Café de Nuit

Somewhere in the back of the book (last appendix, the adventures section) there is reference to an Aztec god being a giant subterrean jellyfish. The god in question, upon further research, isn't all that Jellyfishesque on first look. Can anyone explain the reasoning behind this suggestion?

I ask because, as I've said before, I am a Dark matter DM. If anyone recalls, one adventure (actually, THE adventure Dark Matter published) involves...you geussed it, a giant underground jellyfish. If I knew where this connection between the god and a jellyfish came from, I might be able to use that to enhance the background of the game.

Please help...

Could be a Dagon - fishman thing: An author just thought it would be more interesting as a bizarre abberation.

Yes, but what is it about the god that would suggestion such a thing? As I said, it would lend some dramatic insight into my game if I could use that information, but only if I understand the motivation behind it.

Xochipili was a male deity, the god of flowers. The jellyfish goddess sounds more like Coatlicue, "She Whose Skirt Is Made Of Serpents". Although it even more sounds like the fictional goddess Caltiki from an old Italian film.

The jellyfish thing might've come about via confusion between Tlaltecuhtli (another Earth Monster) and Cipactli, a sea serpent? AFAIK, there was some sort of connection/confusion between the two...

Mostly, I want to know how the author was able to extrapolate a giant, FEMALE jellyfish of possibly demonic origin from the MALE god of flowers, song and dance of the Aztecs?

That's like saying that Confucius usurped the throne of The First Emperor Shi Huang Di when he summoned Gojira to destroy the Imperial Army in the Ganges.

Gemathustra wrote:That's like saying that Confucius usurped the throne of The First Emperor Shi Huang Di when he summoned Gojira to destroy the Imperial Army in the Ganges.

That's right. Everyone knows he destroyed them on the Yellow River.

I'm sure that the mistake was just made in haste. They wanted something weird, so made up the earth-jelly-fish, and then attached the name of a random Aztec gawd.

What I'd really like to know is how you can tell that its a female jellyfish.

ScS of the Fraternity wrote: What I'd really like to know is how you can tell that its a female jellyfish.

Especially since jellyfish are HERMAPHRODITES.

One confusing trip to the library and finding a poor copy of Aztec mythology is all it would take.
Brainstorming ideas on how to D&D a couple of the legends and the pilaging of one of lthe less described gods there anf voila.

I still find Moriarty the dumbest idea in th book...

You don't like Professor Moriarty?

I thought it was a great idea to include the infamous villian, and I figure that a rakshasa was a neat idea for a monster - certainly better than a vampire!

His inclusion is good. I’d love to include him in any adventures I’d run (if it wasn’t of the fear of being seen as ripping of LXG).
The fact he's an ancient Indian demon-spirit is not.

They're neat monsters and great foes... but they're not a Victorian Napoleon of Crime.
It was needless, I didn't see the point of every servant of the Red Death being a monster.

Gemathustra wrote:

ScS of the Fraternity wrote: What I'd really like to know is how you can tell that its a female jellyfish.

Especially since jellyfish are HERMAPHRODITES.

What I'd really like to know is why anyone would want to look up the jellyfish's skirt in the first place.

The Jester wrote:One confusing trip to the library and finding a poor copy of Aztec mythology is all it would take.
Brainstorming ideas on how to D&D a couple of the legends and the pilaging of one of lthe less described gods there anf voila.

I still find Moriarty the dumbest idea in th book...

Well, Xochipili was a popular deity among the Aztecs, as he was one of the gods who presided over the hours of the day, as well as being one of the "day" deities who presided over the day of "Lizard" in the Aztec calender, as well as being the patron deity of the "Festival of Flowers" celebration.

Reginald de Curry wrote:

Gemathustra wrote:

ScS of the Fraternity wrote: What I'd really like to know is how you can tell that its a female jellyfish.

Especially since jellyfish are HERMAPHRODITES.

What I'd really like to know is why anyone would want to look up the jellyfish's skirt in the first place.

It's hard not to look up jellies' skirts, given as how they're as opaque as a dollop of snot in a swimming pool (that is, very transparent among 99% of known species).

It might be an old-school gamers' "in joke". Decades ago, the 1st Edition AD&D module "Hidden Shrine of Tamaoachan [sp?]" featured PCs' attempt to escape from an Aztec-style step pyramid. Within the pyramid were lots of D&D monsters -- a vampire, a mummified centaur, giant bugs, etc IIRC -- which the builders of the pyramid had evidently revered as earthly avatars of their deities. One of those monsters was a "giant polyp" (= sea anemone, which is basically an upside-down jellyfish) with poisonous tendrils; it was treated like a living trap, as it looked just like a dead tree standing in a pool of water until the PCs got too close.

Gemathustra wrote:

ScS of the Fraternity wrote: What I'd really like to know is how you can tell that its a female jellyfish.

Especially since jellyfish are HERMAPHRODITES.

Actually, most jellyfish do have separate male and female genders. It's those cnidarians that sit around on the sea floor (anemones, corals) which are asexual and reproduce by budding.

To tell a jelly's gender, you need to use a microscope to see if the gonads are making eggs or sperm. Yes, you can see the reproductive organs through the transparent 'jelly' and skin, but cnidarian ovaries and testes look alike.

David of the Frat wrote:His inclusion is good. I’d love to include him in any adventures I’d run (if it wasn’t of the fear of being seen as ripping of LXG).
The fact he's an ancient Indian demon-spirit is not.

They're neat monsters and great foes... but they're not a Victorian Napoleon of Crime.
It was needless, I didn't see the point of every servant of the Red Death being a monster.

I see your point, but I thought it was a nice touch to have the connection between the British Raj in India and the crime-lord of London.

To draw a connection between Dracula (the book) and Moriarty (as presented in MotRD), perhaps the rakshasa spirit learned of the great metropolis of London and said to him/itself, "Well. That sounds like an opportunity for mayhem, well away from anyone who knows of my weaknesses. What time does the steamer depart from Bombay?"