TEXT:  
  
  RISUS Cthulhu ZERO GM TRULES 
   
  Simple rules: 
   
  You’ll need paper, a pen or pencil, 4 d6 dice these tables & your sanity.. 
   
  1. Create your Risus character with 10 dice. Now roll 2 d6 to determine your sanity points and 1d6 for 
  Investigation points. 
   
  2. Roll on the number of rooms table. This gives you the size of the mansion. 
   
  3. Roll for the number of exits in the room. Ignore single exit rooms unless you can backtrack to another 
  room with unexplored exits. 
   
  4. Roll for room type. 
   
  5. draw on your paper the room and choose where you want the exits (this includes the one you came 
  through). Its nice to see your journey unfold, and helps keep track if you need to backtrack. 
   
  6. Roll for enemy encounters. 
   
  7. If no enemies roll for loot, regain 1 lost cliche dice and choose exit. Goto step 3. 
   
  8. If enemies appear roll for how many, then what type. 
   
  9. COMBAT!!!!! fight them one at a time. each player taking turns. 
   
  10. If you survive roll for loot, regain 1 cliche dice. Now roll 1d6 for sanity loss and choose your exit. 
   
  11. goto step 3. 
   
  12. Do this until you reach your last room (determined by step 2). Then roll for your Elder God Boss. 
   
  13. COMBAT!!!!! 
   
  14. In the unlikely event that you survived roll 4 times on the loot table and proceed directly to the nearest 
  asylum. 
   
  15. The End 
   
  You may then choose to level your character in the usual Risus way. 
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
  
  Investigation 
   
  Whenever you enter an empty room you may use one of your Investigation points to roll on the 
  Investigation table. As you will see it doesn’t always end well but it may be worth the risk. 
   
  Artifacts 
   
  If you find all artifacts you can combine them to regain all sanity points lost, or save them in a 
  vain attempt to trade for items. Or if you can then back track through all the rooms, re rolling for 
  encounters in each, and escape, you win. 
   
  Equipment 
   
  All Adventurers start with the tools of their trade PLUS 1 x Sanity stabilizer (use to regain 1 
  sanity point). That is all. Obviously if you wish to advance your character over multiple games 
  you can start with any special items you have previously found. Just up the difficulty for yourself 
  by adding +1 monster for every encounter. 
   
  Sanity loss 
   
  If your sanity reaches zero you need to roll on the insanity chart at the end of each room for an 
  effect. Once at zero, sanity cannot be regained, you are officially a babbling lunatic. 
   
   
   
   
   
   
  
  Number of Rooms 
  Roll 
  Room 
  2-3 
  8 
  4-5 
  8 
  6-7 
  8 
  8-9 
  10 
  10-11 
  15 
  12 
  20 
   
  Room Exits 
  Roll 
  Room 
  2-3 
  1 
  4-5 
  1 
  6-7 
  2 
  8-9 
  2 
  10-11 
  3 
  12 
  4 
   
  Room Type 
  Roll 
  Room 
  2 
  Kitchen 
  3 
  Cultist Altar Room (+1 Cultist present) 
  4 
  The Lab (+1 Sanity Stabilizer) 
  5 
  Autopsy Room (-1 Sanity Point) 
  6 
  Dimension portal (-1 Sanity point) 
  7 
  Office (+1 Investigation Point) 
  8 
  Study 
  9 
  The Pit (If your cliche allows you may 
  push an enemy into the pit on a 
  successful roll) 
  10 
  The Archive 
  11 
  The Conservatory 
  12 
  The Dining Room 
   
  Encounter 
  Roll 
  Room 
  2-3 
  None 
  4-5 
  Enemy 
  6-7 
  None 
  8-9 
  Enemy 
  10-
  11 
  Enemy 
  12 
  Cultist TRAP!! Role to avoid (Target roll = 10. If 
  you fail you lose 1 dice for your next 
  encounter). 
   
   
   
  
   
  Creature Group Number                
  Roll 
  Enemies 
  2-4 
  1 
  5-9 
  2 
  10-11 
  3 
  12 
  4 
   
   
   
  Random Creature Table 
  Roll 
  Monster 
  Dice 
  2 
  Insane Trader (roll 2 d6, on a target roll of 10 he will trade with you. On a fail he attacks). 
  Sanity Stabilizer - 5 Artifacts 
  Investigation point - 2 Artifacts 
  Common Monster Dispel - 3 Artifacts 
  2 
  3 
  Ghoul 
  2 
  4 
  Cultist  
  3 
  5 
  Glaaki 
  4 
  6 
  Dimensional Shambler 
  4 
  7 
  Young Chthonian 
  4 
  8 
  Elder Thing 
  3 
  9 
  Flying Polyp 
  4 
  10 
  Hunting Horror 
  5 
  11 
  Leng Spider 
  5 
  12 
  Nightgaunt 
  5 
   
   
   
   
   
  
   
  Loot Type 
  Roll 
  Treasure 
  2-3 
  Sanity Stabilizer 
  4-5 
  Artifact Roll 
  6-7 
  1 shot Common Creature 
  Dispel (get rid of a 
  common creature) 
  8-9 
  Artifact roll 
  10-
  11 
  Investigation Point 
  12 
  Sanity Stabilizer and 
  Artifact 
   
  Artifact Type 
  Roll 
  Treasure 
  2-3 
  Elder Scrying Crystal 
  4-5 
  Dunwitch Glowstone 
  6-7 
  Shoggoth Eye Pendant 
  8-9 
  Strange Carving 
  10-11 
  Gnoph-Keh horn ring 
  12 
  Special Item 
   
   
  Special Item Type (can be traded with other PC's) 
  Roll 
  Item 
  2-3 
  Cross of Elder Hatred +1 dice  to combat rolls. 
  4-5 
  Enchanted 6 shooter +1 dice to combat rolls. 
  6-7 
  Book of Horrors if an enemy strikes you they are 
  frozen in fear and remove 1 dice. 
  8-9 
  Eldritch Shotgun +1 dice to combat rolls 
  10-
  11 
  Cultist control pendant (makes one cultist 
  convert to your side for 1 more room, where he 
  acts as a teammate. Any sixes he rolls are 
  added to your score in combat). 
  12 
  2 x Old One Enhanced Portal Grenade (+5 dice 
  in boss combat. Single use each) 
   
   
   
   
   
   
  
  Investigation Roll 
  Roll Investigation Bonus/Hindrance 
  2-6 
  You discover a terrifying series lithographs depicting the effect of the old ones 
  on humanity. Loose 2 sanity points 
  7-9 
  Fail - No effect 
  10 
  You find proof of the old ones that the authorities must take seriously - Regain 1 
  sanity point. 
  11 
  You discover a map of the mansion. You may skip the next room. 
  12 
  Your investigation leads you to an old chest. Roll for a Special Item 
   
  Boss Type 
  Roll 
  Boss 
  Dice 
  2-3 
  Shoggoth 
  8 
   
  4-5 
  Star Spawn of Cthulhu (roll 1d6 for 
  Cultists) 
   
  5 
   
  6-7 
   
  Star Vampire 
  8 
  8-9 
  Hounds of Tindalos 
  6 
  10-
  11 
  Gug 
  8 
  12 
  Great Cthulhu 
  20 (basically you’re dead or insane or 
  both) 
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
  
  Insanity Table. 
  Roll 
  Insanity Effect 
  1 
  NO MORE!!!! You can take no more, the inevitable destruction of mankind is too much to bare. Without any 
  further thought you kill yourself. 
  2 
  As you begin to laugh uncontrollably, the idea of smashing your head into a wall seems appealing. loose 1 
  cliche dice Permanently.. 
  3 
  Hallucinations of tentacles and agonizing screams send you running for the entrance of the mansion. It is 
  only when you reach the door that you realise it was not real. Begin from the start with your current stats 
  and equipment. 
  4 
  As the drool drips from your mouth you begin to gnaw at your hand, only stopping when you reach bone. 
  With only one useful hand you stand up and proceed to your inevitable doom. Loose 2 of your main cliche 
  dice permanently. 
  5 
  Feeling heavy beyond belief you shun all of your equipment. As you grin like an idiot at your feather light 
  form you run towards the next room. Lose all current  equipment permanently. 
  6 
  You see the sense behind the cultists madness. With a yelp of excitement you run to the nearest cult leader 
  and babble the words “I wish to be part of the Old Ones. Sacrifice me so I may live beyond these realms”, 
  and with a stab of his blade you lie bleeding to death upon the altar. 
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
  
  Example Cliches: 
   
  Professor Nial Biter 
   
  A master of all things arcane, 
  Specialises in Old One knowlege. 
   
  A heavy drinker with a reputation as 
  a lunatic by his peers. 
   
  Traits 
   
  Already quite mentally unhinged and not much phases 
  him anymore - Able to withstand 2 sanity drops per game. 
   
  Science = 4 
  The arts = 3 
  Babbling = 2 
  Wine tasting = 1 
   
   
  Remington Smithe P.I 
   
  The least sought after PI in local history. Every 
  case he takes ends up with the employer in an 
  asylum or dead. 
   
  Traits 
   
  Contrary to popular opinion Remington is a 
  fantastic investigator - Able to adjust 
  investigation rolls by +2, twice per game. 
  Magnum PI - 4 
  Wooing Ladies - 2 
  School of hard knocks - 3 
  Bourbon Neat - 1 
   
   
   
  
SOURCE: textdata/thevault/Collections/Solo/2. GM Emulators & Generic Solo Rules/Risus/Risus Solo Rules/No Mates Cthulhu Solo Guide to Risus.pdf