Will o' the Wisp Troll Head

Have you ever seen a faint flickering ghostly light over the marshes and swampland? Those who approach the light notice consistently that it appears to move away from them, but if they turn around and walk away, it appears to follow them .This light is "troll fire" held in the hand of a small troll-like creature that mischievously leads lone travellers off the beaten path at night.

The talented Alice Tochylovska returns to our pages with this incredibly detailed head from a Will o' the Wisp Troll. The piece has a very Froud-ian feel, and I mean that as the highest sort of praise. He's one of the very few artists that gets the mix of whimsy and menace the fae embody.

Stone Cthulhu Amulets

Mexican artist Jessica E. C. R. brings us this pair of carved stone Cthulhu amulets.

Making a Waxed Tablet

Kathy Storm has a great tutorial for creating a waxed tablet that would make a handy prop for both tabletop and live action games. Historically, they were used to keep records from antiquity right through the 1800s.

Cthulhu Fhtagn! Croughan Edition.

This unusual Cthulhu idol comes to us from artist Andy Croughan. The entire piece is carved from matchsticks. 

The unconventional choice of materials is particularly evocative.  During the Depression hand carved items like this were how thousands of homeless men and hobos supported themselves.  I can imagine some tourists coming across it in the "Tramp Art" section of a precociously cute, upscale antique shop.  So folksy, such an unusual piece of Americana.  It will look perfect at the beach house!

And a few weeks later the dreams start.

Praise the Sun!

The talented Mille Cuirs returns with the Book of the Golden Sun, hand bound in leather with brass adornments.

Amulet of the Nightgaunt

From Beyond Dolls brings us this outstanding Nightgaunt pendant cast in sterling silver.

The Eye of Cthulhu

Artist Mark Arnold was kind enough to send over this look at his latest piece- The Eye of Cthulhu amulet.  The radiating iris effect of the inset stone is very cool.

More Miskatonic Ephemera

Mike Jenkins has been on a roll with his excellent Miskatonic paper props.  He's now added a few more items, including fraternity membership cards.  One thing I really like about his work that isn't visible in a photograph is the variety of paper stocks he uses.  Prop documents are far more believable when they have a mix of paper weights and finishes.

Shoggoth Tissue Sample

Mr. Zarono returns to our pages with this wonderfully icky shoggoth tissue sample from the Miskatonic vaults.

Elven Trail Ration Prop

Wats6831 is back with another collection of edible props for tabletop fantasy gaming.  This time he tackles an elven trail ration:

Top left to right: Evereskan Honey Comb, Elven Travel Bread (Amaretto Liquer Cake with custom swirls), Lurien Spring Cheese (goat cheese with garlic, salt, spices and shallots), Delimbyr Vale Smoked Silverfin (Salmon), Honey Spiced Lichen (Kale Chips), and Silverwood Pine Nuts

The elven travel cake was absolutely amazing (double the strength of iron rations in half the weight!). The cheese as well. Pungent, rich and just the perfect amount of salt. The lichens were sweet and spicy. We each took a bite out of the honey comb, it was WILD. The honey is dark, rich, and much stronger than "normal" honey. The honey dissolves in your mouth, then you have an enjoyable chew on a small ball of bee's wax.

I really like these projects. In and of themselves they're great tools for getting players more immersed in the game. Beyond that, they're interesting thought experiments. You'll find the Reddit discussion about the elven rations here, and Wats6831's earlier human rations and dwarven trail food after the links.

How to Make Prop Vines

The improbably named Disco Zombie has a handy tutorial on created prop vines using sisal or hemp rope and Great Stuff expanding insulation foam.   This could easily be adapted to make ropy, organic like tendrils and tentacles.

The Goblin

Netherworld Oddities was lucky enough to capture this fiendish little goblin.  You have to respect the gobbos.  Like the rest of the fae they're nasty, brutish creatures, but they're honest about it. 

Cthulhu Fhtagn! Lobe Edition.

This intriguing Cthulhu idol comes to us from artist Jonah Lobe.  I really like the swooping lines of the stylized wings.

Amulet of the Bies

Polish artist Anna Mazon brings us this ornate pendant depicting a bies, or evil spirit, from Slavic folklore.  I suspect the flattering, cheerful depiction is an attempt at appeasing the little monsters, akin to the way black fae are referred to as "the fair folk".   The piece was hand carved (!) from bronze and incorporates a vial in the body of the pendant.

Eldritch Wand Display

This nifty wand display comes to us from artist Diego Rodriguez.  The wand is the work of Brandon La Croix.

The Innsmouth Look

Brad Darvas Designs brings us "Charlie the Fish 'r' Man", an Innsmouth inspired latex mask.  I'd love to see it painted up in some variant schemes.

Bronze Cthulhu Sigil

Continuing on from yesterday's unusual European specimen, William Rushing brings us this curious find:

Some of you may recall my report two years ago of a carving in a cave on the coast of Ireland. After nearly a full year of excavation there has been another discovery. Buried deep at the foot of the ruined altar was a small stone box containing thirteen bronze tokens each emblazoned with the same symbol as was carved into the wall.

Those familiar with certain whispered traditions may recognize this as a stylized depiction of Cthulhu.  One shudders to think what unspeakable rites took place in that thankfully unidentified cave.

The Tatzelworm

Bestiarius was lucky enough to capture this specimen of the elusive Alpine tatzelworm.  The species is one of Europe's most notable cryptids.

The Sanguine Rose

This detailed recreation of the Sanguine Rose from Skyrim comes to us from Arsynal Props.  It's the quest reward for an adventure anyone who's ever been a heavy drinker will find particularly amusing.

Glowing Soulgem

Brazen and Bold Productions brings us this casting of a glowing soulgem straight from the mold.  The resin is impregnated with glow in the dark pigment powder that emits light for hours after being exposed to bright illumination.

The Book of Names

Mille Cuirs returns to our pages with this beautiful grimoire.  Surprisingly, it's actually an autograph book for use by a collector.  The hand tooled leather cover features a few signature examples embossed into the central border.

The Oracle

"The Oracle" statuette comes to us from artist Dominic Qwek.  A final painted version of the piece is in the works.

Specimen 012-2116

The talented Ian Austin returns to our pages with this unusual creature.  The paint job is just incredible.  Check out that translucent banding on the tentacles.

Dwarven Trail Rations

Back in December wats6831 took a break from the usual snacks for his tabletop RPG game and offered up his take on trail rations. Now he's returned with some dwarven trail food:

I made what I thought could go in a dwarven trail ration: garlic chicken livers, smoked and peppered cheese, spiced pork sausages, hard tack, dried vegetables, dried wild mushrooms. We tried to eat the livers wife just about threw up. I gagged one down with plenty of ale. Never again. We tried to eat the hard tack by soaking in hot tea. None of us could even get a bite. It took a couple hours of soaking in the sink to even get a fork in it.  Everything is made by us except the sausage and cheese. I picked the morels this spring.

I find this really fascinating, since one of my other hobbies is vintage-style bushcraft. The only food I take major issue with is the chicken liver. Organ meats spoil incredibly quickly, so they're usually eaten immediately after slaughter or preserved by incorporating the fat-heavy meat into sausages.

Just as a thought experiment, I think there are some other foods our hearty little dwarven friends would be carrying. Given their homes in mountainous, cool climates (at least in the stereotypical fantasy world) wheat is probably a luxury grain that has to be imported.  Their locally produced staple grains are most likely oats, buckwheat, or rye.  That means dwarven travelers are presumably carrying sacks of groats or rye berries, all of which make a filling porridge. How about some oatcakes, the go-to food for generations of Irish and Scotts?  Or some buckwheat kasha? Dense, dark rye bread keeps for weeks after baking, and is effectively good indefinitely when dried, as in ruisreikäleipä.  And you can turn it into kvass, a refreshing alcoholic drink, in about 48 hours. 

It's not too much of a stretch to assume that dwarves are experts in preserving food with salt.  Outside of metal ores and gems it's the most valuable underground commodity available, in demand by every race and culture.  In addition to vegetable pickles dwarves are likely to be carrying salted meats including ham, bacon, and salt pork.

Dark's Pandemonium Carnival Flier

Brian Sibley brings us this scan of the carnival flier created for 1983's "Something Wicked This Way Comes".  It was apparently given to attendees of media screenings for the original release of the film.

Cthulhu Fhtagn! Phillips Edition.

This work in progress Cthulhu sculpt comes to us from artist Jim Phillips.  Open up the full sized pic for a closer look at the nicely done anatomical detail.

Lovecraftian Ephemera

Mike Jenkins has added some nifty new items to his growing collection of Lovecraftian paper props.  It includes some nicely done Miskatonic University documents.

Cthulhu Fhtagn! Chen and Williams Edition.

We've posted literally hundreds of Cthulhu idols, but it's still a thrill to come across a fresh take on the subject.  This beautiful piece comes to us from John Chen and Allen Williams.  These are renders of the model that's currently in line for 3D printing.

Gozerian Font

 "Ghostbusters: The Video Game" is widely hailed by fans as the true "third film" of the franchise.  It features voiceovers from the original cast, an intriguing story that builds on elements from the original picture, and slavishly accurate recreations of original props and locations.  It also happened to have this nifty font used by Gozerian cultists.  Lunoki was kind enough to digitize it and make it available on his DeviantArt page.  Just head over and click the download button in the upper right corner.

Molok the Destroyer

Les Artisans d'Azure brings us Molok the Destroyer. Maybe I'm getting snobbish in my old age, but I wish every LARP had costuming standards this high. I just cringe when I see low budget "green facepaint and bedsheets" LARP costumes. I know armor and gear can be expensive, but even the poorest player can learn how to use things like cloth wraps and layering to improve their basic kit.