Call of Cthulhu: The Idol of Thoth - RPG Review

Criticisms, Praises, and Game Master tips for the Call of Cthulhu adventure, The Idol of Thoth. It's a 1920's mystery involving a missing artifact and a race against time.
You can find it on DriveThru RPG here: www.drivethrurpg.com/product/...
You can find my own novels and audio books here: amzn.to/2IjspNg
Guest Starring Jack the NPC.

[@lilacclorceta679]

As an archaeological student, i love the dig at archaeologists

[@ZeMalta]

Seth is the reason I’m trying CoC out. Very cool modules (and reviews).

[@chopinnocturne5858]

I started a Call of Cthulhu tabletop game a few months ago, and it has been awesome. I'm playing with my brothers and they love it. Really enjoy the skill based system it uses and it has a ton of role-playing opportunities that we never got in 25 years of playing D&D Thanks Seth you got me started too.

[@thelasttaarakian]

Chopin Nocturne just curious but what is one thing you’ve done in CoC that you have not done in D&D? Ive been quite enjoying CoC compared to D&D myself. Idk if you’ve seen Anthony Tompkins play Chopin on piano to his cat but I have a feeling like you’d enjoy it. I typically listen to him (Chopin) while reading!

[@chopinnocturne5858]

@@thelasttaarakian Ive never in D&D had a party flee an encounter. But my CoC investigators sure as shit ran from the Shambler. I actually have the name Chopin because of an Everquest character I have. I made this email address to use as a recruitment email and I named my bard Chopin because I kept forgetting who wrote nocturne in E flat for my music class in college.

[@thelasttaarakian]

Chopin Nocturne hey I played EQ back in the day as well an Iksar Necromancer!

[@chopinnocturne5858]

@@thelasttaarakian Human Bard on Cazic thule server

[@kellyloganme]

Minor note: I allow recognizing an expensive car to be a credit rating roll or a hard related experience roll, in this case driving or maybe mechanical repair if the player was a car mechanic.

[@RVR121]

Hey Seth look this map has clearly marked bathrooms for the WC's aint that nifty?

[@vahlok1426]

Sounds kinda like a Dead Space-like scenario, with the idol acting kinda like a Marker and drawing people to it to brainwash them into mad killers and defenders. Sounds awesome.

[@nrgspike]

Hi Seth. Not related to this video but wanted to say I've just finished the audiobooks for your Damoren and Hounacier stories, and I'm about to start with Ibenus. Really enjoyed them so far - and R.C.Bray's an fantastic narrator too!

[@SSkorkowsky]

Thank you. I'm very happy you're enjoying them.

[@TheDilden]

Gonna watch this on my break! Been waiting with bated breath for another rpg review from you, Seth. You successfully helped convert my whole D&D group into a CoC group. We'll all be running a marathon game of CoC at Texas Ren Fair this year.

[@dubuyajay9964]

Will ppl. Be allowed to watch?

[@TheDilden]

@@dubuyajay9964 absolutely

[@capsaicin8262]

I'm going to be running this in a few days as a small interlude/prequel to Masks after the Peru chapter. My group are based in 1923 NYC currently so I've had to reframe a lot of the module (ie. Swapped Columbia University for Miskatonic, the museum is the Brooklyn museum, etc) and it's probably a good thing because unfortunately there are so many inconsistencies and holes in this scenario as written and it gives me a good excuse to make up actual handouts. Keepers, don't expect to go into this one without a bit of clean-up on your part! Some spoilers below... The biggest hole I'm grappling with right now is why would our apparently clever bad guy just leave the open sarcophagus and mess in the atrium? They want the show to go on. Its essential for them and they clearly have the mental capacity to leave and lock the door again behind them after they see the idol... pick up and close the damn sarcophagus. Sure, the police might still get called for the other broken artifact... but attention won't even be drawn to the idol. Much less risk of the show being cancelled.

[@chunkyrook242]

I'm preparing this scenario, and I find your observation " Keepers, don't expect to go into this one without a bit of clean-up on your part!" to be spot on ... "Why is the sarcophagus open in the first place?" is one of my biggest gripes as well ... did you find a neat solution?

[@chrisanderson6950]

I tried to run this for my group recently introducing the Idol in a newspaper as something one of their contacts, a local mob boss had bought, and was donating to the museum, and there was going to be a fancy gala... The party immediately investigated the idol, the auction is was bought and and split up to investigate auction House, other potential buyers and the previous owner... Now its the day before the Gala, and I have a heist to GM

[@lovecraftianguy9555]

Yes make more

[@mackdebruin999]

Yes! New video on my birthday! Love this channel!

[@SSkorkowsky]

Happy birthday.

[@mackdebruin999]

@@SSkorkowsky [][][] Thanks!!!

[@Dorian_sapiens]

Mack Debruin Happy birthday!

[@mackdebruin999]

@@Dorian_sapiens [][][] Thanks :)

[@rocarter5059]

Hope you had a good one.

[@dariofenaroli3974]

Hey seth, I'm a first time keeper and I ran this module for 3 players. It was all of our first times playing CoC. It went really well, thanks in large part to your advice in this video and others. It ended up with one player in jail following a skirmish with browning that ended with her dead and a botched escape. The other two players managed to avoid police suspicion and got away mostly scot free. Highlights also include butterfield rolling a crit and taking out a player with a tire iron followed up by a second player rolling a crit and a fumble on their pistol rolls and killing butterfield and the KO'd player in the same action. That player ended up taking over the driver of another player and continuing on with that. Everyone had a great time. I think overall I ran the game really well too. I'm usually a pretty mediocre DM but this one went pretty darn great. Thanks again, love your videos.

[@SSkorkowsky]

Awesome to hear. I'm glad you all had fun with it.

[@TacDyne]

After listening to around 8:11 I realized the players are investigating the crimes committed by the NPCs and player from Vampire the Masquerade: Bloodlines. :D

[@saxonjedi5878]

So true

[@TacDyne]

@@saxonjedi5878 You know... I've listened to this probably half a dozen times and just now realized the sarcophagus is only 18 inches tall. Are they expecting Antediluvian G.I. Joe?

[@flcl3]

Thanks for the recommendation and the notes! Gonna run this scenario at my next game. Looking forward to seeing more videos and reviews. :)

[@jinxtheunluckypony]

I actually really like that your players were smart enough to take advantage of phones in this module. I might not have thought to do that but it makes perfect sense for a group of professionals on a timer.

[@MaxWriter]

Nicely done and enjoyable, as always. Keep up the good work.

[@squeethemog213]

Another awesome video dude! Great work!

[@Thetb93]

your Pc left a gun behind? my PC always try to plunder everything, bolted down or not

[@JohnSmith-ox3gy]

MrFinn T. Irony is when that car chase propably wouldn't have happened with the gun gone.

[@ladybuzzkillington2072]

Mine took the gun and stole some books from his trunk. Although they left the gun behind later so the chase still kinda happened

[@timd4524]

It's always the small editing parts that catch me. At 26:56 the handout has the word 'an' before Science which should be just an 'a'. Just a pet peev.

[@dmen89]

I played this one (as keeper for a party of 3) and I loved it. Between this and the Haunting one can really prepare a party of new players for CoC. Thank you for the review and keeper hints.

[@christopherjones9547]

Damn that's some crisp audio. Love the new mic. Love the video.

[@Raven.flight]

Seth, gotta say, your videos are top shelf

[@davrosdavros7198]

Great job especially being the player character. I’m old to gaming but new to this game

[@gnarthdarkanen7464]

Great work, Seth!!! AND Great video!!! Okay, I always love these... SO just for the record, YES, the microphone is DEFINITELY clearer and louder. The "weird background under-digital-water" stuff is also GONE... Not that ANY of those "issues" actually bothered me, but it's important for YOU to get some kind of "real world applicable" feedback. ;o)

[@ClutchSituation]

Great analysis, as always. My players and I just finished this scenario, so I have some additional thoughts. They are more variations on your ideas. 1) Hollister didn't want the cops involved in my game because he didn't want any artifacts seized as evidence. 2) I noticed the Butterfield/Butterworth discrepancy mid session and did a fourth wall break with my players. They called him Butterscotch from that moment forward. Amusement was had. 3) I have two concerns with the construction of the scenario itself. Obviously a four-dollar cost tempers these. First, the scenario is really lacking in necessary handouts. I think that most players would benefit from information on Egyptology at the time (given that it was recently a fad), so I printed off some basic history of Thoth for them to roll to get. They got up to three pieces based upon any relevant skill (Egyptology) requiring easier successes than Library Use. This adds some depth to the backstory that is fairly basic in the scenario text. You mentioned cutting out pieces of the text, which works fine. I elected to produce actual handouts that I felt the module lacked, such as Butterfield's notes. I also think that the "race-against-time" works against the narrative punch of the scenario and also runs counter to what the module says about discouraging combat. Races-against-time are more likely to lead to rash decisions that the module discourages. If you tell someone: "You need to act! Now!" they aren't likely to go into creative mode. Since I wanted creative mode, I removed the race against time and timed everything so they had a few days to prepare for the scheduled viewing. I had to shift the calendar anyway since my group has a precisely established 1923 calendar for our game right now. It worked like a charm. One of my players was an engineer and produced mirrored goggles to protect players from the Idol's influence. My social types visited Browning in disguise and arranged to be at the viewing. I made a map of the display hall to show where everything and everyone was located. I increased the number of hypnotized patrons to 100 and we had a great scene where the players tried to distract the patrons with gun shots after the opening began. This did nothing, and all 100 patrons creepily turned simultaneously and started approaching the PCs. A pair of PCs managed to work together, with one tackling Browning and the other bull rushing the platform, knocking the Idol over and smashing it before the patrons could overwhelm the rest of the PCs. Nobody dies. The emphasis was less on the combat and more on their preparation, which was very creative.

[@snate56]

I thought the idol was diamond...

[@jenniferjohnson9014]

Thanks for taking the time to post your experiences!

[@zanforian]

@@snate56 Diamonds are actually pretty brittle I wouldn't be surprised if a hit with a hammer or a large enough drop would cause it to shatter or at least crack and have its magic fizzle.

[@jenniferjohnson9014]

Very helpful as always. Thank you!

[@ultimatecorgi3392]

I just noticed- the butler's name is Henry Rhodes. That's the same name of the professor in Blackwater Creek! With some creative re-writing, perhaps they could know each other? Or perhaps it's his son?

[@Tysto]

I always LOL at the Chaosium NPC portraits. Not their strong suit. Also, it's super weird how Seth always has to correct maps & descriptions & fill in big holes in these adventures.

[@SSkorkowsky]

This one wasn't Chaosium. The adventure was put out by Stygian Fox.

[@Wolfphototech]

*Absolutely love the Module reviews .* *The only thing is they should be marked GM/DM only ( As they are mostly focused on GM/DM dealing with them .* *But it would be also neat to have a player version of them as well ( so you don't have players dropping off of your GM/DM review videos and ruining your metrics on them ) .*

[@VoicesofSlumber]

I'd have 2 of the problems cancel each other. The police refuse to investigate because they have no idea if there was anything inside to being with therefore the museum hire their own PI. You could have marks inside that allude to something that was there or it now weighs a lot less.

[@SSkorkowsky]

Except the police would still have the break in and broken artifact to look in to. Sure vandalism is less than theft, but it's still something. Also the sarcophagus probably weighs the same. The idol only exists in the moonlight. And since the investigators are there in the day, it only appears and feels empty.

[@VoicesofSlumber]

ah i thought it only opened in moonlight, not the appearance of the idol itself.

[@KuyVonBraun]

Damn Thoth, always dropping his crap!

[@seanstefansson2021]

Hey Seth, I love your videos and they are part of the reason why I find myself rummaging through the Shelves of my local tabletop store. I was curious if you have ever played/ read the "Down Darker Trails" Old West setting for Call of Cthulhu? I love Weird west, but never really seemed to get into Deadlands, so I would love your opinion if you are familiar.

[@SSkorkowsky]

I've flipped through it at a game shop, but haven't bought it or played it. It looks interesting enough, but I'd have to give it a few spins before I could really give a fair review.

[@seanstefansson2021]

Seth Skorkowsky Thank you very much for the reply. And as always, have a great day.

[@risbridger1]

Are you gonna tackle the Masks of Nyathotep

[@leonardodebenito]

Please, make a review of the module "beyond the mountains of madness"!

[@Paraboxify]

Maybe you've seen but during a recent livestream, people asked him about Beyond the Mountains of Madness, and Seth said he'd wanted to run it for years, were it not that it heavily features accounting, and one of his players does accounting for their day job and does not under any circumstances want anything to do with it in-game.

[@chriskirby9408]

Nice review.

[@kencarcas8598]

Love your reviews but can you tell us who worked on the adventure and/or show the credit page ... my main interest here is whether the adventure had an editor or whether another set of eyes looked it over. Great review and look forward to hear what you have for us next.

[@davrion]

Author - Joe Trier Layout - Stephanie McAlea Call of Cthulhu Line Editor at Stygian Fox - Jeffrey Moeller Artists - Stephanie McAlea, Djahuti, J. Smith, and Jeffrey Koch.

[@johntate1360]

Great video I love them rock on.

[@connorschultz380]

19:00 Well, it's a great way for the 'the players have somehere to go' vibe to happen, if the encounter happened during a time sensitive adventure.

[@LegallyBlindGamer7926]

If I run this adventure, I'm going to try giving my players a way to "disarm" the idol without destroying it, saving Mr. Butterfield and Ms. Browning.

[@snate56]

Amusing, since the only time a full moon would shine down through a skylight would be close to midnight. The full moon, being full, would be on the horizon shortly after sunset.

[@tonyromasco1735]

I'd have to make it "Butterworth" If only to let someone ask "So, is there a Misses Butterworth?"

[@marca81]

Im running a pulp campaign now. This is a fantastic resource.

[@wendigo1619]

i was a player on this year a and a half ago, still used the Irish PI and had a portable armory in a suit case including a Remington police fighting rifle, a lot of priceless artifacts were destroyed for no reason and the insane doctor ran getting shot, everyone who seemed suspicious got shot eventually

[@lunatic0verlord10]

2:12 Well they probably thought that, being locked up in the same place as the Joker means he's a totally lost cause.

[@davrion]

Have run this twice, with a few more coming up for (virtual) Cons. I had phones be available at the museum, Arkham, and Grey's house (though a PC would need Miskatonic connection to be able to get it). I didn't have a phone in the run-down tenement where CB lived, though I did put it about a 15-20 minute walk from the museum. I decided that Ormond had no immediate family, so his out-of-state relatives were behind the quick sale of his assets. Think I had them be in Chicago and worked through a local estate lawyer. They never tried to track down said lawyer, but I'm pretty sure he would be in court for some matter all afternoon. I had the butler given a lump sum severance, and he departed with no forwarding address given. The most challenging thing for me was when the PCs got back to the museum before 5, after having dealt with CB. Browning has no backup at this point, and given the stakes I can't see the party ever being held off by her holding a gun. I'm thinking of having that unmarked room between her office and CB's office be a work room of some sort. She'll usher them in there and then depart to fetch Mr. Hollister, and she then locks them in to buy more time.

[@Danial79]

One thing that really stood out to me is that the NPC pictures don’t look like they’re from the era-they look modern. I know it’s a small detail, but I think they dropped the ball on that one.

[@bastionunitb7388]

I love your shirt My friends and I are always quoting that Stay on target Stay on target! Almost there Stay on target!

[@aleksimartikainen9131]

Keep on Cthulhu fhtagning! Great video again :) - support Seth!

[@nikkibrowning4546]

You constantly referencing Edith Browning was trippy.

[@lsdths82]

Joe also has a podcast "how we roll" they cover call of Cthulhu and some Dungeons & Dragons. They're really fun to listen too

[@Paraboxify]

Seth has been on, though I think for Masks of Nyarlathotep? It's yet to be uploaded, which I can imagine given it's a huge and hard to manage campaign, and HWR does a lot of post-production on their audio.

[@Darksummerswind]

Can you review Curse of Chaugnar Faugn? Love these

[@krispalermo8133]

9:17 " I Love IT !"

[@artyomsaveli9681]

I think I can explain why it's Butterworth in some parts of the book: Originally, that was Clarence's last name, but he got married to a Mrs. Butterfield; he ended up changing this surname to that. Only problem was some of the papers haven't been updated to show that. Either that, or the author really likes syrup.

[@NefariousKoel]

Seth - Did you hear about the new upcoming edition of the Cyberpunk RPG? Would be great to have an official version with some of the old rules/setting complaints adjusted and updated!

[@YahyaFalcon]

He does know about Cyberpunk red, he mentioned it in his Cyberpunk review

[@Darkwintre]

Seriously Thoth you ought to keep these in your shed even if it's called Egypt!

[@malcolmcampbell3912]

Nice use of the Lament Configuration

[@NefariousKoel]

Q: Do you use handgun hard cases to store your minis? I suppose that's not a bad idea if the internal foam is compressed tight enough while still being somewhat affordable.

[@SSkorkowsky]

The case came from a Reaper Miniatures Bones Kickstarter a few years back. They had them as add-ons. I bought 3 and love them. They're 3 layers with cutouts for minis. I really wish I'd gotten more than the 3 because the cases that Reaper sells normally are pretty crappy. They're smaller and just layers of egg foam instead of nice cutout mini slots. Normally I've used the Chessex flat, grey cases, which I like, but the Reaper cases (which are pretty much handgun hard cases) are far better IMO.

[@NefariousKoel]

I'd forgotten Reaper occasionally offered sets in those types of cases. Had been meaning to ask about it since seeing it in your last vid. Figured you were either keeping your minis safe or keeping your RPG collection safe. :-)

[@gnarthdarkanen7464]

NefariousKoel (just in case it helps/you're interested)... In my "hey-day" of mini's, I often gathered up cheap (free, from trash) styrofoam blocks... Into which any large drill-bit can be "hand-twisted" (so you don't burn or melt the stuff) to cut the holes... Mini's can then be inserted upside down as long as the foam blocks are thick enough and pretty much any suitable sized case or box can be used to carry them or store them... Most hardware stores keep extra large drill bits, and you only need a very few of the extra large types... My personal favorites were "auger" bits because they could cut sizes upwards of an inch like a "traditional" boring drill, instead of a "paddle bit"... Sharpness is an issue since you'll want to "hand twist" the thing, so a duct-tape wrapper on the bit(s) of choice would keep you (or friends/relatives) from using the thing in a power drill. I've also found reasonably priced "florist foam" blocks that are readily sized and shaped to fit almost any suitcase or briefcase if you care to put hands on a utility knife for cutting out slots and hollows for the mini's... Depending on your "craftsmanship" (how much time taken) you can get REALLY nice intricate fits and stackable foam collections without a whole lot of invested money... SO poker-chip cases, brief-cases, attache's, tackle-boxes, tool chests, and whole rolling cabinets can be feasibly "retro-engineered" from the "used items" and resales to suit a fantastical array of "Mobile Miniature" collections... if that's even your thing. (lolz) ANY of the foams mentioned can be paired with one or another "spray adhesive" available at Wal-Mart so you can cover it with cloth, felt, velvet, satin, etc... for a decorative flare that the next guys won't have... because hand-made (?) is also generally "One of a kind"... for prestige... It's all about "How far you WANT to take it"... ;o)

[@kellyloganme]

Maybe the mention of "Dead light" was meant to be another option for expanding the adventure, that it could be occuring while they are driving? Or maybe that they notice something that they would want to investigate later when they have more time?

[@promiscuous675]

Thank you.

[@mrsnatural2368]

I've never played CoC (Only played Starfinder, WtA and a little DnD) but this sounds super interesting!

[@austinharris1118]

Such good vids

[@NodDisciple1]

Is this compatible w/ Thoth's Dagger since both involve Thoth?

[@Taricus]

1:38 He returned from Egypt with a small 18" high cheese grater.....

[@a_lethe_ion]

.. okay so is the sky light the only window? how big is it? small enough to empty thick black paint on it, then throw some cloth on it. tada, no moonlight(and there has to be a a way up, for cleaning from the outside

[@jordentaylor2455]

Could the insight role be for modern d20 version?

[@you3001]

A see a Seth video. I hit like!

[@SMAXZO]

Or as you said yourself, if there's a PI and said PI has a police contact, you can have it be where the police contact redirects Hollister to the PI saying "well, we're swamped at the moment BUT I know someone who can help.."

[@dubuyajay9964]

I don't get them adding Dead Light either as adding that adventure would prevent them from arriving to the museum on time.

[@michaelmilton1990]

It is kind of strange. My first I thought they may be giving the Keeper a place for a potential side adventure, but that seems rather unlikely given that this adventure has a time limit. The only other thing I can think of is maybe they included it to give the Keeper a moment to allude to it as a following adventure? Still, the specificity of it is odd.

[@dubuyajay9964]

@@michaelmilton1990 Had to think it over...maybe they run into the girl on the way home?

[@michaelmilton1990]

Dubuya Jay Yeah, that's what I was thinking. It's the only way that doesn't get in the way of this scenario.

[@lsdths82]

So Joe the author of the Has a podcast called "how we roll" he ran deadlight but had some Homebrew elements the group of investigators were being chased in the rain. Which led right into the dead of light scenario. from my guess I think it ties into the being chased in the rain

[@groovinhooves]

Butterfield/worth must have lived in that tenement to afford paying off his 1917 Abbott-Detroit: perhaps the popular model 44 which would have cost - depending on optional appointments - something around $1300.00 USD (That's over $43,000.00 USD today, by the by). So maybe have the investigators find he was subsisting on tinned sardines and soda cracker, too. NB - no, I did not mistakenly add/omit any zeros from those figures. Having this NPC own such a vehicle begs a lot of questions as to a more full background story normally not worthy of a -disposable- NPC.

[@icn2476]

Hey, Seth! Am one of the subscriber who's just loving your videos. I'm actually trying out this scenario soon as my first-time GMing and getting loads of help from your video while preparing for it...So thank you!!! Just one question though. Is there a map of Boston Museum of Fine arts inside the module? I had purchased a PDF from Drivthru rpg and wasn't able to find the museum's map, so had to created a cheap map of exhibition based on today's floor plan. But it seems that, based on your video, there's a map provided inside the module...? or is it a fan-made prop from other forums? or did you make your own map for the scenario?

[@SSkorkowsky]

The map where I showed the doors came in my DriveThru RPG PDF. Weird. Best of luck on the game and your first run at GMing.

[@chunkyrook242]

You will get two PDFs (one is called "reduced" and one "v2". One of the two features the map for some reason, the other doesn't.

[@bradmajors390]

Always like it when Seth slings 'tent!

[@cosmicwartoad2587]

You could have made the journey back more interesting by having them pulled over by the police for speeding or somebody at the exhibition's door telling them no ticket, no entry.

[@readybody1679]

I know the odds of getting a reply to a comment on a 3 year old video are slim to none, but something was bugging me about this whole thing. The gala is clearly meant to be at 5. There's even the typo about it being at 7 that got brought up in this video. What makes the authors think the light of the full moon would be available to reveal the idol at 5 o'clock? Wouldn't the 7 o'clock time make more sense? If it's autumn or winter, it's dark by 7, but there's no point in the year where the moon is out at 5 in Boston.

[@SSkorkowsky]

No worries. I respond to old videos all the time. The timing of the event in relation to the moon was one of those points I had meant to make, but somewhere during writing and recording the video was forgotten until after the vid posted. No biggie. You can say that the event was originally meant to be at 5, but due to the typo on the announcements it was moved to 7 (the curator can even say, "This typo ended up being fortunate, as you would have had 2 less hours to recover the idol had we scheduled the gala for the intended time." Or you can just say it was always meant to be at 7:00 as a nighttime event and never mention the 5:00 time.

[@readybody1679]

@@SSkorkowsky thanks for the reply! I just picked up the Call of Cthulhu rule book and am excited to start running it (only just started running D&D earlier this year and I'm hooked on being a GM). Your videos have been a huge help in all the D&D games I've run so far, and your high praise for CoC and Cyberpunk made me really interested in trying them as well. So thanks a lot!

[@SSkorkowsky]

Happy to be of help. Call of Cthulhu is my favorite game. I hope you have fun with it, too.

[@galruchin6463]

when are you going to review the core rulebook for the Conan RPG by modiphius? i saw your review for pits of Kutallu and it seems interesting but i want to know a bit more about the system. the real shame about modiphius is that because they are an indie company you can't find lots of reviews for their stuff.

[@SSkorkowsky]

I picked up the core book a month or so back (so the Pit of Kutallu did leave us wanting more) but it'll be a bit before we get to play it, and after a few seasons I'll feel versed enough to give it a solid review. My initial impression is that the art and production quality are top notch. They really got into the world of Howard and I love that. Skill-based mechanics. Character creation it's outstanding. So much is great. However... they are way too wordy in parts, some of the rules are confusingly explained, and some of it feel written for an audience that already knows the rules instead if one learning the rules. Their Zones system for ranges and distances feels unnecessarily awkward and more like an attempt to be different than useful. It'll take some playing for me to determine how well it actually works in practice. I'm optimistic but wary of the game.

[@sadmi-gonoises2247]

So... When is your CoC Review DVD Box Set being released?

[@mercaius]

How do they know the sarcophagus used to contain something of value? Have the archaeologist notes lift the weight of the object. Then compare it to the weight of the current object. By the difference in weight, something must have been inside, and the very fact that it's missing suggests someone thought it had value enough to hide.

[@SSkorkowsky]

Possible. But... the idol weighs nothing unless it's in the light of the full moon, because that's only when it manifests. Technically, the idol is still in the sarcophagus the entire time. So unless you alter the scenario, the weight will be the same prior to the supposed robbery.

[@mercaius]

@@SSkorkowsky Really? Interesting.

[@jonathonmiller3671]

Nice Mic

[@SubCinemaProductions]

I would like to point out (1&1/2 year later lol) that the moon couldn't be out a 5pm, not even at 6. After some google-fu, the sunset time in boston on Feb 10th, which is wen the showing takes place, is at 6:44. Since it is a full moon that's supposed to take place, hit the idol, and enrapture the audience, the time for that to happen would be closer to 730 or even 8 at its earliest. Only just now realizing this after going through the module again myself for a game im running tonight.

[@SSkorkowsky]

Your Google-Fu is a bit different than mine. I'm showing 5:10 for 1925 (don't remember the year of the scenario, so I grabbed that as a mid-point). Either way, you're right, especially considering that the moonlight must be shining down from the skylight which would push the magic time back by an hour at least. www.google.com/search?rlz=1C1CHBF_enUS773US773&biw=1920&bih=888&sxsrf=ACYBGNQvB6pw-Njzvlk_5tQ4bouieHb-Vg%3A1578519995204&ei=u00WXqyPDM78tAWB5b6IDA&q=sunset+boston+Feb+10+1925&oq=sunset+boston+Feb+10+1925&gs_l=psy-ab.3...40338.40338..40984...0.2..0.110.110.0j1......0....1..gws-wiz.......0i71.cq0AHHIanH4&ved=0ahUKEwjs2Nac_fTmAhVOPq0KHYGyD8EQ4dUDCAs&uact=5

[@CamelotGaming]

Me having to watch all these since none of my players would ever be interested in running CoC, and I'm the only one interested.

[@antoniusbritannia8217]

Arkham Asylum: It's nice to finally be a visitor here for once

[@nicholashurst780]

That is a highly specialized field that Jack and the Gang have fallen into you know if they ever do run into Thoth they can ask him whether or not he thinks writing has been in that positive in the 5,000 years since he invented it or however long it has been

[@lazarus30001]

Always keep the interest in cars!!!

[@Groundlord]

I'm a little confused on the plot of this adventure... Was the idol *actually* stolen and the villains' plan was to bring it back for the event? Or was it still inside the now-open casket the whole time and just undetectable when it's not under the light of the full moon?

[@oz_jones]

The idol only appears to the mundane world under moonlight

[@Tyler-Kearney]

That sounds like a great module. Would you recommend running it as Pulp Cthulhu or just standard rules?

[@SSkorkowsky]

It's fine Standard, but OK to Pulp out as long as you also pulp-up the bad guys, add some more mooks, and otherwise raise it to match the more powerful heroes.

[@archercolin6339]

I wonder if the typo with the time is because at one point it was written as 1700?

[@TheFeanor74]

A Call of Cthulhu party expected to SPLIT UP! Good luck on this one. My players NEVER split up - under no conditions ;-)

[@bendfocuspro]

Why does Jack have both eyes?

[@SSkorkowsky]

Addressed that in the Mister Corbitt review - kzbin.info/www/bejne/qX3acomfrdprapom10s

[@bendfocuspro]

@@SSkorkowsky awesome. I missed that one. Glad you addressed it. Such a great channel.

[@Tecmaster96]

Where’s the player agency in this scenario? Maybe I play too much D&D, but it seems like the players are just helpless for 85% of this scenario. Can’t imagine it would go over well in my own group.

[@solaufeinxarrin2178]

what are your rules, for losing credit?

[@johanneskaiser8188]

I'm not very familiar with the Cthulhu mythos and all that (reading the Lovecraft collection on my kindle, but very slowly and in between other books), it Thoth evil there? Or is he merely that kind of person who leaves valuable stuff behind (or simply loses it) but booby traps it juuuust in case someone ever picks it up?

[@SSkorkowsky]

In CoC, Thoth is usually depicted as one of the forms of Nyarlathotep. That god is one that sews a lot of chaos. So it more of a, "Lets just set this item here and see what people do with it."

[@johanneskaiser8188]

@@SSkorkowsky Thanks, that explains a LOT. Except for why he had made a dagger that was particularly useful against himself...maybe the "chaotic" part played into that as "highly random and sometimes harmful to oneself". :) And thanks for answering questions so fast, never seen that before from other content creators. Keep going! Really like your videos, just stumbled over your channel recently but by now it's become the first one I check in the morning for my breakfast video.

[@billriggle7415]

Seth, I'm about to run "The Idol of Thoth." Hollister found the sarcophagus open and the idol missing. Yet nothing was taken, so where is it during the scenario?

[@SSkorkowsky]

The idol is still there, but invisible/incorporeal unless under the light of the moon. So it appears empty and they assumed it was stolen. During the event, when the moonlight shines though the skylight, the idol will appear in the sarcophagus and entrance all the guests. The PCs will figure this out during the investigation and will have to race back to Boston to stop it from happening.

[@billriggle7415]

@@SSkorkowsky, Wow! I'm surprised at your fast response so late at night. I'll have Browning close the sarcophagus "to hide the loss from the public." Thanks for the suggestions in your review. I also plan to place Grey's house between Boston and Arkham in case my PCs do make the drive to Arkham.

[@SSkorkowsky]

No problemo. I was up late working on the next vid (been out of town and hadn't started a new one yet). Good luck with the game.

[@Darkwintre]

He heard about the other Thoth item they dealt with.

[@matthewhilty1976]

Does anyone else think that 5 o'clock is really early for what's happening?

[@daegannlongstrider1293]

I think so too. I believe that was the reason for the 7pm misprint on the flyer handout. If I'm not mistaken, I think the sun has to be completely set for the full moon to come out. 7pm would work for the cooler months.

[@paulcoy9060]

The moon is visible at 5 PM? That doesn't sound right, but has anyone checked out an almanac to see if the date of the adventure allows this lunar appearance?

[@paulcoy9060]

Specifically, Thursday, February 10th. Either in 1921 or 1927. Okay, I Googled it, the Full Moon was on February 22nd, 1921, and on February 16th, 1927. So, no full moon coming through the atrium window on February 10th. Does it work with any moonlight, or did the module specifically say "full moon"? Seth said full moon. p.s. I know that the moon can show up during the day, but I rejected that occurrence outright, because this is a Call of Cthulhu adventure.

[@keithparker1346]

Technically you can see the moon during the day. It's not uncommon

[@James2fj]

Seth, why did you say "Seth Skorkowsky" so much differently in the opening of this video than the other videos? Like there's a sense of uncertainty. Well, it could also be because the script was a bit far, perhaps? Whatever the case, it really stood out!

[@SSkorkowsky]

No clue. The "Hello Internet, Seth Skorkowsky," isn't part of the script (I can remember that part, but the following sentence after is scripted) I might have just been distracted and thinking about tacos or something at the time.

[@James2fj]

@@SSkorkowsky I love it, and I wasn't attempting to preserve some dignity, I would be clapping like an excited seven year old just before his saturday morning cartoons whenever you say it.

[@dford4014]

,Ahhh, the flask is back!

[@robertwilliams2520]

The Emerald Tablets of Thoth?

[@JohnSmith-qq7fm]

I can just imagine the family's relief and completely justify them selling off his crap right away: "Finally!!! We can sell off this useless junk he's been wasting our inheritance on and go spend it"

[@TikkunOlam_]

Siemano Seth!

[@rickeymariu1]

I feel like the PCs need a reward

[@SSkorkowsky]

I'm fine with no reward at the end aside from the standard Sanity and Skill Improvements. The PCs are offered a monetary reward at the opening as the motivation to take the job, but whether they get it or not isn't that important. Money in Call of Cthulhu is pretty low-key. You can start your character as being extremely rich if you want. It's not like other game where accruing wealth is a measure of success in an adventure. Story and stopping sinister powers are very often the rewards for Call of Cthulhu scenarios. Think of it like a movie. There's no reward at the end of many films, leaving the heroes essentially where they started, though the obstacle has been defeated, be it The Maltese Falcon, Last Crusade, or The Exorcist. In Raider of the Lost Ark, we know Indy gets some form of compensation from the government for recovering the Ark, but we never learn what that was because the adventure story as to how he did it is the only part that matters.

[@Janshevik]

@@SSkorkowsky I usually treat increase in Cthulhu mythos skill as a reward lol

[@ladybuzzkillington2072]

@@Janshevik I've done the same thing, albeit I'm planning to transfer to Pulp Cthulhu as soon as i can because my players prefer combat and I wanna be able to bring it to them. So for them getting that Mythos up is more important.