Ythogtha

the Thing in the Pit, the Abomination in the Abyss, Bloody Feaster, Ill-og-Xoth, Roi-Yugg, Sunken One, the Twisting Horror, the Unwaking Sleeper

### Associations

Dampness; deep ones; hunger; Mu; oiliness; repugnance; sculpture; sea depths; sleep; statuary; toads; voormi; Yhe; yuggya

### Relatives

Azathoth (great-great-great-grandparent); Magnum Innominandum (great-great-grandparent); Darkness (great-great-grandparent); Yog-Sothoth (great-grandfather); Shub-Niggurath (great-grandmother); Nug (grandparent); Cthulhu (father); Idh-yaa (mother); Ghatanathoa (sibling); Cthylla (sibling); Zoth-Ommog (sibling); Mordiggian (half-sibling); Tsathoggua (cousin); Yogash the Ghoul (half-nibling); K'baa the Serpent (half-grandnibling)); Ghoth the Burrower (half-great-grandnibling); Howard Phillips Lovecraft (distant relative)

### Common Blessings

**The Eye:** the follower is blessed with an extra eye that grows in their forehead. While the eye provides additional viewing capabilities (bonus die to Spot Hidden rolls), its main feature is allowing Ythogtha to see through it, providing the Old One with knowledge of day-to-day events. While the entity is unlikely to be roused to action by sights through such eyes, certain things may cause Ythogtha to wake briefly and thereby use the eye to send psychic messages to other humans in close proximity. Looking deeply into such an eye may grant the viewer an image of Ythogtha, with commensurate Sanity loss.**Toad Form:** blessed with the ability to transform into a toad-like thing, with extended limbs and hair thickening to become reaching tendrils. The change costs 5 magic points, takes 1 round to accomplish, and gifts the cultist with increased speed (+2 MOV), increased DEX (+30), and a new attack form, using the tendrils to strike out for 1d6+1 damage.

> The statuette was loathsome and felt wet when touched despite its bone-dry appearance. It portrayed a bipedal monstrosity whose limbs possessed a batrachian litheness, and whose torso was elongated and sinuous. The two foremost limbs were raised up, revealing webbed fingers ending in long nails. Rising between these appendages was the foul head, a mass of twisting and coiling snakes or tendrils, that gave the impression of constant movement, enough to cause the viewer an uneasy feeling in the
> pit of their stomach. A single large eye could partially be seen within the morass, fashioned so that it seemed to follow the viewer’s gaze at all times.
>
>

According to the *Zanthu Tablets*, which are cited as the primary source of information concerning this entity, Ythogtha was the second son begat by Great Cthulhu on Xoth before it and its kin came to Earth. Ythogtha is believed to have followed in Cthulhu’s wake and took up domain on lost Mu where it was worshipped by a large population of planarian-like yuggya and served by their lord Ubb, the Father of Worms. In time, the Old One left Mu and took up residence in the city of Yhe (later the Abyss of Yhe, which was possibly linked in some manner to R’lyeh. Certain tribes of voormi are thought to have later taken Ythogtha into their devotions, with surviving groups still offering sacrifices during the dark of the moon.

Ythogtha resembles a gigantic, humanoid frog, or deep one, with but a single, huge eye in the center of his forehead like a cyclops. A dense mane and a beard of writhing tentacles grows from his head. Ythogtha is incredibly large; when the sorcerer-priest Zanthu attempted to free Ythogtha from his prison, he mistook his god's clawed, slimy fingertips for mountainous heads.

Evidence suggests that Ythogtha was imprisoned by the Elder Gods, with the city of Yhe collapsing into the ocean and forming its prison walls. The *Zanthu Tablets* remark that Elder Wards were placed on certain keystones to confine Ythogtha in this watery tomb in the furthest depths. It is thought this Old One remains in a state of torpor, rarely waking to influence the world. Indeed, unlike Cthulhu, its “dreams” do not appear to manifest or are received only occasionally (perhaps once every millennium or so). Thus, little is truly known of its thoughts or goals, other than (presumably) to seek release and freedom.

The *Zanthu Tablets* do, however, suggest that a spell exists for summoning Ythogtha, although the text makes no mention of its name or location. Some scholars who have studied the lore concerning Ythogtha claim that this summoning spell is hidden in the inscriptions of the *Tablets* themselves, but that the code is near unbreakable. A handful of other scholars believe the calling forth of this Old One is achieved through its hard-to-find statuettes, which are said to rest upon the ocean floor, covered in the silt and sands of time. Occasionally, an idol of Ythogtha comes to light, often misattributed to some earthly creature, god, or mythological creation, and, as these are highly sought after by certain scholars and worshippers, the competition to claim, steal, or purchase these can be fierce. In consequence, such statuettes carry with them a history of blood and woe.

## Cult

While a few, far spread cults devote themselves to the worship of Ythogtha, this Old One does not appear to have much in the way of truly organized religion in the human world. For many, Ythogtha is given token praise during their rites and ceremonies in adoration of Great Cthulhu, but little else. Of those who follow only Ythogtha, the Reaching Hand is perhaps the most infamous and accomplished, having perpetrated a number of atrocities in honor of their god in the American Midwest.

Tokens of worship may be seen in some Asian and coastal communities where dealing with the deep ones are common, as Ythogtha is held in high regard as the “Unwaking Sleeper” by many deep one communities. Evidence may also be found of voormi worship: a species who seem to delight in particular and bloody sacrifices to this Old One. Of course, in places where they lurk, yuggya may be found holding rites and offering sacrifices to Ythogtha.

## Encounters

In the unlikely event of exploring the remains of R’lyeh, searchers may come across strange doorways through which they may unexpectedly travel to the Abyss of Yhe and the resting place of Ythogtha. Similar access may be afforded elsewhere on Earth and beyond.

Idols, statuettes, and other paraphernalia may come to light concerning Ythogtha, with such objects not only attracting the murderous and scheming attention of dark-minded folk but also possessing unusual and (often) deadly characteristics. Those encountering deep ones, yuggs, and the voormi may find themselves becoming sacrifices for this Old One.

## Aura

Anything connected to this entity tends to convey a sense of damp or wetness, with items being oily to the touch and provoking negative reactions. A sense of repugnance, of vile and nasty things fills the mind, offering a glimpse of the horror that is Ythogtha.