The Deep Ones of Ancient Europe

This sounds like the first act of a Mythos story, but it's absolutely true.  

In the late 1950s the governments of Romania and Yugoslavia decided to move forward with the Iron Gate hydroelectric dam.  The project would create a massive artificial lake, impounding the water of the Danube and flooding the banks of the river.  Archeologists started to survey the soon to be inundated areas and discovered evidence of a previously unknown culture dating back to 7000 BCE.  The buildings were arranged in a complex geometric pattern, and excavations uncovered dozens of idols depicting human/fish hybrids.  Even stranger, it's the only European site where a "double sunrise" astronomical alignment has been found.

Author Dan Davis has a great look at the Lepenski Vir site over on YouTube.  It's just the thing if you're looking to incorporate some real-world inspiration into a Mythos scenario.  You can find even more information, including the effort to relocate the entire complex above the flood line, in the Wikipedia entry.

Great Cthulhu

This Cthulhu plaque WIP shot comes to us from Irish artist Eoin McMorrow.  I like how he's captured the organic shapes of a skull without directly mimicking a human skull.

 

 

Building a (Prop! Fake!) Bomb

Builder and former movie SFX artist Dave Fogler has a fun look at creating a prop bomb on a tight deadline for an upcoming film.  He starts with a collection of reference photos approved by the director for the the overall look of the device.  Then it's a matter of grabbing electronic bits and bobs to assemble the final prop.  That includes recreating the look of plastic explosives using a decidedly low-tech approach- coating a cardboard box in clay and giving it a coat of paint.

Bonus:  He actually pays attention to one of the biggest issues with a prop like this.  Once it's done, how to you send it through the mail without having a SWAT team show up at your door? 

 

Babylonian Cthulhu Idol

BVDV14 brings us this recreation of the Babylonian Cthulhu idol featured in Guillermo del Toro's Cabinet of Curiosities series on Netflix.  It's based on the original design created by artist and designer Guy Davis, one of the director's long-time collaborators.

Using Wax Seals

Wax seals are one of the easiest ways to take tabletop RPG props to the next level.  Christina Makes Things over on YouTube has posted a great video covering the basic technique and some more advanced procedures.  That includes blending colors, highlighting, and the use of wax molds and sticker backings.  

Woman of the Woods

Model Margaret Kery brings us this stunning costume created by Brutal Workshop.  It's a good example of how layers of texture add to each other to create a cumulative impression.  You should click through to check out the complete photo series. 

 

Great Cthulhu

Danish artist Anders Lerche brings us this clay master sculpt for what is soon to be a latex Cthulhu mask.