Day 18ish: Deciphering the Necronomicon

I might have well as called the the month of Lovecraft -- I've obviously been in a bit of a kick lately. This post is in addition to my post explaining how to get into the Cthulhu Mythos. Now I'm going to give a glossary of terms you'll see repeated and may not understand if you haven't read a given story. This isn't in alphabetical order, it's in whatever order I deem necessary. It's also incomplete and should only be considered a sample of what you'll find in Lovecraft's work -- there are many more items in each category, I'm just touching upon some of the most popular.

Deities

Cthulhu sleeping no more...

These are aliens of extreme influence and power. At worst, they are embodiment of evil and will only ever be harmful to mankind. At best, they care nothing for the species due to being so far below their level of notice.

Cthulhu: A giant alien god trapped under the oceans of earth, this being is not a happy fellow. He emits dreams that fosters craziness in humanity and is worshiped by deranged cults and creatures alike. It is said that he will eventually rise from his prison and destroy everything humanity holds dear.

Azathoth: A powerful god that seems to be the center of chaos, floating in the center of the universe. Many other deities use their powers to keep him asleep, for his waking would bring the end of the universe.

Dagon: This is actually a fertility god from East Semitic Mesopotamian. In the mythos, it is a sea monster that is worshipped as a god, especially over in Innsmouth.

Yog-Sothoth: An Outer God that is present in all of time and space and has a mysterious connection with both magic and the Elder Things.

Nyarlathotep: Another malign deity who takes many forms. One of them is, interestingly, an Egyptian Pharoah. He spreads fear and unrest and is active in his journeys around the Earth, something most of the monstrous gods can say. He is the son of Azathoth and prefers to cause madness and mayham than actual death.

ITEMS

Books and mystical items are often used in rituals involving the gods.

Lovecraft was always vague when it came to the Necronomicon.

Necronomicon: Written by the "Mad Arab" Abdul Alhazred, this volume is the most famous occult works in the series and has branched out into other stories/media as well (Army of Darkness, anyone?). Alhazred apparently worshiped evil deities Yog-Sothoth and Cthulhu. As such, it is a work of nameless evil and contains spells and information that is deeply occult and in general forbidden. A copy can be found at Miskatonic University, though there are others and other translations.

There are many other forbidden books in the Mythos that I won't list here. They represent forbidden knowledge, which was a potent theme in Lovecraft's work. Some titles of these forbidden tomes include: The Book of Eibon, De Vermis Mysteriis, the Pnakotic Manuscripts, and many more. Some of these, like the Necronomicon, were created by Lovecraft. Others have been added by the authors who have come since.

The Silver Key: It can allow access to the Dreamlands and outside power, though doesn't always work as anticipated.

Elder Sign: A symbol that offers protection from certain beings and monsters, including the Deep Ones.

Monsters

The gods aren't the only evil things that torment mankind. They have created or spawned more mortal counterparts and are set alongside things that are already from the earth itself.

Deep One: Intelligent creatures that live in the ocean. They are human-shaped but have a fish/frog-like appearance. They serve Dagon and Cthulhu, and are known to often mate with humans and create cross-breeds.

Elder Things or Old Ones: Ancient, barrel-shaped creatures that came to Earth long ago and made it their home. The Ice Age did them in, mostly. Supposedly the first beings to have come to Earth, and may be responsible for the creation of mankind. Fought against the Star Spawn of Cthulhu, the Mi-go, the Great Race, and their own creations, the Shoggoth.

One interpretation of the disgusting Mi-go.

Mi-go: Sentient fungus/crustaceans that isn't very friendly. Very smart, but mostly very deadly to mankind. Live on Yuggoth, but travel to and from Earth with ease.

The Great Race of Yith: Super intelligent beings that are the only creatures to have mastered time travel. They do this by swapping minds with creatures from different eras. This wasn't exactly a willing change for the host, but it wasn't without some perks...

Shoggoth: Massive, amoeba-like creatures created by the Elder Things as work beasts. They eventually rebelled and may very well be the reason for the downfall of the Elder Things. Also could be the cause of humanity existing, but the mythos is a bit murky on that one.

Ithaqua: This is an Old One that was based on the myths of the Wendigo. Even supernatural creatures from Earth's folklore and tales crop up in the mythos. Vampires also make the cut.

LOCATIONS

There are many hidden locations on the Earth and even more spread throughout the stars. Add alternate dimensions to the mix, and you'll find plenty of hot-spots for horror.

Arkham, MA: Arkham, along with Innsmouth and Kingsport, are fictional towns in Massachusetts. Arkham is home to Miskatonic University, which holds a copy of the Necronomicon.

Mountains of Madness: The tallest mountains in the world, they are in Antarctica. They are also home to the ruins of the last land-based city of the Old Ones.

Party on the mountain... Those penguins are over 6ft tall, by the way.

The Dreamlands: A vast alternate dimension that can be entered via dreams. Contains locations such as the Enchanted Wood and the Plateau of Leng.

R'lyeh: A sunken city in the South Pacific that serves as Cthulhu's prison. "Ph'nglui mglw'nafh Cthulhu R'lyeh wgah'nagl fhtagn" means "In his house at R'lyeh, dead Cthulhu waits dreaming."

Yuggoth: Better known to us as Pluto, the Mi-Go have colonized the planet. Other monstrous beings come and go as well.

GROUPS

Some gods are more powerful than others. Many of them are related. They don't always see eye-to-eye stalk. And then there are those humans who are ready to forsake humanity for their preferred malign space-god...

The Great Old Ones: Powerful deities that are worshiped by human cults. Normally their sphere of influence is restricted to the planet they are from, but every now and then the stars align (with or without the help of cultists) and their power and touch Earth. Cthulhu is numbered among these beings.

Azathoth, the Outer God we'd rather kept right on sleeping.

Great Ones: Gods of the Dreamlands. Not as powerful as the Great Old Ones.

Outer Gods: Cosmic beings with no restrictions on their awesome power. Azathoth is an Outer God.

Elder Gods: Powerful forces opposed to the Great Old Ones and the Outer Gods.

Esoteric Order of Dagon: Humans and half-humans make up this cult that worships Dagon, Cthulhu, and the Deep Ones. Based out of Innsmouth, MA.

Brothers of the Yellow Sign: Humans who worship Hastur. Led, interestingly enough, by immortal humans.

Brotherhood of the Beast: Founded in Egypt, these guys are one of the several groups that worship Nyarlathotep.





That's all for now. Feel free to use Wikipedia to find which stories relate to each being or place, or, better yet, do some reading and find them on your own?

I love the games such as Eldritch Horror because it takes many of these elements and allows you to create a story with them. Not to mention they also do their homework in regards to artwork for the game -- Lovecraft was always a bit cagey with descriptions, so seeing artistic renditions of the monsters and gods is always interesting.

Day 11: Knowing Your Elder Gods (A Guide to Worshiping Cthulhu)

The Dread, Dead, Dreaming God Himself

Playing Eldritch Horror (mentioned on Day 1!), I've found myself wanting to re-read and hunt down some new Cthulhu Mythos. Many nerds are well aware of Elder Gods, Cthulhu, and his gang o' merry monsters. Not one "mundy" has a damn clue.

This is for you, not-particularly-nerdy-guy. I'm going to give a break down on what you need to become hip with your insanity-causing beings from outer space and beyond. Pretty soon you'll be saying, "Ph'nglui mglw'nafh Cthulhu R'lyeh wgah'nagl fhtagn," with all the other cool cultists--err, kids.


First, the crash course:

H.P. Lovecraft introduced the cosmic-octopus-thing known as Cthulhu in 1928 in his short story, "The Call of Cthulhu." From there, he built up a warped pantheon of twisted, madness dwelling/causing beings, ranging from Yog-Sothoth to Nyarlathotep. The have been many and they generally come from outside our dimension and are busy trying to get in, get back in, or wake up.

All of these gods are generally bad. Lovecraft didn't give a good vs evil split, though later authors have shifted things a bit. Cthulhu is especially bad for he drives folks insane while he's only dreaming -- if he were to wake up, the entire world would suffer.

These are horror stories, but not usually written with shock value. Instead, these are supposed to be the horrors at the edge of your mind, things that can only exist in dreams and, if fully witness, are sure to drive the viewer insane. Paranoia and delusions are the enemies, not machetes or chest-bursters. There are less omni-potent beings and monsters that serve the Great Old Ones, and there are even many weak-minded humans that fall under their sway as well.

Lovecraft wasn't a greedy guy, and he had no problem with friends of his using or adding to his work. The Cthulhu Mythos (Lovecraft Mythos, and probably more names) have many contributors, including contemporary writers such as Neil Gaiman. Many works include references to or were influence by the Mythos, including movies such as the Evil Dead series.

Alright, you've now got a rough knowledge of what's going on. Here's how to learn more and some tips or suggestions for branching out of the normal prescribed reading.

1. For the classics, I will strongly suggest you read, "The Call of Cthulhu," "At the Mountains of Madness," "The Shadow Over Innsmouth," and "The Dunwich Horror." These are all by Lovecraft and my personal favorites. There are plenty others to enjoy, but this is a crash course. I will give one word of warning -- the reading can be very, very dry. Approach this with interest but be prepared for a study sessions. Treat it as the characters generally do -- they're uncovering truths from the past and fearful portents of the future. Rarely do issues come to a head. The climax generally comes when the characters have simply had enough.

You learn about these guys at the Mountains of Madness.

2. Read some of the works by other authors. To keep this list short, I'll simply suggest looking for the writings of Brian Lumley, which include, "The Burrowers Beneath." Then jump to something from Neil Gaiman, such as, "A Study in Emerald," which combines the Mythos with Sherlock Holmes.

Difficult, but artfully done.

3. You've now got a solid background. You can delve into more reading, but I'll leave that up to you. My next suggestion is to find something more engaging. I suggest looking into board games such as Arkham Horror, a game with many, many rules, the similar-but-updated Eldritch Horror, or the video game The Call of Cthulhu: Dark Corners of the Earth. You can find it on X-Box or PC. It's a touch dated, but captured the terror behind the Mythos fairly well.

3a. Fallout 3 has a side-mission that references "The Dunwich Horror" heavily -- it can be found in the Dunwich building at the South-Western edge of the map, and even gets an extension in the Point Lookout expansion.

4. Now it is time to make some connections! I strongly suggest looking into http://lovecraftzine.com/, a website devoted to Cthulhu fans. I don't much read the fan-fiction (I'm a canon kind of guy), but there is a lot to love on this website and I appreciate the weekly gaming live-chats (even if I don't watch them particularly often).

5. Go back and read more Lovecraft. Find which Elder thing interests you the most and hunt down stories for it. It's a large list, I've simply given you a starting point. I've skipped many classics, such as "Dagon," and ignored non-Mythos stories all-together. I've personally enjoyed, "The Rats in the Walls," and "The Colour Out of Space."

Friday at the Movies: Zombie Style

Well, I am sick and tired. Literally, the medicine is making me sleepy. The illness is making me pale(r) and stumble around the house like a zombie, so I'm going to do a quick post about some of my favorite zombie movies!

Dawn of the Dead This is probably George A. Romero's best known zombie film. Being that Romero is considered a zombie icon, this is saying something. This film is actually a sequel to Night of the Living Dead, though there are no recurring characters. All you need to know is that the dead have started walking (and biting) and it is happening all over the US. Our heroes work for a TV station and manage to espace to a mall via helicopter. There they try to set up home base by getting rid of the zombies and defend themselves from other humans. It is a classic, though an my rating scale I give it a 7/10.
Shaun of the Dead This is probably the best zombie comedy I have ever seen. Our protagonist, Shaun, tries to find some focus in his life and relationships and is assisted by his immatue buddy, Ed. Oh, and then a zombie apocalypse happens. That's pretty much the plot of the movie, and it works. Shaun still tries to get his life together while fighting off the undead and the humor and action keeps the movie interesting right through the end. If you haven't seen this, you are seriously missing out. A 9/10 for me.
Zombieland This is another zombie comedy, but it is on here because it is A) funny, B) has a decent plot and C) features an all out zombie-tacular fight in an amusement park. Also, Woody Harrelson's character is obsessed with Twinkies, and has made it his goal to find some. It sounds a little strange, and it is, but it does go beyond just being a camp-fest. There are four main characters and they all have backgrounds and goals that keep the humor from overpowering the movie. It gets an 8/10 from me.
Re-Animator I'll be honest, this is mostly on here because it is based off of an H.P. Lovecraft story, and there are very few movies that do his work any kind of credit. A scientist, Herbert West, creates a "reagent" serum that can bring the dead back to life. Without spoiling the story too much, a lot of mad-scientist-y things occur, including reanimated cats, freaky disembodied heads (that attempt to get freaky), and zombie minions. These aren't the flesh eating kind of corpses, more the diabolical, get what they want kind. And I'll be honest... I'd rate it a 5/10... It's here for the Lovecraft, I swear!
28 Days Later This is my favorite zombie movie of all time. The zombies are a bit different -- they're products of a "Rage" virus and aren't the normal, rotting, graveyard variety, but they do bite (and spit blood, and run), which causes the infection to spread. This movie, more than most, really captures the atmosphere of the apocalypse. The main character, Jim, wakes up after being in a coma (28 days after the shit hit the fan). He finds the hospital and the surrounding areas deserted, though he eventually stumbled onto a hoard of infected in a church and things go down hill from there. From the main character to the supporting case to the antagonists introduced later, all the characters of the film are given sharp, defining details that help move the story from surviving the apocalypse to surviving each other, and it is done very, very well. This movie gets a 9/10 for me, though I didn't care for the sequel (mostly because I wanted Jim and his crew back -- that, and it kind of sucked).

I've seen "I Am Legend" on a few lists around the internet, and I have a problem with that. I'm all for some alternative zombies (see Re-Animator and 28 Days Later), but the creatures in the novella "I Am Legend" are out and out vampires. The creatures in the film show aversion to sunlight, but other than that were transformed into mindless zombie-like monsters, which really detracted from the point (and plot) of the novel.

I'm sure I'm missing plenty of films that could be on here, but I'll be honest -- I'm not that much of a zombie-film fan. Novels and games, sure, but movies always seem to get it wrong -- either too much action, too much comedy, or a completely inane plot. Or some horrible mix of the three.

I'd like to see some other thoughts, however -- I wouldn't mind giving a few more zombie titles a shot.

I'll see you back here Monday, assuming I didn't actually contract a zombie virus...