CoC: fun quests for a beginner.

[Shinizak]

My group just went and got CoC (5th edition if it matters) and have just rolled up characters for a 1890's game. Still moving through the rules I've come up with several ideas for a story, one involving an evil haunted house, but I'm still not sold, any ideas?

[Meek]

By CoC I assume you mean Call of Cthulhu as I know of no other games with that acronym. For beginners I would go with some minor investigations that won't end in immediate tragedy. I know I got turned off CoC because my first GM had us going after cultists and losing sanity left and right and ending up plastered to the walls whenever we chased somebody into a sewer. The idea of a haunted house seems good, but tie it into a mystery of some kind. A murder or a disappearance, so the PCs aren't just "going to spooky place A" but also searching and really getting into the groove of basic investigating with a clear goal.

[Sir_Ophiuchus]

Themes to keep in mind in beginning Call of Cthulhu games:

1) Mystery
2) Investigation
3) Atmosphere
4) Mild to moderate fright and horror
5) Historical flavour

In the era you've mentioned, some ideas that come to mind (mostly centred around Victorian London, but easily moved to somewhere else) are:

1) PCs are asked to locate a highly-born lady who was incarcerated in an asylum some years ago and has since escaped. Avoidance of scandal is paramount, but as they progress they'll find this asylum may be harsher and more cruel even than they expected. (Read up on asylums of the Victorian era)

2) Rumours are floating around the worst parts of town about a dark figure with a supernatural ability to jump. Sources disagree as to whether he's a criminal, a madman, or a champion of the working classes, but they all agree that he's a threat to social stability. (Read up on Spring-Heeled Jack)

3) You've heard stories of mysterious disappearances and folks torn to shreds near (X), and you've finally been asked to investigate. Further investigation shows a pattern of very occasional but consistent disappearances stretching back more than twenty years. Why have they suddenly become more frequent? (When I did it: a werewolf transformation amulet that had recently fallen into weaker-willed hands. You, however, can make of it what you will.)

4) The PCs are approached by a Masonic-type order interested in pursuing knowledge of magic and spellcasting, who consider them likely members. Unfortunately, though many members are well-meaning fools, the order has been infiltrated by a cult of Nyarlathotep who are planning to sacrifice the lot of them at the next solstice.

5) A forbidding gentleman arrives from Rome and seeks out the characters as he's heard stories about their links to the supernatural. If they satisfy him as to their morality, he'll reveal that he's a member of the Inquisition sent by the Pope to investigate the claims of Hell-granted magic and request their aid. He has a great deal of information about a scattered group of dark sorcerers in the area, but no local knowledge or combat skills at all, which is why he needs the PCs. With sufficient justification, he can have someone consult the Vatican's Secret Library for him or commandeer Catholic church resources. (If playing in New England, remember Catholicism is in the minority here and looked upon with suspicion. When I ran this, the Inquisitor was a PC, but he works as an NPC patron just as well - better, because he's not as trustworthy then...)