Creating your character!

The following is based on the quick-start rule guide to playing Call of Cthulhu, as published by Chaosium:

To play Call of Cthulhu you need to create a character. Characters in the game are called "investigators" as they primarily spend their play time investigating the horrors of the Cthulhu Mythos (Keeper’s Note – Name for the expanded horror universe created by H.P. Lovecraft). Creating your character is simple, and outlined below. It will be helpful for you to have a piece of scratch paper handy, or ideally a Call of Cthulhu character sheet.

The Primary Attributes

To begin, a Call of Cthulhu character has seven primary attributes. Each of these attributes is described below.

Strength (STR) - measures the raw physical power your investigator can bring to bear. It influences the amount of damage he can deliver with a punch or kick, as well as his grip, or ability to lift heavy items. Roll 4 six sided dice, drop the lowest, and add the remaining dice together to determine the value for STR.

Constitution (CON) - is a measure of the hardiness of your investigator. It influences the amount of damage you can take before going unconscious or dying as well as how resistant you are to diseases and poison. Roll 4 six-sided dice, drop the lowest, and add the remaining dice together to determine the value for CON.

Dexterity (DEX) - is a measure of your investigator's agility and speed. Roll 4 six-sided dice, drop the lowest, and add the remaining dice together to determine the value for DEX.

Size (SIZ) - is a measure of your investigator's physical mass. It influences how much damage you can take, as well as how much you can deliver. Also, as a measure of your Investigator's weight, it influences the ability of horrible monsters to pick him up and toss him around the room. Roll 3 six sided dice, drop the lowest, add the remaining dice together and add 6 to that total to determine the value for SIZ.

Intelligence (INT) - is a rough guide to your investigator's cunning and ability to make leaps of logic and intuition. Roll 3 six-sided dice, drop the lowest, add the remaining dice together and add 6 to that total to determine the value for INT.

Power (POW) - is a combination of personal magnetism, spirit, and mental stability. It influences your character's ability to cast magical spells, as well as his resistance to the sanity-blasting horrors of the Cthulhu Mythos. Roll 4 six-sided dice, drop the lowest, and add the remaining dice together to determine the value for POW.

Appearance (APP) - measures the charm and physical appeal of your character. Roll 4 six-sided dice, drop the lowest, and add the remaining dice together to determine the value for APP.

Education (EDU) - is a measure of the knowledge which your investigator has accumulated through formal education, or the venerated "School of Hard Knocks." Roll 4 six-sided dice, drop the lowest, add the remaining together and add 3 to the total to determine the value for EDU.

Before play begins, you may swap around any attributes which use the same dice to determine their value. In other words, you could swap any of the values for Strength, Constitution, Dexterity, Appearance or Power with each other. You could only swap Size and Intelligence with each other. Education remains static.

You can also move 3 points from any one attribute to another, repeating the procedure twice. Be advised though that you cannot raise the attributes beyond their natural maximum, so that Education can’t be raised beyond 21, and the other attributes can’t be raised over 18. You may roll three sets in total, in the character creation thread.


The Secondary Attributes

There are a number of attributes which are determined after you have figured the attributes above. These are Idea, Knowledge, Luck, Damage Bonus, Magic Points, Hit Points, and Sanity.


Idea is simply your INT score multiplied by 5. This score is used as a percentile roll to give your investigator information, or to make leaps of deduction in certain situations. Percentile rolls will be explained further down.

Knowledge is your EDU score multiplied by 5. This score is used as a percentile roll to show how your investigator's education and training gives insight certain situations.

Luck is your POW score multiplied by 5. This score is used as a percentile roll to give your character gleans of insight in certain situations. The Luck roll is often used to give your character a last chance in a crisis situation, or to cause bad things to happen to the only investigator in the group to fail the roll.

Damage Bonus is how much extra damage your investigator does with a successful close-combat attack. Add your STR and SIZ and consult the Damage Bonus Table to find your damage bonus.




Magic Points are equal to your POW. MPs fluctuate up and down as you cast spells or activate arcane alien devices. If your investigator's MPs ever fall below 0, he goes unconscious until he can recover them.

Hit Points are figured by adding SIZ and CON together, then dividing the total by two and rounding up. As your investigator takes damage from combat or other events, your HPs will drop. If you drop to only 2 HPs, your investigator goes unconscious. If he hits -2 or lower, he is dead.

Sanity (SAN) begins at a level equal to your POW score multiplied by 5. Circle the value that corresponds to this number on the character sheet. This score is used as a percentile roll that presents your investigator's ability to remain stoic in the face of horrors. As you face the horrors of the Cthulhu Mythos your SAN score fluctuates. It can raise above it's starting level, but can never be higher than 99 minus the value of your Cthulhu Mythos skill.