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MONSTERS against The Masks of Nyarlathotep: New York
Fight the dark god as any humanoid monster: ghost, ghoul, or gargoyle
$30.00
/ Session
Details
Weekly / Monday - 4:00 AM UTC
Oct 19 / Session 12
Session Duration / 2–2.5 hours
Campaign Length / 75–85 Sessions
3 / 4 Seats Filled
Top Game Master
One of StartPlaying's top-rated GMs, a player favorite and highly recommended.
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Schedule
Meet your party members
3/4
About the adventure
Two rules. Save the world, even though it hates you. Keep YOUR masks on. New York, 1925. A cult is carving its way through the city. You are the only ones who can stop it! Despite being werewolves, a serpent being, and a REDACTED, you all still live on this planet! Plus, it's rather nice having humanity stay the way it is. This is NOT an "evil" campaign, you are a Hero with hefty pulp talents (be careful of the downsides!!!). Balance-wise, you are as powerful as a Pulp Hero with 2.5 talents. If the monster you are excited to play would be MUCH stronger than that, we can work together to think of ways to bring you to that power-level. Tonally, you will still need to solve the mystery. Having authorities look too closely at you is begging for trouble. Your task is to unravel a chilling mystery by piecing together clues and asking careful questions. Don't take too long though! Innocent people are in danger. When the time comes for action, hopefully you have made allies. But be careful not to alert the wrong person! 🎲 Award-winning horror campaign, renowned as one of the best ever written 🔍 New player–friendly, everyone will have learned the rules by 90 minutes into our first session 🏳️🌈 Inclusive, welcoming environment.
Game style
Rule of Cool (RoC)
Puzzle / Mystery Focused
Game themes
Meet the Game Master
5.0
(51)
2 years on StartPlaying
299 games hosted
Highly rated for: Creativity, Beginner Friendly, Storytelling
Average response time: 1 hour
Response rate: 100%
About me
My day job as a webdev taught me technology should fade into the background. The same goes for rules: my job is making sure you know enough rules and in-game-lore to feel informed and empowered. I was trained how to teach a game to new players, in a way they have fun the whole time, when starting a university board game club. It's hard for everyone to make time for games. I do my best to run a scheduled game 'no matter what.' You may be surprised at what I “let you get away with” – but that's the point of a roleplaying game! The whole reason I’m here is to allow you greater freedom than any computer or boardgame could ever allow. My role is to invent reactions and consequenses. I have diagnosed and medicated ADHD, one of the ways it can show up is a deep craving for emotional intensity. My toxic trait is seeking strong reactions. Years of unconscious practice mean I have developed a knack for pressing buttons, stirring up conflict, and chasing those moments that make people around me feel. That used to get me into trouble. But as a GM? It’s my greatest strength. I channel that energy into crafting unforgettable story beats and emotionally charged choices. When you disappoint a friendly “Non-Player Character”, I’ll make it hurt. When a villain taunts you, you will burn to take them down. I use every narrative trick in the book to draw you deeper into your character’s journey. Join me in crafting adventures where your characters live, breathe, and grow! (possibly into horrible flesh monsters, to be determined)
View Profile →Character creation
Creating your character
Once you join and contact me on Discord I'll arrange a voice call - usually 40 minutes before game time - and will help you build your character one-on-one! ~~~~~~ Important ! ~~~~~~~~ Ensure your investigator is the type of person for whom international travel will not be too much of a challenge, the ability to travel to Peru and other locations is essential. ~~~~~~ Suggested archetypes ~~~~~~~~ Knowledgeable types: Antique Dealer, Archaeologist, Author, Clergy, Doctor, Historian, Journalist, Linguist, Missionary, Museum Curator, Occultist, Scientist. Expedition guides and security: Big Game Hunter, Boxer/ Wrestler, Explorer, Mechanic, Military officer/Soldier, Sailor, Mountain Climber, Outdoorsman, Translator. Aids and assistants: Butler/Valet/Maid, Photographer, Researcher, Secretary, Student, Bodyguard. Those seeking an escape: Criminal, Dilettante, Gentleman/Lady. Those seeking inspiration: Actor, Artist, Musician, Missionary, Occultist. If the team lacks a certain essential skill, experts can usually be hired. Ex; safecracker or sailor.
New York, 1925. A cult is carving its way through the city. The only ones who can stop it can't let anyone see their true faces. # The Party! Tom Holloway: a banker turned werewolf Dr Henry: a magic scholar with telekinesis powers Mar Heil: Serpent-person hybrid working as a postal inspector At this table, the players want to opt to play a medium pulp session where they fight for the future of their shared planet! 1. Your characters have to be willing to put their lives on the line to save the world, Even if that world hates you 2. Your monsterous identities need to be kept secret from the general public (that whole “keep the spiderman mask on” aspect is what makes being a monster interesting - I think) 3. Your character needs to be ready to accept the other player characters. Inter-PC conflict **cannot** be a foundation of a successful long term campaign 4. You don’t have to play a monster, you can play a very open minded pulp hero 5. Monsters should be humanoid; ghosts, ghoul, gargoyle, etc. I’ll try to balance your your monster abilities to be similar to pulp talents. There may be an in-universe reason you aren’t as strong as other monsters.
What to expect
Preparing for the session
🎙️ Discord account 🌐 Google Chrome 🎧 Working microphone and headphones/earbuds 🤝 A good attitude towards fellow players and the Keeper 👩🎓 No Cthulhu or TTRPG experience needed! 🔞 Must be 18 years or older to play -- no exceptions!
What Isaac Schubert brings to the table
📜 Foundry VTT (use a webpage to play the game!) ☑️ Shared Quest log! 🪗 Music to set and help maintain the tone of the game 📚 All official Call of Cthulhu rules and resources 🗺️ Maps, handouts, and tokens 💼 A friendly environment in and out of game 🎙️ Discord server for inter-party coordination between sessions, questions, 'quotes out of context,' and homecooked memes made by yours truly
Homebrew rules
Pulp luck: each character has a pool of 'luck points' they can use to modify their rolls. We will adjust existing pulp talents (with a fair amount of give!) to give your character relatively~balanced abilities. Most NPCs will NOT take it well if your non-human nature is revealed. You are not human, but in order for the campaign to work, your character has to be motivated to prevent the destruction of human civilization. I strongly recommend that they also have a degree of heroic inclinations - we want to root for our main characters!
Equipment needed to play
Internet
Computer
Microphone
Headphones
Platforms used
Safety
How Isaac Schubert creates a safe table
We are all adults here, I maintain an open door policy. If you have to step away for *any reason*, I'm not going to be annoyed or angry. I will find a way to progress the story, such as cutting away to other characters. I also provide all active players with an open **anonymous google form.** I want to make sure I can improve; and know some things can be difficult to say directly. Please use it! My goal is to get better! There are certain themes that are central to the text and cannot be avoided. Call of Cthulhu games generally play on themes of body horror and mental illness. Antagonist NPCs may also have unpleasant, political beliefs: these are almost always an obstacle to the player characters. In case any situation is too stressful, simply go AFK for as long as you require. My games are the equivalent of a PG-13 movie. I don't do explicit sexual content, but I may allude to it. Tabletop role-playing games are meant to be an escape from the troubles of our daily lives. Above-table prejudices, including racism, misogyny, homophobia and transphobia are NOT acceptable at my table and will lead to your immediate removal.
Content warnings
Safety tools used