Here is where players can chat 'out of character' (OOC).

Lady Bankroll is here, let's go! ;)

In reply to Jennifer Smallwood (msg # 2):

Hey, I've given up waiting for access to a properly formatted character sheet from Heaven resources, and just quickly drawn up a rough sheet based on the sheet in the Rulebook. I haven't filled in the details from the pre-gen characters yet, but will try to asap.

Greetings 🙂

Hello, all!  Everyone ready for the deep, dark jungle full of incomprehensible dangers?  :D

Can't be worse than Hampshire in winter!

In reply to Keeper (msg # 3):

OK thanks! So I assume all points are allocated then. Do we still get to buy equipment, or is it also pre-set?

Greetings. Herr Doktor Professor Johan Braun here, your linguist. if you need someone who can speak Quechua or Spanish, or just in case, read cuneiform, I'm your man.

Hey, all!

If you have any friends who you think would be interested in this game, feel free to send the link to them, as we still have 6 character-spots.

Otherwise, I may wait the 4 days or so, before bumping the Looking for Players ad.

It's not like we need all the characters to be filled necessarily, but it would probably be worthwhile to at least wait for a few more before we actually begin.

Thanks,
Keeper

In reply to Jennifer Smallwood (msg # 7):

Regarding equipment, the character sheets don't have any equipment aside from each character being given some particular "treasured possession". I'm actually thinking that considering this campaign will actually end up being "globe-trotting" style and each of your characters are heading from around the globe to Lima, I'm personally not worried about being strict about finances within reason.

If you don't have access to the rulebook, I could provide a rough equipment list from which you could select items. Essentially, you've got clothing according to your particular style, the doctor would have medical equipment (which we could discuss in PM for specifics). Other characters (such as Archibald the Engineer) could have relevant tools. Of course, each of you could likely have some basic form of weaponry, like handguns? In terms of lodging/residences and vehicles, we could probably just negotiate in PM too.

Any other thoughts on equipment, feel free to either post here so we can all converse, or otherwise feel free to PM me personally.

In reply to Keeper (msg # 10):

Are there plans to continue the game to masks or is it just for peru chapter?

In reply to Dr. Arthur Dibden (msg # 11):

I am hoping if things go well with Peru to continue on to the Masks campaign.

Bruan would have, subject to the GM's permission, one full dress suit in case he is asked to deliver a guest lecture at the National University of San Marcos or other distinguished Peruvian institution, or attend a dinner at the American or the German embassy. Beyond that, he would probably have several sets of informal sturdy clothing, boots, perhaps a pith helmet.

For weapons, he would carry a Lugar P08 handgun, and a Nahkampfmesser (trench knife) both issued him during the Great War. He engaged in schlager-fencing (Mensur)at his university, and has the facial scars to prove it, but does not carry a schlager sword under normal conditions on an expedition.

Although he can read and speak Spanish,and has studied Quechua (with little opportunity to speak it), he would probably carry dictionaries of both languages.
This message was last edited by the player at 02:24, Fri 22 Apr 2022.

Jennifer has been on an extended tour of the USA, so (GM willing) she has been travelling with five or six travel trunks filled with the latest flapper fashions, ideal for frequenting elegant soirees in New York and then California. She heard about Larkin's expedition when she was there, so I'm assuming she's taken the first steamboat for the port of Callao and is now lodging in the most luxurious hotel she could find in Lima. As January is the southern hemisphere summer, she's been stocking up on lighter, breezier clothes for the expedition.

Probably also a few items bought in preparation for the expedition? Like a camera to take pictures, stuff like that.

She's not usually one to carry weapons, but I'm thinking she got one as a present from a California cattle baron that tried to wow her back in San Francisco. It's Colt Model 1908 Pocket Hammerless, a 380 ACP compact semi-automatic with engraved gold plates and pearl grips - a fancy piece, dainty enough to fit in her handbag. She has been known to shoot it at empty bottles as a late-night party trick.

Another thing:


I'd like to know my skills, please, to decide if it's worth having kit I won't be able to use properly :)

Having been to Peru (my sister-in-law is from there), it is indeed very warm all year round, and very dry in Lima.  That's actually in a strip of desert along the coastline.  But we were there in February, and my sister-in-law apologized profusely for how cold it was one evening when the temperature dipped down into the mid-70's (about 23 Celsius).

In reply to Jennifer Smallwood (msg # 14):

Did the cattle baron try to wow her or woo her, or both?

In reply to Prof. Eleanor Butler (msg # 16):

I think you must become our expert on genuine local conditions.

In reply to Prof. Eleanor Butler (msg # 16):

Does the weather become cooler up in the Andes? That was my impression from geography class.
This message was last edited by the player at 02:34, Fri 22 Apr 2022.

In reply to Johan Braun (msg # 19):

Well, expert might be a bit strong, but I'd be glad to help out where I can if we'd like some extra local color.  Things do cool down at higher altitudes, but it still got into the 70's when we were at Machu Picchu up in the mountains.  January would be part of the rainy season, however, so heat may not be as much a problem as humidity and possible downpours once we start moving higher up.

Thanks for the weather warning. Braun should invest in a mackinaw jacket.

In reply to Jennifer Smallwood (msg # 15):

Hey Jennifer - and everybody! - I've just managed to find time to go through all your character sheets and insert attributes and skills. Some characters actually do seem to have weapons, but they weren't clearly set out on the pre-gen contents.

In reply to Keeper (msg # 22):

Thanks! ;)

Now this is going to sound like a total newbie question, but...



What's that "40/60" stand for? Is it a 7th edition thing?

I just changed the Tag on the last remaining characters that haven't been assigned to any player yet as NPC. In 13 hours, I can bump my ad in Wanted Players, which I'm planning on doing. But considering that we have 6 out of 10 characters? Maybe we can plan to start later next week even if we don't get all characters assigned? We can even insert these characters in if I get players joining a little after we start?

In reply to Jennifer Smallwood (msg # 23):

Yes, I'm presuming it just makes it easier to do skill tests against differing levels of challenge. Say, an attempt to do something is considered more challenging, you've probably roll against the 1/2 amount of your skill, or extremely challenging you would roll against the final number.

I'm still actually a little new to the 7th edition, but I'm feeling like it will probably end up being kind of intuitive in the end :) At the end of the day, thankfully, Call of Cthulhu really is way more of a "role" playing game than simply a "roll" playing game :D

In reply to Keeper (msg # 25):

Aaaah, so it's just "half skill/fifth of skill". Thanks for the clarification!

Last time I played it was the 5th one, I guess I should get the 7th ed and see what has changed for myself, huh.

And go through that equipment list for Jenny's shopping spree in Lima while I'm at it :P Shall we list stuff in the Character Details, here, somewhere else?

In reply to Jennifer Smallwood (msg # 26):

You can probably all just add equipment onto the bottom of the Character Details sheet. I have made them editable by players.

Cool! Is it worth bringing Jenny's own, fancy car? Or is the expedition not expected to traverse vehicle-friendly terrain?

In reply to Jennifer Smallwood (msg # 28):

I wouldn't think it would be worth it for Peru, but it will probably come in handy if you get back to the States and to Europe eventually :D

Hey, mates! Looking forward to gaming with all you cobbers. I’ll be playing Maddie Brown, a bit of a rough and tumble anthropologist from down-under.

Welcome aboard!  :)

Good morning! I too am jumping in, I'll be playing as Francoise Pelletier the French photographer. She seems to be a very charming and persuasive lady, and should be a lot of fun to play.

I've not had the opportunity to try Call of Cthulhu yet, so I might have a lot of questions along the way, but I'm very excited to join all of you in this story!

Ah, good, glad to see more people joining in.  :)  I'm a little rusty on the system myself, but I'm sure we'll all learn together before we start going mad...

Magnifique! I was about to get a camera, but surely you will look me good much better in those expedition pictures for the papers, mademoiselle Pelletier.

With Francoise Pelletier (photographer) and just now, Perry Astor (Canadian explorer) added, I actually just have the last two remaining pre-gens unassigned, the engineer and the Sikh ex-soldier.

Very glad to welcome two more to the party.

"Good evenin' folks! Archie Washington, excited to be here."

So, I've got one private message that requested the photographer (which is already taken obviously), but they also have quite a bit of experiencing in keeping and playing CoC. So I'm seeing if they'd be happy/willing to take on Pranit.

Otherwise, I do have a more recent request for Pranit too.

So, it looks like either way, I will have a player for the final character on the cast. I've currently (irl) doing my Practical Legal Training to get a Graduate Diploma of Legal Practice (expecting to be admitted as a solicitor later in the year), which involves my Second Intensive (Wed, Thurs, Fri) this week. So, at this point, I am planning to look at getting the action started next weekend.

Thanks for your patience, everyone, and looking forward to seeing this awesome story unfold with you all.

Thanks,
Your Keeper

In reply to Keeper (msg # 38):

Best of good fortune on your Second Intensive.

Wow, 7th edition is more demanding than I thought, kudos to you for putting such rigorous campaign ground-work, we appreciate such a dedicated and thorough GM!

Good morning to you Ladies and Gentleman. It is very equitable to make your acquaintances at the beginning of this most interesting expedition. I hope that the Gods will see to our safety, but in the event of danger I am here to place my continuance between yourselves and threats to your continued safety.

xDDDDDDD

Welcome, and thank you for joining our expedition, mister Dhillon. Always reassuring to have a loyal British soldier on our side.

Bienvenue <welcome> to Archibald and Pranit!

Welcome, welcome.  I'm looking forward to getting started.  :)

In reply to Pranit Singh Dhillon (msg # 41):

Very interesting version of the way an educated Indian used (or was believed by the British to use) English.

It’s role playing, right? By post. We all exaggerate certain characteristics of our fantasy avatars to create a colorful cast. Wait ‘til you see me murder the ‘Strine accent. And let’s not forget the inevitable anachronisms that will crop up and social faux pas we don’t even guess we’re committing. Looking forward to outraging you all.

Reading your character's background, I certainly would say I'm glad to know, but it's good to know somebody else understands what it was like to navigate an extremely rough homecoming from the Great War.

In reply to Madelyn Brown (msg # 46):

Ironically :) I am Australian, by the way :D

In reply to Jennifer Smallwood (msg # 42):

Bah! The British made to cashier me out of their infamous Army as and Invalid! And all this for injuries sustained in fighting their war against the forces of the Kaiser. Loyalty can only be purchased with admiration or gold. I now sell my loyalty to those who choose to pay for it. My word is my bond, equitably purchased of course.

In reply to Johan Braun (msg # 45):

The vernacular is inspired by some lines from various Kipling stories. He was very vivacious in his use of language. I fear I will do it more harm than good.

In reply to Archibald Washington (msg # 47):

It struck me as a character I can identify with. I am also a former soldier who retired after a long career with experience in the conflicts that US has been involved ranging from the Persian Gulf war of the early 1990's to the Global War on Terror in the late 2010's. Luckily, no one chose to force me into medical retirement for wounds sustained in battle. I look forward to playing this character; the horrors of war meets the horrors of Lovecraft. It ought to be a blast.

Greetings everyone! I have currently posted individual posts in each of your backstory threads with a telegram from Augustus, your arrival at the rooms prepared for you on level 4 Hotel Maury, and those personal threads are open for you to respond regarding your arrival and preparation.

I will soon be opening a joint thread for the 18 March meeting.

...and we're off!

Ok, just a heads up. I've received a response to your telegram in your personal threads from most of you. I was just waiting to see if the last few players wanted to respond. Dr Dibden did let me know that he was wanting to move on, which is fine. I've let Perry and Françoise know that if they would also prefer to just move on, that's fine.

I am planning now that whether or not I receive a response from those two remaining characters, I'll be posting the new thread for the group meeting, which will have everyone in it, and we can get to the actual action.
This message was last edited by the GM at 12:55, Fri 06 May 2022.

Some expediency like that is always going to be necessary with a group this big, or we'll just lose steam waiting for every single player to act.

yes, the dreaded play by post creeping pace. just do what you feel is necessary, we are with you.

Ready, cobber!

OOC: If you wait for every applicant to reply, you will never get started. About half will disappear in the first few weeks, and some of those will resurface six months from now wondering why you didn't wait for them. Set your own pace.

Agreed, if a GM ever needs to progress things to avoid stagnation I think we're all for it.

Looking forward to getting underway!

Let's do this.

To get in the mood: central Lima in the 1920s


This message was last edited by the player at 19:00, Fri 06 May 2022.

In reply to Jennifer Smallwood (msg # 60):

More cars than I expected, but then this was in the middle of the capital.

When I was in Lima -- primarily in the Miraflores district -- there were probably six or seven million people in the city, and of course plenty of cars.  (Many people who had cars made extra money by using them as unlicensed taxis.)  But in the entire district there was only one actual stoplight.  And yes, crossing the street was basically taking your life in your hands.

That last part reminds me of being in S. Korean cities in the 1980s. One saying was that the line down the middle of the street just indicated the third lane of traffic.

Hello, Players!

I am the expedition photographer, French-born but having lived in Lima for many years.

In reply to Francoise Pelletier (msg # 64):

Bienvenu, mam'selle. I regret that I, the player, speak French much more badly than Johan, my character, should be able to do. I can read French moderately well, but I cannot improvise conversation in the language. Please just assume I welcome you with fluent enthusiasm.

And please assume the War and all its terrors is too fresh in her experience to allow an enemy into her circle of friendship.


That doesn't preclude a change of heart in the course of our adventures.

I understand, and Johan should understand, Fran's feelings, if she decides to explain the reasons for them to him later in the game. Personally, he feels he did his duty as a subject of the Kaiser by serving in the war, but he sees the French (and other Allied) soldiers as honorable opponents; he is not a Nazi seeking rache (revanche) for the defeat.

Johan suspects nothing about Larkin's illness, but I do --are we looking at a Lord Carnarvon "curse of the pharaohs" type scenario?

The National Socialist German Workers’ Party (Nazi) were founded in 1921. I'm sure there were people sharing the ideals that lead to the Nazi party (on both sides), but in WWI it wasn't really a "thing".

It is true that the Nazi Party was founded in 1921. During WW1, as you say, there were no Nazis, though there were ultra-nationalist groups such as the Pan-German League and the German Reform Party (previously more bluntly named the Antisemitic Party). I made Braun flee Germany to escape the Freikorps, German veterans' rightwing paramilitary groups, who failed to seize power in the Kapp Putsch.

Just so long as he doesn't have ties to the American industrialist groups that were fueling intrigue about the world for economic gain things should be alright. Otherwise all bets are off.

I edited my last IC post to allow for a longer stay if anyone wants.

In reply to Pranit Singh Dhillon (msg # 72):

No, he is employed University of California, Berkeley, which was a center of Indian nationalism in previous decades (the Gadarite movement). Some of its leaders cooperated with Germany in World War 1, so he as a German patriot (though not rabid Nazi) is sympathetic to their movement. I suspect he may have studied Punjabi and Sanskrit with one of their more scholarly leaders,

I'll probably be wrapping up Scene 1 thread, and most likely will move ahead to the Saturday afternoon meeting with the Professor, unless anyone has particular plans that they might want to do before this meeting.

great, thanks, great job everyone.

Archie doesn't particularly care about seeing the professor, but would attend that meeting if there are no alternative plans.

He's broke and not going to strike out on his own with any free time, but would gladly lend a hand with anything he might be the slightest bit more helpful with than a university meeting.
This message was last edited by the player at 22:49, Fri 27 May 2022.

Same could be said of Jenny. Maybe we could go somewhere fun in town? She's paying Archie.

I sure can carry bags!

Francoise knows the town.

But she's too French to work for me, hein? ;)

Jennifer is perhaps a bit overwhelming, a bit intimidating, a bit… How shall one say? A bit too much of herself, perhaps.

Francoise is the daughter of a captain, granddaughter of a major, widowed fiancée of a lieutenant. But she herself has no rank, no position, only a middling education —from a Peruvian college, my deary— and a bit of srtistic talent. She has seen firsthand the horror of war. The War. Yet still she is something of une souris des champs, a country mouse, n'est pas? She lives among bohemians and radicals and is something of the sort herself.

This doesn't mean they can't become friends over the course of the expedition, just that they are not now.

Hi folks. We are in deepest darkest Cornwall for a week of camping. Posts will be by phone and short, so apologies.

Enjoy your visit. I had a nice time in Tintagel many years ago.

In reply to Winston Greene (msg # 83):

Enjoy. I post solely from cell phone, hence the short length.

In reply to Francoise Pelletier (msg # 82):

Gotcha. Jenny is a British renegade, so she revels in American 'spontaneousness' and likes to affect an exaggerated informality. Also a bit like this:


This message was last edited by the player at 12:59, Mon 30 May 2022.

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news...4f2f94feb48008690bf8

This sounds like a good model for a site we could explore.

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news...4da79ed99e7fb4e851d2

Another interestingly gruesome site near our present base in Lima, though much more recent than the one we plan to explore.

Deep under the weather. Got cough, headache, body aches, sneezing and coughing, great fatigue, and fever spiking 101f. Got a COVID test this morning. Seems a good chance I got it. Will post as I can.

Eek!  Get well soon!

Deepest sympathy and best wishes for swift recovery.

Get well soon!

In reply to Francoise Pelletier (msg # 89):

Sorry to hear. Hope you're feeling better soon.

Get well soon !!!

I am gonna exit this game, sorry, have fun.

In reply to Perry Astor (msg # 95):

Good luck. I hope you find other games you enjoy.

In reply to Perry Astor (msg # 95):

Sorry to see you go.

So, we're gathering at the hotel for luncheon before going to meet the local academic, right?

Correct, the meeting is at 2. Everyone started gathering at breakfast, which isn't a problem, but Winston isn't going to wait there till luncheon, that's just greedy ;)

In reply to Winston Greene (msg # 99):

Well, Winston could wait in the hotel between breakfast and lunch, but I don't think he'd be eating all the time between breakfast and lunch, unless they have some kind of all-hours buffet.

Yeah, it was a joke

We visited that museum when we were there, and it was great -- it's actually in a restored mansion built by one of the conquistadores, so just the building was beautiful, with a gorgeous courtyard.  It wasn't really aimed at tourists, at least not back then -- the cab driver kept asking us if we were sure we wanted to go there -- and unlike the Museo del Oro that we also went to, all labels and signs were only in Spanish.  We ended up hiring a college student for the day to translate for us -- a lot of them make extra money by doing that.

Also, for the other female characters, there was and is some rampant sexism down there.  After the tour, my dad wanted to give the student a tip, as the guidebook suggested, but he didn't have anything small so he asked my sister and I if we had something we could give him.  We pulled together some money between us and I handed it to the student -- at which point his friends started laughing, apparently over the idea that he was being tipped by a girl.  It's considered odd there for women to have to do anything with money when there's a man right there who could do it for them...

In reply to Prof. Eleanor Butler (msg # 102):

Given the several strongminded women in our party, this sexist culture could create interesting situations dealing with the locals.

machismo was considered a spanish virtue until very recently in history. it made them noteworthy duelists, hunters, equestrians, and athletes for centuries.

People, it's a hellish month with work here, and I don't think I'll be any freer until mid-July. Sorry for my absence, I'll understand if the GM prefers to NPC my character or give it to another player. If not, then assume Jenny is in her room nursing the mother of all hangovers and will rejoin you at a later date.

In reply to Jennifer Smallwood (msg # 105):

Sympathy on your "hangover" -- I hope you will return when you can. You were a lively character till this happened.

In reply to Jennifer Smallwood (msg # 105):

I'm happy to take things slow. I've got my final intensive coming up in the first week of July for my Graduate Diploma of Legal Practice. So, I'm a little busy between now and mid-July too.

It does seem like the interlude has pretty much ran out, and we're mostly just looking to head to Scene 2: Meeting with the Professor? I'm happy to hold back from starting that thread - or otherwise, maybe some of the characters who are less the academic type may have been planning on just spending time in town investigating, and possibly arranging supplies for the expedition setting out on Monday.

I think that's definitely the case for Archie. Certainly not in a rush, but also don't feel a need to manufacture posts about anything mundane for the prelude.

In reply to Keeper (msg # 107):

I'd like to get to the (end of?) luncheon to bring Francoise back to the group before they head off in new directions.

Whatever works for the rest of the party is all right for me. I will (if my flight schedules don't get canceled) be traveling to a conference in Britain July 3 to July 9, and my internet access is uncertain.

me included. i think most of us are fine with moving forward at the GM pace. we just look forward to the game developing.

hello all. i will be leaving this game. sorry to say, i own a small surface laminate company and recently won a major contract that will take up most of my time, probably until the end of the year. thanks again and good luck.

In reply to Pranit Singh Dhillon (msg # 112):

Best wishes.

In reply to Pranit Singh Dhillon (msg # 112):

Well, I am very sorry to see you go, but at least your reason for leaving is a positive one. I hope your contract is successfully completed and leads to many more.

I should say I will be traveling July 3 through July 9. I am not sure how much internet access I will have.

How are we all doing? Everyone ready to gather at lunch and then go to the museum or whatever?

Yep, barring any more pressing matters or preparations, Archie will tag along.

Yes, I am back and ready to play on with the visit to the museum. I apologize if I did not report my return. I thought I had notified all the games I was in that I was back, but I seem to have missed this one.
Incidentally, I am currently enjoying reading Janvier's The Aztec Treasure House in the e-book collection Lost Worlds -- though set in Mexico rather than Peru, the opening does include a visit to a museum which reminds me of the current stage of our game.

What's up, Keeper? Are we abandoned?