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Description
The Elder Things, also known as the Primordial Ones and Old Ones (not to
be confused with the Great Old Ones) came to Earth more than a billion
years ago, establishing a number of cities under the seas, and
eventually migrating to the land. There is strong evidence the Elder
Things actually introduced life to the planet. Over the eons, the Elder
Things waged war on the Mi-Go and the Star Spawn of Cthulhu when those
races also colonized Earth. Elder Things are apparently the mortal
enemies of the Great Old Ones and their followers.
Elder things stand roughly two meters tall, and are barrel-shaped with a
diameter of a meter at the waist tapering to 30 cm at either end. Five
wings and five sets of tentacles (the latter branching into five arms
with five fingers each) are spaced about the circumference of the body.
The top of the body is crowned with a head of five eyes interspersed
with five stalks containing the being's mouths. A similar structure on
the Elder Thing's bottom has five long "legs" each ending in a
spade-shaped foot.
The Elder Thing's hide is extremely tough and resistant to pressure
changes or penetration. Elder Things are effectively immortal, dying
only from accidents or violence. During times of stress Elder Things can
enter prolonged periods of hibernation — sometimes for millions of
years. They reproduce by spores. Elder Things are omnivores with a
strong carnivorous streak.
Society: Because there is no "family" per se, Elder Things group
themselves by interests and careers, rather than by genetic relatedness.
Their preferred form of government might be considered socialistic. Elder
Things once inhabited vast stone cities of towering spires and eclectic
architecture (often with some variation of five sides). In their
dwellings and work spaces furniture is clustered in the center of the
room leaving the walls open for carvings, paintings and other artwork.
Elder Thing furniture consists mostly of frames for supporting their
bodies.
Elder Things are, by human standards, amoral. They have no qualms about
killing inconvenient or bothersome organisms, and have been known to
vivisect creatures they find interesting.
Technology: Elder Things were crossing the universe more than a
billion years ago, and their technology at the height of their
civilization would be considered almost god-like. They stressed the
biological sciences over the mechanical, however, breeding organisms to
perform operations for which humans would use machines. The
shoggoth
were one of the slave races created by the Elder Things, and there is
strong evidence that all life on Earth owes its origins to them.
The Elder Things Today: Elder Thing civilization disappeared
several million years ago for unknown reasons. Most of their cities have
been worn away by the elements, but one vast metropolitan ruin still
exists in the Antarctic. This city is known to a few governments and
universities, but exploration of the ruins was long ago discontinued
because of the dangers in the ruins. Most of the world is unaware of its
existence and there are a number of organizations who would like to keep
it this way. It is known that at least a handful of Elder Things
survived to the present day, and there may yet be many more in
undiscovered locations. |
