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06:19, 29th March 2024 (GMT+0)

ToC Credit Rating.

Posted by icosahedron152
icosahedron152
member, 675 posts
Fri 7 Oct 2016
at 21:36
  • msg #1

ToC Credit Rating

I am a Cthulu newbie. I have the Trail of Cthulu freebie condensed rules, but not the full rules. Can someone talk me through the way Credit Rating works in the game?

I can see that CR is a number from 0 to 7, and presumably points are spent and replenished somehow, but how do you use the system to determine what your character can or cannot afford to buy? Thanks.
TheMidnighter
member, 2 posts
Fri 4 Nov 2016
at 04:36
  • msg #2

ToC Credit Rating

In reply to icosahedron152 (msg # 1):

Trail and Gumshoe in general is kind of light and abstract in terms of gear acquisition. Mostly you're actually spending Preparedness, not Credit Rating, to get your hands on stuff and most GM's will say you can have what's plausible for your character to have given their general circumstance.

Credit Rating is investigative, which means you should mostly spend it to get CLUES and information that push the story/investigation, rather than actual material.

This can represent a bribe, but it could also be a social manoeuvre. Credit Rating represents your character's social standing as much as it does their literal bank account, so perhaps a "don't you know who I am?" bluster to get your clue. I think examples given in the book also say you can use it to establish social connections to high-society types; "Oh, I think I recognise the painter! Yes, I believe I roomed with this chap at boarding school..."

Points are spent as you wish and refreshed when you reach certain story beats, such as the end of an investigation or a major revelation. Remember, Credit Rating is investigative, which means it refreshes less commonly than Preparedness, which is a General ability.

Hope that helps!
icosahedron152
member, 686 posts
Fri 4 Nov 2016
at 15:08
  • msg #3

ToC Credit Rating

Thank you Midnighter, I was beginning to think nobody played this game. Sounds like it's not really a dice-moderated interaction, then, more of a 'score out of ten' that the GM uses to apply a handwave.

Pity. I'm looking for a system midway between the traditional bean counting and the storyteller's handwave. Looks like this isn't it. Back to the drawing board I suppose...
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