Shadows Over Stillwater is a collection of scenarios and locales for Down Darker Trails—the Wild West setting for Call of Cthulhu and Pulp Cthulhu. Contained within are further insights and challenges for those seeking bold adventure in the American Old West. Featured is a three-part campaign—The Shadow Over Stillwater—set in the mountains of the New Mexico Territory. A hunt for a fugitive murderer leads the investigators into a mystery involving odd townsfolk, strange lights in the sky, walking corpses, and the machinations of a once-powerful and ancient race seeking to reclaim their lost glory.
The campaign is suitable for groups of any size, as the Keeper can easily scale the opposition to reflect the number of investigators. An apparently simple task, bringing a wanted man to justice, brings the investigators to a town suffering an epidemic of bizarre events, from crazed residents to the dead rising from their graves. Shadows Over Stillwater opens with a three-part campaign called The Shadow Over Stillwater: Part 1: Lazarus, in Spades, the first scenario in the campaign, sends the investigators to Stillwater, New Mexico. Stillwater’s sheriff has alerted the authorities that a wanted man, Hank Hanratty, has been spotted in the town. The investigators are hired to the outlaw but, on arrival in Stillwater, they are faced with a situation that threatens to plunge them into chaos and death. Part 2: Trouble on Knife Cut Mesa immediately follows with the investigators heading to the mesa north of Stillwater to seek the source of recent strange events where a band of Mescalero Apache may aid or confuse their investigation. Tracing their quarry into mountains, the investigators come face to face with an ancient evil. Part 3: Shattered Earth, Poisoned Sky brings the campaign to a potentially explosive finale. Santa Rosita has been wracked with earthquakes—the residents fear that their town will soon be destroyed. The investigators’ efforts to uncover the secret behind the situation may be hampered by the growing paranoia among the townsfolk. The investigators must delve deeply to thwart a plan designed to remake the Earth.
Following the campaign is another adventure, Beneath the Burning Sun, that can be played as a standalone adventure or as a continuation of The Shadow Over Stillwater. The investigators arrive in the town of Shade in Silverhole County, New Mexico where they become embroiled in a desperate bank robbery and join a posse to track down a gang of ferocious outlaws led by a crazed preacher. A bloody trail leads to an abandoned Spanish fort high in the Cebolletas where death awaits. A new locale for the Down Darker Trails setting follows: Stonegarden expands upon the Down Darker Trails setting. A booming mining town in Arizona, tucked away in the Coyote Mountains, this locale provides a new and fully realized town in which to base adventures. The history of the region, its locations, and people are detailed, as well as its secrets, threats, and Mythos connections. Whether venturing forth to unlock the riddles of Stone Garden Mesa or enjoying the hospitality of the Ralston family, this new campaign setting presents a community with one of the most violent reputations in the entire West. A place of danger, wild adventure, and dark secrets. Finally, The Devil’s Round-Up provides an extended adventure seed set in a location that may be familiar to long-time Call of Cthulhu fans. A roster of detailed characters, along with their foul agendas are described, ready to darken the day of any investigators who venture into doom-haunted Castronegro. That’s plenty of adventure to keep your gaming group immersed in the horrors and terrors of the Old West. According to your preferred style of play, Shadows Over Stillwater can be played using classic Call of Cthulhu, but can also be enjoyed with the Pulp Cthulhu supplement. This book requires the Call of Cthulhu Keeper’s Rulebook (7th edition) to play. Having access to the Down Darker Trails core setting book is highly recommended.