The Reference Section - Game information

[Airbornexo]

Game Mood

Please be aware that this really is a very purist scenario – the characters are in for a rough ride! The fun of course will be in your roleplaying and storytelling skills, so please put as much into your posts as you can.

Rules

I'll explain any rules issues OOC whenever it's needed as the scenario develops. This should be pretty light touch though because of the nature of the scenario.

Die Roller

Please use Invisible Castle for your die rolls: http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/

Posting

I'll find it very helpful if everyone can follow these guidelines when they post:

Descriptive text can just be the default black
A character's thoughts should be italicized and in green - color=#008000
Something a character says will be blue - color=#0040FF
And anything OOC in an IC thread should be red - color=#FF4000

Any variation on these colours are acceptable but try not to mix and match them within the same post if you can help it!

Character names should be posted in bold so as to differentiate them from the rest of the post, and it would be great if you put your own character name at the beginning of your posts.

Questions to the Keeper and notification of points spending should be in the form of ‘spoilers’ or the OOC bubble (which is cool and I'll be using as it wasn't on here last time I was gaming regularly!). See the forum FAQs for how to post them.

Character Sheet Maintenance

Don't worry about updating your character sheet when you lose sanity or stability points, spend ability points, etc. I'll handle the bookkeeping etc through a spreadsheet which I'll create at some point.

Note - Thanks to Abdul Alhazred as this is pinched from him to save me time

[Airbornexo]

Tests

Tests occur when the outcome of an ability use using a General Skill is in doubt.

The Keeper sets a Difficulty Number ranging from 2-8. The player has to roll this or more on a single D6, and has the option to spend any number of points from their relevant ability pool (the number after the ability in their stats). These points are added to the result of the die roll. Once spent in this way, the ability pool for that stat is reduced by the amount spent, and not replenished until the character is out of danger and in a safe place for at least an hour. Even then, only three abilities can be refreshed and this will only occur once in this scenario.

As an example, Viscount Exeter is fleeing from a cultist across a moonlit hillside. In front of him is a 5ft high drystone wall. He'll need to pass an Athletics test to cross the wall without injury. Not knowing the difficulty number is a lowly 3 he decides it's crucial he get over, so he assigns 3 points of his current Athletic pool to the attempt. He rolls a 2 which would have meant failure, but his spend increases his result to 5 - success! Viscount Exeter elegantly vaults the wall and continues his escape.

If the attempt fails it cannot be reattempted unless the character can find a credible rationale for another attempt (such as using another ability to achieve the same end). Additionally, another attempt must involve a points spend in excess of the first (failed) attempt.

Players with the same ability can co-operate to increase their chances of success, but I'll cover this if and when it occurs during the scenario.

Contests

Contests occur when two characters, (one often being a NPC), actively attempt to thwart each other.

Each participant acts in turn, with the participant with the lowest rating going first. The first to fail their test (which in broad terms is handled as above with difficulty numbers, spends, etc.) is the loser. Going second is an advantage - you can win without rolling!

Combats are slightly different in the tests continue until one participant/side is the clear winner, and here whoever goes first has the advantage.

I'll explain more if required during the game, but this and my post about Investigative ability spends should give you an idea of the relevance of your character's statistics.

Note - Thanks to Abdul Alhazred as this is pinched from him to save me time

[Airbornexo]

Clues and spends

So how does Trail of Cthulhu actually play?

To begin with, it's the Keeper who knows the who, what and how before the scenario starts. The players then have their inquisitive characters discover the clues that help to solve the mystery featured in the scenario. The Keeper's scenario notes are not a story - the story occurs as the players bring life to the scenario through their character actions.

Clues

Trail of Cthulhu scenarios are not about finding clues. They're about interpreting the clues you do find.

Finding the clues in ToC is pretty automatic. Then the fun begins, when you try to put the components of the puzzle together. All you as the player have to do is:

1. Get your investigator into a scene where relevant information can be gathered.
2. Have the right ability to discover the clue.
3. Tell the Keeper that you're using that ability.

Here are three examples of how you can do this without overtly bringing in game terms and breaking the mood of your post:

Viscount Exeter draws on his knowledge of the occult to see if he can recall what the symbol scrawled on the wall means.

Alternatively:

Viscount Exeter buys the already inebriated Dr Wait another drink and spends the next few minutes casually prompting him to reveal the results of the blood tests.

Spoiler:

Skill Use, Oral History

Or finally:

Viscount Exeter takes an evening stroll around the hotel. As he does so, he looks out for any strange architectural features in the buildings in the neighbourhood that may denote an occult leaning on the part of the occupants.

Spoiler:

Skill Use, Architecture

Clues are normally found by the player with the highest ability score related to finding that clue. However, any character with the necessary abilities will find a clue if they specifically state they are using it in the right way. For example, "Viscount Hilary ignores the body on the floor, moving instead to examine area around the broken window where the intruder gained access".

Spends and Benefits

Certain clues allow you to gain special benefits by 'spending' either one or two points from the relevant investigative ability 'pool' (your character's numerical rating for that ability).

Sometimes the Keeper will ask if players if they want to spend, sometimes it's the players who request a spend. Either way, any benefits or information gained will add flavour to the scenario but spends aren't required to actually solve the case or move the investigation on. Usually a spend will allow something to take less time than normal, or succeed in that ability in a more extravagant manner, or perhaps grant benefits useful later in the scenario.

Note - Thanks to Abdul Alhazred as this is pinched from him to save me time