Chill RPG vs. Call of Cthulhu Thematically and Mechanically
During the gaming session last night with my Friday night group, one of my players asked a simple question:
How similar mechanically and thematically is Chill RPG, 3rd Edition to Call of Cthulhu?
While I was able to give them a good answer to this, based on my experience with both games, Matthew McFarland, the lead designer for the game at Growling Door Games, answered a similar question over on the RPGnet forums. So I'll just quote him right now.
Thematically, some but not much. CoC and related games (Tremulus, Trail of Cthulhu) focus more on curiosity getting you killed, mind-bending horrors, the soul-crushing realization that, at the end of the day, you are insignificant and powerless.
Chill focuses on people fighting the Unknown not out of resigned hopelessness, but because even if they can't ever destroy it, they can make a difference right here, right now, in this circumstance. You'll never kill all the werewolves, but you'll kill the one that's been terrorizing this community. Overall more hopeful and more humanity.
System-wise, you can go here and get a quick look at how it works.
To be honest, Matt put it so much better than I did (though I informed my gamer about this post going up this morning), but he sums up for me the essential difference between Chill and Call of Cthulhu and most other horror rpgs out there - Chill is about hope, about not giving in, and about humanity.
'Nuff said. :)
How similar mechanically and thematically is Chill RPG, 3rd Edition to Call of Cthulhu?
While I was able to give them a good answer to this, based on my experience with both games, Matthew McFarland, the lead designer for the game at Growling Door Games, answered a similar question over on the RPGnet forums. So I'll just quote him right now.
Thematically, some but not much. CoC and related games (Tremulus, Trail of Cthulhu) focus more on curiosity getting you killed, mind-bending horrors, the soul-crushing realization that, at the end of the day, you are insignificant and powerless.
Chill focuses on people fighting the Unknown not out of resigned hopelessness, but because even if they can't ever destroy it, they can make a difference right here, right now, in this circumstance. You'll never kill all the werewolves, but you'll kill the one that's been terrorizing this community. Overall more hopeful and more humanity.
System-wise, you can go here and get a quick look at how it works.
To be honest, Matt put it so much better than I did (though I informed my gamer about this post going up this morning), but he sums up for me the essential difference between Chill and Call of Cthulhu and most other horror rpgs out there - Chill is about hope, about not giving in, and about humanity.
'Nuff said. :)