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I returned from running 3 sessions of The Burning Stars and two of Final Flight at Total Confusion this past weekend!  I was a good time!  The con was well attended.  I had some good players.  The crew from Saturday night was particularly outstanding and had some very challenging and tough character interpretations.

The lighting worked out very well and this particular room is one of the best that I run in as far as lighting setup goes.  I was able to mount a fair number of units over the table.  It looked good.

I had some particularly good players.  Saturday night several of the players took particularly tough interpretations of their characters and were quite a challenge as well as engaging in excellent repartee.

It was a good time and folks seemed happy with the con!

I am looking forward to next year!

Tags: Cthulhu Total Confusion Convention Theatrical Horror

Hi Folks,

Here is a shameless plug for my theatrical style RPG games that I will be running at Total Confusion.

The Burning Stars (A Chaosium Scenario by David Conyers Presented by Andre Kruppa)

Role Playing                             Call of Cthulhu (Chaosium)                   4 – 6 Players

For Mature Players             No Rules Knowledge Required – Skilled Role-Playing a Must

Thursday 7pm – 2am and repeated Friday 7pm – 2am and repeated again Saturday 7pm – 2am

 

This scenario places heavy emphasis on role-playing, but does not require prior experience with Call of Cthulhu.  This is a theatrical style tabletop game, using lights and sound, intended for mature players only.  The game will run late, as sessions are expected to go 6.5 - 7 hours.  (Please no players from prior conventions and no players familiar with the scenario.)  Awaking in a US Military Hospital in Haiti on October 30, 1930, suffering from prolonged blackouts and amnesia, plagued by a dreadful fear, and still searching for Jack Sterling is just the beginning of the horror.  The air is heavy and warm, the beds cloaked in mosquito nets, and the staff is bustling to and fro in the hall.  Jack Sterling is still whereabouts unknown.  The last week is a blank.  It is a must to find Jack and pierce the veil of fear, pain, and loathing.  There are many questions: What happened?  Where is Jack?  When can we get out of this hospital?

 

 

Final Flight (A Pagan Publishing Scenario by John H. Crowe III Presented by Andre Kruppa)

Role Playing                             Call of Cthulhu (Chaosium)                   4 – 6 Players

For Mature Players             No Rules Knowledge Required – Skilled Role-Playing a Must

Friday 1pm – 6pm and repeated Saturday 1pm – 6pm

 

This scenario places heavy emphasis on role-playing, but does not require prior experience with Call of Cthulhu.  This is a theatrical style tabletop game, using lights and sound, intended for mature players only.  The game will run late, as sessions average 5.25 hours.  (Please no players from prior conventions and no players familiar with the scenario.)  Pan Caribbean airlines flight 101 is making a night flight from Curacao to Bogota.  The passengers are traveling for a variety of reasons, a number are bound for a Mesoamerican Studies conference sponsored by Universidad Nacional de Colombia.  1938 is an exciting year to be alive and be able to take a flight aboard an airliner.  The DC-2 is one of the most modern of aircraft and reassurance can be found in her gleaming lines.  The passengers are able to enjoy the comforts offered by a professional crew and a simple but well equipped mini-galley.  Coffee, food, and a chance to sleep while on the go are all quietly appealing.  A routine flight over the jungle...thirty seconds of terror…a prelude to horror.

Tags: Total Confusion Cthulhu RPG Horror Theatrical

I just returned last night from Carnage (a VT gaming convention).  It was an excellent time as always.  I had some really outstanding role-players in all of my sessions!

 

I ran 4 sessions of Call of Cthulhu and a WWII naval game.   The scenarios were David Conyers scenario The Burning Stars (three sessions), the John Crowe III scenario Final Flight, and a Victory at Sea game.  It was a good con for me as I not only had great sessions, but I also met and hung out with a bunch of great folks.  The hotel is already booked up for next year!  (There are others near by.)

 

If you have not been to Carnage I highly recommend it for both the excellent variety of games and the camaraderie.

Tags: Carnage 12 Convention Call Of Cthulhu RPG Horror

Hi Folks,

Here is my shameless plug for games that I am running at Carnage 12 this year.  All RPG events are tabletop games with full theatrical style presentations.

I hope to see many of you there!

Andre Kruppa - Carnage 12 (2009) Game Descriptions

Role Playing:

The Burning Stars (A Chaosium Scenario by David Conyers Presented by Andre Kruppa)
Call of Cthulhu (Chaosium)  For Mature Players  GM: Andre Kruppa
Author: David Conyers  4 – 6 Players    
No Rules Knowledge Required – Skilled Role-Playing a Must
Friday 7pm-11pm and again Saturday 7pm-11pm (2 Separate sessions)

This scenario places heavy emphasis on role-playing, but does not require prior experience with Call of Cthulhu.  This is a theatrical style tabletop game, using lights and sound, intended for mature players only.  The game will run late, as sessions are expected to go 6.5 - 7 hours.  (Please no players from prior conventions and no players familiar with the scenario.)

Awaking in a US Military Hospital in Haiti on October 30, 1930, suffering from prolonged blackouts and amnesia, plagued by a dreadful fear, and still searching for Jack Sterling is just the beginning of the horror.  The air is heavy and warm, the beds cloaked in mosquito nets, and the staff is bustling to and fro in the hall.  Jack Sterling is still whereabouts unknown.  The last week is a blank.  It is a must to find Jack and pierce the veil of fear, pain, and loathing.  There are many questions: What happened?  Where is Jack?  When can we get out of this hospital?

Final Flight (A Pagan Publishing Scenario by John Crowe III Presented by Andre Kruppa)
Call of Cthulhu (Chaosium)  For Mature Players  GM: Andre Kruppa
Author: John H. Crowe III  4 – 6 Players    
No Rules Knowledge Required – Skilled Role-Playing a Must
Friday 1pm-5pm

This scenario places heavy emphasis on role-playing, but does not require prior experience with Call of Cthulhu.  This is a theatrical style tabletop game, using lights and sound, intended for mature players only.  The game will run late, as are expected to go 4.5 - 5.25 hours.  (Please no players from prior conventions and no players familiar with the scenario.)

Pan Caribbean airlines flight 101 is making a night flight from Curacao to Bogota.  The passengers are traveling for a variety of reasons, a number are bound for a Mesoamerican Studies conference sponsored by Universidad Nacional de Colombia.  1938 is an exciting year to be alive and be able to take a flight aboard an airliner.  The DC-2 is one of the most modern of aircraft and reassurance can be found in her gleaming lines.  The passengers are able to enjoy the comforts offered by a professional crew and a simple but well equipped mini-galley.  Coffee, food, and a chance to sleep while on the go are all quietly appealing.  A routine flight over the jungle...thirty seconds of terror…a prelude to horror.

Historical Gaming - Centuries of Conflict:

Bombardment of Guadalcanal
Historical: 1/1800 Scale WWII Naval Miniatures
Victory at Sea  2 – 6 Players  GM: Andre Kruppa
No Rules Knowledge Required – Basic Naval Knowledge Helpful
Saturday 1pm – 5pm
Table Size: 5’x8’

In November of 1942 the Japanese assembled a large ground force, distributed aboard 11 transports, with the intention of relieving their beleaguered forces on Guadalcanal.  A group, centered about two Kongo class battlecruisers, was formed to provide escort and bombard US positions.  American intelligence picked up on the enemy intentions and prepared to intercept the Japanese task force.  Poor visibility, due to unfavorable weather, created problems for both sides and their forces were out of position.  At the time the Japanese task force arrived at the slot the United States heavy forces had not yet arrived.  The US was forced to intercept with what forces were available.  The engagement was one of the most chaotic and brutal night battles of the Pacific war.  Now the outcome is in your hands.

Tags: Carnage Cthulhu RPG Horror Theatrical WWII Naval

I just received the final results of the Zombie Shoot for Rise of the Dead – Part 2: The Raid from Pixie Studios (http://www.Pixie-Studios.com).  Alison did a great job!  (She does mostly school pictures and portraits for those of you who have a need.)  I am still getting the final text in order.  Once I have that it will be time to get Adobe InDesign and pump out a book.  This is the second in a series of post apocalyptic zombie related convention scenarios being produced as a Monograph for Chaosium.  It should look good!

A number of projects are in the works!  As usual I am running several projects in parallel.  I am doing some of the model customization work on my 1/64 scale WWI aircraft models for Aerodrome.  I will be presenting this as a tournament game at the historical miniatures convention Huzzah!, which will be taking place in the spring here in Maine from April 30 – May 2.  The first historical miniatures con in Maine for a while.

I am also pulling together the elements of for the presentation of The Burning Stars, a David Conyers scenario published by Chaosium.  I will be running this at Carnage, Total Confusion, and probably OGC next year.  Currently I am on the lookout for music and doing a little bit of background reading.  The game takes place in Haiti in 1930 and so I am reading up on Voodoo again.  I have really liked his past work!  (Please DO NOT read it, if you plan to play it.)

I am also intending to put out a PDF via RPGBomb for a non-mythos one session system-less scenario.  I will probably resurrect an old scenario called The Things in the Woods, but I have not yet decided for sure.  It should be a cool opportunity.  There are some play aid advantages to PDF distribution because the GM can print on a variety of papers to produce some good handouts and play aids.

In the long run, I would like to produce a book regarding the presentation if games in a theatrical style.  This would be a guide to practical methods of assembling the elements, preparing and/or selecting scenarios, and the creation of mood and atmosphere with an eye toward several levels of production.  It will also involve the methods to prep for short and long format (campaign) games.  I will eventually solicit some opinions regarding this, but it is likely to be at least a year away.

I guess that is it.  I am heading out into the Maine woods for 10 days starting tomorrow afternoon!  Peace and quite, no phones, computers, or folks placing undue demands upon my attention!

Good Gaming!

- Andre

Tags: RPG Cthulhu Zombies Miniatures Aerial Gaming Books Horror PDF

I just go back from Open Gaming Convention yesterday and ran three sessions of my theatrical style Call of Cthulhu games.  One last session of Rise of the Dead: Part 2 – The Raid and 2 sessions of Pagan Publishing’s Final Flight by John Crowe III.  The sessions were excellent.  I had some really good players and some great role-playing moments.  The last session of the con on Saturday had some especially good scenes with players engaged in some well role-played frenzied discussions of the best course of action.  Some had suffered substantial sanity loss and added to the feeling of hysteria.  Thanks to everyone that played!  It looked like folks had a great time at the con!  I saw a lot of folks, but was pretty much flat out!

Tags: RPG Horror Cthulhu OGC Convention Fun

We just concluded a Zombie Photo Shoot for the purpose of creating illustrations for my developing series of Rise of the Dead monographs for Chaosium.  It went very well!  I had a bunch of good friends who were kind enough to indulge me in playing the roles of zombies and survivors.  Alison of Pixie Studios (http://www.Pixie-Studios.com) did the photography.  She did a great job handling the models and got a variety of excellent shots.  (She does a variety of portrait and special photography as well as school photos.)  It was a blast!  I think folks had a good time.  We had about a dozen zombies with three survivors, one of which was killed early on and dawned an Old Dead zombie costume.  I am pretty excited about this as finding art is my biggest issue!  The pics go into post-production, if you will, and now I need to write some narrative pieces for Rise of the Dead – Part 2: The Raid.  Then I plan to get a copy of Abobe In Design and learn it!

 

I hope in the long run to do 4 –5 convention style one shots to cover a full story arc.  Only after all secrets have been revealed by means of a few years worth of convention games will I then want to put out a campaign sourcebook to support open ended play. 

 

The next project that is slowly gathering momentum is a classic Egyptology based horror scenario.  I am doing the research now.  I think it will involve some very interesting elements and archetypes.

 Good Gaming!

Tags: Zombie Photo Shoot Cthulhu Models Photography Illustation Art

Hi Folks,

Here is my shameless plug for OGC, July 24-26, 2009 in Nashua, NH.  See you there!

Rise of the Dead: Part 2 – The Raid

Call of Cthulhu (Chaosium)             For Mature Players                       GM: Andre Kruppa

Author: Andre Kruppa                       4 – 6 Players                                              

No Rules Knowledge Required – Skilled Role-Playing a Must

Friday 8pm – 12pmThis scenario places heavy emphasis on role-playing, but does not require prior experience with Call of Cthulhu.  This is a theatrical style tabletop game, using lights and sound, intended for mature players only.  Strobe lights may be in use.  The game will run late, as sessions average 5 hours.  (Please no repeat players from prior conventions.)  With the apocalyptic devastation of the Earth by a red comet, the tidal waves and fallout, civilization, as you know it, has collapsed.  To make matters even more horrific the dead have begun to rise and attack the living.  If that was not terrifying enough, it seems that the zombies are being organized into armies by black uniformed cultists. You are part of a handpicked team of volunteers chosen for a special mission to gain vital intelligence.  You are expendable, but your mission is critical to the survival of your family, friends, and loved ones.  There are many questions: Who are they?  What do they want?  Why are the dead rising?  Can we stop them?  Can you help the leaders of your rag-tag group of survivors find any answers? 

Final Flight (A Pagan Publishing Scenario Presented by Andre Kruppa)

Call of Cthulhu (Chaosium)             For Mature Players                       GM: Andre Kruppa

Author: John H. Crowe III                 4 – 6 Players                                              

No Rules Knowledge Required – Skilled Role-Playing a Must

Saturday 2pm-6pm and then again at 8pm-Midnight (2 Separate sessions)This scenario places heavy emphasis on role-playing, but does not require prior experience with Call of Cthulhu.  This is a theatrical style tabletop game, using lights and sound, intended for mature players only.  The game will run late, as sessions average 5.25 hours.  (Please no players from prior conventions and no players familiar with the scenario.)  Pan Caribbean airlines flight 101 is making a night flight from Curacao to Bogota.  The passengers are traveling for a variety of reasons, a number are bound for a Mesoamerican Studies conference sponsored by Universidad Nacional de Colombia.  1938 is an exciting year to be alive and be able to take a flight aboard an airliner.  The DC-2 is one of the most modern of aircraft and reassurance can be found in her gleaming lines.  The passengers are able to enjoy the comforts offered by a professional crew and a simple but well equipped mini-galley.  Coffee, food, and a chance to sleep while on the go are all quietly appealing.  A routine flight over the jungle...thirty seconds of terror…a prelude to horror.

Tags: OGC Con Convention Game Cthulhu Chaosium

Gaming and Christian Mythology - Musings of a Game Master

Many games are deeply routed in Christian Mythology.  For example the origin of Cain in Vampire the Masquerade is based upon the story that he was cursed and cast out into the Land of Nod.  After being cast out he encounters Lilith and so forth.  The entire fundamental basis of this game is Christianity.  Any realistic historically based medieval game must include the church and its accompanying mythology.  Such games as Ars Magica, GURPS (in any historical western setting after about 600 AD), Pendragon, The Savage World of Solomon Kane (perhaps more in the breach), and many others all have a significant christian element.

The symbols of Christian Myth are deeply imbedded and affect a number of facets of game design and the philosophy forms the basis of play.  As a simple example Clerics in AD&D could not bear edged weapons.  Yet Christian myth is mostly an implied element in AD&D and hence the attraction of the fanatic and proselytizing elements of the Christians in the heyday of D&D.  It has many pagan seeming elements.  Another example is the direct good and evil polarity in most games.  Good and evil is often arbitrarily defined by a game mechanic such as Alignment or Humanity Points or Law versus Chaos.  This places an artificial constraint on the game and can produce an unnatural result.  In many cases natural interaction between different faiths, cultures, and philosophies will typically result in a variety of conflicts and pose important moral questions.  These moral quandaries and reflections in the persona of the character are a major source of key tension in storytelling games.

A Game Master can easily utilize the game to demonstrate the consequences of actions within the context of a philosophy.  This takes place regardless of choice.  The mythology of the game and the context supplied by the rules and game mechanics themselves frame play and teach consequences of actions within this framework.  The Game Master can consciously adapt and change the system to suit a certain bent or taste and the consensus of the players will certainly likely be a factor.  Of course the Game Master has a huge impact on this often unspoken area of play.

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