Beyond the Mountains of Madness - A Harrowing Antarctic Expedition in the 1930s - PULP CTHULHU - Beginners Welcome!

About the adventure

The Miskatonic University's 1930-31 Dyer-Lake Expedition to Antarctica returned to our world in shambles. Many lives were lost and no individual who survived was ever quite the same... What lies within and past these newly discovered mountains at the ends of the Earth, you wonder? Why not find out for yourself? Yes! The Starkweather-Moore Expedition (the SME, for short) is recruiting capable hands from around the world; researchers, explorers, journalists, survivalists, students, engineers, pilots, cartographers, physicians, and any others who are eager and ready to push back against the desolate cold and dark at the bottom of the world, to discover, once and for all, what lies... BEYOND THE MOUNTAINS OF MADNESS! --- All potential expedition members must contact the SME before Saturday, July 1st, 1933 to submit applications for interview spots. The SME will gather to depart from New York harbor in September, 1933 --- ---------------------------------------- Beyond the Mountains of Madness is a campaign that was published by Chaosium for the Call of Cthulhu Tabletop Roleplaying Game in 1999. This campaign is set in the world of the Cthulhu Mythos in the 1930's, following and inspired by the events of H.P. Lovecraft's novella, "At The Mountains Of Madness", and Edgar Allen Poe's, "The Narrative of Arthur Gordon Pym of Nantucket." This campaign is one of preparing for a vast expedition in an age of exploration, encountering and dealing with press scandals, sabotage, rivals, and setbacks, conducting research and following leads, and surviving journeying a place that is notorious for driving explorers mad (historically verified). All the while, you and your fellow expedition members must contend with the troubles of the "dirty thirties", the far-reaching effects of the rise of fascism in Europe, and the otherworldly horrors of the Cthulhu Mythos. I have run this campaign before, and have added my own twists and turns to it to make it more thrilling, still, for Pulp Cthulhu!

Additional Details

How to prepare

REQUIRED MATERIALS, SOFTWARE, AND EQUIPMENT: -Webcam -Microphone -A set of physical dice -A free Discord account -The Free "Syrinscape Online (beta)" app (to be able to hear sound effects) https://syrinscape.com/online/ Scroll down and read the instructions at the link if you are unfamiliar with the software. (I will send you an invitation to receive the sounds generated on my account the day of the game) -A Notebook/Notepad/Writing surface of your choosing for notetaking

What I provide

T'INGS THAT I WILL PROVIDE: -All Pulp Cthulhu Rules and Core CoC Rules -BtMoM Adventure Materials -Syrinscape sound effects and music -Fun, mystery, ...AND HORROR!

Gameplay details

During the course of a typical game of Pulp Cthulhu, the Pulp Heroes (player characters) will, through the course of their activities, regardless of who they are or what they do for a living, encounter something strange, unnatural, or flat-out hair-raisingly horrifying. Your role, as Pulp Heroes, will be to delve into the mystery, behaving as many "idiots" in horror movies might (when they just don't know when to walk away), yet still seeing the true terror of what is before you through your character's eyes --- and, if you think you should call the police, you can certainly try. You are here to find clues, make deductions, roleplay with each other and with NPCs, and possibly go MAD from what you find...and, most importantly of all, BE ADVENTEROUS! A typical game is not combat-focused. However, if push comes to shove, they are hot on your heels, or they are getting away and you need to stop them at all costs, gritty, tooth-and-nail fights for survival can break out. There will NOT be maps and tokens, as Call of Cthulhu is nearly entirely reliant on the theatre of the mind. Images, handouts, dice rolling, and character sheets will be handled through Discord. Voice Audio and Webcam portraits will be operated in Discord. Humour is a vital component of horror, and I respect this, and will NOT be asking all participants not to have fun XD --- especially where Pulp Cthulhu is concerned. However, when things get VERY SERIOUS...! I would appreciate it if participants would please respect the tone, such as it is. Also, I strongly recommend that you take notes to keep track of names and pieces of information. I, J.P., will be playing the role the "Keeper" (of Arcane Lore) (The Game Master). I will be the narrator, the voice of the NPCs, and the informal referee. I am not trying to kill your characters or cause you, the players, distress. I am doing my best to facilitate an engaging story around your characters as they drive it forward. CONTENT WARNINGS *Please be aware that, as this is a horror game set in the 1930's, there may be certain subject matters that, while they are supposed to, at times, elicit discomfort and/or fear, they may NOT be suitable for all players. These themes will likely come up during the course of a game. These themes include; Murder, Violence/Gun Violence, Visions and Hallucinations, References to the Nazi Political Party in the context of the 1930's before WWII, Insanity/Mental Health and Sanitariums/Asylums (in the context of the 1930's... which were also very bad), Religious Biases/Condemnation (in the context of the era (e.g. Catholics vs Protestants, &c.)), Police Violence, Homelessness, Otherworldly Life and Influences, Transformations/Body Horror, Blood/Gore, Cult Rituals, Deep Water/Drowning, Darkness, Mild Sexism (extremely watered-down, in the context of the 1930's), Violence Against Pets and Animals, Smoking/Drugs/Alcohol/Addiction, Reading, and Fishing, potentially bad attempts at certain European accents, though not necessarily in that order!* SAFETY: If, at any point during the course of the game, you find that you are intolerably uncomfortable with a given set of circumstances (that I have NOT listed above as warning), in the game or between players, you reserve your right to use your X, N, O "CARDS" by typing in chat, or saying the respective letter aloud. For context; X=You are uncomfortable with the present content in the game. The group can change the content, rewind and redo, or have the scene fade to black. N=You believe that the present circumstances are leading to an X for you. The group can change course so that it doesn't become an X or have the scene fade to black. O=You are okay with what is going on. If I ever ask "O?", I am gauging everyone's comfort levels (outside of the horror inherent of the game). I would ask that each participant be open to, as a group, discussing any curiosities, concerns, and / or highlights, and excitements pertaining to the content of the sessions, before, during, or after a session, if necessary. If a participant exhibits negative, toxic, abusive, aggressive, hateful, discriminatory, blaming, and/or unkind behaviours that put down / disrespect others at the table, I reserve the right to ask them to stop and/or leave.

Content warnings

(none)

Safety tools used

Aftercare
Breaks
Debriefing
Session 0
X, N, and O Cards

How will character creation work

I will be communicating with each player in advance of the day of session zero, where everyone will make their Pulp Heroes, to help you get an idea of the sort of character you would like to play. I will send you a Google Forms questionnaire in order to gain a better perspective of you as a player to help prepare a better experience for you, and to help you envision your character. If you already know how to make a Pulp Hero, grand! I would still ask of each participant that we communicate, regardless, so as to allow me to be able to tailor the given scenarios to the information I have about your respective Pulp Heroes. (We will communicate in Discord for messaging, audio, video, handhouts, images, dice rolling, and character sheets).

Players can expect

• Find a game to join solo or search for a professional game master for you and your friends/coworkers/family.
• Book your session and wait for the Game Master to approve you.
• If you don't have a blast with your first game, your next game is on us.