Call of Cthulhu: In The House of Glass - RPG Review
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- Опубліковано 4 жов 2024
- The investigators attend an exclusive glass sculpture exhibit held inside a conservatory. Little do they realize what horrors await them. This Modern-Era adventure is designed for both the Call of Cthulhu and Trail of Cthulhu roleplaying games. Here are my criticisms, tips, and Game Master suggestions (as well as some stupid jokes).
You can find it here on DriveThruRPG: www.drivethrur...
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Guest starring Jack the NPC.
Seth learned so much about sprinkler systems while he was a real estate agent for Scott Brown.
David.....you nailed it! Hahaha.
Great call back! Ha, ha!
Scott “if I’ve got a showing, you’d best be going” Brown
Samuel Jackson worked for Scott Brown for one day and now hes know for saying muthafucka.
"Hello internet..." is code for it's going to be a great day
Amen to that
And hello internet to you all
Amen
Yes it is!!!!!
Just a random fact, the magic powder is called "Nfsi Al Haya" which is roughly "Breath of Life" in Arabic. So Tessaily was literally breathing life into his pieces.
Holy crap. That is an awesome detail. Thanks for sharing.
That's interesting, in Hebrew the sentence you wrote translates pretty much to the same thing only slightly different: "My soul into/on to animal.
The Hebrew words for breath and soul are very similar:
Soul- Nfshi
Breath- Nshfi
I wonder if the similarity between the two is also present in Arabic.
P.S. Also the words animal and life are very similar:
Haya- animal
Hayim- life
The H needs be pronounced with the back of the throat sound
If this would inspire Seth's writing in any way I'd be extremely glad 😁
@@edc5378 getting a lot of Warbreaker vibes from that tidbit. I like it.
My knowledge of Hebrew is nonexistent, so feel free to correct me, but in the story of the golem was the word that was used “emet,” which high is supposed to mean life?
@@jesternario Emet actually means "truth."
I kind of want a shirt that says "Game Masters Have the Strangest Internet Search History"
Bonus if it has weird examples that make sense to Game Masters like "How to plan a heist" or "Rabbit people" 😂
For me, English is a foreign language.
So I often have to look up strange words.
@@larsdahl5528 Don't feel bad. I am a native English speaker with a vocabulary in excess of 39,000 English words... and I still have to look up strange words.
I picked up a shirt at a writing conference that says "My browser history can get me arrested."
Some of my GM search history and science related viewing could place me on a watch list.
Of course, these days we're essentially on them already. Hrmm.. 'Big Brother' related CoC scenario ideas incoming.
That conversation between Seth and Jack about dark purple versus ultraviolet light was so well done.
Not only was the science on, but the framing and rhythm sold it as a conversation between two different people. Seth, seated, looks up and to his left while Jack, standing, looks down and to his right.
I felt like I was the third person at the gaming table.
As a person who works in the fire protection industry thank you for getting the basics of fire sprinkler activation right.
Nice to see someone fighting Hollywood nonsense, isn't it? Movie sprinkler systems are usually almost as realistic as their firearms are. :)
*is suddenly relieved her glasses are made of lightweight plastic*
Indeed. Pretty sure some cell phones have no glass components as well, although others do. Shop wisely to avoid situations like this. :)
@@richmcgee434 you'd go... err, be mad not to
Guys I have owned the keeper screen pack for 3 years and never realized I owned Missed Dues and Blackwater Creek. I have been wanting to buy those for years. All I have ever got out of it was the keeper screen. So recently I opened it up completely and I feel like an idiot.
Well at least it's a nice surprise, look at it that way.
I tried running Blackwater Creek. The players were doing the bootlegger group, and it basically ended in them just ignoring the plot, ignoring all the monsters, following instructions to the letter and no further, and then running away. At least people had fun, which is what matters in the end.
You know what they say: When in a glass house, throw stones.
When trapped in a glass house, sure.
Seth is a real semantics guy, the Book of Eibon and the Liber Ivonis are the same book in different languages :D
I would do unspeakable things to get a shirt with Jack's looming gaze with "Jack Is Always Watching" on it.
Ok internet, now the real mystery begins....why *does* Seth know so much about sprinkler systems??
Weed.
Perhaps because it is a quick way to keep the deep ones happy?
Rich Evans cleans his gutters.
Worked in sprinkler repair once to learn about it for a game. Basically dude is like Sherlock Homes of ttrpgs.
This thing with magic glass brought to mind a somewhat surreal French film "Dark Portals: The Chronicles of Vidocq" where an alchemist fashions a mirror mask which captures the life essence of those the wearer looks at while killing them, making the wearer almost immortal. Seems like a goof CoC senario.
Seems like a good followup if you have the villain from this one escape.
Have this movie at home. It's absolutely great!
got it too, great underrated movie with enough mystique about everything. yeah it fits kinda.
btw everywhere else its just called vidocq.
Old glass had small amounts of Uranium oxide in it that causes it to glow under a uv light source, BTW. Some of these glass pieces are very valuable.
I've got a few shards of the stuff from an old lamp my great-grandparents owned. My grandfather (who was quite the home science/engineering buff) held onto them all his life and I wound up inheriting them.
@@richmcgee434 I actually have three whole cups made something like that way. Safe, but old and green and they glow slightly.
If you want have the furnace take several minutes to cool down. Meanwhile any remaining creatures head to the furnace slowly losing mobility but grouped near the players. Also there should be sharpnel from destroying large glass creatures.
Oh! That's a good point. Industrial glass furnaces can take FOREVER to cool down (or at least cool enough to switch out molds), so I imagine a smaller one would take at least a few hours.
Having been to several large exhibits of Chihuly works, I wholeheartedly endorse the perception that they could be infused with mythos power. Very interesting.
The glow is a *mysterious color, unlike any seen on Earth.*
Osp!
So many lines from that live rent-free in my head.
Not spelling it "Colour", I am disappointed in you, even as a fellow American I know that's the only way to address the Colour Out of Space...
"Hello Internet." Time for me to take a break for 20 minutes and just enjoy listening to Seth talk about Cthulhu. Getting me in the mood for starting Masks of Nyarlathotep this evening
Instead of an ingredient, there might be a "sigil" or "pattern" that makes the magic stop, or isolates the magical effects.
Maybe the artist deliberately did it different, and it has to be put back the "right way".
I thought the idea was to lake the players go through all the bioms
@@trbry. So? Make them go and look to see how the plants are marked, and what sigils are there. Then they can know what went wrong, or how he did it.
It won't matter, either way.
They might even be able to work it out without any book, or formulas. More than one way to solve it, without railroading players.
I never knew I needed Sprinkler Facts in my life. But I did.
Normal people:
Talks abouts the book they wrote
Seth:
Leaves it in the background on a stand that nobody would ever own unless purposely trying to display it
Its how you establish dominance
I find it less bothersome than wasting everyone's time droning on and on about my books when they came for other content. I've endured far too many 10-minute videos that consisted of 5 minutes of self-promotion and 5 minutes of content, and I refuse to subject that on my audience. I might plug my writing in a vid every few months, but not every video. Instead, I'll place one behind me, put some links and brief book pitches in the video description, and give the content that people came to see. Sure, I'd probably sell a lot more books if I did active self-promo and got in everyone's face with it, but this feels a lot less greasy.
@@pretentiousname01 Or show class
@@SSkorkowsky Definitely a class act. I think a lot of people dislike the "Here's half a video of self promotion, now on with the content you actually came to see." I haven't gotten the opportunity for a lot of recreational reading in the last several years, but the wife and I picked up the Valducan series on Audible for our honeymoon road trip and thoroughly enjoyed them.
I'm about half way through the first valdulcan book its definitely a good read so far especially since seth showed me where to get it for less than 900 dollars definitely a great deal.
My only regret for having watched this Video 20 minutes after it was posted, is that now I have to wait a whole week for the next one.
I can neither confirm nor deny the existence of my internet search history Jack.
Good Man!!
Search history exists, it’s a matter of wether or not it’s suspect
The magical glass thing reminds be if this short story I read in highschool. It's about a boy who looks through the different colored shards of glass of a window he broke and when looking through them he sees one of his grandmother's tenets (she's running a boarding house) as some kind of vampiric monster. So he sneaks into the guys room while he's taking a nap and cuts him open and pulls out all of his weird vampire organs. It's left kinda ambiguous whether or not the guy was actually a monster or whether the kid was just a little psycho. Super lovecraftian through.
Highly original adventure. I like the premise very much. Seth Mustachekowsky is kinda creepy looking.
some ppl are train obsessed, some ppl are elevator obsessed, and then there's at least one guy who's sprinkler system obsessed.
You can make the adventure inside The Crystal Palace, the London exhibition hall (made almost entirely from glass) that burned down in 1936 or replica of it for more modern setting just as a flavor fluff.
I thought it was about the crystal palace. That it is just in an ordinary conservatory was a bit of a down turn.
Burned down you say? As if it were exposed white hot molten glass.......
I've seen those glass statues irl they are really beautiful
Save or Lose 1D4 SAN
They remind me a little bit of those aluminum castings of abandoned ant colonies people were doing a while back. Maybe still doing for all I know, despite some rather strident backlash about animal cruelty that made it sound like the next thing was going to be bronzing live kittens or something.
Using the whole glass on the smartphone thing and important thing to remember is a lot of modern smartphones. Have glass on the front but also on the back so that could be used as a really cool way to maybe describe how the players try to drop their phone but they can't because it's now wrapped around their fingers
wow, my copy of bayt al azif just arrived yesterday!
you all knowing devil
I'll be honest, I can't hear "glass walkers" without thinking of my favorite Werewolf: the Apocalypse tribe.
Who doesn't love werewolves in mirrorshades?
Well, Red Talons obviously, but that's another story. :)
Man running this in a Renaissance Era sounds fun too. Maybe have the players help the people find the magic dust. Many sessions later after finding it they'll get an invitation to see the artist again, make them really nice but quirky so they'll be interested in seeing them again.
THEN UNLEASH THE HORROR OF LIVING GLASS UPON THEM.
I'm planning on running a low fantasy Renaissance ish Era campaign in a couple weeks and the CoC playlist has been great for inspiration for future potential adventures and hooks.
Citizen, Ultraviolet has clearance to wear whatever color it likes. -Your Friend, the Computer.
THIS IS A FORMAL DEMAND FOR THE SPRINKLER STORY, WITH HASTE
Mr Skorkowsky releasing new video? Instant like and then lets see why it was a good idea.
I always love seeing a new CoC review from Seth. I've discovered and ran so many great scenarios that my players loved thanks to him.
my thought was chuck stones at the sprinklers to activate them, there should be enough fiddly bits in a sprinkler head for that to work. also lots of plants have more than one name and some of them are kinda odd. have some of the plants called by one of its stranger pseudonyms and suddenly the pc's are trying to steal some guys pants while looking for 'old mans breaches'. it may not be a thing to use to often for any particular group but herb lore can provide a surprising amount of red herrings. could make a realy interesting idea for failing a pushed roll.
Part of me wants to play this full suit and tie with added water effects. Imagine roleplaying the introduction before descending into getting drenched as you use water to defeat the creatures.
Architectural comment: Don't really see an obvious sprinkler room, FDC, or mechanical room somewhere on that plan. Something like that would require some big mechanical stuff to maintain two separate biomes. It'd all be kludged on, though, considering 100 years. Also would be tempting to create this whole huge fire hazard of the scenario as hot molten glass guys just barge after the PCs and ignore the plants they're setting on fire, but that might be too much.
Today I learned that glory holes exist outside of public restrooms.
Nicely done. I've read this one and it's interesting. I love your ideas for additions to it.
One of my players was playing as a fireman and early on shut off the furnace as it’s a “fire hazard”. Ending the session very quickly. It was just starting to get weird when it ended.
This sounds like an amazing one-shot adventure to run. Definitely adding this one to my Wish List of modules I want to Keep.
As a St. Louisan, I appreciate Seth's effort in regards to Jack's background. That is, in fact, the interior of the Jewel Box Conservatory here in town. Well done sir!
I don't look at anyone's search history.
...And I expect the same from you.
...Jack.
If you want to look up a neat type of glass that's sort of like what's being described in this module, check out Vaseline glass, also known as "uranium glass" or "radium glass". Its standard name comes from the yellow color of the glass in normal light, and the others because part of the process of their creation involved mixing small amounts of uranium dioxide in with the glass. When exposed to an ultraviolet light, the glass' radioactive particles will start to glow a bright, neon green color. Vaseline glass was originally made in the 1920's, but production stopped in the mid-1940's after the U.S government confiscated all uranium for the war effort. They tried bringing it back in 1958, but the now much higher cost of uranium made it impractical.
In fact the way they describe the glass being made and the way it's said to glow under its own light makes me wonder if the module writers weren't inspired by Vaseline glass when they wrote it.
As someone who was born in Tacoma, Chihuly's home city, this really speaks to me. I'm going to have to run this for sure at some point.
This sounds like a legitimately cool adventure and I'd love to see another conservatory used as a horror setting.
Growing up in Cincinnati I am familiar with the Krohn Conservatory which is just a little too small to adapt to this adventure, but I can also see that place being a great funhouse for some botanical scares in another mystery. I should start writing...
And googling maps...
If you live near Oklahoma City you should convince your group to see the Chihuly exhibit at the art museum there. Go before running the module to set the scene. Go after for a spooky experience.
Another great review. I am a little worried that Seth know that my internet search history is full of dad joke searches. 😆
You should store those in a dad-a-base.
@@larsdahl5528 you know what I should 😆
The Keeper could also mention how there is a violet glow coming from the sprinkler system glass tubes like the windows. This gives the players a hint that setting off the sprinkler system may not work.
I’m a simple man. I see Seth, I click.
I must agree! quite
12:42, my immediate and exact thought. Great video Seth.
This is a great review of a fun sounding scenario. Thank you and Jack and the boys for continuing to post these videos
So envious that you've had more than one occasion to run an adventure with the actual authors, my friend! Kuddos of course.
I do admit though, that your suggestions for improving on the original designs, are extremely worthwhile and much appreciated!
It's awesome. The more I player the more I realise I love location base adventure.
*spoilers and more suggestions*
I have two more useful suggestions: Firstly, GMs might want to make the worker's fall to their death very audible, so that the PCs have more of a reason to go investigating further inside the exhibition hall and secondly, for GMs who want a different kind of foreshadowing for the weakness of the glass monsters, you can give the glass blowing crash course to the players as a handout, part of the exhibition's pamphlet or something. Hey Seth! That's another reason to give one more handout 😉
Phenomenal idea Seth. Herb collecting instead of the lackluster ending. Great work as always.
There should be a Cthulhu adventure about the gross sprinkler pipe water!
He knows so much about sprinkler systems because he used to install them with Rich Evens...
Yeah game masters have the strangest and most suspicious internet search histories & book collections .
Thanks for the great review Seth, and all the really clever advice! We're glad you enjoyed playing this one.
My Character in this will be a City building or Fire department inspector checking on building code ensuring there is sprinkle system throughout the building.
Great Review, Thank you Mr Skorkowsky for the awesome content!
Oh heck, my favorite semi-alcoholic noir detective made a new vid!
Just as a major note, the place would have a second sprinkler system built in.
Pretty much every conservatory type has a sprinkler system set up to handle most of the watering. They don't have the glass part for it, normally a knob by spigots for turning it on with older ones, newer systems tend to have alternate controls for it.
Damn, 17 seconds? Never seen one this early. Bonus surprise for my wednesday afternoon :)
I'm really digging Jack's Modern day investigator outfit
I've hand enough people pop a sprinkler in my time to know the horrid stench in those pipes... as does half of my group.
Sounds like a cool adventure
Bellagio glass chandelier gets angry.
Love your channel. I have to ask you, please do a video on how to change call of cthulhu modules into pulp cthulhu. Tips, character changes and feel of the game. Thanks for your videos I watch and rewatch them all the time.
Depends mostly on the adventure itself. But first, make the villains into a Pulp Villains (boosted HP, Special Abilities, Luck spends, etc.) increase the number of threats (more mook cultists, add an appropriate new monster or badguys where they fit) such as "Now the old house has a guardian the badguy summoned to protect this place". Many of the older CoC scenarios or the now-discontinued-but-not-impossible-to-find Goodman Games 'Age of Cthulhu' adventures can be converted super easy, as they were already a little too tough for a regular group. I've converted a good number of CoC modules for Pulp, and most still feel exactly like a CoC adventure with some appropriate threat increase to make up for the PC's upped HP and abilities. Some I might add more pulpy elements like weird science, but only when it makes sense and doesn't feel forced in.
@@SSkorkowsky thank you Seth for the advice and for taking time out to answer my questions. Also Thank you for being the one to really get me into Cthulhu. Although I'll be GM mostly, LOL. Keep the videos coming.
I agree, love the unique setting!
Lol, the one opening where a VPN commercial would of made sense!
I now HAVE to know as to why Seth knows so much about sprinkler systems.
Dude, you could totally rock a real mustache. Thanks for the video!
Good to see you Seth.
I really wanna run this adventure with my group, but we’re doing a 1920s campaign, not modern day. Suggestions?
The scenario covers this one as well. Simply swap personal cell phones for a single desk phone in the lobby. After the scenario gets going, a passing Glass Walker melts the phone or the cord.
@@SSkorkowsky gotcha, thank you Seth! Keep being awesome! I’ll give this scenario a go. I think my group will like it.
@@craftsmenMC The 1920s have some other possibilities to consider. People were more likely to carry mirrors and watches without cell cameras to check their looks or the time, monocles were still in style and almost all eyeglasses were actually glass rather than today's plastics. Small medicine bottles would also be glass rather than plastic, and while serious drinkers would usually have metal hip flasks flat glass bottles weren't unheard of either. Different world in a lot of small ways without access to cheap plastics everywhere.
Jokes on you Jack, I'm always in incognito mode
Your ISP is still watching you, with it's wee beady eyes.
Been up for 37 mins and already 1000+ views. That’s got to be a good feeling.
I wonder if it’d be fun to have it where some of the plants aren’t quite what Tissely mentioned in his notebooks, like same genus, different species kinda thing. So you can make it a skill challenge to get the right plant species, but failure just means that the spell you cast later might have additional unintended effects.
Thanks for the upload
I live in Columbus and it's sort of cool that someone thought to make a CoC adventure in the Franklin Park Conservatory.
For those interested in glass blowing check out Corning Museum of Glass's channel.
Id also love you to cover Twilight of the fifth sun. Featured in secrets of new orleans.
My internet search history? Oh I’m definitely on some watch lists on both sides of the Atlantic 🤣! Yet another cracking review 💜 🦑
Another possibility would be CO2 fire extinguishers. They would cause extra cold versus the Glasswalkers.
Have you considered doing a collab with Mr. Tex of the Black Pants Legion podcast? They would love to have you on the podcast to talk RPG's, DM'ing, all sorts of stuff. I think it would be great!
17:10 ... just have the monsters start coming through the walls at them... This sounds horrifying! 🤣🤣
Bonus points if the critters absorb material from the walls and grow larger as they pass through - although that would also leave ahole the players can try to get through.
Lovin’ Jack’s fancy ‘stache.
This has made my day, thanks Seth, was in need of a campaign quickly for CoC, and this seems good!
Imagine if one of the PC's wore glasses during this
Hey it's my favourite glass sculptor!
I am sure that sprinkler heads do work in unison. If on goes several in the loop will go. it is from the loss of pressure. The glass bulbs are al held in place by the kinetic water pressure. As soon as one goes and the water starts to flow; the pressure in the others is low enough for those to drop out. I have actually witnesses it (not exactly first hand). At a place I was working and repairmen knocked the bulb out of one sprinkler but every sprinkler in the room started soaking the room.
Oh Jack.. I'm surprised my browser history didn't cause you some sanity loss
Great ideas and suggestions for game play!
Well I know what I’m watching during lunch break. I’ll be back later for sure.
edit: i was not disappointed
Hey Seth another great video. While I don’t run CoC I love pirating ideas for my own games.
If you want it to continue on with the players after this adventure, the players order through newspapers or a actual news tv. Strange magic that affected The Glasshouse also effect every other glass in a 5 kilometres, this could lead to several mythos and Mundine cases for the players to continue
Just ordered to run for my Birthday can't wait to play!!!