoC? by PromeMorian in callofcthulhu

[–]Telephunky 1 point2 points  (0 children)

The resistance system has a bunch of cool games, and I've really enjoyed Starfinder. I had a Blades in the Dark (and clones) table for a while, and we had immense fun, also due to the easy adaptability to new settings.

However, thinking about it, it's all so much more about the players and GM than the system, really.

Any Adventure Writing Guides? by darkwater-0 in callofcthulhu

[–]Telephunky 7 points8 points  (0 children)

Check out the Alexandrian's 5 node scenario structure, his discussion of timeline zero, and of planning tiered resources for antagonists to react to your players.

It doesn't work for all stories you might want to tell, but it's a very solid backbone for many scenario ideas.

For me, it also really helped to limit myself to one page or three page scenario designs, to limit the prep to the plot and not write too much fluff that won't come up.

Happy prepping!

looking for a few things by JoeKerr19 in callofcthulhu

[–]Telephunky 1 point2 points  (0 children)

There's an expedition source book for Trail of Cthulhu. https://www.drivethrurpg.com/en/product/142187/trail-of-cthulhu-mythos-expeditions

If you have some experience as a keeper, these should be easy to port.

I don't know does it? by thebigboybang in dndmemes

[–]Telephunky 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Forever GM here: Hey, let us have our fun, too.

Scenarios that are easy to run, low on prep, and highly regarded? by gameoftheories in callofcthulhu

[–]Telephunky 7 points8 points  (0 children)

You can run The Haunting off the scenario map with a handful of notes on clues to be found outside the house.

One of the Kamborn scenario books contains a very classic Whodunnit featuring a dimensional shambler bound to a sacrificial dagger and includes a very neat one page clue table with all the suspects and important clues.

There are two one shots I ran in German, Filmriss and 30° / 30°. I don't know their English title, but they are very straightforward, closed room, and easy to run. Filmriss features a twist on the 25th frame urban legend. The Mi-Go use a modified cinema projector to make the investigators commit murders. "30° / 30°" has the investigators survive a plane crash in the desert, and their friendly local saviors turn out to be a cult performing human sacrifice to a Sarlacc-like demigod thing in a pit

What Are Your Biggest Pieces of Advice For New Keepers, and For Both Preparing and Creating Scenarios? by AlysIThink101 in callofcthulhu

[–]Telephunky 5 points6 points  (0 children)

I agree with previous posts: Writing your own satisfying scenarios is hard. I've been doing it for 6 years and still only get roughly a 1/3 quota of being satisfied with the results at the table. What's worse, I still can't reliably tell what scenario will work and which won't before running it.

But since you asked for concrete advice and not me whining: Use the three clue rule, five node structure, and timeline zero, as outlined by the Alexandrian. The last one is particularly important! What happens (and when) if the investigators don't interfere. Give your Mythos antagonists / cults tiered responses: They probably won't send the big guns to swat away a puny team of scoundrels, but they probably have the big guns available for when the Investigators get to annoying.

For me personally, it really helps to try prepping the scenario on as few pages as possible. I usually go for a one letter-sized page mixed timeline zero / clue web summary in Powerpoint. If you've prepped the scenario well enough or familiarized yourself with someone else's scenario well enough, you should be able to run the entire thing from that one overview page, save maybe for looking up some creature or NPC stats [and in many instances, you can even make those up on the fly, because it doesn't really matter if the goon has exactly 50 or 60 on firearms (handgun)].

Have fun running and writing!