Weekly Wonders - Eldritch Archetypes Volume XIII - Archetypes of Azathoth

Archetypes of the Mad Sultan

The eldritch, the strange, and the weird are often relegated to the domains of villains and NPCs in fantasy, with the good guys being the ones who stand in the way of the dark things that remain just beyond our perception, which we can never truly understand. But sometimes, it can be fun to take on the mantle of the otherworldly, and to embrace the alien terrors of the cosmos. Each installment of Weekly Wonders: Eldritch Archetypes contains five archetypes for eldritch characters—those that are weird, alien, and otherworldly, who don’t fit in with normal society—as well as a cleric domain devoted to a specific mythos entity or race.

For this book, we focus on Azathoth, the blind idiot god at the center of all things, surrounded by strange and terrible dancers and flute-players that stave off its mindless wrath. Featured in a variety of works by H. P. Lovecraft, and first introduced in The Dream-Quest of Unknown Kadath, Azathoth is a recurring figure in Lovecraft’s works, and among the most beloved and iconic of his creations. Whether they directly mention Azathoth or not, each archetype in this book builds on themes of mindless idiocy, squamous and shapeless entities, and the power of music to lull such things.

• The mindless rager, a barbarian archetype that emulates the mindless thrashing of Azathoth, growing incredibly strong but horribly confused when enraged.
• The cosmic piper, a bard archetype that specializes in songs that soothe, pacify, and bind those who hear them.
• The tentacle magus, a magus archetype that adopts portions of Azathoth into his own form.
• The mind of Azathoth, a psychic archetype and discipline, which can take on terrible physical transformations to resemble Azathoth, and which gains power from madness.
• The visionary of Azathoth, a summoner archetype whose eidolon is a tiny fragment of Azathoth itself.
• A bonus cleric domain for those who worship Azathoth.

Whether you're about to embark on a campaign of eldritch horror (such as the official Paizo adventure path dealing with strange and alien entities), or you just want an excuse to play a servant of the unknowable and uncaring cosmic entities of the Cthulhu mythos, this book has lots of tantalizing options to offer. Even GMs can get in on the fun, as several of the archetypes here are perfect for insane cultist NPCs as well, and can make for exciting and memorable encounters.