A Resection of Time

Call of Cthulhu RPG

by Sam Johnson

At first glance, the death of successful archaeologist Kyle Woodson seemed an accident -- an automobile crash turned fatal. When certain medical irregularities became apparent, and when the body was quickly cremated, the case became much more sinister to trained eyes.In this adventure, the investigators are challenged by the strange case of Kyle Woodson. Inquiries will take them across the United States of the 1990s, from San Francisco, and the Sanbourne Institute for Pacific Studies near Los Angeles, to decaying modern Arkham. In the end, all clues lead to ancient Mayan ruins, deep in Central America.

This 64 page scenario book can be played in two to three nights. It contains twenty-five handouts, many featuring genuine Mayan glyphs and annotated translations.

Genres: Role Playing Games, Horror

64 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1997

Reviews

[Matthew J. · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another Cthulhu Now, 1990s set Call of Cthulhu adventure that doesn't really feel like it fits in the 1990s at all. There are some really good ideas in this, but I think it might be too many for its length. Two very different factions that probably need more time to be established are getting ready to duke it out on the West Coast, the East Coast, and then Belize, all in what's meant to take only two sessions (possibly four). There are a few things about Mayan archaeology that, if played for historic accuracy, would keep the adventure from taking place in the 1920s. However, I definitely wouldn't run this game at any time after the 1960s, and with a bit of fudging, I think you could work it into a 1920s game without a ton of effort. In fact, it might be interesting to mix it into an ongoing game that deals with Mesoamerican/South American research, and use it as a precursor of sorts to the opening of the new Masks of Nyarlathotep. Conversely, with some work toward making it feel more modern, you could mix it into an ongoing Delta Green game. There's enough good here to make me wish it was better.

[Kat · Rating 3 out of 5]

Basic Plot/Premise: This is a scenario for the Call of Cthulhu RPG, it focuses on a strange murder case that investigators must try to solve.

This is a fun scenario to run/play through. As always, Chaosium includes lots of creative handouts to give to players, to help immerse them in the story. There is a lot of good potential for creating other props as well. The 90s setting makes the story a lot more modern than traditional CoC 1920s settings, but is getting closer and closer to antiquity as time passes and technology changes. I think it would be pretty easy to adapt this to the actual modern day if one wanted. I do love the scope of the scenario, though, as it covers many different locations in both North and South America.