cthulhu double feature: arts & lovecraft

Azoth elixir.  

Rumoured to be formulated from alchemy perfected by Paracelsius, this elixir gives a form of immortality at a horrific price.  The elixir's ingredients are said to include rotten Deep One flesh, powdered jade, flakes of gold and colloidal silver.

The drinker may, at the time of drinking, convert magic points into instant physical healing (on a point for point basis) or rejuvenation (losing a year of physical age) to a maximum of their POW score.  For each magic point converted, the drinker loses 1 temporary SAN.  For each dose of azoth that is drunk, the drinker loses 1 permanent SAN, this is a debilitating brew.

Long-term drinkers are usually incurably insane and old beyond their years with patches of new skin in odd places.  These anomalies are noticeable to anyone with medical skills or with a successful Spot Hidden roll.

The Martin-Tongedo Box

This artifact was found in 2012 in the legacy of a occult scholar.  A decoupage box of wood and paper mache, one foot long by six inches wide by three inches deep.  The outside is a sallow patchwork of manuscript.  Inside is jaundiced, scraped butter-smooth and bare.  Light seems to reflect from the inner surfaces.

Typed text, sketches and handwritten note jostle  in palimpsest.  A combination of cursive script, fading type and agitated scrawl draws the eye toward unsettling revelation.  Curved paper strips converge on circular bosses at corners.  Fragments of confessions, stage directions and philosophical discourse can be found on the outside of the box..

Studying the cover of this box increases Cthulhu Mythos by 1% and reveals the following passage which may feature in a certain play.

The ending of all hope is come.
Its leaden beat denying song.
The messenger of nothingness
who's nothing more and nothing less
than all that's pallid, wan and wrong.

two fists, two guns and cold steel

Robert E. Howard (1934)
Courtesy of Wikimedia Commons

Today is Robert E. Howard's birthday.  Another member of the Weird Tales triumvirate (along with Clark Ashton Smith and H.P. Lovecraft) he is at least acknowledged as an inspiration for D&D in Appendix N of the Dungeon Master's Guide and arguably as influential to the fantasy genre as J.R.R. Tolkein.

Howard has inspired numerous RPGs, including the Conan RPG by TSR (using the four-coloured table found in the Marvel RPG), Conan: The RPG by Mongoose (using d20 rules), GURPS: Conan and Savage World of Solomon Kane (using the Savage Worlds system).

A lot of words have been spilled about 'Two-Gun Bob', his writing and his suicide.  While Conan, Kull the Conqueror, Bran Mak Morn and Solomon Kane are what most readers of this blog will remember him for, he was also famous for Westerns, boxing stories and 'spicy' tales.  As part of Lovecraft's circle of writing correspondents, he also contributed to the Cthulhu Mythos, creating the Unaussprechlichen Kulten (or the Black Book) and pre-human serpent men (Children of the Night and Worms of the Earth).

Wikisource and Wikilivres has several stories for enjoyment.  If you prefer audiobooks, LibriVox has several works as does Huffduffer.  These sites use public domain laws to publish works which will vary by country.

to the sorceror of auburn

Clark Ashton Smith (1912)
courtesy of Wikimedia

Today is Clark Ashton Smith's birthday.   As one of the Weird Tales triumvirate (with H.P. Lovecraft and Robert E. Howard), he helped to lay the foundations of the modern sword & sorcery genre. Smith was an artistic polymath, turning his hand to poetry, prose, painting and sculpture during his life and started writing at the tender age of 11.

The three of them borrowed elements from each other, with Smith creating the toad-god Tsathoggua, Mordiggian the Great Ghoul and the wizard Eibon whose presences in Cthulhu mythos and elsewhere are well-known.

Eldritch Dark is a prime resource for fans of Smith, with hypertext versions of his writing, a Zothique d20 guide and active forum.  You can find some stories in audiobook form at Huffduffer (hat-tip to Jim Garrison for that).

There is some contention around copyright for Smith's works especially for his Averoigne, Hyperborea, Poseidonis, Xiccarph and Zothique cycles, though this hasn't stopped some settings drawing inspiration from his tales (e.g. D&D Known World/Mystara).  While he's not explicitly referred to in Appendix N, he is surely one of the unnamed inspirations for AD&D.

review: future lovecraft by innsmouth free press

Metric: Stars.  Why?  Because they're right.  Really, what else do you propose for an anthology of Lovecraftian short stories set in the future?
DISCLAIMER: Based on a review copy from Innsmouth Free Press.
Overall: 4 stars (greater than it's parts, some cracking stuff here)
Future Lovecraft runs the gamut of Lovecraft's genre and it's settings reflects the myriad lenses in which we see the future.  From Prisoner-esque dystopias to post-apocalyptics where humanity seek mutation, and alien worlds where nanotech runs riot, the settings support the essential bleakness of Lovecraft's vision.  Some stories and poems sing, others crawl from the foamy brine.  All of them convey the horrors of an entity-filled, uncaring universe.

Stories: 4 stars  (varied in scope and execution, all of them interesting.)
The stories are a mix.  The opening stories are eye-opening aperitifs and not your typical eldritch horror.  From the virtual insanity of Inky, Blinky, Pinky, Nyarlathotep to Tri-TV's channel-surfing antics and the kitchen-sink catharsis of In the Hall of the Yellow King, this triptych serves as a timely reminder you're not in New England anymore Toto.  What follows next is a diverse smorgasbord of horrific sci-fi with distinctly Mythos slant. Rubedo, an Alchemy of Madness is as potent as the morphia dulling Eliana's senses.  Harmony Amid The Stars puts you in the head of a microbiologist diving into madness on a long-distance voyage to Barnard's Star.  The Comet Called Ithaqua reveals what happens when ghouls take to the stars.  PostFlesh reveals the fate of shipwrecks on a nano-ravaged world.  Go, Go, Go Said The Byakhee is post-apocalyptic, mutating, time-travelling tragedy.  Venice Burning is a deliciously dark take on a broken reality.  Myristica fragrans details shadowy horrors on a space station, giving hints of LeGuin or Tanith Lee.  Concerning The Last Days of the Colony of New Roanoke provides an archaeological point of view on ancient catastrophe, relived by those who didn't learn.  The Kadath Angle returns to Innsmouth for a space before going beyond.  Deep Blue Dreams reveals what happens when Mythos horrors become designer drugs.  Other stories in this volume are just as good, the above have particular interest for me.

Poetry: 4 stars (powerful stuff, may not be everyone's cuppa).
Lovecraft was an exponent of poetry and it's apposite that this collection includes Do Not Imagine, a powerful piece from the perspective of the aliens.  The Old 44th considers history and the Hounds of Tindalos. This Song Is Not For You reveals the charm of the piping from Azathoth's court. Transmigration laments the inevitable fate of the cultist, A Welcome Sestina from Cruise Director Isabelle Molyneux reveals the Mythos take on the adage 'you are what you eat'. The Deep Ones echoes the subject, I can imagine this chanted by Polynesian natives.  Finally Big Bro rounds off the volume with visions of the Crawling Chaos.  Again, there are other poems, these ones were of especial interest to me.

Admiration for the inclusion of strands of poetry in an anthology aside, Silvia Moreno-Garcia and Paula R. Stiles are to be commended for picking complementary stories and poems in distinct themes.  The diversity of authors and settings is a delight for those jaded with dreary New England shores and dissections of Lovecraft's racism.  This anthology shows the bleak universe that HPL and his peers advocated finds roots in all soils.  Which is as it should be.  The cosmic horrors dwelling beyond our apprehension care little about such pettiness.  This is a quality anthology and worthy of your attention if you're a fan of this genre.

review: the red eye of azathoth

Metric: Brass spheres.  For reasons which will become apparent.  Not that this will help.  After all this is for Call of Cthulhu.  Survival is not a likely prospect.
DISCLAIMER: Review based on a PDF copy provided by Open Design.
Overall: 5 brass spheres (worth the wait and then some...)
A well-constructed Call of Cthulhu campaign is a joy to behold and this one is built to last.  Though the epic scale and lack of ready access to dynamite until the last scenario may discourage purists, the quality of this campaign shines through. The historic nature of the campaign makes it slightly different from the usual 1920's or modern-day cosmic horror.  With some truly awesome set-piece encounters and harrowing situations, Red Eye of Azathoth deserves a place in any discerning Keeper's collection. 

Content: 5 brass spheres (a cornucopia of cosmic horrors and likely heroes)
This is a five-part campaign of reincarnating souls in pursuit of an ancient Chinese sorceror intent on becoming master of the world (with a little help) by way of binding Azathoth.  If that doesn't sell you on how insane cultists are, you've not been paying attention.  Pre-generated characters are provided for each scenario - suggestions for other options are available but these are plenty of fun; the last scenario in particular will have your players chuckling if they're Western fans.
The first scenario introduces a Viking raid on Lindisfarne where the stars are right.  Splitting the party between Norse raiders and monks allows for intra-party roleplaying, investigation and gory violence in a tight scenario brimming with Norse zombie lore and Mythos horror against an apocalyptic backdrop where troubling visions may be the least of your worries...
The second scenario leaps to Kamakuran Honshu, where early samurai discover the secrets behind a quietly prosperous village.  Buddhist reincarnation beliefs mixed with distinctive Japanese monsters and the uniquely horrific nature of Mythos magic reveals a scenario replete with treacherous bad guys and stunning visuals set in snowy mountain passes. 
Then to Inquisition-era Valencia, where reincarnated Investigators await torture and worse.  Escaping the Inquisition dungeons will be the easy part.  The odds are stacked against the investigators here and players will need their wits about them to prevent a hideous ceremony.  If an enemy of their enemy can be trusted, will they be able to take advantage of such help?
The next step is Roanoke Island.  The arrival of more colonists may do more than strain relationships with the locals. Yet against this backdrop, a race against time between two former allies puts the newest incarnation of the Investigators between a rock and a hard place.  The roleplaying opportunities come thick and fast here.  The fate of the colony may be the least of your worries.
Finally in Arizona, there is another incarnation.  This has one of the best opening sequences I've seen in any scenario, let alone Call of Cthulhu.  The scenario is classic Western revenge piece.  Cannibalism features large here and using prior relationships with the townsfolk will make this one of the more memorable scenarios that players will experience.
The structure hangs together sufficiently well that events are not entirely dependent on precursors from previous scenarios but the influence of events may enable player agency or provide interesting complications.  The use of the Incarnum skill provides options for lore (including sorcery) making it a double-edged sword.  Sometimes it's possible to know a little too much.
Appendixes with player handouts, new monsters, new spells and other items of interest enable players and Keepers alike to get the best out of the scenario.  The handouts are good-quality and doubtless will inspire responses from players varying from grim chuckling at the Inquisition's handling of confession to wincing at reading some of the magician's manuscripts.

Art & Layout:5 brass spheres (gorgeously grim cover, helpfully organised, lots of fun).
The Malcolm McClinton cover shows berserk Vikings with orange eyes attacking Lindisfarne monks while Norse warriors look on in horror; conveying the mood of the first scenario and setting the tone for the other parts.  Interior art is a mixture of classic pieces.  Each scenario has it's own distinct design and this suits the product perfectly.  Maps and interior art are excellent and where possible keep the aesthetics of each scenario.  The layout and statblocks are helpfully organised with relevant appendices at the end of each scenario so you're not forced to search for long.
 
In conclusion, Red Eye delivers on it's promise.  It's been a long time coming but now it's here you can see why it's got it's Chaosium-licensed status.  Even if you played each scenario as a one-shot that's still five sessions of wonderful Cthulhu goodness.  The ability to roleplay and think laterally is essential in this scenario.  If your players are of the 'open door, kill monster, take treasure' attitude, this may not be the best option.  Yet those players may also relish the break in pace.  Diehard Cthulhu fans take note, this one is worth your attention.

cthulhu double feature: brown's plaid and macleish's heid

Brown's Plaid
A whisky brewed by ex-islander and Glasgow resident Douglas Immanuel Brown, according to an old family recipe.  The bottles are often left unheeded by most respecting bar staff to moulder quietly at the back, their plaid decorated labels (Brown's Distillery Est. 1899) stained with dark, oily residue that smells faintly of lye.   The story of Brown was quietly suppressed by the local church, tales of his still exploding in a blast that left bubbling pools and oily tar "...where once Brown distilt baurley-bree" can be found in the more discerning Scottish libraries as a warning to moonshiners everywhere.

The whisky itself is harsh stuff, pale amber in colour, readily condensing on the side of the glass and reeking of peat.  It's taste is ferociously sharp and warming.  Those drinking must make a CON x3% roll not to cough and be blinded by tears for a round.  Alcoholics (incipient or otherwise) and the mad are strangely unaffected by the brew. Brown himself was tainted by exposure to the lloigor and this whisky carries some of that as well as trace alkaloids associated with hemlock - a part of Brown's recipe.

Those drinking three measures (or more) of Brown's Plaid experience unpleasant dreams of flight/falling and the presence of something reptilian.  They will also wake up 1d3 magic points lighter (or 1 Wisdom damage) for the experience.  Downing a whole bottle (apart from the potential liver damage) results in drunken visions of swirling reptilian shapes and puts the drinker into telepathic contact with a dreaming lloigor - an experience costing 1d6+1/2 Sanity for that night. In addition, the hangover is itself a thing of horror.

Macleish's Heid
This tribal artifact is an overmodeled skull moulded in the likeness of a Ponape tribal ancestor.  The skull is covered in layers of baked sago and palm pith to flesh it out.  These layers are dyed with white pigment then decorated with curved lines of red paint.  Disks of sea shells, snail shells and braided human hair completes the likeness.  The ancestor has widely-spaced staring eyes, a pronounced overbite and narrow jaw. The skull itself has not been exposed for scrutiny.  Doing so would be considered sacriligeous by the tribe and would likely damage the layering and decoration without extreme skill.

Named for noted anthropologist Josiah Raphael Macleish who never returned from a journey to Innsmouth and was finally removed from the missing persons records 15 years later.  The 'heid' was stolen from the antiquities cabinet at Miskatonic University after donation by the grieving Macleish family of Edinburgh, Scotland after Josiah's disappearance.  Stories of the 'daisent heid' are whispered in certain taprooms frequented by Edinburgh students familiar with exotic diseases or anthropology.  The story goes bad luck followed the 'daisent heid' - property is vandalised, rooms burgled and at least one woman abducted.

There are no game benefits for owning Macleish's Heid.  Those familiar with the Mythos or Deep One hybrids may recognise certain common traits to the latter (an Int x5 roll to gain +1% Cthulhu Mythos, only one roll possible).  The misfortune of those owning the 'daisent heid' is caused by various attempts to retrieve it by private collectors or Deep One hybrids.  These groups maneouver about each other and the current owner of the 'heid'.  The artifact is worth a pretty penny but worth a lot more to certain Ponape families who can't offer much beyond being able to guard ancient secrets and keep Deep Ones from hassling the former owner.

cthulhu double feature: delapore's lantern show and the serpent oracle

Hubert Delapore's Travelling Carnival was an obscure collection of freakish curiosities and sinister folk that toured Europe from 1876 to 1922.  For the price of a penny, patrons could view numerous natural sports, be entertained by performers and view homunculi and hinkypunks believed to be aberrations of nature.  Yet for every three fakes, at least one exhibit was very real and to the knowledgeable scholar, a troubling expression of the Mythos many would just believe as another fake.  Delapore was a troubled fellow who combined the theatricality of carnival, a keen eye for a bargain and a passing knowledge of the Mythos.  His disappearance in Paris in 1921 while visiting a local cemetery surprised few of his employees.  His carnival fragmented soon afterward.  Exhibits were sold as curios in Montmartre while most employees fled Paris to various points of the globe.

Delapore's Lantern Show was an old-style Victorian lantern show which cast shadows on a screen for the delight of viewers.  In appearance it was a complex array of mirrors built on brass armatures surrounded by a yellowed vellum screen into which flowing shapes were etched and carved. Assembling the lantern show takes 30 minutes and casts shadows onto a white surface at least 9 feet 5 inches away.  Failure to keep this distance just creates a chaotic swirl of shadows and light.  While such diversions were typically limited at best (the flickering images would repeat themselves with minor variations in most shows without the help of marionettes), Delapore's show didn't need puppets, the shadows themselves changed without prompt due in part to the random movements of the mirrors.  Delapore attributed the lantern show's design to an Arab but nobody else appeared to know much more. 

Often these flickering shadows displayed scenes of a fantastical nature, slender robed and crowned figures move about, playing out an intricate courtly dance to fascinate viewers who entranced by the scene lose a Magic Point.  After half an hour's performance, the dance would change to portray the murder of one of the characters, then the dance would resume as though nothing had happened.  That night, a random member of the audience who view the murder scene inevitably died in a way hinted at by the portrayal. While the shadow-death only affected the sensitive (SAN 0/1), those making the connection between the portrayal and the following murder (an Idea roll) find it disturbing (SAN 1/1d4).  The deaths are usually by mundane means but sometimes an unlikely event will overtake someone.

The Serpent Oracle is a wizened homonculus, a shrunken (almost 3' tall) hybrid of human and serpent man with elongated face, scarlet eyes and scaled skin similar to that found in congenital ichthyosis though use of the Medicine skill will indicate that the Oracle is both genuine and not suffering from congenital ichthyosis.  Seeing the Oracle results in a SAN loss of 1/1d4.  The Oracle although wizened is kept in a half-filled tank of water to prevent hyperthermia and dehydration.  It whispers dreadful secrets to those close enough to listen to it but can only be heard if an ear is pressed to the glass.  These secrets are a mix of considerable deductive skill (the Oracle has an 80% chance of revealing an insight about someone on seeing them), nearly forty years life experience and Mythos-inspired understanding (40% skill) - if the Oracle has a name, it does not share it with it's audience.  The Oracle enjoys fine food and when allowed will seek out delicacies and wine to enjoy them - encouraging people to bring it fine food in return for a secret or two.

cthulhu sequel: the potter of oaxaca

Oaxaca 1991.

Agent Jorge was alone in the workshop.  He consulted the oil-stained paper carefully typewritten sometime in 1974 then took the thick black clay and began his work, remembering his schooldays and the clay rolling between his fingers, cold and hard, then warm and yielding. Then he recalled how the callow boy would tremble at his deeds and the road he'd taken.  A lifetime ago since JFK had spoken in Berlin.  Many lives had ended since that boy looked out of his eyes. 

Now they saw only the task at hand, spelled out in type on a greasy, yellowing page.

el cáliz de arcilla

Take the black mud, rich with life when Venus is ascendant. Grind into meal, anoint with el humores vitales. Shape el barro primigenio in the likeness of Her hair.

A moment's tremor in his hand, recalling unlucky Luisa in Monte Alban as he added the contents of the sample tubes. Stifling the acid sour vomit he felt the wet clay roll between his fingers until it was merely damp. A memory of his mother gutting fish in her kitchen forced him to turn his concentration to the instructions.

Mark the head with the Voorish sign then coil her hair into the Bearer of Mysteries.   The flesh shall be formed by the rib until it is fruitful with seed.

An ancient design - the Pueblo Indians made such pots before Oaxaca had become famous for barro negro. His thumbnail made four indentations, meticulous in their proportions before taking the other end and coiling it upon itself to form a cup. Taking a curved piece of gourd, he began to press it cross-wise against the sides of the coil, evenly shaping it into a curved rim. Agent Jorge noted with faint revulsion dark fluid seeped and pooled within the clay. His voice trembled as he spoke the invocation legible despite a smear of oil on the paper.

Su vientre es fructífera con la legión de sus crías.
guías K'awil mi mano
La cabra negro tiene hambre
guías K'awil mi ojo
Ia! Ia! Shub-Niggurath!!
Mira con bondad a mi sacrificio!

He poured the third sample tube into the chalice, swirling it with the black fluid pooling inside.  The copper smell was his own blood, blessed in Her name.  The fluid receded... then it was time to dry the pot before it could be finished - which would take two weeks, when the moon was dark again.

Shape the flesh, by blade, sand and round stone.  Paint the earth with guaco juice so forest shadows touch the night sky.  To call forth the night, polish the clay with a crescent of quartz.

As he did, his stomach growled and he smiled - the Black Goat wasn't the only thing that was hungry. To lose the pot now would be intolerable. The shaping would be meticulous but Agent Jorge was a patient man, when dealing with the Long Count, you could afford to be little else.

Let the kiln birth the mystery and when the moon is full again the chalice shall be ready for the devotee.

The Elder Gods did not tolerate errors of haste.  For all their terrible passion, they demanded respect and punished the weak. Jorge had the foul-smelling guaco juice, the stone, the blade, the sand.  All was ready and all he needed to do was to finish the job.

(in response to a query by seaofstarsrpg about the clay chalice)

cthulhu double feature: clay chalice and feast of the black goat

A couple of things for Chaosium's Call of Cthulhu.  Been getting some ideas around this genre and as a lurking fan of Delta Green, there may be more coming...


Clay Chalice
This appears as a simple chalice of fired grey clay, sometimes inscribed with glyphs dedicating the chalice to the bounty of an aspect of Shub-Niggurath.  When used as part of any spell invoking Shub-Niggurath, the caster regains 1 Magic Point expended.  More powerful versions of this simple item exist, with powers and risks defined by the Keeper and the chalice exists in many forms, from a simple spiral clay cup found in the back of a 1960s occultist bookshop to exquisite examples of barro negro chalices made outside Oaxaca in Mexico.

Feast of the Black Goat (Cost 1 Magic Point/1 SAN per SIZ point of matter affected.)
This dreadful incantation was discovered by cultists of Shub-Niggurath during an outbreak of the Black Death in Bohemia during 1380 and allowed the cultists to survive through ruinous winter famines.  The spell allows the caster to eat 1 SIZ of organic matter (dead or living) and treat it as nutritious food regardless of composition or condition.  This spell allows someone to eat rotting compost, poisonous fungi, even living flesh without adverse effect.  Inorganic poisons (e.g. arsenic, mercury) still affect the caster normally.  Additional SAN may be lost according to what is being eaten or how it was prepared at the Keeper's discretion.