Ragnarok: Age of the Old Ones!

This post is in honor of Howard Phillip Lovecraft's recent birthday, and is not exactly canon material for Ragnarok: Age of Wolves. But as the RPG crowd has found, Lovecraftian weirdness can make for great gaming - and who would not want to pit their apocalyptic viking warband against the monsters of the Mythos! So here is a handy rationale for doing just that. If you would like to read my ficitonal take on Mythos horror in the ancient age of heroes, check out Their Blood is the Sea, or the RAW post I wrote about it.

As in the best Mythos fiction, there are always links between the real world and the world of eldritch horror. Our present tale of Alternate Ragnarok is no different: Que the Baltic Sea Anomaly!

The Baltic Sea Anomaly refers to a circular section of the Baltic Sea floor approximately 60 meters in diameter, marked with lines that appear far to straight and regular to be the product of entirely natural erosion. Situated in the eastern Baltic in the mouth of the Gulf of Bothnia, it lies between Finland and Sweden roughly equidistant from either coast. You can find sonar images of the Anomaly here (which I can't post because of copyright). You must admit, the images are evocative of something otherworldy - like a temple to primordial, uncaring Elder entities beyond our (or the vikings') ability to comprehend.

Or: Perhaps the vikings did comprehend them in the way, and that is where we get the legends of the Kraken - many tentacled terrors larger than ships that lurked in the deepest parts of the sea. Jormundgand too is of this ilk, perhaps not many tentacled, but spawn of the Norse god of Chaos, and bringer of doom to the single greatest champion of men among the Aesir - Thor! Could the Kraken be another understanding of Jormundgand? Or its offspring? And if so, what of lesser terrors like the Nykkur - monstrous and horrible sea-creatures that were inimical to humans and certainly had a taste for them. As a young man engaged in a swimming contest far out at sea, the hero Beowulf fought offf the attacks of "nicor" (the Old English Word for Norse: Nykkur).

Below is a Lovecraftian Interpretation of the above that provides an excuse (you don't really need a reason, do you?) to play Ragnarok: Age of the Old Ones:

In the center of the Ostsea, far beneath the waves and encroaching ice, lies the alien temple-home of the Nykkur - monstrous fish-men In a later age, they are known as Deep Ones, among other things) who are anathema to the mortal world. Only the tip of the temple is exposed to the pressure of the deep sea. Beneath is the remainder of this abbyssal monolith, built when the seas were young and wild and much, much deeper - the greatest depths reaching the waters of worlds impossibly distant - and unimaginnably alien.

From such a place were the first Nykkur lured.

Arriving, they did as they have ever done - built temples to their hideous dreaming god - Great Cthulhu, who, uncaring of them as it was of all else, yet heard their supplication and answered in his fashion. The top of the temple swarmed with spawn of the Ancient One. turning on those who summoned them, scattering them into the wider world, pursuing them - ravenous from their long journey and hateful of the agony this new and alien world heaped upon them.

In time, they adapted, just as the nykkur rebuilt their submarine abodes and temples - driven by mad impulse to call yet again upon their terrible patron. Thus the world spun for aeons, until they succeeded once more.

They called - and Great Cthulhu answered again - this time stirring in his eternal slumber - and moving across the gulf of galaxies - to rise from the temple of his servants, a horde of spawn and dimensional hangers-on in his wake. In this way began the Ragnarok . . .

Nykkur - Deep Ones

Follower (Allegiances: Cthulhu, Dagon, Jormungand)

Rank: Veteran (1)

Race and Type: Deep One Medium Infantry:

Move 6”/Charge 1d6+4”

Defense: 13

Health: 2

Attacks :

• Pair of rending claws: Class 2, +2 to Hit, OK 16

• Harpoon: +2 up to 6”, +0 up to 12", OK 16.

Special

• Swim: A Deep One can spend an entire turn to move any distance along a river, stream, or shore, or within a marsh or any other body of water, ignoring terrain modifiers to Defense and Movement. At sea, a Deep One can Swim 8, Sea Charge 1d6+6”. A Dep One automatically Evades if in deep water and fighting non-swimmers, simply by diving below the surface.

• When in water, Deep Ones gain +1 Defense against attacks that do not originate in or from the water.

Deep One Hybrids, Sorcery, and Glamoury:

No Deep One follower has sorcery, but a Deep One/ Human Hybrid Named Character could. Build a sorcerer usign the rules in RAW, give it a Swim speed of 4", and a Swim Charge of 1d6+2". Choose spells normally: Evil Eye, Steal Life, and Summon Water Elemental are especially appropriate. 

Such a Hybrid might also have a glamour that allows it to move amongst men without engendering dread and revulsion. In such a case, the Mythos player may choose not to have his hybrid begin the game on his side, instead rolling each turn to see when he "emerges" from his disquised place among the followers of the unsuspecting enemy. In such case, the hybrid acts in all ways as normal followers and is not under the Mythos player's control until revealed, at which point the Mythos player nominates one enemy follower to be his disguised hybrid. The Mythos player should roll 1d6 in the End Phase of each turn: On a turn in which the die result is equal to or below the Rank of the Hybrid, it discards its disguise and comes under the control of the Mythos Player at the beginning of the following turn. The follower who is "no more" is not replaced, but does not count as a casualty to the warband who lost it.

Star Spawn of Cthulhu (Named Monster - All Star Spawn roll a Wyrd Die)

"They all lay in stone houses in their great city of R’lyeh, preserved by the spells of mighty Cthulhu for a glorious resurrection when the stars and the earth might once more be ready . . . ."  —H. P. Lovecraft, “The Call of Cthulhu".

Rank: Hero (3)

Race and Type: Elder Thing (Huge)

Description: Smaller that Great Cthulhu, Star Spawm are massive and terrible octopoids much like their master. Trapped in the bowels of the submarine temple, alignment of stars and other signs have wakened them from aeons of slumber.

Move: 8”/Charge: 1d6+6
Defense: 16
Health: 5
Attacks
• Magic Skill +3
• Tentacle: Class 6, +4 to hit, OK 13.

• Tentacle: Class 6, +4 to hit, OK 13.

• Tentacle: Class 6, +4 to hit, OK 13.

Special

• Cause Terror - foes who can see the Star Spawn have Wurd Failures on matches of 1, or 2.

• Spells: Alter Wyrd, Steal Life, Summon Deep Ones

• A Star Spawn can attempt in the End Phase to Regenerate a Wound on a d6 roll of 4+.

* There are many options for figures for Deep Ones and Star Spawn. Peterson Games' Cthulhu Warr, RAFM, Reaper and others,