Pyramid Pick
Miskatonic University: A Handbook to the Pride of Arkham
Published by Chaosium Inc.
Written by Sam Johnson with Sandy Antunes, Richard Watts, Keith Herber, Alan Matthews, Chris Tutt, Doyle Tavener, Lynn Willis, and dyvers hands
Illustrated by Philip R. Rogers (cover painting), David Grilla, Alex Thomas, Paul Carrick, and Tom Kalichack, with maps by David Conyers
256-page b&w softcover; $29.95
Miskatonic University is one of the key elements in H. P. Lovecraft's fiction. Many of his protagonists are scholars or scientists, and Miskatonic University is the academic institution they're most likely to have been involved with, as students, faculty members, or recipients of funding. Miskatonic University, recently released book from Chaosium, provides a guide to the university and its setting, and is designed to meet the needs of GMs running campaigns based on the Cthulhu Mythos. In the process, the authors have produced some material that GMs might want to borrow for other sorts of campaigns as well.
Usefulness to GMs is a major emphasis of this book. The introduction explores different functions Miskatonic can play in a campaign and suggests ways of using the book to serve each of them. Johnson rightly emphasizes that the GM, or "Keeper," is the ultimate author of the campaign and needs to make his own creative decisions about how to set it up. This book provides raw materials that can be used for that purpose.
The opening chapter focuses on the history of the university, from . . .
This article originally appeared in the second volume of Pyramid. See the current Pyramid website for more information.
Article publication date: March 24, 2006
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