The Other War | Eldritch Horror in 1939 New England

Creating your character

We'll roll characters together as part of Session 0. Character creation will follow the rulebook, with two exceptions. You may swap two stats that are rolled the same way (either 3d6 or 2d6+6) if you wish. Luck isn't determined by a random roll. Instead, we'll do some math based on the average of the other attributes to determine it. Characters with weaker attribute rolls will end up with more Luck available for when the chips are down. Please refrain from using generative AI to create images of your character, unless the entire group has decided to adopt its use.

Preparing for the session

You will need a Roll20 account to join the game. (The free version is just fine.) You will need a Discord account. We'll use it for voice chat during game and to keep in touch between sessions. You will also need a mic. If you'll be playing from a noisy place or a place with lots of distractions, you need to have PTT (Push To Talk) in Discord set up before the game starts. This is a courtesy to your fellow players as well as the Keeper.

What Zeke brings to the table

An untold story Are you an experienced investigator who's played every Call of Cthulhu scenario out there? "The Other War" is a completely new, campaign-length story. Theater of the mind ... mostly Most gameplay in this campaign will take place in the theater of the mind, where description and imagination are more important than position and distance. Photographs from the period and artwork will help set the mood. Every now and then, you might find yourselves playing out a critical plot moment or a complex encounter on a gameboard with tokens. Active antagonists Villains aren't sitting and waiting for you to come to them. They're taking decisive action to achieve their wicked goals. The clock is ticking. Many problems, more solutions Your adversaries' schemes are many, but you'll have plenty of options to thwart them. Do you deny them a key resource? Bring down the law on them? Have a shootout in the streets? Wait and see what they do? The choice is yours, but so are the consequences. AI only by opt-in AI-generated images will only appear in this game if all players opt in. Generative AI will not be used in any other way in this game. (All AI images will be generated on my home PC with power from the solar panels on my roof. No data centers are involved and no water is used for cooling.)

Homebrew rules

Either lucky or good We'll determine your Luck stat with a little math instead of rolling it. Characters with weak starting stats will have stronger Luck, and vice versa. Sanity changes Mythos-related temporary insanity will be completely separated from real-world mental health issues in this game. Instead, it follows this progression: First, you have a startling discovery that leaves you reeling for a few seconds. After that, you have a dreadful realization that lasts a minute or so and has an unpredictable effect on you. Finally, you regain your faculties, but your mind takes some number of hours to fully adjust to its new reality. Each step decreases the drawbacks you suffer.

How Zeke creates a safe table

"The Other War" is in the horror genre, and is set in a horrific time period. This game must cover some awful subjects, but we'll do our best to treat them with sensitivity. I'll maintain a list of lines and veils for the campaign. Every participant will have access to it for reference. You may message me privately to add something to the list anonymously if you wish. Various "-isms" appropriate to the setting must be acknowledged for historical accuracy. However, I won't dwell on them in the narrative, incorporate them as plot elements, or have them stand in the way of the success of player-characters. I ask the same of players--let's let the "-isms" stay in the past as much as we can. I may make small changes to the game's narrative if some aspect of it proves to be too challenging.