Lloigor is a
fictional deity
This is a navigational list of deities exclusively from fictional works, organized primarily by media type then by title of the fiction work, series, franchise or author. This list does not include deities worshipped by humans in real life that ap ...
and a
fictional race
A fantasy trope is a specific type of literary trope (recurring theme) that occurs in fantasy fiction. Worldbuilding, plot, and characterization have many common conventions, many of them having ultimately originated in myth and folklore. J. R ...
in the
Cthulhu Mythos The Cthulhu Mythos is a mythopoeia and a shared fictional universe, originating in the works of American Horror fiction, horror writer H. P. Lovecraft. The term was coined by August Derleth, a contemporary correspondent and protégé of Lovecraft, t ...
. The entity first appeared in
August Derleth
August William Derleth (February 24, 1909 – July 4, 1971) was an American writer and anthologist. He was the first book publisher of the writings of H. P. Lovecraft. He made contributions to the Cthulhu Mythos and the Lovecraftian horror, cosmi ...
and
Mark Schorer
Mark Schorer (May 17, 1908 – August 11, 1977) was an American writer, critic, and scholar born in Sauk City, Wisconsin.
Biography
Schorer earned an MA at Harvard and his Ph.D. in English at the University of Wisconsin–Madison in 1936. During ...
's
short story
A short story is a piece of prose fiction. It can typically be read in a single sitting and focuses on a self-contained incident or series of linked incidents, with the intent of evoking a single effect or mood. The short story is one of the old ...
"The Lair of the Star Spawn" (1932), and has been used in subsequent fictional works by others though often departing from the original concept. The Lloigor are also referred to as the Many-Angled Ones, apparently beginning with
Grant Morrison
Grant Morrison (born 31 January 1960) is a Scottish comic book writer, screenwriter, and producer. Their work is known for its nonlinear narratives, Humanism, humanist philosophy and counterculture, countercultural leanings. Morrison has writt ...
's ''
Zenith
The zenith (, ) is the imaginary point on the celestial sphere directly "above" a particular location. "Above" means in the vertical direction (Vertical and horizontal, plumb line) opposite to the gravity direction at that location (nadir). The z ...
'', and some subsequent works use variations on this term in lieu of the name Lloigor.
Summary
Derleth's Mythos deity
August Derleth
August William Derleth (February 24, 1909 – July 4, 1971) was an American writer and anthologist. He was the first book publisher of the writings of H. P. Lovecraft. He made contributions to the Cthulhu Mythos and the Lovecraftian horror, cosmi ...
and
Mark Schorer
Mark Schorer (May 17, 1908 – August 11, 1977) was an American writer, critic, and scholar born in Sauk City, Wisconsin.
Biography
Schorer earned an MA at Harvard and his Ph.D. in English at the University of Wisconsin–Madison in 1936. During ...
originally created a being called Lloigor in their
short story
A short story is a piece of prose fiction. It can typically be read in a single sitting and focuses on a self-contained incident or series of linked incidents, with the intent of evoking a single effect or mood. The short story is one of the old ...
"The Lair of the Star-Spawn" (1932). Lloigor and its brother
Zhar, together referred to as the Twin Obscenities, were typical pseudo-Lovecraftian tentacled monstrosities identified as two of the
Great Old One
Cthulhu Mythos deities are a group of fictional deities created by American author H. P. Lovecraft (1890–1937), and later expanded by others in the fictional universe known as the Cthulhu mythos.
These entities are usually depicted as immens ...
s. Derleth referred to Lloigor in several other writings, "The Sandwin Compact" (1940) in particular. It was apparently a
wind
Wind is the natural movement of atmosphere of Earth, air or other gases relative to a planetary surface, planet's surface. Winds occur on a range of scales, from thunderstorm flows lasting tens of minutes, to local breezes generated by heatin ...
elemental
An elemental is a mythic supernatural being that is described in occult and alchemy, alchemical works from around the time of the European Renaissance, and particularly elaborated in the 16th century works of Paracelsus. According to Paracelsu ...
that possessed the ability to somehow draw its sacrificial victims to it, perhaps through
teleportation
Teleportation is the hypothetical transfer of matter or energy from one point to another without traversing the physical space between them. It is a common subject in science fiction and fantasy literature. Teleportation is often paired with tim ...
.
Wilson's alien race
Colin Wilson
Colin Henry Wilson (26 June 1931 – 5 December 2013) was an English existentialist philosopher-novelist. He also wrote widely on true crime, mysticism and the paranormal, eventually writing more than a hundred books. Wilson called his p ...
borrowed the name for "The Return of the Lloigor" (1969), but his creatures are very different from Derleth's. The Lloigor take the form of invisible
vortices of
psychic
A psychic is a person who claims to use powers rooted in parapsychology, such as extrasensory perception (ESP), to identify information hidden from the normal senses, particularly involving telepathy or clairvoyance; or who performs acts that a ...
energy, though they may sometimes make themselves manifest as great reptilian beasts, akin to the legendary
dragon
A dragon is a Magic (supernatural), magical legendary creature that appears in the folklore of multiple cultures worldwide. Beliefs about dragons vary considerably through regions, but European dragon, dragons in Western cultures since the Hi ...
s. In the distant past, the Lloigor came from the
Andromeda Galaxy
The Andromeda Galaxy is a barred spiral galaxy and is the nearest major galaxy to the Milky Way. It was originally named the Andromeda Nebula and is cataloged as Messier 31, M31, and NGC 224. Andromeda has a Galaxy#Isophotal diameter, D25 isop ...
to the continent of
Mu and used human slaves as their labor force. When their power dwindled, the Lloigor retreated below ground and left their former slaves to their own devices. Eventually, these early humans migrated from Mu and populated the earth.
In modern times, the Lloigor are too weakened to pose any real threat to humanity. Nonetheless, they can draw
psychic
A psychic is a person who claims to use powers rooted in parapsychology, such as extrasensory perception (ESP), to identify information hidden from the normal senses, particularly involving telepathy or clairvoyance; or who performs acts that a ...
energy from sleeping humans in nearby towns or villages — the victims so affected awaken feeling drained or ill, yet regain all lost vitality by nightfall — with which they can perform strange,
preternatural
The preternatural (or praeternatural) is that which appears outside, beside or beyond (Latin: '' præter'') the natural. It is "suspended between the mundane and the miraculous".
In theology, the term is often used to distinguish marvels or de ...
feats, such as causing mysterious explosions or
altering the flow of time.
In ''
The Illuminatus! Trilogy
''The Illuminatus! Trilogy'' is a series of three novels by American writers Robert Shea and Robert Anton Wilson, first published in 1975.''Illuminatus!'' was written between 1969 and 1971, but not published until 1975 according to Robert Anto ...
'' (1975), the lloigor are mentioned as the gods of the aboriginal natives of the
People's Republic of Fernando Po, as well as the original gods of
Atlantis
Atlantis () is a fictional island mentioned in Plato's works '' Timaeus'' and ''Critias'' as part of an allegory on the hubris of nations. In the story, Atlantis is described as a naval empire that ruled all Western parts of the known world ...
. Here, the term appears to be synonymous with ''
Great Old One
Cthulhu Mythos deities are a group of fictional deities created by American author H. P. Lovecraft (1890–1937), and later expanded by others in the fictional universe known as the Cthulhu mythos.
These entities are usually depicted as immens ...
''—for example,
H. P. Lovecraft
Howard Phillips Lovecraft (, ; August 20, 1890 – March 15, 1937) was an American writer of Weird fiction, weird, Science fiction, science, fantasy, and horror fiction. He is best known for his creation of the Cthulhu Mythos.
Born in Provi ...
's creation
Yog-Sothoth
Cthulhu Mythos deities are a group of fictional deities created by American author H. P. Lovecraft (1890–1937), and later expanded by others in the fictional universe known as the Cthulhu mythos.
These entities are usually depicted as immens ...
is called a lloigor.
The term Lloigor is again equated with Great Old Ones in
Alan Moore
Alan Moore (born 18 November 1953) is an English author known primarily for his work in comic books including ''Watchmen'', ''V for Vendetta'', ''The Ballad of Halo Jones'', Swamp Thing (comic book), ''Swamp Thing'', ''Batman: The Killing Joke' ...
's ''
League of Extraordinary Gentlemen
League or The League may refer to:
Arts and entertainment
* Leagues (band), ''Leagues'' (band), an American rock band
* ''The League'', an American sitcom broadcast on FX and FXX about fantasy football
* ''League of Legends'', a 2009 multiplayer ...
'', in the final chapter of "
Allan and the Sundered Veil
"Allan and the Sundered Veil" is a six-part horror comic story written in the style of a boy's periodical by Alan Moore and illustrated by Kevin O'Neill, included at the back of each issue of ''The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, Volume One'' ...
;" here, both terms are used to describe
Ithaqqa, a single facet of the self-aware idea known as "
Yuggoth
''The Whisperer in Darkness'' is a 26,000-word novella by American writer H. P. Lovecraft. Written February–September 1930, it was first published in ''Weird Tales'', August 1931. Similar to '' The Colour Out of Space'' (1927), it is a blen ...
". In ''
The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen: Black Dossier'',
Nyarlathotep
Nyarlathotep is a fictional character created by H. P. Lovecraft. The character is a malign deity in the Cthulhu Mythos, a shared universe. First appearing in Lovecraft's 1920 prose poem " Nyarlathotep", he was later mentioned in other works by L ...
is referred to as an emissary of the Lloigor when he is sent to negotiate a truce with
the Blazing World
''The Description of a New World, Called The Blazing-World'', better known as ''The Blazing World'', is a 1666 work of prose fiction by the English writer Margaret Cavendish, the Duchess of Newcastle. Feminist critic Dale Spender calls it a f ...
at the end of the comic. In ''The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen Volume IV: The Tempest'', a
Demogorgon
Demogorgon is a deity or demon associated with the underworld. Although often ascribed to Greek mythology, the name probably arises from an unknown copyist's misreading of a commentary by a fourth-century scholar, Lactantius Placidus. The concept ...
appears and is identified as a Lloigor.
A race of creatures known as Lloigor was the subject of the song "Lloigor" by the atmospheric black metal band
Dark Fortress
Dark Fortress was a German melodic black metal band from Landshut formed in 1994. They released seven studio albums, a split album and a demo album. The band broke up in 2023.
History
Early history
The band formed in 1994. In 1996 they re ...
. The song references "A thousand young", most likely referring to the thousand young of
Shub-Niggurath
Shub-Niggurath is a deity created by H. P. Lovecraft. She is often associated with the phrase "The Black Goat of the Woods with a Thousand Young". The only other name by which Lovecraft referred to her was "Lord of the Wood" in his story ''The W ...
. However, the verse of each song refers to a single entity. The Lloigor are also referred to as Yuggoth, a single entity. This is the first connection between Shub-Niggurath and Yuggoth made in this way.
The Many-Angled Ones
Scottish comics writer
Grant Morrison
Grant Morrison (born 31 January 1960) is a Scottish comic book writer, screenwriter, and producer. Their work is known for its nonlinear narratives, Humanism, humanist philosophy and counterculture, countercultural leanings. Morrison has writt ...
used the Lloigor as the primary villains (possessing the bodies and minds of various superhumans on various parallel earths) in their ''
Zenith
The zenith (, ) is the imaginary point on the celestial sphere directly "above" a particular location. "Above" means in the vertical direction (Vertical and horizontal, plumb line) opposite to the gravity direction at that location (nadir). The z ...
'' series for the
British
British may refer to:
Peoples, culture, and language
* British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies.
* British national identity, the characteristics of British people and culture ...
comics anthology
A comics anthology collects works in the medium of comics, typically from multiple series, and compiles them into an anthology or magazine. The comics in these anthologies range from comic strips that are too short for standalone publication to co ...
''
2000 A.D.'' The names directly corresponded to the names of Lovecraft's Great Old Ones. The name "Iok Sotot" and his epithet "Eater of Souls" came from ''The Illuminatus! Trilogy'' where it referred to Yog-Sothoth. They are referred to as "many-angled ones" (possibly the first use of this moniker) and appear to be entities who exist in a space with more dimensions than our own. As a result, when they manifest in our universe they appear as disconnected floating body parts — notably eyes and tentacles — belonging to some larger beast that is complete in the higher dimension, similar to how a three dimensional being would appear in
flatland
''Flatland: A Romance of Many Dimensions'' is a satirical novella by the English schoolmaster Edwin Abbott Abbott, first published in 1884 by Seeley & Co. of London. Written pseudonymously by "A Square", the book used the fictional two-dime ...
as its parts pass through the plane of that two-dimensional world. The many-angled ones plan to impose rigid geometrical order on the whole universe, essentially reducing it to clockwork. A number of British authors, often those who had previously written for ''2000 AD'', have since included the Many-Angled Ones in their works under that name.
The many-angled ones were mentioned in
Charles Stross
Charles David George "Charlie" Stross (born 18 October 1964) is a British writer of science fiction and fantasy. Stross specialises in hard science fiction and space opera. Between 1994 and 2004, he was also an active writer for the magazine ' ...
's ''
The Atrocity Archives
''The Laundry Files'' is a series of novels by British writer Charles Stross. They mix the genres of Lovecraftian horror, spy thriller, science fiction, and workplace humour. Their main character for the first five novels is "Bob Howard" (a pse ...
''. This work features the usual appearances by "nameless horrors of the abyss," which may or may not be many-angled ones. It is specifically stated – on multiple occasions – that "the many-angled ones live at the bottom of the
Mandelbrot set
The Mandelbrot set () is a two-dimensional set (mathematics), set that is defined in the complex plane as the complex numbers c for which the function f_c(z)=z^2+c does not Stability theory, diverge to infinity when Iteration, iterated starting ...
".
The
DC comic book
A comic book, comic-magazine, or simply comic is a publication that consists of comics art in the form of sequential juxtaposed panel (comics), panels that represent individual scenes. Panels are often accompanied by descriptive prose and wri ...
''
Hitman
Contract killing (also known as murder-for-hire) is a form of murder or assassination in which one party hires another party to kill a targeted person or people. It involves an illegal agreement which includes some form of compensation, moneta ...
'', by
Garth Ennis
Garth Ennis (born 16 January 1970) is a Northern Irish-American comics writer, best known for the Vertigo series ''Preacher'' with artist Steve Dillon, his nine-year run on Marvel Comics' ''Punisher'' franchise, and '' The Boys'' with artist Dar ...
, briefly featured demons called "The Multi-Angled Ones", similar in concept to the Many-Angled Ones of ''Zenith''. These beings killed most of the dysfunctional
superhero
A superhero or superheroine is a fictional character who typically possesses ''superpowers'' or abilities beyond those of ordinary people, is frequently costumed concealing their identity, and fits the role of the hero, typically using their ...
team
Section 8.
[''Hitman'' #51-52]
The many-angled ones also appear in
Simon R. Green's Secret History series of books ''The Man with the Golden Torc'' (2007), ''Daemons Are Forever'' (2008), and ''The Spy Who Haunted Me'' (2009).
In the
Marvel Comics
Marvel Comics is a New York City–based comic book publishing, publisher, a property of the Walt Disney Company since December 31, 2009, and a subsidiary of Disney Publishing Worldwide since March 2023. Marvel was founded in 1939 by Martin G ...
cosmic crossover event "
Realm of Kings
A realm is a community or territory over which a sovereign rules. The term is commonly used to describe a monarchical or dynastic state. A realm may also be a subdivision within an empire, if it has its own monarch, e.g. the German Empire.
Etymo ...
," written by
Dan Abnett
Daniel P. Abnett ( ; born 12 October 1965) is an English comic book writer and novelist. He has been a frequent collaborator with fellow writer Andy Lanning, and has worked on books for both Marvel Comics, and their UK imprint, Marvel UK, since ...
and
Andy Lanning
Andy Lanning is an English comic book writer and inker, known for his work for Marvel Comics and DC Comics, and for his collaboration with Dan Abnett.
Career
Lanning works primarily at Marvel Comics and DC Comics as an inker. He has also pencil ...
,
Quasar
A quasar ( ) is an extremely Luminosity, luminous active galactic nucleus (AGN). It is sometimes known as a quasi-stellar object, abbreviated QSO. The emission from an AGN is powered by accretion onto a supermassive black hole with a mass rangi ...
travels through a time/space rift to an alternate earth with multiple
Lovecraftian
Lovecraftian horror, also called cosmic horror or eldritch horror, is a subgenre of horror, fantasy fiction and weird fiction that emphasizes the horror of the unknowable and incomprehensible more than gore or other elements of shock. It is na ...
elements being part of the everyday reality of that world. There Quasar meets the Revengers, that world's counterparts to the Avengers, who received their powers from the Many-Angled Ones in exchange for adoration and worship from the heroes. That world's
Iron Man
Iron Man is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Co-created by writer and editor Stan Lee, developed by scripter Larry Lieber, and designed by artists Don Heck and Jack Kirby, the character first appearan ...
states that the Many-Angled Ones have outgrown their reality and need a new place to feed and be worshiped. They intend for Quasar to show them the way to his Earth. The Many-Angled Ones are opposed on this Earth by the heroes who believe in pure science, such as the
Vision
Vision, Visions, or The Vision may refer to:
Perception Optical perception
* Visual perception, the sense of sight
* Visual system, the physical mechanism of eyesight
* Computer vision, a field dealing with how computers can be made to gain und ...
. They later become the antagonists of ''
The Thanos Imperative
''The Thanos Imperative'' is a six-issue comic book limited series published in 2010 by Marvel Comics. It was written by Dan Abnett and Andy Lanning, and was bookended by two one-shot comics, ''Ignition'' and ''Devastation''. The story focuses o ...
'' miniseries, and it is stated that
Shuma-Gorath
Shuma-Gorath () is a character (arts), character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by Steve Englehart and Frank Brunner, the character first appeared in ''Marvel Premiere'' #10 (September 1973). Shuma-Gorath bel ...
is one.
In the 2010 remake of the video game ''
Splatterhouse
is a beat 'em up arcade game developed and published by Namco in 1988. It was the first in a series of games released in home console and personal computer formats. This game would later spawn the parody '' Splatterhouse: Wanpaku Graffiti'', the ...
'', scripted by ''2000 AD'' writer
Gordon Rennie
Gordon Rennie is a Scottish comics writer, responsible for ''White Trash: Moronic Inferno'', as well as several comic strips for '' 2000 AD'' and novels for '' Warhammer Fantasy''.
In May 2008, he announced he was leaving comics to concentrate ...
, the Many-Angled Ones is one of the names for the demonic race known as the Corrupted.
Notes
References
*
*
*
*
External links
The Many-Angled Onesat Comicvine
{{Grant Morrison
2000 AD characters
Characters created by Grant Morrison
Cthulhu Mythos species