Scions of the Dark Goddess - A new modern era Call of Cthulhu campaign

Scions of the Dark Goddess - A new modern era Call of Cthulhu campaign

Scions of the Dark Goddess is a modern era campaign for Call of Cthulhu 7E (seal of Chaosium). Uncover a conspiracy that adapts the cycle of the Black Goat with a Thousand Young Mythos with hot topics like bioengineering, social media and more!
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€239,249 🎉
of €9,000 (EUR) goal
2,585
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Project Ended
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New Add-on!

“A seriously ill young woman. A mysterious disappearance. A desperate father's cry for help. What will you do when you have to make hard decisions to save Judy?”

A DESPERATE CRY
An investigative, harsh-themed and modern scenario that takes the Cthulhu Mythos to the limits of morality to test the characters' convictions facing tough life dilemmas.

AVAILABLE NOW!


New Add-on! 

Keeper Screen - You want it. You got it.

Hide your secrets and find key information.

Exclusive design and price!

AVAILABLE NOW!




New Add-on! 

“Code 246: there’s been a gunfight in one of the city’s suburbs”.

246 Corbitt Street is a modern scenario for Call of Cthulhu 7th edition that pays homage and continues “The Haunting”, the classic scenario that has served as an introduction to this game for so many players.

This gritty police investigation scenario is independent and is not related with Scions of the Dark Goddess. 

AVAILABLE NOW!


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Scions of the Dark Goddess is a cosmic horror campaign for Call of Cthulhu, set in the United States, in 2024. The Cthulhu Mythos and cosmic horror remain present in humankind’s collective imagination. However, they don’t work the same way anymore. Humanity’s primordial terrors are not still represented the same way they were a century ago. They adapt. They evolve. they have found a way to be present, spreding into our minds, our bodies and our media. You know, if a video started circulating, today, of a great tentacled marine creature… At most it would become “trending topic” for a few days, until someone else recorded a video of a rat dragging a slice of pizza. No, even if the fears remain the same, their shapes have changed.


To download Nazarene's Lot in English, click here. For the Spanish version, click here.


To download the Scions of the Dark Goddess prologue in English, click here. For the Spanish version, click here.

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€10K – Nazarene's Lot. You are already familiar with the desolate streets of Nazarene’s Lot, the prologue for Scions of the Dark Goddess. This stretch goal adds a printed version of this adventure for Dark Goddess level backers. 

€20K – NPC cards: Chapter one. Show the important NPC on the table. Who is in scene, how they look like... This cards will allow you to set their faces on your table to enhance the game's immersion. All the NPC from the chapter one will be in your hands. Full color cards available as a digital reward for all pledge levels, and in printed form for the Dark Goddess level.

€30K – Keeper maps I. An impressive map of one of the important scenarios from Chapter 1: the Neville Winery. Illustrate the places, surprise your players with this map by José Calvo "Calmujo". Printed in high-quality and full color 60 cm x 40 cm (23.62 in x 15.74 in). Available as a digital reward for all pledge levels, and in printed form for the Dark Goddess level.

€40K – The Will of Mordulak. A new scenario set in parallel to the events of Chapter 4, Frashokereti, that will help us learn more about Syria during the last crusades. Available as a digital reward for all pledge levels, and in printed form for the Dark Goddess level.

€50K – Keeper maps II. A new impressive map of the indoors of the Neville Winery. Illustrate the places, surprise your players with this map by José Calvo "Calmujo". Printed in high-quality and full color 60 cm x 40 cm (23.62 in x 15.74 in). Available as a digital reward for all pledge levels, and in printed form for the Dark Goddess level.

€60K – Neville Winery bottle label.
As they say "the devil is in the details". And the Neville winery hide some secrets that are waiting for the players to be revealed. Here you have one special detail to offer them. This stretch goal adds a printed version of the Neville Winery bottle label for Dark Goddess level backers.

€65K – NPC cards: Chapter two.
This reward will expand the NPC cards with the chapter two NPCs. An immersive aid with the important non-player characters to show on game. Full color cards available as a digital reward for all pledge levels, and in printed form for the Dark Goddess level.

€70K – Keeper maps III. Complete the secrets with a new scenario map for the first part of the campaign. The awesome art of José Calvo "Calmujo" will be printed in high-quality and full color 60 cm x 40 cm (23.62 in x 15.74 in).Available as a digital reward for all pledge levels, and in printed form for the Dark Goddess level.

€75K – NPC cards: Chapter three. New NPC cards with the important NPCs of chapter three. This immersive game aid will give color to your table, available as a digital reward for all pledge levels, and in printed form for the Dark Goddess level.

€80K – Game Soundtrack. Enhance the Scions of the Dark Goddess experience with the soundtrack. Several themes to accompany you throughout the campaign specially created by roleplayer and musicians. This reward is available as a digital reward for all pledge levels.

€85K – NPC cards: Chapter four. Complete the NPC cards with the important NPC from the chapter four. This reward is available as a digital reward for all pledge levels, and in printed form for the Dark Goddess level.

€90K – Keeper maps IV. A spectacular full-color zenithal view of an important scene from chapter 3. This map of José Calvo "Calmujo" will be printed in high-quality and full color 60 cm x 40 cm (23.62 in x 15.74 in).Available as a digital reward for all pledge levels, and in printed form for the Dark Goddess level.

€95K – NPC cards: Chapter five. The NPC cards will include the important characters of from the chapter four. This reward is available as a digital reward for all pledge levels, and in printed form for the Dark Goddess level.

€100K – Handout upgrade: Codex facsimile. A beautiful game aid with a reproduction of the ancient text of a key scroll from chapter four. Now the Codex facsimile will be printed in old paper look. This reward will be printed in "medieval style" for the Dark Goddess level.

€105K – Keeper maps V. It would be awesome to show the awesome map of Crac de L’Ospital  to your players. Well, now you will. This map by José Calvo "Calmujo" will be printed in high-quality and full color 60 cm x 40 cm (23.62 in x 15.74 in). Available as a digital reward for all pledge levels, and in printed form for the Dark Goddess level.

€110K – Handout upgrade: Character sheets for chapter four. A new update for the handouts and game aids for your games. An evocative medieval design needs a special "old paper look", and like this will be printed the pregen character sheets for the chapter four. This reward will be printed in "medieval style" form for the Dark Goddess level.

€115K – Handout upgrade: Corona Plaza flyer. Special handout, special color, special paper. The Corona Plaza will have a real top-quality flyer. This reward is available as a digital reward for all pledge levels, and in printed form for the Dark Goddess level.

€120K – Keeper maps VI. The mysterious library indoors will bring the dark over your table. This full-color top-class map by José Calvo "Calmujo" will be printed in high-quality paper, 60 cm x 40 cm (23.62 in x 15.74 in).Available as a digital reward for all pledge levels, and in printed form for the Dark Goddess level.

€125K – Handout upgrade: Mother Gaia Flyer. A new upgrade for the handouts will evolve the Mother Gaia flyer into a real top-quiality flyer! This reward is available as a digital reward for all pledge levels, and in printed form for the Dark Goddess level.

€130K - Keeper maps VII. Beware the things that should not be, but show their places with this high-quality and detailed scene map. This top-class map by José Calvo "Calmujo" will be printed in high-quality paper, 60 cm x 40 cm (23.62 in x 15.74 in). Available as a digital reward for all pledge levels, and in printed form for the Dark Goddess level.

€135K – NPC cards upgrade: Premium paper & finish. The NPC cards are becoming a great and helpful deck. Now they will be even greater printed in  PRO LINEN 320 g/m2 paper! Printed in this way for the Dark Goddess level.

€150K – Arkham Advertiser. The well-respected local newspaper will have its own printed edition. There are many clues the investigators can find in old news pieces, and now they can pick them up by searching the pages of a real newspaper. Every backer will receive the PDF version, with a physical print for the Dark Goddess level.

€160K – NPC deck box. You already had a full NPC deck for every chapter of the Scions campaign. Now, you’ll have a sturdy box to better protect and transport them. Top quality for a top cast of supporting characters. Included in the Dark Goddess level.

€180K – Investigator passports. The indispensable companion for the Scions of the Dark Goddess players, designed to resemble a genuine passport. Within its pages, you can track your character’s info and record key details. Don’t forget to stamp it upon completing each chapter for a complete record of your investigation! Four passports will be in print  for the Dark Goddess level.

€220K – Extra dice. Now all dice sets will have an additional custom dice. It stands out for its different but complementary color, ideal for dice rolls with bonus/penalty dice. All dice sets will have an extra dice.


¡Thank you! – A Free Extra dice.



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Click here to download a sample of A Desperate Cry in spanish.



Click here to download a sample of 246 Corbitt Street in english. For the spanish version, click here.
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The Scions of the Dark Goddess – A modern era Call of Cthulhu campaign project will be published both in English and Spanish. Backers will be able to choose the language of their rewards during the Pledge Manager (which will open a few weeks after the crowdfunding campaign ends).

The books will be printed in US Letter format on quality paper.

At the beginning of this campaign, the Scions of the Dark Goddess Campaign Book is already fully edited and proofread in Spanish, and the layout has been designed. The funds we raise during the campaign and the pledge manager will be used to expand the campaign with unlocked content, translate and proofread the original campaign into English by top native professionals, finalize all final corrections and layout design, and take care of the printing and manufacturing of all extra content, as well as shipping and handling of the final product.

Shipping costs will be paid later, during the Pledge Manager. This is so that the shipping costs are charged as close as possible to the shipment, so that they are as accurate and advantageous to you as possible. See shipping cost estimates below.

If the basic funding threshold is exceeded, you will receive not only the rewards of your pledge level, but also more exclusive unlocked content. To thank you for your support, we are pleased to add more rewards for our loyal backers, both physical and digital (depending on your contribution level). See more details about that in the Stretch Goals section.

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The Dark Goddess is the embodiment of fertility and reproduction. She brings about chaos during this process, but a chaos that generates change, variation… and, in some cases, voluntarily or not, evolution.

Scions of the Dark Goddess is a campaign for those who want to play the Cthulhu Mythos in the present time, with the key themes of our days; myths removed, modern, evolved. The Black Goat with a Thousand Young, the Sons of Amalthea, intrigues and subterfuges of what should not exist, intrigues and subterfuges of what should not exist, dangers that defy the limits of our present world.



As humans, we are living in an age in which we are starting to influence both fertility and reproduction, we are starting to master them. But does this desire to improve the species, to pick and choose the best, not entail the risk that, in reaching perfection, this may turn into uniformity? Where does that leave our most prized possession, our own self and individuality? And, if that perfection is achieved, will we have cheated death itself? Transhumanism does certainly advocate for this possibility and, now more than ever, part of that vision entails relying on technology. Which leads us to the topic of Artificial Intelligences. Should we place the responsibility of our reproduction, and thus our evolution, in the hands of AI? And, furthermore, would AI do a better job than a god?



Scions of the Dark Goddess is not a campaign based around characters. It is a campaign based around players. When reading a book, or watching a movie or TV show, part of the satisfaction comes from having more information about the story than the characters themselves and being able to foresee (or at least try) what will happen to them. This same experience applies to this campaign and is part of the gaming experience. Players will receive fragmented information through the eyes and senses of the various characters they will embody, prompting them to interpret it correctly, make assumptions, and prepare for revelations. On occasion, they'll get it right. More often than not, they will not.



The Scions of the Dark Goddess experience offers you:
  • A complete meta-plot developed in six chapters (arcs) filled with mystery, conspiracy and cosmic horror.
  • A campaign guide divided in sections:
    • General summary of topics covered.
    • Indications metagame usage throughout the campaign.
    • A helpful summary of each chapter with synopsis, main events, central theme and which pre-generated player characters are included to play the chapter.
  • Each chapter has a structure to aid in the work of the Keeper. It includes defined sections with information for the Keeper, introduction and chronology, information on each section of the plot, highlighted boxes with management aids, highlighted indications of when they appear in the game and inserts in the text game aids, non-player characters and maps, and a summary annex at the end of each chapter with all the chapter's game aids and non-player characters for easy and quick reference. 
  • Over 60 game handouts, some of them interactive, such as videos, podcast snippets, social media accounts, and more.
  • A multitude of digital resources for your gaming group to extend their research online: social media accounts, websites, interactive maps and even a podcast.
  • 20 pre-generated characters adapted and specific to each chapter.
  • 17 location maps, 9 of which offer a spectacular and detailed three-dimensional perspective.
  • Role-playing hints, information and statistics for 47 non-player characters.
  • Information, behavior and statistics for 9 creatures.
  • More than 20 special locations through which the plot can flow according to the actions of the Investigators.


In this chapter, motherhood serves as a common thread into a nightmare. A presumed suicide brings the characters to a pleasant village tied to wine production, a place of peace protected by a primeval forest... ready to tear apart those who disturb its secrets.

A new group of investigators begins to notice how Celeste, their close friend, has been stepping towards the edge of the abyss. The characters must help her out of a maze of madness, where each discovery turns into a new riddle. They will find signs of the same individuals, organizations and events they observed in the first scenario, leading them through a meta-plot experience where they know what might be happening, but their characters do not have the means to follow through on their suspicions...

The campaign’s main investigators are hired to follow up a rock star’s murder and prove that the woman whom all the evidence points against is innocent. A race throw a series of seemingly unconnected crimes that show too many related evidences to be mere coincidence. As the master plan is revealed, the group concludes its search very close to the leaders of the Sons of Amalthea. Maybe even too close.

The cycle of the Dark Goddess is as ancient as the world itself. We witness this in a journey into Syria in the days of the Crusades, with a diverse ensemble that is called upon to retrieve a mysterious tome, and something else, from the hands of Muslim soldiers after the fall of the Crac de l'Ospital.


The surviving investigators of Chapter 3 will visit Arkham in search of a brilliant genetic engineer, an impossible machine, and an eventual outcome that not even the Sons of Amalthea themselves were able to foresee.


Everything comes together and the campaign reaches its conclusion. Tie all loose in a scenario in which the investigators must relieve their experiences and ensure they make the right decisions. If they have, the fate of nothing less than a god may be in their hands.


A campaign spreading across the web

In Scions of the Dark Goddess, we are taking the concept of a campaign beyond books and game aids. You will find a multitude of digital resources for your gaming group to extend their research online: social media accounts, websites, interactive maps and even a podcast.

The suicide victim around which Chapter 1: Dark Lullaby centers, Amber Kellman, documented the last days before her disappearance in social media site “X”. What will investigators do with this information? And, furthermore, what will the players do?
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Enrique Camino and Rubén G. Collantes are two experts in the Cthulhu Mythos and the works of H. P. Lovecraft who have joined forces in Scions of the Dark Goddess to create an unforgettable campaign.

Enrique Camino

With more than 14 years of experience as head of the publishing house Three Fourteen Games, and countless eons as a player and designer of role-playing games and board games, Enrique Camino is one of the most important authors of the current Spanish scene. He is the author of Cthulhu d100 core book and Estirpe de Dunwich core book, and of acclaimed Spanish scenarios such as Despertados, Los cinco escalones, A un segundo de la media noche and many more.

Ruben G. Collantes

Besides being a prolific role-player, he is a good connoisseur of Lovecraft's work and the Call of Cthulhu line with many years of experience behind him. His creative impulse has led him to collaborate in basic manuals such as the development of Cthulhu d100 core book. Beyond the successful previous campaign in Spanish of Scions of the Dark Goddess, Rubén G. Collantes is co-author of important scenarios such as Carne quemada, Nazarene's Lot, El caso Pickman, El recolector de gusanos (among others), and he is also scriptwriter of the webseries El caso Pickman (The Pickman Case).
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IMPORTANT DATES

It won't be too long for backer to receive their rewards. The Spanish edition is complete. As soon as native English translation and proofreading are ready, production steps will start. We expect Scions of the Dark Goddess campaign PDF to be sent three months after the campaign ends, and shipments to begin in December 2024.
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Shadowlands Games is the international publisher imprint and design studio of the Spanish game and book publisher Shadowlands ediciones. Since its creation, an experienced team of competent edition professionals, talented writers, game designers and artists, has proven Shadowlands to be in the path of a high-class and prolific role-playing game developer with more than 70 successful publications in our country.
 
Our first international project was Raven – A Gothic Horror Roleplaying Game. It was successfully funded in 25 minutes! It is unique in its proposal with the combination of an evocative and exciting setting with a system which adapts perfectly to the narrative structure of the classic works of Edgar Allan Poe. You can find out more here.
 
Kingsmouth — A Dark Fantasy and Cosmic Horror campaign setting for 5E is the head of our new dark fantasy 5E compatible line. Created by Angel G. Olmedo, a Spanish role-playing game and adventure creator (Dungeons & Dragons, The Dee Sanction and Call of Cthulhu supplements and scenarios author), is an expert in worldbuilding and narrative. He is also a narrative fantasy author with a successful bilogy and many short stories. Altogether, Angel G. Olmedo is one of Spain's most experienced and highly rated emerging authors.
 
We have the commitment to create and publish impressive, attractive, beautiful and very enjoyable RPGs, supplements and scenarios.
 
Shadowlands Games is conformed by a multidisciplinary creative team, focused in create first rate games and supplements. Surprising and gripping fantasy adventures along with intriguing and absorbing mystery and horror supplements are some of the reasons by which our creative team has gained top reputation in our country.
 
More information in our website: https://shadowlandsgames.com/
 
Fran Valverde – Editor and CEO
With studies in Business Administration and Management, he has 22 years of experience in the creation and management of companies in different sectors. Compulsive reader and player.
 
Marta de la Serna – Editor
Journalist by training and editor by vocation. She has been moving in the publishing world for 22 years. Few things excite you more than the smell of the pages of a freshly printed book.
 
Andrés Sáez "Marlock" – Creative Director
Graduated in Fine Arts, he has 15 years of experience as a graphic designer and has been working as a professional illustrator for 8 years. He thrives on creative challenges, and it is rumored that he is able to capture a scene in less time than it takes an author to write it.
 
Claudia Andrade – Layout Artist and Designer
Graphic designer specialized in editorial and UX with 21 years of experience between Mexico and Spain, she loves working with journalists, as well as listening to music and traveling.

Alberto Martínez "Kisama" – Digital artist
Illustrator from the countryside focused on digital art. While harvesting grapes he found artistic enlightenment and decided to dedicate himself to illustration. Some time later he realized that it would hurt his back just the same. He is always seeking a personal and professional growth in his creative adventure, that has taken him through comic and portraiture, fantasy worlds and role-playing game illustration.

Laura Faílde – Graphic designer
Graphic designer and color wizard, she combines the wonderful mastery of her arts giving life and movement to game worlds... even within the game.
 
Carol Pel – Management
She is in charge of administration, logistics management, customer service... nothing can resist this administrative superhero.
 
Joaquim M. Marqués – Editor
Editor with years of experience editing role-playing games. Committed role-player. Hard to beat tabletop game player.
 
David Martín – Communication and Content Writer
He is in charge of communication, social media and marketing tasks. Author of scenarios and other materials for role-playing games. Passionated and not-so-sane role-player, who even roleplay in board games.
 
Marina Moreno – Marketing
She's a marketing sorcerer and a storyteller bard at heart. She's got the magical touch when it comes to rolling a "crit" in selling epic adventures. Beyond work, she immerses herself in fantasy realms, fueled by her love for books and tabletop games.

Arturo Losada – Community Manager and Communication
Roleplayer, journalism graduate and inhabitant of social media. His thing is to explain long and complicated matters in a few words. He has a lot of experience in making mistakes and pounding keyboards, and he learns from both of them every day.



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About the publishing process and risks.



Low-risk project

The Scions of the Dark Goddess bell and its game aids are currently finished and completed in Spanish. All the effort will be put in having the translation and proofreading by native professionals, layout touches and quickly send it to the printer so that our backers can have it in their hands as soon as possible.


At Shadowlands Games we are committed to seriousness and fidelity in the fulfillment of all our projects, both in quality and production. This will has led us to successfully publish all our projects for more than 5 years (licensed and own production), through pre-sale and crowdfunding campaigns. To date we have published more than 70 games and supplements in Spain alone. Now it's time to take the great talent of our authors to an international level and expand our market.
 
However, for transparency, we prefer to write a few more words about general aspects of crowdfunding campaigns. Publishing a tabletop role-playing game and its supplements is not an easy process. Throughout its development and production there are a variety of moments when mistakes can happen. Sometimes things can go wrong. We know this as a company, as designers and as clients. But we strive to minimize ris

All our books go through a meticulous editing and production process to minimize errors, problems and delays. Although this project is already well underway (as mentioned above), in general these are the steps:
 

  1. Pre-production. We did important design and editing work to advance the launch of the project on Backerkit. This includes having the game texts and artwork edited and completed as much as possible. In the case of Scions of the Dark Goddess, the risk is minimal, as it is 100% written, tested, played, edited, proofread, illustrated and typeset in Spanish. The remaining work of the campaign will be for translation, printing, handling and shipping as soon as possible.
  2. Budgets and production agreements. Prior to the launch of the campaign, we manage everything with printers and manufacturers to get everything ready. As soon as we receive the funds, green light to production!
  3. Shipping. This step is complex, but we prepare and manage it in advance with companies specialized in international management and logistics to be able to ship a large number of orders in a short time.
  4. To all of the above we add our strong commitment to transparency and communication with sponsors and customers. We will assist you before, during and after the project to answer your questions, suggestions and comments through this platform, our social networks or our website/email.

 
Scions of the Dark Goddess - A modern era Call of Cthulhu campaign, could not become a reality without your help. We are very grateful to you, dear backers, for your support and trust. Therefore, we want to assure you that we will do everything in our power to make the best edition possible. Thank you!

Call of Cthulhu, Chaosium Inc., and the Chaosium logo are registered trademarks of Chaosium Inc. All rights reserved.
This is a work of fiction. It will include descriptions and portrayals of real places, real events, and real people; these may not be presented accurately and with conformity to the realworld nature of these places, people, and events, and are reinterpreted through the lens of the Cthulhu Mythos and the Call of Cthulhu game in general. No offense to anyone living or dead, or to the inhabitants of any of these places, is intended.
This material is protected under the copyright laws of the United States of America. Reproduction of this work by any means without written permission of Chaosium Inc., except for the use of short excerpts for the purpose of reviews and the copying of character sheets and handouts for in-game use, is expressly prohibited.
Chaosium recognizes that credits and copyrights for the Cthulhu Mythos can be difficult to identify, and that some elements of the Mythos may be in the public domain. 

If you believe that this project is not in compliance with BackerKit’s Community Guidelines or Terms of Service, you can file a report by sending a message via this link: Report this project