A few thoughts and questions. (Colors & the City)

[Deleted]

Hey all. I have a few questions regarding Carcosa that I've had since I read the original version and have been thought about moreso since I picked up Raggi's edit.

First, I realize there's been talk of having players somehow ending up transported to Carcosa through some means from another "generic" setting.

For outside characters, how do you deal with the additional colors? Do you have your players make a will save or go insane for a while when they first come across a typically non-existent color? Or do you simply make it so they are perfectly capable of seeing the color now that they are in that star system?


My second question revolves around the City Carcosa. How many of you have actually used it in a game? I'm curious as to what others have done with it, or how they've interpreted it. I'm tempted to do it up as an enormous urban megadungeon but that might be a bit insane.

[bluskreem]

I'd probably save vs Disease to avoid nausea and vertigo rather then insanity.

They city has never come up in game either. My players have seen Lake Hali, but haven't attempted to cross the waves. They know the unspeakable one lies under the lake, so I doubt they'd ever attempt to forge it, no mater how tempting the city may be.

[Deleted]

Huh, I like the idea of saving against nausea and vertigo. That's a good one.

And that's pretty funny about the city. I want to run a game that's an expedition into the city. I think it'd be a good way to throw some strange stuff at the players.

[pessimisthalfling]

Jan 13, 2012 0:27:48 GMT -6 @silentjudas said:

And that's pretty funny about the city. I want to run a game that's an expedition into the city. I think it'd be a good way to throw some strange stuff at the players.

I think this sounds like an excellent idea! You should throw as much weirdness and madness your players way if they are that determined to go there.

[Deleted]

Jan 13, 2012 0:27:48 GMT -6 @silentjudas said:

Huh, I like the idea of saving against nausea and vertigo. That's a good one.

Since colors are basically everywhere within an environment, you may wish to limit saving throws for strong presentations of same, for instance a jale man or ulfire blanket.

With each such exposure, I would allow a small improvement to saving throw (maybe +2). Once three saves versus a new color (or all new colors, depending on how much work you wish to do) have been successfully rolled I would consider the PC acclimated to the strange, new world in which he finds himself.

[Deleted]

Jan 13, 2012 0:27:48 GMT -6 @silentjudas said:

And that's pretty funny about the city. I want to run a game that's an expedition into the city. I think it'd be a good way to throw some strange stuff at the players.

I ran a Carcosa game and the players never ventured into the city. I always thought I would run it a spaceship with a city built around it by the snake-men. The city and ship have been there so long it is rather difficult to tell the one from the other until the PCs happen upon a metal door.

I've never fully fleshed the idea out since I've not had to, but the spaceship could have landed, been forced to make an emergency landing, or suffered a negative vehicle to surface interface (crash).

[Deleted]

There's so many ways to go about the City...which frustratingly is exactly what Geoffrey was going for (bless his d**ned heart). I would love to know if he's ever actually done anything with the city.
As for the idea of it being a ship with a city built around it...now I'm thinking of a city-sized colony ship with a city inside of it...AND a city built around it. So many layers @_@


"With each such exposure, I would allow a small improvement to saving throw (maybe +2). Once three saves versus a new color (or all new colors, depending on how much work you wish to do) have been successfully rolled I would consider the PC acclimated to the strange, new world in which he finds himself."

That sounds like a nifty way of doing that. I like it.

[geoffrey]

My players have never gone to the city of Carcosa. They've never even ventured upon the waters of the Lake of Hali.

I have my own ideas as to the nature of the city of Carcosa, but these ideas are quite incomplete! And of course, my ideas of Carcosa are no more valid than are anyone else's ideas of Carcosa.