Sandy petersens cthulhu mythos (1) 35

Gnorri
As in the waking world, the oceans of the Dreamlands

and suspicion of the gnorri has given way to respect

are places of beauty and mystery to those who dwell

and support, and today the gnorri are valued as trade

upon their shores or ply their waves. Also as in the

partners and scouts, plying their extensive knowledge

waking world, the oceans can be as perilous as they

of the sea and its hazards as guides. This skill with

are breathtaking. Drowning, terrific storms, churning

alchemy and surgery makes an alliance with the gnorri

vortices, crushing pressures, dangerous animals, and

very valuable to surface dwellers (see Culture for

the threat of horrific sea monsters populate frightful

more detail).

tales told of the sea. These last, perhaps above all else,
inspire endless terror in the imagination of many.

It should come as no surprise to
learn that many sailors and
coastal dwellers view the
gnorri with a mixture
of fear, loathing, and
hatred, for here are
creatures

that

ape the vestige
of

humanity,

yet

are

little

like humanoids
at

all.

Their

strange-colored
skin, mutable number

of arms, and tentacle-like
lower bodies seem designed
by a malevolence bent on
evoking many of humanity’s deepest fears. The gnorri
lurk in the lightless depths of unplumbed ocean
trenches and shadowed reefs, mysterious and alien to
those who breathe air and abide upon the land.
Yet not all that dwells beneath the waves is
malevolent. While there are those among the gnorri
who harbor sadism and cruelty in their hearts, this is
no different than any sentient race; on the whole the
gnorri are more interested in trading than warring with
land dwellers. Indeed, in certain ports, the initial fear

28

History
The

oceans

of

the

Dreamlands have been the
home of gnorri enclaves
as

long

as

humanoids

have dreamed. Since the first
dreamers sought to sail those
cerulean waters, they have spotted
strange bearded faces peering up from
below and wondered.
The gnorri themselves are unusual among
many cultures in that they are not particularly
interested in where they come from or, indeed,
where they’re going. To the gnorri race, it is
enough to believe that they have always
existed, and thus they are comforted
in the knowledge that they will always
exist. Certainly, their coral cities and grottos
often have the appearance of great age, indicating that
their presence in the sea has lasted much longer than
humanity’s presence on land.
Certain rare texts suggest that the first gnorri existed
before humanity grew to understand the peculiarities
of dream. Indeed, the first tribes of coastal-dwelling
societies understood and feared the ocean, and in
their troubled dreams imagined ways of surviving in
the depths. Over the course of eons, these primitive
humanoids learned to build boats and sail. In so doing,
they lost their waking fear of the sea, and their awed