'Eldritch Empires' From Roebeast's Magical House of Sun Shine Blog - Lovecraftian '15 MM Mini Madness'

So I'm lurking around the internet tonight touring various blogs and stumbled upon a wonderful little old school minis blog called 'Roe Beast's Magical House of Sunshine'. Awesome name and whilst looking around I happened to stumble upon Eldrith Empires! A wargame about the true nature of planet Earth from the Lovecraftian epoch!
Blog available right over
HERE
According to Roebeast's blog:

"Here are the first miniatures for my upcoming tabletop wargame Eldritch Empires. This game will focus on great battles that take place in the early history of the planet we now call Earth. Throughout the stories of H.P. Lovecraft he describes conflicts between many of the major races that colonized earth. Since it is highly likely that The Elder Things were the first creatures on Earth and created all of its native life I decided to start with them."In the world of Eldritch Empires these creatures would certainly not call themselves "Elder Things". Instead they prefer a simpler and more elegant title. Among themselves they are simply called Makers."

Following this first release will be Maker Troopers with Orgone Blasters, Heavy Weapons Teams, and The Sensei, who are masters of bladed weapons. The Maker army will focus on  technical prowess, intelligent tactics, and the Maker's legendary toughness."
Roe Beast Has also done  The Great Race of Yith as well!  

Makers vs The Great Race!
 

 Did I mention the Deep Ones in 15 MM?
 
Or should I say Dagon?  This guy is available right now.

These guys are perfect for a Astonishing Swordsmen and Sorcerers of Hyperborea! Roebeast does an outstanding job with the Makers and Yithians. Looking into some of the other '15 MM' on the market. Magistar Militum makes a line of 15mm Figures for the Biblical & Chariot era that might be perfect for a party of adventurers. Those are available right over HERE
 '15 MM' just might be the ticket to take my Astonishing Swordsmen and Sorcerers of Hyperborea rpg campaigns to the next level.

Further Meditations on 'The Whipserer In The Darkness' The Miskatonic Project Graphic Novel By Mark Ellis For Your Old School Horror Campaign

You can Download And Purchase this right over HERE 

So in honor of HPL's Birthday I've done a really extensive dig into  'The Whisperer In The Darkness' The Miskatonic Project Graphic Novel By Mark Ellis. The first part of my musings can be found right HERE

The Miskatonic Project was a small group of paranormal investigators from the special documents wing of the Miskatonic University library in Arkham. Well they're each investigators whose lives were touched by the Mythos. These brushes with the Great Old Ones in the past have had some very nasty effects on these folks. That's not say that they are victims.
This is actually where the differences between the approach that HPL presents and Mark Ellis.
The idea that the characters or PC's are central to the story line or adventure. Whisperer follows the old pulp tradition of putting the investigators into harms way right out of the gate.  

H. P. Lovecraft's The Miskatonic Project...from left to right, Fleur Averoigne, Randolph Carter and Detective Malone.

Each and every one of the investigators of the Miskatonic Project have had life and limb scarred up. They're minds, sanity, and souls touched as well as consumed to some extent by the Mythos. They've seen behind the curtain of reality and they can never look away.
The Project never swirves away from the Mythos or Lovecraft's stories. These tales especially Whisperer dive head long and weave their mysteries around the events of the various Lovecraft tales. A take that Chaosium would later borrow by providing stats for various Mythos NPCs.

This is a group that is willing to do anything to stop the world wide conspiracy that is the network of the Great Old Ones. Even if it means their sanity or lives.  The trouble for the investigators and adventurers of this series is not like  something not out of the sanity shattering fiction of HPL but a pulp roller coaster ride. Robert Howard's Mythos writings have this sort of two fisted pulp sensibilities about them. And so do the characters of these stories. These are flawed heroes dealing with the fallout of their lives touched by forces from beyond their pale. They've had to suck it up and fight outwards. 

The Kingsport Archive And The Miskatonic Project

Several differences between The Miskatonic Project's version of the various cults of the Old Ones and others is that these cults are very well funded. They've got the best equipment. Headquarters are stellar and they've got access to the very best Mythos tomes that money can smuggle.
They form a world spanning network of like minded cultists willing to do anything for their various dark masters and their alien servants the Mi Go.
The Kingsport Archive was formed by 'Top Men' after the Fall of Innsmouth and this group operated more like a spy cell then a group of academics. They were more then willing to get their hands dirty with wet work. They seemed to always be running afoul of Lord Justin Sabbath.This happened to be over a certain nasty piece of Mi Go technology that they had recovered. 

It took the attentions of both folklorist Professor Albert N. Wilmarth and Inspector Lagrasse's intervention to stave off bloodshed and legal action. 

The Archive began the task of recovering the various Mythos artifacts and dealt with the sanity shattering effects of said artifacts keeping them under lock and key. 

The Archive's collection was taken away and was later incorporated into the stacks of a certain warehouse. The PC's went their separate ways after The Red Hook Affair took the life of one of their number. 

The 'Archives' often seemed to take up the slack in New England when the Project was off in some other part of the world.  My advice would be to use the project sparingly if at all.

 The Archive was much more New England or backyard oriented while the Project seemed to be a more world spanning organization. The players actually seemed to care more when the game took place on their home Lovecraftian turf. 

Great DON HECK page from HP LOVECRAFT'S CTHULHU #2.


The Different Aspects of the Mi Go

'The Whisperer In The Darkness' has some other marked differences from other takes on the Mi Go. The author uses the Mi Go as scouts for the returning 'Old Ones' and they are laying the foundation for the return of great Cthhlu and his ilk. 

Why do the Mi Go appear different from other adaptations of the story? This might easily be explained by the fact that there are different aspects of this insidious insectoids. Things that scuttle through the cracks of the universe and undermine the fabric of the cosmos for the 'Old Ones' return. 

There is a sense with these Mi Go that their disposable in the long run in the agenda of the Old Ones. Simply another biological tool or weapon in the arsenal of the Mythos. Mankind is heroic but it matters little in the scope of the agenda of the cycle in the Mythos. 

The Mi Go make an excellent pulptastic antagonist race against a party. 

'The Whipserer In The Darkness' The Miskatonic Project Graphic Novel By Mark Ellis is a really nice take on the Mythos instead of the usual turn of events. As always your mileage may vary. 

Review and Commentary on The Miskatonic Project Graphic Novel By Mark Ellis For Your Old School Horror Campaign

You can Download And Purchase this right over HERE
 According to the blurb on Amazon: Before the X-Files, before Torchwood, there was the Miskatonic Project! Dedicated to breaking the aeons-old power of ancient, alien entities, the Miskatonic Project battles the loathsome threat of Cthulhu and his unspeakable spawn! In H.P. Lovecraft's The Whisperer in Darkness, the Miskatonic Project faces an enemy of inhuman cunning whose power has never been directly challenged! Deep in the catacombs beneath legend-haunted New England hills, the final confrontation between Cthulhu's legions and the defenders of humanity begins! Featuring art by Don (Iron Man) Heck, Darryl (Green Lantern) Banks and Daryl (Crypt of Cthulhu) Hutchinson.

The Miskatonic Project came out in 1993 as a three issue limited comic book series from the pen of Mark Ellis and the imagination of Don Heck. The series flew into my comic box over at Smokey Joes  in Torrington,Ct. after I got back from a pretty awful turn of events in Boston. 

What Is The Miskatonic Project?

The Miskatonic Project was a small group of paranormal investigators from the special documents wing of the Miskatonic University library in Arkham. Well they're each investigators whose lives were touched by the Mythos. These brushes with the Great Old Ones in the past have had some very nasty effects on these folks. That's not say that they are victims. 

Long before Delta Green was even thought of. This comic series provided a blue print for running my Call of Cthulhu games with a slightly more heroic bent. The mini series was interesting because it ran right along side of the various HP Lovecraft events. 

These were folks who were trying to make a difference in a world where the Mythos wasn't simply on the rise it was ascending and causing some very nasty turns. The insanity was always lurking one step around the corner and the madness was bubbling below the surface of the series. 

Here's how the series stacked up according to Wiki: 

" Lord Justin Sabbath, Professor Augustus Grant, and psychic Fleur Avignon used the Miskatonic University as a base of operations. They worked closely with noted folklorist Professor Albert N. Wilmarth, who brought the Mi-Go to their attention."
 The mini series basically threaded its way in and out of the Lovecraft mythos stories. Familiar locations, objects of power, Old Ones, races all made their appearances. Again according to Wiki : The Mi-Go and their human collaborators were portrayed as paving the way for the return of the Old Ones, including Cthulhu. Inspector John Raymond Legrasse, the New Orleans police officer who first appeared in Lovecraft's inaugural Cthulhu story, "The Call of Cthulhu", appears in the second chapter.

So it was a fun read to connect the dots with the Chaosium game. 

Using  The Miskatonic Project For Your Old School Horror Game 
The Miskatonic Project ran from December 1991 - April 1992 and it was very solidly written. The series definitely has a pulp flavor and treaded some pretty dark ground even back then. The books were put into the adult section right next to some of the White Wolf Games. This was cutting edge stuff for 1991. 
Much of the time I had the players dealing with some of the fall out from the Project. There would often be loose ends that the graphic novel didn't really go into. This was a limited series and therefore left out some of the events that were happening in the Lovecraft stories. The trick was to pick up where the story ended and bring in the investigators to deal with the Lovecraftian menace. The Kingsport Archives became a thorn in the side of Miskatonic and there was a confrontation with Lord Justin Sabbath. The Archives dealt with things a bit more harshly and certain men in high places paid the right people to look the other way when 'special jobs' needed to be done.
Very important top men who had dealt with the Innsmouth affair. The 'Archives' often seemed to take up the slack in New England when the Project was off in some other part of the world.  My advice would be to use the project sparingly if at all. 

Looking At The Miskatonic Project Graphic Novel By Mark Ellis 

The graphic novel clocks in at 128 pages black and white. I've only reread the series. It's a pretty timeless comic mini series. The book does hit the high points and its a very interesting read after all these years. There's definitely a blue print for the world of Ellis's take on the Mythos. The book is tight, fast, and good reliable read. That being said with Delta Green out today and the amount of Mythos related stuff from Pagan Press. The Project might be a cool addition to those who want a bit of a different take on Lovecraft. Its worth a look at.
 You can get the graphic novel on paper right over HERE