Quick Start Cthulhu Dark Ages - Quick Start Rules for the CTHULHU DARK AGES Role-Playing Game

Oct 6, 2026

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Quick Start Cthulhu Dark Ages provides introductory rules and setting context for a Lovecraftian horror role-playing game set in a war-torn medieval world. It adapts Quick Start Cthulhu, emphasizing ordinary investigators who confront alien terrors of the Cthulhu Mythos without relying on magic weapons or the help of armies. The booklet explains the game’s premise, the keeper-led interactive narrative structure, and what is needed to begin play, including dice and basic character creation guidance.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryStory & Novel

FormatPDF

Pages10

Reading Time15 min

AccessFree to download

Introduction and Quick Start Overview

Background Setting in 950 AD

The Game’s Horror Focus

How Play Works (Keeper and Players)

Creating an Investigator

QUICK START CTHULHU DARK AGES “Quod in aeternum cubet mortuum non est, Et saeculis miris actis etiam Mors perierit” Quick Start Rules for the CTHULHU DARK AGES Role-Playing Game Adapted from “Quick Start Cthulhu” by Stéphane Gesbert Email [darkages@planet.nl](darkages@planet.nl) [www](www) [http://home.kpn.nl/gesbe000](http://home.kpn.nl/gesbe000) Cthulhu Dark Ages is copyright © 1997-2002 by S. Gesbert; all rights reserved Call of Cthulhu is copyright © 1981, 1983, 1992, 1993, 1995, 1998, 1999 by Chaosium Inc.; all rights reserved Interested in Chaosium's Call of Cthulhu and Cthulhu Dark Ages? You're not alone! Call of Cthulhu is Chaosium's classic role-playing game of Lovecraftian horror in which ordinary people are confronted by the terrifying and alien forces of the Cthulhu Mythos. Cthulhu Dark Ages started as a supplement for Call of Cthulhu, setting the clock of Lovecraftian horror back 1000 years, right into the Middle Ages. Cthulhu Dark Ages as a stand-alone role-playing game was published by Chaosium Inc. in 2004. Quick Start Cthulhu Dark Ages is a direct adaptation of Quick Start Cthulhu (Quick Start Rules for the Call Of Cthulhu Role-Playing Game) written by Ben Monroe and Sandy Petersen, freely available at [http://www.chaosium.com](http://www.chaosium.com. Although)[. Although](http://www.chaosium.com. Although)[ ](http://www.chaosium.com. Although)Cthulhu Dark Ages is fully compatible with the philosophy and the game system of Call of Cthulhu, owing to particularities of the Dark Ages, some adjustments and additions to the quick start rules have been made. All you need to play Cthulhu Dark Ages for the first time is this booklet, some dice, plenty of imagination, and your friends. Welcome to the Worlds of Call of Cthulhu! The Chaosium Guys Stéphane Gesbert Cthulhu Dark Ages is copyright © 1997-2002 by S. Gesbert; all rights reserved Call of Cthulhu is copyright © 1981, 1983, 1992, 1993, 1995, 1998, 1999 by Chaosium Inc.; all rights reserved | Quick Start Cthulhu Dark Ages
“The oldest and strongest emotion of mankind is fear.” – H.P. Lovecraft | | | --- | --- | 950 AD. The Occident is torn apart: empires and kingdoms have endured two centuries of invasions, and now warlords fight over the remains like wild dogs. The clergy is weak and morally depraved, cities are depopulated, trade is stagnant and violence reigns everywhere. History is coming into the Sixth Age of mankind, the ultimate age before the end of the world. 950 AD. The Byzantine Theodorus Philetas translates the Al Azif into Greek, and renames it Necronomicon. It will take one century before the blasphemous tome is finally condemned, and most copies destroyed... Horror. Terror. Fear is at the core of our existence. Horror stories are a catharsis for the dread we hold in our souls on a day-to-day level. Cthulhu Dark Ages is a game that lets you explore that fear, bringing monsters and terrors out into the daylight, and fighting against them for the sake of soul and sanity. If you've played other role-playing games (RPGs) before, then you have an idea of how it works: A group of players sit around a table and describe the actions of their characters, while one player (the game master, or "keeper"as he or she is known in Cthulhu Dark Ages) guides the story along. It is like an interactive novel where one person tells the story, and the players take part in the story. However, Cthulhu Dark Ages is different from most other RPGs. In Cthulhu Dark Ages, the players portray ordinary people cast into extraordinary circumstances. You have no magic weapons with which to assault the dark things of the world. You cannot count on the local king sending armies of minions to your aid. You simply have your wits, your courage and your skill to fight the horrors of the Cthulhu Mythos. In its simplest form, Cthulhu Dark Ages is a game about heroes. The heroes who realize that the world is crawling with alien terrors bent on the d

FAQs

What is Cthulhu Dark Ages about in this quick start booklet?

It is a Lovecraftian horror RPG about ordinary people drawn into extraordinary circumstances, confronting alien terrors from the Cthulhu Mythos. The focus is fear, monsters, and maintaining soul and sanity while fighting back.

How do players and the keeper work together?

Players describe their characters’ actions while a keeper guides the story. It functions like an interactive novel where the keeper tells the main narrative and the players participate through decisions.

What do you need to start playing?

For first time play you need this booklet, dice, and imagination with friends. Character creation requires four ordinary 6-sided dice, and playing can benefit from a full set of polyhedral dice, including at least one each of 4, 8, 10, 12, and 20-sided dice.

Oct 6, 2026

Upload by Noah