MU Podcast 051 - Wacky Gadgets and the Wacko's that Use Them

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MU Podcast 051 - Wacky Gadgets and the Wacko's that Use Them

Post by Keeper Dan » Sun Mar 09, 2014 9:26 pm

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In episode 51 we try to figure out some of the gadgets left behind by our extradimensional visitors. And we talk about the ways to use the antagonistic clubs and organizations the game is so well known for.


Campus Crier
Michael Shea, author and creator of the Shoggoth Lord monster, has died.

Chaosium announced on their FB page that Oscar Rios’ first monograph from 2005, Ripples from Carcosa, will soon become a full release, with new art, maps, layout, and the text tightened up and re-edited.

Innsmouth House Press is releasing a scenario for Trail of Cthulhu by Adam Gauntlett (who did Pelgrane’s Sisters of Sorrow), called The Many Deaths of Edward Bigsby.

She Walks in Shadows Indygogo campaign has 5 days left.
The first all-woman anthology of stories inspired by H.P. Lovecraft. Gemma Files, Angela Slatter, Ann. K Schwader, and more.

That Ain't Right - A Lovecraft Themed Anthology

Golden Goblin Press Kickstarter finale

And, Oscar shared a peek at the next book they’re doing on the GGP Facebook page.

World War Cthulhu anthology on Indygogo.


Contest results-
We held a contest for some cool swag from the Cthulhu: The Great Old One card game, and the winner is: Zombiemaster!




GenCon update-
Our room for the live recording at GenCon has been approved!
Game ID- SEM1453214
Gaming Group / Company- Miskatonic University Podcast
Title- Miskatonic University Podcast Live Episode Recording
Start Date- 2014/08/15 01:00 PM
End Date- 2014/08/15 03:00 PM
Location- Westin
Room Name- Council




Feedback
Admiral Kracken tells us about his crew of the Airship NorthStar visiting Calico Ghost Town in April.
April 12-13



Wolf mentions that a third trailer for Die Traumlande has been released. This is the Dreamlands movie being made by the fine folks who brought us Die Farbe.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=pl ... Hjo8kNl6s4



Jason asks, what are some good pre-written scenarios for running at a convention?

Dan thinks Edge of Darkness, from the core book is a good option.

The Reeling Midnight, by Tom Lynch was mentioned by Jon.



Cody in Indy called back to tell us about a bizarre King in Yellow style play written by madmen, Jet of Blood (also called Spurt of Blood). Here is an article discussing the play.

Keeper Rylie- What is canon in the Mythos as far as when we create adventures?

We go on for a little while on this one. Listen to get our opinions.




Card Catalog
A dark little online resource for monster art inspiration can be found at Bizarro Central. A warning: Many of the images on that site are not safe for work, including links to some pretty weird porn.

Click here at your own risk.

We also mention the stirring artwork of Don Kenn, and the incredibly creepy work of Stephen Gammell in Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark, which was recently released with new, significantly less nightmarish art.

Used copies of the old stuff might still be available.




History Lecture
This week, Dr Gerard is back with an MU History Department Lecture on the Ohio Serpent Mound

Murph adds some strange updated background on this site that involves cosmic muffins and "warriors of light."

We also mention the strange serpent figurines found at the al-Ubaid archaeological site in Iraq.




Side Topic
We're experimenting with alien technologies this week. What could go wrong? We cover gadgets that ancient, unthinkable Mythos civilizations left behind. From Mi-Go artifacts to Serpent Men alchemy, gadgety possibilities abound.

The topic prompts a mention of The Betz Mystery Sphere, which was covered on the Skeptoid site.

And for some reason we mentioned the film Bug, about mutant cockroaches that can start fires.




Main Topic
Our main discussion this week is about cults, what they are and how to use them in games.

We run into some disagreement over terms here, so it might be helpful to visit the Merriam-Webster definition here.
: a small religious group that is not part of a larger and more accepted religion and that has beliefs regarded by many people as extreme or dangerous

: a situation in which people admire and care about something or someone very much or too much

: a small group of very devoted supporters or fans
Separately, here's a useful list from Wikipedia of Mythos Cults.

Discuss on our Campus Forums here.
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Re: MU Podcast 051 - Wacky Gadgets and the Wacko's that Use

Post by Shannon Mac » Mon Mar 10, 2014 6:28 am

Awesome! :cthulhudance:
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Re: MU Podcast 051 - Wacky Gadgets and the Wacko's that Use

Post by Dr. Gerard » Mon Mar 10, 2014 3:51 pm

A quick self-correction: During the Crier (around 4:15 into the episode), we said that Adam Gauntlet wrote the "Sisters of Sorrow" campaign from Miskatonic River Press. Not true. "Sisters of Sorrow" was published by Pelgrane Press, and the show notes have the correct info. Dan read that note, but I was the one who wrote it into our Crier notes, so this is me falling on my sword. :x

Sorry, Dan.

Of course I was thinking of "Our Ladies of Sorrow," which was written by Kevin Ross. Which by all accounts is an incredibly creepy campaign.

Sorry, Kevin.

Adam Gauntlet did indeed write the Trail of Cthulhu scenario "Sisters of Sorrow," a WWI scenario aboard a German U-boat. Which looks awesomely claustrophobic and terrifying.
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Re: MU Podcast 051 - Wacky Gadgets and the Wacko's that Use

Post by bowman » Mon Mar 10, 2014 7:54 pm

Anyone else having problems with this episode? I can download it but it won't play in my podcast app (Pocket Casts on the iPhone). This is the first episode where I've had this problem.

Michael

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Re: MU Podcast 051 - Wacky Gadgets and the Wacko's that Use

Post by Keeper Dan » Mon Mar 10, 2014 11:38 pm

There was some weird glitch with the feed. I think I have it cleared up now, at least it worked on my podcatcher. Try deleting and researching for the episode and hopefully it will work okay now. It's weird, I didn't do anything differently. :x
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Re: MU Podcast 051 - Wacky Gadgets and the Wacko's that Use

Post by bowman » Tue Mar 11, 2014 1:08 am

That did it. Thanks!

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Re: MU Podcast 051 - Wacky Gadgets and the Wacko's that Use

Post by Scriven » Tue Mar 11, 2014 8:05 am

My own understanding of “cult” defaults to the mystery cults of the ancient world (Greece, Rome and Egypt in particular). For example, the cult of Mithras that was favored by so many Roman soldiers was embraced broadly as a legitimate social institution, even if only a subset of the population belonged to it. On the pejorative side, but also dating back to classical antiquity is the tendency of the Romans to view the nascent Christian movement as a cult — and a socially disreputable and dangerous one at that. So, today’s cult is tomorrow’s major world religion. The term can be pejorative, or not, depending on how the dominant culture chooses to define the “other” in its midst.

Along similar lines we have the “Cult of the Saints” that springs up in Latin Christianity beginning in late antiquity, which revolved around the corporal remains of holy men and women as the focus of a community’s identity. Princeton University's wonderful scholar Peter Brown referred to it as the linking of heaven and earth through the medium of the grave. Far from being considered aberrant or morbid, saints’ cults could serve an important and positive role in social organization and civic identity. As we move into the High Middle Ages we see the emergence of the cult of the Virgin Mary — again, a subset of popular religious identity that was acknowledged and accepted on a wide basis. There are many, many, many examples of cults that defy the pejorative definition that Murf alludes to. The real problem with your conversation in the show is purely semantic in nature. That being said, I suspect Murf is wholly correct in saying that in modern American parlance "cult" carries negative connotations, especially among those who are not particularly educated about the history and sociology of religion or social movements that have religious-like qualities to them.

I will say that I think the actual use of cults and cultists as a game element was given rather short shrift in the show because of the semantic kerfluffle over the meaning and use of the word “cult.” I’d highly recommend revisiting the topic again in the not too distant future.
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Re: MU Podcast 051 - Wacky Gadgets and the Wacko's that Use

Post by KeeperMurph » Tue Mar 11, 2014 9:55 am

Scriven, you can bet that cults will be a future topic and sorry about the argument we ended up having.

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Re: MU Podcast 051 - Wacky Gadgets and the Wacko's that Use

Post by Shannon Mac » Tue Mar 11, 2014 10:26 am

Bowman I had an issue playing it but didn't think much of the matter and just DL it. That has only happened one or two other times out of 51 episodes so very minor.
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Re: MU Podcast 051 - Wacky Gadgets and the Wacko's that Use

Post by Scriven » Tue Mar 11, 2014 11:01 am

Another example of a cult existing within the context of mainstream religiosity might be the Opus Dei movement -- but allow me to emphasize the word might. Many people have long since ceased to go to The DaVinci Code as a source for accurate information about real-world institutions, but the way Opus Dei is portrayed in the novel is certainly cult-like.
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