Yog-Sothoth.com
Encyclopedia
Yog-sothoth.com is an ENnie award-winning website devoted to the works of weird-fiction author H.P. Lovecraft
, and the Call of Cthulhu roleplaying game
from Chaosium
.
, and the associated 'Cthulhu-mythos'
Secondly, the website focuses on the various roleplaying , board, and computer games that have been developed in response to Lovecraft's works. In particular, YSDC looks at Call of Cthulhu
, the classic roleplaying game from Chaosium
inc.
YSDC publishes news about new releases from Chaosium and the various Call of Cthulhu licensees, mythos-related films, books, games and conventions. It has a very active forum community which discusses all aspects of the mythos created by Lovecraft, and hosts a variety of mythos-related documents and files.
The website also produces a regular podcast
, Yog Radio, discussing aspects of the roleplaying game Call of Cthulhu. In December 2009 a streaming audio channel was also launched (Yog Radio Radio ).
The host of the site is an enthusiastic player of Call of Cthulhu, and the site also produces podcasts of his gaming group, The Bradford Players, running through classic Call of Cthulhu scenarios such as Masks of Nyarlathotep, Horror on the Orient Express and Walker in the Wastes. The group recently began playing through the scenario Tatters of the King. In 2009 the collected podcasts of Masks of Nyarlathotep and Horror on the Orient Express were released on a DVD along with a great deal of supplementary material, as 'Lovecraftian Tales from the Table'.
The site has fans all over the world, and is most popular with its US and UK viewers
Yog Radio won a Silver ENnie the following year for Best Podcast.
Lovecraftian Tales from the table won the UK Games Expo Award in 2009 for Best Roleplaying Game.
, Pegasus Spiele and others. The forums are some of the friendliest on the web, due to Paul of Cthulhu and his moderator's policy of keeping the boards civil
The focus on the forums is largely on the roleplaying games associated with Lovecraft's mythos, but can also range from the original works of Lovecraft and his fellow authors, through mythos-related films, books, games and real-world events than could be interpreted from a mythos standpoint.
H. P. Lovecraft
Howard Phillips Lovecraft --often credited as H.P. Lovecraft — was an American author of horror, fantasy and science fiction, especially the subgenre known as weird fiction....
, and the Call of Cthulhu roleplaying game
Call of Cthulhu (role-playing game)
Call of Cthulhu is a horror fiction role-playing game based on H. P. Lovecraft's story of the same name and the associated Cthulhu Mythos.The game, often abbreviated as CoC, is published by Chaosium.-Setting:...
from Chaosium
Chaosium
Chaosium is one of the longer lived publishers of role-playing games still in existence. Founded by Greg Stafford, its first game was actually a wargame, White Bear and Red Moon, which later mutated into Dragon Pass and its sequel, Nomad Gods...
.
Description
Yog-sothoth.com's focus is on two main areas. Firstly, the works of the early 20th Century weird-fiction writer, H.P. LovecraftH. P. Lovecraft
Howard Phillips Lovecraft --often credited as H.P. Lovecraft — was an American author of horror, fantasy and science fiction, especially the subgenre known as weird fiction....
, and the associated 'Cthulhu-mythos'
Cthulhu Mythos
The Cthulhu Mythos is a shared fictional universe, based on the work of American horror writer H. P. Lovecraft.The term was first coined by August Derleth, a contemporary correspondent of Lovecraft, who used the name of the creature Cthulhu - a central figure in Lovecraft literature and the focus...
Secondly, the website focuses on the various roleplaying , board, and computer games that have been developed in response to Lovecraft's works. In particular, YSDC looks at Call of Cthulhu
Call of Cthulhu (role-playing game)
Call of Cthulhu is a horror fiction role-playing game based on H. P. Lovecraft's story of the same name and the associated Cthulhu Mythos.The game, often abbreviated as CoC, is published by Chaosium.-Setting:...
, the classic roleplaying game from Chaosium
Chaosium
Chaosium is one of the longer lived publishers of role-playing games still in existence. Founded by Greg Stafford, its first game was actually a wargame, White Bear and Red Moon, which later mutated into Dragon Pass and its sequel, Nomad Gods...
inc.
YSDC publishes news about new releases from Chaosium and the various Call of Cthulhu licensees, mythos-related films, books, games and conventions. It has a very active forum community which discusses all aspects of the mythos created by Lovecraft, and hosts a variety of mythos-related documents and files.
The website also produces a regular podcast
Podcast
A podcast is a series of digital media files that are released episodically and often downloaded through web syndication...
, Yog Radio, discussing aspects of the roleplaying game Call of Cthulhu. In December 2009 a streaming audio channel was also launched (Yog Radio Radio ).
The host of the site is an enthusiastic player of Call of Cthulhu, and the site also produces podcasts of his gaming group, The Bradford Players, running through classic Call of Cthulhu scenarios such as Masks of Nyarlathotep, Horror on the Orient Express and Walker in the Wastes. The group recently began playing through the scenario Tatters of the King. In 2009 the collected podcasts of Masks of Nyarlathotep and Horror on the Orient Express were released on a DVD along with a great deal of supplementary material, as 'Lovecraftian Tales from the Table'.
History
Yog-sothoth.com has been online for over ten years, and has passed through numerous different iterations. Paul Maclean (also known as Paul of Cthulhu due to his long-standing love of Chaosium's roleplaying game) has been running the site from its inception in 1998.The site has fans all over the world, and is most popular with its US and UK viewers
Awards
Yog-sothoth.com won a Gold ENnie in 2006 for Best Fan site.Yog Radio won a Silver ENnie the following year for Best Podcast.
Lovecraftian Tales from the table won the UK Games Expo Award in 2009 for Best Roleplaying Game.
Community
YSDC has a thriving and forum community - active particpiants includes many of the original Chaosium writers, as well as newer writers from Miskatonic River Press, Pagan PublishingPagan Publishing
Pagan Publishing is a role-playing game publishing company founded by John Tynes in 1990. It began by publishing a Call of Cthulhu role-playing game fanzine, The Unspeakable Oath. In 1994, the company moved from Columbia, Missouri to Seattle, Washington where it incorporated. The staff at this time...
, Pegasus Spiele and others. The forums are some of the friendliest on the web, due to Paul of Cthulhu and his moderator's policy of keeping the boards civil
The focus on the forums is largely on the roleplaying games associated with Lovecraft's mythos, but can also range from the original works of Lovecraft and his fellow authors, through mythos-related films, books, games and real-world events than could be interpreted from a mythos standpoint.