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Y'ha-nthlei

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TheMightyPaladin
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Y'ha-nthlei

Since we're based in New England I thought it might be interesting if we occasionally saw some of the local "curiosities"

Y'ha-nthlei
"Cyclopean and many-columned Y'ha-nthlei" is the only Deep One city named by Lovecraft. The name may have been inspired by the Lord Dunsany character "Yoharneth-Lahai", "the god of little dreams and fancies" who "sendeth little dreams out of PEGANA to please the people of Earth."
In "The Shadow Over Innsmouth", it is described as a great undersea metropolis below Devil's Reef just off the coast of Massachusetts, near the town of Innsmouth. Its exact age is not known, but one resident is said to have lived there for 80,000 years.
In Lovecraft's story, the U.S. government torpedoed Devil's Reef in 1928 as part of a raid on the town of Innsmouth.

Arkham is the home of Miskatonic University, which figures prominently in many of Lovecraft's works. The institution finances the expeditions in both At the Mountains of Madness (1936) and The Shadow Out of Time (1936). Walter Gilman, of "The Dreams in the Witch House" (1933), attends classes at the university. Other notable institutions in Arkham are the Arkham Historical Society and the Arkham Sanitarium. It is said in "Herbert West—Reanimator" that the town was devastated by a typhoid outbreak in 1905.

Lovecraft's Crowninshield House in The Thing on the Doorstep was modelled on the real Crowninshield-Bentley House in Salem, Massachusetts.
Arkham's main newspaper is the Arkham Advertiser, which has a circulation that reaches as far as Dunwich. In the 1880s, its newspaper is called the Arkham Gazette.
Arkham’s most notable characteristics are its gambrel roofs and the dark legends that have surrounded the city for centuries. The disappearance of children (presumably murdered in ritual sacrifices) at May Eve and other "bad doings" are accepted as a part of life for the poorer citizens of the city.
Location[edit]
The precise location of Arkham is unspecified, although it is probably near both Innsmouth and Dunwich. However, it may be surmised from Lovecraft's stories that it is some distance to the north of Boston, probably in Essex County, Massachusetts.[3]

Miskatonic University is a fictional university located in Arkham, a fictitious town in Essex County, Massachusetts. It is named after the Miskatonic River (also fictional). After first appearing in H. P. Lovecraft's 1922 story "Herbert West–Reanimator", the school appeared in numerous Cthulhu Mythos stories by Lovecraft and other writers. The story "The Dunwich Horror" implies that Miskatonic University is a highly prestigious university, on par with Harvard University, and that Harvard and Miskatonic are the two most popular schools for the children of the Massachusetts “Old Gentry”. The university also appears in role-playing games based on the mythos.

As I mentioned on another thread, I don't really know a lot about the Cthulhu Mythos but I have played with a GM who was way to into it. So Paladin is no stranger to horrible things with tentacles, and if he ever slept (which he doesn't) I'm sure they would whisper night terrors into his dreams.

Redlynne
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We may not get a Miskatonic

We may not get a Miskatonic University, but I'd consider a Mechatronic University to be much more likely ...


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I think I may have failed my

I think I may have failed my sanity check due to interacting with themightypaladin. Type +2 to concur

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Did you read the books,

Did you read the books, Brighellac? Never read the books.

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Mendicant wrote:
Mendicant wrote:

Did you read the books, Brighellac? Never read the books.

Because they'll drive you insane with sanity-blasting revelations?

"TRUST ME."

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In real Lovecraft there can

In real Lovecraft there can be no heroes, but I'd encourage the devs to try and fit his kind of ideas in anyway.

"TRUST ME."

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*Shrugs* It's something on

*Shrugs* It's something on the internet in the 21st century, not having a reference to Lovecraft would be considered odd :P

I will admit, Gluke is right that heroes aren't often found in Lovecraftian stuff. The general rule in Lovecraft is that winning isn't exactly possible. The best anyone can hope for in these circumstances would be to delay the inevitable for a little bit longer. This dichotomy might be different in a world where superpowers are known and typically available. A lovecraftian location, even if it's only as much as Croatoa was, or even just bits and pieces of it would benefit the setting rather well, I think, so I'm behind this.

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A little homage here and

A little homage here and there would not harm anyone, so sure, why not?

Redlynne
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ArticulateT wrote:
ArticulateT wrote:

The general rule in Lovecraft is that winning isn't exactly possible. The best anyone can hope for in these circumstances would be to delay the inevitable for a little bit longer.

Functionally, this is essentially an Endurance Challenge style of a No Win Scenario. The "victory condition" isn't a matter of actually "winning" but rather a matter of how long you can hold out. The bragging rights would be for how long you can endure the onslaught, which is just another way of saying "every super has their breaking point" in the context of City of Titans ... with the follow up question being, "where's yours?"

Mind you, this sort of thing is hardly all that different from a variety of Zombie Apocalypse scenarios. The Zombies will get you, eventually, simply by attrition and wearing you down ... but what matters is how long you can hold out for before they finally get you.

To be honest, this sort of thing sounds a lot more like a Portal Corporation alternate reality/dimension kind of thing than something you want to have just lying around lurking outside of Titan City (offshore somewhere?). Heck, this is essentially the storyline of Praetoria versus the Devouring Earth rewrapped, where the humans lived inside an island of safety in a world overrun by monsters. The monsters were going to win eventually, since Praetoria was simply the last stronghold of mankind, meaning it was just a matter of time before humanity got snuffed out, leaving Hamidon to reign supreme.

Oogedy-boogedy.


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I realise that it may not be

I realise that it may not be considered appropriate but some Lovecraft inspired content would be great :D

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Icthudhu, weak to electric

Icthudhu, weak to electric maces!

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I read some of Lovecraft's

I read some of Lovecraft's short stories. His stuff was pretty formulaic and the man himself was clearly a racist, in my opinion. I'm not saying I don't like chthulu as a monster, or migoes, or a colour-out-of-space, or "secrets man was not meant to know" but when you take on that mythos, some of that other real-world baggage comes with it to some extent.

R.S.O. of Phoenix Rising

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....the goal in Call of

....the goal in Call of Cthulhu wasn't staying alive (because death was inevitable)...it was seeing which pc could stay sane the longest. heh

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I do believe that superheroes

I do believe that superheroes change the equation drastically.
No matter how much he tried, our GM could never fill us with a sense of hopeless dread.
Mind you we weren't playing "Call of Cthulhu" but using it as source material in other games.
As a result we didn't have the inevitable loss of sanity.
Also because we were superheroes, we were able to win.
Our victories weren't permanent.
Cthulhu would be back one day,
but you could say the same thing about the Penguin

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Redlynne wrote:
Redlynne wrote:

ArticulateT wrote:
The general rule in Lovecraft is that winning isn't exactly possible. The best anyone can hope for in these circumstances would be to delay the inevitable for a little bit longer.
Functionally, this is essentially an Endurance Challenge style of a No Win Scenario. The "victory condition" isn't a matter of actually "winning" but rather a matter of how long you can hold out. The bragging rights would be for how long you can endure the onslaught, which is just another way of saying "every super has their breaking point" in the context of City of Titans ... with the follow up question being, "where's yours?"
Mind you, this sort of thing is hardly all that different from a variety of Zombie Apocalypse scenarios. The Zombies will get you, eventually, simply by attrition and wearing you down ... but what matters is how long you can hold out for before they finally get you.
To be honest, this sort of thing sounds a lot more like a Portal Corporation alternate reality/dimension kind of thing than something you want to have just lying around lurking outside of Titan City (offshore somewhere?). Heck, this is essentially the storyline of Praetoria versus the Devouring Earth rewrapped, where the humans lived inside an island of safety in a world overrun by monsters. The monsters were going to win eventually, since Praetoria was simply the last stronghold of mankind, meaning it was just a matter of time before humanity got snuffed out, leaving Hamidon to reign supreme.
Oogedy-boogedy.

I guess the difference between the two would be that for the most part, Humanity within a Lovecraft story is pretty much oblivious to the impending doom that encroaches on them, while with Praetoria or a Zombie Apocalypse, the threat was there from the very start and was almost always visible.

This difference kind of transforms the situation slightly. With the latter, humanity is aware of what has occurred, and has been for quite some time, or the threat itself has a somewhat 'realistic link' so that when it appears, our instincts would be ready to handle it. By the time we encounter Praetoria, it has already been pushed back by Devouring Earth and the counterpart characters had established a last stand. With Zombies, most interpretations are of altered humans, something that works on the same physical level as a human that is highly aggressive and eternally hungry. You'd likely get the same effect from a pissed-off, starving man, and react in the same way.

This dulls the 'terror', slightly. Sure, humanity is in the same situation, still on the verge of extinction, but when you know what your soon-to-be killer is, it makes the situation easier to handle. You now know what they can do and what they want, and until you run out of steam, you can prepare for that time frame.

Lovecraftian stories rely on the unknown to spread that idea of terror. The core of any lovecraft story or game is the fact that, whatever is out there, we cannot comprehend it. It's usually the 20th century, and while we don't have the same scientific grasp of what we do now, we know that a lot of what might be out there quite literally shouldn't be. Even if you manage to encounter this thing, and live long enough to tell the authorities, there's a really good chance they will never believe you.

Merely knowing the 'truth' is a crippling factor, not just mentally but also socially. Think of it like the After Ever After 2 song, in which Cinderella tells her prince how exactly she got to the ball first time round, and her stories of pumpkin carriages and dog coachmen seemed insane to the rational mind. Knowing this compounds the fear that you know what's coming, you know you can't stop it alone, and knowing that the world around you doesn't know, and will never believe you, making the situation is basically helpless.

Admittedly, a lot of Lovecraft's tales fall down in this kind of thing, since he's quite the descriptive writer, and most scary tabletop sessions of Call of Cthulhu restrict or rob the players of control, and manage to somehow get the players to forget that this is a game in which dying is commonplace (Paranoia could be considered Call of Cthulhu's antithesis, really).

Radiac wrote:

I read some of Lovecraft's short stories. His stuff was pretty formulaic and the man himself was clearly a racist, in my opinion. I'm not saying I don't like chthulu as a monster, or migoes, or a colour-out-of-space, or "secrets man was not meant to know" but when you take on that mythos, some of that other real-world baggage comes with it to some extent.

Oh, no doubt, Lovecraft was hideously racist (I won't repeat his cat's name). I suppose one thing about the mythos is that it's bizzare enough in a way to be interesting. Most horror things nowadays give titles to their monsters or settings with abstract constructs, common phrases or objects, and they are usually built around things we already understand (religion, politics, common myths and the like). Lovecraft's ideas were very much 'out there' by comparisson, and the names of a lot of his things were basically gibberish when said by themselves, which I think helped the internet grasp onto it and hold it up as something to treasure.

As a side note, the instances with Mot or even Ru'larru would probably be more akin to the lovecraftian stuff than Praetoria was.

I do a DnD Podcast, which can be listened to here.

Additionally, I write up my sessions of a Teen Heroes game here.

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I cannot say anything, but I

I cannot say anything, but I believe one of the Mogul's may have resolved at least part of this on their own already.

Technical Director

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In b4 Day of the Tentacle

In b4 Day of the Tentacle reference.


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Radiac wrote:
Radiac wrote:

I read some of Lovecraft's short stories. His stuff was pretty formulaic and the man himself was clearly a racist, in my opinion.

Oh, undoubtedly. Racist and xenophobic to an an extent that was extreme even for his own time.

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As far as I remember, the

As far as I remember, the storys he wrote were descriptions of his dreams. That makes me suspect his racism and xenophobia originated in his own fears of the unknown.

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I don't think lovecraft's

I don't think lovecraft's crazy racism has had a lot of impact on the popularity of his fiction.
Nor do I think that including tribute material would be seen as endorsing those views.
Lots of games, and mainstream horror movies have either done homage, to him or borrowed directly from him.
He's very popular.
I've never read his works myself.
Horror doesn't work for me in written form.
I read Dracula when I was a kid and it just wasn't as good as the movies.
I have gotten a big kick lately out of the many Cthulhu songs on Youtube
Especially the ones using tunes from Fiddler On The Roof
If Lovecraft is half the racist you're saying that should chap his dead hide good.

I mainly suggested him because of the setting of the game.

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I read one book and two short

I read one book and two short stories. I stopped at that.

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The three Laws of

The three Laws of Thermodynamics essentially boil down to:

You can't win.
You can't break even.
You can't get out of the game.

Sounds kinda Lovecraftian (for SCIENCE!!) if you ask me ...


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Redlynne wrote:
Redlynne wrote:

The three Laws of Thermodynamics essentially boil down to:
You can't win.
You can't break even.
You can't get out of the game.
Sounds kinda Lovecraftian (for SCIENCE!!) if you ask me ...

Pretty much, yeah.

I do a DnD Podcast, which can be listened to here.

Additionally, I write up my sessions of a Teen Heroes game here.

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Lutan wrote:
Lutan wrote:

As far as I remember, the storys he wrote were descriptions of his dreams. That makes me suspect his racism and xenophobia originated in his own fears of the unknown.

There is a connection there, most of his fearful use of foreign cultures such as Native American, eskimos and Pacific Islanders is just from a quasi-Victorian era ignorance of them which his fiction thrived on. But for the most part, you cna trace Lovecraft's racism as exploding after his struggle to make a living as an educated man in New York, while many immigrants and descendants of immigrants around him found work much more easily. He fixated on that fact and, combined with his superior regard for the culture of his own background, that experience embittered him for years.
It is slightly reassuring, I think, that you can actually identify how and why he became racist, despite his vast intellect. It's also not 100% clear in what cases he was serious about such views or he was making an early example of deliberately non-PC humour. But while a brilliant writer, this guy was seriously screwed up.

"TRUST ME."

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Doctor Tyche wrote:
Doctor Tyche wrote:

I cannot say anything, but I believe one of the Mogul's may have resolved at least part of this on their own already.

Sorry, I don't get what you mean?

"TRUST ME."

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Gluke wrote:
Gluke wrote:

Doctor Tyche wrote:
I cannot say anything, but I believe one of the Mogul's may have resolved at least part of this on their own already.

Sorry, I don't get what you mean?

I suspect this indicates that one of the mogul backers has submitted a design for his building, that is somewhat related to Lovecrafts C'thulu mythos.

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C'thulu? Pfft - Aquaman beats

C'thulu? Pfft - Aquaman beats him up on a yearly basis. ha ha

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Brighellac wrote:
Brighellac wrote:

I read one book and two short stories. I stopped at that.

I watched the anime. That alone cost me plenty of SAN.

Has anyone seen my mind? It was right here...