Keeper’s dream
An immediate, personal hook and flexible structure make it easy to prep and run.
Dead Man's Dreams
A modern Call of Cthulhu scenario in Rochester, NY where impossible crimes tie living investigations to the dead.
Dead Man's Dreams plunges your investigators into an investigation where the line between life and death is thin, the crimes are impossible, and the answers sit somewhere between forensics and forbidden rites.
Built as a Keeper-friendly scenario with emotional hooks, modular locations, and tragic antagonists, it’s ready to run as a one-shot or the start of an undead-flavored campaign arc.
Emotional stakes
A beloved NPC’s corpse is found at the crime scene, driving players to care.
Open investigation
Key locations like homes, cemetery, and funeral home can be tackled in any order.
Rich handouts
Crime reports, autopsy notes, and recovered item lists immerse the table.
Fingerprints from the dead. A friend who won’t stay buried. A city that doesn’t realize something is walking in its skin.
A case that starts at the grave
The scenario begins with a series of bizarre burglaries in Rochester tied to fingerprints that belong to people already deceased. When a beloved NPC’s recently buried corpse is found at a murder scene, the investigation becomes painfully personal.
From that moment, the investigators are driven to uncover how the impossible is happening and who is responsible for turning the dead into tools.
The scenario flow
Impossible Evidence
The investigators are drawn in by the impossible fingerprint match and the discovery of their dead friend’s body at a fresh crime scene.
The Trail of the Dead
Key locations like the Forestner home, police department, Riverside Cemetery, and Shakely Funeral Home open up for investigation.
The Funeral Director
Rodney Shakely’s involvement and the scope of his forbidden rites become clear as the investigators close in.
Resolution
The final confrontation can end the reanimation threat or let it seep into future sessions as a recurring horror.
Call of Cthulhu 7e
Modern-day Call of Cthulhu with support for procedural, forensic, and classic horror play.
Play-ready package
Scenario text, location write-ups, handouts, and tools for both one-shots and campaigns.
What keepers get
Full Keeper support
Scene notes, pacing guidance, and tools to keep the investigation personal and tense.
Tragic antagonists
Rodney Shakely and his reanimated assistants are more than monsters; they’re shaped by grief and obsession.
Handouts and evidence
Crime scene reports, autopsy notes, and evidence lists help you present clues in play.
Flexible structure
Use it as a gritty one-shot or expand into a longer arc with recurring villains.
Unique artifacts
Items like the Amulet of Tonatiuh and Ward of the Dead dust add flavorful mechanics.
Campaign hooks
Unresolved threads and surviving enemies can easily seed future stories.
Inside the book
Scenario Content
- Modern Rochester-set scenario
- Scene-by-scene Keeper breakdowns
- Branching investigative structure
- One-shot or campaign support
Characters
- Memorable NPCs and family ties
- Motivations and psychology notes
- Options for recurring villains
- Guidance for using a beloved NPC as the hook
Handouts & Maps
- Location notes for homes, cemetery, and funeral home
- Crime scene and autopsy documents
- Evidence and recovered item lists
- Table-ready materials to drop in front of players
Keeper Tools
- Pacing and escalation tips
- Advice on presenting moral dilemmas
- Fail-forward options for key clues
- Hooks for extending the story
Who this is for
- Keepers who want a modern undead story without defaulting to zombies.
- Groups that enjoy forensic puzzles and emotionally grounded horror.
- Tables that like investigations with modular locations and real choices.
- Players who care about NPCs and feel it when things go wrong.
Content note: This scenario contains themes of death, desecration, grief, reanimation, and violent crime. It is intended for mature players and Keepers who are comfortable with emotionally intense horror.
The dead are leaving fingerprints again.
Dead Man's Dreams gives you a complete modern Call of Cthulhu scenario built around impossible evidence, personal stakes, and a haunting investigation your table won’t forget.