Van Richten's guide to Eldritch horror.

[Mistmaster]

That's because the Far Realm is fruit of the classic lovecraftian pureview. In other words, if I had written about the Far Realm it would have been another thing.

[Wolfglide of the Fraternity]

That argument rings a little fallacious to me, dismissing that which is established to be unfathomable because it should not have been made unfathomable in the first place . . .

But to thine own self be true. No one has to use Lovecraftian horror.

[Mistmaster]

I do do use Lovecraftian horrors, and I twist them to suit my needs. Privilege of DM I suppose.

[GreenWood]

Wolfglide, exactly. The fact that the outer planes have infinite space on each layer of each plane just makes the possibilities totally endless. One could completely ignore the Lovecraftian elements of D&D. I'm a huge fan of Lovecraft, however, so I creep Cosmic horror into my Gothic horror on the regular.

[The Lesser Evil]

To me a Van Richten's Guide to Eldritch Horror (and maybe a Gothic Horror take or answer to Lovecraftian horror in general) is look at it through the lens of the human reaction to that horror. Although Lovecraft is often associated in popular culture with icky tentacles and eldritch abominations, I think a more subtle component are the cults that summon said abominations. I'd think a big part of something like a Guide to Eldritch Horror would be looking out for signs of cults and prevent them from conjuring things from beyond in the first place, i.e. proactive work. Although cultists are often dismissed as simply "insane", faceless, robe-wearing mooks, I think a Gothic approach would do well by pointing out that those cultists come from somewhere, that somewhere along the line everyone of them had or could have had a normal life like you or me, but somewhere along the line their lives went seriously off the rails.

What kind of mind embraces cosmic despair? What kind of soul is drawn to a force that offers it absolutely nothing? That to me is a really interesting question, as the human mind could assign or impose all sorts of moral attributes even to forces where there are none. Perhaps the moral lesson is not what exists out there but how we react to it.

[GreenWood]

Definitely. I also would hazard a guess that the cultists involved have the belief that they will be rewarded by the Cosmic forces or at the least, spared. I don't think that gets much attention in Lovecraft's work, but they are trying to open those doors for power. Not just for annihilation.

[Spark]

Definitely. I also would hazard a guess that the cultists involved have the belief that they will be rewarded by the Cosmic forces or at the least, spared. I don't think that gets much attention in Lovecraft's work, but they are trying to open those doors for power. Not just for annihilation.

"So when the stars are right / You'll come and do your worst / But that's okay because I know / You'll eat the cultists like me first"
Perhaps. Seems appropriate.

[Leliel]

Definitely. I also would hazard a guess that the cultists involved have the belief that they will be rewarded by the Cosmic forces or at the least, spared. I don't think that gets much attention in Lovecraft's work, but they are trying to open those doors for power. Not just for annihilation.

Thirded. Van Richten's Guide to Cults sounds much better, especially since I can draw on my own extensive nWoD library for inspiration (Second Sight has a chapter on building Cults To Things That Should Not Be, and outright says to build the cult leader first before the god; she's the real driver of events, not the stars she's waiting for alignment of).

[IrvyneWolfe]

Look at Lovecraft's own writing...

Cosmic horror is still gothic and the next best thing to magic when you don't understand it. When it's all spelled out that's when it becomes science fiction. So cosmic horror jives perfectly with Ravenloft just don't go out of your way to explain it to the players.

[GreenWood]

Look at Lovecraft's own writing...

Cosmic horror is still gothic and the next best thing to magic when you don't understand it. When it's all spelled out that's when it becomes science fiction. So cosmic horror jives perfectly with Ravenloft just don't go out of your way to explain it to the players.

I completely agree