Basic Information
The Cthulhu Mythos is a shared universe created by H.P. Lovecraft and used by many other writers. It forms the basis of the Call of Cthulhu RPG (as well as the Delta Green setting).
Tropes:
Common tropes of the Cthulhu Mythos include:
- Ancient Astronauts
- Apocalyptic Log
- Artifact Of Doom
- Cosmic Horror - That page also has a trope list that's appropriate to games set in Lovecraft Country
- Eldritch Abomination
- Half Human Hybrid
- How We Got Here
- I Have Many Names
- Loads And Loads Of Races
- Mythopoeia
- Starfish Aliens
- Sufficiently Advanced Aliens
- The Stars Are Right (Not mentioned on TV Tropes Wiki, but definitely a theme of the Mythos)
- Tome Of Eldritch Lore
- We Live In A Fishbowl
The Big Bads:
Great Old Ones, Outer Gods, Eldritch Abominations, Titans, whatever you choose to call them, these are the horrific things behind most of the cosmic nastiness…
- Azathoth
- Cthulhu
- Cthugha
- Father Dagon and Mother Hydra
- Glaaki
- Hastur
- Ithaqua
- Mormo
- Nyarlathotep - the messenger and soul of the big bads, the most human of these horrific things
- Shub-Niggurath
- Tsathoggua
- Y'golonac
- Yig
- Yog-Sothoth
That list is far from complete - the Mythos is packed full of ancient horrors and alien gods.
While human, Abdul Alhazred could certainly be seen as a big bad as well, because his Necronomicon has undermined the sanity of quite a few characters.
Some of the later writers - notably Lumley and Derleth - played up the role of the Elder Gods as a counter force to the Great Old Ones and Outer Gods. This changes the tone of the mythos substantially, removing some of the bleakness and futility that it originally entailed and creating the prospect of something other than tactical victories. This is not entirely popular with mythos purists - who can often be heard to grumble at the sight of investigators waving Elder Signs like vampire hunters with crucifixes, but it does make for a more gamable universe.
See Also
- Interpretatio Cthulhiana - an attempt to identify the entities of the Cthulhu Mythos with entities from traditional mythologies
Sources
Game and Story Use
- As Call of Cthulhu is one of the oldest and influential RPGs out there, it has had an enormous impact on gaming. Elements of the Cthulhu Mythos frequently seep into other settings, especially when Cosmic Horror elements are introduced.
