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Leliel
2011-12-09, 07:11 PM
Well, seeing as how I've talked about how I think Cosmic Horror Stories are better when there's a human face behind the madness, and that there should at least be a chance of humanity coming out not behind, I decided to work on one of my own.

What I actually plan on doing with this, though, is make it so that the Alien God From Beyond The Boundaries of Human Understanding (who I'm calling At'Enar) is very much a character...but only because he's quite capable of talking with his worshipers comprehensibly. More like an nWoD Inferno demon in that respect-it's mainly a mask to disguise how alien he really is, but it's a damn good mask, to the point where it's a legitimate question as to whether he really doesn't have that much in common with humans.

This does not make him nicer. Or rather, he is nice, but it's a Mayor of Sunnydale, Affably Evil kind of nice-the friendliness is genuine, the compassion is not. Goes with my general idea of having him be associated with light and butterflies-they look pretty, but get too close and you get blinded or a rather uncomfortable view of inscetoid mouthparts.

If you want an idea of how terrifying those can be, play The Breach (http://www.newgrounds.com/portal/view/542858). In fact, I'm mainly taking inspiration for At'Enar from that game. He just doesn't have the ability to instantly turn anyone he contacts into a cultist of his (he can, however, make it seem very appealing), and his cult is less homicidal (if only because they have to be).

For his part, I'm entertaining the idea that he views the races under his control with a sense of paternal love-by making them a part of himself, he is simply protecting them from the travails of a dark and hostile universe. Excellent if you want sympathetic antagonists, as I like mine to be in general.

So, apart from the variety of minions we see in The Breach, what sort of powers and rites do you think a falsely angelic Eldritch Abomination would grant? How about weaknesses?

Analytica
2011-12-10, 06:53 AM
Maybe it absorbs people? Its inside is a constantly churning maelstrom of what it's like to be me, or you, or the neighbours next door, because it absorbed our consciousnesses and merged its own with it when we were eaten or sacrificed. Effectively, it is DM:ing a game for itself using stolen personalities as NPCs, so it can appear highly human. The thing is, though - it _only_ has stolen voices. It can't frame thoughts comprehensible to humans unless a particular stolen (sacrificed?) person (or race, see Human Instrumentality Project) could have expressed it during its original life. That is, it has no "generic humanity" for itself, only wholes or bits and pieces from stolen people. As such, while it "understands" human concerns, this is not to say that the whole of it attaches any meaning to such, rather it can drape rags of individual human souls/consciousness around an avatar to try to interact with people so that it would seem to them that it shared their concepts of identity, meaning or concern...

If you go with this, anyone or anything could be sacrificed, and sacrifice themselves. They can then reappear at any point as weak or strong avatars of the being - it's holy to give yourself up to be a sock puppet for Cthulhu. It also makes you "immortal", as it can always choose to manifest as that avatar again even if it is destroyed. The end result may be to seek for all the world to be "preserved" inside this being, kind of like being taken to pieces and placed in the toy chest. As for powers; it can do anything it has absorbed. As for weaknesses - maybe you can poison it? Make someone secretly contain philosophical conundrums or thought traps that will affect even an alien mind, then have them sacrificed to inject these memes into the beast to weaken or disable it.

Mastikator
2011-12-10, 08:21 AM
Maybe it excretes parasites that infect people and take over their brain, but in a way that the infected victim doesn't notice it, it feels for the victim as though it's acting on its own accord, over time the parasite will add things to the brain and the body, granting it new abilities.
The abilities could be as follows:
Creation of new parasites.
Increased strength.
Improved memory and perception.
Night vision.
Skin hardening (natural armor)
Improved hand-eye coordination
Shorter life span
Reduced temperament

Edit-
If you could specify more what the Lovecraftian god is like we wouldn't be shooting in the dark trying to figure out what its follower's would be like.

The Witch-King
2011-12-10, 11:01 AM
So, apart from the variety of minions we see in The Breach, what sort of powers and rites do you think a falsely angelic Eldritch Abomination would grant? How about weaknesses?

Healing. Definitely healing. You go to Florida (or its equivalent) and heal old, rich people. First you go out into the crowd for a few freebies--lay some hands on some beggars and heal their lameness, blindness, whatever. You wait for the loud-mouthed skeptic that no one has been able to do anything for and you heal the hell out of him, very, very publicly.

Then, you set up shop--lay down a bunch of runes and mystic symbols on the floor, which you then cover with wall-to-wall carpeting. You light some candles, put these "abstract art" paintings on the walls and have this creepy chorus chant in what everyone assumes is Latin (if someone figures out it isn't Latin, you tell them its Enochian or Aramaic or something) and then invite old people in off the street to be healed and rejuvenated:

"Do you accept the angel Udhan into your life? Do you accept the presence of His Golden Wings into the core of your being? Do you surrender yourself to the Undying One in all things?"

"Yes!!"

"THEN--BE HEALED!!"

And bam! You've insinuated your tentacles into another willing sucker. And after you've turned him into a pod person and used him to try and convince his family and friends to join the cult too, you empty his bank account and move him permanently to the compound to do with as you please (sacrificed, devoured, brain sucked out, mindlessly put to work in a sweatshop to make goods for the cult to sell, or all of the above).

Leliel
2011-12-10, 11:17 AM
If you could specify more what the Lovecraftian god is like we wouldn't be shooting in the dark trying to figure out what its follower's would be like.

Part of a Conversation with Herbert Ryder, aka H-Ride, a mid-ranking member of the 25th Street Skulls, a gang specializing in grand theft auto

"Butterflies man. I'm scared of butterflies now.

"You can laugh, I don't mind. I'm scared of [BLEEP]ing butterflies, do you know how yellow that makes me feel? But...damn, man. After what happened to P'centage...man, I am not getting near another [BLEEP]mn monarch for as long as I live.

"Don't get me wrong, P'centage was an [BLEEP]hole. Don't think I ain't heard about what he forced those kids to do-the streets, yeah we know about Bloody Mary, the Face Boys, all that s[BLEEP]. But...God, I don't want...that...to happen to my own black ass.

"Yeah, we read the report. What, you don't think we get Internet down here in the slums? Gotta thank the Man for that, at least. We heard about the burns, how the police were investigating whatever laser or some [BLEEP] they think caused those burns. Thing is, I think it was a laser that killed him, but I'm sure it was no [BLEEP]mn pointer that caused it. No siree, I think it was whatever's behind those damn bugs.

"Look, look, hear me out. After the cops took P'centage, I went to the crime scene to get his bike. Yeah, I know, respect to the dead, but first, P'centage never had any of ours, and second, it's a nice bike. I didn't go through with it, after I saw that bait car-I mean, they've already put up a bit of their stuff, why not a camera-but, here's the thing; I saw that little plastic thing they used to marked where he fell-what, you thought it was an outline? Come on man, cops don't do that anymore, not even CSIs. Point is, you know what I saw on that thing?

"Butterflies. Two, big, sunshine-yellow butterflies. Except these weren't ordinary bugs, no-I think the smaller one was the size of my thumb. And their wings-the markings on them, they looked bad somehow. But that wasn't the creepy part-no, that was the larger bug just lazily flitting down to a dry stain, and drinking it. You know how some butterflies use mud as a pit stop? Well, that's what I saw this one doing with P'centage's blood. I didn't stay around long after that-and after I mentioned those bugs to Boss, he suddenly became a lot less angry I didn't steal the bike-he saw them too, I think.

"Thing is, you know Malik? The kid who was always being pushed around by P'centage? I saw him the other day-at a distance, I'll be fair, but he looked a lot less stressed then he has in a while. Wasn't twitching like he used to. But...what replaced it was almost as bad. He was shining-and I mean that literally, it was like he was literally glowing like a nightlight. And, just before he left, I saw he got a new tat on his arm.

"It looked a lot like the butterfly markings."

THEChanger
2011-12-10, 05:09 PM
I think Analysis' ideas are good here. I just played through The Breech, and I've got to say, that is some very creepy stuff. It's going to be difficult to play that in a game.
Firstly, presentation is everything. If you put on a spooky voice and go: "OOOOOHHHH!!! I AM EVIL AND INCOMPREHENSIBLE!!!!", then it's going to come off as forced and cliched. From what I've seen, the trick is to talk as if you are just listing how your day went. I don't know if you, or if anyone else watching this thread, keeps up with Doctor Who, but Season 5's 4th and 5th episodes contain a good example of this. The Weeping Angels commandeer a soldier's voice to communicate with the Doctor and his friends. And "Angel Bob" is just having a conversation...about how the Angels are going to kill them all.
Now, on the subject of more minions, I don't know what system you'd run this in, but I found a list of things in D&D 3.5's Monster Manual that you might be interested in.
Ankheg
Aranea
Carrion Crawler
Chaos Beast
Chuul
Bebilith(Demon)
Retriever(Demonic Construct)
Displacer Beast
Drider
Ettercap
Formians?
Howler?
Mohrg
Oytugh
Phase Spider
Rast
Remorhaz
Spider Eater
Stirge Swarm
Hellwasp Swarm
Umber Hulk
Aberrations are usually fun when dealing with Eldritch Abominations, and a great amount have insectoid qualities.

Cerlis
2011-12-10, 11:19 PM
mastikator gave me an idea i like.

Play off that idea of a parasite that gives someones abilities and Influences and nudges (like that Psi-spy in Complete scoundrel) people a certian way. Its not to change who they are as a follower. but just to breed.

The catch is that the creature isnt corporeal. I hovers in the aura of a person, getting them to influence and interract with people. since its part energy the only way it can spread is via intense spiritual connection. Such as using divine healing, or intense personal contact (Anything ranging from intimate sex, to a deep heartfelt handshake). The energy of the creature piggy backs, just a piece of it and grows.

The people who are carriers find their health greatly improved (as the thing gets strong so does the soul and life force of the creature its grafted onto). Once its gotten stronger there are 2 major effects

The creatures growth expands its hosts powers, when it is in combat, healing, or just growing emotional it glows with a bright light (like that butterfly thing you linked) This has a nice side effect of making hosts look holy and influencing people to trust them (this doesnt appear to be intended).

The second is anyone who views these people on the spiritual plane (through whatever means) Sees a large energy insect, with its legs literally imbedded into the person. Even from relatively close up the dragonfly wings and large bug eyes make the person look holy and the creature innocent. Closer inspection reveals the legs and part of its body literally embedded into the creatures soul (usually body, since most hosts are corporeal)

WHen both get even stronger, a halo appears over the hosts head, making them so much more angelic (maybe even the creatures wings). The thing is, it isnt a halo, its the gapping maw of the creature. Slightly more visible since its closer to the physical plane , in order to make sure it doesnt miss an ounce of pestilance, death or fear as they leave the people that their host heals.

All the better if this thing has no negative side effects, thus when more people find out about it, there are people who actually stay and become willing hosts.