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You’re a student, it’s the 90s, you live in Innsmouth, and something dark and terrifying is about to take your life by storm. As if adolescence wasn’t bad enough, now you’ll have to deal with the supernatural of cosmic horror on a stage lit by the bright, fluorescent colors of the Nineties. What a mix!
High School Cthulhu draws its inspiration from the teen drama series of the 90s—from Beverly Hills 90210 and Dawson’s Creek to the action & horror classics of the genre like Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Roswell.
TEEN DRAMA - The protagonists of this game are going through quite the delicate phase of their existence, neither children nor yet adults. The generational conflict rages on in the process of building a new identity, and the early forays in the world of love and sex are powers not easily denied, with tools in the game to make these aspects of teenage life engaging and fun.
CTHULHU MYTHOS - The whole setting, down to the very town, for the adventures of our students, is steeped in the lore of the novels by Howard Phillips Lovecraft. Most of the characters and locales in this book are inspired by the works of the author of Providence, and our take on what Innsmouth could have been like in the Nineties is still strongly connected to the so-called Cthulhu Mythos.
THE 90's - If you downloaded even just one song from Napster in your life, you already know everything there is to know. The world is about to change forever; cellular phones are extremely expensive bricks, and the internet is still nascent and so slow we lack the words to explain it.
In the High School Cthulhu handbook, you will find everything you need to play, from how to create your student, to information about our beloved 1990s Innsmouth, its people, and attractions.
High School Cthulhu is powered by a highly cinematic game engine called Director's Cut. The system uses small pools of six-sided dice to determine the outcome of anything that involves a risk or a danger. When rolling dice, you're not looking to roll high or low, but to group as many matching symbols together.
This engine is by Two Little Mice, fresh winners of two Ennie Awards, and used in the big hits Outgunned, Outgunned Adventure, and Household
The Director's Cut engine is perfect for a game style that traces the progression of a TV series, and we have introduced some tools to bring out the best of the themes that characterize High School Cthulhu: Lovecraftian horror and teen drama.
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The Spiral of Madness - When interacting with nightmarish entities and situations that transcend reality, madness and folly are natural companions. There are truths our brain simply cannot handle, and this is exactly what the Spiral of Madness represents. Whenever you black a box of the Spiral of Madness out, you gain a Disorder that will influence your behavior to some extent.
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Drama - The explosive cocktail of overwhelming passions and conflict with the adult world that adds tension to the emergent narrative is represented by Drama, an indicator ranging from 1 to 12 that allows the Ancient (the game master) to weave new variables, twists and obstacles into the story as it heads to its climax. Drama is a tool shared by all players and tracked by the Ancient.
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