Dice In The Darkness: Cthulhu Calls

"No more opportunities."

Liu Xing looked at the message on his phone, heaved a helpless sigh, and set it down. Lying back on his bed, he mused, "Studying medicine really does ruin one's life."

Liu Xing, male, 22 years old, a graduate of Rongcheng Traditional Chinese Medicine University, was currently unemployed.

About two weeks ago, Liu Xing had a falling-out with the Department Head. Given his youthful impulsiveness, he chose to resign in a fit of anger.

Over the past half month, Liu Xing had been applying to various hospitals. But since he had just graduated and lacked significant connections, every job hunt always ended with the response: "Please wait at home for news."

"Do I really have to go back home?" Liu Xing searched for his father's number in his contacts.

Three generations of Liu Xing's family had been doctors. They owned three clinics. When Liu Xing first graduated, his father wanted him to help out in the family business. However, Liu Xing declined. He didn't want to be confined to one place so young. He wanted to explore the world.

"Alright, but I'm only giving you five thousand for living expenses. After that, you'll need to earn your own keep," his father had said at the time. "If things don't work out, come back. You can take over any of the clinics."

"Forget it, it would be too embarrassing to return after just over two months," thought Liu Xing. He turned off his phone, knowing his father's teasing nature. If he returned now, he'd be the butt of jokes for a lifetime.

"I only have a thousand left. That means in about a month, I'll be out of funds," Liu Xing took out the last of his savings, staring despondently at the ceiling.

"Ah, why am I thinking so much? Time for a round of League of Legends. Time to lift my spirits by trouncing some kids."

With that, he sat up and turned on his computer.

An hour later, a frustrated Liu Xing put down his mouse and stared at his monitor in disbelief.

"Is it really just a Monday? Why are there so many kids playing today?"

Exasperated, Liu Xing closed League of Legends and decided to watch some new episodes on the country's largest website, bilibili.

"Grandpa must be downloading those small circular files again," Liu Xing mused, stroking his chin.

"Forget it. I'll just go tease some girls in the group chat." With that, he opened QQ.

Ping, ping, ping.

The moment he logged in, a pop-up dominated most of Liu Xing's screen.

"Seriously, Tencent? Advertising this blatantly?" Liu Xing was taken aback by the enormous pop-up.

"Join now and get 100,000 RMB!" Liu Xing stared at the bold red letters on the advertisement, speechless.

He had seen countless online game ads. As someone born in the 90s, there wasn't a slogan he hadn't encountered. But this was the first time he had seen an ad making such a bold claim of hundred thousand yuan.

Thinking this over, Liu Xing muttered to himself, "This is quite tempting. A hundred thousand yuan? Fine, just for that ad, I'll give it a click. What's the worst that can happen?"

And with that, he clicked on "Join the game."

Ding.

Following a soft chime, Liu Xing's computer screen went black.

"Damn it!" Liu Xing roared.

Just as a distraught Liu Xing was about to reboot, his computer returned to normal. However, he noticed a new game icon on his desktop.

"That was close." Liu Xing hastily opened a hidden folder, relieved to find all its files intact.

"So, the game auto-installed?" Liu Xing examined the strange new game icon. It looked oddly familiar — it was the visage of Cthulhu.

Cthulhu is a malevolent entity from the Cthulhu Mythos created by the American novelist, Howard Phillips Lovecraft, often abbreviated as H.P. Lovecraft. Cthulhu is described with a head resembling an octopus, a face full of countless tentacles, massive claws on its hands and feet, and bat-like membranous wings on its back. If one is familiar with the game World of Warcraft, they would recognize the boss, C'thun, as a tribute to the Cthulhu myth.

The first time Liu Xing encountered the Cthulhu Mythos was when a close friend invited him to a tabletop gaming room to observe a Cthulhu role-playing session.

Liu Xing's eyebrows raised when he looked closer at the title under the game's icon, and indeed, it matched what he had thought.

"Cthulhu Role-Playing Game Hall?"

The Cthulhu role-playing game can be simply described as a tabletop game that's immensely popular in Western regions. Unlike China's popular games like "Werewolf" and "Three Kingdoms Kill," Cthulhu role-playing belongs to the role-playing game category. What's special about this game is that players can immerse themselves in their characters. Within the game's rules, players' actions lead to various open-ended story developments. For instance, in other games when you confront an enemy, you might have only a simple option like defeating them to advance the plot. But in Cthulhu role-playing games, you can choose to avoid, bribe, persuade, or even ally with the enemy.

However, combat isn't the main focus in Cthulhu role-playing games. Generally, combat means a total party wipeout, as players, role-playing as explorers, confront mythical creatures!

These games draw from a series of novels by H.P. Lovecraft, collectively referred to as the Cthulhu Mythos. After Lovecraft's death, many authors wrote fanfiction based on these myths, further evolving the mythos into a unique pantheon—the Cthulhu Mythological System.

Within this system, Cthulhu serves as the iconic figure and is a significant deity among the Old Ones, representing the element of water. It is currently sealed by a powerful opposing force called the Elder Gods, lying dormant beneath the ocean city of R'lyeh in the South Pacific. Under certain cosmic influences or external factors, Cthulhu's seal can be broken, and it emerges from the sea. However, as the seal isn't fully released, Cthulhu cannot leave R'lyeh. When cosmic conditions change and the seal's power is restored, Cthulhu returns to its deep slumber. The day Cthulhu fully breaks free, it will undoubtedly devastate the world.

From Cthulhu's description, it's evident that it possesses world-ending power. Still, Cthulhu isn't the most potent entity in the mythos. In the game setting, Cthulhu can unconditionally kill a random number of players, acting much faster than them, making an encounter with it almost certain death for players.

Naturally, as a boss-level entity, Cthulhu won't appear randomly. Beneath it are various mythical creatures, with the weakest being entities like Ghoul and Deep One (essentially fish-men, albeit with some differences). But even these beings are comparable in fighting prowess to world boxing champions or martial arts masters.

The then-newbie Liu Xing once asked the friend who introduced him to the game, pointing out that even a martial arts master could be taken down with a single gunshot.

His friend chuckled and told Liu Xing that he was overthinking. In Cthulhu role-playing games, players typically portray ordinary individuals, or at most detectives or police officers, armed with just a handgun. Although the game is very open-ended, every action must follow established rules. Commoners wouldn't possess assault rifles, nor would they casually roam with weapons. Additionally, creatures like Ghouls and Deep Ones are fundamentally superior to average humans.

Generally, humans stand little chance against these mythical beings, though there are some exceptions. Given the game's freedom, some sessions might opt for customized rules or add peculiar skills.

The Cthulhu role-playing game can be divided into Tabletop and Online Game Groups. Tabletop refers to players gathering physically, while Online Game Groups mean playing via communication apps like QQ and other tools. These games require considerable time and commitment. A session could last from a few hours to several years, unlike quicker games like "Werewolf" and "Three Kingdoms Kill." Hence, not many players in China delve into Cthulhu role-playing games.

Moreover, unlike other games, the Cthulhu role-playing game doesn't have dedicated online platforms or mobile apps. This has often left enthusiasts feeling lost after successfully introducing friends to the game, as they can't find an appropriate venue to play. Liu Xing faced this challenge, wanting to try the game but lacking the chance. Organizing a tabletop session isn't easy, as all participants must find several hours to dedicate simultaneously. Online groups also suffer from the absence of a professional platform.

But now, staring at the "Cthulhu Role-Playing Game Hall" on his computer desktop, Liu Xing couldn't help but smile. He hadn't expected to find a dedicated platform for the Cthulhu role-playing game, a pleasant surprise indeed.