Mysteries of Montreal

I recently read " Drachenfels ", by Jack Yeovil (aka Kim Newman). I was aware of the existence of this book back when it came out in 1989, but I never read it. I was wary of fiction lines based on games, as I still am. However on reading it now with the release of the 30 year anniversary edition I did enjoy it immensely. One thing that surprised me about was that there is something of the Discworld in this book in that the integration of the undead, and especially Vampires into the cities of the Old World smacks more of Terry Pratchett than it does of my reading of the original WFRP canon from the game books. In the book there is a monastic retreat for vampires, and the undead have their own bar that they frequent in Nuln. There is also a lighthearted tone to much of the novel that also makes me think of Pratchett, even though there is not the same level of humor. Of course WFRP is known for its humour, but in general it comes in a darker more satyrical form in the game m...

A great little video and tutorial on how to use the Scar of the Bloody Tongue that came in the last Props of Nyarlathotep Kickstarter.

Not the author himself of course, that would be weird, but the works of HPL as a Mastermind subject.  How many answers did you get right?

From the Night Gallery. An ode to the mythos of HPL. Not in any way horiffic, especially to us steeped in the lore, but a fun 10 minutes. Night Gallery - s02e08d - Professor Peabody's Last Lecture from Sceadugengan - Shadow Walkers on Vimeo .

Taking a little break from the RPGaDay posts to pass on this great article on how inmates conspire to play RPGs in prison , where dice are contraband due to gambling rules, and where even D&D is named as contraband in some cases. Very interesting.

1928 song celebrating the lack of Prohibition in Quebec, and Montreal. Sung by Fred Waring, an his band, Waring's Pennsylvanians.

This is a nice little video as both a quick introduction to Call of Cthulhu, if not an in depth review of 7th edition, as the title suggests.

One of the great things about the Call of Cthulhu community is the gusto with which they enter in their prop making. From the print outs of newspaper handouts to full blown resin props. I was a backer of the Kickstarter by Delphes Desvoivres to make the Sedefkar Simulacrum , and am eagerly waiting to use it in the Horror on the Orient Express Campaign which I intend to start this year (after finishing the Time to Harvest Campaign I am currently running) I already have the Eye of Light and Darkness that is pictured in the video, but I really like the look of the other props. The necklace is a nice touch, and it is nice to see that not all the props will be made out of resin. The Mirror is larger than I thought it would be, which means all in these are going to take up a lot of storage space in my gaming cupboard, but how can I not be tempted? The Kickstarter will go live this Sunday (the 22nd), at 10pm GMT.

A second Lovecraftian short from the Lackey Johnson coupling. Enjoy!

As a signal boost for my friend Jason, I present to you The Hunter of the Dark. A short film "created for the 48 hour Tasploitation Challenge 2016. A Lovecraftian styled horror set in a remote Tasmanian Cabin The Hunter of the Dark from jasonmacqueen on Vimeo . Make sure to leave an appreciative comment on the Vimeo page, that way he will be sure to make more!

I have not seen previous episodes of what seems to be a current BBC Scotland comedy sketch show, going by the name Burnistoun, however, through an old school friend on facebook, I was made aware of this sketch.   "There's an unnamable, unimaginable thing in my basement and I want it punted." Take three minutes to watch it. It's chock full of references, delivered with particularly Scottish understatement.

My second post on a subject that is without my normal sphere for this blog, Sherlock Holmes. However, I'll try to turn it back on topic by the end of the post. I was a little annoyed that my previous post on a new Sherlock Holmes story turned out to be nothing more than a heavy handed pastiche of Doyle's work, if at least a contemporary one. The first half of the interview, Doyle talks about Sherlock Holmes, and within the details spoken, we really learn nothing new, excep that we hear of Holmes from the horses mouth as you will. The second half of the interview is taken up with, in Doyle's words, "the entirely more serious matter" of spiritualism. He talks of the in-depth and varied research he has made on the subject. Again this is not news, but the attitude he takes to wards the psychical research could of course work well as a jumping off point for an investigator, or group of such researchers. Especially since his devotion to the subject after the G...