Dead Light (ConCarolinas 2018)

SYSTEM:  Call of Cthulhu 7e

There is some really good aspects to this adventure but some really difficult parts of it.  First off, it does provide a lot of NPCs to keep up with.  It’s helps to have a way to represent them on the table so people connect with them in some way.  Have the players connect with them in role play.  Then start knocking them off.  Secondly, the somewhat poorly written adventure left out a NPC provided in the back – the owner.  I  used him in a way I really liked and really creeped out the players.  In the adventure there was a truck on the side of the road owned by a farmer.  In the adventure, he is one of the first to see the Dead Light and it caused him to lose control.  The diner owner saw it and rolled poorly on his sanity roll.  The entire time while things are going crazy, this guy stands at the door looking at the window with an odd smile on his face.  Finally, at one point, he just turns to the group and says “You are all gonna die.”

The ending is really hard to gauge in the game.  Even with my modifications, it’s hard to guide the players in a direction to a satisfactory solution.  Unfortunately, just surviving the night is not always satisfying to players.  Many want t solve it.  I may further modify the clues to help in that direction.