GATSBY & THE GREAT RACE - A Call of Cthulhu Adventure - Preface, Contents & Running the Scenario

Oct 6, 2026

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Scenario material for “Gatsby and the Great Race,” a Call of Cthulhu adventure centered on time loops and swapping between dimensions. It outlines a multiple-game mode and a single-game mode, specifying which chapters to use or omit, and sets core play parameters: a one-session run of about four hours, location near the US East coast, and year 1930. It also provides setup guidance including ready-to-use investigators, prop disc fragments, and the Reassure skill mechanics, plus logistical notes and scenario running instructions leading from the garden party into the loop structure.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryStory & Novel

FormatPDF

Pages10

Reading Time15 min

AccessFree to download

Introduction

Multiple game version vs single game version

Time and Place

Ready-to-use Investigators

Disc Fragments: Props

Reassure Skill

Preface

Dedication

Contents

Chapter 1: Overview

Chapter 2: Multiple Games

Chapter 3: Reality One

Chapter 4: Reality Two

Chapter 5: Reality Three

Chapter 6: Extra Keepers

Chapter 7: Single Game

Appendix

GATSBY & THE GREAT RACE PAUL FRICKER Gatsby and the Great Race A Call of Cthulhu Adventure by Paul Fricker “So we beat on, boats against the current, borne back ceaselessly into the past.” F. Scott Fitzgerald, The Great Gatsby CREDITS Author Paul Fricker Copy Editor Emily Fricker Cover Art Paul Fricker Layout & Handouts Lucy Fricker Gatsby and the Great Race was conceived by Paul Fricker and developed with the help of Keary Birch, Wim van Hove, Steve Knott, Mike Lay, Mike Mason, Rik Kershaw Moore, Matt Nixon and Lucy Fricker. The 2005 edition was copyedited by Scott Dorward. This new edition is the culmination of 20 years of experience and feedback from groups around the world—thank you to them all! Call of Cthulhu is a Trademark of Chaosium Inc. and is used with their permission via the OBS Community Content program. For more information please visit Chaosium’[s website: www.chaosium.com](s website: www.chaosium.com) Notfor resale. Permission granted to print or photocopy this documentfor personal use only. PREFACE This scenario was inspired by a late-night conversation at a games convention about how cool it would be to move a player between games taking place in neighbouring rooms. Gatsby and the Great Race was first run at the UK games convention, Continuum, in Leicester, 2004. Four Keepers (Matt Nixon, Mike Lay, Wim van Hove and I) ran simultaneous games, with three other Keepers (Mike Mason, Keary Birch and Steve Knott) staffing the dimension between worlds and shuffling players between games. After much anxiety (on my part) about how it would run, I am proud to say I was invited to submit the scenario for publication. Thanks, Charlie. Given what’s required, I wondered whether anyone else would ever run it—but they did and continue to do so. Thank you to all those wonderful people! DEDICATION Dedicated to the Kult of Keepers—a group of GMs brought together by Mike Mason to run Call of Cthulhu games at conventions in the UK. Pictured at the Tentacles Convention, Germany, 2004. L–R, back row: Keary Birch, Mike Mason, Paul Fricker. L–R, front row: Matt Nixon (sadly missed), Steve Knott, Charlie Krank (one of us, but not a member of the Kult of Keepers), Wim van Hove, Rik Kershaw Moore. CONTENTS Introduction Chapter 1: Overview The Party The Loops The End Time 3:26 at Last Five Periods of Play Chapter 2: Multiple Games Logistics Dramatis Personae Start: 2 pm Time Loops Begin Playing Gatsby & the NPCs Exploration & Activity Player Movement Sanity Loss Amnesia Investigator Death Ending the Loops Chapter 3: Reality One Dramatis Personae House One Characters & Monsters Investigators for Game One Chapter 4: Reality Two Dramatis Personae House One Characters & Monsters Investigators for Game Two Chapter 5: Reality Three Dramatis Personae House One Characters & Monsters Investigators for Game Three Chapter 6: Extra Keepers First Hour First Player Movement The Extra Dimension Frozen Moment Summonings Overseeing the Game Chapter 7: Single Game Dramatis Personae Start: 2 pm Time Loops Begin Gatsby & NPCs Hauntings Contacting Other Realities Possession Seances Sanity Loss Death & Transformation Ending the Loops Appendix INTRODUCTION At its core, Gatsby and the Great Race is a simple scenario. You’ll find an overview in Chapter One. What makes it more interesting is the swapping between dimensions. There are two versions of the game: the multiple game version and the single game version. - For the multiple game version, use everything except Chapter Seven. - For the single game version, use everything except Chapter Two and Chapter Six. However you run it, the game is intended to be played in one session (of around 4 hours) . As always, please read through the adventure and be familiar with the events and investigators before running the game. RUNNING THE SCENARIO The s

FAQs

How long is the adventure intended to run, and when does it start kicking off?

The scenario is intended for one session of around four hours, and it begins with the garden party but really takes off once the time loops begin.

What are the differences between the multiple-game version and the single-game version?

The multiple-game version uses everything except Chapter Seven, while the single-game version uses everything except Chapter Two and Chapter Six.

What is the Reassure skill and what does a successful roll do?

Reassure uses calm words and intuitive insight to soothe minds. A successful roll lets the recipient recover +3 Sanity points without exceeding maximum SAN, and halves the time needed to recover from temporary Sanity loss effects.

Oct 6, 2026

Upload by noah