My New Consulting Project: RAIDERS of R’LYEH

 

This consulting business is taking off! I guess that's what happens when you get hand picked and called out by Wizards of the Coast as someone to look to for advice on making your game.

 

So in any case, my new gig is for a relatively new face on the gaming field, professional writer and illustrator Quentin Bauer, who's working on a very interesting game that will be coming to a Kickstarter page near you sometime in the next few weeks; the game is called RAIDERS of R’LYEH, and like it sounds, its a Cthulhu-mythos game (which will be compatible with the standard Cthulhu rules).  What makes it stand out?

1. It will be set in 1910, in the last days of Edwardian excess and decadence, and the last time that western civilization felt absolutely certain about itself and its values. That is, before it all went to hell (literally) in the trenches of France and the Great War.

2. It will be a much more pulpy kind of game than your standard CoC; its primary influence that it seeks to emulate is not directly H.P. Lovecraft but rather the Robert E. Howard "mythos and weird menace" stories. It will be less about meek academics getting in over their head, and more about tough men (including, of course, tough academics!) looking to face overwhelming monstrosities head-on.


3. It will be presenting a number of twists on some of the old favorites of the Mythos and giving some new looks at some of the lesser-known peripheral elements of the Mythos from other "weird menace" writers.

 

4. It will focus on a very rich amount of setting detail for the state of the world circa 1910, with extensive material on the exotic and lost corners of the world in the era of Empires.  For those who want to stick closer to home, there'll be a fresh look at 1910 Arkham as well.

 

5. It will have a more realistic look at the occult world circa 1910 than any Cthulhu-mythos game (or any game, period) before it, with tons of material on the real European occult scene of that time.

 

6. It will feature a new and interesting approach to Sanity mechanics, based on an emulation of the Edwardian worldview.

 

7. Most interesting of all: it will be the first true effort to create a Cthulhu Mythos game that's meant for SANDBOX play, rather than railroading or "illusionist" mechanics, like you see in other games.

 

So there you have it; I found the project interesting enough to lend my name and my expertise to trying to help make it a success (and the paycheque big enough, of course, but I wouldn't have taken it on if the author hadn't wowed me with his concept!).  Make sure you keep an eye out for the upcoming kickstarter for Raiders of R'lyeh; whether you've always liked Mythos RPGs, or always wished you could like them, this will be the game for you.

 

RPGPundit

Cool, might take a look for alternative setting. Not much interest in learning another mechanic, after Gumshoe's burn - out, I've firmly settled with CoC as my go - to game in terms of Cthulhu goodies.

Good luck still.

I'm interested.

Meh.

Quote from: Rincewind1;658762Cool, might take a look for alternative setting. Not much interest in learning another mechanic, after Gumshoe's burn - out, I've firmly settled with CoC as my go - to game in terms of Cthulhu goodies.

Good luck still.

The game will be BRP-based.

RPGPundit

Quote from: RPGPundit;658772The game will be BRP-based.

RPGPundit

You had my curiosity. But now you have my attention.

It's steamboat time for sandbox horror, it sounds like. This sounds like a great game. I'd been wondering whether to set my own next effort in the 1930s or in the modern era, so this has decidedly tipped me toward modernity. I suspect it's going to do a great job of handling early-20th-century sandboxing.

Quote from: RPGPundit;658772The game will be BRP-based.

RPGPundit

OK. Now you're talking.

Yeah, being CoC-compatible is pretty smart.

I am interested as well. Been rereading my Lovecraft books lately and the timing could not be more perfect.

Quote from: RPGPundit;658772The game will be BRP-based.

You should've said this right away.  Now I may look at it.

Quote from: Akrasia;658810You should've said this right away.  Now I may look at it.

Yes, it may be not a bad idea to edit the original post and put something like "BRP powered/compatible" there, seeing how it's tied to the very conception of Cthulhu RPG for many.

This sounds very interesting, but Raiders of R'lyeh made me think it had something to do with that story by Brian Lumley, when a group of sea-raiders tried to raid R'lyeh and well, it didn't go very well for them.

But I guess if it's pulpy, it sort of makes sense, though the 1910s are not what I usually associate with pulp.

Quote from: RPGPundit;658772The game will be BRP-based.

RPGPundit

Is it licensed from Chaosium? Or are they using some strange OGL "BRP-inspired" game? (E.G.: OpenQuest, etc.)

Quote from: RPGPundit;658759So in any case, my new gig is for a relatively new face on the gaming field, professional writer and illustrator Quentin Bauer, who's working on a very interesting game that will be coming to a Kickstarter page near you sometime in the next few weeks; the game is called RAIDERS of R'LYEH, and like it sounds, its a Cthulhu-mythos game.  

Are there any examples of his illustration or writing work available?