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Title: Call of Cthulhu Roleplaying Game by Monte Cook, John Tynes ISBN: 0-7869-2639-2 Publisher: Wizards of the Coast Pub. Date: March, 2002 Format: Hardcover Volumes: 1 List Price(USD): $39.95 |
Average Customer Rating: 3.5 (22 reviews)
Rating: 5
Summary: A fine adaptation--I just wish it weren't d20!
Comment: First, a word of warning to the shopper--although Amazon doesn't make it clear in the title, this is the d20 version of the Call of Cthulhu RPG.
That out of the way--the greatest thing in this book is John Tynes' articles on how to GM a Call of Cthulhu game, and the background info on the Mythos. They are actually better than what's in the regular (non-d20) Call of Cthulu rulebook. Also, the rules for psychic characters are intriguing, and it's kinda kewl to have all those Mythos monsters and gods statted up for d20, so you can spring them on your unsuspecting Dungeons and Dragons characters.
Those good points are so very very good that I give this product 5 stars, despite one very serious flaw: the rules are lame. Oh, Tynes and Cook do good things with them--many of their ideas were later used in other d20 products, and they certainly make some small improvements with the d20 rules. But it's still d20, and thus far clunkier and less elegant than the original Call of Cthulhu rules. Now, those CoC rules are far from perfect, but still, they are so much easier to learn and to use, and really, the *only* thing you need to buy to play CoC is the rulebook--no, not the "core" rulebook, because there *aren't* any other rulebooks! Oh sure, there are supplements, but unlike D&D, none of them is crucial to play. And unlike D&D, when Chaosium does a new edition, they don't change it so much that it's completely incompatible with previous material. Most of the changes are in gathering together published spells and monsters and equipment, so that (gasp!) you won't *have* to buy other supplements!
So, I didn't actually buy it for the d20 rules--although that will allow me to introduce my local gaming group (some members of which refuse to play anything other than D&D) to CoC. I bought it as a supplement for the regular version of Call of Cthulhu--something entirely unnecessary, but beautiful and fun to have. Looked at that way, it's 5 stars, easy.
Rating: 3
Summary: 3ED, plus Sanity
Comment: If you already play CoC, you don't need this book.
The new version is simply the D20 rules (and in fact, almost all of 3E) with Sanity and Cthulhu Mythos pasted in directly - SAN checks etc are still percentile rolls, lower-the-better, and no attempt has been made to bring this (crucial) aspect of the game into the D20 frame of reference.
Combat, skills, feats & spells all operate almost exactly the same way as 3E, with the one nod towards a more simple combat system being moving of attacks of opportunity to a "variant" rule rather than a standard one.
Don't get me wrong - as a long term RPGer (20+ years) i think 3E is an excellent system, and D&D has benefited from a more robust rules system. Its just that CoC already had an excellent rules system, and was always far more a role-players game than a war gamers one.
Rating: 4
Summary: A Fine Adaptation
Comment: Okay, I'll be honest. I do prefer the original Chaosium CoC to Wizards Of The Coast's adaptation. What I supremely loved about the original Call Of Cthulhu was that knowledge that reading that obscure occult tome was NOT a good idea and that nothing at all was what it seemed. Yes, characters either died or went insane, but that's what made it fun. The original Call Of Cthulhu was about the journey rather than the end. The new d20 Call Of Cthulhu takes away from that paranoid feel of the original game, making it a bit more combat-intensive and less mood-oriented.
However, let's be honest here. It's the GM that creates the mood for the game. It's all about imagination, baby. It's easy to create a more mood-oriented d20 CoC campaign - the book even gives pointers. The rulebook is quite adaptable, including tips on incorporating the Mythos creatures, deities, and Sanity rules into a D&D Campaign (I imagine that they can be added to a d20Modern campaign as well).
If you already have Chaosium's core CoC rulebook, there's no need to get this unless you want to incorporate the Mythos into D&D. If you're a D&D3E fan and don't own Chaosium's rulebook and/or have never played Call Of Cthulhu but want to learn it in a familiar framework, you can do far, far worse than WotC's adaptation of a classic game. The d20 adaptation features gorgeous artwork, a recommended reading list, and even adaptations to older CoC supplements.
Enjoy!
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Title: Call of Cthulhu Gamemasters Pack Call of Cthulhu by Aaron Rosenberg, Dustinm Wright, Inc Staff Chaosium ISBN: 1568821662 Publisher: Chaosium Pub. Date: August, 2002 List Price(USD): $19.95 |
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Title: Player's Handbook: Core Rulebook I (Dungeons & Dragons, Edition 3.5) ISBN: 0786928867 Publisher: Wizards of the Coast Pub. Date: 18 July, 2003 List Price(USD): $29.95 |
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Title: Dungeon Master's Guide: Core Rulebook II (Dungeon & Dragons, Edition 3.5) ISBN: 0786928891 Publisher: Wizards of the Coast Pub. Date: 18 July, 2003 List Price(USD): $29.95 |
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Title: Monster Manual: Core Rulebook III (Dungeons & Dragons, Edition 3.5) ISBN: 078692893X Publisher: Wizards of the Coast Pub. Date: 18 July, 2003 List Price(USD): $29.95 |
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Title: Core Rulebook (d20 Modern Roleplaying Game) by Bill Slavicsek, Jeff Grubb, Rich Redman ISBN: 0786928360 Publisher: Wizards of the Coast Pub. Date: 06 December, 2002 List Price(USD): $39.95 |
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