ripvanwormer » Tue May 31, 2011 2:03 pm
Birchbeer wrote:
Is the edition of deities and demigods you are using the one with the Cthulhu and Melnibonean information or without? I never had that one and was wondering if any of those creatures inspired some monsters (I usually derive Mind Flayers as Cthulhu inspired). I'd be curious if any creatures derive from there in BECMI.
According to Gary Gygax, Mind flayers were inspired by the cover of Brian Lumney's novel, The Burrowers Beneath (which was itself Lovecraft-inspired).
Charles Stross, who invented the githzerai and githyanki, noted the extreme similarity between the mind flayers and the thrint, a race of tentacle-faced psionic slavers from Larry Niven's novel World of Ptavvs, and basically used the thrint backstory to create the story of an ancient mind flayer empire and subsequent rebellion. The name "githyanki" was stolen from a George R.R. Martin novel.
As for Havard's post, I agree that the astral wolf is probably the inspiration to the spectral wolf. Apart from being planar traders, I don't see much similarity between devourers and planar spiders; devourers look like humanoids in suits of armor in the original story and subsequent AD&D depictions. The cold woman is a blob like the scamille, but it has no shapeshifting powers.
One vaguely Mystaran character was definitely inspired by the Melnibonean mythos in 1st edition Deities & Demigods, though: Mandoom, who is a Kelmain (but Mandoom doesn't appear in either Quest for the Heartstone or Shady Dragon Inn, so his Mystaraness is slight). However, Shady Dragon Inn does note that Strongheart rides a nihrain horse. Nihrain horses are from the Melnibonean mythos, and described in Deities & Demigods.
The elemental rulers of AD&D - Istishia, Kossuth, Grumbar, and Akadi - are based on the elemental rulers of the Melnibonean mythos: Straasha, Kakatal, Grome, and Misha. The elemasters of the Immortals Set cosmology probably owe a debt to them, too.
Also see the oonai shapeshifters from the Melnibonean mythos, and compare them to the polymar. Same number of hit dice, similar ability to change into any creature of less than 10 hit dice.
The brain collector is based on Lovecraft's mi-go, which is in Deities & Demigods as well. The shoggoth is the inspiration for the gibbering mouther.
https://secretsun.blogspot.com/2014/08/lovecrafts-secret-source-for-chthulu_9.html