Hello and welcome back to October, the Halloween month that always carries a touch of the spooky, and we start with a suitably spooky image. Our streetwise, slightly hobo sort of chap has a suspicious look in his eyes and something glowing in his hands. I like how this one came out, with a lovely blue in the air and a yellow surround adding an extra element of suspense. It has been a busy month, so let’s get stuck in.

Productions & Editing

Vermis has finally drawn to a close. It was a long one, and I haven’t counted up exactly how many hours of recording we ended up with, so it will be a little while before it reaches the internet. We go to the effort of playing these games, and I want them to sound as good as they possibly can before they go out.

The other big news is that I have finished The Temple Explained for YouTube. In it I go through the story and its elements, who the characters are, what they are thinking and feeling, and I suggest a few ideas you won’t read in the original text. It took a long time, mainly because AI image creation isn’t what it is cracked up to be. Everybody says it can do this and that, but getting usable images is still a real struggle. If I’m feeling generous I may do a breakdown of the project, because it has been a pain to put together. I got through it, though, and the video is now set to premiere. There will be a link below.

https://youtu.be/KR-LlkxsfU8 – The Temple Explained Video

With that done, there isn’t anything on the cards to record for the playhouse so it’s about editing!

Adventures Played

Staying with Vermis, no spoilers here, but my character, Finn Murphy, an ethical hacker, just about survived, which was nice. I really liked playing him. The game let us bounce ideas off a Keeper who knew his technological stuff, Alex Guillotte, of Viral and The Highway of Blood fame, and we all enjoyed ourselves. I’m not sure we won the day, but do check it out when it is finally released over on the Miskatonic Playhouse.

I’ve also started a game of Trail of Cthulhu, where we can still, just about, roll our Sanity, so it counts as part of the wider Cthulhu world. I’m playing a Los Angeles projectionist in the 1970s, and we are looking for an actor who has gone missing from the set of a horror film. It’s a slow burn, with plenty of exploring and examining things, and it’s good fun.

Conventions

Miskatonic Repository Con was held this month, and I think over 40 games were played, along with a good range of panels and guests. It was a very worthwhile weekend. I hosted a panel on podcasting, which was lovely. I help out with these panels but never seem to get asked to sit on one and give my opinion, so when a podcasting host dropped out I asked if I could step in. As Roll4Sanity and The Cosmic Outpost, I felt I had plenty to contribute. It will be here when posted!.

I also provided the Syrinscape Sounds for the Shoggoth game ‘Controlled Burn’, which was fun. The players were fire jumpers who had to fight their way through a torrential wall of fire to discover how to end the world, or not end it. Do check it out when it lands it was a rather fun one to do.

Elsewhere, Chaosium Con EU is happening right now in Gdańsk. I’m keeping an eye on social media, but nothing too amazing has come out just yet.

The books announced at Chaosium Con UK have landed, including the Keeper Companion, which has split opinion among Call of Cthulhu players. Once I get my hands on a copy I will do a breakdown, as I think it borrows some mechanics from Campfire Tales and the Regency material. If you recall, I was looking forward to the automatic weapons and chase rules being simplified, so we’ll see how that plays out.

Looking Ahead

Let’s turn the page to the November image, a cool spaceship flying through the stars. I’ll tell you more about that one later. Thanks for reading, and we’ll Roll4Sanity again soon.