Call of Cthulhu 7th Edition occupation
Artist
Artist is an occupation in Call of Cthulhu 7th Edition: Working painter, sculptor, or illustrator whose trained eye catches what other investigators walk straight past.
Last reviewed
Key facts
- Skills
- Art/Craft, History, Persuade, Psychology, Spot Hidden, Language, Credit Rating
- Credit Rating
- 9-50
Overview
The Artist earns a living making images, and that training shows up as an eye for detail rather than as money in the bank. Art/Craft starts at 5 percent and is always taken as a named specialty, so decide at creation whether you paint, sculpt, illustrate, or work in photography, because the choice determines what you can produce at the table. In play the Artist is the investigator who sketches the idol before it is confiscated, notices that two portraits in the same house share an impossible face, and gets invited past doors that would be shut on a reporter. Spot Hidden at base 25 percent and Psychology at base 10 percent are both on the occupation list, which means a single occupation covers the two rolls Keepers call for most often in a scene.
How it works
Occupation Skills: Art/Craft, History, Persuade, Psychology, Spot Hidden, Language, Credit Rating Credit Rating: 9-50% Skill Points: EDU × 2 + (POW or DEX) × 2 (spent only on the occupation skills listed above) Typical Equipment: Sketchbooks and charcoal, a portfolio that opens doors at galleries and private collections, studio space, patrons who commission work
Tips and playstyle
Best For: Investigators who want Spot Hidden and Psychology from one occupation, players who like leaving a documentary trail of evidence, characters who need social access to wealthy households. Playstyle: Push your named Art/Craft and Spot Hidden past 60 percent first, then use Persuade for entry, since Fast Talk is not on your list. The Credit Rating band of 9 to 50 is wide enough to play a struggling illustrator in a cold room or a fashionable portraitist with a waiting list, so pick a point in that range at creation and let it set your lifestyle. Character Concepts: Portrait painter with society commissions, sculptor working from anatomical studies, magazine illustrator, art forger, gallery painter obsessed with one recurring dream image.
Frequently asked questions
Which Art/Craft specialty should I take?
Pick one and name it, because Art/Craft is always tracked as a named specialty starting at 5 percent. Painting or Drawing lets you record things a camera may not capture, Photography overlaps with the Photographer occupation, and Forgery turns the same skill into a way into restricted archives.
Is the Artist viable if my group expects combat?
Not from the occupation list, which contains no combat skill at all. Spend Personal Interest points (INT × 2, usable on any skill) on Dodge, which starts at half your DEX, or on Firearms (Handgun) at base 20 percent if the campaign expects gunplay.
How does an Artist contribute to a Mythos investigation?
Through documentation and access. A sketch made at the scene survives when film does not, Spot Hidden at base 25 percent finds the detail that justifies going back, and Persuade plus a respectable Credit Rating gets you into private collections and homes that will not speak to police.