Ceci N'Est Pas Une Trail of Cthulhu: Dreamhounds of Paris (7 sessions in December/January)

One spot in this game is saved for a player new to the Gauntlet or someone who’s finding it hard to get into games. If that’s you, please message me or comment here to take the spot.

“Dreamhounds of Paris tells the never-before-revealed story of the Surrealist movement, and its involvement in a series of occult events bringing them into contact with a realm beyond our own. When they first discover it, they find it a realm of slightly precious wonder. As they explore it, and find themselves able to bend it to their unconvention wills and convention-shattering aesthetic, it becomes sinister, modern, and contradictory–like the Surrealists themselves.”

Please note some important differences from most games in this genre! In Dreamhounds of Paris, you play specific real-world surrealists - figures like Dali, Duchamp, etc - as they discover, explore and manipulate the Lovecraftian dreamlands. That makes you less the classic cosmic horror investigator-heroes and more the hubristic meddlers with forces beyond comprehension - some might say the villains? But maybe you will redeem yourselves, or at least snatch triumph from your PC rivals?

The campaign will play out over a decade or more, taking in various art-historical events. You don’t need any particular knowledge of art history or Lovecraft’s work to enjoy this game, but some appreciation for surrealist art and culture will help. Players will be choosing from a set of pregenerated (readymade?) characters based on real historical figures, and those choices are largely white cis men. You’ll get more out of the game if you’re willing to do a small amount of reading (1-2 pages, which I’ll share with the other play materials) about the historical figure you’re playing as.

Trail of Cthulhu is a Gumshoe game, which I’ll be running with some specific changes for Dreamhounds and some house rules Lowell suggested. No rules knowledge is required, and all rules will be taught during play. Signing up for all sessions is encouraged but not required, but please sign up for all sessions you wish to attend.

Subject matter: This is more about weirdness than horror, but horror elements including violence and gore are possible. The game refers to real historical events and forces, in particular Soviet Communism, which many surrealists supported and which many characters will seek to advance during play. There are references to homophobic and misogynistic incidents and attitudes.

We’ll use lines and veils, the X card and the open door as safety tools, and the game will run under the Gauntlet Community Code of Conduct.

The game will run over Streamyard, with short breaks on the hour. I’ll ask the consent of the players to record and post the sessions, and will only do so if everyone agrees. A week before the first session I’ll send an email to confirm attendance, share play materials, etc.

I’ve scheduled this Saturdays (AEDT) through December and January, with a two week break for Xmas and New Year. It’s a weird time of year, so feel free to sign up for some sessions but not others, or drop sessions if your holiday plans change. Please sign up for all sessions you’d like to attend.

Open access time for sign-ups will be 8.30am 9/10/21 AEDT.

Session one: https://gauntlet-hangouts.firebaseapp.com/event-detail/-MlHGaNeBXJYsXWW4EvA
Session two: https://gauntlet-hangouts.firebaseapp.com/event-detail/-MlHGqo25zRWWEfVdYjl
Session three: https://gauntlet-hangouts.firebaseapp.com/event-detail/-MlHH-2fyuYwDrPZjq63
Session four: https://gauntlet-hangouts.firebaseapp.com/event-detail/-MlHHQMcPzL375hiKWT1
Session five: https://gauntlet-hangouts.firebaseapp.com/event-detail/-MlHHZUd8py3vWoyfkRP
Session six: https://gauntlet-hangouts.firebaseapp.com/event-detail/-MlHHgDaFzK3Gt9WdvU2
Session seven: https://gauntlet-hangouts.firebaseapp.com/event-detail/-MlHI-KYK9FdCaez48lk