Sandy petersens cthulhu mythos (1) 39

In the sad case of gnorri whose age outstrips their

Nor do they have a concept of a “Mother Earth” or

accomplishments, exile may be a preferable fate to

“Heavenly Father,” as they have no concept of family.

constant ridicule or pity from the mouths of younger,
more accomplished generations.

wonder, is sufficient unto itself in terms of eliciting the

Gnorri do not build complex cities, but settlements

intellectual and emotional responses associated with

can grow quite large in size. They tend to be in tune

spiritual experience, and that there is no need for faith

with their environments, using nearby materials for

in traditional anthropormorphic concept of gods or

construction—especially coral. Gnorri coral shapers

similar ideas.

are masters at guiding the growth of coral through

They have no creation myths or foretold apocalypses

diverse methods, ranging from physical carving to

to concern themselves with. Nature has always existed

alchemical enhancement. Often, naturally-occurring

and will always exist and so it is with the gnorri.

caverns or rifts along the cave floor will serve as a gnorri

They recognize the existence of ghosts, spirits,

settlement, but in most cases, they wed such natural

and other things that “prove” that there is life after

features to crafted palaces. Bones are a valued building

death. But they have no concern about these or any

material for weapons and buildings alike. When a great

introspection on what happens to individuals after

sea beast dies, gnorri are quick to strip the body of its

they’ve died. They have a “does it matter” perspective

flesh and harvest the bones to serve once more as a

on what happens after life ends.

skeleton—only this time as the superstructure for a
coral building rather than a flesh-and-blood beast.

While they respect nature, they neither worship nor
revere it. While they work in harmony with nature,

While gnorri are omnivorous, they generally prefer

they don’t avoid manipulating the world around them

lives as vegetarians, for their teeth are not sharp and have

to suit their community’s needs. An example of this is

difficulty chewing through flesh. This is, of course, a

how they use their innate magical ability to turn rock

strange disconnect for very young gnorri, who in their

into mud to make grottos.

plankton stage are dedicated carnivores who feed only
on flesh. Gnorri keep large farms of kelp and other

As a society, gnorri don’t build places of worship

within their communities. They see no need to.

seaweeds, but also raise slow-moving slug-like creatures

Those who wish to harness the power of nature are

or pens of jellyfish as livestock. These creatures are

often called to a druidic lifestyle. While recognized

generally not kept for food, but as resources for gnorri

as druids by druids of the lands, gnorri do not view

alchemists (see “Culture” on page 34).

themselves as part of a religion or sect. While a land

Faith
Some societies of gnorri are particularly wise, and with
that wisdom comes an intrinsic understanding that they
are not the center of the world: that there exist truths
out in the world greater than themselves. Gnorri don’t
have a specific god or pantheon they worship. They of
course recognize that there are powerful entittes in the
universe, some of which grant power to their servants.

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Gnorri believe that nature, in all its diversity and

druid who has disrespected a gnorri would be kicked
out of their sect by other members, this is not the
gnorri’s doing but a result of the land druid’s beliefs
about gnorri as a society of “nature lovers.”
Gnorri druids do gather in groups to learn from one
another, but not to worship. They recognize that some
of these teachings can lead to great power. To protect
this power and to trade learning with land druids,