“It is absolutely necessary, for the peace and safety of mankind, that some of earth’s dark, dead corners and unplumbed depths be let alone; lest sleeping abnormalities wake to resurgent life, and blasphemously surviving nightmares squirm and splash out of their black lairs to newer and wider conquests.”
    –H.P. Lovecraft, At the Mountains of Madness

Terror in Venice , the fifth deluxe expansion for Call of Cthulhu: The Card Game , is now available at local retailers and online through our webstore !

With its 165 new cards (three copies each of fifty-five individual cards), Terror in Venice explores the wealth of new conspiracies taking shape amid the streets, alleys, and darker corners of Venice. Agents of good and ancient evils patrol the streets of Venice. All of them share terrifying secrets, and those secrets sit at the heart of this new, theme-driven expansion.

Throughout the streets of Venice, masked revelers enjoy the dances, reunions, and celebrations of Carnevale…yet as night approaches, evil things slither through the city’s canals, sinister figures scour the streets in search of two powerful Relics , and masked conspirators gamble on the fate of the world as the evening’s colorful festivities plunge toward an abyss of terror!

Masked in the Throes of Carnevale

Carnevale Di Venezia dates back to 1268, and masks have always figured prominently in its festivities. Traditionally crafted from leather, porcelain, or glass, these masks transform the revelers and the festivities, lifting them out of the ordinary, and into the sublime. So exquisitely designed were these masks and so important to Venetian life that the city’s mascherari, or mask-makers, enjoyed a special social rank, with their own guild and their own laws.

Of course, where there are masks, an air of mystery follows…and in Terror in Venice , the mystery reaches deep into the cloistered heart of the city and its most powerful organizations.

Bauta

As they patrol Carnevale’s festivities to control their turf, Syndicate members avail themselves of the anonymity provided by the Bauta ( Terror in Venice , 48). A figure in a Bauta could be anyone; he could be an artist, a scholar, a drunk, an enforcer, or something far, far more sinister. Because the Bauta covers the whole face, there’s no telling that the figure behind the Mask is even human. What is certain, though, is that the Syndicate makes good use of the Bauta as they guard their interests in the city and its most powerful secrets.

Terror in Venice prominently features a return to the Day and Night mechanics that originally appeared in the Dreamlands cycle of Asylum Packs. Now, as the expansion introduces a host of new cards that represent the progression of time and the influence of Day and Night on the city’s supernatural activities, the Bauta allows the Syndicate to maneuver deftly through the streets at any hour. By Day , the Bauta hides its bearer’s eyes, making it easier for Syndicate operatives to watch for signs that other parties are trying to subvert their bosses’ stakes in the city’s power structures. By Night , the Bauta allows its wielder to move innocuously through the crowded streets, among the dancers and the drunks, to enforce the Syndicate’s position of dominance.

The Syndicate will not sit idly by while other groups prowl its turf in search of sorcerous artifacts. Combined with The Gold Pocket Watch ( Terror in Venice , 49), the Bauta gives the Syndicate the strength to defend its territory against any invaders.

Medico Della Peste

With its long beak, the Medico Della Peste ( Terror in Venice , 22) is one of Carnevale’s strangest and most recognizable Masks . While most revelers don this style of mask out of an appreciation for its unique, eerie design, few remember that its origins date back to the era of the Black Death.

The Medico Della Peste features a long, hollow beak and two eyeholes covered in crystal. Such protection may seem primitive by modern medical standards, but during the time of the plague, it was the best defense that doctors could find as they walked through the streets of the dead and dying. Likewise, the Medico Della Peste permits the scholars of Miskatonic University, like Bruno Carioli ( Terror in Venice , 19), a measure of protection and freedom as they explore the streets of Venice.

Could it be that the mask known as “the plague doctor” will provide Miskatonic’s scholars the edge they need to find The Plague Stone ( Terror in Venice , 32) before it falls into evil hands? If not, will this mask offer any real protection from the horrors that follow?

Volto

Wherever there are secrets, conspiracies, and Relics of power, you will find the Order of the Silver Twilight, provided you know how to identify its agents. Thus, as Venice’s streets are filled with masked scholars from Miskatonic University, Syndicate enforcers, and dark Cultists like Savio Corvi ( Terror in Venice , 34), members of the Silver Twilight maintain their silent surveillance on all of them.

Some of these individuals concern the Silver Twilight very little and may go about their business. What does the world’s most powerful and shadowy oligarchy care about some Puzzled Exchange Student ( Terror in Venice , 21)? Even masked, such an individual poses little threat to the organization.

However, some individuals threaten to stumble upon the Silver Twilight’s conspiracies, and they must be tracked closely. Then, when the time is right, they shall be removed from the equation.

To pursue and redirect such individuals unnoticed, the Silver Twilight has adopted the use of the Volto ( Terror in Venice , 43). It permits them a strong, subtle control over their interests, one that doesn’t shout so loudly as the Syndicate’s bloody business, but one that is, nonetheless, effective.

Similarly, the Silver Twilight advances its own plans with shrewd use of the seemingly comical Zanni ( Terror in Venice , 41). An agent capable of slipping in and out of the Carvenale throngs in his nondescript disguise, each Zanni is worth any two rival spies.

What Do the Masks Conceal?

We may have our suspicions, but what do the Masks of Terror in Venice really conceal? Do you dare explore Venice’s darkest, deadest corners and plumb its greatest depths? Do you really wish to know?

You can now pursue Carnevale’s greatest mysteries – if you dare… Terror in Venice is now available at your local retailer and online through our webstore . Pick up your copy today!

Based on the fiction of H.P. Lovecraft and his literary circle, Call of Cthulhu: The Card Game takes two players deep into the Cthulhu Mythos where investigators clash with the Ancient Ones and Elder Gods for the fate of the world. The Living Card Game format allows players to customize their gaming experience with monthly Asylum Pack expansions to the core game.