The Good Friends of Jackson Elias

309: Theme Parks and Horror, with Cuppycup (long cut)

Added 2025-03-25 00:01:01 +0000 UTC

This is the unedited version for backers only.

This episode, we visit theme parks, amusement parks, funfairs and the like, looking for Call of Cthulhu inspiration. As with so many things rooted in childhood joy, theme parks can easily turn into something nightmarish in both our imaginations and in reality. We dip into personal experiences, urban legends, and our own wild ideas, looking for both the roots of these fears and ways of bringing them into our games.

There is something of a focus on Disney in our discussion, even though they are almost certainly safer and cleaner than the vast majority of theme parks. The discussion merely went this way because Cuppycup, our guest host, used to work for Disney, as did Matt's wife, Tiff. This gives us a wealth of personal anecdotes to draw upon.

Our Guest Host

We are delighted to welcome Cuppycup back to the Good Friends! Cup, of course, has been on the podcast before, discussing Louis Wain with us a few years ago. He is best known as the mastermind behind the ENnie-award-winning actual play podcast Ain't Slayed Nobody, where you will also find regular appearances by Scott alongside some of our other guest hosts, including Ross Bryant and Josephine McAdam.

As well as ASN, Cup is currently producing a new Call of Cthulhu podcast called Walking Shadows, with Ross Bryant as Keeper, and a cast that includes Becca Scott, Rashawn Scott, and Zach Reino. The first episodes should be out within the next couple of months.

And Cup's first published scenario, "Deadwood on Lane 8", will be out on the Miskatonic Repository later this year. This is a 1990s Pulp Cthulhu extravaganza that puts the cosmic firmly into cosmic bowling.

If you want to keep up with all these projects, you can follow Ain't Slayed Nobody on Bluesky or join their Discord server.

Blasphemous Tomes Latest Updates:

Blasphemous Tome Fanzines Update for $1 backers (Sept 2024)

Blasphemous Tome Fanzines Update for $3+ backers (Sept 2024)

A Weekend With Good Friends

Summer 2025 will see the return of A Weekend With Good Friends! This, of course, is the online convention organised by our lovely listeners, taking place on the Good Friends Discord server.

Key dates are:

GM signups: 23rd of April - 7th of May
Player signups: 22nd of May - 5th of June
A Weekend With Good Friends: 13th - 15th of June

Games and panels will run throughout the weekend.

We shall share more details are they become available

Scott on Fear of a Black Dragon

Scott recently joined Jason Cordova over on Fear of a Black Dragon. They discussed the Call of Cthulhu scenario "The Necropolis", written by Leigh Carr, from the Gateways to Terror collection. Jason and Scott delved into what makes "The Necropolis" such a perfect introduction to Call of Cthulhu, examining some of the techniques that make it so tightly focused and accessible to newcomers.

If you want more, you can also hear Scott run "The Necropolis" as a live game for How We Roll at PodUK 2019.

Matt and Scott on RPG Reanimators

Both Matt and Scott have been recording with RPG Reanimators, and our respective episodes are now out. Matt discussed "The Burning Stars" by David Conyers, from Terrors From Beyond, offering his personal tips and insights. Scott talked to the crew about his own scenario "UNLAND", from Fear's Sharp Little Needles, revealing things he might change about the scenario and some of the content that never made it into the published version.