Cthulhu Deities & Hombrew Worlds - Need Help

[Angel Tarragon]

I'm working on a new Pathfinder homebrew world. I'd like to include the following Cthulhu deities; Cthulhu, Ithaqua, Shub-Niggurath, Y'golonac, Azathoth, Nyarlathotep and Yog-Sothoth.

I need a bit of an education regarding these baddies. What would their role among the deities be? And what domains and typical worshippers should they have?

 

[Achan hiArusa]

I may be introducting some postLovecraft themes, but:

Cthulhu embodies water and could be a god of the sea or former god of the sea since his foe, the one who sealed him Nodens rides a chariot with ocean like decorations. His return heralds the end of the world.

Ithaqua is has been equated to the Wendigo of North American legend. He is could be a god of winter and storms and of those lost and never found.

Shub-Niggurath is the goat of a thousand young and is basically like a goddess of fertility.

Without my book here, the only thing I remember about Y'golonac is that his primary form is an headless obese human with fanged maws in his hands. For some reason the idea of knowledge sits in the back of my head, but I'm not sure why.

Azathoth is the insane, mindless daemon sultan who sits at the center of the universe listening to the piping of his servitors orbited by lesser outer gods. His manifestation is an ever growing amoeboid creature that destroys and devours everything in its path. Cthulhu is one of his high priests.

Nyarlahotep is the messenger between the outer gods and the rest of the universe (great old ones and humans alike). He has lived as a human and takes an interest in them akin to what a small child with a clamp and a blowtorch takes to his GI Joe action figures.

Yog-Sothoth has as one of his manifestations as the gates of the universe. He can send anyone anywhere and often without them losing sanity. He is also the father of the Whately boys. The elder Whately, a wizard, gave his daughter Asenath to Yog-Sothoth and produced two children, Wilbur who looked human and his very inhuman (took after his father) and often invisible brother.

Of course, this is all off the top of my head, so I may be wrong about the details.

 

[Stormborn]

Azathoth – The Primordial God of Creation. He is typically only worshipped by the mad and certain savage cults. Nevertheless many a city wall has his sign smeared in fluids better left to the imagination.
Cthulhu – God of the Sea and all who live near it or make their living on it. His main worshippers are sailors and fishermen. When the sea is calm they say he sleeps, but when the storm season starts up the people say he wakes and will do anything they can to put him back to sleep.
Ithaqua – God of the North, Wind, and Cold. Ithaqua is only popular among the Viking like folk of the north, whose barbarians and fighters make bloody oaths in his name as they ritually scar his body.
Nyarlathotep - The God of Secrets. He is worshipped by scribes, bards, and actors. There are a thousand different cults in his name, who are often in conflict with one another about the true nature of their god.
Shub-Niggurath – Goddess of Fertility. Worshipped primarily by those who are pregnant or wish to be, or who don’t. Popular among the poor masses of the cities, monstrous humanoids (who breed in large numbers), and druids. Deformed children and sorcerers, who often have some odd identifying features, are said to be Touched by the Mother.
Y'golonac - God of Evil and Corruption. Worshipped in nameless brothels and secret dens both denounced and frequented by the aristocracy.
Yog-Sothoth – God of Magic and Travel. Worshipped primarily by wizards he is also honored at the gates of cities and at road side shines. Rogues pray to him before opening doors and slipping through dark alley ways.

What no Hastur, Dagon, or Nodens?

 

[jdrakeh]

Y'golonac is best depicted in Ramsey Campbell's Cold Print, the story in which it originated. The 'big' definining characteristics are:

1. Has no head.
2. Has a small mouth in the palm of each hand.
3. Is insatiably hungry and feeds on the flesh of humans.
4. Is summoned merely by being envisioned in one's mind eye.*
5. Can, per Cold Print, assume the physical form of its former priests.**

Defining feature number four is particularly vexing, as merely reading its name or thinking about what Y'golonac may look like is enough to summon it. Just knowing of Y'golonac's existence may doom one to a horrible fate.

Beyond a gulf in the subterranean night a passage leads to a wall of massive bricks, and beyond the wall rises Y'golonac to be served by the tattered eyeless figures of the dark. Long has he slept beyond the wall, and those which crawl over the bricks scuttle across his body never knowing it to be Y'golonac; but when his name is spoken or read he comes forth to be worshipped or to feed and take on the shape and soul of those he feeds upon. For those who read of evil and search for its form within their minds call forth evil, and so may Y'golonac return to walk among men . . .

Defining feature number five is evidenced in Cold Print, as well. Y'golonac, in the guise of the bookseller, offers the tale's protagonist a position as its priest before shedding this assumed form and eating the fellow (who refuses the offer of priesthood).

Given how Y'golonac recruits its priests, the likelihood of it having an entire cult dedicated to its worship is pretty slim. Also, seeing as how Y'golonac (again, according to its crator in Cold Print) disposes of former priests (the bookseller was one such fellow, per the short story in question), I doubt if he has more than one or two priests at any given time. I assume that becoming a priest means becoming one of the "tattered eyeless figures of the dark"

 

[Derro]

Here's somebody's interpretation through the lens of the Hyborian Age. Sprinkle with salt and/or Chaos as necessary.

 

[jdrakeh]

Also, though I can't find a link to it anymore and my own backups have long since disappeared, there was a D&D 3x fan-created setting called "The Inside" based on the works of H.P. Lovecraft. It was a very interesting and different take on your run of the mill High Fantasy setting.

 

[Merlin's Shadow]

Is this what you are referring to, jdrakeh?

 

[humble minion]

Is this what you are referring to, jdrakeh?

Link seems to be dead, sadly.

 

[jdrakeh]

Is this what you are referring to, jdrakeh?

Yes, that's the setting. Unfortunately, as the poster above notes, the link is dead (and only the site index is accessible via the Internet Archive).

 

[Merlin's Shadow]

Figures. I didn't try the link when I found this on Google. Anyone tried emailing the author?