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Enchanted Trinkets Complete--a hardcover book containing over 500 magic items for your D&D games!

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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Messageboard Golem" data-source="post: 2008938" data-attributes="member: 18387">My entire prior Call of Cthulhu experience had been based on rumor.  I knew it was based off of H.P. Lovecraft's stories, was very scary, involved something called a Sanity score, and had one of the highest character death rates of all RPGs.Also I heard that the stories it was based off of were frightfully good.  One spring break trip to the library later, I picked up Call of Cthulhu d20 to see what Monte Cook and John Tynes had done with such excellent subject material.  I was not disappointed.First off, this books looks wonderful.  The cover is rather disturbing star-scattered eyes and fanged mouth looking out of a leather-ish looking background.  Blood-soaked tentacles poke through the background at random intervals.  Mild cheese factor, but still a little freaky.  The pictures throughout the book are very well done.  Dark, realistic (for when they need to be, like when showing investigators), or bizarre (as when showing Mythos creatures) and very well done.  Also, instead of straight columns of text, the pages are split diagonally.  It's a bit hard to get used to, but I think it adds to the "wrongness" of CofC.Also, quotes from H.P. Lovecraft's stories are used at the beginning of each chapter, and at appropriate intervals.  They really help highlight certain points.The one nice thing about CofC is that it is a stand-alone book.  You do not need the Player's Handbook, Dungeon Master's Guide or any other d20 books to play Call of Cthulhu.  For instance the Introduction walks you through what a role-playing game is, as well as what CofC is based on.  Most chapters have a complete definition of how the d20 mechanics work (ability scores, skills, feats, combat, etc.)This book is divided into 12 chapters, Character Creation, Skills, Feats, Sanity, Combat, Equipment, Magic, Creatures, The Cthulhu Mythos, The Gamemaster, Stories, and Settings.  Also included are two short adventures and a large appendix.  Chapter 1: Character Creation  The Character Creation does a Cthulhu style recap of the PHB stat scores and rolling methods, comparing various scores to things more likely to be included in CofC.  Instead of comparing a high Strength score to something a Great Red Wyrm might have, they compare it to a Shoggoth.  ;-)Instead of character classes, characters can pick either a Defense or Offense Option.  (Better saves for a lower BAB, or a higher BAB and worse saves).  Characters also pick a character template, including 9 core skills, plus three more of their choice.  Examples are Antiqurian, Criminal, Detective, Doctor, Priest, or Soldier.  New templates can be added by choosing a new combination of skills.A varient Defense bonus (apparently this is similar to Star Wars' mechanics) is also provided to allow the DM the option of making the investigators a little harder to kill.Chapter 2:  Skills:  Many skills provided here are no stranger to those familiar with the PHB.  New ones include Computer Use, Cthulhu Mythos (only gained my experience with Mythos-related things), Demolitions, Drive, Operate Heavy Machinery, Pilot, Psychic Focus, Psychoanalysis (used to regain Sanity), Repair, Research, and Sleight of Hand.  Psychic Focus is used for Psychic feats described in the next chapter.  Nice presentation all around.Chapter 3:  Feats:Several feats are those you'll recognize from the PHB, with several adapted for modern use (Drive-by Attack rather than Ride By Attack, as well as the Point Blank Shot feat chain).  Lots of half and half feats (like Alertness), and Skill Emphasis (+3 to one skill).  Finally, the fun stuff, Psychic feats.  All Psychic feats can only be taken if you have taken the Sensitive feat.  Several classic psychic abilities are presented such as;  Psychometry, Psychokenesis, Dowsing, Remote Viewing, Second Sight, Mind Reading, the works!  Most abilities cost you Sanity points as well, so you've been warned.Chapter 4:  Sanity:Ahhhh... Sanity.  The Sanity rules, according to those in the know, were lifted basically intact from the original CofC.  You have so much Sanity, depending on your Wisdom score (5 times Wis).  Encountering a Mythos monster, reading a forbidden tome, or just seeing something really freaky can cause you to lose Sanity.  If you lose a certain percentage, you go temporarily insane.  Lose enough and you're a babbling idiot for life.  ;-)This chapter is jam packed with ways to be insane.  Everything from just fainting to becoming schizophrenic.  Details are given on a myriad of mental disorders (including a nice table of various phobias).  It also shows you how to recover from your insanity (counseling, shock treatment, psychiatric medications..).Chapter 5:  Combat:  This is basically a rehash of what you've seen in the PHB.  All the combat modifiers, tables, and weather conditions.  Though it was said in some point in this book that if you've gotten to the point in the game where your characters are shooting guns and fighting... you're out of luck anyway.  ;-)  All is well presented.Chapter 6:  Equipment:  This chapter opens with a bang, and by that I mean firearms.  This is the most comprehensive d20 firearms rules to date.  There's a generic table for those who just want a gun, then a much more detailed section for those who want specific weapons dealt with.  Next is the various things you can buy, clothes, communications gear, lodging, etc.  Prices are given for both the 1920s and the 2000s (where applicable), which is nice.Chapter 7:  Magic:Magic in Call of Cthluhu  is scary.  The tomes you learn magic from require you to take Sanity damage from them just from reading them.  If you fail to understand them at the end of your studying period, weird things can happen.  A thoughtful table is provided, ranging from realizing the book is made of human skin to seeing the book move on its own.  Any or all can provide more Sanity loss.  <img src="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/joypixels/assets/8.0/png/unicode/64/1f642.png" class="smilie smilie--emoji" loading="lazy" width="64" height="64" alt=":-)" title="Smile    :-)"  data-smilie="1"data-shortname=":-)" />The spells themselves don't require you to be of a certain level to cast them, but all spells cost temporary or permanent ability damage and/or Sanity loss.  You may cast them as many times in a day as you care to take the damage.  But nearly all the spells are a bit scary.  Even defensive ones like cloak of fire cause you some (lesser) damage as well as causing pain to those who attack you.This chapter also included artifacts like the Mi-Go Brain Cylinder and Plutonian Drug Pellets.  They aren't nearly as mentally corrosive to study as studying tomes or casting spells, but all the same you might attract some unwanted attention by using them...Chapter 8:  Creatures:  Creatures in Call of Cthulhu are particularly scary.  There are Sanity checks just for viewing them, and most are quite capable of taking out a band of investigators with a single claw, gulp, or yawn.  Basically, if you've gotten to the point that you're fighting them, it's too late.   Also there are several interesting templates (Chosen of Hastur, Loup-Garou, Mummy, etc) all with examples that include character backgrounds.  Very useful for instant NPCs.Chapter 9:  Cthulhu Mythos:This is Lovecraft's vision in a nutshell.  The fate of humanity, the existence of the Great Old Ones, space and time, the works.  For those that haven't read Lovecraft's books yet, this is a nice jump-off point to get you in the Cthulhu mood.This also gives you advice on creating  your own gods and monsters, secrets, magic, sinister clues, strange places, everything.Chapter 9:  The Gamemaster:This gives you both general gamemaster advice, as well as advice on creating and sustaining the terror of a Call of Cthulhu game.  This is pretty good stuff, with a lot of options presented.  Chapter 10:  Storytelling:Everything from linear/non-linear adventures, how to keep credibility in the game, motivation, campaign elements, NPCs, and general game-running.  For first-time DMs, this is a must.  For first time CofC DMs, this is also a must.  Several elements have to be taken into consideration when running a CofC campaign that simply don't crop up in a D&D campaign.Chapter 11:  Settings:Ok, now here's some very useful stuff.  Tips for running the game at home and abroad, at the current time or the past are all given.  Next is a quick run down on every decade from the 1890s to the 2000s, highlighting major events that could be evidence of cult activity.  A subgenres section is next, giving suggestions on running your game in different modes (in Lovecraft country, as private troubleshooters, as cops or government agents, and a few others).  This allows you to approach your game from several different angles.After that is a long list of possible plot hooks, one from each decade and subgenre.  Several of them are inspired by Lovecraft's stories, others by other books, movies, or TV shows.  All the inspirational subject matter is listed, so if you want to read or watch it again, you have a long list of things to choose from.  This section is overflowing with potential campaign ideas.  I wish more books had this kind of stuff!Adventures:There are two adventures, The End of Paradise and Little Slices of Death.  I'll tell you this, the first time I read The End of Paradise I was alone in a darkened room.  Afterwards I was afraid to go to sleep.  Both adventures are quite scary, and make good intros for first time players. Appendix:  Lovecraftian D&D Campaigns:This gives some advice for adding CofC elements into a D&D campaign.  This gives suggested uses for Sanity, along with Sanity loss for various common D&D monsters.Deities and Great Old Ones:For players that just can't resist a challenge (and for those that have always wanted to know if their 20th level character could beat up Cthluhu) the stats for the CofC Gods and Great Old Ones are presented.  To give a hint as to their toughness, Cthulhu himself (CR 34) took on 13 20th level D&D characters before being imprisoned.  They couldn't kill him.  And he's one of the less powerful of the Gods.  Conversion:  This is for those that played the Chaosium version and wanted to convert over.  I've never played it, so I'll take their word on it.Recommended Reading:  For those searching for more inspiration, here is a long list of stories and authors that wrote in the type of genre CofC draws off of.  Sample Characters:  These are the CofC Iconics, for those that really want to jump into the game immediately.  <img src="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/joypixels/assets/8.0/png/unicode/64/1f642.png" class="smilie smilie--emoji" loading="lazy" width="64" height="64" alt=":-)" title="Smile    :-)"  data-smilie="1"data-shortname=":-)" />All in all, this book blew me away.  It got my imagination pumping, my adrenaline pumping, and my heartrate skyrocketing.  If you love to be scared, answer the Call of Cthulhu.</blockquote>

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