#professor carcosa

[transman-badass]

WIP INTRODUCTION - THROUGH THE YELLOW WINDOW

Through the Yellow Window

Pharaoh Syndicate Investigations Book ?

Queer, Diverse Cthulhu Mythos

Tropes: Prohibition mafias, trans and gay antihero protagonist, portal horror, found family, secret identities, brainwashing, everyone is queer, bizarre eldritch royal courts, eldritch prince-spawn, masks of all kinds, twist ending, and more

1932

Lazarus Core is dead. The Harbinger of the Pharaoh Syndicate is all that's left. Like a dog, he obeys the commands of his master, no matter how demeaning, cruel or gruesome they may be. The people of Arkham whisper of him, their voices tight with horror. If only they knew how deep the horror went. How deep the secrets go. Sent to investigate a suspicious incident at Miskatonic University's Orne Library, the Harbinger finds the worst thing he could have imagined waiting for him. Not a person, not an item, but a sign, the Yellow Sign, painted on a wall. And it’s too late, even destroying it, it’s too late.

It all happens so fast, a dreadful nightmare. Stolen away to Carcosa, encountering a mysterious woman, trying to save her from a stranger, and failing. Returned to Earth by the masked Duke of the Yellow Court, the Harbinger is told by his master that Carcosa will take him back, again and again, until he’s lost to it forever. It’s a fate the Harbinger would do anything to avoid. But it’s a different problem that consumes him when he learns the identity of the woman he met: his childhood friend, Amie DuPont. And the Harbinger will do anything for his friends.

Weaving in and out of Carcosa both sleeping and awake, the Harbinger dodges the Duke and his allies in a desperate attempt to reunite with and rescue Amie. But the trouble isn’t just otherworldly. Several Professors of Miskatonic University, led by head librarian Henry Armitage and his son William, blame Amie’s disappearance on the Pharaoh Syndicate, and are forming a resistance against the criminals that control Arkham. They have no idea what they’re truly tangling with, and just like Amie, the Harbinger may not be able to help them even if they wanted it.

He may not be able to help himself, either. With every defiant action he takes, the Court grows more and more interested in his existence. The Duke becomes curious. A stranger in yellow robes pursues him, through Carcosa and reality. The Harbinger will do anything for his friends, but when he comes face to face with the past he’s tried so hard to escape, what will he be able to do for himself?

Characters [wip] Shorts [wip] Vibes [wi] Playlists [wip]

Like this post to be added to the tag list

@slenders1ckn3ss @jacquesfindswritingandadvice @redacted-metallum @actualblanketgremlin @higgs-space @phantomnations @mushabumi @assistantdirector--janson @aldhidbah @sabtael @yourheartonfireblog @jade-island-lives @arsenwormwood @cecuesta @darkhorse-javert @comicgoblinart @lizadomuch @minutiaewriter @angelsofprey @izzyspussy @passthebeat-blog-blog @dragonedged-if @andromedaexists @cyanide-latte @lillis-writes @suckerpunchfemale @late-to-the-fandom @writeblrsupport @wip-nook @eldritch-flower

[averyangrytissuebox]

Out of all the campaigns I have played The Dunwich Legacy the most in both two player, four player moshpit and true solo as Joe Diamond so I probably have more to say on each scenario than other campaigns. With all that said and done; let's get to it already, the Essex County Express waits for no-one.

The Dunwich Legacy: Good but with growing pains

Set after the story Dunwich Horror, Dunwich Legacy sees you being tasked by Dr. Armitage to find his colleagues nwho have disappeared as he fears for the worst. Finding these professors draws you into a race against time to stop the cultists who want to awake Yog Sothoth. This campaign has some phenomenal scenarios but also some pretty bad ones, not top 3 worst but fairly miserable. When playing Dunwich, one of the things that will come up a lot is deck management. Lots of cards interact with your deck by forcing you to discard cards and some just kill you when you run out of cards like Beyond the Veil and other things.

When it's good in dunwich, it's really good with Essex County Express being a true standout. In this scenario, the location are carts on this train as it gets torn apart by rip in reality. All you have to do is run through the train and jumpstart the engine because time is against you. The five agendas are short and discard the furthest back train carts when they happen so the tension is high and only enhanced by ancient evils being in the deck (A rare good use of it too). The House Always Wins is also a fun scenario with a unique twist where enemies are nonhostile in the first act until the fighting starts so you can gamble in the casino as enemies slowly pile up and turn into a mosh pit by the end.

Dunwich horror was the first campaign created and you can tell because some scenarios have growing pains. Every time Essex County calls to me, I get reminded of Miskatonic Museum and Undimensioned and Unseen which have similar issues, immortal creatures. In Miskatonic Museum, there is only 1 enemy, the Hunting little shit horror which cannot die. When you kill it, it goes back into the shadows of the museum to return stronger which sounds fine until you realise that at a certain point, you just can't kill it at all because the numbers are too high. The scenario isn't that interesting outside of this gimmick. At least in this scenario you get some sweet loot in the form of the necronomicon which is always worth taking. Undimensioned and Unseen is worse because the aim of this scenario is to kill as many rampaging brood of yog sothoth as possible who are immune to damage except by an esoteric formula. Playing this scenario requires a lot of housekeeping too because these broods moving randomly every turn.

Dunwich Legacy's focus on discarding the deck as a threat means investigators who draw a lot like Winnifred or Patrice are poor fits for the campaign. It is also a low XP campaign where you end the campaign at about 20xp so investigators who need minimal XP is recommended (Sorry Amina)

Overall, despite my many complaints, I do love Dunwich Legacy as a campaign. When its good, it's phenomenal and it is simple enough for new players with a nice difficulty curve. I've heard that return to Dunwich Legacy solves most of its issues but it is out of print. Ranking wise, I will put it above Night of the Zealot simply because there is more of it and a more consistent quality than Night of the Zealot having 1 stand out.

Other reviews in the series:

Path to Carcosa: The perfection of the base formula

Night of the Zealot: Let's start at the beginning. It is a very good place to start

[see-arcane]

Me while reading it "I need to read King In Yellow! I want to see scenes of this illustrated!"

Me now: "I need to read more fic about Jonathan and Mina's love 🙃🙃🙃 Just that or while they're fighting more bad guys and monsters"

But I still want the first part too lol

The King in Yellow short stories can be read here

Ambrose Bierce's (earlier!) short story, "An Inhabitant of Carcosa," can be read here

Aaand my personal favorite short story of Algernon Blackwood's, from which [SPOILER CHARACTER] takes a jab at [LOVECRAFTIAN SPOILER CHARACTER] for being unoriginal in his secret machinations and inflicting otherworldly Knowledge That Seeds Madness, is "The Man Who Found Out," available here*

*(Pour one out for Professor Mark Ebor, my most beloved and underrated nice old man blorbo)

As to Jonathan and Mina being loving and lovingly kicking evil's ass, you will just have to wait for @mayhemchicken-artblog's comic c:

[ms-cellanies]

The University of Florida has one of the best veterinary schools in the country. I say this because several years ago I got to become friends with one of their Vet professors, Dr. Julie Levy. As well as being a teacher she also founded Operation Catnip which held clinics to spay/neuter feral cats.

@russalex @angreav @iamthebadwolf85  @catedevalois @maneth985   @ogtumble @amatasera @cricketcat9 @booksandcatslover @fuckdumblr  @ladyoftheteaandblood @sirrah22 @stripedsilverfeline @larouau12 @ughseriously @usearki @ladytuarach @glendathegoodone @lost-carcosa @aregrettablehullabaloo @micaleann @toasty-hancock @hellcatblues  @middleagedandoutoftouch @sabbykatt3 @cursethedarkness @gretchenk0720  @aliceliddellsmirror @inkededucatednnerdy @notpedeka @photoboybg69  @contemplatingoutlander @nildespirandum @izhunny @ladytigrane @wolfsmom1 @phoenix-maat @writernotwaiting  @glitterypeanutmugnickel  @captain-krazy @bitchycatwizard @paulfe  @mishlady @dorcascristyforever @beerboy100 @ultimatenutshackfangirl  @lokilickedme @bakufuhakutaku  @a-sundry-bag @prettyhatemachine01 @texmexdarling @oshea52  @posttexasstressdisorder  @evieplease @queen-of-cats @catchester  @jimbr549  @ladygreytea76 @azusalover​ 

[disquetlibrary]

A new episode of the disquiet library podcast has been uploaded.

A transcript of the story has been included below the break for those who do not wish to listen but prefer to read.

Good evening friends enemies and unacquainted strangers. I Welcome you to the Disquiet Library. I am the curator and these listless halls house many stories and artworks.

This evening I bring you a story and flier from the collections. Static copies of this evenings artwork have been linked in the description box or description card wherever you found our audio recordings. The flier has no objectionable material however the story depicts death, drug abuse, hallucinations, and immolation so if any of those would cause undue mental strain.please feel free to skip this story and peruse the other works the library has to offer. But with that let's begin.

Dr. Crane Grayham stood at the front of the lecture hall. Elegant curving ribs of bone meeting up overhead to form the vast hall encompassing the lecture stage as well as the few hundred vacant faces of students listening to their lecture.

"Carcosa the sunken city. A marvelous place where treasures and art secrets of the universe existed if only one could find Carcosa. It was a powerful legend that influenced many cultures throughout history." Crane handed a photo printed on stiff translucent cartilage to the projection beast. It's bio-luminescent organs displayed the image of cave pictographs and temple murals in a sickly blue-green glow across the back wall of the lecture hall. The pictures and murals depicted variations of an underground city of shining domes illuminated by two suns. The surface dwellers were depicted as setting up excavations and searching caves to approach Carcosa.

"Many cultures told the story and believed it to be a real place searching for it in the shifting sands." Crane handed the projection beast another card of cartilage. And watched the image shift to ruins of a monastery. "Some people interpreted Carcosa not as a physical location but more as a state of being, and that to find Carcosa was to unlock the truths of the universe within one's self." Crane gestured with their long bone pointer. Towards the crumbling murals that showed a shining city being embedded in the body of a thinking person.

"Modern research has determined that the legend of Carcosa comes from an ancient myth spread by verbal tradition through trade routes and nomadic peoples. We now Know Carcosa to be a lie, but we can still see that even just the people's belief is enough to lend it some substance and have real impacts on the world. The impacts of this are important to understand, but i have run over time enough already and i can pick up next session." Crane tapped on the projection beast which happily spit back up the photos and started hopping off to its den at the side of the podium. The great basins of fireworms above were uncovered from Crane tugging sharply on a signal nerve. Soon the vast tiered hall was illuminated with brilliant red-orange light. "And remember your essays are due this evening. Please get them to my office before I leave today." There was an audible sigh of discomfort from several students as all packed and made ready to go. Crane walked over to the lectern and rested their hand on its cold smooth crown while they took a swig from their water flask. And started packing away the photo slides from the lecture.

"Are you professor Grayham? Have you approved this?" Crane slowly turned around to address the voice. "That is I" The figure was not one of their students. Sunken and hollow Grey skin and a frame so skeletal that it seemed as though the person was held upright by the force of their worn suit binding them together. The figure was holding out a rolled poster. Crane could feel the intense gaze of the figure as they unrolled the soft black vellum rectangle. Crane stole a glance at the figure and could have sworn that the figures eyes were black flames tipped with gold threatening to burn away the figures Grey skin. But in another glance the figure merely had very dark eyes that stared intently at Crane urging Crane to address the poster. The poster was calling for performers for a play with the tagline "Transcend your life become part of the magic." Crane would have scoffed and thrust it back to the figure but their intense unblinking gaze bade crane to take a closer look at the play. The edges of the paper were decorated with elegant gold and red fillagries. There was a strange jackal mask whose eyes burned with the same black flames rimmed with gold. But most curious and concerning of it all was that interested parties were to contact a Professor Crane C. Grayham for auditions. "No this is most certainly not me. It must be someone trying to use my name to drum up hubbub as they know that this is exactly the type of thing i would not endorse.thank you for bringing g this up I will look into it and put a stop to it." Crane made to roll up the poster and tuck it away before they felt a bony clamping hand curl around their arm. The figure gripped onto them with a vicious ferocity as though crane were the last life line tossed to a drowning man. The figure drew crane back around such that Crane had to face the discomfort of looking at the mangled figure. The figures voice resembled Crane's own if crane was trying to speak through a filling throat of blood. "Do not put on the play. You will not win. The only way to win is to stop now, walk away. Do not give it power." As crane subconsciously leaned in and tried to look anywhere but the figures intense unwavering gaze. They noticed the strange features of the figure the jagged cut in the lip right where crane would get theirs after a a few dry weeks. The one tooth that was smaller and off kilter from the others just as crane had in their own mouth. And even the faded blue pocket square that resembled cranes own albeit unraveling with hols around the familiar embroidered initials. The figure choked on their words with blood pouring out of their open mouth and between their teeth. Soon the figure was melting away into more and more blood that was puddling on the floor and seeping into Crane's sleeve. The last remaining portion was the gripping clutching hand whose touch lingered in the mind long after the hand itself liquefied and dripped into the fabric of Cranes coat. Crane stumbled back with their one clean arm desperately propping them up against the enamel of the lectern. Crane stared in stunned silence as the blood dripped off of their sleeve. But before they could get their wits back and call for help. Both their sleeve and the puddle on the floor slowly caught fire with the same black flames tipped with gold as had been in the poster. Brilliant shadows danced around the flames and soon like a horrifying candle of blood and black flame the figure was all gone leaving no trace of their existence beyond the searing tickling pain on cranes arm and the lingering intensity of an emphatic desperate grip. The moments of desperate hollow silence stretched in for an eternity before crane collapsed behind the lectern. Their legs no longer holding them up on the smooth stone floor. When crane was able to move again they fumbled in their coat pocket for a small handful of bioluminiscent blue capsules of glowing liquid that they desperately and shakily swallowed with a swig from their water flask.

Crane leaned heavily on The door to their office. Letting it fly open unexpectedly as they stumbled into the room and collapsed into a large black leather chair behind their desk. The door scurried back into place with some disgruntled chirping as the beastie settled back into its usual grooves and crane made some noncommittal exhausted grunts in response.

After a little bit of sitting slumped in their seat simply letting the large leather chair prop them up off the floor not deigning to move and just trying to get the world to stop. They turned toward the desk by shuffling their feet in an attempt to use as little energy as possible. The stacks of letters and homework on the desk seemed positively insurmountable from their perspective slumped in the chair with an uncomfortable crick in their neck. With great protest and much swearing they heaved themself upright Into their chair. And gazed at the piles of work. Their hands quivered from the effort. Slowly they grabbed an essay from the top of their grading stack and started to read: hunched over the document like a starving man protects his meals, crane read. Every once in a while Crane would make a note, with their pen. A hasty shaky scrawl mentioning the paper's lack of supporting evidence or awkward phrasing. As the tallow candles burned low and the stack of graded but unsatisfactory papers grew. Crane's tremors grew more severe. At times they would shake their entire arm with violent spasms. Crane's heart pounded in their ears. An incessant pounding that pulsed with the haziness and flickers of the light. At some point their head dropped to the desk blowing out the candle, and leaving them in the darkness where the only sound was the subtle scuttling and groaning of the room. Their body took no breaths of sleep and they did not stir again.

That is all I have for now so thank you shadowy wanderers of the night and I hope you have a wonderful evening.

[greendaleshistorian]

Theory: Mary Wardwell + Pan

Heartbreaking thought to piggyback off of my "Mary Wardwell + Carcosa" post and my "Mary Wardwell + turned to stone" post...

Since Mary writes "dear lord please deliver us from Carcosa" on the board and her classroom was clearly visited by the Pagans, I would hate to say it but is it possible... and highly probable.. that the Carcosa board came from Pan himself personally terrorizing Mary?

His alias is Professor Carcosa, so if Mary were to have encountered the Pagans at the school, she may have picked up, directly, at Pan's alias. It's not stated directly that she's met Professor Carcosa/Pan in person, and the only Pagan she had a chance of actually meeting was Nagaina.

But as awful as it is... The fact she cleared her whole board and had time to do so, wrote "Carcosa" specifically of all the Gothic literature references, and that the vines have an odd growth pattern over her body as vines may not creep up a body without magical influence... I think she encountered Pan and had an actual interaction.

Even worse. Perhaps it wasn't Mary that was an example to the students (being turned to stone in front of them) but the one stray stone student in the class which was a warning/deterrent to her leaving the room to run.

She also looks like she's trying to put distance between herself and a physical presence. I wouldn't put it by the Pagans by taunt her, honestly. There was the appraising look Pan gave "Mary" in the tent when Robin!Sabrina brought her in as sacrifice. And Circe certainly enjoyed taunting her in the tent.

Anyways. I think that it was Pan and Nagaina terrorizing Mary in her classroom which prompted the Carcosa board.

I don't like the idea that this is true.

But I also think it very much is.

[70sachillean]

I was watching riverdale and just noticed that carcosa’s carnival made an appearance

For my riverdale fans carcosa ‘s carnival is the main antagonist in caos part 3

[lala-in-the-impala]

The allusions in CAOS are so cool!! Carcosa, as in Professor Carcosa is a literary reference a (fictional) city in Ambrose Bierce's short story "An Inhabitant of Carcosa"!!!

[marywardvvell]

There's a new reddit post from the theory guy

Yeah I’ve seen the transcript for Professor Carcosa’s audition tape before. Here’s the link to the reddit post if anyone wants so see, it looks like he’s someone at a carnival?

[blacknerdproblems]

As an associate professor of English at Denison University, Diana Adesola Mafe makes her stride in the resistance where she teaches courses in postcolonial, gender, and Black studies. Her newest published endeavor is described to include “in-depth explorations of six contemporary American and British films and shows, this pioneering volume spotlights Black female characters who play central, subversive roles in science fiction, fantasy, and horror.” We were able to steal her away for a moment from her busy schedule where she is currently teaching a few classes to pick her brain about Where No Black Woman Has Gone Before and how it came to be.

Black Nerd Problems: Diana, thank you so much for making time in your busy schedule for us! First things first, presentation is everything. I love the book cover art and the title! The cover features a Black woman in a sci-fi type setting, centered in the middle of it all. I’m a visual learner so this image speaks to me before I even read a single page. Centering a Black woman is a very deliberate step in analyzing different collective portrayals of Black women especially when we are subjected to not being a leading lady in many mainstream projects. And it doesn’t go over my head that she’s a beautiful dark skinned Black woman, as European beauty standards have really amped up colorism. What input did you have on your cover and why was imperative to have imagery that aligns with who you are and your book’s content?

Diana Mafe: I’m so glad you mention the book cover! Despite the old adage about not judging books by their covers, book covers are an entry point to a text (much like titles) and they can send a powerful message even before you flip to the first page. I’m pleased to say that I had considerable input on the cover, which speaks to the flexibility of the University of Texas Press. I chose the image and filled out a questionnaire that allowed me to weigh in on things like design and color.

I remember spending several afternoons and evenings combing through online images in an attempt to find something that captured the spirit of the book. This meant doing keyword searches by combining terms like “Black women,” “science fiction,” “space,” “superhero,” “Afrofuturism,” and so on. Eventually, I happened upon a photograph of a black female Iron Man as portrayed by the Liberian model Deddeh Howard. As soon as I saw it, I thought, that’s it—that’s the cover. Having a Black woman literally front and center is important because that, in many ways, is the point of the book. To do otherwise would (ironically) perpetuate the very erasure of black women that I’m trying to interrogate.

BNP: I’m also very much in my fangirl feels because I’m assuming your title, “Where No Black Woman Has Gone Before” is a nod to Star Trek’s “Where No Man Has Gone Before”. Granted your introduction is titled, “To Boldly Go” and you mention Nichelle Nichol’s pioneering Lt. Uhura as one of few early gateway representations of Black women.

I think this is totally appropriate as stunningly revolutionary as her presence was (and how rightfully she is an icon), I love how you also dig in deeper critically and mention the shortcomings of Star Trek to her character. In your final chapter, you dutifully return to Uhura’s more recent portrayal in the rebooted Star Trek films. I really like how you come back to speaking about the male gaze regarding Uhura, especially in her newer portrayal. How do you think this critique can serve as food for thought for Uhura’s next portrayal in the future whenever that happens?

DM: Your assumption about the title is correct—a definite nod to Star Trek. The same goes for subtitles like “To Boldly Go” and “Final Frontiers.” Because Nichelle Nichols’s Uhura is such a pioneering figure, the first Black female science fiction icon, it was appropriate to begin and end the book with her character. And since she has been rebooted in the new millennium, her character offers some insight into how far we have come in terms of black female representation onscreen.

 But as I discuss in the book’s conclusion, the “new” Uhura (Zoe Saldana) is not especially radical. The Eurocentrism and phallocentrism of the original show carries over into the reboots. Of course, there are understandable limits to rebooting classic science fiction television and cinema—if you change the original too much, it becomes unrecognizable and thus defeats the point. So along with returning to and revamping classic narratives that we love, we also need to continue imagining entirely new narratives in which old molds are not merely stretched but broken.

For Uhura, that means more screen time, more dialogue, and more agency. The key is to preserve this beloved Black female character without also preserving her constraints. At the same time, it’s vital that shows like Star Trek create fresh characters. Here, the franchise has made a “giant leap for Black womankind” (I couldn’t resist one last space cliché) by debuting Star Trek: Discovery, which gives us Michael Burnham (Sonequa Martin-Green), the first Black female lead in Star Trek history.

Read on here. [x]

[weirdletter]

Lonely Vigils: Collected Occult Mysteries From the Pupls by Manly Wade Wellman, illustrated by George Evans, Shadowridge Press, 2020. Cver art by George Evans, info: shadowridgepress.com.

Back in print for the first time since 1981, Shadowridge Press presents Lonely Vigils, Carcosa’s legendary collection of Manly Wade Wellman’s famous occult detectives from the Golden Age of the Pulps. Featuring Judge Pursuivant, Professor Enderby, and John Thunstone, their battles against dark magic were originally chronicled in the pages of Weird Tales and Strange Stories between 1938 and 1951. While the stories have achieved legendary status among aficionadosof weird fantasy, they had been virtually unreprinted until Lonely Vigils. Here are twenty tales of occult investigation by an acknowledged master of fantasy literature, dramatically illustrated by George Evans. Before he moved to the South, Wellman began his writing career in New York City, where he drew upon the dark side of New York’s night club intelligentsia and the native mysteries of the Northeast to create a convincing blend of authentic magic and imaginative peril in these stories of three intrepid crusaders against supernatural evil. Read their complete original pulp adventures in Lonely Vigils!

Contents: Foreword   Judge Keith Hilary Pursuivant "The Hairy Ones Shall Dance" "The Black Drama" "The Dreadful Rabbits" "The Half-Haunted"   Professor Nathan Enderby "Vigil"   John Thunstone "The Third Cry to Legba" "The Golden Goblins" "Hoofs" "Letters of Cold Fire" "John Thunstone's Inheritance" "Sorcery from Thule" "The Dead Man's Hand" "Throne on the Threshold" "The Shonokins" "Blood From a Stone" "The Dai Sword" "Twice Cursed" "Shonokin Town" "The Leonardo Rondache" "The Last Grave of Lill Warran"

[transman-badass]

I wanted to have a big fancy announcement for this but life happened and it sucked so

For fans of my various Cthulhu Mythos stuff, set in the Pharaoh Syndicate Investigations verse: my goal for the first two weeks of July is to create an outline for Through the Yellow Window 2.0. I just didn't like it as a short story so I'm remaking it as a novella. Like this post to be added to this experiment of mine.

I'm gonna eventually have a nice fancy WIP intro for this but for now, have the summary under the cut

Lazarus Core is dead. The Harbinger of the Pharaoh Syndicate is all that's left. Like a dog, he obeys the commands of his master, no matter how demeaning, cruel or gruesome they may be. And Nathan O'Tipp is not known for his mercy.

Sent to investigate a suspicious incident at Miskatonic University's Orne Library, the Harbinger finds the worst of all signs waiting for him: the Sign of the King in Yellow painted on a wall. He destroys it but it's too late. Carcosa takes him. There Harbinger finds friendship with a familiar woman. She knows his name. It doesn't keep either of them safe. Captured by the Duke of Carcosa, the Harbinger alone is sent back to Earth with a message for his master. Only as he recovers from that nightmare does he recognize the woman - the woman who vanished off Miskatonic's campus, as Amie DuPont, his childhood friend. And the Harbinger will do anything for his friends.

Weaving in and out of Carcosa both sleeping and awake, the Harbinger dodges the Duke and his friends in a desperate attempt to rescue Amie. But it's not just them he's working against. Several Professors of Miskatonic University, led by head librarian Henry Armitage and his son William, are also looking for the disappeared woman. They don't realize the depth of the situation they're walking into, and the Harbinger may not be able to help them.

He may not be able to help himself, either. With every defiant action he takes, the Court grows more and more interested in his existence. The Duke becomes curious. The King recognizes him. The Harbinger will do anything for his friends, but when the past he's tried to outrun comes calling, what will he be able to do for himself?

@slenders1ckn3ss @jacquesfindswritingandadvice @redacted-metallum @actualblanketgremlin @higgs-space @phantomnations @mushabumi @assistantdirector--janson @aldhidbah @sabtael @yourheartonfireblog @jade-island-lives @arsenwormwood @cecuesta @darkhorse-javert @comicgoblinart @lizadomuch @minutiaewriter @angelsofprey @izzyspussy @passthebeat-blog-blog @dragonedged-if @andromedaexists @cyanide-latte @lillis-writes @suckerpunchfemale @late-to-the-fandom

[madebyleftovermuses]

Chapter Twenty-Three: Heavy is the Crown

Scary movie night

Who the fuck has popcorn that far away?

Mr. Kinkel watching the movie with his son and his girlfriend

Mr. Kinkel asking if Harvey really likes Roz

Aw, Harvey really likes Roz

Wow, just straight up ask if Harvey has protection

Harvey’s face reads “I’m still a virgin”

Just going to a carnival that randomly showed up isn’t the best of ideas

They would be the couple who went through the tunnel of love

I love you

Of course, Sabrina and Nick are in the same bed

Nick just had a nightmare

Well then someone has a messed-up foot

Sabrina skipping school to spend time with Nick

Dark lord is really into wrestling

“Um given enough time, it should revert back on its own. Probably.” Ambrose is pretty sure it will fix itself

Zelda really wants her to have sex

“First Purgatory, now Hell. What's next? Heaven?” Pretty sure Sabrina will go to heaven next if she could

If Ambrose won’t be a teacher, then he’ll be the librarian

Is Zelda sick?

Sabrina lying saying she’ll come to academy after high school

Nick thinking Lilith is there for him

Great way to find out your girlfriend is Queen of Hell

Lilith rolling her eyes are Nick and Sabrina

We get it Caliban! You’re prince of hell!

“is that true” “Technically yes”

Sabrina’s “Oh, don't even.”

First of all, its legend…. doesn’t mean it’s true

Lucifer would destroy the items

Prudence to be Prefect of students

Gerald tried flying and ended up dead

They’re dying and getting sick due to the loss of potency?

Adam is mentioned 💔

Theo plans on going but he was gonna ask Robin

Harvey thinking Robin’s hair is cool

Aw, Harvey and Theo bonding! So cute!!

Harvey, nervous?

“my little cousin is Queen of Hell” ❤

Sabrina asking Ambrose for help finding Herod’s crown

“how can I say no to a queen?” well, she is your baby cousin first so you can say no to your cousin

Yeah, they totally aren’t reading scripture to using it as a cover

Even Melvin is reading this witchy romance novel

“This tale of a humble witch and her incubus lover being terrorized by the witch's loveless spinster hag of a sister” sounds a bit familiar

HELGA STILLWELL?! HILDA?

Well, Zelda you are pretty much villainess…. I mean, how many times have you murdered your own sister? How many times have you put her down?

“Your responsibility is to the Academy, and only the Academy.” “No, it's not! It's not.” Aw, Hilda is finally standing up for herself!

Does Zelda even know how to cook?

Theo inviting Robin

Clowns are a very common phobia! I mean, have you seen IT? Have you heard of John Wayne Gacy?

Harvey is a little insecure with Roz

I mean, no one wants a 16-year-old telling them how to do their business…. she’s still 16? God! It feels like forever ago the show just started

How did they even hear about what was going on inside Nick?

Nick has some anger issues

I would smite them regardless

Ambrose found Herod’s crown

Uh-oh The Blossoms were mentioned

Benjamin Blossom brought the crown home because of course not

Sabrina is going to Riverdale!

“Riverdale's a big, scary place.” I mean, she’s not wrong with all the murders going on there

Riverdale, America’s favorite small town…. yeah, not so much

Really, Jughead? Murder Capital of the World? That’s a little bit too Lost Boys

How do you hide something in a tree?

“Clever Blossoms” or slightly crazy

Though I guess it makes sense with their success that they had something to do with the Devil

Here’s your crown of Herod

Ambrose trying to restore the coven’s powers

What the fuck?! Herod?

Nick is trying to amputate his foot ☹

As soon as I saw amputation, I would have ran to the church

Yes, lets totally drag to the carnival in that state

“We’re saved” or are we?

“why do I smell maple syrup” ❤❤

Roz sees who Professor Carcosa really is…a faun

Harvey would eat three funnel cakes

I thought Harvey and Nick were friends

Zelda and Hilda are very different

Aw, Hilda talking about what she wants growing old

Love that she had to clarify not a stuffed dog

OH MY GOD! CEE IS PROPOSING! ❤

Hilda has someone who loves her and wants to be with her! ❤

Harvey trying out the strong man

The dude rigged it 😛

Of course, Billy would make it

Mary getting her fortune told

Damn, maybe tell her in a gentler way that Adam is gone

Straight up asking Mary if they ever had sex

Mary Wardwell is a virgin

Aw, the Ferris wheel

Robin making a move

Theo telling Robin he wasn’t born Theo

Aw, Theo has a boyfriend ❤

Harvey found another tent

All the men are captivated by this lady

I think the most unrealistic part of the carnival in Greendale is that we don’t see anyone from Riverdale there

Harvey’s dad getting a show

Roz found Harvey

Herod is at the carnival

Even supernatural beings are allowed fun 😛

Nick isn’t happy Sabrina is ruling Hell

Nick just wanting to pick a fight with everyone

Found the Tunnel of Love

Tunnel of Love turned into Tunnel of Horror

Herod doesn’t like people taking his crown

Ambrose for the save and the explosion

“I'm weak, but I could probably clean up this mess before teleporting myself home.” ❤

Nick isn’t going back home with you Sabrina

What is with Nick calling people by their last name?

Nick don’t do this

Really? He didn’t clean up

Sabrina is a little pissed

Caliban got slapped!

Competition, yes but there isn’t a competition if your competitor dies

Slapped him so hard his crown came off

For people who want Caliban on the throne they did switch once Sabrina threaten Caliban

Damn it, Robin! Theo trusts you

Because the Carnival folk are suspicious or anything with they’re gardening and blood sacrificing  

[effectsdatabase]

Last week's top 20 videos (2020, week 16)

Top 20 videos last week (April 12-18)

WILL IT CHUG? - Behringer V Tone Guitar GDI 21 (by Ola Englund)

Sinvertek Drive N5 plus | Overdrive Preamp Channel In A Box (by Shawn Tubbs)

BIG EAR pedals WOOD CUTTER distortion pedal (by R.J. Ronquillo)

Tricks & Tips for Classic (Non-Tap Tempo) Delay Pedals (by TrueTone )

Master of Pedalboards: Steen Skrydstrup (Skrydstrup R&D) (by Vertex)

Mad Professor Sweet Honey Overdrive with Fat Bee mod (by Mad Professor)

XTS ATOMIC OVERDRIVE VAN HALEN TONE. (by RACKDOCTOR)

How I created Old Hag - Germanium transistors based fuzz monster! (by Occvlt Pedals)

Friedman BE-OD...KILLER high gain distortion (by The SuperFunAwesomeHappyTime Pedal Show!)

Dead Horse Overdrive Pedal into EVH 5150III 50w and Zilla 2x12 cab (by Pro Tone Pedals)

? @EHX FREEZE + @TC ELECTRONIC HALL OF FAME V1 I Ambient & Psychedelic Sounds (by Rocco Saviano)

What is sidechain in a compressor? Can you hear it? (by Andrei Martinez Agras)

EffectorTimes 393? Foxpedal ??? The Wave (by BuzzbeeTV)

Gamechanger Audio Plus Sustain & Plasma Pedal Demo | SOUND BITES (by GuitarGuitar UK)

Ernie Ball | VPJR Tuner (by Eko)

Review Tom Tone L'Aqua Chorus presented by Guga Machado (by Tom Tone Effects)

DOD CARCOSA OVERVIEW (by M.H. Jensen Custom Effects)

Pigtronix Mothership2 jam. (by RoeyHaviv)

Blue Angel Overdrive part 1 (by Ratin Pedals)

Death By Audio Apocalypse (by Emma Dangers)

Overviews of the previous weeks: http://www.effectsdatabase.com/video/weekly

from Effects Database https://bit.ly/3ePFGNx

[ms-cellanies]

Scrub jays are endemic to Florida. Back in my long ago college days our zoology professor took us out to a scrub area to witness the wildlife. The scrub jays would fly up & sit on our heads & hands. Sadly, because of increased development in Florida scrub areas rarely exist any more & scrub jays are in decline.

@russalex @angreav @iamthebadwolf85  @catedevalois @maneth985   @ogtumble @amatasera @cricketcat9 @booksandcatslover @fuckdumblr  @ladyoftheteaandblood @sirrah22 @stripedsilverfeline @larouau12 @ughseriously @usearki @ladytuarach @glendathegoodone @lost-carcosa @aregrettablehullabaloo @micaleann @toasty-hancock @hellcatblues  @middleagedandoutoftouch @sabbykatt3 @cursethedarkness @gretchenk0720  @aliceliddellsmirror @inkededucatednnerdy @notpedeka @photoboybg69  @contemplatingoutlander @nildespirandum @izhunny @ladytigrane  @wolfsmom1 @phoenix-maat @writernotwaiting  @glitterypeanutmugnickel  @captain-krazy @bitchycatwizard @paulfe  @mishlady @dorcascristyforever @beerboy100 @ultimatenutshackfangirl  @lokilickedme @bakufuhakutaku  @a-sundry-bag @prettyhatemachine01 @texmexdarling @oshea52  @posttexasstressdisorder  @evieplease @queen-of-cats 

[eldritchabominationsuggestion]

And now a word from your eldritch host.

Normally I’d put this in my RPG blog, but I want to put this here because way more people follow this blog and what I want to do is derived from the themes here.

Some time ago, someone tried to make a Lovecraftian splat for Chronicles of Darkness called Outsider: The Calling.  It more or less died five years ago but did have substantial framework set up yet was still in a very draft stage.

Some time ago after being introduced to Chronicles of Darkness (a.k.a “New World of Darkness”) I’ve felt that Mage: The Awakening had some aspects of it that could neatly segue into a Lovecraftian game as illustrated by a variant someone made in one of the expansion books where mages risked madness the more powerful they got, or suggestions in another expansion book about the gods mages favored having Cthulhu-esque tendencies (and yes they are called “The Old Gods”).  However after reading these it seemed for a time my idea was not that unique, and even throwing hints that the mage’s ideas of reality were distorted was something people did experiment with.

So then I thought about going back to that idea of a Lovecraftian inspired fan-splat.  My approach to the idea would be different from Outsider.  In Outsider, you play as humans touched by the eldritch gods and becoming ever less human, meanwhile reality rejects you as a disease.  My approach would be more focused on the idea that the eldritch is the true face of reality and not the abberation.  

More under the cut.

So here is the pitch:

The world is teeming with supernatural societies; vampires, mages, werewolves, ghosts, mummies and beasts roam the Earth.  These societies have concerns that fix their attention to the going-ons in Earth, within the span of time that humans have tred upon it.  

Of course, what they are looking at is merely a tiny, micro-thin sliver of what is.  All the empires of the world, hopes of humanity, the squabbles and intrigue of various human and non-human societies in a tiny speck of dust in space from a very brief blink on the timeline.  Your situation on the other hand, falls outside of that’ you are, quite bluntly, an alien.

This is not about helpless, xenophobic professors and private investigators who happen to stumble upon bizarre artifacts, nor is this about scientists and secret agents who desperately borrow another day from the unforgiving maw of squamous primordial titans.  This is about those that they hunt- or rather those that hunt them.  This is about those whom the dark secrets of the universe course through their flesh, blood, and soul. This is about the ones with icthyous deformities, impossible anatomies, black blood, and struck by reasonable madness.

Maybe it is because your heritage comes from beyond the stars and into great fathoms down below.  You may have seen human your whole life, but why did your grandmother's face look like a fish?  Was your invisible friend actually your brother?  Does your body somehow form a symbiotic relationship with a vampiric force from a crashed meteor?    

Or you are among those touched by the alien forces that lie outside our cosmic speck of dust.  Your body and soul touched by gazing into the abyss and it burrowed into you and never let go.  Whatever pathogenic truths you discovered can never be unlearned; once one awakens to the horrid vastness of what lies beyond, all attempts at sleep only become infested with nightmares.  You have been forever marked as an outsider, but is it so bad?

The forces that you deal with on a regular basis are completely alien to the senses and understanding of other supernatural beings, they hail from the places like Yuggoth, Carcosa, and the center of the Big Bang known as Azathoth.  Yet, despite being removed from the rest of the world of mere mortals, you know that it’s as much a part of everything.  We are all cosmic remains of a dead star that screamed its death throws eons ago before even great spirits or beings came into existence.  What divides the alien and the native is ultimately arbitrary, a comforting lie people tell themselves seeing an abomination against all nature and reason-as they understand nature and reason.  What lies out in The Deep is more real, more apparent to you among most others.  Your eyes gaze into the night and while others see specks of luminescent gas, you see the great cosmic dance of black holes hunting stars, tendrils of nebulae that spit out new worlds, the song of trillions of stars, the pulse of a living, breathing ecosystem that spans eons in time and space.  The day will come when Earth is merely a berry picked by a hungry celestial predator.  

In the end though, you are just another marionette in a vast cosmic game, or are you?  Will you take your alienness and embrace it?  Reject it?  Rise up and become a player and take your throne as the next cosmic tyrant?  With knowledge comes power, with knowledge and power comes madness.  What will you do?

Ideas: 

Instead of the typical X & Y formula, there will be an X,Y, & Z formula because extra dimensions.  They will be: 

How you are connected.  Are your ancestors from beyond?  Did what lies beyond affect you?  Did you get infected by a symbiote?  Are you the reincarnation or facet of an eldritch being?  Maybe something else?

To whom you are connected.  Instead of a specific god, you are connected to vague archetypes of forces out there, and these categorizations are more useful tools to understand than actual factions.  For example, you may be connected to “The Masque”, which covers trickster or drama-type beings like Nyarlathotep or Hastur.  Or maybe you are connected to the leviathans that dream below the surface like Cthulhu, Rhan-Tegoth, or Glaaki.

How you are taking it.  The typical social or faction aspect.

Powers groups are called “Paradoxes” and are categorized in broad domains that cover a group of ideas that are intertwined yet contradictory.  Example:

The Paradox of Life and Death covers healing, necromancy, creating plagues, draining life, resurrection, etc.  There is no distinction between powers of life and powers of death; they are the same here.

The Paradox of Order and Chaos covers your blasty stuff like fireballs, but also things like entropy, gravity, and matter.  You might also be able to scramble forces that are put in a delicate order like radio signals and spoken words.

The Paradox of Meaning and Nothing- This is probably the weirdest and most abstract.  Such abilities include toying with meta.  For example at higher levels you might impose a rule toward an enemy that in order for them to succeed they must roll a failure instead.  

According to the backstory, Earth was changed drastically when it was taken, stolen or conquered from it’s rightful owners.  In this drastic change was when humans were made and thus later became the pawns to reconstruct the world as how another eldritch god wanted it to be, so this sort of explains the “humancentricism” of the world but not that it actually is for the benefit of humans.  Some groups of humans touched by the forces of the eldritch gods seek to return it to its rightful owners, whatever “rightful” means anyway.