Convicts & Cthulhu: Campaign #1

"So Vile A Place, It Cries Out To Receive the Mythos' Touch"

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In 1803 the penal settlements at New South Wales are a mere fifteen years old, but are already synonymous with harshness and brutality. Back in England their reputation has been well-established as a hellish place, half a world away from any form of civilsation. While most people find the very idea of such a place repugnant, there are always those who look at blackness and see . . . opportunity.

This supplement describes an eight-chapter campaign titled "New Dawn Fades" in which players take on the roles of individuals (whether convicts or free persons) who stumble into a secretive scheme. What starts out as a series of apparently-unrelated outbreaks of unnatural manifestation, eventually proves itself to be something much more insidious.

Through a series of adventures, the Investigators battle an unseen enemy, a group who seems hell-bent on using the newly found colony as a testing ground for its Mythos ambitions. Will these 'experiments' wipe out the settlements (and potentially all life in Australia)? Or will the Investigators bring these hidden machinations to light and thwart them in time to avert this terrible fate?

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C&C String-A-Line (Campaign) #1 is a campaign frame which provides GMs with extensive guidance on running an eight-chapter campaign set in and around Sydney Town between 1803 and 1805. As well as offering a compelling backstory, allies, and adversaries, the supplement gives detailed notes on adapting eight scenarios into an epic story of Lovecraftian horror. Also included are a set of all-new handouts to support the gradual revelations of the campaign, and a set of six pre-generated Investigators. Using the resources in this PDF the GM can run a lengthy campaign which challenges the players in varied ways across 10-15 game sessions.

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C&C String-A-Lines (Campaigns) provide frameworks for stitching the numerous tales, seeds, and game scenarios previously published for the Convicts & Cthulhu, to form longer form narratives. In particular they are designed for gaming groups who wish to run Convicts & Cthulhu "campaigns" in which an ongoing team of player-controlled Investigators foil the foul schemes of the Cthulhu Mythos across multiple chapters of an epic tale of Lovecraftian horror, amid the cruel conditions of the Australian penal colonies. In addition to this PDF you will need the original C&C supplements in which the component scenarios were initially published. Links are provided in the PDF to free copies of these supplements.

This is not a standalone product, but relies upon the Convicts & Cthulhu setting also published by Cthulhu Reborn. The Convicts & Cthulhu core book is a lavishly illustrated 96-page sourcebook available in both PDF and print as a "Pay-What-You-Want" title.

Convicts & Cthulhu is designed to allow Call of Cthulhu Keepers and players to run scenarios and campaigns set in the penal colonies of early Australia. It particularly targets the historical period from 1795 to 1810.