Professional Documents
Culture Documents
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Table of Contents
Overview ........................................................................................................................... 4
Players Introduction.......................................................................................................... 4
Keepers Introduction ........................................................................................................ 4
Miskatonic University......................................................................................................... 5
Grant Hall - Prescotts Rooms ........................................................................................... 6
Search of the Campus ....................................................................................................... 7
Hoyt Administration Building .......................................................................................... 7
The Library..................................................................................................................... 8
General Information ....................................................................................................... 8
Keepers Note ................................................................................................................ 9
The Catacombs ................................................................................................................. 9
Rutters House................................................................................................................. 10
The Great Pyramid .......................................................................................................... 11
The Climax ...................................................................................................................... 12
Character & Creature Statistics ....................................................................................... 13
Paul Rutter................................................................................................................... 13
Ian Prescott.................................................................................................................. 14
Ghouls ......................................................................................................................... 14
Pharaoh Cheops.......................................................................................................... 15
Conclusion....................................................................................................................... 15
Sanity gains ................................................................................................................. 15
Loose Ends.................................................................................................................. 15
Handouts - The Key & The Gate Papers ......................................................................... 16
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Overview
The scenario takes place on Saturday, March 13, 1928, but this date can be changed
without difficulty if required. The scenario was written to take place in Arkham,
Massachusetts, but could easily be relocated to any large town or city. If used in Arkham,
the map on p.247 of the Call of Cthulhu Keepers Book will be useful, but not necessary, as
would the information to be found in Arkham Unveiled, The Compact Arkham Unveiled and
the Miskatonic University Guide Book.
In this adventure, the characters must rescue their friend, Ian Prescott. It is therefore
essential that Prescott have a strong link to at least one player investigator. He could be an
old school chum, a close colleague or even a relative, the stronger the link, the better. After
the Players Introduction, you should explain this link to the players and tell them something
about Prescott (see Ian Prescotts description near the end of this adventure).
Players Introduction
Outside, the rain is a torrent of darkness among the gusty streets. Safe from the elements,
you are sitting at a table in a dark and musty steak house on the corner of Garrison Street
and College Street Your friend, Ian Prescott, has yet to arrive. As an Egyptologist at
Miskatonic University, Ian has been busy on an excavation near Cairo for the past two
years. However, last week you received a telegram, which you take out and read once
more:
Ian is already an hour late. This is very unusual, as you have known him to be prompt to the
point of arriving half an hour early. As the minutes tick by, you become increasingly worried.
Keepers Introduction
Ian Prescott has had a change of plans. Last night, he was kidnapped by a group of ghouls
at the direction of Paul Rutter, a Cthulhoid cultist and an all around sanity-blasted individual.
The reason behind this kidnapping is somewhat complicated, so a brief summary is in
order.
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Miskatonic University
Ian Prescott is not about to show up for the meeting and the police do not consider
someone missing until after 24 hours, so the characters should search for him. They know
that he works at Miskatonic University, and that he lives in a residence on campus. Therefore, that is where they should start.
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4. A great deal of clay has been ground into the carpet near the door. The pouring rain
has obliterated any tracks that might have been left outside. The clay is unlike
anything found on the campus grounds, but a Geology roll (or an idea roll for those
who grew up in Arkham) reveals it as a type of clay found in the banks of the
Miskatonic River.
5. On the desk in the bedroom is a thick notebook with the title Excavations on the
Giza Plateau. Upon examination it would appear that a large number of pages have
been torn out, one such page has slipped beneath the desk. Anyone actively
searching the desk will find this page. It contains some interesting information. A
copy of the lost page can be found in the handouts section at the rear of this
scenario. This is an important clue as It provides a firm link to Paul Ritter for the
investigators to follow up.
NOON: I saw that strange-looking man snooping around the tents again. When I
asked him what he wanted, he ran away toward the Pyramid. I chased him inside,
planning on trapping him in the Kings Chamber. Somehow he must have snuck by,
for when I reached the chamber, I could not find him anywhere. My fellah assistant
says he fears the man. He says the man is evil and has been touched by Allah. I do
not know about that (these Egyptian country folk have strange beliefs), but he does
worry me.
I said he looked strange, but I could not place that strangeness until just now. In the
last year of this life, Professor Martin Rutter had that same appearance. Strange,
since I have not thought of the Professor since I replaced him.
EVENING: I am so excited that I have hardly the patience to sit down to write. Today
in grid G-12, at precisely 1:16pm we uncovered a perfectly preserved mummy. I have
barely begun to examine it, but I feel certain that it is that of, should I say it, Cheops
himself. I will telegram the States in the morning.
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tigators manage to gain his confidence using Oratory or Debate. He doesnt want to get the
police involved, be-cause he and Prescott were smuggling liquor in the mummy crate. On
no account will he relate this. Leighton will show them the room where the mummy was
being stored (in the cellar of the Science Hall) if they request it, but there are no clues there.
If asked about Martin Rutter, Leighton tells them that he was the Professor of Egyptology
from 1895 to 1913. In 1914 he went violently insane and killed himself. If the investigators
confide in him (or if they Fast Talk) he will suggest they talk to Martins son, Paul. Although
he hasnt seen Paul since Martin died, Leighton thinks he still lives at the same place and
gives them Rutters home address.
The Library
At this point, the investigators may wish to learn something about the Great Pyramid or
Cheops. A character that succeeds in a History roll already knows something about the
subject. Give him the General Information presented below. Otherwise, the characters must
resort to the Miskatonic University library. Four hours of searching is usually required for a
Library Use roll but, since time is precious in this adventure, one hour of Library Use will
turn up the following General Information. If the players want more information than is given
here, you might like to let them research it themselves between play sessions.
General Information
Cheops, or Khufu in Egyptian, was the second pharaoh who ruled during the Fourth
Dynasty (c.2613-2494 BC). He was born circa 2545 BC and died about 25 years later.
During his lifetime, the great he was known as a tyrant and a flouter of the gods. Other
details of Cheops life remain obscure. Although very little is known about Cheops, his
Great Pyramid was the first (and only surviving) of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient
World. It covers over 13 acres and was originally 481 feet tall (the capstone is now
missing). The most surprising facts are that its sides are almost exactly aligned north to
south and east to west and the outer blocks are so precisely fitted that a sheet of paper
could not be slipped between them.
Strange characteristics like these have incited people since ancient Greece to ponder over
the pyramid. What is it? The popular belief is that the pyramid is a tomb, but Cheops
mummy has never been found. The Arab thinkers claimed that the pyramid was a physical
vault for all of the ancient Egyptians knowledge. Later scholars believed that the pyramid
did not contain the knowledge but was the knowledge. The founders of pyramidology, a
Scottish astronomer Charles Piazzi Smythe and a London editor John Taylor, believe this.
In 1859, John Taylor published The Great Pyramid Why Was It Built? And Who Built It? In
which he proposed that the Great Pyramid had been built under divine guidance and that its
dimensions incorporated the true value of pi, the mass and circumference of the Earth, and
the distance between the earth and the sun.
The American churchman Joseph Seiss went even further. He wrote in 1877 the stones
harbored one great system of interrelated numbers, measures, weights, angles, temperatures, degrees, geometric problems and cosmic references.
The 1920s saw the start of pyramid power. This belief maintained that it was the pyramid
shape that was somehow a potent mystic force. A pyramid could sharpen razor blades;
preserve organic matter and funnel energy.
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Keepers Note
The truth (in Cthulhoid history) is that the Great Pyramid is a tomb in the sense that it was
built to assist the pharaoh on his trip to the afterlife. All pyramids except that of Cheops
failed in this regard because their dimensions were not correct. Cheops denounced the
traditional gods and secretly worshipped an evil version of Thoth (the ibus-headed god of
knowledge), later known as Yog-Sothoth. Yog-Sothoth gave Cheops the knowledge of all
time and space, and Cheops incorporated this information into his pyramid. When he died,
the pyramid was to transport Cheops to another world/time/dimension. Cheops plans were
disrupted a few days after his mummy was entombed.
A group of greedy priests entered the Great Pyramid and stole the treasure. They dumped
Cheops mummy and his golden sarcophagus in the sands, burying it upside down as a
mark of disrespect. The following day, the remaining loyal priests found the tomb breached
but superstitiously attributed this to Cheops ascension to the afterlife rather than to grave
robbers, simply resealed the pyramid and the secrets of the pyramid were lost forever.
The Catacombs
The catacombs are a series of tunnels burrowed by ghouls under Arkham. There are many
entrances to the tunnels, but only two have any relevance to this adventure. The first is
under Garrison Street Bridge (area 1) while the second is through a grill on the Miskatonic
campus (area 2).
1. Under Garrison Street Bridge: Investigators who
search the south bank of the Miskatonic River will find
(with a Spot Hidden) a small tunnel under the bridge.
The walls are made of the same clay discovered earlier.
The tunnels diameter varies from two to three feet, so
the investigators will have to crawl. Hopeful
investigators may surmise that a large animal, like a
badger, has dug the tunnels walls. A light source will
be necessary.
2. Under Miskatonic University: Originally a part of
Arkhams early sewer system, the vertical shaft has not
been used since 1893. The rusty iron ladder is still safe.
There are a series of tracks in the soft clay at the base
of the ladder, which lead to area 3. A Track roll is not
necessary to follow them (they are that obvious) but
investigators must make two such rolls to determine
how many individuals made the tracks (4 sets of pawprints and one human set) and how long ago the tracks were made (within a day). Investigators who examine the dog-like prints and make a Cthulhu Mythos roll realize
that they are stalking a Minor Monster.
3. Cave: The tracks are lost in the hard earth here, as the tunnel widens into a sort of
cave. The room is filled with split bones and cracked skulls, most of them human.
There is a hole in the floor and a disgusting smell wafts up from the void. This tunnel
leads deeper into the catacombs. Those bold or foolish enough to dive into the hole
will encounter a large number of ghouls. You may like to develop this area further for
future adventures (its a veritable labyrinth) but for now it plays no part.
A successful Spot Hidden will find a watch with I.P. engraved on the back. Players
should realize this is evidence of Ian Prescotts presence here.
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Noisy investigators have a 70% chance of attracting 1d4 ghouls, which will climb out
of the hole to investigate.
4. Dead End: The tunnel here leads past a brick wall. A ragged breach in the brick has
been covered on the inside by a piece of plywood. See room 8 of Rutters House.
Rutters House
Rutter lives in an ugly square building of gray brick on the corner of Brown and Derby
Street. The roof sags like the back of a run-down mare. All the windows are curtained. The
front lawn is overgrown and two thick maples largely hide the house from the street.
1. Living Room: The living room is carpeted with a green rug and furnished with three
soft chairs and a sofa, all stained. The walls are covered with photographs of family
members and cheap landscape paintings. One photograph, of a man in his early
50s, is somewhat disturbing, although it is hard to tell why; characters that
successfully roll against both Anthropology and Cthulhu Mythos realize the mans
jaw juts out slightly and his forehead slopes back. Martin Rutter, 1913, is scribbled
on the back. A large artificial fireplace has been built into the south wall. A Spot
Hidden while searching the fireplace reveals a loose stone in the mantel behind is a
cavity in which a piece of yellowed parchment has been stashed. Written in Arabic
are the directions for the spell Contact Ghoul.
2. Kitchen: a small oak table surrounded by three rickety chairs, an icebox, and a
stove cramp this small room. The cupboards contain cheap dinnerware and canned
goods. The floor is yellowed and worn. There are obvious signs that mice live behind
the walls.
3. Closet: Inside is a ladder leading up to the attic.
4. Unused Room: This room is filled with odd pieces of furniture, boxes of old clothes,
and other junk. Judging from the layer of dust on everything, this room hasnt been
used in some time.
5. Shrine: The door to this room is locked and requires an INTx2 roll to pick the lock, a
roll on the resistance table to break it down (using the characters strength vs. the
doors strength of 10), or the key (found in room 7). The room inside is a shrine
dedicated to Yog-Sothoth, with an altar made of bone (both human and animal,
successful idea roll) covered with half-melted, colored candies. Other bones hang
like wind chimes from the ceiling. Inscriptions have been carved into the floor and
wall, darkened with blood. Characters who fail a SAN roll lose 1d3 points. The
window has a heavy blanket nailed over it.
6. Bathroom: A standard facility containing a bathtub, sink and toilet, all dirty and ill
kept.
7. Bedroom: To imagine someone sleeping in this room is nauseating. To remain
within the realm of good taste, it will suffice to say that the furnishings are covered in
filth and the floor hidden by garbage. Under the bed are five books. Four deal with
the supposed secret powers of pyramids, while the last is a leather-bound book of
great age, with the title, The Book Of Solomon (+6% knowledge, x3 spell, -1d10
SAN). It contains the following spells: Create Gate, Resurrection and Call YogSothoth. Inside the back cover is the key to room 5.
8. Cellar: There are two parts to the cellar, divided by a thick wooden wall. The
southern half is almost completely taken up by a huge black furnace and a coal bin.
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A warped piece of plywood leaning against the wall hides a three-foot diameter hole.
A Spot Hidden will only discover this hole or if the plywood is moved. The hole leads
to area 4 of the catacombs as mentioned earlier. The northern part of the cellar is
cluttered with broken and unused items. In the northeast corner is a 7x4 wooden
crate with packing manifest from Cairo and Montreal. The stolen mummy is hiding
behind the crate and will attack as soon as it is approached. Investigators should be
careful, as the mummy is a valuable archaeological artifact.
In the crate, there are twelve bottles of whiskey stacked under the packing material,
hidden here when the crate passed through Quebec.
A box in the corner contains fireworks from some previous July 4th celebrations. If
one is lit and fired as a weapon, it has a 10% chance of striking the intended target
and does 1d3 damage. If lit as a group, the box explodes doing 1d10 damage to
everyone within a one-yard radius.
9. Attic: The attic is bare. A door has been chalked on one wall and (seen with a
successful Spot Hidden) there are grains of sand on the floor in front of it. The chalk
door is a Gate, which leads to the Kings Chamber in the Great Pyramid. The Gate
requires three MP and one point of SAN to pass through. There are hooks on either
side of the door and a lantern hangs on one of them.
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assist in climbing the steep slope. At the bottom of the Gallery there is a dark hole in
the floor, covered with a locked grate. This well, as it is called, drops almost 200 to
the lower corridor and requires a Climb to descend safely. The well twists and turns
in its decent, so a fall causes only 7d6 damage.
3. Queens Chamber: Incorrectly named, this 18x18x20 high chamber was built as
the resting place for Cheops mummy but later abandoned in favor of the Kings
Chamber.
4. Plugs: At this point, three granite plugs have blocked the corridor. There is a roughhewn tunnel in the softer limestone on one side of these plugs, dug by the ninthcentury Arab caliph Abdullah Al Mamuns crew during his own explorations. Just
beyond the plugs is the corridor leading out. At night, looking towards the exit from
this corridor can see the North Star. Progress to room 5 is blocked by a locked gate.
5. Early Tomb: In the unlikely event that the investigators reach this chamber, they will
find it choked with rubble. The first burial chamber for Cheops, it was abandoned for
the Queens Chamber. Bright light will stir up the bats, which live here. For each
round until the bats settle down (in 1d6 rounds), investigators have a 5% chance of
being bitten for 1D3 points of damage.
6. Exit: Self-explanatory.
The Climax
The investigators exit the pyramid about 300 feet above the ground on the north face. A
wind stirs on the plateau and faint flute music drifts through the clear night air. Looking back
towards the pyramids top, the investigators can just make out the silhouettes of a group of
men against the flickering light of a lantern. These men are Paul Rutter, two ghouls and
Ian Prescott. The ghouls are keeping watch while Rutter summons Yog-Sothoth. Ian
Prescotts wrists are bound, but if there looks like there is hope, he will fight as best he can.
The Great Pyramid gives a 100% bonus to the casting of the Call Yog-Sothoth spell
because that is one of its original purposes. The magic points Rutter spends on the spell
will only reduce its casting time. To make the ending more climatic, you should assume
there is only 5 minutes left. If the investigators are spotted, the two ghouls will attempt to
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sneak down the other side of the pyramid and then circle round to attack the investigators
from behind. Another danger exists during the climb. People have been known to fall to
their death from the crumbing stone blocks, so near the top of the pyramid, each player
should make a Climb roll or fall for 1d6 damage.
The all-time record for pyramid climbing was five minutes 30 seconds both ways, so a fast
investigator could conceivably reach the top in, say, three minutes. This leaves two
minutes. Assuming each combat round equals 10 seconds, the investigators have 12
rounds to stop Rutter from summoning Yog-Sothoth. Unless Paul Rutter is stopped, YogSothoth will appear in its Tawil atUmr guise. Rutter will present Yog-Sothoth with Ian
Prescott as a sacrifice and in return the Opener of the Way will invest Rutter with the
secrets of time and space. This is kind of an abstract concept, but you should give Rutter a
healthy increase in statistics (particularly POW) as well as an equally substantial loss of
SAN, and allow him to learn the Time Gate (Cthulhu By Gaslight, p. 54), Summon/Bind
Dimensional Shambler and any other spells you deem appropriate. With that, Yog-Sothoth
will teleport Rutter to some other part of the galaxy. If the characters inadvertently gain YogSothoths attention (by shooting at it, for instance), Yog-Sothoth will shed its mystic veil and
appear to them in a form that is more horrible and alien than can be described in words.
Characters lose 1d100/1d1O if a SAN role is failed/passed. The investigators will have
gotten off easily. If the investigators are super-super quiet, Yog-Sothoth may not notice
them. In any case, a few minutes later, a super-sonic boom will shake the earth as YogSothoth speeds off across the desert at the speed of sound. In the next few days, reports of
UFOs and strange disappearances (e.g.: BRIGHT LIGHTS SEEN OVER TOKYO,
BERMUDA TRIANGLE CLAIMS SHIP) will skyrocket and withered corpses will be found
across the globe.
CON 15
SIZ 16
INT 13
POW 19
DEX 10
APP 8
EDU 12
SAN 24
Hit Points 15
Move 8
Skills: Bargain 15%, Debate 20%, Dodge 52%, Fast Talk 45%, Hide 50%, History
50%, Occult 65%, Sneak 50%, Cthulhu 36%
Weapons: Fist 50%, damage 1d3+1d4, Knife 35%, damage 1d4+1d4, .22 Revolver
20%, damage 1d6, attacks 3
Spells: Call Yog-Sothoth, Create Gate, and Resurrection
Paul Rutter was emotionally abused as a child. His father was obsessed with his
work at Miskatonic University and gave no time to his family. Pauls mother was a
hateful woman who spent most of her time interfering in her husbands life.
As a child, Paul vented his frustrations on small animals and later at-tempted to
break free of his mothers hold by rebelling. The occult seemed a perfect solution
and reading occult lore became his obsession. Paul was still living at home when his
father made contact with the ghouls. Due to the reading, Paul was more willing to
accept the bizarre, and his sanity fared better than his fathers. After his parents
deaths, Paul continued meeting with the ghouls and began to unravel the Cthulhoid
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mysteries. Paul Rutter calls himself a warlock. Although he has made contact with a
number of cults, he has remained independent.
He is physically imposing, standing a few inches over six feet with a thick chest and
large hands. Contact with ghouls has altered his appearance subtly; his forehead
slopes back and his jaw juts out. The things he has seen have caused his hair to turn
white prematurely (he is in his early 30s) and the maniacal gleam in his pale-blue
eyes is unnerving to those he looks at. Paul is motivated by the quest for esoteric
knowledge and the opportunity to cause pain in others.
Ian Prescott
STR 10
CON 4
SIZ 9
INT 13
POW 14
DEX 10
APP 13
EDU 16
SAN 70
Hit Points 6
Move 7
Skills: Archaeology 60% (Egyptology 90%), History 50% (Egypt 70%), Library Use
50%, Read Write Arabic 30%, Read/Write English 80%, Read/Write Hieroglyphics
75%, Speak Arabic 30%
Weapons: Fist 50%, damage 1d3 Kick 25%, and damage 1d6
Generous donations have allowed Miskatonic University to maintain a small staff of
archaeologists whose exclusive job is to excavate sites all over the world. Ian
Prescott is one of these archaeologists, the head of Egyptology since 1914. While far
from the adventuring-archaeologist mould, Prescott still prefers the overseeing of
excavations to the lecture circuit. He loves his job and is totally dedicated to it,
although he is careful not to make it the only aspect of his life.
Prescott is good looking but pale, always wiping his brow with a handkerchief. Weak
and prone to sickness, he has a pronounced limp. His prime motivation is to uncover
the Big Find, something that would turn the archaeological world on its ear. He
doesnt want fame or money (he likes his moderate lifestyle), but wants to simply do
his part in uncovering history and have the knowledge that his life has had some
worth. Prescott also enjoys his liquor and if it wasnt for his job, he might have
considered moving to Canada! If you had to describe Ian Prescott in two words, they
would be neat and prompt. His life was in perfect order, until recently!
Ghouls
STR 16
CON 13
SIZ 13
INT 13
POW 13
DEX 13
Hit Points 13
Move 9
Weapons: Claw 30%, Damage 1d6+1d4, Bite 30%, and damage 1d6+1d4+worry
Skills: Climb 85%, Hide 60%, jump 75%, Listen 70%, Sneak 80%, Spot Hidden 50%
Armor: none. Blunt weapons do half damage.
SAN: Seeing a ghoul costs 0/1d6
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Pharaoh Cheops
STR 22
CON 12
SIZ 9
INT 11
POW 15
DEX 9
Hit Points 11
Move 5
Conclusion
Although this adventure is potentially very dangerous, the satisfaction of saving a close
friend should be enough.
Sanity gains
Defeating the mummy is worth 1d8, while each of the ghouls slain is worth an increase of
1d6 SAN. If Prescott survives the investigators should receive a further sanity bonus of 2d4
Loose Ends
The mummy of Cheops is an important archaeological artifact. Miskatonic University will
reward its return by paying each investigator $100 and in the future will allow them to use
all campus facilities, including access to their copy of the Necronomicon. If Rutter
succeeds, he could become a major opponent in your campaign.
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