s .. r.d Editioa. R I • It and Revt.ed

by Keith Herber

Additional Text by Scott David Aniolowski Art by Steve Purcell '(Q Jason Eckhardt Maps by S hannon Appel

Hyperborean map based on an original by Un Caner Other maps based on ori!1Jnals by Mike Blum

Project and Editorial by Shannon Appel first Edition Editorial by Sandy Peter.ien Interior '

Playte!lting by Quis Allen. Wilkie Collins III . Josh Garrel, Erik Herber ro Sharon Herber

Chaosium InC. 1997 Table o£ Oontents lntrOOuClion ...... 3 n.. wnr...., ... dw IWJJ. Itu~, dw ...... ,...... ultitt IIW boat. ....J bri41J ~ 1M ...... dtat ilrpIrrd fIMIL 1he Trail ofTsathoggua ...... 4 I~~ j(>i~ " ..v..rific upa/"_ "" Gn. rJDIId 10 ...... u.. " n~ wall fMmd pt'Otrwh", """" " II4drr. The Curse of Tsalhoggua ...... 30 I~.~ foiklw " ,,,,iJ of cI_ ,,,.. '-'h ",..." ,., "'" I4n 6.. ""'''''''' of" ~I "'"' Appendix ...... 48 ,b _"'~ nf HW<''''''..."...... "'10. _ .""1,,;,,, fow H,.,..~ _ /IN! """""..

This work is respectfully dedicated to Edgar Allan Poe

1M c.....,-. Tmil "'~,.... i. publiWlepb.yia, prae of I>IIl-QI1·' lO9l76HJ21 Introduction - 3

INTRODUCTION

The Writing on the Wall. Imroduc;flg the scenarios within this book, and briefly mefllioning the works that illspired them.

his book contains two loosely connected adventures Th~ Compacl Trail ofTsathoggUl1 is a reprint of a classic for the Call of Cthulhu roleplaying game. The ftr.it. Coli 01 Clhulhu advenrure which was first published in a T 'The Trail of Tsathoggua", is involved with the pre­ slightly different form in 1984. The origina1 book also con­ history of Greenland and the beings who lived there before tained a third adventure, '1be Haunted House", most recent­ the coming of man. The investigators will be given the ly reprinted in Curse oleth,""u. II was not connected to the opponunity to join an expedition from Miskatonic Univer­ Tsathoggua story line, and so is not included here. sity and together !.hey will attempt to trace the history of this This new edition is the fmt book. in O\aosium's new frozen continent back through the first Viking settlers, pre­ "Fright Night" line of scenarios. These will uniformly be shon historic man. and even fanher back in time. to the entities scenario books containing a small number of adventures. Each who came before man. adventure is designed to be completed in a single night of gam­ This adventure is tailored for the physicaUy fit investiga­ ing. Beginning keepers should find the scenarios in these tor; the challenges include an expedition to the icy interior, books easy to run, while experienced keepers will find them lhecJimbing of dangerous glaciers. and encounters with hos­ useful as ''breathers'' inserted into more compieJt campaigns. tile humans and others. At the end of the journey the inves­ tigators will find themselves faced with an ancient stone A SHORT BmLIOGRAPHY temple guarded by an inhuman sentinel. If the investigators This scenario book is complete in itself. However, some can gain entry to this building, they will find clues to the dis­ keepers may wish to read lhe fiction which inspired these appearance of the strange race thai once worshiped here. For adventures to learn more of ancient Hyperborea and the pe0- the less physically fit, more scholarly investigator. opportu­ ples that lived there. nities for quieter studious adventures also exist while in Clark Ashton Smith was the first author 10 discover Greenland. ancient Hyperborea. He wrote twelve works set there, ''The The second adventure, '"The Curse ofTsathoggua", takes Muse of Hyperborea". "'The Seven Geases", "'The Weird of place mostly in British Columbia, Canada, where a strange Avoosl Wuthoqquan", Ihe White Sybil". 1'he Testament hairy foot from an unknown type of animal is found in a of Athammaus", "'The Coming of the White Worm", "Ubbo­ hunter's trap. Purchased by the University of Vancouver, it Sathla", ''The Door to Satum", "The Ice-Demon", 'The Tale first comes to the investigators' attention by means of a of Satampra Zeiros", "Lament for Vixcela", and ''The Theft newspaper clipping. The investigalors will find a trail that of the Thiny-Nine Girdles." These have aU been collected in leads to the Canadian Rockies, here to learn the rest of the Th~ Book of Hyperborea. published by Necronomicon Press. story that began in Greenland. Once again, physical skills Lin Caner added to the lore of Hyperborea in a series of could make the difference. BOth this adventure and '''The works based on Clark Ashton Smith's story ideas and frag­ Trail" take place outdoors in cold weather. ments. lbese stories include '"The Utmost Abomination", The amount of physical danger in this adventure is rather 'The Double Tower", Ihe Scroll of Morloc", ''The Stairs in small. but the investigators may be frightened away by the the Crypt", '"The Light from the Pole", '1'he Descent into myriad honors that confront them, deciding that no reward the Abyss", '"The Feaster from the Stars", "10 the Va1e of could be wonh going mad. Pnath", and "Papyrus of Dark Wisdom." Robert Price is Both adventures revolve around a rather compleJ( history currently planning a collection caUed The Book of Eioon, of events and it is necessary that the keeper read and under­ which will assumedly contain these works. stand the background before beginning play. Each adventure Keepers may also be interested in the defmitive works is complete but the investigators may follow up on a spuri­ about Tsathoggua and Ith.aqua, the two Great Old Ones cen­ ous clue or two. l1le keeper may want to add extra material tral to this work. Tsathoggua plays a central role in several to the adventures presemed. of Clark Ashton Smith's Hyperborea stories. He is also men· In Greenland and British Columbia, investigators may tioned in H. P. Lovecraft's "The Mound." Ithaqua has suggest the use of dogsleds or other fonns of transportation. appeared most prominently in August Derleth·s '''The Thing It is not beyond imagining that a bush pilot-styled investiga­ that Walked the Wind" and "lthaqua", both recently collect­ tor may want to employ a seaplane or other aircraft in ed in Tales 01 th~ Lovecraft Mythos, published by Fedogan Canada. Indi vidual keepers should be prepared for these & Bremer. He also appeared in Brian Lumley', Spawn of the eventualities. Winds and In the Moons of Borea. • 4 - The Compact Trail or Tsalhoggua

THE TRAIL OF TSATHOGGUA (GRE.ENl.AND) InvestigalOrs join a scientific expedition to Greenland to examine a strange wall found protruding from a glacier.

"We knew it/ora shrine ofTsarhoggua. one ofthe elder gods, Keeper's Information who receives no longer any worship from men, but before whose ashen altars. people say the junive and ferocious The huge slab is actually a portion of a stone wall broken beasts ... have sonu!limu bun sun to mah obeisance and loose from its foundations hundreds of millennia ago by the ha\~ been heard to ho.... d or whine their inaniculate pm}~rs. ,.. slowly creeping ice and pushed, inch by inch. toward the -Clark Ashton Smith, '''The Tale of Satampra Zeiros" distant sea. The layer of ice that has covered it for thousands of yean; has recently broken off and fallen into the sea. A startling discovery has been made: Eskimos hunting wal­ exposing the wall. nearly vemcnl but upside down. to the illS on the east coast of Greenland have sighted a huge block fin;t sunlight it has seen in ages. of dark stone protruding from a glacier. The stone is thought This wall portion. two hundred feet long and nearly one to have been exposed during this year's spring thaw. TIle hundred feet high. is a remnanl of a culture that once lived report is somewhat sketchy, but apparently the massive slab on the land mass now comprising Greenland. then called of Slone is carved with a giant bas-relief representing what Hyperborea. The hieroglyphics written on the wall win pro­ could be a god or hero surrounded by odd hieroglyphics. The vide the expedition with clues to the location of an ancient, stone protrudes from the end of the glacier, over a fjord. unknown city called Commorium. They also warn of some Miskatonic University, which has a research vessel off of the dangers of the place. the eastern seaboard, has announced plans to outfit an expe­ Throughout this adventure. the investigators will come dition to the area. The scientific learn will be headed by across clues about the extinct Hyperboreans and a strange race Professor Curtis Mathieson, an archaeologist. Miskatonic of furry prehumans that dwelt here before the coming of man. University has already received pennission from the Danish This adventure is linear, the investigators are required to government to explore and conduct research in the area. move from one phase of the adventure to the next almost re­ gardless of their individual actions (n day-to-day synopsis of Synopsis of Events events is included). The investigators are not in charge of the expedition and are expected to follow the direction of its Days 1-7: Voyage to Greenland. leaders. Day 8: First scaffolding installed. This adventure secretly serves as an introduction 10 11le Day 9: First transcriptions made. Curse of Tsathoggua" also contained in this book. It is Day 10: Attack by Hyperboreans. intended that the investigators not realize the connection Day II: Quiet. between these. two stories until well into the second one so Day 12: Wall shifts abruptly. the keeper should plan a short adventure or two between Day 13: Quiet 'The Trail" and "The Curse." Horrors Hean. a recent Day 14: Wall falls into sea. Chaosium release, would be particularly appropriate. since it Onys 15-19: Voyage to Godth!b. is set in Montreal. and the playen; could easily stumble upon Transcription of writings continues. the newspaper articles leading into ''The Curse" while they Day 20: Arrival al GodthAb. were preparing to leave that city. However. just about any Day 21, Eskimo song duel. shon adventure would work fine. Due to the location of this Meeting aboard ship. adventure (the edge of the Arctic Circle), it should begin Day 22: Mountain-climbing lessons. about the end of Mayor beginni ng of June with an eye Day 23: Quiet. toward beginning '"'The Curse" in the fall of the same year. Day 24: Expedition to the inlerior departs. pp. 6-7 detail the long history of Greenland. and should be Day 25, Sighting of Hyperborean tracks. carefully examined by the keeper before this adventure is run. Day 26, Sec: Hyperboreans at a distance. Day 27: Difficult climb. Attack. by Gnoph-keh? Investigators' Information Day 28: Discovery of the temple. TIle investigators may read of this event in a newspaper or Days 29-32: Rerum to GodthAb. scientific journal. Tsathogguo Papers #1 is a shon article from the Arlcham Ga4~1t~. It can be handed to the players if The Trail of Tsathoggua - 5 the keeper wishes to begin the cwnpaign in this manner. T~ua Papers 11 1 Assuming that they have connections at Miskatonic. the investigators willlikeiy offer their .services to the expedition. If the investigators have not worked with Miskatonic MU PREPARES FOR ARGTIG EXPEDITION University in the past., they could be conlaCted by a member of the University or expedition and their participation requested. In Greenland, the glaCiers move across the land slow­ Iy, their progress measured The Darlena in centuries. One such slow-moving glacier has recent1y revealed a great he investigators have only a week to prepare for the wall of stone, covered in trip before the expedition must assemble on a Boston T wharf to boan:1 the research vessel. Leased by ancient hieroglyphs that Mjskatonic University from a private company, the Darlena are thought to be thou­ has been conducting a geological survey off the east coast of sands of years old. North America for the past several years. When word of the Details are still sketchy, but reports say that discovery in Greenland reached the University, the ship was quickly recalled to port. the massive slab of stone, which apparently pro­ Professor Mathieson is handling the outfitting of the trip. trudes from a glaCier, features a massive bas-reHef so the investigators will only have to assemble a few special of an ancient Eskimo god. Odd rneroglylphs sur­ or personal items they may wish to take with them. This time round the figure, and it is hoped that they may might also be spent in a little research on Greenland. reveal the secrets of a civilization thousands of The expedition consists of the leader, Dr. Curtis Mathieson; a noted British scholar. Dr. Henry Ethelrod; two years old. Above is pictured an artist's conception graduate students-Chuck Granger and Terrence Bhule; and of the Greenland wall of stone. three French-Canadian mountaineers. The ship's comple­ Professor Curtis Mathieson of M.iskatonic ment consists of Captain Klaus Voorheim, Lieutenant University has recent1y secured permission from Andrew Molt. Chief Petty Officer Gerald Maxwell, Louis the steward, and eight sailors. the Danish govemment to head an expedition to conduct research in lhe area. He has already The Research Team begun to select his team, and has recalled the Dariena, a research vessel leased by the The following are members of the team that has been assem­ bled to study the strange stone discovered in the glacier. University, to carry the expedition to Greenland. Mathieson expects to have the expedition under P RO~O R CURTISMATKrnSON way in mere weeks. Fifty-four years old. with gray, thinning hair, Mathieson is When asked to speculate about the origins of the me head of the team and the acknowledged expert on mat­ wall, tt-lalhieson said, '" am not prepared to do so at ters of archaeology and anthropology; he is greatly respect­ ed by his scientific colleagues. His kindly manner, coupled this time, although I will be happy to make a full with a vast knowledge of human behavior, will soon cause Statement when accurate research of this phenom­ the rest of the team and the crew of the ship to respect him. enon has been accomplished. Suffice to say, the Mathieson possesses some Cthulhu knowledge, garnered wall seems to be extremely ancient, and the sketch­ during an expedition to central Arabia in 1906, but will rarely speak of it He himself has reasons to believe in the Mythos, es I have seen of the h.ieroglylphs seem to indicate but from experience has learned not to discuss his theories with thllt they beloug to no known linguistic family." the uninitiated. He believes that the mysterious wall discov­ Mathieson is still looking to fill out the ered in the glacier may be in some way tied to things hinted at Greenland research team. lndividuals already in the Book ofDO'{ln but has yet to share his ideas with anyone selected include Doctor Henry Ethelrod, a staff but Ethelrod. If an investigator should approach him on the topic while in front of the rest of the group, he will decline to member of the British Museum; Charles Granger, discuss the possibility, saying that the primitive Mythos being a graduate studem at Misklltonic University; referred to has not been scientifically established as authentic, Terrence Bhule , Il young though renowned and is still a hodgepodge of archaeological oddities strung together by pseudoscientific imaginings. He will express the Continued on Page A 7 belief, as he has publicly done in the past, that unestablished 6 - The Compact Trail of Tsalhoggua

A History of Greenland and Its Inhabitants

n the Elder Days. the ancient serpent people ruled the After tbis period of strife, the voonnis began a slow Earth from timeless Valusia. Before they became decline. Weakened by their internal wars. they were left to I renowned for their great scientific prowess, they wor­ the mercy of the ever-changing climate. As the ice ages shiped many gods, among them Tsathoggua. the sleeper of came and went between 1,000,000 and 100,000 years ago. the dark below. they slowly succumbed to the encroaching glaciers. Some legends say that the serpent people created the During this period, perhaps a million years ago, the voormis. a furry. fanged, dog-Like race of people, as a gift first humans arrived on the shores of Greenland. These to their god. Others state that the voormis are actually the Hyperboreans were an advanced offshoot of the Homo progeny of Tsathoggua and a minor goddess named genus. easily as evolved as Homo sapi~ns, which were Sbathak. Modem anthropological studies would connect still 900,000 years in the future. the voonnis to the pongids, greale anthropoid apes which At first the Hyperboreans lived in primitive huts and sub­ first evolved 17 million years ago. The truth is lost in the sisted on a diet of fish and foraged plants. It was not long depths of time. What is known is this: the voannis were before the now«generate voonnis made contact with the one of the serpent people's many slave races. and they people on the shore. Soon they were aiding the humans with were especially sacred to TsalboggulL their everyday endeavors. even taking some of them back to Three million years ago. the time of the serpent people their remaining cities in the mountains. there 10 teach them had come to an end. 1be voormis. now possessed of an intel­ half·forgotten arts and sciences. sorcery, and religion. ligence almost equal to the humans that were to follow them, As the humans nourished and the voonnis continued threw off their shac~es of slavery. 1lIey began to colonize to decay, contact between the IWO species declined until prehistoric Greenland. beating back the cannibalistic gnoph_ the Hyperboreans. as the humans now called themselves. keh who had fonnerly ruled thailand. They stole their great­ came to consider themselves the rulers of the land. The est artifacts, among them the Scroll of Morloc, and after­ dog-like voonnis dwindled to lillie more than a myth. wards were pl'Olected against the freezing rampages of the Finally, the only voonnis left in Greenland were scattered gnoph-keh and against their dark god, Rhan-Tegoth. lribes descended from the expelled followers of Adukwu, The voonnis developed a primitive culture based upon grown cruel and monstrous in lheir harsh environment. the worship of a god who came from the bowels of the These beings dwelt among the high peaks. Mount Earth. They called him Zoth-Aqqua, btu this was another Voormilhadreth chief among Ihem. while the advancing name for ancient Tsathoggua. With knowledge given them civilization of the Hyperboreans spread inland during the by their god. the voormis built crude cities among the between-ice-age warming of the climate. TIle Hyperbore­ forests and jungles of prehistoric Greenland. They spread ans eventually built their own great cities atop the founda­ across the face of the land mass and inhabited most of the tions of ancient ruins that they found. high central plateau of Greenland. The voonnis were almost totally forgotten by the The most ancien! ice yet found in GreenJand is 1.7 mil­ Hyperboreans when. with the coming of the last" great ice lion years old. and it is thought that it was at this time that age, roving bands of the shaggy beasts. forced OUI of their the climate of the central plateau cooled and glaciers stan­ high mountain retreats by the intense cold. began to raid ed to fonn. Accompanying this intense cold (or possibly and pillage small villages. The war against the beasts last­ bringing it) came a being that was called Adukwu. a mon· ed for twenty years. It was a guerrilla action. the humans strous horror bound 10 the frozen regions of the world. pursuing roving bands of monsters through the twisting Even today, be still exists, though he is now more com­ passes and up and down the faces of glaciers, mercilessly monly known by the name Ithaqua. Some of the voonnis slaughtering and being slaughtered in tum. TIle voonnis turned from their ancient deity. Zoth-Aqqua, and began to were no match against bronze weapons and trained mili­ worship this new being. This worship called for bloody tary tactics such as the phalanx. Eventually, almost all of sacrifices and soon the followers of Zoth·Aqqua. led by the ancient race were slain. Only a few pockets of sur­ their priests, began a zealous persecution of the heretics. A vivors remained in frozen caves in the highest mountains. long period of civil war ensued. with the followers of At its heighl. the civilization of the Hyperboreans was Adukwu finally driven from the cities and forced to lake the greatest upon the Earth. The capita1 of H)'ptIborea. fLf'St refuge high in the frozen mountains. Some of those forced located in Commoriom. and later in Uzuldaroum, was the into the wilds left their home continent, some neeing to height of civilization, a place of kings. princes. nobles., mer­ the southeast. others to the southwest Some remained, to chants. and priests. Surrounding lands were no less civilized. grow fierce and savage in the frozen wilderness. Even in the northernmost reaches of Hyperborea. upon the The Trail of Tsathoggua - 7

peninsula Icnown as Mhu Thulan. great research was being done. The greatest wizard of the time. Eibon,lived there. and wrote his Book 0/ Eibon. which is the source of much mod· em knowledge of Hyperborea. The worship ofTsathoggua was forbidden in human Hyperborea. but the peoples there did follow many deities that ~ now lost to us. chief among them the reindeer god Yhoundeh. Eventually, the cold again worsened and the glaciers started to push toward the sea. In these days. monsters of the frozen wastes ravaged the land, among them Rlim Shaikonh. the white worm. and Aphoom Zhah. the cold flame. Even the Hyperborean ice turned against the pe0- ple. becoming an awful. animate demon. In these yean., the Hypoboreans turned to darker deities. among them ancient Kulu (Ohulhu). Finally. the Hyperboreans were engulfed by the freezing ice age. Some Hyperboreans migrated away from their doomed land. Writings tell of a colony in the area now occupied by Dunwich, Mass­ Commorlum achusetts. Other groups of Hyperborean survivors are said • to have tnweled 10 Mu, Atlantis, northem Africa, Asia Mf Voormlrho(Jrtrh • Minor, and Scotland. UZilldqrOilm Swviving voonnis a1so fled Hyperborea. In the wilds of • North America. they became the sasquatch. ardent wor­ shipers of Ithaqua. In the mountains of Asia, they became the yeti, faithful followers of Tsathoggua. Many Hyperboreans moved inland to the icy surface of TSCHO Greenland, hunting what few animals still survived. For V(,}('PANOlr'd several hundred thousand years, the last Hyperboreans in "-1 Greenland lived a savage existence. Resembling primitive Eskimos. the lasl handful of living Hyperboreans enter interpreted to mean ''barbarian'' or "weakling." 'These were, into this adventure. of course. the surviving Hyperboreans. In the tenth century A. D .• some of the last Hyperbore­ The Norwegians eventually came into close contact ans came intO contact with the Eskimos, who were al thai with the Eskimos and it is thought that the colonies swvived time emering Greenland from North America. The at least into the early 15th century. When a ship arrh-ed at Eskimos proved friendly to the Hyperboreans, helping the coast in 1490, the colonists had not been visited for over them with the construction of smaU boats and leaching eighty years. The crew of the ship found JittJe evidence of them what they knew of fishing and hunting. but eventual­ the colonists and only Eskimos inhabiting the shores. The ly the Eskimos look offense to the Hyperborean practice of fate of the settlers remains a mystery and the discovery of perfonning human sacrifice on the shores of the sea and the froun body of a Norwegian near a fjord in 1540 did lit­ once again the Hyperboreans were forced inland. tle to explain their fate. Some have blamed disease or emi­ Early in the tenth century. Greenland's eastern coasl was gration to America.. wbile others have thought that they also landed upon by Gunobjom, a Norwegian. In 982, Erik began to intennarry with the Eskimos and were assimilated. the Red began exploring the coast and in 986 sel out from Under joint Danish-Norwegian control, a Luther.m Iceland with 25 ships laden with potential settJers. Only mission was established near GodthAb in 1721 . Settlers fourteen of the ships swvived the four-day voyage 10 reach were once again drawn to the island along with a number the southwest coast of Greenland, where the first settle­ of criminals sent there by the government. In 1917. an ment. near present-day JulianehAb, was fonned. EventuaUy oversighl in an agreement with Norway gave Denmark other settlements were begun and at its peak the popUlation full authority over the island. which led to a heated dispute is thought to have reached nearly three thousand. between the two nations over fishing and bunting rights. When Erik first landed on Greenland, no evidence of The 1921 population of Greenland was sel at 14,355 humans was found, and it was not until the II th century that including 275 Danes. ISO of whom work: at the cryolite Eskimos were encountered 00 the northwestem coast. mines near Ivigtut. An trade with Greenland is subject to However, the ftrst settlers did report meeting skraelings. an a govemment monopoly and alcoholic spirits are forbid­ unknown word thought 10 have meant fairies or elves. later den by law. 8 - The Compact Trail or Thatboggua

"theories" about such things constitute no more than a childish grown secretly fond of him, coming to think of him as a desire to indulge in superstition and magic. sli8htly wayward son. Although be does not personally know However. if approached in private and convinced of the Terrence Bhule, it was Ethelrod that recommended him for investigator's authentic experience. either through the use of the expedition, basing his decision on Bhule's pioneering Persuade or by presenting him with efforts in the field of Indian and Eskimo cultural patterns. solid evidence of the investigator's As for the Frenchmen. Ethelrod will do anything in his past dealings with the Mythos. power to avoid speaking with them or even going near them. Mathieson will reveal his private He has an abiding dislike for the "frogs". If he thinks he theories about the wall. After warn· detects similar feelings on the part of any of the investigators. ing the investigator that his views he will approach them in private and begin making a slan­ may be completely misguided and derous attack against the members of the climbing tewn, call­ thai they wiU have to wait until he ing them the won:t names imaginable, then moving on to sees the wall personally before he attack the F~nch nation as a whole can confinn his suspicions. he will and finally extending the argument explain that he believes the object 10 include anyone who would even may date back well before me bother to learn the filthy language. beginning of recorded history and indeed may be far older Why Ethelnxi hates the French so than anything yet discovered by science. Mamieson will much is unknown and is the only even hint thai he believes that the wall might possibly be of thing that can cause him to crack his non·human origin. well practiced British reserve. If the Although seemingly healthy, Mathieson suffers from investigator doesn't begin to jump some hean trouble and cannOI engage in any strenuous into the conversation. railing against activity. He wiU not accompany the group on the journey the French with the same enthusiasm inland and will not even work the wall. as the exposure to as Ethelrod. he will realize that he HENRY £rnEJ..ROD the hostile conditions and the hazards involved might prove has misjudged the situation and stop his tirade, slightly out of too much of a strain. Instead be will stay aboard the ship. breath and somewhat embarrassed. He will apologize and using his time to decipher the copies of the strange writings make an excuse to leave. the other investigators bring in. The investigators will notice that Ethelrod walks with a slight limp. the result of a bullet wound suffered during the PROFESSOR CURTIS MATHIESON,. 54, Mlsbtonk Ulllv~tsU1 Boer War. Ethelnxl was decorated several times for bravery. A~ and Anthrnpoloatsc STR 8 CON 4 SIZ 10 (NT 17 POW 14 He has a naturalleaclership ability that will not become obvi­ ous until he is placed in charge of the expedition to the inte­ OEX II APP 13 EDU 20 SAN 55 HP 7 rior. Besides the ability to make cool-headed decisions in Sk1lIs: Anthropology as'l>. Arabic 60%. AIchaeoIogy~. times of great SITeSS, he possesses a number of guerrilla war­ Astronomy 15'1>. BiokIgy 10'1>, Lbemistry 15". Credit Rallng 75'1>. Cthulhu Mythos 12'1>, English 99%, Egyptian 6()'1" Geoloa,y 20'1>, fare skills and has kept in excellent shape. Ethelrod has Greek 60%. Latin 60%. Ubnuy Usc ~.l1 nguistics 40%. Narural found no reason to mention his war experiences to anyone History~, Persuade as'l>, Psychok>gy 65'1>. and would never think to brag about the many decorations he received in the conflict. When these skills and abilities HENRY ETHELROO become apparent on the expedition to the interior. Ethelrod Ethel.rod. an expert in Indo-European languages. holds a may be moved to tell a few war stories. position with the British Museum in London but for the past HENRV ETHELROD, age 43, Enallsb Aristocnlt and fellow of 11K six months has been at Miskatonic University where, with British Museum Mathieson, he bas been trying to date some pottery frag­ STR 15 CON 16 Sl2 14 INf 16 POW 17 ments unearthed on the eastern Meditenanean shore and OEX 16 APP 12 EOU 19 SAN 85 HP IS believed to be of Hittite origin. Oamage Bonus: +104 Ethelrod is tall. slender. and distinguished·looking. about 45 years old and extremely well educated. He is a British WeaporlJ·: Fist/Punch 90'1>. damage 103+104 Kid: 8()11,. damage 106+104 aristocrnt and his cultured accent barely disguises the disdain Fighting Knife 7S'I>, damage 104+2+1 D4 he holds for those less educated or less well disposed than he. .38 Revolver 5S%. damage 1010 Although on good tenns with Mathieson, he fmds most .J0.06 Bolt-action Rifle 75%. damage 206+4 American vulgar and will avoid conversation with them • £Ihelrod does not nomwlly CQrry QIIy weapons. whenever possible. If cornered by one of the investigatOl1i he Skills: Anlhropology 90%, Archaeology 65'1>. Bargain 20%. will flTSt try to be polite. then, if the investigator persists. be Biology IS'I>, Climb 80'1>. Credit Rating 90%, Ohulhu Mythos will attempt to brush him off. If this fails he will become sar­ 08%. Dodge 75". English 95%. FIfSt Aid 80'1>. Hide 75%. History castic and insulting. but always wittily, leaving the investiga­ S5%. Jump 7S'I>. Indo-European Languages 75'1>. Libnuy Use tor to wonder what he really meant by his remarks. 90%, Useen 75%, Medicine: 40%. Natural History 60%. Navigate Etbelrod has gotten used to Chuck Granger, Mathieson's 65%. Persuade 80%. Psycbology 25%, Ride 65%. Sneak 65%. Spot Hidden 75%. Swim 50%, Throw 65". Track: 60%. assistant. and despite the young man's drinking problem bas The Trail of Tsatboggua - 9

CHARLES"CHUCK"GRANGER be a valuable and helpful member ofth.e team unless there is 'T\venty-four years old. with red hair and freckles, once­ danger of revealing his terrible secret. robust Granger is a graduate student working under Unknown to almost everyone, Bhule's body is covered Mathieson. He originally went to Miskatonic to study pre­ with coarse reddish-orange hair that grows from his chest law but was impressed by Professor and shoulder area to cover thickly his back and upper legs. Mathieson's studies, and gradually Since it first made its appearance when he was only seven­ switched to archaeology and anthro­ teen, Bhule has been careful to reveal this secret to no one. pology classes. Granger is a fine sci­ The only living human to have any inkling of the situation is enlist and a dedicated worker bUI a doctor thai Terrence visited when the hair first began to has a slight drinking problem. The sprout. The physician had read about people who were born elder professor bas resolved that this with similar problems, and had either part or all of their flesh expedition will be Granger's last covered with a thick, animal-like fur. He diagnosed Bhule's chance to change his ways. situation as the same: hypertrichosis. an incurable glandular Mathieson has no objections to alco­ deficiency. hol. but 100 many times recently. Undaunted. Bhule went ahead with his life and attended Granger has drunk himself into a college to study anthropology. a science to which he was stupor in the evening and been too hung-over to get up the inexplicably drawn. Embarrassed by his affliction, Bhule's next morning. social life in school was non-existent. Instead, he threw him­ Ethelrod has taken it upon himself 10 aid the young man self into his studies. Upon graduating. he committed himself to rid himself of the problem, but his help takes the fonn of to his work with even more enthusiasm than he had shown a stem father reprimanding his son, a relationship that for his schooling. Deciding to undertake the study of some Granger misunderstands and dislikes. Granger has made of the northeastern Indian tribes of Canada. he eventually good friends with the younger Bhule. who. while suffering came into contact with the Eskimos of the nonhem coasts no real problem with it. cenainly enjoys a drink or two or and, fascinated by the egalitarian culture. turned his research three in the evening. Granger also gets along with the three to lhese people and their customs. French mountaineers who have their own supply of wine. While working in the field Bhule discovered his knack for and are always more than willing to share with a friend. "hunches." At certain times Bhule, for no apparent reason, These temptations may prove to be more than Granger would experience intuitional flashes regarding certain behav­ can handle and if he begins once again to drink excessively. ior patterns that he observed among the Indians and Eskimos it will lead 10 noisy rows with Mathieson and Ethelrod. whom he had studied. Following these hunches with scien­ Granger does not become surly or mean when he drinks,just tific research proved them accurate more often than nat. It incapable of doing any work. Granger, once quite robust, has was while worldng with the Eskimos thaI he began to feel been drinking for some time now and it has begun to affect that their culture had somehow been influenced by one which his health. predated theirs. and which may have been immensely more sophisticated. When Bhule was contacted through the CHARI.ES GRANGER. IIle 1.4. Alooholk Graduate StudeDt University of Toronto by Ethelrod and Mathieson. he realized STR 13 CON 9 SIZ 13 INT 15 pow 7 that the strange discovery in Green­ DEX 10 APP 9 EDU 17 SAN 30 HP 11 land mighl prove his theory right. At Damage Bonus: + I 04 the same time, he could Dot help Weapons·: FISt/Punch 80%. damage 103+104 feeliDg that even more might be • Although not VitO' ~Qlthy now, Grangu usltd to box. learned from the wall. Skills: Anthropology 35%, Archaeology 65%. Climb 75%, Bhule is the victim of mis­ English 85%, Fast Talk 35%. Law JS%. Library Use 65%. chance. and the growth of fur is caused by a pairing of recessive TERRENCE BHULE genes in his bloodline that can be This young Canadian grew up in Toronto and attended col­ traced back to the last surviving lege there. He is only in his late twenties but has already gar­ furry prehumans (voonnis) who nered a certain amount of acclaim for his work among the managed to live in Greenland until Indians and Eskimos of Canada's east coast. His research the 15th century. These last remaining beings mated with has added much to what is known about Eskimo folklore and degenerate Viking survivors whose colonies had been religion, and it was this research thaI caused Ethelrod to rec­ almost wiped out by a combination of the increasing cold ommend adding him to the team. He has red hair and his and constant raids by the skraeling (surviving Hyperbore­ years in the field have added a cenain ruggedness to his ans). These small communities of Vtkings and beasts were already handsome features. He makes friends easily and will almost completely decimated when. by chance, a Dutch quickly become tight with Granger. The two are frequently whaler was forced into a fjord by a fierce stonn. They found likely to spend the evening sharing a bottle of brandy in their the remains of the last surviving Viking, his ''wife'', and their cabin or in the company of the French mountaineers in their two children. Misunderstanding the situation, the sailors quarters on the deck below. In all ways Bhule will prove to killed the "orange-haired ape" and took the two orphans they 10 - The Compact Trail of Tsathoggua

found back to Europe. Shule can trace nis family tree [0 The climbing team, not unexpectedly, is high-spirited. and these one of these foundlings. and it is voonnis genetic after an initial confrontation with Mathieson over a large memories lhat provide his hunches. quantity of wine they intend to bring Aside from an aversion to getting undressed. in front of aboard ship (they will win this argu­ anyone. Bhule seems well adjusted. ment by refusing to go if they can'l Note: It is essential that Bnule survive this adventure if bring the wine). will prove to be a the second adventure, ''The Cu~ of Tsathoggua", is to be cheerful if somewhat noisy group. played as written. Bhule may lose SAN during the adventure The two younger men are not above bul should not go more Ihan temponuily insane. Remember playing a practical joke or two on lhe that Bhule is generally helpful and friendly to everyone on staid scientists. These pranks will the expedition and apar1 from a touch of doraphobia (fear of include cold, dead fish in the bottom touching animal fur) is probably the least-complicated mem­ of their victim's bunk, ice down his ber of the team. His phobia might be detected after a few days back, or even a bucket of water association oombined witb a successful Psychoanalysis roll. rigged to dump over someone open- [ If Bhule should view the mummified remains in the tomb ing a door. Worse yet. they will choose one of the investiga­ (see p. 29). he will go temporarily insane. The effects of this tors as a favorite target, causing him no end of misery. If these insanity will last only a shon time, but it will leave the problems are brought to Mathieson's attention. he will com­ young man shaken and the group will eventually bave to plain to Luvois. who will try to quiet help him out of the building. Bhule will seem to recover the two younger men. Unfortunately, nicely, but if an investigator has done an earlier, successful their behavior will prove irrepress­ Psychoanalysis on him. a second Psychoanalysis. perfonned ible until reaching the glacier, where before the team returns to New England and splits up, will they will have other activities to reveal that he is suffering from some serious emotional dis­ occupy their time and energy. order. Other than this, Terrence Bhule will seem fine. The mountaineers, while more than willing to aid, will prove use­ TERRENCE RHULE, llge 18. Anlhropologblllnd 5f.c1"'l'1 ~ndllnt of the Voonnis less in transcribing the writing STR 15 CON 17 SIZ 12 INT 15 POW 13 found on the wall. They are just not careful enough. They will spend DEX 14 APP 12 EDU 17 SAN 55 HPI5 their time installing rigging and cat· Damage Bonus: +104 walks and later. when necessary. stand guard at the top of the Weapons-: FisllPunch 50%. damage 103+104 glacier, alternating with lhe sailors. Hunting Knife 65%. damage 106+ 104 Thrown Hunting Knife 45%. damage 106+102 PHILIPPE LUVOIS .45 Revolver 45%. damage 1010+2 • Bhul~ ho.f been wo,*in~ in the wilds for some rim~ now ami will Philippe is the leader of the climbing team and. at thirty· two, rarely ventllre far without some k.iml of weapon. His favorite is a considerably older than the other two. He, like the others. .45 ~"OIVf'r that h~ wears in a buttoned hoIst~r. but even if he spons a thick, bushy beard to protect hi s face from the cold feels there is 1ll) need for a gu" (for insf(lnce. aboard ship) he will and is strong and hardened by his many years spent climb­ nel'ef he seen without a large sheathed knife 011 his belt. ing the mountain peaks of Europe. This has been his second SkJlls: Anthropology 90%. Archaeology 35~ , kitrooomy 15%. trip to America and he is the only member of the group who Alhepaskan 85%, Biology 45%, Chemisti)' 10%, Climb 80%. can speak more than fragmentary English. Cthulhu Mythos 03%. Dodge 75%. Drive Dog Sled 75%, English 85%, Estimo 85%, First Aid 75%. French 55%, Geology 15%, PIDUPPE LUVOlS, IIge 32, LeIIder of the French Climbing Team Histoty 25%, Jump 65%, Latin 30%. Library Use 65%, Listen 65%, STR 16 CON 15 SIZ 15 lNT 14 POW 14 Navigate 35%, Occult (Eskimo Lore) 35%, Persuade 35%. Sneak DEX 17 APP 10 EDU9 SAN 70 HP 15 30%, Spot Hidden 50%. Swim 75%. Throw 45%. Track 50%. Damage Bonus: + 104 Weapon: FistlPunch 65%, damage 103+104 The French Mountaineers Skills: Climb 98%, English 30%, First Aid 85%, French 65%, These three men. all French-born. were returning home from Geology 25%, Jump 95%. Navigate 75%, Track 25%. a six-month climbing expedition in the northern Canadian MICHEL PONCELET Rockies when word of the discovery in Greenland was Michel is only 24 years old. but is an experienced. expen released. Realizing the problems that might be involved in climber and slc.ier, having placed fifth in the downhill at the such an exploration, the leader of the group. Philippe 1924 Winter Olympics in Chamonix. France. He is (he son Luvois. phoned Mis:katonic University to offer the services of a well-to-do family and is also an expen marksman and of the climbing team. After experiencing a few language dif­ fencer. Despite his aristocratic background, Poncelel is ficulties, he was connected to lhe Archaeology department. friendly and unassuming. His main interest now is to rerum Mathieson was eager to accept the offer and saw to it that the 10 the Olympics to be held in 1928 in St. Moritz. where this necessary armngements were made with the U. S. govern­ time he hopes to take a medal. ment regarding their passpons and travel pennits. The Trail of Tsatboggua - II

M1CHEL PONCELET, IIge 24, Olympic Skil/,r and Member of tJHo the end of the war he returned to the U.S. and a couple of French Climbing Team years later contracted to skipper the STR 15 CON 17 SIZ 13 tNT 16 POW 14 Miskatonic research vessel Dar/ena. DEX 18 APP 15 EDU 14 SAN 70 HP 15 The Caplain is aloof and does Damage Bonus: + I D4 not approve of the large amounts of Weapon: FistlPunch 65%. damage ID3+104 alcohol brought on board by the Skills: Climb 95%, Credit Rating 95%. Dodge 85%, English Frenchmen (the crew is forbidden to 10%. French 80%. Jump 95%. Norwegian 20%. Ride 75%. Ski use alcohol while al sea). He may 95%. Swim 75%. Throw 75%. become friends with Ethelrod, the two men swapping war stories in the JEAN RAYMOND GOBINEAU Captain's cabin or on the bridge. Only nineteen years old. Jean is the great-grandson of the Captain Voorheim is under con­ French racial theorist. Joseph-Arthur, Ie CornIe de tract to Miskatonic University and Gobineau. The elder Gobineau firsl composed theories about was responsible for the hiring of the officers and crew. the innate superiority of the white race in the middle 19th CAPTAIN KLAUS VOORHEThi. age 58, C.ptaln ot tJHo Darleoa century; these theories were later adopted by the Nazis. Jean has inheirited many of his great-gmndfather's ideas. STR 14 CON 12 SIZ 15 tNT 16 POW 15 Although friendly and nonnal enough, Jean disguises an DEX 12 APP 15 EDU 19 SAN 75 HP 14 acute xenophobia that expresses itself in a hatred for all Damage Bonus: +104 races that he inferior to his own. He will shun both Weapon: .45 Automatic· 45%, damage 1010+2 the mulatto porter aboard the ship • Ktpl in foclad box under th ~ bed i1l his cabin. and any Esltimos with which the Skills: Accounting 75%, Astronomy 35%. English 75%, Gennan party come into contact. If for some 95%, Law 25%. Navigate 85%, Norwegian 40%. Persuade 65%, reason Gobineau should go insane Pilot Boat 95%. Psychology 65%. during the adventure, this phobia may express itself in an extremely LJEIJfENANT ANDREW MOTI violent manner, such as the murder Mott is a thirty-one-year-old American and a veteran of of a friendly Eskimo followed by WWI. Despite having been on the opposite side during the the mutilation of the body. An inves­ war, he has developed admimtion and respect for the tigator sharing the ship with Gobi­ Captain and will sland by him in any dispute. neau for a few days and making a LIEUTENANT ANDREW MOTr.II~ 31, LL oftbe Dariena JEAN OOBINE.AU successfuJ Psychqanalysis roll will STR 13 CON 15 SIZ 12 tNT 15 POW 13 receive just a hint of the man's problem. If a friend or com­ DEX 13 APP9 EDU 17 SAN 65 HP 14 panion is killed by a non-white. this may also cause Damage Bonus: +104 Gobineau great anxiety and drive him to insane acts. This Weapon: .45 Automatic· 65'.11. damage 1010+2 will not become apparent al flTst, but will manifest itself • Hidd~n in his cabin. slowly over a period of days, finaUy exploding in an attack Skills: Accounting 65%. Astronomy 20%, English 85%, Gennan against some innocent party. 25%. Pilot Boat 65%. JEAN RAYMOND GOBINEAU,lIge 19, Secrel Xenopbobt and Member or lhe Frencb Climbing Team CIDEF PETrY OFF1CER GERALD MAXWELL STR 15 CON 15 SIZ 16 INT 15 POW 10 A big, burly ex-merchant marine, Maxwell has spent most of DEX 16 APP 12 EDU 12 SAN 32 HP 16 his years sailing around the Philippines, New Guinea, and Damage Bonus: + I 04 Indonesia. If volunteers are needed for dangerous work. Weapon: .32 Revolv~ . damage 1D8 Maxwell will be the first to step forward. • J~an has a revolv~r in his cabin. and will likely INgjn to carry it GERALD MAXWELL., age 35, Ch~r Petty ~f of the Darlena when lroubl~ starts. S'fR17 CON 17 SlZI7 lNT9 POW 9 Skills: Anthropology 15%, Climb 85%, Dodge 85%, English DEX 10 APP9 EDU9 SAN 45 HP 17 10%, French 65%. History 25%, Jump 90%. Law (French) 20%. Throw 75%. Damage Bonus: + I D6 Weapons·: FistlPunch 90%, damage 103+106 Head Butt 95%. damage. lD4+106 Ship's Company Hunting Knife 80%, damage ID6+1+106 CAPTAIN K1.AUS VOORHElM .30-06 Bolt-action Rifle 70%. damage 206+4 .38 Revolver 65%. damage 1010 Fifty-eight-year-old Voorheim was living in, and sailing out • Gt:rafd afl'tYl)'s rnrry a W'Et knif~ with him. H~ does ff()f ~'11 wry of, America until J913 when, feeling that war was imminent, gUlIS, but will take ON!from t~ ship SrOrf'5 ..... l!e1l tM troubks ~gin. he returned to Prussia. During the Great War he piloted mer­ Skills: Electrical Repair 65%, English 45%. Mechanical Repair chant ships past the British blockades and had at least one 75%. Operate Heavy Machine 75%. Pilot Boat 55~. sunk [rom beneath him. losing his left arm in the process. At 12 - The Compact Trail of Tsathoggua

LOUIS THE STEWARD Wellpons-: FisllPunch 65%. damage ID3+db Louis is a mulatto from New Orleans and is charged wim han­ Head Butt 70%, damage I D4+db dling the lowest details on the ship. Kitchen dUlY, cleaning, Di~~.damage lD4+2+db .30-06 Bolt-action Rine 35%, damage 206+4 and waiting on the officers' tables are .38 Revolver 45%. damage 1010 just some of his daily duties. On the • Sailors J and 4·6 have dirks. None have guns. The ship srores other hand. he is well liked by the include two .30·06 bolr-(Jcrion Rifles, and rhree .38 revolvers Captain and the crew. and they afford which will be aUocaud our when the troubles begin. him a respect usually 001 offered 10 Skills: Climb 75%. English 60%, Jump 75%, Pilot Boat 75%, one in his position. Louis knows a Swim 75%. certain amount of Voodoo lore mat he learned while growing up in New The Voyage to Greenland Orleans. With his small Cthulhu Mythos knowledge he might be able The stone was discovered at the head of one of the numer­ to make some obscure connections ous fjords lining the east coast of Greenland, It is about LOUIS TIlE ~ARD with the finds the expedition wiU halfway between Angmagssalik. and Scoresbysund. The probably make. Of course, someone in the group will have to Darleoo is a small freighter which has been rigged with think to ask him; he would never offer his opinion. cranes. winches, and drilling equip­ Louis is also aware that for reasons unknown to him. ment for extended geological re­ Gobineau intensely dislikes him. search. The team will find the ship to be crowded with gear, samples. LOUlS..~ 21, Sieward 01 the o.rlcna and supplies left by the geology STRI2 CON 14 SIZ 14 POW 14 INT 14 team. Space is at a premium and DEX 13 APP 13 EDU 8 SAN 64 HPI4 once the various members of the Damage Bonus: +104 team have stashed all their equip­ Weapon: Kitchen Knife 65%, damage lD6+lD4 menlo they will probably find that Skills: Cthulhu Mythos 6'1>, English 50%. MuK:h 35%, Occult 20%. their Jiving quarters are less than they had hoped for. Only four small, THECREW ANDREW MOlT (w()+man cabins are available. One The rest of the ship's company consists of dghl common will be occupied by Mathieson and Ethelrod, along with sci­ sailors. They do not playa vital role in the scenario but may entific papers and a small library assembled by Mathieson. be called upon to serve as guards or even volunteer 10 jour- 1be three mountaineers will grab one of the rooms for their ney with the expedition to the interior. own. leaving Rhule, Granger. and all the investigators to SAJLORS divide themselves among the two remaining cramped cab­ No. I No. 2 No.3 No. 4 ins. A person might request space with the mountaineers. They will gladly oblige, but let's hope the investigator can STR 8 14 speak French and is in possession of a good sense of humor. CON 6 12 12 II " " The voyage to the southeast coast will take a week. 'The SIZ 9 12 12 9 conditions are crowded. water is at a premium (no showers), INT 12 14 16 14 and boredom is a problem. The POW 13 8 9 9 investigators can spend their time DEl< 12 16 13 II getting to know the different memo EDU 6 7 8 7 bers of the team. The keeper can SAN 6' ., 30 ., allow this time to pass quietly and DB 0 +104 +104 0 quickJy, or use it to develop some of HP 8 12 12 10 the personalities aboard ship. The two younger Frenchmen are likely No.5 No. 6 No. 7 No. 8 to go on a rampage of practical STR 9 8 16 14 jokes. while Granger's drinking CON 13 9 II problem could become acute on the SIZ 13 II " 13 crowded ship. An investigator might GERALD MAXWELL !NT 17 12 "18 witness a violent argument between Gobineau and Louis in POW 6 13 12 7" loud French and Ethelrod's personality may begin 10 grate DEX 12 10 9 6 on everyone. Also. there may be foul weather. Investigators EDU 8 6 7 7 who have not eamed their sea-legs may have to spend a cer­ tain amount of time hanging over the rail. SAN 30 6' 60 3S Facilities aboard the Darlenll include a compact, but DB 0 0 +104 +104 complete, chemical laboratory and the small library brought HP 13 10 12 " aboard by Mathieson. Any member of the team may have The Trail or Tsatboggua - 13 access to the library but it was chosen with space in mind of this dark gray slab of massive dimensions and alien con­ and only covers certain essential topics. Due to this, these ception. At least three hundred feet long and over twO hun­ topics have percentile limits on them. These percentiles rep­ dred feet high-the Eskimos' estimate was shon of the uuth. resent the available knowledge in the library. The investiga­ They were correct in the description of the human figure tor must roll less than this number, as well as less than his wielding a short curved sword and bending over a slain ani­ Library Use skill, to research successfully a question. For mal. This figure is in the center of the object but upside example: The team has a geological question about the com­ down. The whole thing appears to be a wall that has been position of the wall. If no one can answer it with a Geology turned and rolled over by the glacier LO its present position, roll, it must be researched in the (jbrnry. The topic of posed above the cold sea, upside down, and leaning outward Geology has a limit of 50%. If the researcher had a Library a few degrees past vertical. Even upside down. it is obvious Use skill of 65%, his roll would need to be less than 50% to that tbe figure portrayed is unusual. Anthropology rolls successfully answer the question. If his Library Use skill show that the clothing is a type nOl known to any culture past were 35%, he would need to roll less than 35 to successful­ or present and the facial features-the large straight nose ly answer the question. and the oddly lengthened earlobes--give the character an The library contains infonnation on the following topics: alien caste. Anyone viewing the massive object (or the first Anthropology 65%, Archaeology 85%. Astronomy 20%, lime must make a successful SAN roll or lose I point. Any Biology 15%. Chemistry 80% (a large portion of this litera­ investigator making a successful Cthulhu Mythos roll will ture is contained in the chemical laboratory and was already recognize the human being as fitting the description some­ aboard ship), Geology 50%, History 20%, Occult 20%. times given of the mythical people of Hyperborea. Topics not listed are not contained in the library. As soon as the ship is anchored, Mathieson will have two Additionally, Mathieson has stashed away a fragmentary of the small wooden boats put over the side so the wall can copy of the Book of Dz.yan. This book contains what is pur­ be investigated at close range. Each boat will be rowed by ported to be an Atlantean document describing the ancient two sailo~ and occupied by four members of the team. Ooe civilizations of Atlantis, Hyperborea, Lemuria. Lomar. and boat will hold Mathieson. Granger. and Louis while the others. The translation was made by a (onner associate of other will contain Ethelrod and Bhule. The remaining three Ethelrod and it was questions regarding this translation that places can be taken by any investigators who wish to accom­ brought Ethelrod and Mathieson together in the first place. pany the scientists. Both have read the book and though neither really knows From a distance it appea~ that the wall is one solid piece what 10 make of it. they are convinced that the recent dis­ of rock. but upon closer eltamination it is found to be com­ covery in Greenland is tied to it. They, of course, have never prised of individual blocks fused logether by heat. 1be expressed these theories to anyone else on the team. The blocks themselves are of mammoth proportion. each mea­ Book of Dz.}'an contains the following three spells: Contact suring nearly ten by twenty feet. The individual blocks are Fonnless Spawn of Tsathoggua, Contact Gnoph-keh. and covered with distinctive hieroglyphics of an unknown type. Contact Tsathoggua. The top of the inverted slab reaches nearly as high as the glacier behind it and the wall forms almosl the entire head of the slowly moving mass of ice. From above, ice melted by !.he sun-wanned stone forms a constant rainfall thai will The Wall in the Ice dampen the clothing (and spirits) of anyone spending much. time around the stone. After a short visit. the boats will relUrn to the ship. where Mathieson and Ethelrod will confer captaffi will not attempt to negotiate the fjord until he on how best to deal with the gigantic artifact. is guaranteed at least four hours of good daylight to TInavigate by and will anchor off the coast until morning. The Plan of Mathieson and Ethelrod This part of Greenland is badly chaned and in the spring many icebergs are fonned. Due [0 its Arctic Circle location, there is The two scientists have decided that the mountain-cl imbing never a period of complete darkness in late spring and summer, leam will be charged with scaling the waJl and constructing just a long unbroken stretch oftwilighl as the sun travels along a series of rope scaffolds that will allow membe~ of the sci­ the horizon. However. this does not provide enough light for entific learn to cling to the surface of the wall and make accurate passage through unknown, dangerous waters. hand-written copies of the writings. This may prove diffi­ It takes three hours to negotiate the twisting fjord back to cult. but rubbings or other transferring procedures will not its head where the huge rock is reportedly located. Though work here. due to wind. dampness, and the corroded surface the fjord is at least a mile wide at times, everyone on the ship of the stone. Mathieson and Ethelrod will stay aboard ship feels hemmed in by the great walls of ice !.hat rise to each and attempt to translate the material while the sailors pro­ side. Many icebergs. large and small, float lauly by. vide boat transportation between the wall and the ship. As the Darlena rounds a last bend in the waterway. the Investigators will be able to choose. on a daily basis. object of the search suddenly comes into view. a scant two wbether they wish [0 work on the wall or aboard ship, attempt­ hundred yards from the bow of the slowly moving ship. ing 10 translate the writings that have been brought aboard. Nothing the team has heard has prepared them for the sight Procedures for either of these activities are given below. 14 - The Compact Trail or Tsalhoggua

TRANSLATING THE HIEROGLVPHS ings. If he fails his DEX roll after slipping, whether the belt Any investigator succeeding in each of nn Archaeology. saves him or DOt. he will drop his notes into the sea-a day's Anthropology. and Natural History skill rolls wiJI succeed wort wasted. in lJ'anslating some of the work. A Cthulhu Mylhos skill roll An investigator falling into the sea. for this or any other may be used to replace one of the three requisite skiDs. reason, runs a grave danger from shock and exposure. He will Investigators mny attempt this every day until the language be quickly returnoo to the ship and put to bed to rest. The next has been deciphered. If left unaided. Mathieson and morning. upon awakening, the investigator will be required Ethelrod will manage a translation on the last dny that the to make a CONx5% roll or find himself amicted with a stone remains accessible (Day 14). Without a translation. severe cold and be unable to work outside for the next 1D6 the team will have to copy the writings at random. not days. If on the second day the investigator fails a CONx5% knowing which ponioll5 may be more significant than oth­ roll. he will begin to show the first signs of pneumonia. There ers. If an investigator can crack the code it will allow those is medicine aboard ship. but it will require a successful making copies to choose parts that seem to contain more Medicine roll lO save the investigator from dying in 206 peninent information. days. Up to three people can try one Medicine roll each. lbe language is exceedingly complex. and the translation sketchy and crude, and even after initial translations are made Daily Events it will still be impossible simply to "read" what is on the wall. 1be odd. mathematical fonn of the language requires a type In addition, the following events occur as scheduled below. of decoding. trying various fonnulae until one is found to fit. DAY 7: The Dar/ena arrives in Greenland, and waits to trav­ This is a long and tedious process, each block of glyphs writ­ el up the fjord. ten to a different variation of one of seven formulae. To com­ DA Y 8: The mountaineers scale the wall and begin installing plicate things fwther. the SlOne that the intricate glyphs are the rigging that the scientists will be using. carved into is badly corroded, making some of the characters indistinguishable from others. Hence. each block successful­ DAY 9: This is the first day that anyone will be able to make ly translated is the product of hit and miss. copies from the wall. The rigging is partially completed, allowing room for four transcribers. WORKING TI:IE WALL DAY 10: Starting today, an unlimited number of transcribers This work is cold and hazardous, but it is the only activity to may work the wall. Sometime during the afternoon. while the occupy an investigator's lime if he is unable to help with the transcribers are hard at work. a huge chunk of ice falls from translating work. While no one will be forced to work on the the top of the glacier and plunges toward the workers below­ wall. any young, healthy. male investigator will be consid­ Bhule, Granger, the three mountaineers. and any investigators ered something of a shirker if he doesn't spend at least some that may have chosen to work. the wall this day. Anyone fail­ time here. ing his Luck roll must succeed in a Dodge roll 10 avoid the Anyone clambering up the catwalks constructed by the plummeting block of ice. If he fails. he will be struck by the mountain climbers will find them ice-coaled and slippery. six-foot block and carried, along with whatever section of Each member of the tearn is required to wear a life jacket and scaffolding he was on, into the sea.. The body will not be leather safety harness that clips ooto the ropes. There is enough recovered. If the Dodge roll succeeds. he will have managoo usable daylight every day for one investigator to copy com­ to scramble onto a portion of the scaffolding that will remain pletely one of the blocks thai make up the wall. lnvestigatcn after the block ofiee has fallen. lfany of the pany looks to the will find the hours spenl to be very miserable indeed; the cold top of the glacier. he wiU briefly see what appears to be four wind blows the misty rain falling from the top of the glacier Eslcimos standing at the top of the wall. A successful back onto the scientists. while occasional heavy fogs suddenly Anthropology roll will tell the investigator that there is some­ engulf the workers and then, as quickly. dissipate. thing distinctively un-Eslcimo about their facial features. II is impossible to keep the ropes and the scaffolding free An investigator who has chosen to stay aboard the ship of ice. Twice per day. when climbing up and again when this day (and makes a Luck roll) will be on deck when this climbing down, the investigalOr will be required to make a event occurs and will witness the whole thing from the Climb roll. Failure to make this roll will mean that the inves­ moment that the "Eskimos" first appear on top of the glaci­ tigator has slipped on some ice and will need to roll his er. If the investigator thinks to grab a pair of binoculars DEXx3% 1.0 regain his footing. If the DEX roll is missed. he (there ate a few pair handy about the ship), he will be slips off the catwalk but will (hopefully) be saved by the allowed time to train the glasses upon the figures atop the safety belt (which will deliver I point of damage from the glacier. Through the powerful lenses he will see three sudden jerk). These leather belts are old and dry and there is humans dressed in garb similar to the Eskimos but possess­ a chance equal to the investigator's SlZxl% that one will ing unusual physical features: large. long noses and earlobes snap, plunging him into the sea where he will be fished out of exceptional length. 1bese men will retreat soon after by a sailor who is stationed below in a boat. Falling from this pushing the block over. If the investigator aboard ship goes height will cause 1D6 damage. If this should occur to an to get binoculars or a weapon after the block has fallen. he investigator while lJ'aveling back down from the wall. he will return to find that the mysterious men have vanished wiIJ probably be carrying a full day's wonh of copied writ- inland. The 1Tai1 or 15athoggua - 15 16 - The Compact Trail or Tsathoggua

Work on the wall will resume the following day, but from the wall this day will receive one warning shock that should this point on. one of the mountaineers (or sailors) will be let him know that it is time to leave. Before a minute is up, posted at the top of the glacier with a rifle in hand. however, the wall breaks loose from the glacier and, with a DAY II: This day passes uneventfully. deafening, grating noise, slides directly down into the green water. Any investigator on the wall wiD be required to make DAY 12: Late in the day. but while characters are still a Climb roll to get off the wall in time, either helped to the involved in the process of transcription. the wall, with a ter· top by the mountaineer stationed above, or into the boat rible groaning, splintering sound. will suddenly tilt forward manned by the sailor. Anyone missing this roll will be a few more degrees and then quickly drop three feet straight plunged into the sea along with the immense wall and be down into the sea before coming to a stop with a sudden required to make an additional Luck roll. Success means the jerk. No injuries will occur. but anyone on the wa ll at this character is plucked from the freezing water by the boat time will be required to make a SAN roll or lose I D2 points (with the deleterious results mentioned earlier), while a from fear. missed roll means that be has perished. That night, Mathieson and Ethelrocl call a meeting of the e:tpedjtion members and express the feeling that the wall bas DAY IS: The Darlena leaves for GodthAb. possibly become too unsafe to work on. On the other hand, CLUES FOUND ON THE WALL the scientific discoveries that could be made from continued examination may prove of tremendous importance. The huge wall contains a number of clues for the investiga· Therefore. he is leaving it up to individual members of the tors. but how many they gather is determined at least partly expedition to make their own choices regarding this now, by luck. Each day. each investigator working on the wall more than ever. dangerous enterprise. Mathieson will recom· will be able to transcribe one potential clue. Upon later mend that the wall not be approached again. Bhule, badly translation. the writing chosen proves to be of value only on frightened by the shifting of the wall, will decline to work on a result of I on a 06. If the roll is unsuccessful. the rranslat­ it again. but Granger and the mountaineers are willing to con­ ed material is meaningless to the party. Transcriptions made tinue. lnvestigatOTN will have to make their own decisions. after a breakthrough in translating the glyphs has been made will prove of value on a roll of 1-4 on a 06. This reflects the DAY 13: This day passes uneventfully. fact that, with some knowledge of the language. members of DAY 14: Early in the morning, while the sun is shining the team can choose writings that seem to contain more rei· brightly, the buge wall of stone shifts once again. Anyone on evant material. It is therefore essential that players keep a record of the transcriptions made and if they were made before or after the writing was translated. If one of the investigators does not CAMPAIGN LocA110NS make the first translation, it will not be accomplished by Mathieson and Ethelrod until after the stone has fallen. caus· ing only 1/6 of the translations to be of significance. After the translation. at least one clue is provided even if none of the transcriptions contain significant material. This one clue identifies this wall as part of a city. According to figures given in the writings, this city would be located to the south and possibly about sixty miles inland. With this infonnation in hand, Mathieson and Ethelrod will propose that the team voyage to the town of GodthAb (located on the southwest coast) and outfit themselves there for an inland expedition. It will be put to the vote. but unless some inves· GRt;t;NLAND tigators dissent, the resolution will pass unanimously. While the Darlena is en route to GodthAb, investigators wiD be able to translate the rest of the blocks. If some of the other transcriptions contain clues, they may be chosen (or • The Wall rolled randomly) from the following table. Each investigator will be able to uncover one of these clues per complete day The Temple in the Ice of work.

Godthj· . RANDOM TRANSCRIYfION CLUE TABLE (1010)

\. 1r3t;LAND" ""'"'" I. This clue reveals the name of the city, Commorium. built \ ~ lviqtu,"-'. \.....-/ _ ~ Julianhdb by people who migrated south from a place called Mhu Thulan. A successful Cthulhu Mythos roll will tell the investigator thai Mhu Thulan and Commorium were part of lost Hyperborea. The Trail or Tsatboggua - 17

2. A description of Commorium. telling of its many parks can be seen along the shore, preparing skins or repairing and gardens. A successful Biology roll will reveal that the fishing boats. and on the streets of the town. carefully pick­ described plams could only be prehistoric cycads and ing their way lbrough the deep spring mud. The occasional palms. person of Scandinavian descent can be easily recognized among the shorter, stockier Eskimos. 3. This reveals that the people built their city on or near the As soon as the boats make shore, Mathieson and Ethelrod ruins of another. older civilization. will go to the large building housing the government inspec­ 4. "Commorium was built upon the children ofZoth-Aqqua!" tor, or coloni~sryrrr. 1bere are only two such inspectors in is the only understandable portion of this transcription. the whole of Greenland. Besides re~nting the Danish government, they aJso act as magistrates. settling disputes. 5. This tells of an ancient temple, square in shape and of pre­ dividing inheritances, and dealing with other legaJ matte~. human origin, that stands near the peak of a mountain that 11lere is no police force. The investigators may accompany borders Commorium. A successfu1 Cthulhu Myihos roll the two men to the government office. or strike out on their will indicate that the described temple ~mbled those own. GodthAh is the laJgC5t settlement in GTeenland (it has anributed to Tsathoggua. one of only four operating wireless stations in the country) and there are severa] "public" buildings the investigators 6. This transcription tells of a six-legged horror sometimes seen in the vicinity of a prehistoric building on a nearby could look imo. It will take Mathieson and Ethelrod four days mountain. A successful Cthulhu Mythos roll may hint that to prepare the expedition and the investigators will be aJlowed to spend their time as they wish. Investigators not the beast is a gnoph-keh. desiring to accompany the team to the interior will have 10 7. This mentions that a ·'hideous. fonnless guardian hides in wait behind in GodthAb or aboard the Dar/eM. the temple on the mounlain." 8. This is a spell, Contact Zoth-Aqqua A successful Cthulhu Godthiib Locales Mythos roll will identify this being as Tsathoggua. An T HE GOVE RN ~1ENT OFFICE INTx5% roll is needed to decipher the spell. and only This. the second largesl building in GodthAb. houses the wire­ those that can translate the glyphs can try. less. the government records, and the office of Sven Bjerke. 9. Another spell, this time Contact Servant of Zoth-Aqqua colonibestyrer. aJong with his assistant. Nels Osterburg. Only (Contact Fonnless Spawn of Tsathoggua). A successful Bjerke speaks English but both men will warmly welcome the Cthulhu Mythos roll will aJso clarify the name of this members of the Miskatonic expedition and will be ITlOft: than spell and being. An lNl'x5% roll will decipher the spell. happy to answer any questions the investigators may have and only those that can translate the glyphs can try. about Greenland, GodthAb. or the Eskimos.

to.TIle inscription says that if one wishes to visit the ancient THE GENERAL STORE temple on the mountain. he will be required to speak with Denmark operntes a monopoly in trade with Greenland and "the Servant within." the genera] store is administered by a Dane The store carries supplies that would be The keeper may draw additional clues from the "History" useful for someone living in Green­ section at the beginning of the scenario. land: canned foods, metal knives and gardening lools, rifles and ammuni­ tion, and even a few pairs of snow­ shoes. though most residents make GodthAb, Greenland their own. Anything more exotic than this is not found here. If an investiga­ tor attempts to purchase something, he voyage around the southern coast and back north he will discover (if he hasn't found to GodthAb on the west coast will require five days' out earlier) mat Greenland has its T sailing time. Anyone capable of translating the writ­ own currency and an exchange at the ings can spend his time translating one clue per day. lbe govemmem office will have to be made. Once the exchange ship will anchor in the bay and investigators wishing to go is made, the investigator will find that he has to pay approxi­ ashore will have to ride to the docks in one of the small boats mately double normaJ prices for anything. The prices are set manned by the sailors. by the state and are, in part, to help offset Greenland's annual This town has a population of slightly less than two thou­ deficit. An investigator may believe the man is overcharging sand people, almost 811 Eskimo. A few of the buildings are him. something Oleg will consider an iruult. made of imponed wood (there are very few trees on Oleg Ulfsson is a friendly man and a lifelong native of Greenland), and most are Eskimo huts of stone and turf. Greenland. He can supply the investigators with information Downwind is the blubber-boiling establishment. its many on GodthAb or the Eskimos of the area. He is <8ware of the racks filled with drying fish, seaJ. and walrus skins. Eskimos work that the schoolmaster is conducting in regard to the old 18 - The Compact Trail or Tsathoggua

Viking site near the town. but will not think to bring it up successfully tnmslated. Mathieson will take this opponunity unless the investigators bring some related topic into the to explore the dig and will try to interest any investigators conversation first. remaining behind to help him. If the investigators have made conl8Ct with Oleg, on the Nels will gladly show the group to the sile, located a mile second day of the eApedition's visit to GodtMb, the store­ nonheast of town. keeper will seek them out to invite them 10 an Eskimo "song due'" to be held that afternoon on the outskins of town. T HE SEMINARY This large wooden building houses the local minister, eight OLEG ULF'SSON, 1ge 37, Proprietor of 1M. Godthlb Tndlng Post students, and one clerical teacher. It is located next door to a STR 12 CON 14 SIZ 15 £NT 12 pow II simple, wooden church. Graduates of this institution are sent DEX 9 APP 10 EDU9 SAN SS HP IS 10 Copenhag~n 10 be ordained. Damage &nus: +104 The minister. 1!6rgen Hedin, is Danish and speaks no Skills: Accou.nting ~. Anthropology (Eskimo culwre only) English. If someone can communicale with him while mak­ 55%. Bargain 65%. Credit Rating 85%, Duush 75%. Electrical ing a successful Persuade or History roll, he will show off Repair I()CA,. English 25%, Eskimo 754, Hide .55%. Mechanical the collection of old books housed in his small office. some Repair 20%. Pick Pocket 054, Sneak 254. of wh.ich were brought here by Hans Egede. who fanned the NEWSPAPER OFFICE first modem settlement in Greenland in 1721 . This is one of two monthly newspapers published in This library is very small but contains a number of older Greenland. bolh of which are written in Eskimo. The one­ books in Latin and other, more modem languages. most of man operation is run by an Eskimo who speaks no English them penaining to the history of Denmark and Greenland. If but speaks Danish at 25%. He will allow investigators access an investigator can read Dutch or Gennan. his attention may to the files if they can communicate the request It wiJl of be attracted to a slim volume in obviously bad condition. If course require a successful Eskimo language roll and a half the investigator reads this book. he will discover that it is a day's time to go through the files (Bhule could be of belp ponion of a joumal belonging 10 a Dutch clergyman who, at here). The old papers contain nothing of interest other than a the time of the writing. was accompanying a Dutch whaler story about the discovery of an old Viking settlement near hunting off the shores of Greenland in 1540. Most of the GodtMb two years ago by Nels Petersen, the local school­ joumal is mundane. but the later pages contain a record of master, and the excavation he is conducting. events not recorded in the standard histories. THE JOURNAL: This slim book, now badly worn with THE SCHOOL loose pages. was first brought to Greenland in 1721 with the The one-room wooden building that is the public school is first of the second wave of Scandinavian colonists. II is pan filled to capacity four hours a day, four days a week. of a collection of material pcnaining to the first Viking Education is not compulsory, but the teacher is popular with colonislS and their subsequent disappearance. many of the children and their parents. It was written by Pieter de Holst. a Lutheran pastor. The schoolmasler's name is Nels Petersen. the only child of aboard a Dutch whaler that brieny set ashore on the frozen a Danish father and an Eskimo mother. Nels was roucated in coast of Greenland in 1540. Most of the journal is an Copenhagen. but returned home to GocIlhAb 10 leach school. uneventful day-ta-day record of the ship's years~long voy­ While in Copenhagen, Nels studied archaeology and upon his age. but the two or three pages penaining to Ihe landing on return to Greenland set out to locale and excavate some of the Greenland are of special interest. It will require a success at many Viking ruins in the area around Godth!b. For the past Dutch (or at one-fifth of Gennan) to discover the infonna­ few years, he has been excavating a village thought 10 have tion in Tsuthoggua Pu~rs #3. been founded by one of Erik the Red's companions. Nels is impressed by the international scientific team and. The Viking Village Site if not contacted by someone from the team, will seek out Mathieson on his own and introduce himself. If the investiga­ AI the site. Nels Peter.;eD has marked off wtlat appears to be tOB do not mak~ the initial contact. N~ls will not gather up the the foundations of several buildings and has begun prelimi­ courage 10 approach the eminent Professor Mathieson until nary digging in a few spots. Making the work considerably the expedition to the interior has departed Godth4b. more difficult is the glacier. now nearly a mile away, that has Nels is more than happy to share his finds with the group advanced and retreated from lhis area. churning up the ground and will show them the three pieces of runic stone bearing and making accurate identification of structures difficult. the lost saga of Erik the Red (see Tsathoggua Pa~rs #2 for For each full day an investigator spends digging and sift­ Nels' painstaking translation) along with several other items ing through the din, he will bave one chance of discovering discovered in the same area. He has accurately translated the an artifaci of significance. This chance is equal to the inves­ three sections of the stone. and believes that other pieces of tigator's Archaeology percentile or POWx 1%. whichever is the stone probably lie buried somewhere in the site. higher. If an investigatOT makes a successful roll. he will dis­ If the investigators fail to take up this vague offer from cover either a fragment of tbe runic stone or some other Nels. he will present it again to Mathieson after the expedi­ object chosen from the following list. either by keeper's lion has left. If the writings taken from the wall have all been choice or modomly selected. The Trail of Tsatboggua - 19

Of Tl)e

crce--geat; race I;haI; had wed in a warm lord to the Trx; rorth c.Ied """"'-'and. 01 his: firrt voyage t.o VrNard. ~rik q.ent tN-eQ years; gr.e afro 1;0Id I:he rn. like the Vidr-gs;. Lat:er that. 'fl2l'. t.h9 d. wac; fo...od a few t-v...ncrtad feet from carr'1>. !;he back Of t;s; d«.A brut:aIy caved in. The ~ aHeN1*ed 1;0 track U-Q d. but: lost. !:he tral aft.er- a d-orl;tirne ard gave of ~ !>ea near a great: c.iI;y of gold caRed yCll'rith Lei. ~ I;he cha!;e. bUIlt: ~ other' fo'owen;; of KulJ. lhc::/!;.Q of the c:ea wto 'vVhen ~rik t:he Red oot: out again for VIfiand ttis: had cMte/t there forever. A/t:.to.Jgh they crcg Vis;il;ed time with !-is: cOiclt"6t:s. he left. 1ceIand with 25 ~~ The tVIub.Jand often. t:he!;e peq;:.Ie have no!: returned for a lirs:t. day out t.o s:ea the dey tum9d black ard I:he s:rnaII IOrg time. gaIIetfi were bal::ter-ed by a great. 'itorm an:! s:cat.1;er-ed Told of a city of gold. Erik laid ptn!;; to"* <;;.al for the about: by I:he rar;;ng windro. Io!;ing gg,t. of each of:.heI- ao; GOl.It:h to ckcovQf' I;M; 'It:. tM lord was:- won c:kcoverQd ard I:he tis:tna::I Of I:he c~ that t.:::Ir'Y 14 of t.he dip;; ~rik's; dip;; ~le:;I for mary tni'Jes; down the CDa!;f; in rema'red. the I pre;uned to have QCII)Q !;he other to ooa-ch of the f~ dt:y. bottom of I;he s:ea i="1f'laIy. aftQf' mary ~ at s:ea I:he ~ caeUy c::x.e of the men of Eric.'s; u-p. wto had s;at in t.he negotiating a dangen:;JU!; reel. W{!f'e put l::ering t;;.hrieks: charged into t.he battle. It b9c:are quic:ky obvic::ll.& 1;0 t:he Viking; t:.haf; t:re newcomers; were inl~ on ki5ng ~ s:kraeling.; as;. in their ~ t.hey s;eerned to ig10re ~ the CoIcries were ~ but; witHn t.he year. attacks; Viking W<¥Tior~ by the s:kraeIing occurred Vv'hen I;wo women were The d. 1-41 ado:9d of yotrith Lei. the rryt;;.f:eriQ.Jt;;. peopIG. The leader of t:he ~-hain; wcUd 0I"ij aI"YiWQr" with TI-fo; time t~ correred the d<.raelirg in their crude a s;ingIQ word ard point:. o...t: t:o.vard t:he r.ea in the mo..riain vilage and deIN nearly the entire popUation drectitt'l of the! reel. o;aving ClI'iy one. a !:P-""9 gr1, wto was; taken pri«:ner by ~ after. an arg..mert. brace ouI; between wme one of the Viking!'>. of t:re \Iikirg.; and the bIack-hair~ CNer t:rea;u-e fCIrd 1lY!;: !:P-""9 grl became fird the daVe and I;hen the on the s:kraei~ &ik had 1;0 order t;s; men q.ickly to wife 01 the Viking wto had ~ed her. After Ie

Tsatbaau& Papers 113 The TraiJ orTsathoggua - 21

RANDOM ARTIFACF DISCOVERY TABLE (1DIO) in approval. As the duel w~ on, the crowd will begin to side with one or the other, eventually. through unanimous I. A badly rusted metal axe head. A History or Archaeology approval. declaring one of the men the winner. The duel is roll will identify it a~ Viking. over. justice served, and the matter is considered finished. 2. An Indian arrowhead. An Anthropology roll wil identify Any continuation of this same dispute is looked upon with it as a type used by the lndians of eastern North America­ strong disapproval by the other members of the community. a souvenir of the Viking expedition to America. It is unlikely that any of the investigators understand Eskimo and will require someone to imerpret for them the 3. A small odd skull. This is the skull of a skraeling improvised lyrics of the songs thai they hear. The insults will (Hyperborean) woman. An Anthropology roll will reveal be many and varied, but one in particular will be used once that there is something odd about it but it will not be iden­ or twice by each of the men: a derogatory reference about the tifiable unless the team has had close contact with living opponent's "orange hair." If Oleg or Nels is asked about this Hyperboreans. seemingly odd insult, they will reply that it probably origi· nated as a derogatory reference to the ftrst Vikings but, with 4. A Viking skull. the passing of time, it has taken on a general meaning of "stu­ 5. Remains of a wooden chair (Idea roll to identify). pid" or "ineffectual", and should not. be taken too JiteraUy. If at any time the invesligalOrs should announce that he 6. Remains of a wooden chest (Idea roll to idemify). is carefully looking over the assembled crowd of nearly two 7. Remains of a wooden barrel (Idea roll to identify). hundred Eskimos and makes a Spot Hidden. his aneotion will be drawn to the Eskimo shaman standing slightly apart 8. Remains of a wooden loom (Idea roll to identify). form the crowd. Everyone in Godth1ib recognizes the sbaman and will identify him and his home if asked. 9. Remains of a wooden sled (Idea roll to identify).

10. A flat piece of stone with a map scratched on it. It shows THE ESKIMO SHAMAN Iceland. the southern coast of Greenland, and a long, First seen by the investigators at the Eskimo song duel held jagged coast to the west that must be Nonh America. Just in GodthAb, this man appears to be in his late twenties or nonh of Cape Cod, the coast is marked with an "X" and some runes. Lf the Nordic runes can be successfully read, it will be revealed as "mermaids" (see Tsathoggua Papers #4). Nels Petersen will reveal that this is another piece of Erik the Red's runic stone. Daily Events DAY11: 1be Eskimo song duel. This will occur on the team's second day in Godth:\b. 1be investigators will not be aware that the event is taking place unless they have made contact with Oleg or the schoolmaster, either of whom will invite them to the event. Should the investigators learn of it only when the shouting and cheering begins, by the time they make the half·mile trek to the location of the event they will be too late to witness anything, the victor already declared and the Eskimos beginning to disperse. If invited to the duel by Oleg or Nels, it will be explained to the investigators (if Anthropology rolls do not indicate that an investigator already knows about the song duel) that this is an Eskimo method of resolving conflicts between tribe members and in Greenland it is applied to all offenses and disputes except murder. It is the main reason that no police force is required in Greenland. Their host will explain that today's duel is over a minor malter-one of the men accuses the other of slander--but will be conducted in the same manner as any other duel. The two men face each other in a large circle described by the members of the tribe and take turns insulting and berating each other in song. No comment is too personal nor any facet of the opponent's life or family too sacred for use in the duel. As each opponent finishes his song, the crowd cheers 22 -The Compact Trail of nathoggua early thirties_ Although Eskimo shamans rarely dress differ­ he will tell the investigator that the shaman has been known ently than the norm, this man will sland oul from the crowd to suffer attacks or fits during his "visions." After gaining as standing slightly apart, leaning on a crulch made of whale the above information. an investigator making a Medicine bone_ He will silently walch the duel and then. at its conclu­ roll will recognize that the shaman has had a stroke and suf­ sion. tum and limp slowly back 10 his hut. set slightly away fers from epilepsy. A successful Anthropology roll will tell from the rest of the town. the investigator that a man suffering from a malady such as If an investigatOr should choose to attempt 10 interview this is quite often chosen by Eskimo tribes for the role of the shaman, he will find that the man speaks only Eskimo. If shaman and the man is held in great respect by his people. Oleg or Bhule is along to tnmslate, they wiU be able to com­ Neither Mathieson nor Ethelrod. if either happens to be municate but find thai the shaman has little 10 offer the group present. will allow any of the expedition members to bring in the way of aid or information. but will state flat out that alcoholic beverages ashore. It is strictly forbidden in he could answer some of their questions if they would bring Greenland and they do not wish to offend the local adminis­ him a bottle of "spirits." He will claim that the consumption tration in any way. Either Bhule or Granger will be wiDing of alcohol aids his "visions." to go along with smuggling the Eskimo some alcohol and Anyone coming in close contact with the shaman will not Oleg would not mind sharing a few pulls off a bottle, but the be able to help but notice his abnormal physical condition. risks are considemble. The right side of hi s body seems to be partially paralyzed, as If the shaman should be supplied with a bottlo-and he is the right side of his face. [f Oleg is questioned about this will want an entire boule for himsclf- he will begin drink­ ing immediately. quickly growing friendly with the people who supplied him. Once under the influence of the alcohol. The Godthab Eskimos he will be happy to supply the investigators with the follow­ ing infonnation. if they ask the right questions. It is thought that the Eskimos first entered Greenland The shaman knows the true origin of the "orange hair" from northern Canada between 1000 and 1400 A. D_ insult and will explain it in the following manner: when his Calling themselves lnuk (plural: Inuit). most Eskimos people flfSl came to this land from the west. they found pe0- ~ a similar culture and. with the exception of a few ple almIdy living here, though few in number. It was from small groups in Siberia and Alaska. speak mutually these people thai the Inuit first learned of the insult of orange inteUigible dialects. The: word Eskimo is a Jesuit cor­ hair. When they questioned this strange people. they were told ruption of the name the Nonh American Indians gave that it referred to a strange. man-like beast that lived in the them. ~skimantsk;. meaning '"eaters of raw meat_" highest, coldest mountains, and had lived there sioce before 1be Eskimo have earned a reputation for fairness man. These beasts were said to be covered in coarse orange and generosity noted by even the first missionaries 10 hair and once had lived in a great city in the mountains, but contact them. Sharing with others of the family or this was long destroyed even then. The strange people them­ tribe is natural for them, without requiring thanks or selves had once lived in great cities that covered the land. but payment but with only the mutual understanding that with the coming of the long cold. most had died. They were whenever necessary, the act will be reciprocated. The the last few faithful of Kulu who had chosen to stay in their Eskimos well understand the fact that sharing homeland. These people also warned the Eskimos of another strengthens the community. and a member not dis­ race of beings who had recently come to the far shore of the posed toward this attitude will quickly find himself land. These people were red-haired and yellow·haired and ostracized by the tribe. very fierce. The odd people told the Eskimos that they had Crime is still a problem in some Eskimo commu­ ll"ied to call their god Kulu to drive them off, but this had failed nities. one of the more common offenses being that of and they had been forced 10 migrate to the western shores. a jealous husband committing murder. In Alaska and 1be Eskimos shared the shore with the strange people. but Greenland all offenses less than murder are judged by when they saw human sacrifice in their rites to the god Kulu. song duels. In the case of homicide. an executioner is the Eskimos drove them back into the mountains from whlch appointed by the tribe and then, with the approval of they never returned-though legend holds that they. and the the family of the accused. hunts down and slays the furry orange beasts, stiUlive in the wind-swept heights. offender. Because. of the efficiency of these methods. If asked to describe these. people. the shaman will tell the Denmark employs no police or law-enforcement investigator that they were said to be short. less than five feet agency in Greenland. tall, and of light complexion. almost white hair. and gray or 1be Eskimos of southwestern Greenland are the straw-colored eyes. They dressed much as did the Eskimo. most Europeanized. having been in contact with the As the story wears on. the shaman will get drunker and continent for hundreds of yean and lately becoming drunker, eventually becoming incoherent. but at the same the recipients of support from the Danish government time more caught up in his story. occasionally grasping an which helps to bolster their economy. The average investigator by his coat and drawing his face close to his resident of Godthlb has a 30% chance of speaking own. babbling long strings of nonsense with alcohol-laden Danish with (20+ I 020)% ability. breath. If the investigators put up with this behavior for about thirty minUles, the shaman will pass out and sleep The Trail or Tsathoggua - 23 24 - The Compact Trail of Tsathoggua peacefully until the next moming. if they should leave decision. Ethelrod will try lO discourage any member of the before he falls asleep. he will grow restless and wander into learn that he does not feel is healthy and fit as he should be. town, where he will get into some kind of minor trouble. and will try to make the expedition sound as 10ugb as possi­ If for this or any other ruson il should come 10 the notice ble. However. Ethelrod will not deny the opponunity to any of the colonibestyrer thaI the expedition has brought alcohol fit individual who truly desires 10 accompany them. ashore (and he will know thaI this is DAY 22: 1be training session. The mountaineers will stan the only possible source) he will call the session with the three scientists who have had some Mathieson inlo his office and threal­ mountain-climbing experience and any investigator with a en all sorts of actions against both CJjmbing skill above 75%. They will be shown some specif­ him and the University. Mathieson ic techniques to be appJjed 10 the scaling of ice and rock. At will be able lO calm the man., but only the end of this shon session. they will be allowed to leave by promising to conftne the guilty along with Ethelrod. Bhule. and Granger. while the begin­ parties 10 the ship for the rest of their ners remain for their session. stay in Greenland. It will be possible The beginners start by being shown some basic skills fol­ for one of the gUilty members to take lowed by sessions on the ice face that the mounlaineers have full responsibility for the offense and selected as a training site. The Frenchmen have spent some therefore be the only one confined to mE ESKIMO SHAMAN time setting up three separate "courses", each of varying dif­ the ship. This investigator (it will not be either Bbule or ficulty, for the novice climbers 10 practice on. complete with Granger. they will not confess unless implicated) has only safety ropes finnly secured at the top of the glacier to pre­ once chance of getting his confinement rescinded; he will vent injury. One of the mountaineers will remain stationed al have to explain his actions personally to the colonibestyre:r the bottom to shout and encourage. while two will be at the while making a successful Persuade roll in Danish. if suc­ top working the safety lines. cessful. the inspector will relax the "sentence" and the inves­ Any investigator completing the instruction will be tigator will be allowed ashore once more. Otherwise. he will awarded with two experience checks in his Climb skill. be out of action for the rest of the adven~ which he can take immediately. THE SliAMAN•• Indmrnlinak. £iIdmo Uoly Mall sn 10 CON 7 SIZ 9 tNT 13 pow 16 DEX6 APP7 EDUI2 SANS5 HP8 The Expedition to Skills: Anthropology 25%. Biology 3S%. Ctbulhu Mythos I~. EslOmo 60'1>. Occult 25%. Psychology 65%. DAY 2/: Meeting aboard ship. Ethelrod is in charge of this the Interior phase of the expedition and bas already chosen the three mountaineers. Bhule. and Granger to accompany him. (At the keeper's choice. Ethelrod may wish to add additional he expedition will leave on the morning of the founh force to the expedition in the fonn of sailors anned with day that the team is in GodthAb. They will be on rifles.) On the second evening thai the ship is in port, T snowshoes and outfined with proper cold-weather Ethelrod will call a meeting and. after announcing that the garb. sunglasses. tents, sleeping bags, tools. provisions, and planned expedition will include the above-named people. other supplies assembled by Ethelrod and the mountaineers. make the following statement: The journey to the temple is expected to take five days. "Professor Mathieson, for reasons of health. will remain here in GodthAb. Any ocher members of the team who think Daily Events they might wish 10 accompany the expedition to the interior Events on specific days are as follows. should be well advised of the strenuous physical requiremenlS of such an undertaking. 1be central plateau is cold and DA Y 24: Nothing eventful occurs. win( and Philippe assures me that there may be some DAY25: In the early afternoon the party faces an easy climb climbing of glaciers or rock outcroppings involved in reaching requiring only one Climb roll. The mountaineers will scale our goal. We cannot discount the possibility of violence direct­ the wall first. picking the easiest route. and then, after reach­ ed towaro us. Our own experience shows us that there may ing the top. install safety lines for the less experienced still be JXlCkets of primitive Eskimos hostile to intruders." climbers waiting below. The climb consislS of about 50 feet, Ethelrod stands up from the table. As he gathers the but the difficult .section (which requires a roll) is 30 feel papers scanered in front of him. he adds: above the ground. If, while auempting 10 negotiate this "Anyone still of a mind to join us must meet at the foot tricky section. an investigator should fall, the safety rope of the glacier nonh of town at daybreak for a requisite day's supporting him may pull loose from the ice above with dis­ training in cJjmbing procedures with our friends from astrous results. Match that invesligator's SlZ againsl the France. Thank you. that will be all." attached safety rope's STR of 20 on the resistance table.1be Ethelrod will then leave but may be approached later if an mountaineers will be at the top to keep an eye on the safety investigator feels that he needs more details before making a ropes. but it will be impossible for one of them 10 stop a The Trail of lSatboggua - 25 falHng investigator if the rope should pull loose. Damage DAY 27: This day will begin with another difficuh climb. from falling is 306 nonnally, but an investigator falling can This nearly vertical wall of ice-covered rock is 110 feet high attempt both a Luck roll and a Jump roll. A successful Luck and contains two difficult sections. each requiring a separate roll will mean that the investigator has fallen into snow. Climb roll. Admittedly, the obstacle could be circumnavi­ reducing the total damage by I D6 points. A successfuJ Jump gated. but this would require an exU'a day's time, so the deci­ also reduces damage by 106. Any investigatOr with 4 or sion to cHmb the wall is made. The first hard place is 40 feet more points of damage after First Aid is applied is consid­ above the ground and falHng investigators whose safety ered disabled (sprained ankle. dislocated shoulder, etc.) and ropes break will take 406 damage. TIte second difficult sec­ unable to continue with the group. He will be left with a tent. tion is at 80 feet, possibly causing 306 damage_ See "Day provisions. and possibly an armed companion if badly 25" for details on falling from the icy wall. injured, to be picked up by the team upon their rerum. Later that day the group will come across some large tracks At the top of the climb. the team will discover four sets in the snow. badly melrro wx1 deformed by the sun. A Track of footprints in the snow. The footgear worn is of a primitive roll will identify them as belonging to no natura1 creawre. nature, but an Anthropology roll will identify it as non­ That night. while camped. any investigator in the group Eskimo in origin. The team will be able to follow the uacks who makes a successful Listen roll will detect the sound of only a short distance before they disappear. strange chanting drifting in the wind. If the team does not DA Y 26: Late this morning. all of the investigators will briefly locate the source of the chanting (it will require two addi­ see. atop a ridge nearly three hundred yards away, four figures tional successful LiSlen rolls to follow the sound to its outlined against the sky. source) they will. after a time. be attacked by a gnoph-keh,

The Gnoph-keh If the Hyperboreans' chant is not intenupted, this beast will come gator is insane or. if sane. fails his Luck roll. be will be followed to him. At this time the shaman will be required to make a Luck by the beast unlilll calChes up with him and most likely kills him. roll to convince the monster to attaCk the investigators. If the The monster will then wander off. 01)(10 be seen again. shaman is unsuccessful. the beast will anack and kill him and Investigators scaltered by the attack will probably be able to then tum on the rest of the Hype:ri)cRans. With or without I...istcn salvage enough equipment 10 continue. Those who fled the rolls. the investigators will be able 10 bear the screams of dying scene: while Lnsane: will pe:nsh in 24 hours unless they are suc­ humans accompanied by decidedly cessfully Tracked down and ~ by other learn members. inhuman roars and howls. If the Those recovering from their insanity In less than 24 hours will investigators go 10 check the soun:e. be able to find their way back 10 camp if !hey can trace their of the noise. they will find the man­ trail with a successful Track roll or, failing this. an Idea roll. gled bodies of the Hyperboreans Invcstigaun 'A-ho did DOl go msane might return 10 camp 10 lying a short distance away in the find the tnlCks of their less fortunate 00f'l1I1tde:s leading off in sev­ blood-stained snow of a small hollow. eral dimctions. The keeper should lake precautions to make sure Seeing this will cost any investigator that those aucmpting to Track their los! friends are not as yet 11106 Sanity points. The gnoph,keh aware of the level of insanity each individual may be experienc­ will be lurking in wait and if none of ing. This way they will not know if they an: searching for an indi­ Ihe accompanying invcstigators vidual who will only be lOSt for an hour or one who will wander makes a successful Spot Hidden roll in a daze until he dies of exposure or falls off the edge of a glac­ before traversing the fifty feet to ier. The individuals 10 be Tracked might be identified by their where the bodies lie. the monster will shoe:prints, but this will require successful Idea roUs. It will pr0b­ attaCk by surprise. If the group \caves witholll approaching the ably bequite obvious if the gooph-k.eh foUowed one of the inves­ bodies, the gnoph-keh will secretly follow the investigators back tigators out of the camp. Following this trail willle:ad quickly 10 to their camp and then attaCk. the sighl of the investigator's demise. Seeing his dismembered [f the gnoph-keh allacks the investigators' camp. it will do body lying about the snow will C06I II I D6 Sanily points. so in the following manner: iI will first expend 2 magic points Shule should definitely survive this experience and. if at aU 10 lower the surrounding temperature by 40 degrees and then possible. continue the expedition to the temple to bring back quietly approach the camp. II will surprise the investigators infoonation to those who wait in Godthlb. only if their Listen rolls fail; otherwise. ilS approach will be THE SUMMONED GNOPH-KEH heard and the investigators will have 2 rounds in which to pre­ pare. themselves. STR 33 CON 24 SIZ 32 INT 13 POwn This gnoph-keh knows no spells and will fin!. attaCk a ch0- OEXI3 Move 9 HP28 sen victim directly with its hom, If the investigators should react Damage Bonus: +306 phystcally, it will claw down the offending humans. If assailed by Wcapons: Hom Gore 65'1>, damage 1010+306 gunfire. it will expend another magic poinl and create a blizzanJ Claws· 4S'I.. damage 406 10 blind its opponents. If the gnoph-keh should lose half its hit • The g"oph-~h may clow rwi('~ fHr round. points to damage. iI will nee; if not. it will stay to ravage until all Annor: 9-point gristle. fur. and hide. an: dead Of in night. Once the camp is empty. the gnoph-keh will follow the track of one of the investigators. If the chosen investi- Sanity Loss: 011010 Sanity points for seeing a gnoph-k.eh. 26 - The Compact Trail of Tsathoggua

The Hyperboreans Thc5c four men arc among thc last memhcrs of a once great Weapons: FisllPunch 65%, damage 103 race that buill a fabulous culture. thot rose and fell before the Spear 7Q1l., damagc 108+ I dawn of recorded hl.stOf)'. Masters of magK:. science, and art. Thrown Spcar45%, damagc 108+1 the heritage of these people was passed down to the lands of Armor: I-point of leather skins. Mu and Atlantis eventually fouod its way 10 ancient Egypt. lind SkJlls: Climb 80%, Dodgc 80%, First Aid 85%, Hide 75%, of Eibon was written by 11 gJUl wizard who lived in 111e Book Hyperborean 55%, Jump 80%, Listcn 75%. Sneak 75%, Spot Mhu Thulan in Hyperborea. Hidden 75%, Throw 45%, Track 80%. Small and slcndct-. none of the Hypcrborcans is more than fivc feet tall.1beir hall' is light blond 10 white and their eyes arc THE OLD MAN, .bout ate 35. Hyptrbornn Patrillrch gray or stnw-colom:l. Tbey have large. straight noses. and ear~ This Is the father of 'he two younger nK'n. His wife. 'he last lobes longer then those of most humans. Their clothing is sim­ Hypubof'f!an wQlnan. died ,hirtee" years ago and i, Is he who ilar to that of the Eskimos, and at • distance it may be difficult moSI realius what this means 10 his ~ople. to distinguish between the two. STR 11 CON 14 SIZ 7 INT 15 POW 15 'The HypcJboreans ha~ 'lXnl ccnwries living in the wilds OEX 10 APP 9 SAN 32 HP II· of Greenland_ tim on the coasts where. they worshiped their • Even if injured IKyond his hil points. he ",ill continua /0 deity. Kulu, then later. after the com­ fight for two additiOllOl round.s. !Hfore dropping dead. ing of the Vikings and the Eskimos. on the rugged centTal plateau. Hcre Damage Bonus: Nonc t.bc:y were. not only forced to com­ Wcapold_·: FisllPunch 60%. damage 103 pete V.lth the last of the primitive Stone Knife 65%, damage 106 voonnis, but also had to endure. the Spear 60%, damage 108+1 rigorous climalC_ Over the ccnwrics. Thrown Spear 55%. damagc 108+ I the-IT numbers have dwindled. •• The old man is not as healthy as the two younger men. but 1bey DOW have a Sione-agc cul­ if comef'f!d undforced to give oollfe. Iw wiff leap to the front ture.. cMT)'ing spears and knives with a berserker-like SCf'f!Qnf. and fight with unexp«tedferoci- chipped from roc~ With these prim­ 1')\ striking twice every round insteod of once. Itive weapons and • few arcane Armor: 4-point gnoph-kch leathers (WI 02 SanilY loss if spells they willlry 10 keep the expe- investigators realize the hide is from a monster). dition (or anyone else) from reach~ YOUNQ WARRIOR Sldlls: Climb 65%. Dodge 63%. First Aid 8.5%, Hide 85%. ing the tcmplc 10 Tsalhoggua. TIley slill fcar that. somehow, the Hyperborean 60%. Jump 55%, Usten 85%. Sing 35%. Sneak voormis will return. Consequently. they fear anyone who seems 65%, Spot: Hidden 80%. Throw 55%. Track 85%. Interested in locating the Icmplc of Tsathoggua, and in panicu~ THE HVPERBORF..AN SHAMAN. unknown age, Priest of KuJu lar anyone with reddish hair. 1be Hypcrboreans realize that the team is far better anned This is /lle last Hyperborean priest of the god Kulu. He wjfl than they and will limit their attach to hBn\SSment and ambush· lead the othu Hyperbof'f!ans in the chllnting to Contact a es. fleeing at the rll'5t sign of danger. If cornered. they will fight Gnoph-uh. He Lf middle-aged and will stand out from the fiettely 10 the death. If capc.ured. they will DOl submit to their others aJ close range due 10 fhl! brightly colored di's/glU on capuviry nor will they respond to allempts 10 communicatc hLf clothing. An a.o",jnalion of the designs wjff show them to with them. 1bey will attempt to escape at cvcry opponunity hili" on undenmter motif, complett with odd. octopoid beings until successful or killed in the attempt. If the gnoph-keh sum­ dwellillg .n lOwering stnICIUf'f!S amid dolphins olld other sea moned on Day 27 fails to destroy the cxpedition_ the kce-pcr cnotuns. should decide if the Hyperboreans use other methods. STRIO CON 13 SIZ6 [NT 14 pow 17 YOUNG MAN 1•• 16. Hyperborean W.rriot- DEX II APP9 SAN 00 HPIO STRI6 CONI7 SIZ9 INT13 PQWl4 Damage Bonus: ·1 D4 OEX 14 APP 12 SAN 55 HP 13 Weapon: Stone Knife 55%. damage 106-1 D4 Damage Bonus: +I~ Skills: Climb 75%. Cthulhu Mythos 23%. Dodge 55%. Eskimo 20%, First Aid 65%, Hide 75%, Hyperborean 75%. Weapons: FistlPunch 7Q1)" damage 1D3+104 Jump 65%_ Listen 85%, Occult 25%, Pharmacy 15%. Sing Stone Axe 85%, damage 108+2+ 1D4 75%. Sneak 65%, Spot Hidden 35%. Throw 65%, Track 55%. Thrown Axc 50%. damagc 108+2+1D2 Spells-: Contact Cthulhu, Contact Deep Ones, Contact Amlor: I-point of leather skins. Gnoph-kch. ContaCt Spawn of Ciliulhu. Dread Curse of Skills: Climb 75%, Dodge 65%. First Aid 5%. Hide 75%. Azathoth. Hyperborean 50%, Jump 65%. Usten 75%, Sneak 55%, Spot • The shaman has raf'f!ly lISed My of lhese spells in his life­ Hidden 75-., Throw SOCII. TnlCk 60%. linK'. 1M thep OtILS hove long deptJrfed, and Kufu has never 2. YOUNG MAN age 17, Hypubortall W.rrior visited his dnatnS. A sptJwn has 1101 been contacted since one STRI4 CON 15 SIZ8 INTI5 pow 15 saliX. several of Erik. the Red's ships cell/Uries ago. Unless cor­ OEX 15 APP 13 SAN 75 HPI2 nef'f!d by t~ ptJrty, he will never venlUf'f! closl! enough to use Dttmagc Bonus: None the Drrad Curse of AtJJthoth. T he 1Tail or 1Sathoggua - 27

If the investigalOrs track down the source of the chant­ ing, they will find four Hyperboreans huddled in a low spot THE TEMPLE TO in the snow chanting their terrible spell. DAY 28: Near mid-moming. the expedition will pass TSATHOGGUA between two mountain peaks. signirying that they are draw­ ing near the presumed location of mysterious Commorium. Past these peaks supposedly lies a great, once fertile valley. and across this valley. another range of mountains. As the team reaches the highest point of the pass between the peaks, the rar mountain range will come into view: a half-dozen rocky pinnacles !hat thrust up through the vast, ice-covered valley or Commorium. The team will realize 7 I that this ice must be a thousand feet thick! If one of the investigators malc:es a Spot Hidden roll while scanning the smooth flats before them. he will notice a large, circular. dark spot in the ice halfway across the valley. It can occasionally be made OUI when the swirling snow blows clear 3 for a moment. Additionally, ir an investigator should scan the 6 rar mountainsides with binoculars or a similar ins(nJment, be will notice a square building, possibly built of stone. standing on the lower part of the tallest peak, not far above the plain of , ' " ' " " , ice. It wiJI require one hour to travel across the slick ice to ", " " , , where the dark. spot is. and an additional hour to continue on " Arw ' " " , " 5'" 'So,,· 2 ' ••• •• to the building seen on the side of the mountain. o 5 10 The Tower in the Ice I I 1be dark. spot in the ice is approximately forty in diameter. FEET but the image is so badly distorted by the thick ice that it is difficult to make out exactly what it its. An investigator who dooc. Near the back wall is a tall. IW().tiered altar of obscerw> succeeds in a Spot Hidden roll will realize that this is the top Iy fashioned metal.1be bronze bowl is nearly six feet in diam­ of a tower-a cupola-with windows and doorways and a eter and stands on three legs. eac:h ending in a taloned claw. railed balcony. It is fixed atop a narrow stone spire stretch­ The large bowl contains a guardian fonnless spawn of ing down into the dark ice. There is at least fifteen feet of ice Tsathoggua. If any of the team members proceed past the between the lOp of !his structure and the surface, malting any marked "safe" area on the temple map. the spawn wiU attack. auempts to reach it unfeasible. If the team should somehow See the box on the spawn on p. 28. manage this feat, they will find the tower room empl)' and If the learn gains entrance to the temple, they will find tbe spiral staircase leading down choked with hard ice. To thaI the metal altar in the back orlhe temple supports a small seriously explore the rest of the tower would require an figurine carved from onyx. This thing has a fal funy body, a expensive, major undertaking. toad-like head with bat ears. and a tongue that lolls from its At this location, any investigator scanning the mountains open mou!h. Seeing the six-inch figure will cost 01102 with binoculars will see a square, stone building on that side Sanity points. If not already known. a Cthulhu Mythos roll of the tallest peak. about an hour's walk away. will identiry the obscene object as a representation of Tsathoggua. At the keeper's discretion, additional Mythos The Temple to Tsathoggua rolls may reveal more information about Tsatboggua and his temples. or the spawn that guard them. As the group approaches the temple. they will see that it is Walking across the frost-covered floor. the team will find simple: perfectly square, with a few high. narrow windows that the coating of ice is quite fragile and easily breaks away and an open. square doorway. The whole structure is built of to reveal the polished. five-sided flagstones beneath. The some dark. basaltic stone and stands only a few feet above same is true for the walls. and if one of the group scrnpes the ice plain. easily reached by a shan. winding path on the even a Little frost away he will discover that the stone panels side of the mountain. covering the walls are covered with glyphs similar to lhose Standing close enough 10 peer in the doorway. the team first discovered on the wall in the glacier-cxcept that these member.; wiU see that the inside of the building is coated with seem to be of an earlier, cruder fonn. If the walls are scraped long, spikey hoar-frost completely covering the inside-walls. clear and the revealed writing translated, the team will be floors. and high ceiling-with a 5"-6" bristle of ice. 1be inte­ able to discover some or the history of the funy prehumans rior is nearly fifty by rorty feet and empty save for an of Greenland. immense, six-foot bronze bowl only ten feet in fronl of the 28 - The Compact Trail of Tsathoggua

THE STORY OF THE VOORMlS 3. This panel tells how. after many years, as the climate grew Each ponion of the following story is contained on one of colder, the people fell away from ZOlh-Aqqua and began to the stone panels found in the lCmple ofTsalhoggua. The pan­ worship heathen gods of the wilds. in particular one who els are numbered on the Temple map. came from the north called Adukwu. I. TIle voormis came to this vaUey from far away to the south 4. A great civil war ensued when the priests of the temples and built a great city dedicated to their god, Zoth-Aqqua. of Zoth-Aqqua tried to suppress the heretics of Adukwu. The heretics were eventuall y forced from the city and later hunt­ 2. This panel describes the building of this. the last temple to ed down and killed. A few of the pagans, now turned nearly Tsathoggua and tells how the high priest. after calling and binding a FonnIess Spawn to defend the building. was dressed wi ld, continued to survive in the nearby mountains to the south, eking out a meager survival in the harsh conditions in nigh ceremonial robes, perfumed and anointed, and then wnile trying to avoid the patrols sent from the city to elimi­ sealed alive in a burial chamber located behind the altar. This is a standard fonn of consecration for a temple of Zoth-Aqqua. nate them. When uncovering this panel, the investigators may also S. This tells of the later discovery of a strange. hairless pe0- notice something nand-wriUen in the same language style as ple that landed on the nonhern shore in small boats made of the wall. "Sauunpra airos was here," reads the graffiti. skin. The voonnis made some contact with them. learning

The Formless Spawn of Tsathoggua One of these monsters has dwell in the temple in the bludgeon the first investigator to cross beyond the safe large. bronze bowl ever since the temple was constructed area. The spawn will also attack other investigators over one million years ago. The spawn will kill any who unless they move out of its reach (35 feet), at which time attempts to defLIe the temple. To gain safe entry to the it will slide out of the bowl and quickly slip across the temple, someone in the party must use a Contact floor to comer and kill whomever it can. Unless the Formless Spawn of Tsathoggua spell to communicate spawn is slain, it will continue to employ whatever with the being before the temple is entered beyond the attacks seem most effective until everyone is dead or has safe area. If an investigator properl y casts the spell fl ed the temple. If all the survivors have left the temple. before entenng_ the spawn will the spawn will drag any corpses over to the bowl and rise up from the bowl. fonning a swallow them. up to its S[Z limit. (Witnessing this ban­ slimy. rippling. black column six quet will result ;n a loss of 01104 Sanity points.) The feet high topped by a smooth, spawn wi ll be unable to move from the bowl umil its bulbous "head" that stares down meal has been digested, This will take 24 hours and any at the party with a single large investigator entering the temple during this time will be eye. All seeing this will lose safe from the monster 's attacks as long as he stays at least lflDIO Sanity points. 3 yards from the bowl. WilhoUlleaving its vessel the TUE GUARDiAN SPAWN monster will communicale with STR 27 CON 15 SIZ 35 !NT 13 PQWI2 Ihe caster telepathically. first Move 12 HP25 asking if the group are pilgrims DEX22 llfE GUARDIAN come 10 worship mighty Tsatho­ Weapons: Whip" 90%, damage 106 ggua. If the investigators answer yes. the being will ask Tenr.acle·· 60%, damage 306 Bite 30%. damage special"" if they are enemies of Tsalhoggua come to defile his Bludgeon 20%, damage 306 house of worship. The investigators should answer "no" • May seek 10 Grapple ralher Ihan do damage. Range is 15'. and the being will allow the group to enter the temple. .. May s,rike Of / D1 0Ppollen/S in a round. May seek 10 The spawn will remain in this fonn, continually sliding Grapple mlher Ihan do damage. Range is 15' about the bowl and watching all thai me party does while ••• Inslanlly .""allows viclim. Each round Ihereafter Ihe vic­ inside the temple. It will make no move to interfere with lim lakes J poin! ofdamage. Ihe damage done pu round pro­ the pany's actions unless they disturb the small statue of gressi~'ely incrtasing by J poin!. The poor viclim is doomed Tsathoggua or make an attempt to break into the burial unless Irted by his In·ends. This spown may swallow up to 35 chamber behind the altar. in which case the spawn will SIZ 0/ people at one lime. attack unmercifully. II will not prevent the team from Armor: The spawn is immune to aU physical weapons. It can clearing the walls of ice and frost but funher attempts to be harmed by spe lls as well as fire or chemicals. communicate with the thing will prove fruitless unless Spells: This monster has no spells assigned 10 him. but if the keeper wishes. he may supply the being with whatever is felt another Contact spell is cast necessary. If a Contact spell is not cast before entering the tem­ Sanity Loss: 111010 SanilY points 10 see a forml ess spawn. ple, the spawn will suddenly rush up out of the bowl and The Trail of lSathoggua - 29

their language and teaching them some of their own. In the While the investigator.> are engrossed with removing meanlime. although the humans had little to offer in return. frost from the walls or hard al work trying to read what has the furry things began 10 trade with them and were quite been inscribed upon them, anyone making a Listen roD win pleased al how quickJy the hairless beings learned the sub­ hear the sound of padding footsleps near the doorway 10 the ller details of economics and government. temple. Looking in thai direction. the investigator win see a 6. Reading this panel, the investigator will find Qut how the large polar bear standing framed in the lighl of the opening. cooling climate of the cenlral plateau caused the furry things The bear will walk directly to the altar, paying no attention evenlUally to suspend trade with the humans and finally lose to the humans standing nearby. When in front of the small. contact altogether. The coming of the cold is somehow onyx statue. it lets loose with three great roars of supplica­ thought 10 be CQnnected with the long-dead worshipers of tion 10 the grotesque deity. Satisfied that it has paid proper the god Adukwu. homage to its god. the beasl will then tum and silently leave the lemple. Witnessing this scene will cost an investigator 7. The prediction of the passing of the race is contained in 0/103 SAN. this panel showing their city empty and deslroyed by the elements. The prophecy speaks that the humans will come THE POLAK BEAK again to kill the last furry beings and to build their own city STR 31 CON 16 JNT nla SIZ 38 POW 12 atop the ruins of the old. It is engraved upon the hidden DEX 10 Move 9 HP 27 door. Weapons": Bile 35%, damage 1010+306 [f the group chooses to scrape clear the walJs. they wi lJ also Claw 5CYf,. damage 406 discover, direclly behind the two-tiered alw. a pair of "It ~ar can dolt' twice and bite in one round at as mony as thrre opponents. hinged, stone doors drawn tighlly closed with a metal chain Armor: 4-points of skin and faL that has been pulled through the meta] rings bolted on the doors and welded logether. TIle anciem chain can be easily Skllls: Track 75'10. Worship TSIIlhoggua 99% broken using some kind of bar or 1001 for leverage. Return to Godtblib TIlE BURIAL CHA~1BER This room is wide but nol very deep and its complete lack of The return 10 GodthAb will be easier than the expedition out, windows means that artificial light will be required. the two climbs now being down rather than up and with no Direc Ll y across from the door is an unmoving figure sil­ encounters with the Hyperboreans. The return will take five ting on a large. bronze throne. Playing the light over the days. All who make it back to GodthAb. and civilization. will fonn will reveal a strange-looking baboon-like ape. long gain I D8 points of SAN. dead but sitting upright and still wearing the remnants of a red and purple robe and a feathered headdress. The dried mummified nesh is stretched taut over the bones. and through the holes in the robe paIChes of coarse. orange hair Conclusion protrude. Anyone seeing this carcass loses OI l D6 Sanity points (except Bhule. who will lose 8 SAN points and suffer a short, temporary insanity lasting two rounds; he wiJI retreat o maller what bappens during the expedition, BhuJe screaming from the door to the burial chamber, and should survive. his physical problem probably still absolutely refuse 10 fe-enter under any circumstance.Oi). N unknown to anyone in the party. If be has seen the The sparsely furnished burial chamber contains only the desiccated mummy in the temple. he wiIJ carry within him occupied throne and a long. nearly empty table that once an emotional disturbance that will be detectable if an inves­ held food for the emombed priest. 1lle only item of value to tigator should make a successful Psychoanalysis roll. be found here is the jeweled metal brooch thai pins the 1be Hyperboreans. if any survive. will not be seen again remains of the robe together al the shoulder of the dead and it is hoped that the investigators win have garnered beast. This item could be wonh as much as a thousand dol­ enough clues partially to solve the disappearance of the first lars, but il will become the propert y of Miskatonic Viking colonies. If not. they will have 10 wait until they trav­ UniversilY as part of the expedition's findings. el to British Columbia in the next advent ure to solve the rest A Biology roll made while examining the body of the ape of the mystery. will show thai it is unrelated to the known "great apes" and Although Mathieson has been ordered 10 cast off as soon has certain features. particularly the shape and design of the as the expedition returns, at the keeper's option. the investi­ fOOl. that seems to place the strange animal closer to humans gators may wanl to spend another week or two in GodthAb. than apes. digging in the Viking ruins and trying to piece together the story they have uncovered. 1be return voyage to Boston wiU OPTIONAL ENCOUNTER take six days. This encounter can be introduced by the keeper at his dis­ It is suggesled that keepers introduce other adventures cretion. It is suggested that it occur while Ihe learn is in the iolO their campaign before staning "The Curse of temple but before they break into the burial chamber. Tsathoggua", to hide the connection between the two . • 30 - The Compact Trail or Tsathoggua

THE CURSE OF TSATHOGGUA (CANADA) Investigators follow a trail of clues that leads them to the last survivors of a mythical race.

"They Mgan imm~dial~Jy Ih~ asUnl of th~ mountain, whose at the stan of this adventure). This article is three to four upper prrcipu werr hollow with ca~s occupied by the weeks old when it is received. Voomris. Ralioor VOOl had hunted rhut' creatures INforr; 1l1e foot's description sounds somewhat similar to those and Q certain room ofhis house in Commorium was arrayed of the mummified being found in the temple in Gr:eenland. with their thick and sfwggy pelts. .. ---Clark Ashton Smith. -rhe Seven Geases" Keeper's Information This is the second pan of the adventure that started in The orange, shaggy foot found in the trap belongs to one of Greenland. Beginning with the discovery of a slr8J1ge animal Ihe descendants of the voonnis that once dwelt in prehistoric fOOl found in British Columbia. the investigators follow a Greenland. These primitives were driven from their cities. trail of clues that lead to the last of a mythicaJ race, a group and eventually migrated far away from hostile humanity. of beings now led by a man whom the investigators first Out in the wild. the trappings of even their crude cullure came to know while in Greenland. Discovering and surviv­ rapidly fell away, and were soon replaced by half-remem­ ing the cllCOUnter with the "monsters" will noc be the only bered mylhs and legends. Active worship of Ithaqua dwin­ problem.s to overcome. TIle fina] decision regarding the con­ dled until all that remained was an occasionalleavmg of ani­ tinued existence. or complete destruction. of the race may be mal sacrifices in the treetops. This was for protection from left in the hands of the invesligstors, with all the ramifica· Ithaqua rather than through any true devotion. The practice tions Ihat holds. was later adopted by some of the Indians who came to live in the area. Investigator's Information As the humans multiplied and the first migrations into Canada began. the sasquatcb (as these humans came to call One of the investigators. either through a clipping service or them) found themselves not only competing for Living space by way of a letter from a friend. receives a newspaper story with the hairless ones but also the target of their hunters' cut from a September issue of the VancoUl'u Province Daily spears and axes. Many died, but a few survivors climbed (Tsalhoggun PO{Jf!rs #5 should be given to the investigators higb into the mountains where humans feared the great cold and the winds that blew through the peaks. A few monlhs ago, a Canadian anthropologist named Synopsis of Events Terrence Bhule was a member of a scientific expedition that Aug 15 : Bhule befriends Donna Lester. penelrated to the interior of frozen Greenland. From many of Oct 30: Newspaper story on strange fOOl appears. the amazing discoveries (not all made public). Bhule drew cenain conclusions of his own. and began researching the Nov 3: Bhule steals yeti scalp and leaves for mystery of the prehumans that occupied Greenland before Vancouver with Lester. the coming of man. This research began with the acquisition Nov 9: Interview with Or. LantiJia at the University of a cenain book. a copy of the diary of Pieter de Holst. of Vancouver. which Bhule found in the seminary in GodthAb. Later clues Nov 15 : Bhule and Lester appear in Kamloops under led to the yeti of Tibet and similar beings reponed in north· assumed names. western North America. As the damning evidence mounted. Bhule was forced to Nov 16: Bhule seriously injures a trapper in a face the terrible truth of his bizarre situation-the trick that barfight. fate and genetics had played on him. Slrange thoughts Nov 17: Bbule and Lester take an early morning train plagued his mind and suicide seemed imminent when a to Dogfork. After only a couple of hours in series of chance meetings brought him into repeated contact town. they hire two guides and strike out wilh a young girl named Donna Lester. nearly his own age west for the Caribou Mountains. TIle first and suffering from the same awful affliction. Sharing their morning there, they are attacked by Indians fate made life tolerable for both of them. For the first time. and captured by the sasquatch. each felt they had someone with whom they could sbare their feelings. When the story of the strange foot discovered The Curse of Tsathoggua - 31 in a trap in British Columbia reached the notice of Bhule, the sasquatch, where the beasls cared for them as best they they both felt compelled to investigate. could. Bhule recovered quickly but Lester, gravely injured. Realizing instinctively thai they might choose not to lingered on for three days and finally succumbed 10 her return. Bhule packed carefully, including a smaU number of wounds. books that he felt might prove essential. After stealing a yeti Bhule. from the first, became the natura! leader of the scalp from the University of Toromo, Bhule and his com­ sasquatch, who respected Bhule's superior knowledge. panion took a train to Vancouver where, after examining the Retrieving his belongings from the ruined camp. Bhule set strange foot and interviewing the professor charged with its about to help !.he sasquatch develop beyond !.heir fearful, safekeeping, the couple departed, supposedly to return to sustenance·level existence. He taught them the use of more Toronto. Their rrail ends here. sophisticated weapons for hunting and devised a son of pid­ Bhule and his companion resurfaced in KamJoops, where gin English to make it easier to communicate with them. they assumed the identity of a young couple planning a hon­ Bhule ultimately hopes to lead his people to the north where eymoon camping in the mountains. They tried to keep a low the land is less densely populated. ferreting out small pock­ profile for the two days they stayed at me hotel. but on their ets of sasquatch still living in remote mountain ranges, and last night there. Bhule became involved in an altercation and eventually establishing a large community where they can seriously injured one of the locals. The Mountie district exisl in peace and privacy. He realizes that the area the headquaners there has a report on the incident, and also on sasquatch now inhabit is destined to be overrun by humans, the investigation into the couple's disappearance while who may evenruaJly cause the extinction of the furry prehu­ camping in the area of the Caribou Mountains a week later. mans. Bhule will attempt to kidnap any human who discov· For these reasons, the two are somewhat well remembered ers their existence and force him to remain with them. in town. Failing this. Bhule wiD regretfully attempt to kill any human Taking the train nonh. the pair disembarked alme small that he feels is a threat to the sasquatch's secret. town of Dogfork. about halfway between KamJoops and The situation is fairly quiet now and Bhule and the Jasper on the Thompson River. After hiring two guides, they sasquatch plan on staying put for the next few months. struck out west toward the foothills of the Caribou Investigators will be able to travel back and fonh between Mountains. About ten miles out. near MurtJe Lake. the group Vancouver and Toronto in an effort to gather clues. Once stopped and met with Morris Handelman, a resident lrapper seriously disturbed however. the sasquatch will soon disap­ who, along with his panner, has a local reputation as a kind pear into the nonhern wilds. of "sasquatch expert." Bhule was unable to persuade the man to divulge much infonnation and following the direc­ tions the secretive man gave him proved to be disastrous. Following Handelman's directions, they camped that night about fifteen miles west of the lake. At dawn they were NEW PRIMATES DISCOVERED? set upon by a savage band of renegade Athepaskan Indians. One of the guides was killed while the other, severely wound­ POINT GREY, B.C.-A spokesman for the Unh'crsiry ed. scrambled away from the camp into the nearby pine for­ of Vancouver announced today that a specimen est. Lesler was also severely wounded and Bhule knocked brought here from dIe Caribou Mowltains may indicate cold. The battle lasted no more than twenty seconds and the that an unknown specics of primate may inhabit the Indians were pursuing the Slowly escaping trapper when the unexplored wilderness of northern British Columbia. whole encampment was again ovenun, this time by eight Dr. Ilar.·ey Lanlilla, head of the zoology departmenl, large sasquatch who. with loud howls and hurled rocks. drove 58id the specimen, an ape-like (OOt severed a fcw inchcs the Indians away. As the wounded Inlpper carefully watched from the cover of the forest, the sasquatch carried Bhule and abo\'e tJle ankle, was purchased by him from II. trapper Lester off. leaving the dead guide where he lay. who claims lO ha\'e found the froxen appeodage near the Handelman, delirious from exposure, wandered into foothills of the mQuntuins. AltJlough the specimen is not Dogfork two days laler and was taken by train to the hospi­ rcady for public viewing. Dr. Lantilla describes the foot as tal in Kamloops. where he was interviewed by the Royal human-sized, but with distinct structural differences that Canadian Mounted Police. The trapper told his story. but left eliminate tbe possibility that it is of human origin. The out the part about the sasquatch. Patrols were sent to track fOOl is panially covered with coan;e. orange hair. down and apprehend the Indians but these were unsuccess­ According to l.antilla, e..I.tcnsi\"e examination and dis­ ful and, lacking the necessary manpower. the search has all section of the specimen is due to commence soon. It will but officially been halted. most likely be shown 10 belong to an orangutan or chim· The sasquatch had been watching the party since the panzee, possibly escaped from a traveling eircUll or carni· evening before and had recognized, even at a dislance, the val and now living in the Iloild.s of the mountains. kinship of Bhule and Donna Lester to themselves. When the No plans have as yel been made for the final disposi· Indians attacked. the sasquatch, who nonnally avoid the tion of tbe specimen. Indians, were moved to protect the two that they felt were - , ranooll~""er Daily Province their own. Bhule and Lester were carried back to the den of 32 - The Compact Trail orTsatboggua

cated. Cotswald seemed very well versed in the lore and leg· end surrounding the sasquatch. Cities & Towns Lantilla explains that the foot was brought to him in a frozen condition and has been kept this until I when a gradual thawing of the spec­ Vancouver imen was begun in preparation for dissection. Preliminary examina­ THE UNIVERSITY OF VANCOUVER: This is located in tions have been made. but no con­ Point Grey. a suburb to the south and west of Vancouver. clusions have as yet been drawn. Here, in the biology department, the newly discovered The dissection is scheduled for the appendage is kepi frozen. The head of the department is Dr. day after tomorrow. Harvey Lantilla, a specialist in zoology. If he is contacted. he Lantilla tells the group that not will grant an appointment with visiting journalists or scien· long after making the acquisition tific colleagues interested in the strange specimen. public he was visited by the well Or. Lantilla is a charming individual who gladly discuss­ known Canadian anthropologist, es any aspect of the specimen, including how it was Terrence Bhule, who bad brought DR. LAIffllJ..A acquired. The trapper who brought in the foot has returned with him an odd scalp from Tibet, supposedly taken from a to his cabin near a small town on the Thompson River caJled yeti. Bhule was accompanied by his fiancee, a young girl Dogfork. The trapper's name is Warren CotswaJd and he and named Donna, and the two were only able to stay for a cou­ a partner have spenl the last ten year.> futilely trying to cap­ ple of days-Bhule was in a hurry to return to the University ture a sasquatch. Coowald promised the professor he would of Toronto. Lantilla can tell the investigators that the couple return as soon as they captured a live specimen, or at least slayed at a hotel in Vancouver called The Bellon Arms. got an entire carcass. While conversing with the doctor. an investigator making The professor will tell them that Cotswald is tall and a Biology roll realizes that while well intentioned and per­ slTOngly built. with a myriad of tattoos that covered both of sonable. Lantilla is not a very good biologisL He has. in fact, his anns. The professor may mention that although unedu- reached his present position through chann and by dint of his admirable administrative abilities. If the group would Tsathoc"ua. Papers 117 like to examine the specimen. a successful Persuade or Fast VAl"COUVER, B.C.-March 12. 1898. A (rozen body, dis­ Talk roll will convince him 10 unwrap the partially thawed oo,'ered l'In~nty miles north of Vancou\·er. has been tcma­ foot. Lantilla is quite proud of his find and each investigator tiv~y identified today. The body, found last "'eek by two in rum can try either or both of these forms of communica­ local lndianli, appears to be that of Father Jacque tion in an attempt to be aJlowed to see the frozen foot. DeCasque, a Jesuit priest ,,'110 spent mOSI of his life oon­ Successive Biology rolls wiU reveal the following facts: \'ening the Indian! of British Columbia to Christianity I. The foot, contrary to the speculalion in the newspaper during the late 17th IUld early 18m centuries. Father article. is dcfinitely not that of an orangutan. OeCasque disappeared during me "'intcr of 1814 ""hile Ihing Ilmong a primiti\'e band of IndillllS in me Caribou 2. Further examination shows thai the fOOl is developed for walking in an upright stance and is no better adapted for Mountains and was IIc'-c:r helml o( again. grasping and climbing than the human foot. The disoo\'Cf)' of the body. found frozen solid and mrusl headfirst up to me ,,-aist IlIto a .!Iand bank. throws 3. A third roll allows the investigators to approximate the liltlc lighl upon the priest'S rale. The Indians who travel mass of the animaJ from the size and structure of the fOOl mi! hunting pam often claim thai the bod)' was not there and remaining portion of the leg. 11te animal was less me month berore but ",as dropped from the sky by a "spir­ than five feet tall and probably weighed 80-90 pounds. it. " No marks of \-iolellce ",'ere (ound 011 the body but por­ If an investigator assists at the dissection. he can discover tions of the anatomy werc injured by se"cre fT'O!ltbite that the foot belongs to a juvenile-the tendons and joints before the man died. ~ not fully developed. If not aided by one of the group, It is dirficu1t to understand how the body ""as so (:om­ Lantilla will miss this observation in his report. pletely frozen and wcll preserved. The cXluninillg physi­ If the investigators are unable to view the foot. LantiUa will cian slated that if it ,,'ere nOi for the positi\'t~ identification apologize and offer to send them a free copy of the report that made. he v.-ould guess thai the 11111" died not more than a he intends to writC based on his findings. [f asked how long few days before bis body was discovered. \\lIY, o\'er II peri­ that will take, he will reply that four months seems reasonable. od or nearly 85 yean, the body did nOI naturally decom­ He will actually put off writing the report until six months after pose remains a mystery. the examination and then mail out copies. Most of the infor­ The eanhly remaius or Falher DeCasque will be mation will be of little use to the investigators by then. imerred in the churchyard at Ollr Mother or Grace Church THE BELTON ARMS: If the investigators talk with the here in V811COll\·cr. desk clerk, and make a Fast Talk roll or bribe him with a The Curse of'ISathoggua - 33

five-dollar bill. he will remember Bhule and his pn:tty com· panion as honeymooners on their way nonb. He never spoke to them directly about it. but he overheard plans for a camp­ rALE, B.C.-July J, 1884. In the immediate \'icinity of ing trip in the Caribou Mountains. They needed supplies. but No . .. tUlillel, situated some t""cnly mile!! above the \ilIage, had decided to wait until their arrival in Kamloops to make arc bluffs of rock which ha\'c hitherto been insurmount· the necessary purcbases. able, bUI on MOllduy morning last. they \to'ere successfully THE VANCOUVER PUBliC UBRARY: If old issues of scaled by Mr. Onderdonk's employees 011 the regular train the VOIICOU\'tr Province Jouf1l(J1 are perused. three success· (rom J..·ytton. Assisted by Mr. Costeron , the British fut Library Use rotls will turn up three interesting articles Columbia Express Company's messenger. A number of (see Tsothoggua POlMrs #6·8). gemlemen from Lynon and points elbl of Ihat place, after considerable trouble and perilou5 climbing captured a Toronto erealUre "ho mal' truly be called half man and baH beast. •Jacko", as the creature has been called by its captors, This is the city of Terrence Bhule's childhood-the investi­ is something of the gorilla type standing about 4 feet 7 gators mayor may not think to look for clues here. Traveling illches in height and weighing 127 pounds. lie has long here by train from Boston will take eighteen hours. while the coa~ orange hair and resembles a human being with one ride from Vancouver takes ninety hours. Investigators may exception. Nearly his emire body, excepting his hands (or also attempt to obtain infonnation by mail or telegraph. paws) Rnd fCCI, are covered with glossy hair about one BHULE'S FATHER: A widowed. retired factory worker. inch long. Ills foreann is much longer thun.l man's fore· Abner Bhule has rarely seen bis son these last few years, due arm and possesses extraordinary 6trellgth, as he ",·ill take to Terrence spending most of his time working in the field and hold of a stick and break it by "'renebing or tvtisting it. Indians. Bhule's father will provide the phone num­ \to'hen no mall living could break that stick in the same ber of Professor William Petrie at the ""lIoy. Since hls capture he is "ery reDeem, only occasion· University of Toronto, explaining ally ultering a noise ",'hich is half bark and half growl He that this was Terrence's professor. a man whom he worked with often. i5, ho .....e\·er, becoming daily more allached to his keeper, Unless the investigators can con· Mr. George Tclbury. who proposes shortly starting for vince Abner that they are Bhule's London, England, to exhibit him. liis favorite food so far colleagues, they will have to make a i5 berries and he drinks fresh milk with relish. successful Persuade roll to get the older man to respond to other ques· tions. He can tell them that his son KMfLOOPS. B.C.---Septembe:r 16, 19-. An official was a normal boy, thoogh subject to ABNER BHut.E bursts of temperament when he announoc:ment from RCMP districc headquaners has reached adolescence. About this same time he became a loner, confinm.>d the disappcanUlce and possible deaths of three shunning his boyhood friends and spending hours in his room people on A camping trip south ot the Caribou Mountains. reading history books. AI eighteen. the family scraped togeth­ Thomas Berringer, his wife, Dora, alld a local guide, er enough money to send him to the University of Toronto, Oougln8 Mnkclhenny, are all believed 10 have been killed where he studied archaeology and anthropology, mostly with when their campsite was suddenly a!tacked by renegade Professor Petrie. At the same time, Temnce, nonnally very IndiallS. The sole 1i\U\'ivor of lhe attack, William Paragent, healthy. staned to visit the fami ly doctor for treaunent of a was 8e \'ercly wounded but escaped into 8 nearby pine for­ "minor skin disorder." Abner can provide. the address of the est and eluded his pursuers. Paragcnt sho .. cd up in the doctor if asked. but explains that the man died of a heart attack small to,.," of Dogfork only th~ de)5 after the eampeB several years ago and the office is closed. Since graduation. had lefe , suffering from loss of blood and 5e\'ere exposure. Terrence has spent most of his time working in northern Dtlirious, he ",'8.5 rushed, by rail, to the hospital In Canada. studying Eskimos. Kamloops ... here, after regaining consciousness, he related Abner adds that the last time he saw his son. he was the story of the SII\'age attack to Ihe RC~IP accompanied by <1 young lady named Donna Lester, the first CApUlin Swninson, head of the local district office. has young woman his son had taken an interest in since high school. Abner ate dinner with the young couple several times announced plnlls for a &eaTch of the urea but holds linle while Terrence was in Toronto and can provide the group hope for the missing memben of the party. The with the address of the boarding house where Lester lives. Alhepaskan Iridian band be1ie\'cd respollllible for the He didn't reall y like the young woman, but accepted her as auack is a slIlall group ""ho, shunning contact 1I-ith all he has always wanted grandchildren. ",·hite men and other Indians, he"e pursued a primitive THE UNIVERSITY OF TORONTO: The investigators will elistence in and around thi! part of the mountain mnge. be able to arrange W1 interview wi th Professor Petrie, who They are nO! considered extremely dangerous .. 1I0""e\'cr, will tell them that Terrence Bhule was a gifted young student these are the first murder.! actually attributed to me band. 34 - The Compact Trail of Tsathoggua with a natural nair for anthropology. He has nothing but the disappearance of the scalp; he now wonders if the myste­ praise for his young pt'Otc!gl!, but a Psychology roll will reveal rious young woman is nOI somehow involved wilh the theft. that some doubt about Bhule is on the mind. [f Petrie can supply the home address and phone number of questioned further, it will require a Abner Bhule. Terrence's father. Bhule usually stays there Persuade or Fast Talk. roll to con­ during his infrequent visits to Toronto. vince Petrie to admit his misgivings DONNA LESTER'S BOARDING HOUSE: A phone call about Bhule. Last summer, after here will get the landJady, Rebecca Pierce. She will not talk returning from Greenland. Bhule with strangers about her boarders unless a successful came to study at the University for a Persuade roll is made in person. She won't answer any mail few weeks before returning 10 the questioning her about former tenants and tenninates any per­ Eskimos. While he was there, Petrie sonal interviews if the Persuade roll fails. However, if the showed Bhule an interesting speci­ investigators are accompanied by Shule's father, she will tell men thai had come his way. This was them all she knows about Donna. She is single herself and the tanned scalp of an orange-haired views Abner as extremely eligible; a view he does not share. ape-like animal. supposedly stolen PETRIE Mrs. Pierce will describe Donna as homely, and excep­ from a monastery and smuggled out of Tibet by a profes­ tionally shy and polite. She told Mrs. Pierce that she was sional collector. Petrie had examined the object and. unable raised in an orphanage and never knew her parents. She to identify the species. had paid the collector an exorbitant worked in a local cannery and seemed to have no friends sum taken oul of the departmenl's funds. Bhule was fascinat­ until she met Terrence Shule this past summer. He came to ed by the scalp and continued to study it even after Petrie had visit quite often, sometimes accompanied by his father. returned to his regular work. Abner. and the IWO youngsters seemed quite close. Donna Bhule bid the professor fart:well a few days later, moved out a month or two ago. at the same time that announcing his inteDt to return 10 his Eskimo studies. Three Terrence Shule returned to his Indian work; Mrs. Pierce days after thai Petrie discovered that the scalp was missing. thinks that Donna went with him. He is sure that Bhule look it but can not imagine for what Mrs. Pierce disapproves oflhis sort of behavior... It's a sin! reason. He has nO( reported the theft and is still unsure of I should have known when I first met her," She continues, what actions he should take. II will be difficult enough to ''Working in a factOl)' is unlady-like enough, but I swear, I explain the large expenditure without also having to explain never saw that young woman in a dress, always in trousers." that the expensive object has been lost. THE CANNER Y: The investigalOrs will find that Lester's In connection with this, Petrie will tell the group that fonner em-ployers thought her an excellent worker. She was Shule was accompanied on his recent visil by a young never late and never took a day off sick. She had worked at woman named Donna Lester. whom Shule introduced as an the plant for almost eight years and their records show her to anthropology student he was taking into the field with him. be 27 years old. Petrie admits thai he doubted this story and when Bhule was out of the room, casually posed a couple of very basic anthro­ THE ORPHANAGE: If access to the records can be gained, pology questions to the girl. none of which she understood. the investigators will find that Lester was a foundling, discov­ Petrie says thai he didn't give this much thought until after ered on a doorstep by a Toronto policeman. Donna Lester left the orphanage on her seventeenth birthday and has not been heard from since. BHULE'S DOCTOR: The widow of the Shule family doctor, Mrs. Irma Enright, can be located through the Canadian Medical Association or by mailing a letter to the old office add­ ress, which will then be forwarded to the late doctor's home. DOMIN~1.0N OF CANt 13f4 The widow will not release any of • Doqfor/i V the doctor's records unless a Law roll • Kamloop, is made or she is served with proper Vancouver legal papers. Once again, if the group is accompanied by "thai handsome Abner Bhule", she will make an Monrreal exception. He is also considered quite ~, . desirable by the doctor's widow. He TH£ UNlT£D ..5TAT£..5 TOV can persuade her to allow the investi­ galors 10 peruse his son's medical - records. This lakes an hour and a The Curse of Tsathoggua - 3S

Know roU to understand. If an investigator has medical train· back howling. Later examination at the hospital showed that mg, ora Medicine skill of at least 25%. the roll is unnecessary. his shoulder had been dislocated. The patient staled that it Aside from nonnal c hildhood diseases, of which felt like he "had been mauled by a bear." Terrence seems 10 have suffered few. they discover that he Investigation by the RCMP made a series of appointments around the age of eighteen for established Berringer's plea of self­ a skin condition. The repc.lIt states that young Bhule had defense. As the trnpper had a reputa­ begun 10 grow a thick.. coarse hair of an orange color that tion for bullying, the matter was had quicldy spread to cover most of his chest, groin. and dropped. The next day, the young upper legs. The physician studied the problem as best he couple boarded the train headed could and finally diagnosed it as hypertrichosis, a rare genet­ nonh along with camping supplies ic disorder that causes an affiiction not unlike Bhule's. they had purchased while in town. Treatment was impossible. and the visits stopped, but the If an investigator wishes to read doctor noted in the file that Bhule was, understandably, con­ either of the RCMP's reports, he cerned that no one should find out about his condition. needs a successful Law or Oratory If the investigator reading the report can make a successful CAPTAIN SWAINSON roll-if he is a Canadian citizen. Medicine roll. he will discover errors in the doctor's diagnosis, Citizens of other countries must make their rolls at half-normal though he cannot tell what Bhule was really suffering from. percentage. It requires one successful roll to obtain each report. The repons tum OUI to be as unsatisfying as the Captain's stc­ Kamloops ries-only lengthier. No additional infonnation is obtained. This is a major town (pop. 4500+) located on the junction of CAPTAIN RONALD ADLER SWAINSON, Age JI, Elgh'·year \'ritr· the north and south branches of the Thompson River. It is lin 01 the RCMP served by both the Canadian Pacific and Canadian Nonhem Th~ Caprajn 0/ rh~ Mounrj~ poSI In KamJoops is /Wnald S11'ain.rot1. an dgh'·y~ar v~luan ...:/w knows 1M ArMposJum Inditm.r, buJ noI Railways, the latter trnveling north through Dogfork and on lhe particular band 11II'Olved in the killing O/IM c~n. 10 Jasper. Most residents are employed in the local brewing STR 13 CON 14 SIZ 14 tNT 13 pow 14 or fruit-canning industries. It also serves as the "big city" for DEX IS APP 16 many of the nearby trnppers, miners. and Indians. EDU 12 SAN 70 HP 14 The downtown district is small. The major buildings Dama.. Bonus: +104 include a hoteVsaloon, a combination RCMP district office Weapons: Fist/Punch 65 lA>, damage 103+ I D4 and postal station, a small hospital, and a few retail merchants. Hunting Knife 35%, damage 106+104 .45 Revoh'er 55%; damage 1010+2 Investigators willlik.ely lnlvelto Kamloops because they .30-06 Bolt-action Rifle 65%. damage 206+4. have heard that Bhule and Lester stopped here to purchase Skills: Anthropology (Athepasbn tncJians) 55%. Athepaskan supplies. However, when Bhule and Lester arrived in 45%, Climb 50%, Dodge 46/l!, English 70%, First Aid 55'1>. Hide Kamloops, they a disguise. They told the locals they adopted 35%, Jump 35%. Law 55%. USlen 35%. Medicine 25%, Navigate were honeymooners, and gave their names as lbomas and 50%, Ride 55%, Sneak 3OIl!, Spot ffidden 35%, Track 40%. Dora Berringer. If the investigators describe Bhule and Lester to locals, they will quickly be recognised as the Derringers. THE KAMWOPS HOSPITAL: This one-story wooden building houses fifteen beds, four nurses, and one doctor. THE ROYAL CANADIAN MOUNTED POue£: This dis­ The records are closed to the public and a successful trict office was in charge of the search for the missing honey­ Persuade roll is needed to get the doctor to release the files mooners believed killed by renegade Indians. The investiga­ or even discuss either of the two cases the group might pas­ tors may interview the head of the post, Captain Swainson, siby be interested in. If the investigator attempting to roll but he can tell them only that the search expeditions have Persuade is a medical man. he has twice the normal chance. found the raided camp, but no trace of the survivors. 1lIe report on the lnlpper injured at the saloon shows that Subsequent expeditions followed but little was discovered. he was treated for a dislocated shoulder and released. The Captain interviewed the surviving guide, Bill Paragent, Professional tenninology is used to describe the injury. but while he was in the hospital. The Indians involved are part of if an investigator has medical training. a Medicine skill of at a renegade band that has isolated itself from any contact with least 25%, or ean make a Know roll be realizes that the dis­ white men or other Indians. Their totem animal is a hairy man. location was not the result of a twisting or levering action. The Captain is perfectly satisfied with the trapper's version of but that the arm was actually pulled straight out of the sock­ whaJ happened and explains that he lacks the manpower to get et. Discussing this case with the doctor reveals the same involved in a long search for the supposed lciUeTS. information. He will remark that he doesn't understand how The Captain mentions an incident thai occurred in the injury could have taken place . .. It would require a Kamloops involving the young couple. While in the saloon. tremendous strength to pull a man's ann straight out. one of the local trappers, having had a little too much to Especially a man as large and as strong as the one I trealed." drink. made a pass at the young bride of Mr. "Berringer" . The file on Bill Paragent, the survivor of the lndian The trapper became belligerent and a fight between him and attack.. states that he suffered many bruises 8l\d abrasions Mr. "Berringer" erupted. Although tbe trapper is a huge man along with a concussion, plus a generally weakened condi- with a reputation for brawling, in seconds he was nat on his 36 - The Compact Trail of TSathoggua tion caused by shock and exposure, The rest of his file tip of Munle Lake about ten miles due west of town. He has records a boring day-to-day recovery paltem untiJ bis dis­ never been there himself. and hus never ventured more than charge eight days laler, Only if the investigators discuss the half a mile from the town. If asked about the honeymoonen, case with the doctor can they discover that through the he says that he them only briefly. They set off for course of his hospital stay the man was plagued by night­ the mountains within two hours of mares in which he was anacked and ealen by wild animals. their arrival on the morning train. WEBSTER'S GENERAL STORE: This is one of three If asked about the two guides. he retail outlets in downtown Kamloops and the only one in says that Bill Paragent works for which the honeymooners did any business. If the investiga­ him, sweeping out the store and liv­ tors check with the proprietor, he remembers the pair and ing in a small shed (XIt hack. Croft teUs how they had planned to hire a couple of guides in hints that Bill has been a bit soft in Dogfork and spend their honeymoon camping in the wilds of the head since his accident. He' ll the Caribou Mountains. He will remark that they bought ask the investigators not to press enonnous amounts of supplies. " [n facl," he'lI add. "you' d him too hard about what happened. think they were planning on staying a couple of years rather The investigators should be able than a couple of weeks." to get the above information from Croft whether they buy anything or not; the only difference THE HOTEUSALOON: The only place to stay at Kamloops will be the manner (fri endly or crude) in which it is given. If (the other establishment in town burned down last spring), the the investigators should spend money in the Slore (without Salinger House rents rooms to the rare visitor. The downstairs haggling too much about the price) and ask him about the local saloon is a favorite watering hole for many of the trappers and lndians. he will show them an odd object he possesses. This is prospectors who visit Kamloops to trade or buy. Here, the a small woOO carving that was tmded 10 Croft by a nameless fight between Bhule and the trapper took 1be story of place. lndian. An Anthropology roll reveals it to be a totemic carving. the fight is stiU big news in the saloon and the investigators The animal depicted in this carving is a snange ape-like thing should experience little difficulty in persuading of the one covered with coarse hair. Croft knows nothing about it. locaJs (with the aid of a beer or two) to relate the details. 1bere is little to be added other than a more vivid description GlLHERT CROFT,. 36. Dogfork n-.dlng Post (hrncor of how the visitor "yanked George's ann right out of his STR 8 CON 10 SlZ 14 INT 12 POW 7 shoulder. just like it was easy." 1be investigators may also DEl< 6 APP9 EDU 12 SAN 35 HP 12 learn that the injured trapper returned to the wilds not long SkJlb: Accounting 82%, Bargain 85%. Credit Rating 75%, after the OCCUJTeIlCe and is unavailable for interview. English 60%. Law 2S'lII. Mechanical Repair 33%. A WIWERNESS GUIDE: The investi gators may wish to Dogfork hire a guide. The only man in Dogfork: who is willing to go is McDennott. will charge them per day. This small town, about halfway between Kamloops and He $25 Jasper, has less than a hundred pennanent residents living in FRANCIS McDERMOTJ', Ire 17, Wlkkmesr Gukk small shacks. Many of the residenlS are of alleast pan lndian STR 14 CON 15 SIZ 16 tNT II POW 12 heritage and the only public buildings are the small u-ain sta­ DEX 14 APP II EDU 8 SAN 60 HP 16 tion and telegraph office next to the waler tower and a slight­ Damage Bonus: + I 04 ly larger trading post that serves the residents and trappers of Weapons: Fist 75%, damage 103+ t 04 the area. As in Kamloops. Bhule and Lester took the guise of Hunting Knife 65%, damage I D6+ I D4 Thomas and Dora Berringer while in Dogfork. .30-06 Bolt·action Rifle 70%, damage 206+3 THE TRADING POST: Owned by Gilbert Croft, a short, Skills: Athepaskan 55 'l11. Climb 6S%, Dodge 45%. English 40%, balding man with a perpetually sour expression. lnvestigators Hide 45'l11. Jump 45%. Lislen 55%, Navigate 30%, Sneak 60%, may expect the post to be a natural gathering spot for resi­ SpcM Hidden 45 'l11 . Track 6S% . dents. but they will find the place: nearly empty at any time of THE SURVIVING GUIDE: Bill Paragent is a half-breed the day. After speaking with Gilbert for 8 moment or two they Indian in his late thinies who has spent most of his life in and will discover why. If an investigalDr tries to strike up a con­ around Dogfork, occasionally working as a guide and doing a versation with the man it is obvious to Gilbert that he is not little trapping. Since the incident involving the supposed there to pun:.hase anything. Gilbert will ~ only in deatm of the young couple and another guide. Bill is thought monosyllables and grunts. Unless the investigator starts to act to have suffered some insanity and the whole town lreats him like he is going to make a purchase, Gilbert's attitude will fairly gently. as evidenced by the actions of Croft. Anyone grow inausingly abrupt until he pointedly asks whetht7 the who presses Bill too hard for infonnation may find himself investigator intends to buy something or not. Purchasing a warned off by someone interested in protecting Bill. few dollar's worth of goods will improve Mr. Croft's pernon­ In reality Bill is just as alert and responsive as ever, aliry and he will answer the investigator's questions. although he pots on a good act. He is afraid to tell the truth He knows that the "sasquatch experts", Morris Handelman about the attack of the sasquatch. He is aware that Dogfork and Warren Coowald. live in a small log cabin at the northern and the surrounding area have been under close observation The Curse of lSathoggua - 37 by the sasquatch since shortly after the incident occurred. He If the investigators search the area they find footprints, figures that if he keeps acting like he doesn't know anything, blurred by the lightly falling snow. They lead off in a west­ they will take no action against him. in the meantime, Bill is erly direction, bUI quickly become lost in the drifting snow. trying desperately to accumulate money to leave the The investigators probably already have guessed the origin area for good. He plans to move to of the tracks but a Biology roll made while examining them Montreal. or maybe even San will assure the group that they were made by the same sort Francisco. of fOOl thai they examined in Vancouver-only the tracks in When talking with Bill, the inves­ the snow are considerably larger. If an investigator should tigators find that it helps to speak make a Spot Hidden roll he will discover a large stone axe slowly and clearly. lfthey do not, the dropped into a snow bank. The investigator may note that it man gets confused and the investiga­ seems extremely large and heavy but an Anthropology roll tors have to repeat or rephrase their will tell that il is not of Indian manufacture. questions. If questioDed about the The next time Bill is seen, he is in the company of the attack. Bill grows excited, bUi relates sasquatch. Having completely lost his mind. he believes the events that took. place exactJy as himself to be one of the band and behaves as though he were he has in the past, purposely omitting BILL PARAGENT some IOnd of chimpanzee. running about the campsite on his anything about the sasquatch. He will DOt. under any circum­ knuckles and in general behaving in a much more primitive stances, lead the group to the cabin of the "sasquatch expens", manner than his sasquatch "family." Bill will be iotensely but for $5 he will draw a good map. loyal to the band and they will tolerate his sometimes obnox­ Any investigator making a Psychology roll while listening ious behavior with good humor. Bill may help pursue the to the story about the indian attack will realize that BiU is investigators and, though anned only with rocks, will be a omitting something from the tale. but he cannot tell if the desperate and suicidal attacker. omission is purposeful or a result of Bill's partial loss of men­ ta] faculties. If an investigator attempts to take advantage of Bill 's condition in bargaining over the price of the map, he will find Bill immovable on the subject of money. A successful Into the Wilderness Psychology roll at the same time reveals a cunning not con­ sistent with his supposed mental condition. After interviewing Bill for at least twenty minutes. any investigator making a Murtle Lake Psychoanalysis roll is convinced that the whole thing is a bla­ tant act and thB.! the man suffers from no mental illness at all. The cabin of the sasquatch experts lies near the northern shore of a lake located len miles west of Dogfork. The cabin BILL PARAGENT. age 38, 8hule's Indian Guldt stands in an open area, well away fonn the dark pine forests Bill is the only survivor of the iff-fated expedition led by Ternnce that spread across the foothills of the mountains to the north Bhule. He has been under cons/anI sUTVeillllnce by the sasquatch and about a hundred yards from the lake. Lining the shores sina thaI time. If the im'es/igators speak with Parage"" the are huge, broken slabs of ice, forced by the pressure of the sasquatch kidnap him Ihal Ilight. freezing water into small, jagged mountains coye~ with STR 14 CON 16 SIZ 14 INT II POW 10 drifting snow. DEX IS APP9 EDU S SAN 16 HP IS The snow in the clearing around the cabin has drifted Damage Bonus: +104 heavily, fonning large. swirling designs and hills and gullies Weapons: Fist/Punch 70%, damage 103+1D4 !.hat are difficult to traverse even with snowshoes. From a Head Bun SS%, damage 104+ I 04 distance of about 150 yards, the investigators will be able to Grapple 75%, damage Special make out some details of the cabin. It is cooted wi!.h a thick Club 35%. damage I D6+1 04 or I08+1D4 Hunting Knife 45%, damage lD6+ I OS layer of white frost. The front doorway is open to reveal the darkened interior. As the group approaches more closely, Skills: Athepaskan 50%, Climb 66%, Dodge 62%, English 25%. Hide 45%. Jump 55%, Listen 45%. Navigate 60%, Swim 6S%, !.hey see that the door is missing. ripped from the hinges, as Throw 4S%, Track 60%. are the shutters from the small south window. Tracks of sasquatch are all around the cabin and lead away in several THE DISAPPEARANCE directions. The first night after the investigators speak with Bill, the THE CABIN: When about fifty feet from the cabin the trapper is abducted by the sasquatch. If the investigators are investigalors will experience a sudden drop in temperature still in town the following morning they awake to an abnor­ of about 10-15 degrees. From this distance the investigators mal quiet. A little asking around discovers that some of the can see thai the door and shuuers seem to have been blown townspeople heard cries in the night and, upon investigating, outward, as if from an intemal explosion. A Spot Hiddeo found the door to Bi ll's shed hanging open and the man reveals that the explosion even lifted the roof a few inches. gone. Large naked footprints were found in the snow around leaving a detectable gap. Through the open door. furniture the cabin and some of the older members of the village claim and other items can be seen strewn about, all covered with that they belong to the sasquatch. tbe same thick: coal of frost. 38 - The Compact Trail of Tsathoggua

As the investigators approach nearer. the temperature c1es are strewn about or frozen to the waUs. Each and every continues to drop until it reaches 50 degrees below zero one examined by the investigators has some connection with (elsewhere the tempernture is at freezing) when very nea.. or the sasquatch-whether sightings of "Bigfoot" in northern inside the cabin. For every five minutes that an investigator California or a scientific explanation of the yeti of the spends in this imense cold. he will lose I point of damage to Himalayas. 1be investigators may recognize some of this frostbite. II will take three days for the cabin 10 return to nor­ material from their own personal reading. Most of it is spu­ mal temperature. rious. written by cranks or con men. Stepping inside the 20'xI5' log building. the investiga­ If any investigator spends at least fifteen minutes search­ tors find the whole interior coated with a thick frost. ing through the remains of the men's belongings he will be Blowing snow has filled the cabin to a depth of 6"-8" in allowed to make a Spot Hidden roll. A successful roll indi­ most places. COlS. tables, chairs. boxes of clothing. and other cates that he has stumbled upon the notebook kept by belongings are scattered about the single room in tangled Handelman, It is hand-written in in1c and thickly coated with heaps. as though a whirlwind had hit the place. Frozen near frost. If the investigator fails his roll. he should be allowed the doorway. out of sight of the investigators as they frrst another roll for every fifteen additional minutes he spends enter. is the body of a man, a frosl-coated shotgun clutched searching until the notebook is found or the investigator is in his right hand and a look of horror literally frozen onto his forced to leave due to the cold. face. All seeing this lose 01106 Sanity. The body is about Handelman's notebook is a record of the two men's seven feet above the floor and so solidly frozen to the wall attemplS over the last ten years to capture one of the that it will prove immovable unless the investigators apply sasquatch that are thought to live in the area. A number of some sort of lhawing heat to it. The man has a heavy beard clues are contained in it but. due to frost damage and nearly and wears a wool shin of red plaid. Searching the body illegible handwriting. an English roll will be required for while it is frozen is impossible and the man bears no identi­ each one. Any thawing of the notebook. whether on purpose fication anyway. It is impossible to remove the frozen shot­ or by accident. will cause the ink 10 run. destroying any gun from his hand without a hammer and saw. infonnation. Investigators will need to translate quickly the Searching the rest of the cabin the investigators find the notebooks, or lose the infonnation contained within. normal sort of food supplies. ammunition. traps. and other Even if the investigator is unable to read a single clue he items associated with men who live in the wilds. A large will learn enough to understand what Handelman and his number of books. newspaper clippings. and magaz.ine ani- panner's plans were. In brief. the two men had absolutely no scientific interest in the Sasquatch at all. Their goal was to capture one of the shaggy beasts and transpon it back to civ­ To thf RocJt 'tVafl Rpbbilh ilization to be exhibited in America and Europe. The earlier parts of the journal are confined to recording tracks discov­ ered, or sightings made by the men. Things did not get inter­ esting until this past summer (see Tsathoggua Paper~ 119- /6). Tot#!« Body Inth. Tru The Tracks The cabin is surrounded by many footprinlS. They lead off in .site oj Col/Wi two main directions. If followed (no Track rolls needed due to the soft snow) they lead to a number of different clues in '-- the immediate area. A large number of the uacks lead to and from one of the larger heaps of snow and ice on the shore of the frozen lake. If closely investigated. the snow surrounding this mound is found to be heavily trampled. A few pairs of tracks lead south from the mound along the shore about a hundred yards before stopping at a small area cleared of snow. In the center of the cleared area the investigators will see a shallow pit dug into the now refrozen soil. Surrounding the pit are the remains of a large fire. Any investigator taking a close look at this and making an Idea roll will realize that he is looking at a recent­ ly opened grave. 1be fire was used to thaw the frozen ground so whatever was buried there could be uneanhed. From the shallow pit. uacks can be followed fifty feet to the base of a tall pine tree that stands alone nea.. the western shore of the tip of the lake. Here lie a noticeable quantity of broken branches and scraps of bark. evidence that someone or something has recently climbed the tree. If they should The Curse of lSathoggua - 39

TsathoQaua. Papers #9 J' ... IlIrT,IIHAt.(. J ("fr.4A 'Ht tk wixAlw tAd'/. t4i~ f) .. r ".&.., M'f! Llfst ,u3~ ' Ifl"-r MrIc, I1tmi~ _..t J tW-Hi"1lfxA J eDtttA $U tk..., 1ft wut If 41f(fA,UH '1 ~n 1f~QUJ{ '" eM Ik4st ~rri'&' 4Iwli~ e~ ... in:f In­ toW,. , 4;,u"Z ',41Hi. e'('; Jtu./c~ 1&' kl,...H HUr tM tM ..tiruti~H 'I toit w,~4 ~ FUIg,u2:M eM v~ia i-w­ 'I tAJu . J ,(pH 't !eH"", ~lft tAt:'/. t"""'Ht. Ifid'f /lH,( Ie.uw it tI H ,~ '1 tk #u!sts tMt W pHlfti'f '{,.HMnA. iHt, ,~ '1 tHr e""p" ~M'JiH1' .. r ri/W WI. T sathou,ua Papers 11 14 .Ltrriul ~14l wiM tttHUrHS IfH,( rif'u ,,.{'/. tI ..tiUPWr tMt ,lIr elfptiw w.u 1'~' IfPPlfruJi'f duwin:f '11 jl$ ,WH ~ J.,,,u,. 1t'l u.,riJt,. :E,r'l"1tr, tM $l.rtfH-gtr, i~ wit4 U tUIftx- ~ ptt,wc..t tAt: ,(",('1 irN( I" If w,.t NWIHa t~*. 1 t"W , .. t tM wi,.A,w IfM 1 elHtA sn ~ ... 'IIt eMH, ~1I't tMt WI. (;,H/.). kif' tN UIIH,( '1 OfIbrt luutJ ~tIfHAi"1 tlurt., mArt'1 HIfkU. ;H t.it el(A wi.. A. ~tw. eMH tM. ,JU tlurt MA I'HHA. 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'r t.it ~"'rt. 'I tM (lfkt. 1t's tIP pcr IfWIf'f I,r 1M' tD u.tt wA..t ' ~ ~Ii,.~ I,. 'Ht J elf" St.t tM. I,.. ~t~ ,\It'l Tsathoeeua Papers 11 11 ,,.et in Ift-vliil, t4"WI"~ .,.," w"A ,,. t.it JtAZt. ~Iu'f "..lIst ., v"'1 H'lfr t-vM." J 'H,i,A 11tP,ri~ elf ... t ""... , t,M'/., ,r If(... ,s/.. Jt .,.1ISt ,/ 'un iHU 11l,rri.. Ifltt, H"H I~ J t,,1uA ,.e tAt: ~HMW ..t.KA MW A.i... Vt.',lIIlA tfur Ai~ ,(11M HFIfHA tilt ,(I",~ Wlftfr.i~ IU"" toit FdA ,/ ""w UWlfrA tk elf'n... J w.u ffllA'/. fI, 41.,.. ~ .. At: '1"...".( tk Am wit:4 tlurt lif :JriH, J it, I,M 'lfrn(~ ri1~ i .. t4t. &oit,a. J w. "",,,, "",,,, A'H'e 11tiAHi'14t. 9,A 4ttp ... ,. ~,(,; (irt rHlftt'f 'IIr.. tA tlmJc At: tW, leHtW wMt .(it""'", '&IfM~ ~ J 3# 'Htu~ A'WH If,.A VWHt lilt II'HA 'WH wit4 t~ ",,,,,l'Z4t :} ,(,; w.u ttt'liH1 '10 4i~ l.ule iH e.u PlPt-?, ~r t4tt,. If M,r­ e,II{A H,t SIt w4lft WIf~ tlfkiH1 "tttet. Jt w"'~ , ..i'f tAu >Uti!. J '1Irid. "",,,, MWH 'H toit wut Ji~ '1 eM lttIc.e ~n t4.tt 1 4Ifp,,~A tl H,tiet PHt '1 e4t h"u~ e(i""i,,'1 H# ,~ wilt twr pHA. 4; .... JIIbt'f'"' IfIkN J't{ utt toit", tM tlftt "iHt tm t, tM wut 'I tAt (",k,. JI H,t I" tlu t4.tt 11tP,ri~ elf.,., llUle Ifa ri14t 'IIt tW. uft 'H If trip U Jri14t ",u.. 't"'HI. t,(,; tnt J ...,.,II(A .. ,t 41f\lt Hpti&M tk ",'.HtIliH" ~ k AP~~H't &,"" JIUfr., t"'''I',A,('(t Jttt.,., it: 'H t,(,; J.wttm. J /PIIM .$.200 iH 4i~ ",elut. 4j", 1ft "tt, JHt wit,( t4lft tt'14t J e,II(A su t4lft tltt :P"Jdf'l w4ttt "" utA ,H' I,n I,r. Jtlf~t Wlf~ elf,,'/.iH3' " ... , tAr3t ,Jjut wit4 &"" dH .. '1 MHAt, PH, M .... Jt /oWf.~ 'Htr W4tH tIw Juut r'If&4u( TsathoUua. Papers 11 12 H,,,r tM ptlfk '1 tlu tr" tlutt J &#MIA St.' tlut, it ...... ,~ A st,"'Xf" visitiA UM'f. aliJi. t,(,; Pe1" '1 t&~ J w.u &lfr''/.'H'1 "J1Urri~ ' , Irlu" '~Ar ' IIHtIf,tlttA Jr t,(,; "'~H ­ IfI""iA ,f. H, MiA 41, HIt"" h'II~ ~rTin:ftr If...,( t41ft oit ~u,~ If/ur eM'/. 4lfA t4AwtA tM ~rtf\lt wit4 t4lft (ire. ..t.KA 4;~ wi" Wlrt '10 If &" ... pi'"'J trip. -pu.'1 4.t..t :Plf'~ ~ ltAlt ttlt "J1U'ri~ 41f~iH'1 i .. t4t t,I' " .... e4t' ~I IfM 11f;cI:.d/ItHK'f wiM Mao. If~ 3HW.. j eI.. tA tta riff4t tAt t", If lOA e4t... e.(i",JtA ,(pWH. T"''/.'rt Ifll If~U",JtM tlurt t&~ Idbw w.u t'/.i'"'J ..t.KA j w.u ~lIrt t4lft At: w.u 'II H'1oV .,('WH Htlfr eM. (itlet " ... fWItt." IfHA J e.":n ,(,;lfr t"ldH1I" ~Nttd. illSt ak J utA 11tPrrt~ ~"'A 4.tp­ t4t", ~iH1iH'1 IfnA &41fHtiH1' IfHA If.,'" "a '1 it J ell:H fJ'n. J /oViU prtlt'f elfrt.llI( IfHA prt.tu.k..t HIlt tl kHPw f;p~ lulf' tilt v,iet 'I 15trriH'1tr, (tIfAi .. '1 tltt.", PH wiM If ... 11&4 d'lIt tAt: t4l'"'J" '"'CItl. 4;.,. J'", UUf trll&fr.~ If e,.p&. Urtlf",jH'1 v,iet. BVtH HIW t4i, 'PIIHA i~ 1';"1 '1 tllftU Jilt ,QA.. 't kH,t-? ... 11&4 .... A W ..1e 1f',lIt it tVOf tu.. Am'1lHtA PHt Jr e4t w4i,UiH3' 'I If 3'rtlft wiHA If lOA IH H, iUktA ... , wMn J'I. $UH tM.se trlU"" u J ulA ""'... tl tAt: wut ..t.KA StHt ,(,;'" n. tIu Airt.diIH '1 tIw. jnAilfJel.. J t4t Ai~t"H&t J e.IfH 4I1f, If trt"..tH.,('II' ~tp,,,.. elHt1"Z. J btIH14t :Plfrtf,?Ht " 111Ak /.WillA lfUI'fk kH,f.l> tN~ ..t.KA 4"", tAte,(,;A e,(,; ~4I1tu,~ If,.A A,,, ri1~t'/. , IHt t4t tdl ~'ri'"1'-" Jilt IfPPIfrt.Htl'f ~ ..tiAH't Iac~w t4ttt', wI,.A J(,w~ t4"H~4 tM", 1f")'f.l>If)'. T'('; tt"'ptrlftllrc t~ wAt:rt. tM. jHA.ilfH~ Ifrt. e.1f"'fM HIt-? nut"', I", 'I t,{".. ArPfpiH1 ~, ll1lele(y "..,. fiH~'rl Ifrt HH",I If.HA it i~ 3't~ 'lit '1 ;6'1/1r1c ~1I14 j 1'""- Vl'it4 .tHy tMdt, t4t. 4",A e, W,IU. ~41ft tt","t Urtlf... ;H1 '1 tIw wi ..A ! JHA.iIf~ will kia t4t:,.. " Ari", t4u.. 'lit 'I t4.<, 1fT£(. ~ w4,(t elf'iH i~ ,,&.i"ff _ 40 - The Compact Trail or Thalhoggua make a SPOI Hidden roll. the invesligators may notice that natural break in the trees. Due west of where the party stands the very top of the tree has been snapped off. is another large forest, its edge about a half mile away. The Reaching the top of the tree can be accomplished with a reason for the sudden change of direction is not obvious. An single Climb roll Just as the climber reaches the top and investigator who makes a Spot Hidden roll while scanning the peers over il. he will discover to his horror a decayed human forest 10 the west will notice a human body arched awkward­ head. frozen soHd and wedged in a forked branch. The head ly in the top of one of the far trees and outlined against the sky. is snapped cleanly off at the neck. The sudden sight of this Spotting the corpse. even from this distance. costs the investi­ thing costs 01106 Sanity points. If an investigator goes tem­ gator a point of SAN if he misses his roll. porarily insane while in the treetop. he will release his grip From this point the group may follow the sasquatch trail, and (with a long drawn-OUl scream) faU fifty feet to the which emerges from the other side of the dwindling forest and ground. taking 406 points of damage (this has already been then turns northwest to arrive at the south entrance to the reduced for the soft snow). tf the investigator does not lose "Sasquatch Dens" four hours laler. If the investigators choose control, he will still be startled by the sight. losing his hold to travel west then tum north through the break in the trees, on the tree. He can regain his grasp on the trunk with a quick they soon pick up the sasquatch trail and can follow it north­ Climb roll. but failing this, he will faU. A Jump roll will west. If the group investigates the body in the tree they need reduce damage by 106. to travel to the edge of the forest a half mile away. Here. with Many lraCks lead 10 the nonhwest. The beasts traveled in a successful Climb. they discover an almost completely this direction for some two hundred yards until reaching the decayed corpse. reduced to lillIe more than a skeleton and nearby pine forest, where they split into two groups. one dressed in the rugs of a trapper's clothing. Papers on the body traveling north along the edge of the woods loward the identify the man as Douglas Makelhenny, the other guide mountains, the other heading west aJong the southern border hired by Bhule. His body was placed here as a sacrifice to of the forest. The investigators must choose which group hhaqua, who will return soon on the cold north winds, bring­ they wish to foUow, if they wish to follow at all. A light snow ing winter. 'The frozen corpse has lain here for quite some time is beginning to fall, and the tracks will not last forever. in wait for the Great Old One but will be laken tonight when While halted at the point where the tracks diverge. one of Ithaqua passes this way. If the group is within five miles of the investigruOB. while looking across the vast expanse of this spot tonighr., they will hear the howling of lthaqua. undisturbed snow that lies due north of the cabin, notices a If the investigator atop the tree makes a Spot Hidden roll, number of small, dark objects scattered across the field. There he will see what appears to be a small Indian village in a clear­ are no tracks, either human or sasquatch, in this area. If some­ ing on the side of a hill. While here there is a 40% chance that one walks out to check on this he will find a number of small the investigators will be attacked by 106 Indians,who will pine boughs, splintered and broken, strewn across the plain. break: off if any are killed or seriously wounded. Near one of the larger ones. the investigator will be horrified at the sight of a badly decayed human arm. frozen solid and THE ATHEPASKAN INDIANS broken off neatly at the shoulder. lying in the clean. white Athepaskan is a language group encompassing many Indians snow. (This sight costs 01104 Sanity point.... ) The ann is in British Columbia. among them the Chipewyan, Kaska, dressed in the remains of a flannel shirt and is nearly covered Slave, and Beaver bands. Little is known of the culture, as it with crude tattoos. If a Spot Hidden is made, it is revealed that was disrupted under the auspices of the fur-trading companies the sleeve and arm are pierced by a number of small holes. A who came to this area in the 18th-19th centuries, but it is Know roll or Shotgun skiU above 30% wiU identify these thought that it was based on clans linked to specific totemic wOl.mds as the kind that result from shotgun pellets. animals. 1bey lived in conical skin tents and built toboggans tf an investigator. after examining the many clues found rather than dogsleds. Oans owned specific hunting terrilories here, makes a Cthulhu Mythos roll, he will realize that this that were closely guarded. but it is believed that this is a result area has been recently visited by a Greal Old One. Ithaqua. of the over-hunting encouraged by the fur companies, who If the investigators choose to follow the trail heading west soon had most of the Indians in debt to them. they will travel for four hours, and arrive at "The Body in the As a result of this sudden culture shock, a small group of Tree." If they follow the group headed north, they discover the Indians rerreated to the foothills, alternately avoiding the some footprints among those of the sasquatch that could only approaches of white men and the small band of "hairy men" have been made by a barefooc human. Another four hours of whom they came to hold as sacred. Any white men found in travel brings the party to the fooc of a snow-covered rock wall this area are ruthlessly attacked by these Indians and the bod­ (see '"The Rock Wall"). where the trail will suddenly stop. ies placed high in rrees for Ithaqua. The Indians do not wor­ ship the Great Old One. but fear him and leave sacrifices of THE BODY IN THE TREE humans and game animals in an attempt to appease the being. After four hours the trail turns and beads north through the There are only six members of the clan left-all adult forest on the right This tum is not made smoothly; the tracks males capable of fighting. The Indians flee if one of their show the group suddenly stopped and milled around before number is gravely wounded or killed. If captured, they turning to the right and plunging uphill through the dark refuse to speak, making every possible effon to escape. They woods. It is obvious that if the sasquatch had continued on for possess bows, but prefer 10 charge suddenly from the cover another qUaJ1er mile. they could have turned north through a of a nearby wood hoping to overwhelm the investigators. The Curse or Tsathoggua - 41

"~ ~------~ ~ 42 - Tbe C9mpact Trail of TSathoggua

TYPICAL INOlAN The Sasquatch STRI5 CON 15 SIZII INT 12 POW II OEXI5 APPII EOUO SAN 55 HP 13 These desoendants of the furry voormis of ancient ~n­ Damage Bonus: + 104 land have grown large and strong over the years. The aver­ Weapons: 80%, age male now stands over seven feet tall. They arc covered Fist damage 103+104 Knife 15%. damage 1D6+ I D4 with a thick orangish-red hair that is thinner or absent on the forearms. lower legs. and face. The exposed slrin is a light Skills: Alhepaskan 60%. Climb 80%, Dodge 66%, English 10%. tan color and of a leathery lexrure. Their long legs end in First Aid 10%, Hide 15%, Jump 15%. Lislen 75'*', Medicine broad feet with ridged pads. These adaptations allow them 10 25%, Sneak 10%, Spot Hidden 15%, Swim 15,*" Throw 65%, movequicldy lhrough deep snow. They arc also good climb­ Track 90%. ers, sometimes storing food in trees or on rock ledges. THE ROCK WALL "The sasquatch, although lnvestiga~ following the tracks leading north from Munle experimenting with primitive Lake go on a long uphill climb bringing them, after four and a bows, possess no missile wea· haJfhours, to a near-verticaJ rock face, where the trail abrupt· pons other than hurled rocks, Iy ends. Among the footprints at the base of the cliff are those clubs. or SlOne axes. They arc of the human who accompanies them. Obviously. the generally vegetarians bUi relish sasquatch climbed the rock waJl. Climbing this 75-fOO( wall meat when an occasionallrill is made, eating it raw. They have requires three separate rolls. one each at 20, 40, and 60 feel. At learned the use of fire from the top the investigators find a cave about fifty feet deep occu­ Bhulc: but do not make a prac­ pied by a large cairn of stones. 1be snow atop this mountain, tice of keeping a rite burning in which is the most southerly of the range. is scanty and drifting the valley. The sasquatch speak: A SASQUATCH bot the trail of the sasquatch is discernible. This trail leads to in a simi»e language consisting of guttural sounds and ges. the north entrance of the "Sasquatch Dens" in three hours. tures, but recently some have been IaUghl pidgin English by If the group dismantles the cairn (takes one man-hour), 8hule. Allc:asl six or eight of the adults speak crude English. they need SAN rolJs when they find the corpse of a young With the coming of Bhute. the sasquatch have once again woman whose drying body bears the coarse. orange hair of become active wcnhipm of Ithaqua, OUI of the desire to defend themselves from man. 8hute discovered the calling some kind of animal. Failure 10 make this roll costs 108 spell, wriuen OD the walls of the cave of the priest. and taught SAN points. The investigators mayor may not be able to it 10 some sasquatch. The only time they have used it was to identify this woman as Donna Lester. lriU -the "sasquatch expert" who lived by Murtle Lake. They will use il again against the investigators if other methods fail. The Sasquatch Dens TYPICAL ADULT MALE SASQUATCH These are located in a hidden vaJ ley between two sheltering cJwracen'st;cs rolls al'i!rages peaks. This pass can be approached from either the north or 4()6<.6 STR 20 the south. with widely differing results. From the north the CON 4D6 14 investigators approach the dens from high ground and get a SIZ 4()6<.6 20 glimpse or two of it before actually entering the valley prop­ !NT 206+3 10 er. From a vantage point. the investigators may Hide and POW 3D6 10-11 observe events below. Hearing any dialogue al this distance DEX 3D6 10-11 requires a Listen roll. From the south, unless the group uni­ Move: 8 HPI1 formly succeeds in at least one of a Lislen, Hide, or Sneak Av. Damage Bonus: +106 roll, they will turn the last bend to find themselves exposed Weapons: RS165'*', damage 103+db to the view of everyone in the dens. At least the first three Grapple 75%, damage special members of the pany are suddenly exposed to view and need Stone Axe· 70'1>. damage 1D8+2't<1b Luck rolls to scamper back out of sight before being noticed. Thrown Axe 50%. damage 108+103 They are only about 25 yards away from the central pan of ~e stone au can IN throw" 15 yards. the cave village but an investigator making a Hide roll will Annor: 3-poinl of lhick hide and hair. be able to peek around and observe events. SpdJs: Some know CalVDismiss Idlaqua. If the investigators approach during daylight hours, most Skills: Climb 80%, English 25%, Hide 55%, Jump 55,*" of the band are out foraging. TIle only ones in camp are two Listen 65%, Sasquatch 50%, Sneak 55%. Spot Hidden older females. a half dozen youngsters, and the kidnaped Bill 55,*" Throw 50'1>, Track 60%. Paragent. doing the most ridiculous imitation of a chimpanzee Sanity Loss: Seeing a sasquatch costs 01108 SAN. Since the investigators have ever seen. Hopping about. occasionally the sasquatch arc natura1 beings.. later loss may be lessened, scratching his ribs. Bill plays and wrestles with the young as the Keeper deems appropriate. This should be done when while the two older females sit nearby watching. One of the the investigators see them as ID()I'e than just horrible beasts. youngsters, a half-grown maJe, is missing a fOO(. Witnessing the mass of sasquatch costs the investigators 01108 Sanity The Curse or TSathoggua - 43 44 - The Cpmpact Trail or Tsathoggua points. Although frightening in appearance, the sasquatch are comer. a crude, wooden crib, complete with rockers. The sec­ considered to be more natural beings and SAN losses are ond Spot Hidden tums up a small cache of toys: crudely reduced as the invcstigalOrs gain more experience with the carved animals. ooe mounted on nearly round wheels. beasts. Seeing a sasqualch father at gentle play with his chil­ The cave on the right also cootains two items of interest. dren would certainly not be as frightening as meeting him in One is a crude bow complete with a half-dozen arrows. The a snowy forest at night.. The keeper needs to make judgments execution is not good but shows promise. The second item is as the advenrure progresses. but as long as the sasquatch are even more surprising. Tucked under the edge of one of the believed to be some kiod of horrible monsters, the SAN loss nests is a rolled piece of paper and a quill. Written on the top will relTlllin at 011 08. This ends when the investigators reach of the paper, in ink, is a shan quotation from the Elrdo .....n an understanding of the situation that confronts them. Shards. On the bottom wrinen in red berry juice is the same If attacked, this group offers no resistance. fleeing at the quotation, in a much cruder, child-like hand. first sign of humans or at the sound of the first gunshot. They The smaller cave located twenty feet above takes a Climb will run out of whatever pass is open and then circle around roll to reach. The cave forks about ten feet in. The short fork to locate the tribe's hunters. Bill will flee with the rest. on the right opens into a small chamber obviously tenanted Twenty minutes later. the whole tribe will rerum. by Bhule, and the left fork leads back into darkness. Exterior If the investigators approach at night. they will come light reaches Shule's chamber for most of the day. giving it upon nearly the entire tribe, consisting of eight large males. at least minimal illumination. three smaller males. and eleven mature females of varying ages, plus those present during the day. Witnessing this BRULE'S CAVERN group going about their almost human-like activities will Bhule's cave is much smaller than the caves below and lakes cost 011 D6 Sanity points. only ten minutes of inteosive search to tum up everything of If this scene is observed for a short time and a Linguistics value. Besides the remnants of the camping supplies brought roll made. the investigators realize that the beasts occasion­ by Bhule (among these a compass. sleeping bag, preserved ally speak to each other in rudimentary English. Three of the foods, etc.), there is a small collection of books, an odd thing males sit. carefully chipping pieces of flint to be used in the to bring on a camping trip. These include The Decline and manufacture of the stone axes that they carry. Fall of the Roman Empire by Gibbons, Frazer's The Golden Three caves open on the western side of the small valley: Bough. Celestial Objects for the Common Telescope by the two large openings near the floor of the pass. and another, Reverend T. W. Webb. The Book of Ihe Dead translated by smaller cave about twenty feet above these. After ten minutes E. A. Wallis Budge, Hayle s Rules of Games, Roberts Rilles a figure will emerge from the smaller, high cave and stand for of Order, a small collection of medical books and herbal a moment on the ledge before descending to the valley floor. medicines. a book on primitive metallurgy. a world atlas, a Investigators missing their SAN roll lose I D6 points at the copy of the Eltdo .....n Shards, a collection of Shakespeare, a sight of Terrence Bhule standing barefoot and naked to the book of Greek and Roman myths. and a copy of the diary waist. anus folded across a chest matted with coarse. orange found at the Greenland seminary school. Among these books hair and the tanned scalp of the Tibetan yeti upon his head. is Bhule's notebook (Tsathoggua Papers #17). After gazing serenely down upon the tribe, Bhule carefully In Bhule's atlas, the map of British Columbia has an area climbs down the rocky face to the valley floor, to assemble circled in red pencil. This spot is about 150 miles north of the sasquatch for a short meeting. He addresses the group the present location and (though the investigators won't real­ with grunts and gestures, occasionally interspersed with a ize it) is the area eannarked by Bhule as the future home of word or two of English. A few of the sasquatch listen atten­ the sasquatch. tively. In less than five mioutes the meeting ends and. gath­ ering their crude weapons. the sasquatch move out the south CRYPT OF THE ANCIENT PRIEST end of the valley on a foraging trip that will last for three If the investigators follow the daric cavern back into the side of hours unless events bring them back sooner. the mountain, they will discover. after traveling fifty yards. a If the investigators are hiding in this end of the pass, they narrow opening thai must be squeezed through. The opeoing may attempt to flee, but the sasquatch spo! their tracks and is SIZ 13. Someone of SIZ 14 or 15 may attempt to squeeze follow. beginning "The Pursuit." The party could attempt to through but becomes stuck if he fails a OEXx5% roll, remain­ parley with Bhule. If the pany is at the north end of the pass, ing wedged helplessly and completely blocking the opening. they can wait quietly until the band has gone. leaving behind The investigator is trapped with a resistance STR of 20. If his only the few members of the tribe present in the day. friends are unable to free him, he has to wait for the inevitable If the investigators explore the cave dens of the sasquatch. return of the sasquatch. Yanking the investigator free gives they can find that the two larger caves, near the floor of the I D4 points of damage from bruises and abrasions. An investi­ valley, are communal living quaners. 1bere is quite an accu­ gator who successfully negotiates this tight squeeze does not mulation of rocks and branches with large comfortable ;'nests" have 10 1'011 to pass through the opening again. placed in comers of the caves. Each cave and the items con­ If the investigators make it past the narrow spot, they will tained can be thoroughly examined in twenty minutes time or find that the cave eXlends only another 25 feet before ending quickly perused in five with two separate Spot Hidden rolls. In in a small chamber. Ten feet away, propped up against the the cave on the left the investigators may discover, in a dark back wall of the chamber. is the dried, parchment-like body Th~ Cune or Tsathoggua - 4S

The first part of the journal was clearly wrilten '" tk ~ "..... J .kit """- Au f-< tinu. '" shortly after Bhule's trip to Greenland. It tim<. In tk ~ "'l' """ ~ """ J .!a... appears that the rest of the journal was written """" '" kwj1<.~. tk.. yuu .!a... &w. ""'­ moot ~ '""'" tk _ """" ~ tI.d; p.a.d '" .10M ~ """ -. """ ....!.:&. at f...t f!a4 tk "4- ~ ... tk.. """'" '" tk t& ~ .anwJ ~ it cam<. '" """""" ~ ~ oj Mu,. tk ~-...... cam<. '" t& pIaa..,... fdint oj..d4P. tk.loM oj ... ~ ~~­ k.int d.Wu. f-< tki6 ~ J ...... ;u. md­ tiD<. oj ""'" "'" ""'4> WlA<. U'it4 tk ~ i!d4. '" t& ""'" """ tk ~-..... cIain< J an. tk ~ ...... '" &iti.I..~. ~ """ J =ip«.nI. oj ...... J .-Id ...t lik '" tI.id t& .!a... d.ci&.d '" owl. out ..,. ot.Iu pu>p/<. """ P"'­ ""I"f. &ut J b.ou.< tI.d; J """ "'l' pu>p/<. ~ Mpo. "'" .kit cA-. '" t.,.. uMtI. tk-n. J p. ~. J . J ...!at J mud '" """"" tk ~ M.. &w. 6woiuJ ~ a caw. oj """'" """'""" oj "'l' pu>p/<.. 46 - The Compact Trail of Thathoggua of a small sasquatch dressed in ceremonial garb complete The sasquatch. if alerted to me presence of intruders in wilh feathered headdress. Seeing this mummy cOStS 011 D6 their valley, return quickly. emering the va lley from both Sanity points. The body is flanked by two stone tablets directions in an effort to trap the investi gators. They are very carved with the hieroglyphics of the voormis. A pon.ion of quiet. If the party has posted guards, they need a successful the wall of the chamber has some additional writings on it. Listen or Spot Hidden roll to avoid being sudde nl y grappled The body is one of the renegade. from behind by a sasquatch. prehuman priests of Ithaqua and the one who led the final remnants of TIlE PURSUIT his people to this location in North If the investigators are discovered by the sasquatch they are America. When he died. he was immediately pursued. The sasquatch stay out of sight or enshrined in this cavern along with range of the group most of the time, traveling along the the tablets that carried the history of pany's flank and harrying them. The fli ght to Dogfork takes the sasquatch migration. The death ten hours. Roll I D6 each hour: of this last priest trained in the riles 1-2. Rock attack. A small group of 1-4 sasquatch have man· of Ithaqua. combined with the fact aged to get within 50 feet of the group without being seen. that the evolving sasquatch became Each throws a rock. capable of doing 203 damage with an too large to visit the shrine, con- THE VOORM tS MUMMY accuracy of 25%. Investigators not actually hit by a rock tributed to the loss of their cultural heritage. Bhule redis­ have a chance to fire one shot before the sasquatch melt back covered this cave and its secrets. into the snow. Both the tabletS and the writings on the walls are in a ver­ 3. The investigators spot a sasquatch exposed to fire. If guns sion of me language first found on the wall in Greenland. If the are at the ready, investigators can fire nOIl11a1ly for one tablelS are taken and later deciphered. they are found to con­ round. Weapons not at the ready get only one shot. The tain the history of the great migration away from Greenland investigators can teU if they hit the sasquatch. but are unlike­ (See TsmhoggJlo Papers #/8). If me writings on the wall are ly to know if it has been killed or not. deciphered. they are found to ioclude a prayer to Ithaqua and a version of the CalVDismiss Ithaqua spell. This can be 4. Full-scale assault. The emboldened sasquatch (sans learned in a half hour's time wim a roll of INTx2% or less. Bhule) charge. Gunfire, even over their heads. causes them to retreat. If unwounded, they will Tsathogaua Papers /1 18 press their charge harder the next lime. 5. Bhule appears at a distance (two hundred yards) and demands that the investigators surrender. He promises them safety and good treatment. If an .11E T['~ '0 My cpd. THis Is wh.u I WRITE: answering investigator can make a suc­ lONG i'CfJ. "" prop/£ dRiVE' I,.,., ,1<£ .. """,lANd .. "" NORJIi. cessful Persuade roll while asking for a CA.'. H£RE INITH lklR MASTER AdukI,\.A ","Ki WERE Told rh4, My meeting, Bhule will agree (see 6 sHcxJd lotlow Iris cold 1,\.N:k 'iOIJ11-t A.~ r~l I-E 'MJl.kj, ~ f\.IiN. below). lollO\\r rJ..tcVl 1,\.11H HIS 'WINds. HiS peoplE. c:Md THIs ANd lky ME 6. This evenl only occurs once. If it ~It:RE . Srlll MY hEART QlJESTklNs: w\iy bRNi us HERE INHeRE rluE Is fail s or if the investigators refuse to NOr~'1f~1 \\~ does OUR (".od's vt:R'Y IxING· i-4s GREAt cold. f.un meet. future roUs of 6 are treated as "no result." Bhule appears at a distance and ~-.d loll kIs PEoplE? TIiEsE "" ,'" 00CSl1ONs IhIr MY I

APPENDIX

An overview of Hyperborean creatures, and slafistics for Hyperboreans and the voormis.

The Hyperborran A.,e "'as a dIM of Ift'at magic und horrific Cft'U­ tUft's. The gft'atest propIt'J of'he 'Ime "'"f'ft' tlit' Hypt'rboft'QIIS and the voonnis, descriwd heft'. Many othu cft'atlirts would ~ appro­ Hyperboreans prWte to use, if a kUper wuhes to apalld his TslllhoggliO cam· paign. Cenain gods /il"f'd bt'ltN, Mount 'horm;thadrr,h in ancient HyPt'rbarra. amoog tMIIl Tsa'ho"Ull. Alloch·NaeM, and A.Moth. "The mon was 0 slnmger: possibly 0 tra\"f'lIi1tg merrhontfrom out­ The serpt'nt pt'ople iiVt'd 11tt'", as well. despite tltt' fact thot their land ff!altfU, th~ usurer thoughl---

mall and slender. Hyperboreans are seldom more than five feet lall. Their hair is light blond to white and their eyes are Voormis Sgray or straw-colored. They !lave 1aJEe:. straight DOSes and earlobes longer than those of most humans. The Hyperboreans were a great race that built a fabulous cul­ ture that rose and fell befOfe the dawn of recorded hiStory. Masler "Thry stood only haJf-e~t, and their shoggy heads wert' aboul his of magic. science. and art. the heritage of these people was passed thighs and hips, snarlitzg and sllOpping lae dogs: and thry cla""ed down 10 the lands of Mu and Atlantis and eventually found its way him "';,h hool-shapt'd nails. H to ancient Egypt. The Book of Eibo" was written by a great wizard -Clark Ashton Smith. ''The: Seven GellliCS" who liyoj in Mhu Thulan in Hyperborea. he VOOnnl5 arc a race of primitive dog-like humanoids that The great Hyperborean civilization fell 10 ruin when dwell m deep. dart caverns. Normall y ooctumal, these crea­ Hypetborea was engulfed by the freezing ice age and their fabulous Ttures are savage, cunning hunters who fim:ely defend their cities were destroyed or buried undemealh the enroaching glaciers. mates and offspring. 1besc brutes know no fear and the females are Today, the Hyperboreans are an all bUi elltincl race. There may be even more savage than the males. The voonnis worship the Great only very tiny groups of Hyperborean! left, hidden in the cold, Old One Tsathoggua. glacial areas of the world. 1bose surviving descendants of this Although the voonnis are mostly extinct today a few Isolated once-great civilization liye today as primitives. utilizing stone tribes may still ellist in the nonhem hemisphere. 1bese creatures weapons and 1001$. are the ancestors of the sasquatch and the yeti . Statistics are those of normal humans, eJl:cept for Sl2 and INT.

VOORMIS. 511 .... Human06d5 IIYPERBORF..ANS, BuUd", of. Once-grut Clvillzatiotl characteristics choracteristics roIu a~'t'rages rolu averages STR 206+8 15 STR 306 10-11 CON 306 10-11 CON 306 10-11 SIZ 206+3 10 SIZ 21>4<4 • INT 104->6 8-. INT 206+8 15 POW 306 10-11 POW 306 10- 11 DEX 306 10-11 DEX 306 I().II Move 8 HPIO-II APP 306 10-11 Av. Damage: 800m: +104 Moveg HP 10 Weapons: Claw 30%. damage 10000b Av. Damage Bonus: None Bite JOIl,. damage I D4 Weapons: Stone Knife 2S1lI, damage I D4+db Annor: None Spear 25%. damage IOg+db Spells: if a VoonnIS' INTJ 1 or less is rolled on 10100 it k.nows Armor: None 103 speUs. Contact Tsathoggua and Contact Formless Spawn of Spells: Hyperborean wizards or their shaman descendants k.now Tsalhoggua are common. I 0 10 spells. Sanity Loss: 0I1D6 Sanity PoinlS 10.see a voormis. Sanity Loss: There is DO Sanity los! for seeing a Hyperborean . •