This is a compendium of the lesser known Great Old Ones of the Cthulhu Mythos of H. P. Lovecraft.
| Contents: | A B C D E M N O Q R S T V W Y Z |
| References—Notes—External links |
See Lin Carter deities.
See Clark Ashton Smith deities.
See Clark Ashton Smith deities.
Bokrug (The Great Water Lizard) first appeared in Lovecraft's short story "The Doom That Came to Sarnath" (1920). The being is also part of Lovecraft's Dream Cycle.
Bokrug is the god of the semi-amphibian Thuum'ha of Ib in the land of Mnar. The deity slept beneath the calm waters of a lake that bordered Ib and the city of Sarnath. When the humans of Sarnath cruelly slaughtered the populace of Ib and stole the god's idol, the deity was awakened. Each year thereafter, strange ripples disturbed the otherwise placid lake. On the one-thousandth anniversary of Ib's destruction, Bokrug rose up and destroyed Sarnath (so utterly that not even ruins remained). Afterwards, the Thuum'ha recolonised Ib and thenceforth lived undisturbed.
Some were the figures of well-known myth — gorgons, chimaeras, dragons, cyclops, and all their shuddersome congeners. Others were drawn from darker and more furtively whispered cycles of subterranean legend — black, formless Tsathoggua, many-tentacled Cthulhu, proboscidian Chaugnar Faugn, and other rumoured blasphemies from forbidden books like the Necronomicon, the Book of Eibon, or the Unaussprechlichen Kulten of von Junzt.
—H. P. Lovecraft, "The Horror in the Museum" (emphasis added)
Chaugnar Faugn (The Elephant God, The Horror from the Hills) was created by Frank Belknap Long and first appeared in his novel The Horror from the Hills (1931).
Chaugnar Faugn (or Chaugnar Faughn) appears as a horribly grotesque idol, made of an unknown element, combining the worst aspects of octopus, elephant, and human being. When Chaugnar Faugn hungers, it can move incredibly quickly for its size and use its lamprey-like "trunk" to drain the blood from any organism it encounters.
Chaugnar Faugn came to the Earth from another dimension eons ago, possibly in a form other than the one it later assumed. Upon arriving, he found the dominant lifeform to be only simple amphibians. From these creatures, he created the Miri Nigri to be his servitors. The Miri Nigri would later mate with early humans to produce hybrids that would eventually evolve into the horrid Tcho-Tcho people.
See Cthugha.
Cynothoglys (The Mortician God) first appeared in Thomas Ligotti's short story "The Prodigy of Dreams" (1994). The being appears as a shapeless, multiform entity with a single arm used for catching those who summoned it and bringing them painless, ecstatic death. In ancient times, it held a small cult in Italy, which paid it homage rather than worshipping it, since actual worship would be the same as summoning the god. They considered it to be no mere Cloacina, but the mortician of all creatures, even the gods themselves.
See Clark Ashton Smith deities.
See Brian Lumley deities.
Nug and Yeb, the Twin Blasphemies, are the spawn of Shub-Niggurath and Yog-Sothoth. Nug is the parent of Cthulhu and the parent of Kthanid via the influence of Yog-Sothoth. Nug is a god among ghouls, while Yeb is the leader of Abhoth's alien cult.[1] Both Nug and Yeb closely resemble Shub-Niggurath.
The names Nug and Yeb are similar to the names of the Egyptian sibling gods Nut and Geb, members of the Heliopolitan Ennead.
See Brian Lumley deities.
See Clark Ashton Smith deities.
See Clark Ashton Smith deities.
A weakened, amphibious chimaera like being that crushed victims and sucked their blood. Revived and worshipped by the mad wax artist George Rogers.
See Brian Lumley deities.
See Brian Lumley deities.
See Clark Ashton Smith deities.
See Lin Carter deities.
Yag-Kosha is described as telepathic being with an elephant head, from outerspace and being the last survivor of a group of refugees.[2]
Yag Kosha appeared in the story "The Tower of the Elephant", from Robert Ervin Howard (the creator of "Kull" and "Conan, the Barbarian"). The Tower of the Elephant was best known for being portraited in the comic book Conan the Barbarian#4.[3]
See Brian Lumley deities.
Yig (the Father of Serpents) first appeared in the story The Curse of Yig which was created by Zealia Bishop and almost completely rewritten by H. P. Lovecraft. He is a deity that appears as a serpent man, serpent with bat like wings, or as a giant snake. Although Yig is easy to anger, he is easy to please as well. Yig often sends his serpent minions, the children of Yig, to destroy or transform his enemies. He is associated with the Serpent Men.
To Native Americans, Yig is regarded as "bad medicine". He is also alluded to in western American folklore. He is identified with the Mesoamerican deity Quetzalcoatl, and may be a prototype for that god and other serpentine gods worldwide. Some authors identify him as the Stygian serpent god Set's father, and from Robert E. Howard's Conan stories, and also with the Great Serpent worshiped by the Serpent People of Valusia from Howard's Kull stories.
Yig is the subject of a song by the shock rock band GWAR entitled "Horror of Yig", which appears on their album Scumdogs of the Universe. The band The Darkest of the Hillside Thickets, famous for their Lovecraft references, also refers to Yig in a song titled "Yig Snake Daddy".
Yig is the name of a deity in the Arcanis Dungeons & Dragons campaign setting. Yig was once (and may still be) worshipped by the Ssethregorean Empire, a group dominated by various lizard and snake-like beings. Yig in this mythos is a female deity, but still strongly associated with serpents, suggesting the name is not a coincidence.
Despite being spoken of on only a few occasions in Lovecraft's work, Yig is one of the Ancient Ones included in the Arkham Horror boardgame, appearing alongside Ancients such as Cthulhu and Nyarlathotep, proving his popularity; a game where Yig is the villain will go very quickly.
Zathog appears in Richard Tierney's novel The Winds of Zarr (1971), as well as in his short story "From Beyond the Stars" (1975). After warring with the Elder Gods, Zathog, eager for revenge, entered into a compact with the brutal Zarr. The Zarr controlled most of the galaxy where they dwelt and desired to conquer the rest of the universe. In return for helping him free his brethren, Zathog promised to give the Zarr the ability to travel through time and space.