Chaosium Digest Classics: MISKATONIC UNIVERSITY: Life at the World's Scariest School, 1999
A variant for "Cthulhu Now"
by R. J. Christen
Originally appearing in The Chaosium Digest volume 27, number 9-11 on Sunday, March 14, 1999
Along the banks of the mighty Miskatonic River in Arkham MA, a prestigious university stands. But dark and mysterious forces pervade this school and the surrounding lands, and only brave investigators can save humanity from these minions of evil. The only question is; who's got time to be an Mythos Investigator these days?? The answer: Miskatonic University students, that's who!
THE STUDENTS OF MISKATONIC U.
It's a well known fact that most college students have loads of free time; otherwise there would be no pep rallies, rock bands, wild parties, road trips, alcoholic binges, soap operas, sleeping in late, or late-night role-playing games. The modern college student, if curious and smart enough and allied with the right accomplices, can confront and (hopefully) defeat the sinister shadows of cosmic horror or silly, conniving con artists ("...and I would have succeeded if not for you meddling kids!"). Miskatonic students have all the resources at hand to formulate their ideas into plans of action, particular those items found in the world famous Henry Armatage Library. The Miskatonic experience also provides beginning Call of Cthulhu player characters with more advanced skills and personality. As in Classic "Call of Cthulhu", there are two kinds of student investigators; those who do the snooping, and those who do the studying. Snoopers are usually Reporters from the MU newspaper, adventurous jocks, or Fantasy Gamers. Study types are the serious student scholars, avant' garde artsy types, or Fantasy Gamers (something about those darn gamers).
MISKATONIC UNIVERSITY STUDENT SKILLS
Admission to Miskatonic:
In order to even get into Miskatonic, a character needs: EDU=12+ for admission; 13=Soph, 14=Jr, 15=Sr, 16+=Grad. Roll your Idea each year for success. OK, Athletes with EDU of 10+ can get in on scholarship, but they have to be pretty darn good on the playing field (Roll Luck instead). Bonus Skill points for INT (INTx10) are devised as per "Call of Cthulhu" basic rules. These would represent pre-college skills and hobbies.
Classes & Academics:
All students each get 5 skill points in Library Use, 1d6pt in Listen (needed to understand what your aging prof is muttering), and 1d3 in computer (word processing) use per semester of study. A student- investigator character's initial EDU skill points (EDUx20) are divided by choice in the following majors:
ANTHROPOLOGY/ARCHEOLOGY= Anthropology, Archeology, History, Library, Persuasion, Navigate, Occult, Other Language.
ART: Anthropology, Art, History, Fast Talk, Photography, Persuasion, Psychology, & Other Lang.
BUSINESS= Accounting, Bargain, Law, Library, Persuasion, Psychology, Other Language. COMPUTER SCIENCE= Accounting, Computer, Electrical or Mechanical Repair, Electronics, & Spot Hidden. (Require yearly SAN Roll for dealing with computers).
FOREIGN LANGUAGES= Persuasion, Psychology, Other Lang, & Art (Sing).
EDUCATION= Art, Computer, Library, Persuade, Psychology, 3 Academic Skills. (Require yearly SAN Roll for dealing with Brat kids)
ENGINEERING STUDIES= Computer, Electrical Repair, Electronics, Geology, Mechanical Repair, Physics, & Spot Hidden.
HISTORY= Debate, History, Library, Law, Persuasion, Psychology, & Other Lang. JOURNALISM/COMMUNICATION ARTS= Bargain, Debate, Photography, Psychology, Sneak, Fast Talk OR Persuade, & any other Skill.
LIBERAL ARTS (English, Philosophy, Music, Minority Studies, etc) Art, History, Persuasion, Psychology, Other Lang, & some academic Skill.
LIFE SCIENCES= Biology, Chemistry, Computer, Natural History, Latin, Persuasion, Spot Hidden.
MEDIEVAL METAPHYSICS: Anthropology, Archeology, Dodge, Hide, Occult, Psychology, Read/Write Latin, Sneak. 10pt Cthulhu Mythos per semester. (Requires SAN Roll per semester as well)
NURSING: Anthropology, First Aid, Medicine, Pharmacy, Psychology, and Any Other Skill. (Requires yearly SAN roll for icky hospital stuff)
PHYSICAL SCIENCE= Astronomy, Chemistry, Computer, Geology, History, Physics, German, & Spot Hidden.
ACADEMIC SUCCESS
Student Investigators who somehow manage to survive evil cultists, slimy monsters, and lord-knows-what year-to-year are eligible to advance in skill level as they advance towards graduation. Students must pass Two rolls against INTx6 (six) to pass each class. Add 1 pt to the initially rolled EDU per successful academic year (as dictated by the Keeper) and get 20 additional points towards the skills in their major field. Player who wish to change their character's major also follow this procedure (if they survive as well...).
Those who continually change majors to avoid Gradation (and thus the "real World") can be classified in the two following Categories:
DILETTANTE STUDENT: Requires Credit Rating= 50+. Just take 5-7 skills of your choice per semester, 1 EDU pt per year, and have a beer.
PROFESSIONAL STUDENT. Requires EDU=20+. Take 1d6 of any 7-10 skills of your choice and subtract 10% from Credit Rating since this course of action is NOT what your parents wanted.
PHYSICAL EDUCATION
Every student at M.U. must take at least 1 and up to 4 Phys Ed courses per year in their four years of studies. Sure, for those studious types this is a drag; but when being chased by monstrous things, one may horribly regret forsaking PE classes for Music Appreciation. In any normal phys ed class, students can add 1d6 pts for Climb, Dodge, Jump, and Throw per course, OR add 1pt to Dexterity or Constitution once per year.
Taking the following specialty PE course adds the following skills per semester:
Weightlifting: 1pt of STR.
Boxing: 1d6 Fist.
Karate or Judo: 1d6 Martial Arts.
Archery: 1d6 Bow Use
Wrestling: 1d8 Grappling.
Fencing: 1d6 to the choice of Epee or Saber.
Trap Shooting: 1d6 Shotgun
"Physically challenged" students are exempt from the taking PE classes, but may take the shotgun, archery, or weightlifting classes. This character development can be done once per semester.
Students taking Army ROTC instead of regular PE can add the same 1d3 points in First Aid, Operate Hvy Machine, Make Maps, Sneak, & Track, 1d6 for either Rifle or Pistol and 1Pt to Constitution. JR & SR ROTC cadets are legally obligated to four years of Regular or Reserve Army duty, but then again, who knows if an M1A1 tank might come in handy some day.
GRADUATE SCHOOL STUDIES In order to enter Grad School, candidates must past an INT and EDU Check (i.e. your graduate Exam). Graduate students can add 1-2 points to EDU per year of grad school and take 20 points in their original field of study or in another. Miskatonic graduate programs also includes the following advanced degrees:
LAW (add 1-2 EDU/year & 25skill pts/semester): History, Law, Persuade, & Psychology. Requires minimum Latin Skill of 20.
MEDICAL (add 1-6 EDU/year & 30 Skill pts/semester): First Aid, Medicine, Pharmacy. Requires minimum Latin Skill of 30.
PSYCHIATRY (add 1-4 EDU/year & 25 Skill points/semester): Medical, Pharmacy, Psychoanalysis, & Psychology. Requires minimum Latin Skill of 20.
PHARMACY: (add 1-2 EDU & 30 Skill points/year): Medical, Pharmacy. Requires minimum Latin Skill of 30.
Law Students have the opportunity to intern with the Essex county Prosecutors office, often in the role of Defense Attorney.
Medical Students must work at least 30 hours per week at the University Medical Center. First time Med Students must make an initial SAN check at 0/d6 SAN Loss for all the nasty sights one finds in a modern hospital, particularly Miskatonic's.
Future Psychiatrists work in the Peaslee Psychological Clinic, where they will meet lots of crazed wack-os who have met with the forces of the mythos. This will provide ample opportunities to get started on new and bizarre investigations.
As for the Pharmacy students, their studies provide ample opportunity for obtaining certain "supplies".
Graduate Assistants: The best way for graduate students to pay for grad school and get information & insights into the Mythos is by working for various academic departments and professors. A successful Luck Roll will gain the student investigator a paying job ($350 a month plus tuition), access to normally secured tomes and thesis, and either 1d6 Persuade (Teaching Assistant) or 1d6 Library Use (Faculty Flunky) per semester. Each academic department hires 3-10 grad assistants and the Library hires between 10 and 20. Senior assistants can also get a hold of the most valuable items on campus; keys for late night research and snooping around looking for clues, restricted materials, or what-ever.
STUDENT LIFE IN MODERN TIMES
Miskatonic is still a private school, but not as expensive as other Ivy League-type colleges. Tuition and Student Fees run about $9,500 per five month semester, based on a full schedule of 5 classes, which are held between 8AM and 10PM. Miskatonic prides itself on it's 300 year tradition of Academics and of course, the school officially desires that it's students behave in a mature academic manner; but hey, this is college after all...
Housing:
Male students live in either Robert E. Howard Hall (FR, SO), L. Sprague DeCamp Hall (SO, JR), Frank B. Long Hall (SR, Grad) or at home.
Female students live at either Dorothy Upman (FR, SO), Sonia Greene (SO, JR) or the Asenath Waite (JR, SR) Halls.
All dorms have dining facilities, study rooms, TV lounges, and typical 2-bed student rooms. Graduate students can live off campus or at the Graduate House on the downtown campus (sorry, no food service). Juniors & Seniors can also live off campus, which can mean either the vast acres of condos, apartment complexes, or the ancient and foreboding boarding houses located throughout Arkham proper. Married students can live in the M.U. Married Student Complex ("the Twilight Zone") or off campus as well. The dorms are cheapest, running $550-$675 a semester (meals included), while student apartment rent is anywhere from $300 (semi-squalor) to $1800 a month (luxury), food and roommates not withstanding. Boarding house rooms can be had for $100 a month & up, based on varying conditions and food service. But still, living in 300+ year old boarding houses provides far more opportunities to uncover the horrors of Arkham's dark past, but never overlook any equally sinister activities in the M.U. dorms....
STUDENT ACTIVITIES
Every student need something to do besides attend boring lectures on The Salem Witch Trials or Psychosomatic Secretions in Lower Mollusks, and the opportunities at Miskatonic abound These include varsity sports, 13 various Fraternities & Sororities, the newspaper ("The Crier"), the yearbook ("The Schooner"), and various clubs.
MISKATONIC MEDIA CLUBS
"The Miskatonic Crier". The nearly ageless student newspaper, "The Crier" is managed by a tabloid wannabe who gets more thrills out of writing stories about student sex, kinky campus gossip, and alleged administration corruption then real campus news, even though most students read it only for music reviews, sports, and the comics page. Still, the Crier's issue morgue goes back to the mid 1880's and can turn up a mythos clue or two for inquisitive Investigators on staff, who get 1d6 pts of either Read/Write English or Photography skill per semester.
"The Schooner": The M.U. yearbook, named for the sailing ships that helped found Arkham & the school, publishes a well-documented picture book of that year's events and student body. The editor has student photographers roaming the campus at all hours, prepared for that perfect shot. This also presents the opportunity for spotting weird happenings (or being the victim). The back issues go far back as 1900, although photos go back to the Civil War era. Staffers can get the same 1d6 skill points that Crier staffers get per semester of service, although Photography would be more prevalent.
WHPL (91.9FM): Arkham's only Rock station (located on the Student Center 4th floor), it was founded in 1952 as a classical & jazz station. Since it's addition of rock music to the format in 1966, one can find every occultic or Mythos-based rock song from that year on. Nowadays, they have a typical College alternative music format with Jazz/Swing, Blues, Reggae, and Rap thrown in. In 1971, WHPL staffers and campus radicals rigged a school election to rename the Miskatonic mascot from the "Badgers" to the more Cthuloid "Cephalopods", which is still not recognized by the Marching Badger Band. Late-night DJs are also good folks to be witnesses (or victims) of bizarre mayhem. WHPL Staffers get 5 points Spot Hidden and 5 points Library looking for obscure requests like "White Ship" by the 60's Chicago band H.P. Lovecraft or "Bela Lugosi's Dead" by Bauhaus.
ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT CLUBS
PSI PHI Science Fiction Society: Home to those wacky folks that are into the fantastic, the unusual, and Fantasy Gaming; this is the current form of the Miskatonic Science Fiction Guild, formed in 1938. When not gaming all night or going to SF/Fantasy conventions, they manage to produce a semesterly Fanzine, "Dreamland Journeys", that may include a Mythos-based submission, either a story or poetry. Members receive 1d3 points of Occult per semester, along with 1d10 of Science Fiction Trivia and 2d10 of Fantasy Gaming or Military History (can't leave out the wargamers). Incidentally, they are also the most acceptable people in Arkham when it comes to realizing the danger of the Cthulhu mythos.
The Miskatonic Players: Members of the University theatrical group, an artistic staple since 1889, are eligible for their choice of 1d6 points of the following skills per semester: Persuasion or Fast Talk (acting), Electrical Repair (stagehand), or Art (set design). The M.U. Film Society: Members of this club gain only 1 point of Occult out of old horror movies; film makers get 1d10 of Photography.
"The Shutterbugs": MU's Photography Club get 1d8 Pts of Photography per semester.
Dance Miskatonic: The campus Dance troupe puts on various theatrical dance numbers during the Semester and thus receive 1d10 Art (Dance) per semester and 1pt Dex per year.
MUSICAL GROUPS
Members of the Miskatonic Orchestra, Jazz Ensemble, Chorale and Marching Badger Band get either 1d10 Sing or Play Instrument per semester, once passing an audition (Roll Double prior Musical Skill). Marching Badger Band members get 10 temporary pt of Credit rating when dealing with Arkham residents, School staff, and alumni/boosters. They are also traditionally antagonistic towards WHPL staffers. Students who play in the variety of campus garage bands only get either 1d6 Sing or Play Instrument per semester without an audition, but also get a lot more "affection" from fans.
ACADEMIC CLUBS
Bioscience: Gets the choice 1d6 of either Biology or Natural History per semester.
Debate Club: 1d6 Persuasion. History: 1d6 History and 1d3 Persuade for lively debating.
Institute of Electrical & Electronics Engineers: Choice of 1d6 in Computer, Electrical Repair or Electronics.
Language clubs (Arabic, French, German, Latin, Russian, Spanish) get 1d6 Other Language.
Society of Manufacturing Engineers: Get 1d8 of Mechanical Repair or 1d6 Drive for the annual intercollegiate "All Terrain Vehicle Contest" or 1d8 Pilot Submarine for the "Woods Hole Submarine Derby" contest.
Robot Wars Club: An offshoot of Mechanical Engineering 355 "Creative Engineering", this club is made of mechanical minded cyber gladiators who get 1d6 Mechanical Repair and Computer per year.
SOCIAL CLUBs
The Outdoor Society: During the 2-4 campouts during a semester, members get 1d8 Natural History, and the choice of 1d6 Climb, Navigate, Pilot Canoe/Kayak, or Track.
"The Waves" MU's Sailing Club, members get 1d8 Pilot Small Boat. The MU Chapter of Greenpeace: 1d3 Biology, 1d6 Persuade and Climb, plus -10pts of Credit rating when dealing with the MU Security and Arkham Police.
Young Republicans/Democrats/Libertarians/Socialists: 1d3 Persuade and Debate, and +20 Temporary Credit Rating when dealing with Party Politicians.
M.U.C.K. (M.U. Computer Klub), open to all students, provides 1d6 of Computer Use per semester. Four members are highly qualified Hackers, with Computer skills of 70+ and willing to attempt to break into any computer system.
The International Club: 1d3 of Any Language (and we mean any!) plus lots of overseas legends and mysteries.
The Baptist Student Union: Members of this religious group get 1d3 Occult per year for all those "dangers of Devil Worship" lectures
The Pagan Student Union: Formed in 1986 as a comic response to the Baptist Student Union's railing against heavy metal music, these esoteric folks are now into the usual melange of new age religions ranging from simple Tai Chi to Hari Krishna. Members get 1d8 Occult per semester.
The members of MU's thirteen Fraternities & Sororities receive 5 skill points of Treat Poison (hangovers) and 50 temporary pts of Credit Rating when addressing alumni of their organization, 10 Pt with Boosters and school staff, but -10 when dealing with Arkham police.
Student Members of the Rotary, Optimist, and Key clubs get 30pts Temporary Credit rating with school staff, and community/business leaders. Pep Club members get the 3pts of Persuade/semester and 20 temporary pts of Credit Rating with Boosters and school staff.
Miskatonic Cheerleaders are best left to be victims of supernatural distress unless their name is "Buffy".
MISKATONIC UNIVERSITY SPORTS
Football (Div II) has been a M.U. staple since 1897 and Baseball for 15 years prior. Scholarship sports include the following; Track was added in 1900, Basketball in 1920, Swimming in 1921, Golf in 1950, Gymnastics in 1955, and Soccer was adding in 1971.
Non-Scholarship University supported sports include Cross Country, Fencing, Wrestling, Volleyball, and Women's Softball & Field Hockey.
Club Sports (those supported by members and boosters) include Lacrosse, Rugby, and both Ice and Roller Hockey.
Students on these teams can add skills increases as received in Phys Ed classes, except only once a year/season, and must pass tryouts (Roll Double Exiting Skill or 5xPlayer Stat. Team members get 30 temporary points of Credit Rating when interacting with Alumni and Boosters.
Football: 1d10 Grapple, or Throw, or Kick and 1Pt each STR and CON
Basketball: 1d10 Throw and 1pt DEX or CON
Baseball/Softball: 1d8 Club and 1pt DEX.
Gymnastics: 2pt DEX and 1pt either STR or CON
Soccer: 1d8 Kick, 1pt CON Swim: 1d10 Swim. 1pt CON
Cross Country: 2Pt CON
Volleyball: 1pt DEX
Field Hockey: 1d6 Club, 1pt CON or DEX
Wrestling: 1d10 Grapple
Rugby: Adds 1d8 Grapple and 1pt CON
Hockey: Adds 1d6 Club, 1d10
Ice or Roller Skating and 1pt CON or DEX.
JUGGLING SCHOOL & INVESTIGATING THE MYTHOS
Nothing would sound so ridiculous to a professor then a student claiming that he couldn't finish his paper on "Ecological Aspects of Thoreau's "Walden Pond" because he was being chased by ghouls the night before. So what do daring student-investigators do when the fate of humanity is in the balance? Well, they could either study real hard beforehand, cram, drop courses midway through the semester, or drop out entirely and go pro. But dropping courses can be expensive and there is not much of a market for professional investigators, so studying is the best way out. Keepers can tabulate their player's academic success by asking for an Idea or Luck roll each week of interrupted school. Cramming entails making up for an entire semester of investigating (or too much RPG playing) by cramming the entire semester into one night's orgy of study and coffee drinking. Cramming success is determined by this formulae: (KNOW+INT+CON x Percentile). If the result is 61 or better, they pass that course. Otherwise, it's off to work at the local First National Grocery store or "Dave's Donuts" to pay the bills.
TWO GROOVY MINI-ADVENTURES FOR MISKATONIC STUDENTS
CTHULHU ROCKS!:
The leader of a campus punk band "Arkaan Noledge", Mark Alscot, discovers some really cool lyric ideas in the library; from the Necronomicon, no less! Unfortunately, during a wild practice session, the combination of amplified sonic thrashing and the "lyrics" turned loose a seething "thing", which promptly attacked the other three band members and sucked the life out of them. The police figured the musicians were accidentally electrocuted and had Alscot committed to the M.U. Psychiatric Hospital due to his wild rantings. Slightly calmed down a few days later, Alscot pleads with the investigators to destroy the creature.
1) Alscot, under the influence of certain hallucinogenics, actually just saw his bandmates get accidentally electrocuted by a beer soaked amplifier. The poor guy mistook the electrical arcs as "monsters".
2) The band members were electrocuted, but on purpose by a oversensitive and insane neighbor who was fed up with both the noise and the mysterious lyrics from the Necronomicon. The Neighbor now believes the entire college is filled with "Satan worshipers and monsters" and must fight this unholy onslaught any way they can, namely with a high powered hunting rife. The players have to prevent this from happening.
3) The Creature is a Fire Vampire now getting it's fill with Arkham's homeless people down by the river. The investigators have to discover just what the "thing" is and devise a way to either dispel or destroy it. This Fire Vampire is a bit more powerful then most, having 15 HP, a 17 POW, at 85% Touch attack (doing 2d6 fire damage) and has spells: Call Cthugha, Create Gate, and Summon/Bind Star Vampire (even more trouble!).
THE SORT OF UNNAMABLE: After old Widow Archer refused to sell her 175 year old family mansion to real estate developer Ronald Crump, mysterious sounds and bizarre sightings began spooking the neighborhood. Popular rumor has it that the ghost of a crazed wizard has risen from the grave and is now haunting the house and neighborhood. Mrs. Archer is just about at the edge of a nervous breakdown and possible commitment to a mental hospital. The cops are calling it all a case of mass hysteria.
1) Poor Mrs. Archer is just old and suffering from an over active imagination. The neighbor rumors are just local legend, but when the players prove there's no ghost, Mrs. Archer gives them milk & cookies and title to the house in her will. Pro Bono Student Lawyers will have to battle Mr. Crump instead (Roll Average of Law & Persuade to succeed).
2) Yup, the house IS haunted! Back in the late 1600s, a follower of Goody Fowler named Zephram Curin lived in a house on the site of Mrs. Archer's house. Three Hundred years to the date of his execution by torch-wielding townsfolk, Curin is back and ready to exact his evil revenge against Arkham. (use Lich stats)
3) What Mrs Archer, and her terrified neighbors don't know and what the intrepid student investigators have to discover is that the "ghost" is really Mr Crump and his stooges and perfect chance for Keepers to recite that famous the line, "...and I would have succeeded if not for you meddling kids!". Crump had three of his goons tunnel under the house to the basement and sneak around in luminous costumes making spooky sounds to frighten Widow Archer into selling the house (the fiends!). Spells will have no effect, but avoid letting the investigators use guns as this would scare Mrs Archer into having a coronary, and besides, Crump can't say the famous line with large holes in his body...
MORE ADVENTURE NUGGETS FOR MISKATONIC STUDENTS
SON OF REANIMATOR REVISITED: Well, it looks as if yet another wack-o young Med student has stumbled onto the twisted notes of Dr Herbert West and is once again trying to raise the dead with the mad doctor's weird reanimation serum. Naturally, the same grisly results occurs for stray animals and unlucky students & staff with the student investigators having to clean up the mess afterwards.
I DON'T THINK WE'RE STILL IN ARKHAM, TOTO: One peaceful evening while playing a friendly game of "Myths & Monsters", some darn fantasy gamers dig up some supposedly harmless spells from the Armitage library and manage to get themselves teleported to the Dreamlands, Yuggoth, R'ylth, or some place much, much worse. The gamers must find their way back to earth or face eternity (or quick and messy deaths) trapped in a world they never made.
CTHULHU IN THE SKY WITH DIAMONDS: Evil and crazed cultists are selling a new hallucinogenic drug called "Time Warp" which gives the users a LSD-type sensation of flying through time and space, making it big with those "party-types" tired of acid and Ecstasy. The problem is, aside from it being quite addictive, the drug causes their crazed thoughts & dreams to become a wake-up call for the Dreamer Beneath the Sea. After 3 or more uses, the user begins to dream of lost R'lyth and loses 1 POW and d10 SAN per night until insane. The investigators must reveal the cultist drug dealers to the authorities to prevent a Avatar of Great Cthulhu from materializing in Arkham.
BEACH BLANKET BYHAKEE: While on a roadtrip up to Maine for skiing, camping, or hunting (preferable hunting), the student investigators get stuck in the quaint old town of Innsmouth just when the Deep Ones are having their annual "Spring Break" hunt for nubile human "dates". Fort Lauderdale, it ain't.
THE GREEKS DON'T WANT NO MORE FREAKS: Some random Fraternity is taking their rituals a bit too far as they celebrate the semesterly Rush week and Finals by inviting homeless people to dinner, then sacrifice them to (fill in the blank) and REALLY have them for dinner (it tends to solve the "where to put the body?" problem). Perhaps the sudden disappearance of a friendly homeless person or an unlucky student will attract the attention of the student investigators
IT CAME FROM THE BIOLOGY BUILDING: Late one Friday evening, two unfortunate grad students made the mistake of defrosting a frozen specimen from the 1959 Miskatonic University-IGY Antarctic Expedition. The hideous blob of black goo ate one of the students, sending the other screaming maniacally to the student investigators. It is a 700,000 year old shoggoth and will destroy much of the campus unless the brave investigators can nullify it with spells, gates, elder signs, or a M1 tank.
MISKATONIC UNIVERSITY ORGANIZATION
COLLEGE OF LIBERAL ARTS:
School of Languages, Literature, & The Arts
Departments of: Fine Arts, English, Philosophy, Modern & Classical Languages, and Communication Arts.
School of History & Social Science
Departments of: Anthropology & Archeology, History, Political Studies & Geography, and Sociology.
COLLEGE OF SCIENCES
School of Physical Sciences
Departments of: Physics & Astronomy, Chemistry, Earth Sciences, and Oceanography.
School of Life Sciences
Departments of: Biology, Botany, Zoology, Microbiology, Ecology, Animal Science, and Psychology.
Astor Division of Mathematics & Computer Science
COLLEGE OF MEDICINES
chool of Medicine School of Nursing
SCHOOL OF ENGINEERING & TECHNOLOGY
Departments of: Mechanical, Industrial, Electrical, & Civil Engineering, Manufacturing Engineering Technology, Industrial Management, and Industrial Design.
SCHOOL OF EDUCATION:
Departments of: Early Childhood, Elementary School, Middle School, High School, and Adult Education.
SCHOOL OF BUSINESS
Departments of Accounting, Economics, Finance, and Management.
SCHOOL OF LAW
SCHOOL OF MEDIEVAL METAPHYSICS
BIBLIOGRAPHY
Chaosium's Call of Cthulhu 3rd ed.
Chaosium's Arkham Unveiled
Chaosium's Kingsport: The City in the Mist
Chaosium's "Miskatonic University Graduate Kit"
Arkham House's The Dunwich Horror & Others
Georgia Southern University Graduate Catalog
Georgia Southern University Student Activities Guide
by R. J. Christen
Originally appearing in The Chaosium Digest volume 27, number 9-11 on Sunday, March 14, 1999
Along the banks of the mighty Miskatonic River in Arkham MA, a prestigious university stands. But dark and mysterious forces pervade this school and the surrounding lands, and only brave investigators can save humanity from these minions of evil. The only question is; who's got time to be an Mythos Investigator these days?? The answer: Miskatonic University students, that's who!
THE STUDENTS OF MISKATONIC U.
It's a well known fact that most college students have loads of free time; otherwise there would be no pep rallies, rock bands, wild parties, road trips, alcoholic binges, soap operas, sleeping in late, or late-night role-playing games. The modern college student, if curious and smart enough and allied with the right accomplices, can confront and (hopefully) defeat the sinister shadows of cosmic horror or silly, conniving con artists ("...and I would have succeeded if not for you meddling kids!"). Miskatonic students have all the resources at hand to formulate their ideas into plans of action, particular those items found in the world famous Henry Armatage Library. The Miskatonic experience also provides beginning Call of Cthulhu player characters with more advanced skills and personality. As in Classic "Call of Cthulhu", there are two kinds of student investigators; those who do the snooping, and those who do the studying. Snoopers are usually Reporters from the MU newspaper, adventurous jocks, or Fantasy Gamers. Study types are the serious student scholars, avant' garde artsy types, or Fantasy Gamers (something about those darn gamers).
MISKATONIC UNIVERSITY STUDENT SKILLS
Admission to Miskatonic:
In order to even get into Miskatonic, a character needs: EDU=12+ for admission; 13=Soph, 14=Jr, 15=Sr, 16+=Grad. Roll your Idea each year for success. OK, Athletes with EDU of 10+ can get in on scholarship, but they have to be pretty darn good on the playing field (Roll Luck instead). Bonus Skill points for INT (INTx10) are devised as per "Call of Cthulhu" basic rules. These would represent pre-college skills and hobbies.
Classes & Academics:
All students each get 5 skill points in Library Use, 1d6pt in Listen (needed to understand what your aging prof is muttering), and 1d3 in computer (word processing) use per semester of study. A student- investigator character's initial EDU skill points (EDUx20) are divided by choice in the following majors:
ANTHROPOLOGY/ARCHEOLOGY= Anthropology, Archeology, History, Library, Persuasion, Navigate, Occult, Other Language.
ART: Anthropology, Art, History, Fast Talk, Photography, Persuasion, Psychology, & Other Lang.
BUSINESS= Accounting, Bargain, Law, Library, Persuasion, Psychology, Other Language. COMPUTER SCIENCE= Accounting, Computer, Electrical or Mechanical Repair, Electronics, & Spot Hidden. (Require yearly SAN Roll for dealing with computers).
FOREIGN LANGUAGES= Persuasion, Psychology, Other Lang, & Art (Sing).
EDUCATION= Art, Computer, Library, Persuade, Psychology, 3 Academic Skills. (Require yearly SAN Roll for dealing with Brat kids)
ENGINEERING STUDIES= Computer, Electrical Repair, Electronics, Geology, Mechanical Repair, Physics, & Spot Hidden.
HISTORY= Debate, History, Library, Law, Persuasion, Psychology, & Other Lang. JOURNALISM/COMMUNICATION ARTS= Bargain, Debate, Photography, Psychology, Sneak, Fast Talk OR Persuade, & any other Skill.
LIBERAL ARTS (English, Philosophy, Music, Minority Studies, etc) Art, History, Persuasion, Psychology, Other Lang, & some academic Skill.
LIFE SCIENCES= Biology, Chemistry, Computer, Natural History, Latin, Persuasion, Spot Hidden.
MEDIEVAL METAPHYSICS: Anthropology, Archeology, Dodge, Hide, Occult, Psychology, Read/Write Latin, Sneak. 10pt Cthulhu Mythos per semester. (Requires SAN Roll per semester as well)
NURSING: Anthropology, First Aid, Medicine, Pharmacy, Psychology, and Any Other Skill. (Requires yearly SAN roll for icky hospital stuff)
PHYSICAL SCIENCE= Astronomy, Chemistry, Computer, Geology, History, Physics, German, & Spot Hidden.
ACADEMIC SUCCESS
Student Investigators who somehow manage to survive evil cultists, slimy monsters, and lord-knows-what year-to-year are eligible to advance in skill level as they advance towards graduation. Students must pass Two rolls against INTx6 (six) to pass each class. Add 1 pt to the initially rolled EDU per successful academic year (as dictated by the Keeper) and get 20 additional points towards the skills in their major field. Player who wish to change their character's major also follow this procedure (if they survive as well...).
Those who continually change majors to avoid Gradation (and thus the "real World") can be classified in the two following Categories:
DILETTANTE STUDENT: Requires Credit Rating= 50+. Just take 5-7 skills of your choice per semester, 1 EDU pt per year, and have a beer.
PROFESSIONAL STUDENT. Requires EDU=20+. Take 1d6 of any 7-10 skills of your choice and subtract 10% from Credit Rating since this course of action is NOT what your parents wanted.
PHYSICAL EDUCATION
Every student at M.U. must take at least 1 and up to 4 Phys Ed courses per year in their four years of studies. Sure, for those studious types this is a drag; but when being chased by monstrous things, one may horribly regret forsaking PE classes for Music Appreciation. In any normal phys ed class, students can add 1d6 pts for Climb, Dodge, Jump, and Throw per course, OR add 1pt to Dexterity or Constitution once per year.
Taking the following specialty PE course adds the following skills per semester:
Weightlifting: 1pt of STR.
Boxing: 1d6 Fist.
Karate or Judo: 1d6 Martial Arts.
Archery: 1d6 Bow Use
Wrestling: 1d8 Grappling.
Fencing: 1d6 to the choice of Epee or Saber.
Trap Shooting: 1d6 Shotgun
"Physically challenged" students are exempt from the taking PE classes, but may take the shotgun, archery, or weightlifting classes. This character development can be done once per semester.
Students taking Army ROTC instead of regular PE can add the same 1d3 points in First Aid, Operate Hvy Machine, Make Maps, Sneak, & Track, 1d6 for either Rifle or Pistol and 1Pt to Constitution. JR & SR ROTC cadets are legally obligated to four years of Regular or Reserve Army duty, but then again, who knows if an M1A1 tank might come in handy some day.
GRADUATE SCHOOL STUDIES In order to enter Grad School, candidates must past an INT and EDU Check (i.e. your graduate Exam). Graduate students can add 1-2 points to EDU per year of grad school and take 20 points in their original field of study or in another. Miskatonic graduate programs also includes the following advanced degrees:
LAW (add 1-2 EDU/year & 25skill pts/semester): History, Law, Persuade, & Psychology. Requires minimum Latin Skill of 20.
MEDICAL (add 1-6 EDU/year & 30 Skill pts/semester): First Aid, Medicine, Pharmacy. Requires minimum Latin Skill of 30.
PSYCHIATRY (add 1-4 EDU/year & 25 Skill points/semester): Medical, Pharmacy, Psychoanalysis, & Psychology. Requires minimum Latin Skill of 20.
PHARMACY: (add 1-2 EDU & 30 Skill points/year): Medical, Pharmacy. Requires minimum Latin Skill of 30.
Law Students have the opportunity to intern with the Essex county Prosecutors office, often in the role of Defense Attorney.
Medical Students must work at least 30 hours per week at the University Medical Center. First time Med Students must make an initial SAN check at 0/d6 SAN Loss for all the nasty sights one finds in a modern hospital, particularly Miskatonic's.
Future Psychiatrists work in the Peaslee Psychological Clinic, where they will meet lots of crazed wack-os who have met with the forces of the mythos. This will provide ample opportunities to get started on new and bizarre investigations.
As for the Pharmacy students, their studies provide ample opportunity for obtaining certain "supplies".
Graduate Assistants: The best way for graduate students to pay for grad school and get information & insights into the Mythos is by working for various academic departments and professors. A successful Luck Roll will gain the student investigator a paying job ($350 a month plus tuition), access to normally secured tomes and thesis, and either 1d6 Persuade (Teaching Assistant) or 1d6 Library Use (Faculty Flunky) per semester. Each academic department hires 3-10 grad assistants and the Library hires between 10 and 20. Senior assistants can also get a hold of the most valuable items on campus; keys for late night research and snooping around looking for clues, restricted materials, or what-ever.
STUDENT LIFE IN MODERN TIMES
Miskatonic is still a private school, but not as expensive as other Ivy League-type colleges. Tuition and Student Fees run about $9,500 per five month semester, based on a full schedule of 5 classes, which are held between 8AM and 10PM. Miskatonic prides itself on it's 300 year tradition of Academics and of course, the school officially desires that it's students behave in a mature academic manner; but hey, this is college after all...
Housing:
Male students live in either Robert E. Howard Hall (FR, SO), L. Sprague DeCamp Hall (SO, JR), Frank B. Long Hall (SR, Grad) or at home.
Female students live at either Dorothy Upman (FR, SO), Sonia Greene (SO, JR) or the Asenath Waite (JR, SR) Halls.
All dorms have dining facilities, study rooms, TV lounges, and typical 2-bed student rooms. Graduate students can live off campus or at the Graduate House on the downtown campus (sorry, no food service). Juniors & Seniors can also live off campus, which can mean either the vast acres of condos, apartment complexes, or the ancient and foreboding boarding houses located throughout Arkham proper. Married students can live in the M.U. Married Student Complex ("the Twilight Zone") or off campus as well. The dorms are cheapest, running $550-$675 a semester (meals included), while student apartment rent is anywhere from $300 (semi-squalor) to $1800 a month (luxury), food and roommates not withstanding. Boarding house rooms can be had for $100 a month & up, based on varying conditions and food service. But still, living in 300+ year old boarding houses provides far more opportunities to uncover the horrors of Arkham's dark past, but never overlook any equally sinister activities in the M.U. dorms....
STUDENT ACTIVITIES
Every student need something to do besides attend boring lectures on The Salem Witch Trials or Psychosomatic Secretions in Lower Mollusks, and the opportunities at Miskatonic abound These include varsity sports, 13 various Fraternities & Sororities, the newspaper ("The Crier"), the yearbook ("The Schooner"), and various clubs.
MISKATONIC MEDIA CLUBS
"The Miskatonic Crier". The nearly ageless student newspaper, "The Crier" is managed by a tabloid wannabe who gets more thrills out of writing stories about student sex, kinky campus gossip, and alleged administration corruption then real campus news, even though most students read it only for music reviews, sports, and the comics page. Still, the Crier's issue morgue goes back to the mid 1880's and can turn up a mythos clue or two for inquisitive Investigators on staff, who get 1d6 pts of either Read/Write English or Photography skill per semester.
"The Schooner": The M.U. yearbook, named for the sailing ships that helped found Arkham & the school, publishes a well-documented picture book of that year's events and student body. The editor has student photographers roaming the campus at all hours, prepared for that perfect shot. This also presents the opportunity for spotting weird happenings (or being the victim). The back issues go far back as 1900, although photos go back to the Civil War era. Staffers can get the same 1d6 skill points that Crier staffers get per semester of service, although Photography would be more prevalent.
WHPL (91.9FM): Arkham's only Rock station (located on the Student Center 4th floor), it was founded in 1952 as a classical & jazz station. Since it's addition of rock music to the format in 1966, one can find every occultic or Mythos-based rock song from that year on. Nowadays, they have a typical College alternative music format with Jazz/Swing, Blues, Reggae, and Rap thrown in. In 1971, WHPL staffers and campus radicals rigged a school election to rename the Miskatonic mascot from the "Badgers" to the more Cthuloid "Cephalopods", which is still not recognized by the Marching Badger Band. Late-night DJs are also good folks to be witnesses (or victims) of bizarre mayhem. WHPL Staffers get 5 points Spot Hidden and 5 points Library looking for obscure requests like "White Ship" by the 60's Chicago band H.P. Lovecraft or "Bela Lugosi's Dead" by Bauhaus.
ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT CLUBS
PSI PHI Science Fiction Society: Home to those wacky folks that are into the fantastic, the unusual, and Fantasy Gaming; this is the current form of the Miskatonic Science Fiction Guild, formed in 1938. When not gaming all night or going to SF/Fantasy conventions, they manage to produce a semesterly Fanzine, "Dreamland Journeys", that may include a Mythos-based submission, either a story or poetry. Members receive 1d3 points of Occult per semester, along with 1d10 of Science Fiction Trivia and 2d10 of Fantasy Gaming or Military History (can't leave out the wargamers). Incidentally, they are also the most acceptable people in Arkham when it comes to realizing the danger of the Cthulhu mythos.
The Miskatonic Players: Members of the University theatrical group, an artistic staple since 1889, are eligible for their choice of 1d6 points of the following skills per semester: Persuasion or Fast Talk (acting), Electrical Repair (stagehand), or Art (set design). The M.U. Film Society: Members of this club gain only 1 point of Occult out of old horror movies; film makers get 1d10 of Photography.
"The Shutterbugs": MU's Photography Club get 1d8 Pts of Photography per semester.
Dance Miskatonic: The campus Dance troupe puts on various theatrical dance numbers during the Semester and thus receive 1d10 Art (Dance) per semester and 1pt Dex per year.
MUSICAL GROUPS
Members of the Miskatonic Orchestra, Jazz Ensemble, Chorale and Marching Badger Band get either 1d10 Sing or Play Instrument per semester, once passing an audition (Roll Double prior Musical Skill). Marching Badger Band members get 10 temporary pt of Credit rating when dealing with Arkham residents, School staff, and alumni/boosters. They are also traditionally antagonistic towards WHPL staffers. Students who play in the variety of campus garage bands only get either 1d6 Sing or Play Instrument per semester without an audition, but also get a lot more "affection" from fans.
ACADEMIC CLUBS
Bioscience: Gets the choice 1d6 of either Biology or Natural History per semester.
Debate Club: 1d6 Persuasion. History: 1d6 History and 1d3 Persuade for lively debating.
Institute of Electrical & Electronics Engineers: Choice of 1d6 in Computer, Electrical Repair or Electronics.
Language clubs (Arabic, French, German, Latin, Russian, Spanish) get 1d6 Other Language.
Society of Manufacturing Engineers: Get 1d8 of Mechanical Repair or 1d6 Drive for the annual intercollegiate "All Terrain Vehicle Contest" or 1d8 Pilot Submarine for the "Woods Hole Submarine Derby" contest.
Robot Wars Club: An offshoot of Mechanical Engineering 355 "Creative Engineering", this club is made of mechanical minded cyber gladiators who get 1d6 Mechanical Repair and Computer per year.
SOCIAL CLUBs
The Outdoor Society: During the 2-4 campouts during a semester, members get 1d8 Natural History, and the choice of 1d6 Climb, Navigate, Pilot Canoe/Kayak, or Track.
"The Waves" MU's Sailing Club, members get 1d8 Pilot Small Boat. The MU Chapter of Greenpeace: 1d3 Biology, 1d6 Persuade and Climb, plus -10pts of Credit rating when dealing with the MU Security and Arkham Police.
Young Republicans/Democrats/Libertarians/Socialists: 1d3 Persuade and Debate, and +20 Temporary Credit Rating when dealing with Party Politicians.
M.U.C.K. (M.U. Computer Klub), open to all students, provides 1d6 of Computer Use per semester. Four members are highly qualified Hackers, with Computer skills of 70+ and willing to attempt to break into any computer system.
The International Club: 1d3 of Any Language (and we mean any!) plus lots of overseas legends and mysteries.
The Baptist Student Union: Members of this religious group get 1d3 Occult per year for all those "dangers of Devil Worship" lectures
The Pagan Student Union: Formed in 1986 as a comic response to the Baptist Student Union's railing against heavy metal music, these esoteric folks are now into the usual melange of new age religions ranging from simple Tai Chi to Hari Krishna. Members get 1d8 Occult per semester.
The members of MU's thirteen Fraternities & Sororities receive 5 skill points of Treat Poison (hangovers) and 50 temporary pts of Credit Rating when addressing alumni of their organization, 10 Pt with Boosters and school staff, but -10 when dealing with Arkham police.
Student Members of the Rotary, Optimist, and Key clubs get 30pts Temporary Credit rating with school staff, and community/business leaders. Pep Club members get the 3pts of Persuade/semester and 20 temporary pts of Credit Rating with Boosters and school staff.
Miskatonic Cheerleaders are best left to be victims of supernatural distress unless their name is "Buffy".
MISKATONIC UNIVERSITY SPORTS
Football (Div II) has been a M.U. staple since 1897 and Baseball for 15 years prior. Scholarship sports include the following; Track was added in 1900, Basketball in 1920, Swimming in 1921, Golf in 1950, Gymnastics in 1955, and Soccer was adding in 1971.
Non-Scholarship University supported sports include Cross Country, Fencing, Wrestling, Volleyball, and Women's Softball & Field Hockey.
Club Sports (those supported by members and boosters) include Lacrosse, Rugby, and both Ice and Roller Hockey.
Students on these teams can add skills increases as received in Phys Ed classes, except only once a year/season, and must pass tryouts (Roll Double Exiting Skill or 5xPlayer Stat. Team members get 30 temporary points of Credit Rating when interacting with Alumni and Boosters.
Football: 1d10 Grapple, or Throw, or Kick and 1Pt each STR and CON
Basketball: 1d10 Throw and 1pt DEX or CON
Baseball/Softball: 1d8 Club and 1pt DEX.
Gymnastics: 2pt DEX and 1pt either STR or CON
Soccer: 1d8 Kick, 1pt CON Swim: 1d10 Swim. 1pt CON
Cross Country: 2Pt CON
Volleyball: 1pt DEX
Field Hockey: 1d6 Club, 1pt CON or DEX
Wrestling: 1d10 Grapple
Rugby: Adds 1d8 Grapple and 1pt CON
Hockey: Adds 1d6 Club, 1d10
Ice or Roller Skating and 1pt CON or DEX.
JUGGLING SCHOOL & INVESTIGATING THE MYTHOS
Nothing would sound so ridiculous to a professor then a student claiming that he couldn't finish his paper on "Ecological Aspects of Thoreau's "Walden Pond" because he was being chased by ghouls the night before. So what do daring student-investigators do when the fate of humanity is in the balance? Well, they could either study real hard beforehand, cram, drop courses midway through the semester, or drop out entirely and go pro. But dropping courses can be expensive and there is not much of a market for professional investigators, so studying is the best way out. Keepers can tabulate their player's academic success by asking for an Idea or Luck roll each week of interrupted school. Cramming entails making up for an entire semester of investigating (or too much RPG playing) by cramming the entire semester into one night's orgy of study and coffee drinking. Cramming success is determined by this formulae: (KNOW+INT+CON x Percentile). If the result is 61 or better, they pass that course. Otherwise, it's off to work at the local First National Grocery store or "Dave's Donuts" to pay the bills.
TWO GROOVY MINI-ADVENTURES FOR MISKATONIC STUDENTS
CTHULHU ROCKS!:
The leader of a campus punk band "Arkaan Noledge", Mark Alscot, discovers some really cool lyric ideas in the library; from the Necronomicon, no less! Unfortunately, during a wild practice session, the combination of amplified sonic thrashing and the "lyrics" turned loose a seething "thing", which promptly attacked the other three band members and sucked the life out of them. The police figured the musicians were accidentally electrocuted and had Alscot committed to the M.U. Psychiatric Hospital due to his wild rantings. Slightly calmed down a few days later, Alscot pleads with the investigators to destroy the creature.
1) Alscot, under the influence of certain hallucinogenics, actually just saw his bandmates get accidentally electrocuted by a beer soaked amplifier. The poor guy mistook the electrical arcs as "monsters".
2) The band members were electrocuted, but on purpose by a oversensitive and insane neighbor who was fed up with both the noise and the mysterious lyrics from the Necronomicon. The Neighbor now believes the entire college is filled with "Satan worshipers and monsters" and must fight this unholy onslaught any way they can, namely with a high powered hunting rife. The players have to prevent this from happening.
3) The Creature is a Fire Vampire now getting it's fill with Arkham's homeless people down by the river. The investigators have to discover just what the "thing" is and devise a way to either dispel or destroy it. This Fire Vampire is a bit more powerful then most, having 15 HP, a 17 POW, at 85% Touch attack (doing 2d6 fire damage) and has spells: Call Cthugha, Create Gate, and Summon/Bind Star Vampire (even more trouble!).
THE SORT OF UNNAMABLE: After old Widow Archer refused to sell her 175 year old family mansion to real estate developer Ronald Crump, mysterious sounds and bizarre sightings began spooking the neighborhood. Popular rumor has it that the ghost of a crazed wizard has risen from the grave and is now haunting the house and neighborhood. Mrs. Archer is just about at the edge of a nervous breakdown and possible commitment to a mental hospital. The cops are calling it all a case of mass hysteria.
1) Poor Mrs. Archer is just old and suffering from an over active imagination. The neighbor rumors are just local legend, but when the players prove there's no ghost, Mrs. Archer gives them milk & cookies and title to the house in her will. Pro Bono Student Lawyers will have to battle Mr. Crump instead (Roll Average of Law & Persuade to succeed).
2) Yup, the house IS haunted! Back in the late 1600s, a follower of Goody Fowler named Zephram Curin lived in a house on the site of Mrs. Archer's house. Three Hundred years to the date of his execution by torch-wielding townsfolk, Curin is back and ready to exact his evil revenge against Arkham. (use Lich stats)
3) What Mrs Archer, and her terrified neighbors don't know and what the intrepid student investigators have to discover is that the "ghost" is really Mr Crump and his stooges and perfect chance for Keepers to recite that famous the line, "...and I would have succeeded if not for you meddling kids!". Crump had three of his goons tunnel under the house to the basement and sneak around in luminous costumes making spooky sounds to frighten Widow Archer into selling the house (the fiends!). Spells will have no effect, but avoid letting the investigators use guns as this would scare Mrs Archer into having a coronary, and besides, Crump can't say the famous line with large holes in his body...
MORE ADVENTURE NUGGETS FOR MISKATONIC STUDENTS
SON OF REANIMATOR REVISITED: Well, it looks as if yet another wack-o young Med student has stumbled onto the twisted notes of Dr Herbert West and is once again trying to raise the dead with the mad doctor's weird reanimation serum. Naturally, the same grisly results occurs for stray animals and unlucky students & staff with the student investigators having to clean up the mess afterwards.
I DON'T THINK WE'RE STILL IN ARKHAM, TOTO: One peaceful evening while playing a friendly game of "Myths & Monsters", some darn fantasy gamers dig up some supposedly harmless spells from the Armitage library and manage to get themselves teleported to the Dreamlands, Yuggoth, R'ylth, or some place much, much worse. The gamers must find their way back to earth or face eternity (or quick and messy deaths) trapped in a world they never made.
CTHULHU IN THE SKY WITH DIAMONDS: Evil and crazed cultists are selling a new hallucinogenic drug called "Time Warp" which gives the users a LSD-type sensation of flying through time and space, making it big with those "party-types" tired of acid and Ecstasy. The problem is, aside from it being quite addictive, the drug causes their crazed thoughts & dreams to become a wake-up call for the Dreamer Beneath the Sea. After 3 or more uses, the user begins to dream of lost R'lyth and loses 1 POW and d10 SAN per night until insane. The investigators must reveal the cultist drug dealers to the authorities to prevent a Avatar of Great Cthulhu from materializing in Arkham.
BEACH BLANKET BYHAKEE: While on a roadtrip up to Maine for skiing, camping, or hunting (preferable hunting), the student investigators get stuck in the quaint old town of Innsmouth just when the Deep Ones are having their annual "Spring Break" hunt for nubile human "dates". Fort Lauderdale, it ain't.
THE GREEKS DON'T WANT NO MORE FREAKS: Some random Fraternity is taking their rituals a bit too far as they celebrate the semesterly Rush week and Finals by inviting homeless people to dinner, then sacrifice them to (fill in the blank) and REALLY have them for dinner (it tends to solve the "where to put the body?" problem). Perhaps the sudden disappearance of a friendly homeless person or an unlucky student will attract the attention of the student investigators
IT CAME FROM THE BIOLOGY BUILDING: Late one Friday evening, two unfortunate grad students made the mistake of defrosting a frozen specimen from the 1959 Miskatonic University-IGY Antarctic Expedition. The hideous blob of black goo ate one of the students, sending the other screaming maniacally to the student investigators. It is a 700,000 year old shoggoth and will destroy much of the campus unless the brave investigators can nullify it with spells, gates, elder signs, or a M1 tank.
MISKATONIC UNIVERSITY ORGANIZATION
COLLEGE OF LIBERAL ARTS:
School of Languages, Literature, & The Arts
Departments of: Fine Arts, English, Philosophy, Modern & Classical Languages, and Communication Arts.
School of History & Social Science
Departments of: Anthropology & Archeology, History, Political Studies & Geography, and Sociology.
COLLEGE OF SCIENCES
School of Physical Sciences
Departments of: Physics & Astronomy, Chemistry, Earth Sciences, and Oceanography.
School of Life Sciences
Departments of: Biology, Botany, Zoology, Microbiology, Ecology, Animal Science, and Psychology.
Astor Division of Mathematics & Computer Science
COLLEGE OF MEDICINES
chool of Medicine School of Nursing
SCHOOL OF ENGINEERING & TECHNOLOGY
Departments of: Mechanical, Industrial, Electrical, & Civil Engineering, Manufacturing Engineering Technology, Industrial Management, and Industrial Design.
SCHOOL OF EDUCATION:
Departments of: Early Childhood, Elementary School, Middle School, High School, and Adult Education.
SCHOOL OF BUSINESS
Departments of Accounting, Economics, Finance, and Management.
SCHOOL OF LAW
SCHOOL OF MEDIEVAL METAPHYSICS
BIBLIOGRAPHY
Chaosium's Call of Cthulhu 3rd ed.
Chaosium's Arkham Unveiled
Chaosium's Kingsport: The City in the Mist
Chaosium's "Miskatonic University Graduate Kit"
Arkham House's The Dunwich Horror & Others
Georgia Southern University Graduate Catalog
Georgia Southern University Student Activities Guide
Labels: Call of Cthulhu, Cthulhu Now, Miskatonic
posted by The Editor | 2:53 PM
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