Francesca Viganò
Before we dive into the review of Cthulhu Bay – Return to the City of Evil and Other Tales, I’d like to thank Nigredo Press and MS Edizioni for providing us with a physical copy to leaf through together. This is the first supplement for the roleplaying game Cthulhu Bay, which we have already covered in this review.
If, after reading this review, you would like to buy the game, you can find it on the publisher’s site for 13 euros for the physical edition (including PDF). If, on the other hand, you want only the digital copy, you can find it on the same site for 9 euros.
A Needed Supplement
If you have already read the review of the basic manual, you will know that there were very few references to the Lovecraftian universe in that text. That is why I was pleasantly surprised to leaf through this supplement. Inside it I finally found not only explicit references, but also a summary of the terminology, places and creatures of Lovecraft’s myths. Not a lot, actually, but still enough to outline the specificity of a certain type of horror that the supplement wants to recreate.
We are dealing with a compact A5-sized booklet that is easy to carry. Perfect in combination with the basic manual, which is necessary to be able to write the stories contained in this booklet.
The usefulness of Cthulhu Bay – Return to the City of Evil and Other Tales does not end there, however. In fact, among the 45 pages of the supplement, we also find suggestions on how to independently create a story to play and the rules for the solo mode, which is now commonplace and present in many roleplaying games.
Three New Tales to Play
As I anticipated, inside the supplement we find three new tales ready to be played. Let’s see them together, as always without any particular spoilers so as not to ruin your gaming experience.
- Return to the City of Evil: the story (set in 1935) pushes the investigators to the gates of the legendary city mentioned in the Necronomicon in search of the Ashurbanipal Fire.
- The Lighthouse: set on the island of Oldport, it places players in the shoes of the lighthouse keeper’s family amidst eerie presences and buried histories. Loosely based on Poe’s short story of the same name and the film The Lighthouse by Robert Eggers.
- Flight AKO13N: in this storyline with a modern-day setting, the characters find themselves on a commercial flight. It is an inexplicable event that turns the lives of the passengers upside down. Loosely based on the short story The Langoliers by Stephen King, from which a TV mini-series was also made.
Cthulhu Solo
The last part of the supplement is dedicated to the rules for playing Cthulhu Bay solo. In addition to the basic rules, you will need to add a deck of French cards with two jokers. Please note that the Character Creation and the rules for Trials and Resources, unraveling the Mystery of the Tale and the Epilogue, remain unchanged from the basic manual.
The cards are needed to create the Clue Deck, the NPC Deck, the Reaction Deck and the Unexpected Deck. Each of these decks will be used to insert the aforementioned elements into the narrative according to a predefined 10-point scheme.
This game mode requires the player to write down what happens to their character, following very precise instructions to define the style of the story. The character must write in the first person and in the distant past.
Although I appreciate the intention, I feel that this game mode does not add any particular value to the work. The procedurality of the instructions and the requirement to write end up, in my opinion, discouraging the experience rather than stimulating it.
Review of the Aesthetics of Cthulhu Bay – Return to the City of Evil and Other Tales
Cthulhu Bay – Return to the City of Evil and Other Tales retains the practicality of a paperback manual. All the aesthetic choices remain retro, thanks to the use of paper reminiscent of old publications. The cover, the only element of colour throughout the work, was created by Leon Ant and is certainly impactful and satisfying. The two-column layout makes the product readable, and the illustrations nicely punctuate the volume without overdoing it.
Once again, it was decided to include elements from magazines of the time, albeit in smaller numbers, leaving more room for illustrations.
Conclusions of the Review of Cthulhu Bay – Return to the City of Evil and Other Tales
As can be seen from this review, Cthulhu Bay – Return to the City of Evil and Other Tales integrates well with the base manual. The idea of offering new tales (but especially the suggestion on how to create your own) makes the work extremely useful to complete the experience born with the core rulebook.
The price and format are definitely a winning point if you want an experience to share with your gaming group without too much preparation. If you want new stories with tense themes, horror tones and Lovecraftian atmospheres, then Cthulhu Bay – Return to the City of Evil and Other Tales is for you.
