Arnold Penshaw
Level 12 (Defensive) Social Worker
StatsAge 66; Gender Male; Height 6’1”; Weight 240; Eyes Dark; Hair Bald; Skin Pale
Hit Points 65
Armor Class 17; Touch 17; Flat 14
AbilitiesStr 8; Dex 15; Con 10; Int 18; Wis 10; Cha 13
SavesFort +4; Ref +10; Will +8
Sanity Points 44; Max 80; Break Point 5; 20% 9
MovementInit +2; Speed 30 ft
AttacksBase +6/+1; Melee +5/+0; Ranged +8/+3
Unarmed +5/+0; Damage 1d3–1s; Crit x2
Walking Cane +1/–4; Damage 1d4–1; Crit 19-20x2
SkillsAppraise +10; Balance +2; Bluff +6; Climb –1; Concentration +7; Craft(general) +4; Cthulhu Mythos +19; Diplomacy +3; Disguise +1; Drive +3; Escape Artist +7; Forgery +8; Gather Information +15; Gizmo Use +8; Heal +0; Hide +8; Innuendo +4; Intimidate +3; Jump –1; Knowledge(general) +4; Knowledge(anthropology) +10; Knowledge(astronomy) +6; Knowledge(history) +10; Knowledge(occult) +12; Listen +0; Move Silently +8; Performance(magician) +5; Research +10; Ride +2; Search +12; Sense Motive +8; Slight of Hand +12; Spellcraft +16; Spot +0; Swim –1; Use Rope +2; Wilderness Lore +0
FeatsDodge; Mobility; Nimble; Sharp-Eyed; Toughness
LanguagesEnglish(native); French; Latin
Mythos Tombs ReadLivre D’ Ivon (LD’I)
Monsters and Their Kynde (MTK)
Nameless Cults 1909 Edition (NC)
Thaumaturgical Prodigies In The New England Canaan (TPNE)
SpellsAnimal Form from (MTK)
Augury from (LD’I)
Call Tsathoggua from (Tsathoggua)
Cause Fear from (MTK)
Contact Tsathoggua from (LD’I)
Create Gate to Black Gulf of N’Kai from (Tsathoggua)
Create Gate to Hyperborea from (LD’I)
Deflect Harm from (Tsathoggua)
Detect Magic from (MTK)
Divination from (LD’I)
Message from (LD’I)
Red Sign of Shudde M’ell from (LD’I)
Speak With Dead from (MTK)
Summon/Bind Formless Spawn from (LD’I)
Possessions of Note- Fine Walking Cane With Silver Eagle’s Head Handle
- Aristocratic Clothing (Somewhat Unkempt), Fancy Monocle, Fine Cuban Cigars, Fine Silver Cigarette Lighter, Gold Pocket Watch, Gold Signet Ring
- Car – 1925 Dodge 4 Door Touring Sedan, Flashlight, Magicians Bag
- Livre D’ Ivon (in Bank Box)
- Low Rent Apartment
- Resources: $10,000
NotesSummon/Bind Formless Spawn must be cast at night below ground (such as in a basement, sewer, deep trench, or cave). In the total darkness of a deep cavern, it may be cast at anytime, day or night.
BackgroundArnold Penshaw Born 1862
An only child born to a wealthy Massachusetts family, Arnold attended Yale New Haven University, where he happened to fall in with a group of young archeologists who had recently returned from a wholly remarkable archeological dig in Malta. They believed that they had found the ruins of Tarxien – Shrine to The Earth Mother – filled with human bones and protected by fanatical cultists. The archeologists had dozens of tales of murder, mystery, and the occult. Arnold was hooked. The group was forming a society of the occult to study further some of the mysteries uncovered in Malta and invited Arnold to join. Arnold accepted and was thus drawn into the dark world of mythos and (invariably) madness.
Not long into the next year, the group had grown into a secret and elite society known as “The Yale Brotherhood of Occult Studies.” They had somehow gotten a copy of “Thaumaturgical Prodigies In The New England Canaan” and eagerly devoured its knowledge. Though it did not contain spells, it did speak of them as fact, which drove the brotherhood to a determination to get real spells into its possession. That goal was finally attained late in the year of 1898 when a group of the brotherhood’s archeologists returned from an expedition to Stonehenge with a book called “Monsters and Their Kynde.”
Research into the pages of this strange tome did indeed reveal true magical power. The brotherhood’s charter members, Arnold included, learned those powers; the spells Animal Form, Cause Fear, Detect Magic, and Speak With Dead.
Unfortunately, with great power comes great temptation. Shortly after learning the spells contained in “Monsters and Their Kynde,” “The Yale Brotherhood of Occult Studies” fell apart. Split first by internal conflicts on how best to use their new found powers; then by madness, as two of the charter members inexplicably snapped, becoming drooling catatonics; and finally by terrible murder, when one member channeled the horrible demon Y’Golonac in a fit of rage which consumed all. Arnold alone escaped the carnage, using Animal Form to become a raven before flying away.
In spite of the terrible fall of the brotherhood, Arnold could not turn away from such power. He returned to Massachusetts and began studies for his Doctorate degree at Miskatonic University in Arkam. During a trip to France while writing his thesis, he came across the “Livre D’ Ivon.” Upon pursuing the tome, he learned about Hyperborea and the worship of Tsathoggua. Desperate for more spells, the thought of worshipping a being said to reward his faithful followers with magic was alluring. Deciding to tempt fate (and unknown gods) Arnold started to follow ritualistic instructions found in the “Livre D’ Ivon.” Over time, he began to see things a bit differently, especially in the text of the awful tome. It seemed to contain new writings on pages he knew he had read before. It slowly became clear that what he was seeing was more spells. From the “Livre D’ Ivon” Arnold learned Augury, Contact Tsathoggua, Create Gate to Hyperborea, Divination, Message, Red Sign of Shudde M’ell, and Summon/Bind Formless Spawn.
These newly added powers thrilled Arnold and for a while he was overcome with mania. In a crazed blur he formed “The Hands of Hyperborea,” a cult of Tsathoggua worshippers that was not lacking in numbers. Before he knew it he was a very powerful man both of the mystic and mundane.
At his height of power he decided it was time for his cult to witness their god. The membership agreed and accepted four volunteers to appease the god’s hunger when he should appear, human sacrifices – but only if they were voluntary, Arnold was no murderer.
The moment came and Arnold cast Contact Tsathoggua. After hours of ritualistic chanting, the Great Old One appeared. Half the cult went mad, the other half nearly crushed themselves in a panicked mass as they fled. Only Arnold and the four sacrifices remained, paralyzed with fear. Tsathoggua struck down the sacrifices and bathed the area in darkness so that Arnold could see only him, yet still hear the screams of horror around him. The Great Old One spoke and granted Arnold thee spells, Call Tsathoggua, Create Gate to Black Gulf of N’Kai, and Deflect Harm. He then instructed Arnold as to what was required of his new Cult Sorcerer. Arnold was horrified, but agreed for fear of utter destruction by the hand of this god.
Arnold was beside himself. What Tsathoggua bade of him was too much, but he could not defy a god, could he? For years he struggled within himself even as he regrouped and rebuilt “The Hands of Hyperborea.” He had even created a gate to the Black Gulf of N’Kai in a hidden cave under Devil’s Chasm in Worchester Massachusetts. It was shortly after the completion of the gate that Arnold resigned himself to finally deny Tsathoggua. He had to hold onto what little humanity he had left. With this resolution, Arnold entered the gate to confront the Great Old One. Needless to say, Tsathoggua was not pleased. To show his displeasure, he snatched up Arnold and stuffed him down his great maw. Arnold could hear the crunching of his bones and feel in dazed shock his innards bursting out, then it was over – Arnold was dead.
That would have been it for poor Arnold, except that Tsathoggua wanted to be sure Arnold really got the message. He spit him up and renewing life, proceeded to wolf him down in crunching agony three more times. When last he renewed Arnold he was distracted (or was he?) by a figure entering his presence. It was Nathan Yerkes, Arnold’s close friend and “Second Hand of Hyperborea.” He had followed Arnold into the gate. As Nathan approached the Great Old One and offered to take Arnold’s place to serve the god and fulfill his designs, Arnold slipped into the complete release of utter madness. Somehow he managed to wander back through the gate – for it was many years later in an asylum just outside Ansonia Connecticut that he came back to himself.
All that had happened those long years ago seemed like a lost dream. Mercifully, most of it was gone from his memory. Arnold couldn’t remember what it was Tsathoggua had wanted of him, though his final unpleasant meeting with the Great Old One still haunted him. It was then that Arnold vowed to give up magic. He was released from the asylum and got a job as a social worker in an effort to pay back society as best he could. He took up magic, in the mundane sense, and became a decent stage performer to help satisfy the draw real magic had on him.
Things have finally settled down for Arnold. He has since modified his vow never to use real magic however, after instinctively using it to stop a bank robber from killing a teller during a recent holdup. He feels that it’s OK in an emergency, but suffers an acute fear that Tsathoggua will ‘get him’ if he uses it too much.
(This fear manifests itself as prestidigophobia, which requires a DC 15 Will Save to overcome. If the save fails, Arnold will be too afraid to cast the spell. Even if he does save, he suffers a –2 morale penalty to all die rolls while casting or maintaining any spell effects.)
Currently, Arnold experiences infrequent blackouts. The periods range from a few hours to (in one case) two whole days. Arnold is pretty sure these happen due to the stress his insanity has had on his mind and has learned to live with them. Some things are better left forgotten.
Arnold still has his copy of “Livre D’ Ivon.” He keeps it locked in an Ansonia bank box and fears that should he ever lose it, Tsathoggua would come looking for him.
Lately, Arnold has been asked to join a group of paranormal investigators called “The New England Beacon Society.” Though Arnold is happy to offer help and insight to the group, he is hesitant to become an official member due to his past experiences with “membership” in general.
Family: Arnold was an only child and his parents have long since passed away. Arnold is quite fond of Freada Van Hoff however, and credits his recovery to her exceptional skill and kindness.
What Arnold Knows About The Others- Henri Lamarre A French immigrant and magazine editor who runs a print shop in town. May know a spell or two.
- Earl Simpson A mechanic with a repair shop in town who was once abducted by aliens.
- Zoe Bodine A reporter/photographer for Henri Lamarre’s tabloid.
- ‘Lucky’ Lucy McKinley A strait forward private investigator who’s had a run of bad luck recently.
- Freada Van Hoff An Austrian national and noted psychologist, who travels frequently, runs a psychiatric clinic in town, and holds an office at the local sanitarium. Cured Arnold’s insanity.
