Cthulhu Fhtagn! Mellies Edition

The very talented Florian Mellies created both the Cthulhu idol and arcane tablet pictured below. When I first saw it I thought the idol was a small model photoshopped into the picture. Nope, it's full-sized. Which I think makes it the second largest Cthulhu idol ever created, behind the 7' concrete lawn sculpture that I occasionally find pictures of on the net.* The Mellies Cthulhu would get bumped down to the third spot if one counts the giant inflatable Cthulhu created by the Rev. Marx as an "idol".



* And which I can't seem to find a picture of right now.

Dig We Must

Erik Anderson sent over this snapshot of his very snazzy Miskatonic Expedition bag on a genuine expedition. I love seeing gear like this in the wild.

Arkham Sanitarium Patient File

This is the preliminary layout for the file folders that I'm 95% sure are going to be part of the prop package. Combined with the existing Arkham Sanitarium documents they'll kick things up a notch, and it's damnably difficult to produce custom file folders on a DIY basis without access to a specialized large format laser or inkjet printer. Click through for the full-size graphics.

Here's the raw layout:



And a quick and dirty mockup:



They're pretty cool as static props, but they're also useful narrative tools. From an investigative standpoint the file's custody log can serve as a killer clue in live action or tabletop games, bringing to light inconsistencies in testimony from various characters.

Cthulhu Fhtagn! Koi and Soles Edition

Artists Ann Koi and Jason Soles bring us this cast resin Cthulhu statue. My memory is a little fuzzy, but I believe it served as the model for an illustration in one of the books from the short-lived D20 Cthulhu line.

Electroshock Treatment Record

This is the first document in the Arkham Sanitarium Project that I find genuinely disturbing. There's something deeply unsettling about the contrast between the neatly delineated rows and columns of a simple paper form and the physical violence of the procedure, even in it's most well meaning therapeutic incarnation.

It goes without saying that electroshock therapy (ECT) is controversial to this day, but I once again want to point out that H.P. Lovecraft's portrayal of Arkham Sanitarium was almost unfailingly positive. This particular piece of prop paperwork should be used sparingly unless you're going for the darker, grittier version of the sanitarium developed by later authors.

Electroshock was rare in the classic era of the 20's and 30's and highly experimental. Real research into the procedure wouldn't happen until the mid 30's, and it wouldn't see widespread adoption until the 50's. A treatment plan would begin with low voltages, the administered shock steadily increased until the patient went into convulsions. After that each session aimed to produce a seizure of at least 15 seconds duration and patients could undergo multiple treatments in a single day.

Voltages ranged from 70-450 volts, duration from .10 to .20 of a second.

Click the appropriate link below to download the full PDF from Scribd.

Arkham Sanitarium Electroshock Treatment Record

The Second Miskatonic Australian Expedition

Godspeed, John Cmar. Hopefully this expedition to Australia will turn out better than the first.

Arkham Sanitarium Letterhead

This is an example of the letterhead that would be used by the Sanitarium's administrators for any outside correspondence. The PDF includes an embedded typewriter font (the excellent "Chunk Type" from John Bruce) so the form can be filled out before printing. Click the appropriate link below to download the full PDF from Scribd. I'll have a copy available via Google Documents as soon as they resolve an issue with documents not being uploaded from Firefox.

The address of the Sanitarium on East Derby Street is based on Gahan Wilson's interpretation of Lovecraft's original hand drawn map of Arkham. The street number (345) is taken from Butler Hospital in Providence (345 Blackstone Boulevard). Butler was the place where both of Lovecraft's parents were treated and it was a major influence, if not the direct inspiration, for Arkham Sanitarium.

The telephone number draws on John Singleton's excellent research into conjecturally accurate exchanges for the classic era and later. "1893" is the year Lovecraft's father began his stay at Butler Hospital.

Arkham Sanitarium Letterhead (Interactive)