Pulp Cthulhu

Call of Cthulhu RPG, 7th Edition

by Mike Mason, Alan Bligh, James Lowder

Pulp Cthulhu is a game of two-fisted adventure, weird science, dark deeds, and brave heroes. With this book, some roleplaying dice, and the Call of Cthulhu Rulebook, you have everything you need to adventure and explore games set in the pulp genre. Tired of your investigators dying in quick succession when jaunting around the world in a desperate bid to save humanity? Wishing that sometimes your investigator could make a stand instead of hiding and waiting for the eldritch horror to pass? Pulp Cthulhu ups the ante and provides you with tougher, more capable heroes ready to take on the villainous machinations of the Cthulhu Mythos!
Here you will find an adapted character generation system, rules for psychic powers, sanity, augmented skills, and weird science, as well as tips for Keepers on developing and running pulp-style games. Also, you will find information on the Pulps themselves and the 1930s era when America was in the grip of the Great Depression and on the road to World War II. A collection of pulp villains and monsters, and a range of pulp organizations provide the Keeper with a firm basis for running pulp style scenarios and campaigns. Four action-packed scenarios round out the book, getting your Pulp Cthulhu games started with a bang. The guidance in this book means that you can apply the Pulp Cthulhu rules to any setting and time period, enabling Keepers to bring the flavor and action of pulp to the classic 1920s or modern-day eras, as well as anywhere else they see fit. A Time For Heroes And A Time For Adventure!

Genres: Role Playing Games, Horror, Gaming, Games, Cthulhu Mythos, Pulp, Fantasy

272 pages, Hardcover

First published December 19, 2016

About the author

Line Developer and Editor for Chaosium's Call of Cthulhu roleplaying game, freelance author and game designer.

Reviews

[Ferio · Rating 4 out of 5]

Edición exquisita del suplemento de los años 30 dirigido a partidas más enfocadas a la acción y la caspa que a la esencia natural de los Mitos. No tengo nada objetivamente malo que decir: las nuevas reglas son escasas, divertidas y, obviamente, opcionales, y el resto de contenidos suplementarios (trasfondos, módulos, etc.) son pertinentes.

Pero sí tengo algo subjetivamente malo que decir: entiendo el coleccionismo y el placer fetichista de una edición bonita de un libro deseado, pero los manuales (sean de lo que sean) cada vez tienen menos sentido en formato físico o digital rígido. El contenido de este podría haberse incluido de forma líquida en una versión digital de las reglas básicas, las aventuras publicarse junto a Un fuego frío en el abismo: una campaña desafiante para Pulp Cthulhu, y el contenido de trasfondo construirlo cada uno a partir de otras fuentes. Siento que se publica material redundante solo en nombre del dinero; sigo dispuesto a dárselo, por supuesto, pero no puedo evitar tener sentimientos encontrados.

[Matt · Rating 4 out of 5]

More of my quarantine RPG buying spree.

Basically, Pulp Cthulhu transforms the typical Call of Cthulhu campaign into one with the more heroic action adventure tropes of a more traditional RPG.

For some groups with particular aesthetic preferences, this is probably necessary to run extended games of Call of Cthulhu.

The rules as written are specific to 7e CoC, but the ideas are easily adapted to pretty much any prior CoC edition. Since I prefer combat in the more 5e (and prior) CoC style, that's the way I'm running the game, which has necessitated changes in the Combat Talents, but otherwise the rules can be played as is.

[Redsteve · Rating 4 out of 5]

This one is fantastic. After reading (and being very disappointed by) Cthulhu Through the Ages, I admit to having reservations about this supplement - but, fortunately, my fears were groundless. Although this IS a supplement (be warned, it's not a stand-alone), Pulp Cthulhu is almost as long as the 7th Edition Keeper Rulebook and it is PACKED with resources. The first section is an quick but excellent history of the pulp movement. Following that is all you need to make various levels of "pulp Cthulhu" heroes, ranging from ones who are just a bit more tough than the standard CoC investigators, up to Doc Savage/The Shadow-type heroes. One slight difference between PC and 7th Ed. CoC is that each player choses an archetype AND an occupation, which tends to make for more well-rounded characters (this feature could easily be adapted to use in regular CoC play). There are also optional sections for weird science and psychic powers (if you wish to include them). Unlike regular CoC, which is often based in the 192os, Pulp Cthulhu is set in the 1930s, and has a good section of history (including the Great Depression, the repeal of Prohibition, the New Deal, changes in labor and crime, developments in daily life and entertainment, and the rise of fascism), slang, popular culture, prices, technology, and travel. This section could be immediately used for a non-pulp CoC game set in that decade. Pulp Cthulhu has sections devoted to pulp characters and villains, pulp organizations (good and evil), and four complete adventures (all interesting and complicated). I give this a 4.5.

[Matthew J. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Call of Cthulhu is probably my favorite Tabletop RPG, but the hobby is never a one size fits all thing. Call of Cthulhu tends to work best for one-shots or short campaigns where it having all of the player characters die or go mad isn't a big deal.
That said, many RPGs don't really sing until you play them for a long time, where you can see your characters grow and change as they explore their world, where recurring characters become important, and where dramatic moments hold more weight because you've invested so much time and energy.
Pulp Cthulhu seems made for campaign play. In with these expanded and alternate rules, frail Investigators become robust Heroes. Depending on where you want to take things, they might have weird or supernatural abilities, even. The characters in this are more The Shadow and Doc Savage than Randolph Carter or Crawford Tillinghast.
If you want to run a deep Horror game where characters teeter on the edge of madness and death, this probably isn't what you want. But if you want characters punching Deep Ones off of Zeppelins while Nazis try to launch an arcane rocket into space to unlock the heavens for Yog-Sothoth to descend...then this might be what you're looking for.
I'm hoping to run a longer form Call of Cthulhu game coming up, and I'll likely be using these rules.
You do need the 7th Edition Keeper Rulebook to use this properly.

[Benjamin]

Maybe I'm just spoiled by Night's Black Agents, the spies-vs-vampires game that offers several different rules and knobs that you can twist for different styles of play -- do you want a Clancy-esque technothriller, a LeCarre "the corrosion of good men" tragedy, or something else? But it seems to me that this book really should've have been folded into the core rules and that the core rules should have offered even more material (than it does) for different styles of Lovecraftian play (from the purist mode, where you are driven mad, to the heroic mode where you cast spells to banish horrors). I especially think that the 1930s section here seems like something that should have been in the core book.

That said, whereas the intro adventures in Doors to Darkness were a mixed bag, I'm a lot more excited by the adventures here: a deadly raygun auction, a summoning in a hurricane, a gangland murders tale (my least favorite), and some mysteries on a slow boat to China.

[Mikael Cerbing · Rating 4 out of 5]

After reading (not playing) this book, Im not really sure what I think about it.
So starting with the easy stuff. Its a really good looking book, as all of Chaosiums publications lately. Its well written, mostly easy to understand (if you read the Keepers guide 7ed) and everything is placed in a logical way. I also really liked the background chapter about the pulp fiction. More RPG books should have this kind of background if possible.
What I am less sure of, and this is me personally, is who pulpy I want my CoC to be. Who much this will destroy what I see as the essens of a CoC game. I REALLY dislike the idea that PCs should die or go insane all the time becouse that is "pure" in some way. If you dont have characters evolving during game play you dont have a RPG in my view, then I could just as well play a board game (and I know one-shots is another story...). But then again players in CoC should not be superheroes either. CoC should be a really dangerus game, that PCs can survive by clever rollplaying.
So what I have decided to do is to mine the book, which it is very well put in place to do. I´ll take a few things I like and put it into my regular CoC game, perhaps put in a few more evil NPCs if neccesary to keep the tension up, and ignore the rest.
But when it becomes time to play a Pulp campaing I might need to rethink this way of doing it.

So all in all, a very nice book. But perhaps not really for me.

[Oliver Eike · Rating 4 out of 5]

Do you enjoy Call of Cthulhu as a roleplaying game, yet at times find it frustrating that you so rarely get to kick the ass of the Mythos monsters? Well, look no further then.

As this supplement lets you introduce a good bit of action to your CoC games, where fighting back becomes a more viable option, where you can now truly act as Sam and Dean Winchester and less like Scooby Doo and Shaggy as you bring now at least a knife to the gun fight against the Mythos.

The fights are not going to be easy still, but now you have a chance against some of them. And the game focuses more on being like Indiana Jones and less like Librarian Jenkins. So if you are tired of being an investigator and want to be more of an ass-kicker, this is it.

While you can still do all of the things that made CoC great, this just expands on your options. As the monsters can still eat you quite easily, should the Keeper decide so.

Dice is same as for CoC normally, and also you need the CoC 7th Ed core book to use this. As it is a Supplement to the main game, not a stand-alone.

[Ryan · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was part of that big lot sent to me by a friend. As with Down Darker Trails, I owned a PDF copy of this previously courtesy of a GM running a Pulp game for me.

The Pulp rules involve some of the most notable deviances from base CoC 7E. Namely, as it takes its inspiration from the over top characters and other elements of early 20th century pulp fiction, player characters are a lot more durable and powerful.

I really love this expansion. It's a fantastic way to ease in players coming over from games like D&D as it adds some survivability without diluting the core tenants of the game. The included modules do a fantastic job of demonstrating what the Pulp rules are all about.

[Jose Vidal · Rating 4 out of 5]

Suplemento para la 7ª edición de Call of Cthulhu, después de largas esperas y anuncios que no terminaban de dar fruto para ediciones anteriores. Personalmente, como podréis suponer por el estilo de este blog, siempre me ha gustado añadir algo de Lovecraft a mis aventuras en los años 30 y también algo de aventura en mis partidas de la Llamada de Cthulhu, por tanto es evidente que este es un suplemento que he esperado con ganas.


http://aventurasextraordinarias.blogs...

[Shane · Rating 4 out of 5]

Pulp Cthulhu is an excellent addition to the Call of Cthulhu game line, fundamentally changing how the game is played. It's not for everyone - purists who like the traditional high death count won't be interested in more hit points for players, new abilities to make Investigators into Heros, and so on. But for those groups looking to turn their CoC games into something more like Indiana Jones, boy does this book have you covered!

Highly recommended for gaming groups looking to explore the action-adventure side of Call of Cthulhu.

[David Thomas · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a fantastic addition to Call Of Cthulhu 7e rules, allowing you to run any sort of pulp adventures. If you're a fan of the more pulpy Mythos stories,like those of Robert E Howard, you'll love this book. I only gave it 4 stars because I do wish every part had a bit more. More Talents, weird science, psychic abilities, npc's, and 1930's equipment and vehicles would have been appreciated. There are also some rules inexplicably repeated from the Keeper's book. Overall though, if you've ever wanted more pulp flavor in your Mythos, I highly recommend this book.

[Leman · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great sourcebook overall. I love the way they extended the rules to provide more fun and opportunity to use some of the toughest monsters from Call of Cthulhu without risking wiping out the entire party.

I only wish the scenarios were a bit better. The only one I really liked was Pandora’s Box - the rest would have to be heavily modified in order for the Players to feel like actual participants of the described events, instead of just the audience.

[Joe McMahon · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent extension to the basic game, and does a great job of capturing the utter wildness of pulp stories. Instrumental in helping me move forward on my long-stalled scenario.

[Anthony Adams · Rating 5 out of 5]

Will write up a full review in time. But this is Mike Mason’s masterpiece.

[Mik Cope · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ever wanted to play a mad scientist or to have extraordinary powers while playing Call of Cthulhu? Ever wish your player character wouldn't just die or go insane ten minutes into the story? Then Pulp Cthulhu is for you! Although Lovecraft was himself, of course, published in the pulps, we tend to think of characters like Solomon Kane, Conan or Doc Savage as being more representative than some batty professor or weedy lawyer. Some "purists" will probably hate this take on CoC, but try getting through a campaign using the standard rules. I thought not.