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Conception 2008

Updated 27th March 2008

A number of pictures where taken during the Con and I hope to have those up on the website soon.  We also have a Con Report from Max, more to follow soon I hope (assuming we can remember what we did J).  And with luck one or two of the adventures that we ran.

Conception 2008 - What we need is a cunning plan… what we have is.... by Max

Ah, a cunning plan eh? Well why not. We’ve been doing this Conception thingy a fair few years now, so we should be not only getting the hang of it but should be able to plan well in advance... cunning... but how cunning? I hear you ask...
And so we began planning well in advance, nearly a year in advance.
And did it work...?
Well...
Not really... (sighs)... and are we surprised... I doubt it J

Started off with the intention of running Cthulhu for the con, pretty much exclusively.
‘The Lunatics Have Taken Over The Asylum’ was from last year and went so well I thought I’d give it another run out, lots of interest last year that I couldn’t satisfy.
‘The Heroic Sacrifice Of Anatol von Liebenhaft’ Dennis’ Cthulhu, modern day, brilliant premise and plot, I really want to run this as it hasn’t had the exposure it deserves: needs some tweaking by me to suit my style of GMing, but hey, all the work has already been done by Dennis, so how hard can it be… famous last words...
‘Under A Black Flag II – Spanish Gold’, Pirates and Cthulhu, what’s not to like! And a plot twist and some content that I’ve been tinkering with, in one form or another for years, seems to be taking an age to pull it all together though.
‘One of Us’, a 30’s USA Cthulhu centred on a ‘freak circus’, excellent core characters and twisted plot, should be much in demand if the feelers put out last year were anything to go by.

But am I making a fundamental mistake?
Should I run the 3 ‘new’ scenarios three times each and drop the previously run ones?
Where do I put my energy for the preparation? Do I put too much in to the prep, leaving me tight for time (as usual)? Questions, questions… what is a ‘mombuffit’ and is it something that should really be used in scrabble...?
(Using that old nut experience as a guide, next year I’m gonna do two new and two old, watch this space...)

Still, all part of the cunning plan, worry about this kind of stuff early, like in September... and then again in October... and... well, you get the picture, time runs away... like it’s now near the end of November and none of them are 100% finished... what is it with this ‘time’ thing!?
And so it went: December came and went, and still, plenty of time to add those finishing touches... and then here we are in January... flippin’ ‘eck! Better actually add those finishing touches!
I suspect most writers I know can relate to the famous Douglas Adams quote: “I love deadlines, I love the ‘whooshing’ noise they make as they go flying by...”

But on the plus side got the Lodge booked for accommodation early. The accommodation always books up really quickly so I always tend to over react and book the day it is opened, which is turning out to be not so much of an overreaction as a sensible move: 14 days after opening all accommodation allocated and booked.
Conception really is going from strength to strength, with a rock solid reputation as a ‘can’t miss’ con.

Well eventually the games did get written and were ready in time for the con, and yes, it was bl88dy hard work!

And then we set off. Leave early, get there quick, get some breakfast, chill out with booking in and a spot of shopping. I mean *that’s* a cunning plan! But no plan survives contact with the British transport infrastructure, so the journey was indeed long and tortured, how early do you have to leave to avoid crushing despair around any town with a population greater than twenty six? Very early indeed apparently.
Still, once there, all that pales in to insignificance.
Good brekie, quick shop, and then on to venue.
This bit I’ve got sorted if nothing else! Well, Tesco’s has it sorted and makes it very easy to seem organised...

Booking in was ludicrously easy, very organised, very happy to see you and very helpful.
Bumped in to Mick and some of the Pompey crew: you do, it has to be said, have to get up freakin’ early in the morning to beat them to a con (or the bar!).
The Conception staff are pretty much the friendliest, most efficient con staff I’ve ever met, and I’ve met more than my fair share. They seem to take genuine joy from the event and have a pride in it that shows through. Go them.

Lodge was not as close as I’d have liked, bearing in mind how early I’d booked, but not to worry, I need *some* exercise during the con, so a bit of walking (probably) wouldn’t kill me. (Having a Lodge near the hall makes running games in it a viable proposition and with the distinct lack of space in the halls, it’s sometimes necessary to run in Lodges.)
Lodge was great. Spacious, equipped and just as they always are, great value.
Four of us staying in it for most of the con this year, and plenty of room so you’re not tripping over each other during the stay.
To be fair, we spend so little time in the lodge awake, we could probably make do with a cardboard and tin hut, but it’s nice not to have to, and a good shower is worth its weight in fried gold.

Now I know that Conception is getting more and more popular and that Wednesday is becoming less of a chilled meet and greet day and more of a game day, so, I thought, I’ll run Wednesday night. And a great game it was too.
Just a quick rewind here... I’d talked Whitt in to coming down on the Wednesday (not that he actually needed any persuading) as it’s a good way to gently get in to ‘con mode’ and sort stuff out like games. So there we were in the bar with, perhaps predictably, the Pompey crew, tucking away ale in the early afternoon and meeting and greeting anyone and everyone we could… gaming could wait it seemed...
But not for long. And as I say, the Wednesday night game was excellent: One Of Us, and everyone got in to the characters and the background, the concept worked well and it was looking good for the other games scheduled....
After the game we fell to some serious ‘socialising’, and very sociable we all were too!

Thursday was Heroic Sacrifice in the morning and Under a Black Flag II in the afternoon. But none of this before some breakfast: bacon and egg rolls, food of the gods when they’re all that’s available, and actually just about the best foods they did from the went little food outlet, apart from the Cumberland sausages which were lurvely.
Heroic Sacrifice was a bit of a gamble for me: it’s a very in depth scenario and seemed to me like it could go one of two ways: swimmingly or rather badly. I needn’t have worried. I sometimes forget that 99% of all CoC players are in it for the character, the story and then the action. The game went well, especially with some trimming and condensing. Full points for Dennis for a great concept and fantastic background work.
Under a Black Flag II: more Pirate Cthulhu, seemed destined to succeed and it did. Again, I had to do some tweaking and condensing: seems I’m getting a bit carried away with the writing for a four hour slot. Getting all keen I call it J
(Lessons learned for next year and for the editing before pdf-ing the scenarios: tweak and then tweak again, might even do a con version and an ‘extended’ version.)

The plan was to leave all of the evenings free to play Magic, poker and drink a little (ahem) beer.
And I can’t remember if it was Thursday or Friday that the plan went straight to pot as I ran an extra session of Heroic Sacrifice. It was a great session, and I was amazed at how ‘in to it’ everyone was, characterisation was brilliant.
My memory is bad all the time, and doesn’t seem to like the battering of lack of sleep, adrenaline, and alcohol that Conception thrusts upon it: it pretty much collapses completely for a few days after each Conception... one funny point which proves that it’s not just me, was a chap asking me and John where the Shadow Warriors met in London, and neither of us quite being able to nail it down! After much struggling and mutual prompting by naming random places in west London, we got there... but only just...

Friday was a re-run of last year’s Lunatics and then Under a Black Flag II. Lunatics proved a bit of a muddled game, with three of the sign ups not arriving, me getting Gerald to kindly step in, then the three arriving very late, but then only being able to play if all three could sit in, so poor Gerald had to stand down.
In general, Players were excellent about getting to games on time with the tickets and being generally well equipped, as most role players always actually are.
I also managed to rattle through the scenario far too quickly, partly driven by the characters and their frantic pace, and partly through a bit of a GM mix up: two and a half hours later we were done.
Apologies to those that played this slot, I know you all seemed to enjoy it, but I can’t help feeling I should have done better.
Under a Black Flag was very good indeed. There is something about Pirates that just brings out the best in all of the Players. I don’t think it’s just the accents and the ‘yarring’ that they can get away with, I think it’s also the iconic nature of the scenario: they all get straight in to character and play the ‘loveable rogue with a dark secret’ to the hilt from the off.

Saturday was One Of Us and Heroic Sacrifice, and by now I’d managed to tweak and tune these very nicely. They ran smoothly and character inter-action was excellent. One of the Players pointed out a small plot hole in Heroic Sacrifice with the character they were playing: Claudia Engel does not have much to do if the Investigators do not take a certain path. Good point, and it’ll be amended with some back story and options for Claudia. It’s great when you get constructive criticism. Players seldom offer any kind of criticism, and by Saturday of Conception brains are probably too fried to anyway... maybe a brief questionnaire they can take away, fill out and return is an idea... hhmmm... thinks...
Saturday was also the ‘Elephant Club’ incident. Not some kind of exclusive ‘Gentleman’s Club’ from the Victorian era, akin to the Hellfire Club. No. This was Whitt as Atlas (the world’s strongest man) actually using an Elephant as a club to beat down on a summoned avatar of Atlan-Nacha. Yes. I know. You had to be there.

On Sunday we were Gerald and Pam down (wedding and Christening), Peter down (a horrible attack of the lurgy that brought lack of sleep, severe pain, and a complete loss of voice), so we made an executive decision to pull one of the games. So we played in John’s excellent ‘Dad’s Army Cthulhu’. Fantastic game. One that is destined to go down as an all time great scenario ideas. Go John J

And there it was done.
A warp in the space time continuum (I’ve never personally gotten on with that rubbish space-time thing anyway): Wednesday to Sunday gone in ten minutes flat.

Spent the whole con drinking, laughing, running games for gamers who care about their role playing, drinking, playing Magic, laughing, playing Poker, drinking, eating food to allow me to stay alive, laughing, staying up far, far too late, drinking, attending great parties (happy birthday Jim, shall we raid chalet 39?), laughing, chatting with people about games in general and CoC in particular and meeting up with a whole load of people I don’t see often enough: with whom I could drink and laugh at the same time. And of course, flying the ‘Yellow’ banner for the world of gamers to be blinded by J

As always, much thanks to Pam, Gerald, Peter, John, for being great organisers, GMs, Players, drinking companions and Magic and Poker bunnies. The Shadow Warriors ‘con-force’ totally rocks! And it’s so ‘Yellow’!
Thanks to Whitt for great company, goading and less whining than usual (get writing for next year!).
To Glenn for drinking company, and reminding us why gas warfare is banned under any sensible convention.
To Stu for coming down and giving it a go, hope to see you again at the next one.

Speaking of the next one... I’ve got this idea for Aussie outback Cthulhu, ala ‘The Proposition’ and a ‘classic’ Cthulhu based on a survey ship on the West coast of the USA... if I start now, I may have a flying chance of getting them ready in time... now that really would be a cunning plan...

Conception 2008

After our success at Conception 2005, Conception 2006 and Conception 2007 Shadow Warriors are proud to announce that we will again be running events at Conception 2008, at the Naish Holiday Village near Christchurch in Dorset.  Conception runs from the afternoon of Wednesday 30th January until the evening of Sunday 3rd February.  For more details click the link below.

Updated 16th January 2008

We are happy to confirm we will be running the following games 

TimeTable

Wednesday

Cthulhu - One of Us (RPG)
Slot 2: Wednesday 7pm - 11pm

Thursday

 Descent (Board Game)
Slot 3: Thursday 9am - 1pm

Cthulhu - The Heroic Sacrifice (RPG)
Slot 3: Thursday 9am - 1pm

Cthulhu - The Last Hurrah (RPG)
Slot 3: Thursday 9am - 1pm

Cthulhu - Under A Black Flag II (RPG)
Slot 4: Thursday 2pm - 6pm

Settlers of Catan (Board Game)
Slot 4: Thursday 2pm - 6pm

Friday

 Descent (Board Game)
Slot 6 & 7: Friday 9am - 6pm (Double Slot)

Cthulhu - Asylum (RPG)
Slot 6: Friday 9am - 1pm

Cthulhu - Ice Station Tsathoggua (RPG)
Slot 6: Friday 9am - 1pm

Settlers of Catan (Board Game)
Slot 7: Friday 2pm - 6pm

Cthulhu - Under A Black Flag II (RPG)
Slot 7: Friday 2pm - 6pm

Cthulhu - The Last Hurrah (RPG)
Slot 7: Friday 2pm - 6pm

Saturday

 Descent (Board Game)
Slot 9 & 10: Saturday 9am - 6pm (Double Slot)

Cthulhu - One of Us (RPG)
Slot 9: Saturday 9am - 1pm

Cthulhu - Horror at Fang Rock (RPG)
Slot 9: Saturday 9am - 1pm

Cthulhu - The Heroic Sacrifice (RPG)
Slot 10: Saturday 2pm - 6pm

Cthulhu - Ice Station Tsathoggua (RPG)
Slot 10: Saturday 2pm - 6pm

Sunday

 Descent (Board Game)
Slot 12: Sunday 10am - 2pm

Cthulhu Re-Run (RPG)
Slot 12: Sunday 10am - 2pm

Cthulhu Re-Run (RPG)
Slot 12: Sunday 10am - 2pm

To find out more about our Events at Conception 2008 click the link below

Boardgames

RPG's

Call of Cthulhu
Under A Black Flag II - Spanish Gold (4-6 Pirates):  [top]
Slot 4: Thursday 2pm - 6pm
Slot 7: Friday 2pm - 6pm

Pirate you are called and Pirate you are proud to be. A life of freedom aboard the Dolphin, under the command of Calico Jack Rackham, this is the life you have chosen and the life you cherish. Now you hear the Captain has got wind of a prize worthy of the greatest risk, a treasure so great it can hardly be imagined. The risks will be worth it. But great risks there will be. It will take a great leap of faith and all your courage to follow the Captain on this, his greatest adventure, for the treasure he seeks will change the world or be the end of it.

1720 Cthulhu scenario, 4-6 Investigators required: characters supplied.
(Any level of Cthulhu experience welcome.)

Please Note that this game is for Mature minded gamers only.

One of Us - Circus of Freaks (4-6 Freaks):  [top]
Slot 2: Wednesday 7pm - 11pm
Slot 9: Saturday 9am - 1pm

Born in to a world that you can never truly be a part of, you have come to accept the term they give you: ‘freak’. Not just accept it, but take a perverse pride in it. You and your fellow freaks travel the country, making a living from the curiosity and fear of the norms. The world of the Circus is all you know and all you want: anyone you call ‘friend’ is here, here you can find security, understanding and even love. But now this is all under threat. The recent hideous murder and mutilation of a normal has brought the Circus under suspicion. The normals are investigating, and can only believe the murderer is one of you. This could be the end of the Circus: you will not let that happen…

1930 Cthulhu scenario, 4-6 Investigators required: characters supplied.
(Any level of Cthulhu experience welcome.)

Please Note that this game is for Mature minded gamers only.

The Heroic Sacrifice Of Anatol von Liebenhaft (4-6 Cast & Crew):  [top]
Slot 3: Thursday 9am - 1pm
Slot 10: Saturday 2pm - 6pm

A film crew has been recruited to work on dance scenes starring the rising dance star, Claudia Engel, for the new film, ‘Anatol’, about a nobleman of the eighteenth century who foiled an attempt by one of his friends to raise the devil. The setting for the dance scenes is the grand ceremonial hall of Burg Löwin. Burg Löwin has been rebuilt many times over the centuries. Most of the present building dates from the sixteenth century, when the area was beginning to recover from the horrors of the Thirty Years War, but there were some additions in the eighteenth century. There is historical evidence that a pagan temple occupied the site in Roman times. The titular owners are the Grafs von Kesselbord, though aristocratic titles mean very little in Germany today and the estate has belonged to the German nation for some decades. The most famous of the Grafs von Kesselbord were the fourteenth Graf Wilhelm, who had a reputation for devil-worship and disappeared in mysterious circumstances in 1783, and Friedrich, the nineteenth Graf, who held the title during the rise to power of the Nazis, and met a sticky end at the Night of the Long Knives in 1934. Let the dance begin.

1930 Cthulhu scenario, 4-6 Investigators required: characters supplied.
(Any level of Cthulhu experience welcome.)

Please Note that this game is for Mature minded gamers only.

Call of Cthulhu by Gaslight  
The Lunatics Have Taken Over The Asylum (4-6 Inmates):  [top]
Slot 6: Friday 9am - 1pm

You awaken to another day of misery and confusion, an inmate in the Oakengates Asylum. The prospect of further treatment at the hands of the cruel and uncaring staff terrifies you, yet there is no escape. For you the future is as bleak as the granite walls that you stare at day in, day out. There are others you call friends. All mad of course. You know you are the only really sane person in this horrific place. If only you could convince the Doctor. If only there as a way to make them listen to your tortured pleas, to make them stop, to let you out. But what hope is there... ?

1891 Cthulhu scenario, 4-6 Investigators required: characters supplied.
(Any level of Cthulhu experience welcome.)

Please Note that we ran this adventure at Shadow Con II and Conception 2007 and is intended for Mature minded gamers only.

The Last Hurrah (4-6 players):  [top]
Slot 3: Thursday 9am - 1pm
Slot 7: Friday 2pm - 6pm

Late September 1941, Walmington-on-sea, England. The LDV (or Home Guard as it is now known) are Britain's first line of defence against the dastardly nazi hordes.

The stalwart men of the local platoon, ably led by Captain Mainwaring, have been vigilantly watching the skies and coast for signs of Jerry activity, and their watchfulness has paid off.

Strange lights in the sky and reports of furtive activities in the fields surrounding the town can mean only one thing. It's time for the crack fighting force that is the Walmington-on-sea home guard to bring the fight to the Hun and knock him for six before his devious plans can come to fruition.

The Last Hurrah is a WWII Cthulhu scenario for 6 players.  Pre generated characters supplied.

Ice Station Tsathoggua (4-6 players):  [top]
Slot 6: Friday 9am - 1pm
Slot 10: Saturday 2pm - 6pm

Antarctic Research Station Admundsen has gone off the air, and yesterday's overflight showed signs of a fire. You've been chosen as part of an emergency rescue team to locate, aid and evacuate any survivors. There's a storm front coming in, so you'll have to be quick, but for old Antarctic hands like yourselves, that shouldn't be a problem. 

After all, what could go wrong, thousands of miles from civilisation, in sub-zero temperatures with five other people you've hardly met in an aircraft barely able to make it there and back? Piece of cake.... 

Ice Station Tsathoggua is a Moden Cthulhu scenario for 6 players.  Pre generated characters supplied.

Please Note that this game is for Mature minded gamers only.

Horror at Fang Rock:  [top]
Slot 9: Saturday 9am - 1pm

It is evening in late July 1926 and the characters are on the steamship "Plutonia", just off the coast of Cornwall. Travelling from America, the PCs are planning to disembark at Plymouth in a few hours.

Earlier that evening, a meteor was seen to fall into the sea nearby.  The sea is unusually calm and a strange, greenish tinged fog has arisen.  The lighthouse in the distance gets nearer before suddenly winking out.  Foghorn blasts drift across the water, getting louder as the fog gets thicker and thicker.

Up to 6 Investigators, pre-gens supplied.

Please Note that we ran this adventure at Shadow Con 2005 and Conception 2006

Cthulhu Re-Run:  [top]
Slot 12: Sunday 10am - 2pm
Slot 12: Sunday 10am - 2pm

We will re-run one of the many Cthulhu adventures run over Conception if there is enough interest/players in a particular game.  NOTE: We will have 2 GMs (Max & John) available.

All trademarks acknowledged.