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Chaosium Digest Volume 16 Number 12
Chaosium Digest Volume 16, Number 12
Date: Sunday, October 20, 1996
Number: 2 of 2
Contents:
C&S: Tulzscha (Shannon Appel) MYTHOS
C&S: Tiara of Opulent Fantasy (Shannon Appel) MYTHOS
RF: Travel Between Regions (Shannon Appel) MYTHOS
--------------------
From: "Shannon Appel" <appel@erzo.org>
Subject: C&S: Tulzscha
System: Mythos
** THE CARD FILES: TULZSCHA **
THE CARD
--------
Name: Tulzscha
Set: MSGS
Type: Monster
Subtype: Outer God
Requirements: Underground Location, Solstice
Special Effect Box: It is Day. Bury any Night or Day cards in play;
new ones may not be played while Tulzscha is in play. While this card
is in play, three Passes are required to end card play in a Round. No
Investigator may gain Sanity.
CLARIFICATIONS
--------------
As with all GOOs, *YOU* must have the requirements in play to bring
out Tulzscha. That is, your Current Location must be Underground, and
you must have a Solstice card out. There are numerous Underground
Locations, most notably in Boston (2), in Kingsport (2), scattered
across the Middle East (3), and scattered about Europe (3).
Currently, the only Solstice card is Dawn of the Solstice.
As is noted, three Passes are required to end card play in a Round.
This means there must be a total of three Passes, and during that
time, the person who initiated Passing must do nothing except Pass
(not even lose a Turn). Typically, this means that someone Passes
three times in a row, but there are numerous other permutations.
QUESTIONS
---------
Q: What happens if I play An Unexpected Calamity when Tulzscha is out?
A: Not a lot. When Tulzscha is in play, three Passes are required to
end card play in a Round. Since GOO powers always override anything
else in the game, this means that An Unexpected Calamity does not end
the Round. However, the "Pass" that is announced when An Unexpected
Calamity is played does count as one of the three.
Q: What happens if I cast Mao Ceremony, allowing me to avoid the
effects of all GOOs in play, and I then play a Night Event? Is it Day
or Night?
A: It's Night for you only. If you have any cards requiring Night to
be in play to use them, you can. In addition, all Monsters in your
threat function as if it is Night. Your Night card will get Buried at
the end of the Round, as soon as the Mao Ceremony wears off.
STRATEGIES
----------
* Standard GOO Strategies - Use the Shining Trapezohedron to help get
your GOO out. Gain Sanity while your GOO is out by using the Mao
Ceremony. Protect your GOO from the Sign of Eibon by always adding
Monsters to your Threat very early in the Round (Zombies are also
good for this). Use Thirty-Five Abominable Adulations of the Bloated
One or Wakalea to keep your GOO in play. Use the Servitor of the
Outer Gods in your deck.
In order to make really good use of a GOO, you need to design a deck
around it. A few deck strategies are examined here.
* The Long Life Deck - In most Mythos games, you get "stuck" at a
certain point in a Round, can't play any more cards, and thus Pass.
The idea of the Long Life Deck is to build a deck which avoids this.
Definitely keep all Locations in the same Region. Keeping everything
in the same Subregion is even better (eg, Arkham has 24 different
Locations). Concentrate on either Tomes or Artifacts in your deck,
but not both. Make sure all Spells you put in your deck are usable
in every single Tome. Finally, make sure that your Adventures don't
depend on unique Cards which might tempt you to idly Pass, waiting
for that last card. Into this mix add: an Investigator with low Min
and Max, a Tulzscha or two and a handful of In the Nick of Times.
You should be able to play late into the Round, after other people
have already expended their cards. Note that In the Nick of Time
will really make your opponents cry: it voids all Passes, and three
are required when Tulzscha is out.
* The Day Deck - Tulzscha makes it Day and forbids the playing of
Night cards. Thus, you can more efficiently use the powers of cards
that get better during the Day. Currently, this list only includes
Hunting Horrors and Fire Vampires, but it's a start!
COUNTER STRATEGIES
------------------
The standard GOO Counter Strategies are the best to use against
Tulzscha:
* Standard GOO Counter Strategies - Bury the GOO with the Sign of
Eibon, the Elder Sign, or Wakalea. Use the Mao Ceremony to avoid the
GOO's effects. Pass to cause the GOO to quickly leave play (though
this last strategy only works in a limited manner on Tulzscha). Use
the Servitor of the Outer Gods in your deck.
--------------------
From: "Shannon Appel" <appel@erzo.org>
Subject: C&S: Tiara of Opulent Fantasy
System: Mythos
** THE CARD FILES: TIARA OF OPULENT FANTASY **
THE CARD
--------
Name: Tiara of Opulent Fantasy
Set: MSGS
Type: Artifact
San: -1
Special Effect Box: Costs 1-point of Sanity to use. Replace all of
your attributes (not Title or Special Effects) of your Current
Location with all the attributes on your target's Current Location. If
you use a Gate, rotate your own Location card. Flip this card when
used.
CLARIFICATIONS
--------------
The Tiara replaces your Current Location's attributes with those of an
opponent's Location. Attributes specifically include: the Locational
Attributes (listed under the card's Title), the Gate Attribute
(located in the top left corner), and the Public Attributes (the icons
running down the left margin). They specifically do not include:
Title, Dimensional Indicator, Region, Subregion, Sanity Cost, or
Special Effect Box.
Note that the definition of Current Location in the MSGS rules (pg.
28) is "The Location on top of, and right-side-up on, your Story Deck
(includes Locations at which you have summoned Monsters)." You can not
use the Tiara upon a Location that someone is walking to. If someone
is walking, they do not have a Current Location. For the same reasons,
you can not use the Tiara if you are walking.
As long as your Current Location remains on top of your Story Deck, it
keeps the Attributes introduced by the Tiara. This remains true even
if the opponent you used the Tiara upon leaves his Current Location,
or if the Tiara is Buried. As soon as your Current Location is Buried,
however, it reverts to its original Attributes (MSGS rules pg. 16:
"all cards revert to their natural attributes [when buried]").
QUESTIONS
---------
Q: Can I use the Tiara against someone currently using a Travel Event?
A: Yes. Travel Events are played to the top of your Story Deck, and
are considered the player's Current Location as long as they remain
there.
Q: If I've already used a Gate at my Current Location, and then Tiara
someone else's Gate Location, can I use it again?
A: No. Whether you can use a Gate or not depends totally upon the
orientation of your own Location card. If it's already inverted
when you use the Tiara, you can't use it again.
STRATEGIES
----------
* Finish an Adventure - Can't get that last Gate, Church, Forest/Water
Location or whatever other Attribute might be required for your
Adventure? Just wait until an opponent travels to such a place,
Tiara it, and then play your Adventure. This can be slightly tricky
because if your Location is Buried, it loses its new Attributes.
Thus, you must be short just that one Attribute when you use the
Tiara, and you have to make sure no one else Buries the Location. If
you want to be super-safe, use the Tiara from an Exotic Location,
since they can't be Buried (but that's probably overkill).
* Play Cards - Tired of being stuck without a Tome, Artifact or Gate
Location? Usually, at least one of your opponents will possess the
Attribute you need. Thus, the Tiara can be used to make sure you
don't get stuck during card play in a round.
* Avoid Phobias and Monsters - If you want to avoid the special powers
of Byakhee, Fire Vampires, Rat Things, or other Monsters that depend
upon Attributes, you can use the Tiara to borrow a safer Location.
Likewise, you can temporarily avoid the effects of some Phobias
(although avoiding Phobias in this manner is a pretty small win,
only truly useful if you're really struck with bad cards).
* Make Your Monsters Better - Dholes get better only if you are in an
Underground Location. If any of your opponents are Underground, you
can borrow their Attributes. Mummies, Skeletons, and Zombies get
better if you or your opponent is in a Cemetary. Perhaps neither of
you is in a Cemetary, but a third player is. Again, you can borrow
the Attribute to make your Monster better.
COUNTER STRATEGIES
------------------
There are a few strategies which may be used to make the Tiara less
useful.
* Typical Artifact Strategies - Steal the Tiara with Mi-go or Thieves
in the Attic. Decrease your opponent's Sanity level so that they
can't afford to use the Tiara.
* Keep Away - A marginal strategy, since it tends to hurt you as well,
but once you've learned about an opponent's deck you can stay away
from the Locations that benefit him most. Is he using Dholes? Avoid
the Underground. Is he trying to finish Lost in the Catacombs? Stay
away from Churches.
* Nuke the Site from Orbit - If an opponent uses the Tiara on a
Location, it's probably fairly important to him. There is little
better time to use Location destruction cards. Bury it with
Earthquake. Discard it with Cthulhu Rising or the Wave of Oblivion.
Force your opponent to leave with a Townsfolk Riot. Note that this
is one of the cases where Burying cards is highly useful, because it
causes the Location under the Tiara's influence to lose its new
Attributes. It's the only way to be sure.
--------------------
From: "Shannon Appel" <appel@erzo.org>
Subject: RF: Travel Between Regions
System: Mythos
** THE RULES FILES: TRAVEL BETWEEN REGIONS **
Travel between Regions. There are a lot of ways to do it in Mythos.
This Rules File attempts to quickly gloss through them all, at the
same time answering the most common questions related to Travel
between Regions.
TRAVEL EVENTS
The most common way to Travel between Regions is by using Travel
Events. There are currently three types of Travel Events that can be
used to move through different regions: Travel by Air (Closed-Cockpit
Monoplane, Dirigible, Seaplane), Travel by Sea (Mauretania, Titanic,
Tramp Steamer), and Travel Underwater (U-Boat). The methods differ
primarily in where they can get you (certain locations forbid certain
types of Travel), in what can prevent their play (certain Storms
forbid certain types of Travel, and Drought makes Travel by Sea and
Travel Underwater impossible), and in what attributes they have
(Inside, Outside, Tome, Artifact, etc).
Unlike other Events, Travel Events are played to the top of your Story
Deck. For all purposes, they become your Current Location until they
are Buried. This means that they can be affected by the various cards
which interact with Current Locations: the Sphere of Nath can Bury a
Dirgible, someone could borrow the Mauretania's Tome Attribute with
the Tiara of Opulent Fantasy, and anyone suffering from Hydrophobia
will definitely be the worse-for-wear in a U-boat. However, the
instant your Travel Event is Buried, it is no longer a Location. It's
just a plain Event again, and won't be found by cards that search your
Story Deck for Locations. (MSGS Rules pg. 16: "All cards revert to
their natural attributes [when buried].")
Certain Travel Events have restrictions on what type of Location you
can be at when you play the Travel Event.
ERRATA: The Three Travel by Sea Events from MYTHOS: LIMITED
(Titanic, Mauretania, Tramp Steamer) have all been errated. They now
have had the statement "Play this card at a Location featuring the
Water Attribute" added to the start of their Special Effect Box.
Many Travel Events also have restrictions on what type of Location can
be played after the Travel Event. Some require the Location to be in a
different Region, while other require it to have a certain Attribute.
If you have a Travel Event as your Current Location, and wish to play
a new Location, you must meet the requirements on that Travel Event.
Slower Travel Events say to play a Location card on a following Turn.
You are under no requirement to do so immediately on your next Turn.
You can do any legal actions while sitting on a Travel Event,
including Passing, playing Events, finding Tomes or Artifacts (if the
Event allows it), etc. Your final destination is played at your
leisure on some future Turn. You do not have this option on Travel
Events that say to "immediately play a new Location" (eg,
Closed-cockpit Monoplane, Camel, Car).
All Travel Events have some Attributes (eg, Inside, Outside, Water,
Artifact, Tome, etc). These Attributes work exactly like the
Attributes at any normal Location (eg, you can find a Tome on the
Mauretania). While you remain upon a Travel Event, you can take
advantage of its Attributes.
While upon a Travel Event, you possess the Region Color Bar and
Dimensional Indicator of the Location you just left. You are never in
a Subregion while upon a Travel Event.
As is noted in the MSGS Rules (pg. 17), you may discard a Travel
Event, replacing it with a crosswise Location Card. This new Location
Card must have been a legal play in the Location that you left when
you played your Travel Event. This allows you to leave a Travel Event
if you got stuck (eg, if you were on a Travel by Sea, and realized you
had no Locations with Water Attributes).
You may also choose a new form of transport, such as another Travel
Event, a Travelling Monster, or a Fly Spell. Again, you discard the
Travel Event that is on the top of your Story Deck. You must then
immediately play your new form of transport to the top of your Story
Deck (eg, play a Train, a Boat or a Plane right-side-up; cast a Fly
spell and play a new Location crosswise; cast a Summon spell and play
a Dhole right-side-up; etc). This new form of transport must have been
a legal play from the last Location you played before your Travel
Event (eg, if you Discarded a Train, and want to play the Titanic, the
Location you left from in the Train must have the Water Attribute).
SUMMONED MONSTERS
A couple of Monsters in MYTHOS: LIMITED could be used to Travel,
namely Byakhee, Dholes, and Shantaks. More Travelling Monsters will
appear in MYTHOS: THE DREAMLANDS.
First, it should be noted that the text on these three cards, which
says "If controlled..." is misleading. You must use a Summon/Control
spell, but you use the Summon element of it in order to Travel.
Byakhee and Shantaks work exactly as described on pg. 12 of the MSGS
rules. On your turn you: cast your Control/Summon (Lesser Servitor)
Spell, flipping it; play your Monster right-side-up to the top of your
Story Deck; and then play your new Location right-side-up to the top
of your Story Deck. That's it! You're there!
Byakhee act as a Travel by Air Event. Shantaks act as a Travel by Air
or Sea Event (your choice, declared at the instant you play the
Shantak), with the restriction that they can't go to Underground
Locations. This means these Cards each suffer all the normal
restrictions of those forms of Travel (eg, you can't use a Byakhee to
go to an Island). Likewise, Byakhee are stopped by Powerful Storms,
and Shantaks are stopped by Hurricanes, since each blocks their
specific manner of Travel (in fact, you may not attempt to Control
these Monsters in order to Travel if they can not legally do so at the
time). Both cards also have the extra bonus of being able to Travel to
Space locations.
Dholes are an odd case, because the wording on their card differs from
the rules. Most notably, it says to play your new (Underground)
Location on a following turn. Thus, on your first turn, you cast your
Control/Summon (Greater Independent) Spell and place the Dhole
right-side-up on top of your Story Deck. On a following turn, place a
new Location with the Underground Attribute right-side-up on top of
your Story Deck. Note that Dholes themselves have no Public
Attributes. Thus, riding a Dhole is the only time in MYTHOS that you
can be neither Outside nor Inside.
Dholes are not listed as any specific type of Travel (Sea, Air, Land,
or Underwater). This means you suffer from none of the liabilities of
these forms of Travel, but also do not gain any of the benefits (eg,
you can go to an Island, which only restricts Travel by Air, but you
could not go to the Lost Temple of Atlantis, a Location which requires
Travel Underwater).
Like other slower forms of transport, you can do a variety of things
while upon a Dhole instead of arriving at a Location. And, if you find
you don't have an Underground Location, you can Discard the Dhole, and
either play a new Location cross-wise, or use some other form as
transport, as per the rules for Discarding Travel Events, above.
WALKING
There are a few methods that allow you to move between Regions simply
by walking. They are noted here.
HASTUR: He Who Shall Not Be Named makes all Locations act as if they
were in the same Region, even Exotic Location. This means that you may
walk anywhere, within the same Dimension. If you want to go to a
Location in a different Region, simply place it cross-wise on your
Story Deck (you can't arrive instantly because, clearly, the two cards
aren't in the same Subregion). Note that normal restrictions still
apply. For example, although you can walk to R'lyeh, you are not
allowed to play that card unless you have all three pieces of the
R'lyeh Disk.
THE FLY SPELL: After casting this spell, you may walk to any
non-Exotic Locations. That means, you cast the spell, and then
immediately play a new Location card cross-wise on your Story Deck.
On your next turn, you'll be able to rotate it and arrive. Like the
Dhole, Fly is not listed as any specific type of Travel (most notably,
it is not "Travel by Air"). This means you could use the Fly Spell to
visit Islands, but could not use it to go somewhere restricted to only
Travel by Air (eg, Serannian in the upcoming MYTHOS: THE DREAMLANDS
set).
N'KAI: Although you must travel to N'kai from an Underground Location,
you can Walk anywhere from it (except places which restrict Travel to
certain methods, typically Exotic Locations). Thus, N'kai is a simple
way to go from one Region to another: you play an Underground Location
in your current Region; on your next two Turns you walk to N'kai; on
the turn after that you play a Location in a new Region crosswise; and
on a fifth turn you rotate that Location right-side-up and arrive. OK,
perhaps it's not so simple.
RESTRICTED TRAVEL
Travel to and from certain Regions is further restricted. These
restrictions are briefly discussed here.
DIMENSIONS: Dimensions won't be introduced into MYTHOS until the
release of MYTHOS: THE DREAMLANDS, but are mentioned here for
completeness sake. They form a sort of super-region, and you may not
Travel from a Region in one Dimension to a Region in another unless
you have a Card that specifically allows it. Currently, there are
none.
EXOTIC LOCATIONS: Exotic Locations can not be travelled to by normal
means. Exotic Locations in Space require you to play a Travel Event
that explicitly allows Space Travel (currently, Byakhee and Shantaks).
Exotic Locations that are Underwater require you to play a Travel
Event that explicitly allows Underwater Travel (currently, the
U-Boat). You must use these same methods to leave these Exotic
Locations. Other Exotic Locations have specific requirements listed on
the Card for how to reach them and leave. Some Exotic Locations in
Space or Underwater may also be reached by other methods, if
specifically mentioned on a card.
ISLANDS: The islands from MYTHOS: LIMITED have been errated.
ERRATA: The original MYTHOS: LIMITED Islands had erroneous text
which said "You must use a Travel by Sea card to get to this
Location." This text on all the LIMITED islands (R'lyeh, Bal Sagoth,
Easter Island, Otaheite, Ponape, and Retoka) should be stricken and
replaced with the following rules: "Islands are special Locations
found within Regions. You can not walk or use Travel by Land or
Travel by Air to go to, from, or between Islands, unless special
effects say otherwise." These new rules will appear in the MYTHOS
rulebook starting with MYTHOS: THE DREAMLANDS.
This means that you could get to an Island by a Travel by Sea Event, a
U-Boat, a Shantak (declared as Travel by Sea), the Fly Spell, or any
number of other methods which are not Travel by Air or Travel by Land.
--------------------
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