Cthulhu Mythos
Cthulhu Mythos is the label coined by the writer August Derleth for the shared world based upon the themes, characters, and story elements found in the works of H. P. Lovecraft, as well as his protegés and later writers influenced by him. Lovecraft's followers include writers such as Derleth, Robert Bloch, Clark Ashton Smith, Algernon Blackwood, Frank Belknap Long, and others.
Central to the mythos are the Great Old Ones, a fearsome assortment of deities led by the dreaded Cthulhu (though there are more powerful and monstrous beings in the Mythos than even he is), who lies in a state of hibernation in the lost and sunken city of R'lyeh. "When the stars are right," Cthulhu will awaken and wreak havoc upon the earth.
Great Old Ones
The Great Old Ones are vastly powerful and ancient creatures who are often worshiped as gods by insane human cultists; many of them are made of unearthly substances which is not like normal matter. They have limits to their influence, even if those "limits" include an entire planet. Those Great Old Ones who are based in other solar systems can only extend their influence to Earth when the star of the solar system is in the night sky, along with the help of cultists performing various rituals.
- Abhoth, The Unclean One, Source of Uncleanness
- Aphoom-Zhah, the Cold Flame, Lord of the Pole
- Atlach-Nacha, the Spider God
- Baoht Z'uqqa-Mogg, the Bringer of Pestilence
- Bokrug, the Great Water Lizard, the Doom of Sarnath
- Bugg-Shash, The Drowner
- Byatis, The Berkeley Toad, the Serpent-Bearded
- Chaugnar Faugn, Horror from the Hills, The Feeder
- Cthugha, the Living Flame, the Burning One
- Cthulhu, the Sleeping God, Master of R'lyeh, Kthulhut
- Cthylla, Secret Seed of Cthulhu
- Cyäegha
- Cynothoglys, The Mortician God
- Dagon
- Dweller in the Gulf, Eidolon of the Blind
- Eihort, the Pale Beast, God of the Labyrinth
- Ghatanothoa, The Usurper, God of the Volcano
- Ghizguth
- Ghroth,Whom Passeth in Darkness
- Glaaki, the Inhabitant of the Lake, Lord of Dead Dreams
- Gloon, the Corrupter of Flesh, Master of the Temple
- Gol-Goroth, God of the Black Stone
- Hastur, the Unspeakable, He Who is Not to be Named
- Hydra, Mother
- Hzioulquoigmnzhah
- Idh-Yaa
- Iod, The Shining Hunter
- Ithaqua, the Wind Walker, the Wendigo, God of the Cold White Silence
- Juk-Shabb, God of Yekub
- Lloigor (Great Old One), The Star-Treader
- L’rog’g
- M’Nagalah, The Great God Cancer
- Mnomquah
- Mordiggian, The Charnel God
- Nug and Yeb, The Twin Blasphemies
- Nyogtha, The Thing which Should Not Be, Haunter of the Red Abyss
- Oorn
- Othuum
- Othuyeg, the Doom-Walker
- Quachil Uttaus, Treader of the Dust
- Rhan-Tegoth, He of the Ivory Throne
- Rlim-Shaikorth, The White Worm
- Saa’itii, The Hogge
- Sfaticlip
- Shathak
- Shud’de M’ell
- Tsathoggua, the Sleeper of N'kai, the Toad-God, Zhothaqqua, Sadagowah
- Tulzscha, the Green Flame
- The Worm that Gnaws the Night, Doom of Shaggai
- Vorvadoss, Troubler of the Sands, Whom Waiteth in the Outer Dark
- Vulthoom, Gsarthotegga, the Sleeper of Ravermos
- Y'Golonac, The Defiler
- Yibb-Tstll, The Patient One, Watcher in the Glade
- Yig, Father of Serpents
- Ythogtha, the Thing in the Pit
- Zhar
- Zoth-Ommog
- Zushakon, Old Night
- Zvilpoggua, Ossadagowah, the Sky-Devil
- Zystulzhemgni, Matriarch of Swarms
Great Ones
The so-called "gods" of the Dreamlands, they are not nearly as powerful as the Great Old Ones, and not even as intelligent as humans. However, they are under the protection of the Outer Gods, especially Nyarlathotep.
- Hagarg Ryonis, the Lier-in-Wait
- Karakal
- Lobon
- Nath-Horthath
- Oukranos
- Tamash
- Zo-Kalar
Elder Gods
A group of beings who oppose the Outer Gods and Great Old Ones. Many people consider them to be un-Lovecraftian, since they bring a good/evil dichotomy to the cosmic indifference of Lovecraft's fiction. However, these beings are no more concerned with such human notions as "good" and "evil" than the things they oppose, and consider humans to be less than fleas.
- Bast, Goddess of cats, Pasht
- Hypnos, Lord of sleep
- Kthanid (according to some sources, an Outer God)
- N'tse-Kaambl (according to some sources, an Outer God), Whose Splendor Hath Shattered Worlds
- Nodens, the Hunter, Lord of the Great Abyss
- Ulthar
- Yad-Thaddag
Outer Gods
These beings have no limits to their influence, unlike the Great Old Ones, and are likely to embody cosmic principles. The Outer Gods are also known as the Other Gods.
- Azathoth, Him in the Gulf, the Daemon Sultan, Seething Nuclear Chaos
- Daoloth, the Render of the Veils
- Hydra, The, the Thousand-Faced Moon, Mormo
- Lesser Outer Gods
- Larvae of the Outer Gods
- The Nameless Mist / Magnum Innominandum
- Nyarlathotep, the Crawling Chaos
- Shub-Niggurath, the Black Goat of the Woods with a Thousand Young
- Ubbo-Sathla, the Unbegotten Source, the Demiurge
- Yog-Sothoth, the All-in-One, the Beyond One, Opener of the Way
Other supernatural beings
Some of these may in fact be Great Old Ones, Great Ones, Elder Gods, Outer Gods or Avatars; if so, please move them to the appropriate category.
- Basatan, Master of the Crabs
- Beast in the Pit
- Beast of Averoinge
- The Dunwich Horror, Son of Yog-Sothoth
- Fthaggua, Lord of K'tynga
- Kali
- Knygathin Zhaum
- K'thun (female) & Noth-Yidik (male)
- Mlandoth
- Pharol the Black
- Saboth the Elder, the Grinning Ghoul
- Shaurash-Ho
- Thing Hanging in the Void
- Xiurhn, Guardian of the Dark Jewel
- Yhoundeh, the Elk Goddess
Fictitious books in the Mythos
- The Book of Iod
- Caelano Fragments
- Cthaat Aquadingen, possibly "Things of the Water"
- Cultes des Goules, or "Cults of the Ghouls"
- De Vermiis Mysteriis, or "Mysteries of the Worm"
- Eltdown Shards
- G'harne Fragments
- The King in Yellow
- Liber Ivonis, or Book of Eibon
- Massa Di Requiem per Shuggay
- The Necronomicon; i.e., "An image of the customs of the dead"
- Kitab Al-Azif
- The Pnakotic Manuscripts or Pnakotic Fragments
- Ponape Scripture
- Revelations of Glaaki
- The R'lyeh Text
- Saracenic Rituals
- The Testament of Carnamagos
- Unaussprechlichen Kulten, or (roughly) "Nameless Cults"
- Zanthu Tablets
Non-human species of the Mythos
- Beings of Ib
- Byakhee
- Cats from Saturn
- Cats from Uranus
- Cthonians
- Colours out of Space
- Crawling Ones, The Worms that Walk
- Dark Young of Shub-Niggurath
- Deep Ones
- Dholes
- Dimensional Shamblers
- Elder Things / Old Ones
- Eryx, Natives of
- Fire Vampires
- Flying Polyps
- Formless Spawn
- Ghasts
- Ghouls
- Gnorri
- Great Race of Yith
- Gugs
- Gyaa-Yothn
- Hounds of Tindalos
- Hunting Horrors
- Insects from Shaggai
- Lamp-Eft
- Lloigor (a race)
- Men of Leng
- Mi-go / Fungi from Yuggoth
- Moon Beasts
- Nightgaunts
- Serpent People
- Servants of Glaaki
- Servitors of the Outer Gods
- Shantaks
- Shoggoth
- Spawn of Ubbo-Sathla
- Star-spawn of Cthulhu / Cthulhi
- Star Vampires
- Tcho-Tcho
- Voor
- Voormis
- Zoogs
Locations
- Aldebaran
- Arkham
- Brichester
- Celaeno
- Carcosa
- Cykranosh (an ancient name for the planet Saturn)
- The Dreamlands
- Dunwich
- Fomalhaut
- The Gulf of S'lghuo
- Hali
- Mt. Hatheg-Kla
- Hyperborea
- Ib
- Innsmouth
- Irem, City of Pillars (may be the historical lost city of Ubar)
- Kadath
- Kingsport
- Lemuria, a lost continent
- Lomar
- Miskatonic University
- Mu, a sunken continent
- The Nameless City
- Mt. N'granek
- N'kai
- Plateau of Leng
- Pnakotris
- Vale of Pnath
- R'lyeh
- Sarnath
- Shaggai
- The Plateau of Tsang
- Tunguska (Siberia)
- Ulthar
- Valusia
- Voormithadreth, Mt
- Yaanek / Yarak
- Mt. Yaddith-Gho
- Yoth
- Yuggoth
- Abyss of Yhe
- the Vaults of Zin
Cults
- Black Brotherhood
- Brotherhood of the Beast
- Brotherhood of the Black Pharaoh
- Brothers of the Yellow Sign
- Chesuncook Witch Coven
- Chorazos Cult
- Church of Starry Wisdom
- Cult of Bubastis
- Cult of the Bloody Tongue
- Esoteric Order of Dagon
External links
- The Official Cthulhu Mythos FAQ
- A time-line of the Cthulhu Mythos
- Cthuugle, the H.P. Lovecraft search engine
- The H.P. Lovecraft Archive
- The Lovecraft Library, online copies of many of Lovecraft's works, in HTML and PDF formats.
- Yog-Sothoth.com, a discussion site about the Call of Cthulhu role-playing game
- Shoggoth.net, a Cthulhu Mythos web log.
- User Friendly the Comic Strip (Cthulhu is an occasional visitor to this online comic.)
- The Cthulhu for President homepage
- The Hello Cthulhu comic
- Entry in the Jargon File: cthulhic
