106: The Miskatonic Mangler
Synopsis
The investigators split their efforts between keeping an eye on Bernard Corbitt and pursuing the lead on Randolph Tomaszewski, the fired hospital orderly tied to the disposal of body parts. Dom, Officer Billie McConnell, and Major Bakersfield track Tomaszewski to a shabby apartment building on 143 Crenshaw, where the Major waits in the alley below with his beloved net, “old reliable,” while Dom and McConnell head upstairs.
The moment Tomaszewski opens the door, Dom recognizes him as the man who abducted him the night before. Tomaszewski slams the door and bolts for the fire escape, but Bakersfield is ready. Hiding behind a dumpster like some deranged big-game hunter, he ambushes the fugitive, nets him in the alley, and wrestles him to the ground despite Tomaszewski pulling a switchblade. Dom arrives just in time to contribute a deeply personal revenge kick to the ribs, nearly beating their suspect senseless before McConnell can begin a proper interrogation.
Under pressure, Tomaszewski confesses to several major crimes. He admits that Corbitt ordered him to abduct and murder Dom, intending to make him “disappear.” He also reveals that he is in fact the infamous Miskatonic Mangler, the killer responsible for dismembering victims and harvesting body parts for years. According to him, after losing his hospital job he continued supplying Corbitt with body parts, receiving drugs in return and descending further into deranged Satanic devotion. Most importantly, he claims Corbitt is constructing some kind of gate through which “the Master” will come, and that the body parts are part of that occult work.
After stashing Tomaszewski in their own car trunk for a moment of poetic justice, the investigators search his apartment before the police arrive. Inside they find an unmistakably occult cache: a black ritual altar painted with a pentagram, candles and incense burners, and a hidden occult text titled True Magic by C. Adolphus Renwen. Dom recognizes the book as a real and serious work on occult rituals, not the usual fraud-ridden nonsense. They also discover a hidden compartment containing a cheap ceremonial dagger, several vials — one still holding a strange neon-purple liquid — and blood-stained jewelry almost certainly taken from Tomaszewski’s victims. The grisly evidence drives home that the Miskatonic Mangler is no rumor but a real murderer who has been cutting people apart and keeping trophies from the dead.
McConnell turns Tomaszewski over to the police, while Dom and the Major return to Dr. Simeon Cantstandya’s house, their usual meeting point. There they bring Tallahassee back into the loop, show the others the occult book, and reveal the strange purple vial. In one of the worst-informed scientific decisions in Arkham history, Dr. Simeon drinks the remaining liquid himself.
The drug hurls Simeon into what seems to be some kind of alien astral or psychic realm: a blasted landscape under unfamiliar stars, with multiple moons, jagged crystal growths, and flashes of rose-colored lightning. Merely existing there costs him sanity and permanently increases his Cthulhu Mythos knowledge. True to form, Simeon responds to being transported to an incomprehensible alien world by studying it, peeing on the crystals to see what happens, and accidentally learning more than is probably healthy. The crystals react with impossible colors, and in the distance he glimpses what may be ruins or unnatural structures.
His exploration is cut short when a towering spider-like monstrosity emerges from behind the crystal formations and charges him. The creature is huge, skeletal, and only approximately arachnid, the sort of thing that makes the human brain reach for the word “spider” because the alternatives are worse. Simeon panics, runs, gets impaled through the shoulder, and barely avoids being torn apart by spending luck and thinking fast. Realizing he has no weapons and may not even be physically present in the ordinary sense, he improvises by grabbing a jagged crystal shard and stabbing the monster in the face. The blow lands hard enough to stagger it and buy him a momentary escape.
The episode ends on a cliffhanger: Dr. Simeon runs for distant structures across the alien wasteland, only to hear the pursuing creature suddenly fall silent. When he glances back, the spider-thing is already in the air, leaping down on him.
Transcript
00:00: Narrator: Welcome to the Arkham Files, an actual-play Call of Cthulhu RPG podcast featuring Seth Morrison as Tallahassee Turner. 00:33: Tallahassee Turner: I think he’s dying, but if he does, are you available? 00:39: Narrator: Peter Morrison as Dominic John Druncard. 00:42: Dom Druncard: It was like I, you know, had a fair amount of spirits. 00:46: Narrator: Donovan Ballard as Dr. Simeon Cantstandya. 00:50: Dr. Simeon: I’m not a psychologist tonight. 00:52: Narrator: Sam Morrison as Major Frederick Aloysius Bakersfield. 00:56: Bakersfield: Still really into guns and ammo and… stuff. 01:02: Narrator: Abel Morrison as Officer Billie McConnell. 01:05: McConnell: You can’t do anything drastically illegal. 01:08: Player: I blow up his business. 01:10: Narrator: And I’m your Game Master, the Keeper of Arcane Lore, Alex Morrison. Now grab some dice and your sanity. Let’s roll. 01:39: Bakersfield: Alright, fellas, listen. From Dom’s story, it sounds like Mr. Corbitt has some powers. 01:47: Bakersfield: Obviously—because he made Mr. Tallahassee dance in the street. 01:56: Bakersfield: To avoid any more sexy dancing persuasion, I’ve got an idea. 02:08: Bakersfield: One of us goes to the front, one to the back. While Mr. Corbitt’s distracted, someone comes up behind and gags him. 02:14: Player: With the net? 02:16: Bakersfield: If you can gag him with a net, go for it. 02:31: Player: Well, what are the rest of us doing? 02:41: Bakersfield: Two of you go in back. One distracts him while the other gags him. The other two search the place. 03:01: Bakersfield: Officer McConnell, how do you feel about this? 03:10: McConnell: No. That’s illegal. I’ve got to keep my job. 03:19: McConnell: It’s late and I’ve seen a few too many naked dudes tonight. 03:29: Player: Can we go find Mr. Gandalf—Rendell—whatever his name was? 03:34: Player: Randolph Tomaszewski. 03:37: Player: Yeah, that guy. We’ve got his address. 03:45: Bakersfield: Alright, let’s go take care of that guy real quick, then come back and handle Mr. Corbitt. Net-style. 03:52: Player: Who’s in? 03:56: Player: I’m going to go over to Mr. Corbitt’s myself. Can I borrow your phone? 04:03: Player: I’m going to go look at Corbitt’s backyard. 04:05: Player: Dr. Simeon already hid in the greenhouse. 04:09: Player: Yeah, but he had a terrible spot hidden and couldn’t find anything. 04:26: Player: Alright, you guys do what you want. 04:29: Player: I’ll go with Officer McConnell and Dom to interrogate Mr. Tomaszewski. 04:39: GM: So you guys are going to go engage in another assault on Castle Corbitt? 04:47: Player: I’m not engaging him. I’m just going to snoop around his yard. 04:53: Player: Do you still have dynamite? 04:55: Bakersfield: Oh, I’ve got dynamite. 05:02: Player: I said that quietly. 05:07: Player: You didn’t hear anything. 05:13: GM: Okay, how are you guys splitting up? 05:15: GM: Dom Druncard, are you coming with them? 05:18: Dom: Are we attacking the guy again? 05:21: Player: No, we’re visiting Tomaszewski. 05:29: Player: Me and Billy were already doing that. 05:31: Dom: I don’t want to end up naked in the street, so I’m coming with you guys. 05:34: Player: It’s not so bad. 05:39: Player: I’ve got a cure for that. Not if you’re the one naked in the street. 05:53: GM: Okay. So Dom, Bakersfield, and Billy McConnell are doing the normal thing. 06:01: GM: And the other two are doing something like a couple of crazy people. 06:08: Player: Right. 06:10: Player: I heard something about a sniper rifle and dynamite. 06:14: Player: Leave the dynamite out of it. 06:17: Bakersfield: I kept the dynamite with me. I’ve got a specific belt that holds dynamite. 06:26: Player: Of course you do. 06:28: Player: I grabbed a pair of binoculars from the surplus gear. 06:32: Player: I’m going to hide and watch Mr. Corbitt in case he goes anywhere. 06:41: GM: Okay. 06:42: Player: I’m going to sneak into his backyard after dark while it’s raining so the soil is soft. 06:49: Player: I want to dig for another bone. 06:58: Player: Wait—he’s Asian now? 07:00: Player: He’s always been Asian. 07:05: GM: Sorry. I’m just super racist. 07:21: GM: We cut to Dom Druncard and company heading to 143 Crenshaw downtown. 07:55: GM: You arrive at a four-story apartment building. 07:59: GM: It’s pretty rundown—like a lot of buildings in this neighborhood. 08:03: GM: Not a well-off area. 08:06: GM: What do you do? 08:17: Players: It’s me, you, and Officer McConnell. 08:29: Player: Tallahassee stayed behind watching Corbitt. 08:36: Dom: I’ll go around back in case the guy tries to escape. 08:41: Player: Does it look like there’s a back exit? 08:53: GM: His apartment is 4B. 08:55: GM: So he’s on the fourth floor. 09:04: Dom: I’ll stay ground level around back. 09:07: Dom: You guys go ask questions. 09:21: Player: Do we benefit from you going around back? 09:24: GM: The lobby runs through the building with entrances on both sides. 09:34: GM: There are stairs leading up. 09:44: GM: So there’s a front entrance and a back alley exit. 09:54: Player: Major can stay in the alley with his net. 10:25: Player: There might be a fire escape. 10:31: Dom: Major stays here. If he tries to escape down the fire escape, make noise. 10:50: GM: Are you checking the back? 10:56: Dom: Yeah. I’ll check for a fire escape. 11:25: GM: You step into the alley. 11:29: GM: There are trash cans and a fence. 11:40: GM: The alley opens to the street on one side. 11:44: GM: Looking up, you see a fire escape. 11:49: Dom: I’ll stay here and watch it. 11:59: GM: You’re posted in the alley. 12:02: Dom: Billy, ready? 12:10: Billy: Let’s do it. 12:19: GM: You climb to the fourth floor. 12:25: Billy: I get my badge ready. 12:27: GM: You find apartment 4B. 12:31: GM: The hallway is filthy—bottles, paper bags, trash. 12:46: Billy: I knock. 12:53: GM: After a moment, the door cracks open. 13:07: GM: A tall, wiry, weasel-faced man peers out. 13:13: Dom: Is it the guy who had me in his car? 13:18: GM: Yes—it’s the same man. 13:22: Dom: I shoulder the door open and try to subdue him. 13:38: GM: He opens the door and says, “What do you want?” 13:50: GM: When he sees Dom, his eyes go wide. 13:54: GM: Dom, make a Strength check. 14:04: Dom: Strength 70… rolled a 22. 14:18: GM: Opposed roll. 14:27: GM: He rolled a 6. 14:41: GM: You slam the door with your shoulder. 14:47: GM: It budges slightly, but he braces it. 14:54: GM: You bounce back. 14:57: Dom: Come help me out! 15:06: Player: Did I mention I had my net? 15:10: GM: He shouts and slams the door shut. 15:17: Player: Come! 15:21: Billy: I bang on the door. 15:23: Billy: Mr. Tomaszewski, this is Officer McConnell. Open up—I have some questions. 15:34: GM: No response. 15:36: GM: Roll a Listen check. 15:43: Billy: I put my ear to the door. 15:47: GM: Dom, what are you doing? 15:54: Dom: I’m kicking the door. 16:01: Players: We kick the door together! 16:11: Billy: I can’t just break the door down. I need a warrant. 16:16: Player: Close your eyes. 16:25: Billy: Listen 70—success. 16:28: Billy: Wait—what did I hear? 16:30: McConnell: I hear something scrambling around in the apartment. 16:35: McConnell: Sounds like somebody dashing through it. 16:39: Billy: Okay. 16:40: McConnell: Rapid footsteps moving away from the door. 16:42: Player: Do I hear him going out the back? 16:46: McConnell: You hear him moving away from the door. 16:50: McConnell: And some low mumbling, but I can’t make it out. 16:59: GM: Dom, what are you doing? 17:01: Dom: I want Billy to go let the Major know what’s going on. 17:08: Dom: Billy, go tell the Major. 17:15: Billy: Given how he beat you up last time, I think I’m just going to stay here. 17:29: GM: Dom, you haven’t actually told him this is the same guy. 17:42: Billy: Is that the guy? 17:43: Dom: Hey Billy, I’d like to take this time to let you know that this is in fact the guy. 17:56: GM: We cut to Major Bakersfield. Roll me a Spot Hidden. 18:04: Bakersfield: 31 out of 45. 18:11: GM: Success. 18:17: GM: You hear somebody jump out onto the fire escape about four floors above you. 18:23: Bakersfield: Yeah, I pull out old reliable from my knapsack. 18:31: Player: What’s old reliable? 18:32: Bakersfield: My net. 18:39: Bakersfield: And I don’t hear him going out the back? 18:43: GM: On your Listen, you hear a window open and then feet clunking onto the fire escape. 18:55: GM: Meanwhile, you guys are still having a very polite discussion out in front. 19:00: Billy: Alright, I’m going to go help the Major. 19:05: Bakersfield: Is there anything near the bottom of the fire escape I can hide behind? Like a dumpster? 19:14: GM: Yeah, there is. 19:16: Bakersfield: I’m going to hide behind it. 19:18: GM: Make me a Stealth roll. 19:47: Bakersfield: 11 out of 20. 19:53: GM: Nice. You slip behind the dumpster as he rushes down the fire escape. 19:56: GM: Dom and McConnell, what are you guys doing? 20:10: Dom: I want to bust the door open. 20:15: Billy: I already took off. 20:17: Dom: Alright, I’m kicking the door open. 20:22: GM: Make a Strength check. 20:28: Dom: I rolled a 76. 20:30: GM: Out of 70? 20:33: Dom: Yeah. 20:34: GM: The door rattles, but it doesn’t break. 20:39: Dom: I’m going to push the roll. I really wind up and hit it again. 20:46: GM: Okay, full-on shoulder charge. 20:54: Dom: You’ve got to be kidding me. 20:59: Dom: I rolled a 96. 21:05: GM: You back up to the far end of the hall and throw yourself at the door full speed. 21:14: GM: You slam into it and flatten yourself against it. 21:23: GM: You fall to the floor. Your shoulder is wrecked. 21:31: Dom: Alright, I’m going to hobble down the stairs. 21:34: GM: You also take 2 damage. 21:52: GM: Roll me an Idea check. 22:02: Dom: I rolled a 40 and my Intelligence is 75. 22:09: GM: It occurs to you that maybe the door isn’t even locked. 22:12: Dom: Oh. 22:16: Players: [Laughter] 22:21: Dom: I’m going to try the handle. 22:25: GM: The door was not locked. It opens right up. 22:36: Dom: I go through and want to see if I can tell fast that he went out the window. 22:51: GM: Billy definitely would have said he was going out the back before running downstairs. 23:04: Billy: Yeah, he’s going out the back. 23:08: Dom: Okay, I’m rushing for the fire escape so I can cut him off. 23:17: Dom: I know the Major’s down there with old reliable. 23:23: GM: You open the door and run through the apartment. 23:27: GM: It’s basically a dump — missing plaster, exposed wood, a rusted radiator. 23:45: GM: The whole apartment looks like one room. 23:52: GM: Are you going out onto the fire escape or just to the window? 23:56: Dom: I look out the window first. 24:00: GM: You see Tomaszewski rushing down the fire escape toward the ground. 24:07: GM: He’s already made it down about a floor, heading toward the second floor. 24:11: Dom: I’m going out after him. 24:25: GM: You rush down behind him. 24:28: GM: He looks up, sees you, and keeps going. 24:37: Dom: I yell, “Stop or I’ll shoot!” 24:42: GM: He keeps running. 24:44: Dom: I chase after him. 24:50: GM: He hits the bottom of the fire escape and kicks the ladder down. 25:03: GM: He jumps the last few rungs and lands hard on the concrete. 25:07: GM: Then he runs toward the exit — and the dumpster. 25:19: Bakersfield: I jump out and tackle him. “Here’s Major—” 25:25: Bakersfield: Actually, let me change that. “Here’s Netty Hands.” 25:31: GM: Roll Fighting Brawl. 25:38: Bakersfield: 47 out of 60. 25:49: GM: Roll it with a bonus die since you have surprise. 26:07: Bakersfield: 16. 26:09: GM: Nice. 26:22: GM: You burst out from behind the dumpster and wrap him up in the net, taking him to the ground. 26:56: GM: What’s your Dex? 26:58: Bakersfield: 60. 27:00: GM: His is higher. 27:04: GM: He reaches into his pocket and pulls out a switchblade. 27:09: GM: He tries to stab you, but with a penalty die because he’s tangled in the net. 27:19: GM: Do you want to fight back or dodge? 27:29: Bakersfield: I want to parry it — knock it aside and wrap him up more. 27:46: GM: That’ll be Fighting Brawl. 27:51: Bakersfield: Okay. 28:15: Bakersfield: 43 out of 60. 28:18: GM: That beats him. 28:24: GM: He goes for the stab, and you catch his wrist before the knife reaches you. 28:32: GM: You wrap his arm tighter in the net. 28:39: GM: Your turn. What do you do? 28:43: Bakersfield: I want to wrap his hands behind his back with the net and pin him with my knee until Dom gets here. 28:58: GM: Roll Fighting Brawl with a bonus die. 29:07: Bakersfield: I rolled a 60. 29:10: GM: He rolled a 92. 29:14: GM: He’s got nothing on Major Bakersfield. 29:17: GM: He struggles, but he’s too tangled up. 29:29: GM: You wrench his arm behind his back in an arm lock. 29:33: GM: He yells in pain and drops the knife. 29:38: GM: You put your knee into him and cinch the net tight. 29:43: Bakersfield: I laugh hysterically as the thrill of war comes rushing back to me. 29:49: Player: It’s going to kill him. 29:57: GM: At this moment, Dom reaches the bottom of the fire escape. 30:00: GM: Just as McConnell comes out the back door. 30:11: Dom: I’m just trying to punch him. 30:19: GM: You’re going to punch him? He’s already subdued. 30:25: Dom: It’s a revenge punch. 30:30: Bakersfield: He dropped his knife. 30:35: Bakersfield: I pick up the knife. 30:49: GM: Dom, you come over and kick him out of anger. 31:01: GM: Since he’s helpless, just roll your damage. 31:21: Dom: I’d like to say, “Remember Crenshaw,” before I kick him. 31:27: GM: He looks really confused. 31:44: Dom: I rolled 5 damage. 32:09: GM: Dom rushes up and football-kicks him in the ribs. 32:35: GM: You feel maybe one give way. 32:41: GM: Tomaszewski lets out a scream of pain. 32:50: Player: Dom’s going to kill him before we can question him. 32:53: McConnell: Dom, take it easy. We’ve got to talk to this guy. 32:58: Tomaszewski: You guys, get off me! What is this? What’s going on? I didn’t do nothing. I don’t know who you are. 33:07: Dom: You tried to kill me earlier. 33:11: McConnell: Alright, Mr. Tomaszewski. I’m Officer McConnell. You’re going to answer a few questions. 33:43: Tomaszewski: I don’t know what you’re talking about. 33:49: GM: He struggles, trying to break free. 33:57: Bakersfield: I might bend him a little more. 34:02: McConnell: You need to calm down. You ain’t going nowhere. Stop fighting and answer some questions. 34:09: GM: Roll Persuade. 34:14: McConnell: My Persuade is 25. 34:21: McConnell: …and I rolled a 77. 34:31: GM: Tomaszewski struggles a little more, then gives up. 34:38: Tomaszewski: Stop. Look, what do you want from me? 34:43: McConnell: How exactly did Mr. Druncard get into your trunk? 34:54: Tomaszewski: I don’t know what you’re talking about. I’ve never seen this guy before in my life. 35:01: Bakersfield: I pull old reliable a little tighter around his ribs. 35:05: Tomaszewski: Just let me up. Alright, I’ll talk to you. 35:12: McConnell: First talk, then we’ll let you out. 35:19: McConnell: Why did you have Mr. Druncard in your trunk? 35:31: Tomaszewski: Alright, alright. He made me do it. He told me to. 35:40: McConnell: Are you talking about Corbitt? 35:42: Tomaszewski: No, no, no, no— 36:07: Tomaszewski: Look, you know why. I was meant to get rid of him. 36:12: McConnell: What do you mean, get rid of him? 36:17: Tomaszewski: Make him disappear. 36:19: McConnell: You mean dead? 36:23: Tomaszewski: Sure. Not a problem anymore. 36:31: Dom: I’m going to punch him. 36:37: GM: He’s restrained. Just roll damage. 36:49: Dom: I rolled another 5. 36:55: GM: You hit him hard. He’s not looking very good. 37:12: GM: He passes out. 37:15: GM: Everybody roll Psychology. 37:30: McConnell: I rolled a 16 out of 40. 37:42: GM: Major Bakersfield succeeds. 37:50: GM: He’s faking it. 37:50: Bakersfield: I slap him really gently. Tap, tap. Come on. 38:03: Tomaszewski: Guys, don’t kill me. Oh, come on. 38:11: Bakersfield: You don’t go trying to kill my new friend here. 38:15: Dom: That’s me. 38:21: McConnell: Did Corbitt pay you to try and kill him? 38:24: Tomaszewski: I guess you could say he gives me things. 38:28: Tomaszewski: Things that I need. 38:33: McConnell: What do you mean, things you need? 38:35: Tomaszewski: You know. Some uppers now and then. Stuff to get me through the day. 38:42: Tomaszewski: And stuff that I need so I can talk to the Master. 38:48: McConnell: Master? 38:49: Tomaszewski: Yeah. The Master. 38:51: McConnell: Who’s the Master? 38:54: Tomaszewski: You know the Master. Everybody knows the Master. 39:01: Player: No, it’s Satan. 39:06: Tomaszewski: He’s the master of all. And he’s coming. He’s getting bored of all of us faithful servants. Just you wait. 39:14: Player: This guy’s cracked. 39:21: Player: Where can we find your Master? 39:34: Tomaszewski: The Master’s everywhere. 39:38: Tomaszewski: You call and you see him in every dark corner. You see him when you close your eyes. 39:42: Tomaszewski: I know you saw him in the trunk last night. 39:45: Player: You’re not making any sense here. 39:46: Tomaszewski: You want to know where the Master is? Let me up and I’ll send you to him. 39:51: Player: I’ll send you to the medium. 39:52: McConnell: Mr. Corbitt? 39:54: Tomaszewski: No, the Master’s Lord Satan. Mr. Corbitt works for the Master too. He knows him better than I do. 40:02: Player: Have you guys been cutting the bodies? Is that you? 40:05: Tomaszewski: I’m just doing my work for the Master. 40:10: Tomaszewski: Yeah, I’ve been getting those bodies. I’ve been getting them for Corbitt for years. 40:14: Player: Corbitt’s the one cutting up the bodies then? 40:17: Tomaszewski: No, no. I get the body parts. He uses them. 40:22: Tomaszewski: He gives them to creatures. 40:24: Player: So is Mr. Corbitt the Miskatonic Mangler, or is that you? 40:30: Tomaszewski: That’s me. That’s what they call me. 40:34: Tomaszewski: But I’m just a servant. Corbitt needs body parts, and after I lost my job he said I had to keep getting them. 40:46: Tomaszewski: So I got them wherever I could. 40:48: McConnell: Okay, I’m cuffing him. I got the Miskatonic Mangler. I’m going to be famous. 40:59: Tomaszewski: Even if you get me, the Master will get the rest of you. 41:05: Tomaszewski: He’s coming soon. Corbitt’s been bringing him along. 41:12: Player: What? 41:14: Tomaszewski: Through the gate. 41:16: Player: Where’s the gate? 41:18: Tomaszewski: Mr. Corbitt has it. He’s building it. It’s what he’s been doing for years. 41:24: Player: In his house? 41:26: Tomaszewski: I don’t know where he keeps it, but he has it. That’s what he needs the parts for. 41:31: Tomaszewski: He’s got to bring the Master. 41:33: Tomaszewski: There’s a keeper. You know, people in his attic and all that. 41:38: Tomaszewski: He doesn’t hide it. 41:39: Tomaszewski: I don’t know what he does with the body parts. I just give them to him, and he gives me the drugs that let me see the Master. 41:49: Tomaszewski: And he’s coming for the rest of you all soon. 41:54: McConnell: Yeah, I definitely cuff him. 42:00: GM: He’s still struggling as you cuff him. 42:04: Player: Leave the net on. 42:13: GM: You keep him wrapped up and handcuff his hands behind his back. 42:19: GM: He keeps ranting about the Master being on his way. 42:24: Tomaszewski: I saw a beast coming out of the sea. It had ten horns and seven heads, with ten crowns on its horns. 42:32: Tomaszewski: The whole world was filled with wonder and worshiped the beast. 42:39: Player: I want to ask him where he’s been cutting up the bodies. 42:47: Tomaszewski: Wherever I find them. 42:50: Player: You’ve been doing it in your apartment? 42:52: Tomaszewski: No. I find people when they’re alone, then I get the body parts. 42:57: Tomaszewski: I leave the rest where I find it, because I don’t need it all. 43:01: Player: What do you use to cut them up? You got a knife? 43:09: Tomaszewski: You ain’t doing that with this little switchblade. I’ve got saws. I’ve got all kinds of things. 43:10: Player: Where? 43:12: Tomaszewski: Upstairs in my apartment. 43:15: Tomaszewski: You’ll find things. You’ll see the shrine. 43:18: Tomaszewski: I can see the face of the Master. He’s up in my apartment. He’s waiting for you. 43:26: Players: We’ll check that out. 43:29: Player: Gag him. 43:31: Player: Shut him up. 43:38: Player: Let’s go check out his flat. 43:43: Player: Can we throw him in the trunk of our car real quick? 43:47: GM: Okay. You throw him into your trunk and lock him in. 43:55: Player: A taste of his own medicine. 44:00: Player: Is there like an office to this apartment complex? 44:02: GM: Yeah. 44:04: McConnell: Fellas, I’ve got to call this in. 44:08: McConnell: But if you want to go poke around upstairs before I do, you’d better hurry. 44:13: McConnell: Just don’t take anything. 44:22: GM: [dramatic music] 44:30: GM: You go into the apartment. It’s a really rundown, ramshackle place. 44:33: GM: It’s filthy. 44:37: GM: There’s exposed wood and brick on the walls where the plaster has broken off. 44:42: GM: It’s just one room. There’s a ratty bed against one wall and a little kitchenette. 44:49: GM: By the window with the fire escape, there’s a steamer trunk at the foot of the bed. 44:58: GM: Roll me Spot Hidden. 45:04: Player: 33. 45:06: Player: 72. 45:10: Player: I’m not opening the trunk. I learned my lesson last time. 45:18: GM: The trunk is, in fact, locked. 45:25: Player: Okay, I try to pick the lock. 45:28: GM: Alright, Locksmith. 45:30: Player: My Locksmith is 50. 45:33: Player: Dude, I am the worst roller ever. I rolled a 63. 45:39: GM: You get in there with your lockpicks, but no dice. It’s not coming loose. 45:47: Player: In my greatest impression of Taborlin the Great, I slam my fist down on it. 45:54: Player: What does he say again? 45:59: Player: Edro! 46:06: Players: [laughter] 46:18: Player: No, I’m going to push my Locksmith roll and potentially break the lock. 46:25: GM: Yes, you can. 46:27: Player: I’m going to keep working the lock. 46:34: Player: 50. 46:35: Player: Is that a success? 46:37: Player: My Locksmith is 50 and I rolled a 50. 46:40: GM: Okay, that is a success. 46:43: GM: You dig the lockpicks in and finally feel the tumblers give. The lock pops open. 46:56: Player: I view the contents. 46:59: GM: You open the old green steamer trunk with rusted brass banding. 47:16: GM: Inside is what looks like a black wooden altar with a pentagram carved into the top. 47:28: GM: It’s dyed in a dark red color. 47:41: GM: The pentagram has been carved and painted this dark red. 47:49: GM: There are black candles in there with the altar. 47:53: GM: It looks like incense burners and similar ritual items. 47:59: GM: Roll Occult for me. 48:05: Player: Oh, my heavens. 48:08: Player: I rolled a 15. My Occult is 5. 48:11: Player: I rolled a 99. 48:17: Players: [laughter] 48:24: GM: You look at this and think, “Okay, this is super normal.” 48:31: Player: I think they have these at Pottery Barn. 48:39: GM: Also tucked along the side of the altar is a book. 48:51: Player: Oh my goodness. 48:53: GM: You pull it out. It’s an old worn book with a black leather cover. 49:00: GM: The title says True Magic by C. Adolphus Renwen. 49:10: Players: [joking about Tallahassee and the feature book] 49:31: GM: What do you guys want to do? 49:35: Player: Well, I’m definitely going to stash the book. I don’t want to leave the book for the cops. 49:41: GM: Cool. 49:44: GM: Dom, did they show it to you? 49:46: Player: Yeah, I assume he saw it. We were both standing there looking in the trunk. 49:50: GM: Dom, roll me Knowledge. 49:58: Dom: I rolled a 17. 50:00: GM: Okay, that’s a hard success. 50:04: GM: You know of this book. 50:07: GM: Just from looking at the cover and flipping through it a bit, this is a legitimate occult text. 50:14: GM: There are a lot of books written by shysters and frauds, full of spooky stories. 50:36: GM: This is the real deal — a genuine book on occult rituals and spells. 50:47: Player: So we steal that book. 50:49: Player: Yeah, we’re going to steal this book. 50:52: Player: I’m tucking it into my trousers next to old reliable. 50:56: Player: Well, we’re not stealing Grandpa Adolphus. 51:01: GM: What else do you guys want to do? 51:06: Player: Is there anything else in it? 51:10: GM: There are no other rooms. Just this one crappy room. 51:18: GM: Do another Spot Hidden on the trunk. 51:29: Player: I rolled a 9. 51:32: Player: I rolled a 16 out of 45. 51:38: GM: As you dig through the trunk, it doesn’t look like there’s anything else besides the ritual vestments and altar. 51:46: GM: But when you move the altar, it looks like there’s a hidden compartment in it. 52:03: Player: I open it. 52:07: GM: You pull out a little drawer using a hidden finger hole. 52:13: GM: Inside is a ceremonial dagger — but a cheap one, almost a knockoff made to look mysterious. 52:31: GM: There are also several vials in there. 52:37: GM: Four vials total. 52:40: GM: Three are empty. 52:42: GM: One is partially filled with a liquid that is a strange, almost neon purple. 52:48: GM: When light catches it, it almost glows. 52:55: GM: Also scattered in the bottom of the compartment is a bunch of jewelry. 53:11: GM: Looking closer, a lot of it has blood on it. 53:16: GM: There’s a necklace, a few rings, some earrings. 53:23: Player: Okay, I’m going to take the liquid. I’m going to leave the jewelry. 53:30: Player: I’m going to steal the jewelry. 53:33: Player: I think that’s pretty condemning evidence. 53:36: Player: I’d convince Dom to leave the jewelry. 53:44: Player: Yeah, if that’s from dead bodies, those are the victims’ things. 53:48: Dom: I’m going to go ahead and leave it there. 53:45: Player: If there’s any paper or pencil around, I’m also going to sketch out the pentagram. 53:56: GM: Okay. 54:01: GM: You find a little notepad over on the counter that you can use. 54:05: Player: Okay. 54:10: Player: And I made my way into the room by now. 54:18: Player: Did you guys find any saws? Big knives? 54:25: Players: We point down to the tray of jewelry and the creepy box. 54:39: GM: What do you guys do with the jewelry you found? 54:45: Player: We think it belongs to the victims, since he admitted to being the Miskatonic Mangler. 54:56: Player: I assume they’re trophies or things taken from the victims. 55:03: GM: I actually want you both to roll Sanity for discovering all of this. 55:08: Player: Dude, I don’t have a lot of Sanity. 55:16: Player: I rolled a 35 out of 49. 55:18: Dom: I rolled a 50 out of 42. 55:22: GM: For the successful roll, it’s disturbing, but you’ve seen worse in the war. 55:29: GM: It confirms the murders, but you keep your composure. 55:36: GM: Dom, you lose 1 point of Sanity. 55:44: Dom: Awesome. Getting closer and closer to going insane, guys. 55:51: GM: Realizing this is the Miskatonic Mangler and that these are the remains of real crimes really drives home what’s happening. 56:21: McConnell: Okay, fellas, we need to put that stuff back so the evidence guys can find it. 56:29: GM: Alright. How do you want to wrap this up? You have backup coming. 56:40: McConnell: I’m just going to have them put the drawer back, remove any evidence of our snooping, and then I’m going to go wait at the door. 56:47: Players: We’re going to piece out and let Billy take credit. 57:00: Player: What are we going to do with the dude in my trunk? 57:07: Player: Let’s go get him out of the trunk and put him in the office with Billy. 57:13: Player: Well, Billy’s in the guy’s apartment on the fourth floor. 57:18: Player: If backup’s on the way, do we even have time to get him out of the trunk and into the building? 57:24: Player: We should have thought about that. 57:29: Player: So I will dump him in the road. 57:32: Player: Let’s just go back down to the car and wait there. 57:36: Player: We’ll get Mr. Tomaszewski out. 57:42: Players: Tommy Tom. 57:47: McConnell: I do want Dom to wait with me, because he’ll have to give a statement that this is the guy who assaulted him. 57:55: McConnell: That’s why I had to come and check this out, so I don’t get in trouble. 58:02: GM: Okay, so you guys are sticking together and waiting for the cops to show up. 58:08: Player: I don’t really love this plan. 58:15: Player: The police are kind of a problem. 58:19: Player: But we’ll wait for the cops since it’ll put the Miskatonic Mangler away. 58:24: GM: Did you guys leave the vial? 58:30: Player: No, I took it with me. 58:34: Player: Same with the book. 58:42: Player: Right. 58:46: Player: Any hats he might have had laying around? 58:49: GM: [laughter] You find a really nasty, crappy newsboy cap stuffed in a corner. 59:02: GM: Dom Druncard and Major Bakersfield come pulling back onto the street. 59:14: GM: You’ve been to the police station. 59:19: GM: They took your statements and picked up Tomaszewski from the apartment and the car. 59:28: GM: They took all of you to the station for statements. 59:32: GM: They kept Billy there to brief them on everything. 59:37: GM: They took your statements and let you go. 59:40: Player: Simeon’s house has kind of been our meeting point up till now, so we go back to his house. 59:47: GM: Okay, you pull up, go up, and bang on his door. 59:51: GM: I’m assuming Dr. Simeon lets you in. 59:55: GM: I’m also assuming you tell him everything that happened. 01:00:00: Players: Yes. 01:00:08: Player: We also signal Tallahassee over. 01:00:12: Player: Well, I saw you guys come down the road. 01:00:16: GM: Okay, so you’re all together with Tallahassee there. 01:00:19: Dr. Simeon: Ooh, wait — now that you’re back, I notice you have a strange vial. 01:00:25: Dr. Simeon: Then you’re going to give it to me to drink. 01:00:29: Dr. Simeon: And I drink it. 01:00:31: Dr. Simeon: A sip. Don’t drink all of that. 01:00:33: GM: So you show Dr. Simeon the vial? 01:00:35: Player: Yeah. After telling him everything, we show him the book and the vial. 01:00:39: GM: Okay. 01:00:40: Dr. Simeon: I’m just doing like a fingertip dip and taste. 01:00:45: Players: You can’t taste it. 01:00:50: Player: Or we could go to Miskatonic University again and have it checked— 01:00:54: Players: He’s drinking it, man. 01:00:57: Dr. Simeon: Alright, I’m drinking it. 01:00:58: Dr. Simeon: Not all of it, damn it. 01:01:04: Player: Calm down, Simeon. You’re in my house. 01:01:09: Player: Don’t make me say Mr. Bakersfield’s home. 01:01:12: Dr. Simeon: Now I start drinking. 01:01:16: GM: There’s not much in there. 01:01:18: GM: It’s a small vial. There’s about half a pinky’s worth. 01:01:31: Dr. Simeon: So either I drink half of a half-pinky— 01:01:43: Players: [laughter] 01:01:48: Dr. Simeon: Fine, I drink the lot. 01:01:54: GM: I’m just checking something real quick. 01:02:00: GM: Okay. You pick up the strange vial with the almost luminescent neon purple liquid. 01:02:08: GM: It looks extremely unnatural. 01:02:14: GM: For some reason, you think, “Alright, down the hatch.” 01:02:19: GM: It is, perhaps, some very strange behavior for a doctor of psychology. 01:02:25: Player: Maybe just experiment. 01:02:28: GM: Perhaps extreme boredom from staring at a blank house for several hours and seeing nothing has made you want something to happen. 01:02:35: GM: So you drink the vial. 01:02:41: GM: Make me a POW roll. 01:02:44: Dr. Simeon: My POW is 60. Here we go. 01:02:52: Dr. Simeon: 67. 01:03:00: Players: Yikes. 01:03:06: Players: Dr. Simeon has died. 01:03:13: GM: You put the vial to your lips and drink down the strange purple liquid. 01:03:17: GM: Not all of it. 01:03:18: GM: As it goes down your throat, it burns — but cold, all the way down. 01:03:26: GM: Once it reaches your stomach, it fills you with a cold sensation. 01:03:32: GM: That cold starts creeping through the rest of your body. 01:03:38: GM: You do drop the vial after a second— 01:03:43: GM: But it’s because you are suddenly not in your house anymore. 01:03:48: Players: What? 01:03:53: GM: You look around, and you are in a dark, rocky, strange landscape. 01:04:00: Dr. Simeon: Heck yes. 01:04:01: Dr. Simeon: Can I start digging? 01:04:03: Players: [laughter] 01:04:08: GM: Roll a Spot Hidden. 01:04:10: GM: The landscape is covered in crystalline growths, and occasionally it’s lit by flashes of rose-colored lightning. 01:04:17: Dr. Simeon: Oh heck yes. 01:04:18: GM: It’s just this blasted landscape. 01:04:24: GM: Also, you’re going to need to roll a Sanity check. 01:04:30: Dr. Simeon: 91. 01:04:38: GM: Yeah, that’s a failure. Roll 1d6. 01:04:52: Dr. Simeon: Four. 01:04:55: GM: You do not go temporarily insane, but it hits you hard. 01:05:12: GM: You are on some alien place. 01:05:18: Player: Please tell me this drug is called soy sauce. 01:05:26: GM: No, you are not rocketing through space and time. 01:05:29: GM: You are just in some strange alien landscape. 01:05:43: GM: You look up and see stars, but they are not constellations you recognize. 01:05:49: GM: It looks like there are two moons in the sky. Maybe three. 01:05:56: GM: The landscape is full of strange crystalline rocks growing up from the ground. 01:06:04: GM: Every few moments, weird sickly pink lightning cracks across the sky. 01:06:16: GM: What are you doing? 01:06:20: Dr. Simeon: I want to start understanding the place. 01:06:24: Dr. Simeon: Sort of study it. 01:06:28: GM: That’s not really a Psychology thing. 01:06:30: GM: You just start wandering around and studying everything. 01:06:34: Dr. Simeon: Do I notice anything? 01:06:36: GM: You notice a lot of strange things. Everything is different. 01:06:44: GM: It’s an empty, barren landscape. 01:06:49: GM: There might be mountains in the distance. 01:06:52: GM: There are crystal growths piled up in all directions. 01:06:57: Dr. Simeon: Can I roll Occult? 01:07:00: GM: You can try, but this would be more of a Cthulhu Mythos thing. 01:07:06: GM: You wander around for about ten minutes. Roll me a d4. 01:07:16: Dr. Simeon: Three. 01:07:19: GM: Add three points to your Cthulhu Mythos skill. 01:07:26: GM: That also permanently removes three points from your maximum Sanity. 01:07:30: GM: Your max Sanity drops accordingly. 01:07:37: Dr. Simeon: So I roll Mythos, then? 01:07:42: GM: Go for it. 01:07:43: Dr. Simeon: 94. 01:07:56: GM: Yeah, you still have no idea where you are. 01:07:59: GM: You’ve never heard of anything like this. 01:08:00: Dr. Simeon: I want to pee on the crystals. 01:08:07: GM: Okay. 01:08:10: GM: It’s been a little while, so you start relieving yourself. 01:08:18: Player: Pocket’s a mess. 01:08:22: GM: Yikes. Roll me another d4. 01:08:31: Dr. Simeon: Four. 01:08:32: GM: Add four more to your Cthulhu Mythos. 01:08:36: GM: As you continue looking around, you start to notice more. 01:08:42: GM: Off in the distance, you see what might be structures or ruins. 01:08:48: GM: They look organized, not natural. 01:08:56: GM: A lot of the rock formations also look half-grown and half-constructed. 01:09:10: GM: While you are pretty distracted as you are peeing, the crystal lights up in strange colors. 01:09:29: GM: Colors you have never seen on Earth. 01:09:43: Dr. Simeon: Oh my goodness. 01:09:53: GM: After another couple of minutes, roll Listen and Spot Hidden. 01:09:59: Dr. Simeon: 28 for Listen. 01:10:07: GM: Success. 01:10:18: GM: You hear a skittering noise. 01:10:28: GM: Like a rodent running across the floor — if the rodent weighed six hundred pounds. 01:10:30: Player: R.U.S.? 01:10:32: GM: As you turn, you see a huge creature emerging from behind one of the crystalline formations. 01:10:42: GM: It looks six or seven feet tall. 01:10:44: GM: Maybe it’s like a spider. 01:10:46: Players: [screaming] 01:10:48: GM: It has huge, long, sharp legs and claws. 01:10:52: GM: It’s not exactly a spider, but that’s the closest thing you can compare it to. 01:11:01: GM: It is racing toward you. 01:11:20: GM: Roll me another Sanity check. 01:11:25: Dr. Simeon: I’m at 55 right now. 01:11:30: Dr. Simeon: 96. 01:11:41: GM: Roll 1d8. 01:11:50: Dr. Simeon: Oh no. 01:12:01: GM: You lose five points of Sanity. Make an Intelligence roll. 01:12:11: Dr. Simeon: 75. 01:12:16: GM: Out of 70? 01:12:18: Dr. Simeon: Really? 01:12:21: GM: That’s actually lucky. 01:12:24: GM: Because if you had succeeded, the full reality of how insane this is would hit you and you’d go temporarily insane. 01:12:55: GM: Since you failed, it hasn’t fully sunk in just how messed up this is. 01:13:08: GM: What do you do? 01:13:10: Dr. Simeon: I’m gonna run for it. 01:13:12: GM: You turn and make a break for it. 01:13:15: GM: The thing keeps gaining on you. 01:13:18: GM: You manage to sprint for another twenty-five or thirty seconds before it catches up. 01:13:28: GM: It pounces on you with claws and legs striking toward you. 01:13:36: GM: Do you want to dodge or fight back? 01:13:42: Dr. Simeon: Do I have firearms? Did I bring my weapons with me? 01:13:48: GM: Looking around, you realize you are not actually wearing any clothes. 01:13:54: Players: [laughter] 01:14:06: GM: Make an Intelligence roll. Or maybe a Cthulhu Mythos roll. 01:14:14: Dr. Simeon: I’ll go with Intelligence. 01:14:20: Dr. Simeon: 69 out of 70. 01:14:23: GM: Okay. You get the idea that this is something like an astral projection. 01:14:28: GM: Your mind is here, or some version of your body is here, but not your actual physical body. 01:14:36: GM: Though everything still feels real. 01:14:54: GM: You feel the ground under your feet, the wind on your body— 01:15:07: GM: —and you feel horrible spikes stab into your back from behind as you run. 01:15:20: GM: You would take 7 points of damage. 01:15:27: Dr. Simeon: Wait, why? I haven’t decided yet. 01:15:34: GM: Roll Dodge or Fight Back. 01:15:39: GM: Which is better, your Fighting Brawl or your Dodge? 01:15:42: Dr. Simeon: My Dodge is better. It’s 40, so I’m gonna dodge. 01:15:49: Dr. Simeon: 28. 01:15:56: GM: That’s a regular success. 01:16:10: Dr. Simeon: I’ve got a lot of Luck. I’m at 80 Luck. 01:16:26: Dr. Simeon: I’ll use 8 Luck. 01:16:30: GM: Okay, that makes it a hard success. 01:16:32: GM: You do not take the 7 damage. 01:16:35: GM: You see one of these legs flying toward you over your shoulder— 01:16:43: GM: —and you dive off to the side. 01:16:54: GM: But as you roll, it scuttles over and slams a second claw down at you. 01:17:14: GM: That’s a hard success from the creature. 01:17:22: GM: You take 7 damage. 01:17:27: Player: Major wound. 01:17:35: GM: No, you only get one Dodge or Fight Back per round. 01:17:53: GM: What do you do now? 01:17:54: GM: You are impaled through the shoulder by a giant spider-claw and it feels like it may have punctured something vital. 01:18:02: Dr. Simeon: I persuade the spider to go away. 01:18:10: Dr. Simeon: I use Medicine and start healing myself. 01:18:16: GM: You don’t have time for that. You have seconds. 01:18:23: Dr. Simeon: I can’t fight him. 01:18:26: Player: His astral-form hand turns into a giant sword. 01:18:31: Player: Or a laser beam. A lightsaber. 01:18:39: Players: [laughter] 01:18:51: GM: You’re buck naked, knocked to the ground, and bleeding. 01:19:13: Player: You’ve got to find a way to wake yourself up or something. 01:19:16: Dr. Simeon: Okay, I pee on myself. 01:19:21: Players: [laughter] 01:19:23: GM: Not successfully. You already used it all on the crystal. 01:19:29: Players: [laughter] 01:19:40: GM: Some options: you could try to attack it, run again, duck behind something, find cover— 01:19:55: GM: It’s up to you. 01:19:57: Dr. Simeon: How far away are those buildings? 01:20:00: GM: Quite a ways. Probably at least a mile. 01:20:02: GM: There are crystal formations around you that you might be able to use for cover. 01:20:07: Dr. Simeon: Can I break off a sharp piece of crystal and jam it into its eyeballs? 01:20:12: GM: Okay. 01:20:13: GM: Yeah, you can find a jagged crystal shard nearby. 01:20:22: GM: You could use it, or try for cover. 01:20:29: Dr. Simeon: I want to jam it in its eye and then book it. 01:20:37: GM: The buildings are still far away. 01:20:45: Dr. Simeon: Then I’m going to impale it through the eyes and into its brain. 01:21:31: GM: Roll Fighting Brawl. 01:21:41: Dr. Simeon: My Fighting Brawl is 25. 01:21:54: Dr. Simeon: 13. 01:21:58: GM: Alright. That’s a hard success. 01:22:03: GM: It comes down toward you and you slam the crystal shard up into its face. 01:22:37: Player: That spider’s dead. 01:22:40: GM: Roll damage. Roll 1d6 plus damage bonus. 01:22:47: GM: And make me a Luck roll. 01:22:53: Dr. Simeon: Five damage. 01:23:02: Dr. Simeon: And 11 on Luck. 01:23:10: GM: That’s an extreme success. 01:23:18: GM: You jam the shard right into its face region — probably into one of its eyes. 01:23:28: GM: It shrieks and rears back. 01:23:33: GM: It staggers into one of the crystal formations and crashes down. 01:23:47: GM: You’ve made yourself an opening. What do you do? 01:23:56: Dr. Simeon: I want to go pee on the spider. 01:24:00: GM: It is not dead. It is still thrashing around. 01:24:09: Dr. Simeon: Okay, I rush in for another stab. 01:24:15: GM: It is still wildly swinging its clawed legs around. 01:24:28: Dr. Simeon: No, wait. I want to book it toward those buildings. 01:24:35: GM: Okay, you start running toward the distant structures. 01:24:42: GM: You manage to get a bit of a head start. 01:24:49: GM: Then you hear it clamber back to its feet. 01:24:53: GM: That horrible skittering sound starts up again behind you. 01:25:00: GM: It is racing across the blasted landscape toward you. 01:25:04: Dr. Simeon: Are there any vehicles? 01:25:06: GM: No. There are no vehicles. 01:25:08: GM: It keeps getting closer. 01:25:16: GM: Then, horribly, it goes quiet. 01:25:23: GM: The skittering suddenly stops. 01:25:27: GM: Just as you glance behind you— 01:25:33: GM: —you see it flying through the air, about to land on you.