Counter Pack 4: Eldritch Horrors & Occult Investigators

[Messageboard Golem]

This collection of counters for use with any supernatural horror roleplaying game features an assortment of walking corpses, giant oozes, hounds from hell, and other frightening oddities to surprise and terrify all players.

Included are new rules and a new setting: the Eldritch Earth!

 

[JoeGKushner]

Fiery Dragon moves past the fantasy genre to provide over 125 counters for “Eldritch Horrors & Occult Investigators”, which for those of you who have no idea of what that means, is code language for “d20 Call of Cthulhu.” This is the half-sized counter sheets, not the full page ones.

The main thing I needed to know, before I looked at the rules, before I admired the art of Claudio Pozas or anything else, was where was Cthulhu. Well, he's in there and he's a big old three by three square sized figure so I'm happy. Don't get me wrong, the metal miniature is big and cool looking but it requires some serious skill not only in painting, but in pinning and I've never been any good at the latter.

In addition to old daddy Cthulhu, we've got cultists of three different types, two of them we've seen in different packs before, but others are new here. Those players who have no painting skills but want character counters have their choice of pulp and modern characters, one of them bearing more than a passing resemblance to H.P. Lovecraft himself. Several of the other monsters look to be taken from the mythos like the Deep Ones, the oily Shaggoths or the good old ancient races while a few are of more general nature and have seen print before like elementals, giant spiders, ghouls, demons and familiars.

After seeing the cards and calming down with the presence of the Great Old One behind me, I looked through the rules, meant for a non-spellcasting d20 Modern game. The section starts off with two general feats, Arcane Breakthrough and Occult Initiate, both of which require the character to be third level and the latter requiring the character be have at least one level of Smart Hero. The former feat gives you a Ritual while the latter makes several skills into class skills:Knowledge Arcana, Spellcraft and Concentration.

The rituals take ability points away from the character but have potent benefits that I might use in a standard d20 game. Imagine a ranger whose drive to slay his chosen enemy pushes him to learn Acrane Hunter where he loses 2 points of Wisdom but gains +1 for every three characters levels to attack, damage, saving throws, Bluff, Listen, Sense Motive, Spot Checks, Caster Level Checks to beat SR. A heavy but worthwhile sacrifice in some cases. Others like Pillar, drain a single point of intelligence but allow the character for one round per day to get a bonus to his Strength score equal to his character level. The rules are potentially unbalancing but add some color to magic in a standardized d20 Modern setting.

The new rules for spellcasting require the character to make a successful spellcraft check (DC 10 + spell level) or higher, depending on whose book the caster is using, and then take a full round (in excess of the spell's normal casting time) and take nonleathal damage equal to the spell's level x3. Higher level spells, those of 7th level and higher, do x4 and do normal damage.

It's a nice little system with some extra bits here and there for learning spells and turning undead, but the bulk of the book is going to be for the cards and the Great Old Ones within them.

One of the only things stopping this from getting a Five is repeated cards from previous sets. Take the Chtulhu card for instance. It's a great illustration of that ancient beast, but what about getting rid of some of the other reprinted cards and having smaller cards for the Star Spawn? I know I'd dig that!

I don't know what anyone else is playing, but next time I play Scarred Lands, I'll have my SL book on one side and my Call of Cthulhu d20 book on the other with lots of shrieking from the players to warm my heart.

 

[Psion]

15' x 15' is a bit small for Cthulhu -- it sounds more like a starspawn to me.

 

[JoeGKushner]

Three up, three down so yup, 15' x 15'. I think they could probably do a whole sheet on the old boy myself and that would make me happy!

 

[billd91]

I noticed this product at Gen Con Indy as I walked by Fiery Dragon's booth. They had posters up of the counter sets and this one caught my eye. But surprisingly enough, it wasn't the squid-headed big counter that I noticed and identified first. It was the gnoph-keh. For some reason, the extra-legged polar bear with a nose horn just caught my eye.

Anyway, as usual, the counters are beautifully illustrated and there's a pretty good mix of counters for Keepers to use when running their CoC games. I'm not concerned with duplication of some counters from previous counter collections because, chances are, they will be picked up by different audiences. I do know several people who play both CoC and D&D, but I also know quite a few who only play one or the other and will likely have little counter crossover.

The squid-headed big counter, I have to think, is really a star-spawn of Cthulhu and not the big guy himself (sorry, JoeGKushner). But it's still WAY cool.

I spent some time with my d20 Call of Cthulhu as well as my 3rd Edition Call of Cthulhu books trying to identify the monsters. I haven't succeeded with all of them... but I've gotten darn close. There are some monsters in the mix who do not appear in the d20 version of the game. I may have to borrow a copy of the 5th edition and see if monsters added since 3rd edition are also in there and can account for the chits I can't identify.

The cast of investigators, judging from attire, spans the primary timeframe of Call of Cthulhu games: Victorian era, 1920s-30s, and modern.

It's a very nice collection overall and will be quite useful next time I run CoC. I may have to start getting my counters laminated or something, though. The cardstock isn't bad, but it does wear faster than plastic counters or miniatures and these are too sweet to abuse.

 

[Shayd3000]

PRODUCT REVIEW
Eldritch Horrors & Occult Investigators Counter Pack 4
Claudio Pozas
Fiery Dragon
ISBN 1-894693-10-8
For any RPG (includes D20 Modern rules variant).

Reviewers Bias: I am not employed by the publisher of the reviewed product, nor do I have any financial affiliation with any game publishing company.

PURPOSE: This review assumes the reader is already familiar with the product and is trying to make a "buy or not buy" decision. I direct you to the publisher's web site for specific product details and hype. This review will not provide the reader with many product details. Please see the publisher's catalog, or the many other very good reviews available for that information. My intended audience is the reader who is looking for a quick evaluation of a product based on specific, explained criteria. Review criteria are listed at the end of the article.


THE REVIEW:
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PRODUCT SYNOPSIS: This is a book of over 125 counters for use in any Horror or Occult roleplaying game. The counters range from traditional horrors such as werewolves and vampires to the less common ancient gods, minotaurs, medusa and unspeakable horrors. Counters are also provided for investigator types such as archeologists and librarians. The packet also includes simple "Eldritch Earth" rules for use with D20 Modern.
WOW FACTOR(1): I was expecting color counters and that's just what I got. I wasn't overly impressed, but I didn't regret my buying decision. I will certainly be able to use this product.
MATERIALS(0): The counters are not diecut or perforated, and while they are printed on cardstock, the cardstock is flexible and its thinness can be a little inconvenient to move around on a grid in the heat of battle.
EDITING/FLAWS(2): The art is well done, with no discernable mistakes or flaws in the copy I purchased. The rules are well edited with no glaring editorial omissions.
ORIGINALITY/INNOVATION(1): These counters are definitely usable with any game system, although they are sized for the D20 grid size mechanics I do not consider this a problem.
EVALUATION(1): I liked the large variety of monsters that were found in this set. I did feel that the monsters found in the fantasy set could have been left out, but I don't expect that everyone that buys this set has the fantasy set. I don't think that can be said of the modern counters though, as many of those were duplicated from the Modern Counters set also from Fiery Dragon. I would have preferred to see more new "investigator" style counters instead of the reprints from the Modern set. I would have liked to see an additional sheet of characters provided, since most horror settings encompass gaslight, Victorian, and modern era while the counters could barely begin to cover the possibilities in a single sheet of 40 counters. In Fiery Dragon's defense, cultists were included on the monster sheets, so on my character sheet, I do get 40 characters, and these drawing, as all of the other ones, are very well done, and will make a classy addition to my gaming tables. Another issue I have is the inclusion of a rules set with my counters. The Eldritch Earth rules are well done, and may be useful for some, but quite honestly, I was buying counters and would have liked to see the rules pages dropped to include more of that. I buy rulebooks when I want rules. Overall, I would call this set a nice starter pack, but not enough of a good thing!
TOTAL RATING: My total rating is a 5 out of 10. I think this product is worth owning, but some missed opportunities make it average instead of exceptional.

REVIEW CRITERIA:
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HOW I REVIEW: My reviews are very simple. I evaluate a product against a list of criteria and award from 0 - 2 points based on how the product fits the criteria. The five criteria I use are:

WOW FACTOR: On a scale of 0-2, if after reading the product I say WOW, I give it 2 points. If I wished I hadn't spent my money on it, I give it 0 points. Everything else gets one point. This is purely my opinion and first gut reaction.

MATERIALS: diecut/perforated=+1, thick non-flexible stock=+1 Counters should be thick so they're easy to handle, and inflexible so they're not accidentally bent. Precutting makes it easier for the GM when he needs to reach for a monster on the spur of the moment.

EDITING/FLAWS: This is an evaluation of editing and layout. If the product is filled with mistakes that should have been caught by an editor, then it rates a 0. None, or only one or two rate a two. Everything else gets a 1. Note that this is subjective, because if I didn't notice it, then I can't evaluate it. This criterion also evaluates the book layout. Obvious areas where layout causes confusion or detracts from the product count as mistakes.

ORIGINALITY/INNOVATION: Original element, concept, etc=1; Innovative mechanic(s)=1; usable with other games=1; max score is 2. This criteria measures if I'm getting something I haven't bought before and if its degree of usefulness (if you play more than one game). This category is based very much on my opinion and over 25 years of playing (and buying) RPG and other gaming products. As with everything else in this review, the rating here is the opinion of the author and your mileage may vary.

EVALUATION: In this section I list my likes and dislikes. The score will be based on the ratio of like to dislikes. More likes gets a 1, more dislikes gets a 0. To get a 2, the likes need to far outweigh the dislikes.

RATING: This is the score out of ten. Remember, this score is nothing more than my opinion of the book's value when compared to a set of criteria. I've tried to outline my criteria so that you can determine if you agree with the evaluation and better judge the validity of the score based on your needs, tastes, and experience.

 

[Clint]

Nice, simple review.

 

[Psion]

I think your expectations of precut counters is unreasonable. That costs money for something you can do yourself with scissors and a steady hand.

 

[Shayd3000]

You are entitled to that opinion, and should take that into account when evaluating if my review is useful for you. I clearly state in the review that the criteria are items important to me. Your mileage may vary. I don't like having to stop the game to cut out my counters, yet I'm sure others don't mind doing that at all.

I do not think its fair for you to accuse me of being unreasonable, since I have purchased similar products and the counters are precut along the sides, for a comparable price.

However, again the point is, the reader is told my criteria, and can easily adjust for himself if he doesn't agree with one or more points.

George

 

[Shayd3000]

You are entitled to that opinion, and should take that into account when evaluating if my review is useful for you. I clearly state in the review that the criteria are items important to me. Your mileage may vary. I don't like having to stop the game to cut out my counters, yet I'm sure others don't mind doing that at all.

I do not think its fair for you to accuse me of being unreasonable, since I have purchased similar products and the counters are precut along the sides, for a comparable price.

However, again the point is, the reader is told my criteria, and can easily adjust for himself if he doesn't agree with one or more points.

George