1990's Handbook: Modern Background for Call of Cthulhu

Call of Cthulhu RPG

by Greg Rucka

The ideas presented in this book attempt to be both mundane and fantastic at the same time— plausibility is the key. 

It is in the details that the horror lies, because it is in the credibility of the details that the fantastic can rise and stand.

This, then, is a book of details, most mundane, some fantastic. They have but one purpose—that of bringing Lovecraft's horror home to more modern scenarios. The 1990's Handbook is a revision of Cthulhu Now, and brings Call of Cthulhu into the mid-1990's. 

New equipment detailed includes surveillance parapheoornalia, computers, and lethal and non-lethal weapons. The roles of the government, the military, the police, and crime in the modern world are discussed. An optional hit location system is presented. Several scenario storylines are given.

Genres: Role Playing Games, Cthulhu Mythos, Horror

80 pages, Paperback

First published November 1, 1995

About the author

Greg Rucka, is an American comic book writer and novelist, known for his work on such comics as Action Comics, Batwoman: Detective Comics, and the miniseries Superman: World of New Krypton for DC Comics, and for novels such as his Queen & Country series.

Reviews

[Matthew J. · Rating 4 out of 5]

If I were going to run a game of Call of Cthulhu set in the 1990s (I'm not), this would be an invaluable resource. It's a time capsule of sorts. By doing a 'modern day' book in about 1995, this creates a snapshot of the world on the cusp of some major changes. The internet was in its infancy, cell phones weren't really a thing (there were mobile phones, but they weren't ubiquitous and they were for making phone calls), the Cold War had only recently ended and there was an intake of breath as people looked around and wondered what was next, and on top of all that, we were quickly approaching the end of the Millennium, and some folks were freaking out about that a bit. A lot of the book is technical stuff like guns and technology or military and law enforcement. There's not a ton about the culture of the time, so for that, you'll need to go to films, music, television, etc.
My favorite part of the book is the chapter on story seeds. Like At Your Door and unlike much of the other Cthulhu Now stuff I've read, these story ideas feel right. They feel contemporary. Heck, a few of them would still work in a game set 25 years later. The story seeds tap into concerns of the time and don't simply feel like 1920s adventures getting reused.
If I were ever to run a more contemporary game of Call of Cthulhu, I'd almost certainly use Delta Green as a base-line. This would be a nice addition to such a game. Is it likely I'll ever actually do that? No. If you want to set a game specifically in the 1990s, I'd recommend this book.

[Arthur B · Rating 4 out of 5]

Slightly pointless when it originally came out because it detailed information which would have been readily apparent to anyone who showed a modicum of curiosity about their world, this has in retrospect actually become an interesting retro-supplement that helps support games set in the early 1990s. Full review: https://refereeingandreflection.wordp...

[Kat · Rating 4 out of 5]

Basic Premise: "Updating" the concepts/tools from stories written in the 1920s for use in the 90s.

When I bought this book, it was current. *sigh*

My aging gamerness aside, this book is now a touchstone for making the 90s an effective retro setting for CoC games. I've actually found the book to be quite useful when running (relatively mild) CoC games for high-school aged kids who have no idea how we found information before the internet and how we communicated before cell phones. Updating the horror from the 1920s to a more modern age is still helpful, but I find myself using it more for the retro flavor than anything else these days, and it's quite useful for that.