Tell Me, Have You Seen the Yellow Sign? Part I

The next scenario was taken, again, from the Chaosium publication, The Great Old Ones. It's titled "Tell Me, Have You Seen the Yellow Sign?

It is an awesome adventure. If you're looking for something to run for your group, I very much recommend it. Unlike the previous "Still Waters," I really didn't change anything -  it's great as written.

Once again, this is a summation of our game. Many details have been left out for the sake of brevity.

We left our players as they were traveling down to New Orleans in the hopes of trying to figure out why this mysterious yellow symbol they found in a spell book is being displayed on banners at the Mardi Gras celebration.

Soon after arriving in New Orleans our players discover, through a contact, that a reporter, Peter Gavvin, was found dead on the university grounds and clutching a piece of paper with the Yellow Sign on it. 

Yellow Sign

His death is deemed a suicide by the police, believing he jumped from the top of one of the buildings, but the players speak with a professor at the university who believes he landed too far away from the structure for it to be possible.

The city editor is an old army buddy of Gunner's and they are given the dead reporter's notes to go through. Apparently, he was writing about how some of the festival organizers were into the occult and were financed by the rich and influential in the city.

Two names that stand out are Denis Bouchard and Randall Fowler. Bouchard is a wealthy playboy, gambler, collector of antiquities and race car driver. Fowler is also wealthy, due to his family making money off the backs of indentured servants. Fowler lost his wife and child recently and after that he became obsessed with the occult, which is when he met a voodoo priest called Papa Screech.

The players go to Bouchard's favourite restaurant for dinner in the hopes of meeting him and they do. After introducing themselves, Bouchard is impressed with Hillary's name and wealth, so he invites Hillary and the others to the Masquerade Ball on Mardi Gras Day at Randall Fowler's home. Bouchard isn't very helpful in unraveling any clues regarding the reporter's death but by the end of the conversation, he and Hillary agree to a car race at the track the next day.

Denis Bouchard

After dinner, James and Dockery go to an old book store and with the store owner's help, find a copy of The King in Yellow. It has the slightly luminous Yellow Sign on the front cover which beckons them to read its foul and debased contents. Beguiled, they take it back to the hotel and sink into the otherworldly text. Written as an allegorical play, it describes The King in Yellow as an avatar of Hastur, a great Old One. Soon after reading it, James and Dockery both have a very similar and strange, fevered dream:

The next day is a busy one for our group: they meet at the race track where Hillary (having made a nice Credit Rating roll) pulls up in a Bugatti. With the wave of the green flag,  Hillary digs deep, hits the accelerator and in the end leaves Bouchard eating his dust as he speeds across the finish line. Bouchard is none-too-pleased and says his car was having problems. He doesn’t like to lose, especially in front of people in his home town who know him.

In the afternoon, Fowler is interviewed by the players at his lavish, but sparsely staffed, mansion. He admits to having spoken with the dead reporter and shows sympathy at his passing: “Too bad about the poor fellow; these atheists are an unstable lot.”  He says the Yellow Sign was Papa Screech’s idea and seems unconcerned about it. When asked about the King in Yellow, Fowler looks nervous and avoids answering. He says Papa Screech is helping him deal with the deaths of his family. “He’s opened my eyes to a world beyond, where my loved ones are always close by.”

Randall Fowler

At night while walking back to the hotel, a group of toughs try to rob and kill the players, paying special attention to Hillary. However, always welcoming a good fight, the players give the thugs a thorough beat down, with a few managing to run away, having met their match.

The next day our players visit the festival "Krewe" that is responsible for the display of the strange symbol. The warehouse is run by mostly illiterate swamp folk and the luminous Yellow Sign is on banners throughout. It is here they finally meet Papa Screech. While polite, there is something about Screech that is unnerving: he constantly smiles and has a contemptuous air about him.  He says the Yellow Sign came to him in a vision (which prompts James and Dockery to both look at each other with wide eyes). Screech says he has a shack near Nightmare Lake, with the other swamp folk, and extends an invitation for the players to visit anytime.

Papa Screech

That night, James (thanks to a random die roll) is bitten by a poisonous snake that somehow made its way into his hotel bed. He does not die, but the players are getting the feeling they are no longer welcome in New Orleans.

The next day, our brave investigators make their way out to the swamp where Papa Screech lives. Deep in its murky depths, they find a small island and after looking around they find large stones arranged in a pattern. There are also some huts (with the inhabitants presumably at the Krewe warehouse) and in one is a magical gateway that leads to a room in Fowler's home. They go through the gate and proceed to search Fowler's residence and find a shrine dedicated to his departed loved ones, a copy of The King in Yellow and a spell book with a Call/ Dismiss Hastur ritual. They also find a journal with an entry titled "Coronation of the King." Scanning the journal, they realize Papa Screech is grooming Fowler to become the vassal of the King in Yellow. The ritual is to take place tomorrow night in the swamp.

That night at the players' hotel, James (thanks to another random die roll) is ambushed in his room and stolen away into the night. He awakens on the roof of the Krewes warehouse surrounded by a few of the swamp folk, a byakee and Papa Screech. James tries to struggle free but Screech hypnotizes him into drinking a Space Mead potion, then James is placed on the back of the byakee and flown off to Carcosa, 68 lights years away.

Night flight – Byakhee artwork – Copyright 2010 Fantasy Flight Games

It only takes a few hours for the byakee to travel through space to the hideous twilight planet called Carcosa. James is dropped in the dark and terrifying, maze-like streets of the alien city with the Lake of Hali near by. Hastur is rumoured to reside beneath its depths and James knows this, having read The King in Yellow. As James wanders he hears unnerving wails off in the distance; sees winged creatures flying in the dark clouds above and horrific splashes in the foggy lake where a glowing Yellow Sign can be seen below. James's sanity is dwindling with each passing moment as he begins to lose all hope of ever seeing the Earth again. 

Black stars begin to rise while the black moons circles throughout the skies and as night descends on strange Carcosa, Clyde Arizona James falls to his knees and starts to scream.

Here is part II and the conclusion to "Tell Me, Have You Seen the Yellow Sign?"

Still Waters - Call of Cthulhu

This scenario was altered from its originally written format but still contains spoilers. The following is a summation of our gaming sessions.

The first adventure in our campaign was Still Waters, taken from the Chaosium publication called The Great Old Ones for the Call of Cthulhu RPG.

Arkham, Massachusetts. Spring- 1925

Our adventurous Professor of Archaeology and Ancient History - Arizona James - is approached by the aged Dr. Brodsky of Miskatonic U., and asked if he is interested in retrieving the Vishakhapatnam fragments, described as brass plates of unspeakable lore from Vajrayana and Buddhist origins. These ancient tablets are possessed by a Victor Davies and his daughter, living outside of New Orleans and have agreed to the sale of the fragments.

Victor is a historian who gravitated to the occult. He lives with his daughter, Philippa, who studied the history and practice of witchcraft. Both are regarded as bibliomaniacs.

Having met Philippa in the past, Arizona agrees to take on the task and asks his friends to join him. Hillary, Dockery and “Gunner” either have family down south or are in need of extra cash, so they all accept. Hopping on board a train to New Orleans, the players then take a bumpy bus ride to the remote town of Davies Landing.

After arriving, they are greeted by the inhabitants with unfriendly stares, while dogs froth and snarl and pull on thin, strained leashes as the players pass by. Davies Landing is a small port town and the inhabitants of this inbred, backwater community don’t like strangers. The weather is unusually hot and humid making conditions here almost unbearable. There is a strong feeling of isolation as there isn't another town within 20 miles. 

Our players find a ramshackle hotel and after getting settled, rent a barely-operating vehicle from the hotel's proprietor and head out to the Davies' residence as it starts to rain.

The players arrive at their destination, a framed house of two stories. To the side of the residence are two French doors left wide open that lead inside. It looks as though they were forced open.

Inside the house it is a shambles, having been ransacked by person(s) unknown. On the floor, the butler is found mutilated with a bent shot gun at his side and the Davies are nowhere to be found. The house is silent after the gruesome assault, the only sounds being the rain on the trees outside and the distant pounding of thunder.

The next day, police are contacted and the players are questioned and told not to leave town. The players, having searched the Davies' house, found a folder with some information leading them to investigate the nearby Rosethorn Mansion. They learn the last surviving Rosethorns, two daughters, are living at the mansion and are competitors of the Davies for rare books and written antiquities. The players believe the daughters broke into the Davies', killed the butler and stole the Vishakhapatnam fragments.

Our group of impetuous investigators drive at night to the Rosethorns and near the mansion they find a car hidden in bushes off the side of the road near the riverbank. A map and shotgun shells lay on the floor of the car. The players ditch their rented car and proceed on foot. 

The Rosethorn Mansion is old with a stone foundation and in disrepair. After scouting, the players break in and quietly search the mansion. They find two large blood stains on the living room floor and a shotgun which Gunner takes. More searching reveals a hollow space behind the stone fireplace leading to descending stairs. As they proceed down the secret passage, something below starts playing what sounds like an out-of-tune piano. Going down the stone steps they reach the cellar and here they see a large basement with a fifteen foot river running underneath the house, through the middle of the floor.

Along side the river, with one leg chained each to a huge stone are the - barely conscious and bleeding - Victor and Philippa Davies. Standing near them is a six-and-a-half foot tall Thrall of Cthulhu, reciting incomprehensibly from a leather-bound book. 

Art by Loïc Muzy Art

Nearby is the source of the maddening music, another thrall playing a piano, whose performance evokes sounds seemingly from another world that only the truly mad would appreciate.

Gunner and Dockery cover their ears, too disturbed by the music to act, but Hillary and James manage to both pull their revolvers and let loose on the thralls. Hillary suffers a few lacerations but the thralls are eventually taken down in a hail of bullets.

Then suddenly, bursting forth from the river and leaping onto the cellar floor, is a four-armed deep one who stands at least 12 feet tall. Final cries of pain are heard from Victor and Philippa as the multi-armed monster rips them apart and quickly swallows their eviscerated torsos. 

Players reaction:

As the giant deep one approaches, Gunner recovers his wits and opens up with his shotgun. Dockery soon follows, firing his revolver. James then pulls out his hunting knife and leaps at the creature's back but in mid air gets his abdomen ripped open by a huge clawed hand and is left bleeding to death on the floor. 

Hillary and the others continue their assault as black blood sprays across the room from the creature's massive, bullet-ridden body. Finally, it staggers back and falls to the floor, shaking the mansions' stone foundation. Its impact sprays blood onto Dockery's face and as he wipes away the thick, black ichor, his mind desperately tries to comprehend what they've just witnessed. They all stare blankly at the two tentacle faced females and the four armed monstrosity that now lay dead on the ground before them.

After stabilizing James, the players pick up the leather bound book. It's written in English and bookmarked at a section that seems to be a Calling ritual. Scanning the book, it is full of strange incantations with bizarre words and symbols. However, one symbol in the book has little description but looks familiar: the player's recall seeing it on some Mardi Gras festival signs when they recently stopped in New Orleans.

The players ask: Why is this symbol connected to these horrific creatures and why is it being openly displayed for all to see in the streets of a heavily populated city during Mardi Gras?

Our players mail the Vishakhapatnam fragments to Dr. Brodsky; cancel whatever future commitments they have; and make their way to New Orleans to try and unravel the mystery of this strange, yellow symbol.

Call of Cthulhu Campaign - The Characters

I was running an AD&D game for almost 4 years, with the occasional Star Trek Adventures thrown in just to mix things up a bit. Then the pandemic hit. We chose to continue our gaming over zoom but I didn't want to run D&D or STA that way.

I thought about it and figured Call of Cthulhu (3E) would be a good fit: simple, rules-lite and mostly narrative play. 

The plan was to run a short campaign and I figured (or hoped) they'd end up dying horribly by a huge clawed monster or go insane and have to be locked away from society, permanently. I made a handful of pre-made characters for my players to pick from: I wanted some cohesion in why they would be working together and better skills than a new, starting character. Everyone picked their guy and were allowed to make a few changes here and there if they didn't like something I had allotted. 

So, after a bit of tweaking, here are the stars of our show (portraits and background chosen/ written by players):

Clyde Arizona James is a renowned Professor of Archaeology at Miskatonic University with a strong interest in the occult. Arizonia spends much of his time travelling abroad searching for relics from ancient cults and forgotten civilizations. He is also looking for his supervisor, Jim Idaho, who vanished while on an expedition in Central America, five years ago. Arizonia is a skilled mechanic and pilot. He loves animals (especially snakes).

Born August 29th, 1878, in Providence, Rhode Island, second of two sounds to Clive and Michelle Dockery. Became involved in writing about, and publishing, articles in local and state papers regarding civil corruptions and working class causes during high school. Graduated from Browns University, writing both journalism and fiction during and after graduation. Married Isabelle Chastain, 1903, Served as a lieutenant in WWI from 1917-18: got “Dear John” letter in Oct. 1918. Continues to write journalism and fiction from social justice causes.

Born in the United States of America (Innsmouth Massachusetts). Parents were German immigrants. Served with the American Expeditionary Forces during WWI, within the Tank Corps. Earned the nickname “Gunner,” for his natural aptitude for violence and track record for blowing s#@* up on the battlefield. Since retiring from the army, he has been taking contracts that require his special “skill set."

Born July 20th, 1885 Auckland. New Zealand Mountaineer and Antarctic explorer who was the first to reach the summit of Mount Logan (5,595 meters) and was also one of the first of four teams to explore and ascend Everest in 1924.

He never anticipated his mountain climbs or explorations to the Antarctic would claim the attention and following that would soon come. He was knighted in 1925, shortly after his expedition returned to London from Everest. From 1923-1925 he served as New Zealand’s high commissioner to India, Nepal. The Hillary family fortune enabled him to high levels of education and several homes abroad. This spawned his love for language, mountain climbing, race cars and flying. After his climb of Mt. Everest, one of his main interests was the welfare of the Himalayan peoples of Nepal, especially the Sherpas.

Edmund’s first expedition in 1902 was the first attempt to scale K2. It was led by English mountaineer Oscar Eckenstein and English occultist Aleister Crowley.

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I wanted to do something different this time for Call of Cthulhu. I wanted to have these players confront the worst horrors imaginable in the entire mythos, to come face to face with the monstrosities we only joked about meeting, and let their choices and the dice determine the outcomes. 

Death and insanity are usually inevitable in Call of Cthulhu. Going out as a hero is not.