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Reign of Terror: Shadows of the Mythos Amidst the Horrors of the French Revolution
Reign of Terror is an epic two-part historical scenario, set during the French Revolution, and playable as a stand-alone mini-campaign or as an historical interlude for use with Chaosium's premium campaign Horror on the Orient Express.
128 pages, Hardcover
First published January 15, 2018
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
May 15, 2018
While certainly useable as a stand-alone adventure this is a module primarily designed to be used as a companion to add depth to the Horror on the Orient Express campaign, as it involves the characters and backstories of the campaign.
For me, that makes this an especially intriguing read, as I've known HotOE since it was first published, and I felt that Fenalik was a cipher, a woefully unexplored component of that campaign.
But most importantly to me in ANY RPG module is the question "Was it fun to read"? And this module passes that test for me pretty handily.
For me, that makes this an especially intriguing read, as I've known HotOE since it was first published, and I felt that Fenalik was a cipher, a woefully unexplored component of that campaign.
But most importantly to me in ANY RPG module is the question "Was it fun to read"? And this module passes that test for me pretty handily.
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July 25, 2022Part of my motivation for that Dark Sun rereading project was just to read things I have in physical form (and also decide if I want to buy more or even sell what I have). This review continues that motivation of reading things I have, but I promise you, I'm not collecting Call of Cthulhu 7th edition -- or, well, at least, I'm not allowed to buy anything more until I read what I have to see if I really like it.
Because I really enjoyed much of what I'd read from the product line that I took out from the library, I took a chance on a lot deal that included the core books and a few others. Now, why am I buying physical book at all? Well, part of the reason is because I like the idea of having books on the shelf that might catch the tot's eye and then get him interested in reading -- and then get him interested in how humans make narratives all the time.
And part because buying books seems to activate some of the same pleasures as both reading and writing, but oh, it's so much easier to just go on ebay and say, "sure, in a universe of uncertainty, I am now certain that I'm a Call of Cthulhu fan, and here is one thing I can control."
(My tot has taken an interest in Lego recently, and just a quick note: illusions of control are more common than actual control.)
So, am I a fan of Call of Cthulhu? I will say this, first and foremost: Chaosium makes nice books to hold and look at. It helps, I think, that they do so much historical work, because then they can just put in public domain works. This book is
* a short (_short_) primer on the French Revolution as a setting;
* two short adventures (or a two-part adventure) that are actually flashbacks that you can nestle into the longer campaign, Horror on the Orient Express.
And so if they have a two-page spread of Delacroix's "Liberty Leading the People," I could imagine complaining that this page-count should go to something I could use, but then again, I have that painting as a custom-made cellphone case, so you won't hear that complaint from me.
And really, what more do we need from this 128-page book? There's a bunch of material about France during the time (what things cost, what's the actual population by class, what's the timeline), and it's a fine amount -- enough to give the players a sense of what it's like to live in a crumbling society (before the revolution) or a totalitarian crumbling society (after), and what more do you need than that _sense_.
I also like the adventures here because they are so small, and in part they have to be because these are historical flashbacks for the characters in the main storyline. For instance, the first adventure is about exposing a monster who has a magical artifact -- and part of that artifact plays a role in Horror on the Orient Express. So if you tried to write a bigger adventure, where the PCs have to, I don't know, find and destroy the artifact, working against several different cults, then there would be more chance to have it not fit in with the story for the rest of the adventure. Curiously, this book really leans into that historical fatalism by starting with a scene where we see one of the PCs sent to the guillotine in 1794, before we rewind to 1789.
But even though the adventures are small -- stop an aristo monster in one, ruin the plans of a corrupted safety official in another by listening to Erich Zann's grandfather's music from beyond -- they give the PCs something to do and are written in a really engaging style that reminds us that anything is possible. I mean, literally: each adventure really channels the PCs into solving the problem one way, but it includes a lengthy sidebar on what else they could try and why it might work.
Now, since these are meant to be a historical flashback from an existing adventure, there's not a lot of flexibility re: villains or even protagonists (there's a bunch of pre-gens that seem real fun -- there's an appendix on how to make your own that fit the time, but it seems more necessary for extended play in the time period and/or if any of your main characters here die). So I could imagine running this as a standalone, but frankly I think it would be more meaningful in the context of the larger campaign.
One thing I don't love, but which might be endemic to Chaosium/Call of Cthulhu adventures is how certain things have to connect back in directly to Lovecraft's work. So, in the second adventure, when the PCs need mad music to combat a mad god, who do they go to other than the grandfather of Erich Zann from Lovecraft's "The Music of Erich Zann." The idea that there's some madness that runs in the family is fine, I guess, but I feel like we have to tread carefully to avoid descending into Lovecraftian mad libs.
One other thing I am beginning to pick up on in Chaosium's house style: when there's a handout to give to the players -- say an example of a blood-spattered pamphlet -- that will be printed in the adventure (so that the GM can easily see it) and also at the end in an appendix of player handouts (so, what?, you can give the whole chapter to the players?). This style seems to reduce usable pages without any particular benefit -- if I'm photocopying or cropping a page to give my players, I can do that from the adventure just as easily as from the appendix; and in any case, shouldn't these handouts be available for free from the website (which is also the Chaosium style these days, and praise them for that)?
Also, since I've already praised/chided them for their use of public domain art (your level of appreciation may vary), I should also add that I really enjoyed all the original art in here, which really makes everything look a little decayed.
Because I really enjoyed much of what I'd read from the product line that I took out from the library, I took a chance on a lot deal that included the core books and a few others. Now, why am I buying physical book at all? Well, part of the reason is because I like the idea of having books on the shelf that might catch the tot's eye and then get him interested in reading -- and then get him interested in how humans make narratives all the time.
And part because buying books seems to activate some of the same pleasures as both reading and writing, but oh, it's so much easier to just go on ebay and say, "sure, in a universe of uncertainty, I am now certain that I'm a Call of Cthulhu fan, and here is one thing I can control."
(My tot has taken an interest in Lego recently, and just a quick note: illusions of control are more common than actual control.)
So, am I a fan of Call of Cthulhu? I will say this, first and foremost: Chaosium makes nice books to hold and look at. It helps, I think, that they do so much historical work, because then they can just put in public domain works. This book is
* a short (_short_) primer on the French Revolution as a setting;
* two short adventures (or a two-part adventure) that are actually flashbacks that you can nestle into the longer campaign, Horror on the Orient Express.
And so if they have a two-page spread of Delacroix's "Liberty Leading the People," I could imagine complaining that this page-count should go to something I could use, but then again, I have that painting as a custom-made cellphone case, so you won't hear that complaint from me.
And really, what more do we need from this 128-page book? There's a bunch of material about France during the time (what things cost, what's the actual population by class, what's the timeline), and it's a fine amount -- enough to give the players a sense of what it's like to live in a crumbling society (before the revolution) or a totalitarian crumbling society (after), and what more do you need than that _sense_.
I also like the adventures here because they are so small, and in part they have to be because these are historical flashbacks for the characters in the main storyline. For instance, the first adventure is about exposing a monster who has a magical artifact -- and part of that artifact plays a role in Horror on the Orient Express. So if you tried to write a bigger adventure, where the PCs have to, I don't know, find and destroy the artifact, working against several different cults, then there would be more chance to have it not fit in with the story for the rest of the adventure. Curiously, this book really leans into that historical fatalism by starting with a scene where we see one of the PCs sent to the guillotine in 1794, before we rewind to 1789.
But even though the adventures are small -- stop an aristo monster in one, ruin the plans of a corrupted safety official in another by listening to Erich Zann's grandfather's music from beyond -- they give the PCs something to do and are written in a really engaging style that reminds us that anything is possible. I mean, literally: each adventure really channels the PCs into solving the problem one way, but it includes a lengthy sidebar on what else they could try and why it might work.
Now, since these are meant to be a historical flashback from an existing adventure, there's not a lot of flexibility re: villains or even protagonists (there's a bunch of pre-gens that seem real fun -- there's an appendix on how to make your own that fit the time, but it seems more necessary for extended play in the time period and/or if any of your main characters here die). So I could imagine running this as a standalone, but frankly I think it would be more meaningful in the context of the larger campaign.
One thing I don't love, but which might be endemic to Chaosium/Call of Cthulhu adventures is how certain things have to connect back in directly to Lovecraft's work. So, in the second adventure, when the PCs need mad music to combat a mad god, who do they go to other than the grandfather of Erich Zann from Lovecraft's "The Music of Erich Zann." The idea that there's some madness that runs in the family is fine, I guess, but I feel like we have to tread carefully to avoid descending into Lovecraftian mad libs.
One other thing I am beginning to pick up on in Chaosium's house style: when there's a handout to give to the players -- say an example of a blood-spattered pamphlet -- that will be printed in the adventure (so that the GM can easily see it) and also at the end in an appendix of player handouts (so, what?, you can give the whole chapter to the players?). This style seems to reduce usable pages without any particular benefit -- if I'm photocopying or cropping a page to give my players, I can do that from the adventure just as easily as from the appendix; and in any case, shouldn't these handouts be available for free from the website (which is also the Chaosium style these days, and praise them for that)?
Also, since I've already praised/chided them for their use of public domain art (your level of appreciation may vary), I should also add that I really enjoyed all the original art in here, which really makes everything look a little decayed.
October 27, 2025
This is the 18th book I've read from the lot my friend sent me.
This book contains a short module to help flesh out the back story of Count Fenalik, the primary villain of the Horror on the Orient Express campaign. Fenalik is a very old vampire who has lost his source of power and spends the Orient Express campaign tricking the players into rebuilding that source of power for him. This module tells how it came about that his source of power needed rebuilding in the first place and sees the players taking on the role of soldiers serving the crown on the cusp of the French Revolution. The players have to navigate both that fraught historical situation and how to deal with the many depredations that Fenalik has committed, which will be tricky due to him being a favorite of the queen's at this time.
This is a really great module. Fenalik was a great villain but didn't have nearly enough screen time in Horror, so getting to see some of his backstory and what he did at the height of his powers is a ton of fun. It's also one of the scariest modules I've ever read in the CoC family. The cosmic horror is excellent but what really gets under your skin is the way the book uses the tension leading up to the Revolution and the uncertainty that lingered in its aftermath. Great module and I really hope I get to run it some day.
This book contains a short module to help flesh out the back story of Count Fenalik, the primary villain of the Horror on the Orient Express campaign. Fenalik is a very old vampire who has lost his source of power and spends the Orient Express campaign tricking the players into rebuilding that source of power for him. This module tells how it came about that his source of power needed rebuilding in the first place and sees the players taking on the role of soldiers serving the crown on the cusp of the French Revolution. The players have to navigate both that fraught historical situation and how to deal with the many depredations that Fenalik has committed, which will be tricky due to him being a favorite of the queen's at this time.
This is a really great module. Fenalik was a great villain but didn't have nearly enough screen time in Horror, so getting to see some of his backstory and what he did at the height of his powers is a ton of fun. It's also one of the scariest modules I've ever read in the CoC family. The cosmic horror is excellent but what really gets under your skin is the way the book uses the tension leading up to the Revolution and the uncertainty that lingered in its aftermath. Great module and I really hope I get to run it some day.
March 6, 2022
Un módulo para La llamada de Cthulhu. Manual del guardián que sirve de precuela a Horror on the Orient Express durante la época de la Revolución Francesa y el Terror, uniendo ambas mediante diferentes personajes (y poco más), y también enlazada con el relato La música de Erich Zann de H.P. Lovecraft.
No puedo decir que esté mal ni que sea tremendamente apasionante: como todo en este género, si no reluce a la primera, dependerá del grupo de juego. Sí voy a decir que, a pesar de su evidente documentación sobre la época, la trama se contradice abiertamente en algún punto; no es difícil de solucionar, pero desluce que no se hayan dado cuenta.
No puedo decir que esté mal ni que sea tremendamente apasionante: como todo en este género, si no reluce a la primera, dependerá del grupo de juego. Sí voy a decir que, a pesar de su evidente documentación sobre la época, la trama se contradice abiertamente en algún punto; no es difícil de solucionar, pero desluce que no se hayan dado cuenta.
May 2, 2019
An adventure for Call of Cthulhu. It's a roller coaster ride through revolutionary France. The adventure is very well researched with a full bibliography included for related reading. I especially like that the investigators can touch history but not too deeply. The BBEG does not turn out to be Robespierre or Jacques Louis David or any other well known revolutionary figure.
It plays well. The hand outs look fantastic. Only real complaint is that there were a lot of typos missed in editing.
It plays well. The hand outs look fantastic. Only real complaint is that there were a lot of typos missed in editing.
January 2, 2023
Short Call of Cthulhu campaign/pocket setting - in theory a side story in Horror On the Orient Express, but I actually think it's better than that campaign. Full review: https://refereeingandreflection.wordp...
April 4, 2020
Lavishly produced, beautiful book. Well illustrated. Good adventure.
My only complaint is the adventure part is a little short. It's quite a slim book for the price.
My only complaint is the adventure part is a little short. It's quite a slim book for the price.
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews