LHAUGGOGLUG (Great Old One)

It forced its way into my sleeping mind, made my soul stand before it. Something like a monstrous slug, with rolls and rolls of blubber covered in a stinking slime that seeped from visibly open, gasping pores. Spikes covered the thing. Some of them dug into its rolls of fat, creating wounds that wept greenish blood. Two tiny, useless arms rested against its belly. It’s face. Oh my god, it’s face. For a moment I glimpsed something so revolting that even in my dream I felt my stomach revolt. But when I looked back, what I saw resembled an immense human face, yards and yards across. Two stalks with eyes emerged from its forehead. Then, it grinned, as it were pleased to meet me. 

Other Names: Father of Slugs, the Drowner, the Deceiving Devourer. 

It is possible the face of Lhauggoglug presents depends on the observer. Humans will see a human face, but an alien such as a Mi-Go may see something else.  

Scholars seem to agree that Lhauggoglug is the offspring of another deity. Though among those few who know of the being’s existence, there is debate on which god spawned it. Some say it came on the meteor that brought Glaaki to Earth and may even be a piece of the great old one. This is based on Lhauggoglug’s slug-like form and a single line in volume one of The Revelations of Glaaki. A mention in On Sending Out the Soul ties it to Hydra, the goddess of the endless slime. The most detailed discussion of Lhauggoglug takes place in The Caliginous Codices. There Lhauggoglug is described as stealing or consuming, depending on the translation, forbidden knowledge of the gods, then was banished to Mount Aarh-phan on Earth as punishment. Some scholars point to the similarities between this tale and that of Ubbo-Sathla as proof Lhauggoglug is one of the Unbegotten Source’s innumerous brood. 

Whatever the case may be, Lhauggoglug is trapped beneath Mount Aarh-phan, lost somewhere among rugged, near-impassible mountains of Central Asia. There the god sits in a temple-prison of incomprehensible alien architecture, at the confluence of the Earth’s arcane energies. Over the millennia it has grown fat as it gorges on those energies, growing ever more so. It is so become so bloated it can longer move and is attended by its servants, the slug-horrors. From his throne, Lhauggoglug can see every use of magic on the planet and taste the desire of those who seek eldritch knowledge. It calls out to aspiring sorcerers, tempting them with promise of greater power, then leads them to their destruction. 

Any use of magic is enough to draw Lhauggoglug’s attention. It will first appear to the magic user while they sleep, prying into their soul to see if they can be tempted. Most will dismiss the encounter as just a nightmare, albeit a horrific one. For those that it determines can be manipulated, Lhauggoglug will whisper promises to instruct them in the arcane arts. It starts by teaching them minor spells, then showing them how to strengthen their will to cast greater spells and leads them to eldritch artifacts. It may even provide them a slug-horror servants to assist the sorcerer. Once the sorcerer has gain sufficient power, Lhauggoglug summons them to Aarh-phan for one final lesson. The journey through the temple-prison is near-impossible for most humans without the guidance of Lhauggoglug or a slug-horror to show them the way. Once there, Lhauggoglug devours the sorcerer, absorbing their power, and shitting them out as a new slug-horror. 

Cult

There is no organized cult dedicated to Lhauggoglug. Most mythos beings and sorcerers know to give the great old one a wide berth, to resist its temptations, however strong the lure. There are however those that think they can outwit the deity if they gain its favor by raising a cult and providing sacrifices. Lhauggoglug cares nothing for worship and has no desire to be free of its prison, content to feed until the end of time. It does find attempts at worship amusing, wise to the sorcerer’s schemes. It may provide them blessings and slug-horrors as attendants to the cult. Cultists can be identified by the thick slime they sweat. Some sorcerers believe if they bring a sacrifice when they are summoned to Aarh-phan, Lhauggoglug will devour the sacrifice instead, and provide the sorcerer with ultimate knowledge.

It doesn’t work. 

Possible Blessings

• Mucous: grants the ability to spit a clear, viscous, goo at an opponent. A successful Dodge roll is necessary to avoid being struck. If the mucous hits, the target must make a Luck roll. On a success, there is no suffer effect. A failed Luck roll indicates the mucous has hit the victim in the face and is working into their airways and lungs. The victim must make a successful CON roll or lose 1D6 Hit Points each round until the mucous is cleared away or they suffocate. Water does not dilute the slime. 
• Aura: the blessed can project the aura of the great old one (see below).

Encounters

Direct meetings with Lhauggoglug are rare. Encounters are likely to be indirect, such as with sorcerers under the god’s manipulative tutelage, minor cults dedicated to it, or its slug-horrors. Any investigator that casts a magic-spell may find Lhauggoglug’s attention. Through dreams it will tempt the investigator with promises of magic that can fulfill their desires, such as spells to defeat other mythos entities, the ability to extract revenge, or resurrect a deceased loved one. 

Aura

Those in the presence of the great old one or its worshipers feel an immense pressure pushing them down, their limbs heavy like they are moving through water, and difficult drawing a breath. The feeling of drowning in Lhauggoglug’s mucous plagues the dreams of those touched by the deity. 

Lhauggoglug, the keeper of arcane knowledge

Sanity Loss: 1/1D4 to see a vision of Lhauggoglug. 1D6/1D20 to encounter Lhauggoglug. 

Magic

• POW: 400
• Magic Points: 80
• Spells: Almost any the Keeper can think of. 

Powers

Devour: may compel anyone standing before it to walk into its open, waiting mouth. The effect is automatic unless the potential victim makes a successful Extreme POW roll. Those throwing themselves into Lhauggoglug’s maw are all too aware of their actions as they do it. Anyone that manages to resist still must contend with the attending slug-horrors and the wrath of the deity itself. 

The Drowning: may fill the lungs of anyone that displeases it with the same slimy mucous that covers its bottle. The victim will begin to drown (see Mucous blessing above). 

Typical Manifestation

• Hit Points: 60
• Damage Bonus (DB): ₊6D6
• Build: 6
• Mov: 0

Combat

Attacks Per Round: 1 (spikes)

Lhauggoglug grows a whip-like pseudopod covered in spikes and lazily swipes at opponents. The great old one knows an almost infinite number of magic spells and may cast any one automatically each round of combat, only paying the POW or magic point cost. 

Special Attack

Armor

• None, non-magical weapons do only minimum damage.
• Lhauggoglug heals half of all lost hit points each round. 
• If reduced to 0 hit points, Lhauggoglug explodes in a blast of eldritch energy, causing 10D10 Hit Points of damage to anything within 100 feet. It will reform within a few centuries.

Bruce Priddy

Bruce is a sociology student and co-host of The Crypt Keepers podcast