# Cthulhu vs. the Tarrasque



## Allensh (Nov 11, 2006)

Has anyone ever staged a battle between the d20 version of Great Cthulhu as given in the D20 CoC book and the Tarrasque?

Allen


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## EditorBFG (Nov 12, 2006)

No, but my money's on Cthulhu.

That shot of Cthulhu destroying the iconic characters, by the way, is my favorite illustration in any WotC product since A Paladin in Hell.


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## Necrotheologist (Nov 12, 2006)

I haven't run it yet, but from what I remember of their respective stats. Cthulhu wins. And by the fluff... Cthulhu wins.


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## Crothian (Nov 12, 2006)

Strictly rules speaking, from what I recall of the Cthulhu stat block he doesn't have wish (I'm not sure its even in that game) so he couldn't actually kill the big T.  Aside from that, I agree with everyone else.


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## snikle (Nov 12, 2006)

Before the Tarrasque could begin his wish, he would freeze in sheer fright at the sight of the mighty god Cthulhu, enabling Cthulhu to easily squish the Tarrasque's feeble head with a mighty stomp of his feet. 
End of story, no contest.


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## Dannyalcatraz (Nov 12, 2006)

My guess is that even if C'thulhu doesn't have a Wish, he'd still be able to consume the Tarrasque, essentially making the great beast into a supernatural equivalent to an Everlasting Gobstopper.

The battle could even be made into a variant of the Taco Bell "I'm full!" commercials!

"New at Taco Bell- the Super Tarrasqurito! Only $1.99!"

("Yo Quiero Tarrasquirito!")


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## frankthedm (Nov 12, 2006)

The Big C beats the Big T like every other flying caster.


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## Simm (Nov 12, 2006)

My money is on the tarrasque, C isn't all he's cracked up to be. If C doesen't have wish he can't destroy the tarrasque. I doubt it can consume anything of colossal size. Tarrasque has frightful pressence at 48hd so it's more likely to cause fear that be sticken by it. The Tarrasque has SR 32, regeneration 40 and immunity to most major affects. Also 30% chance to reflect rays, lines, cones and other effects is nasty.

Can cuthlu penetrate DR/epic?


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## jonathan swift (Nov 12, 2006)

snikle said:
			
		

> Before the Tarrasque could begin his wish, he would freeze in sheer fright at the sight of the mighty god Cthulhu, enabling Cthulhu to easily squish the Tarrasque's feeble head with a mighty stomp of his feet.
> End of story, no contest.





Eh, the Big C looks more disgusting than scary. Tarrarasque all the way for actually being able to do things other than get rammed by a ship.


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## Nadaka (Nov 12, 2006)

Yes. Big C murderizes bigT, but it would likely take more than one round to subdue the bigT. But why would he? Big T is already powerful instrument of chaos, would it not be better to rend its childlike mind to a thousand pieces and then blasphemously corrupt him to the will of the great god Cthulhu?


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## Falkus (Nov 12, 2006)

> My money is on the tarrasque, C isn't all he's cracked up to be. If C doesen't have wish he can't destroy the tarrasque.




No, but he could cast bind soul on it. Since Cthulhu is a god who casts a fortieth level sorcerer, he automatically penetrates the Tarrasque's SR.


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## snikle (Nov 12, 2006)

Nadaka said:
			
		

> Yes. Big C murderizes bigT, but it would likely take more than one round to subdue the bigT. But why would he? Big T is already powerful instrument of chaos, would it not be better to rend its childlike mind to a thousand pieces and then blasphemously corrupt him to the will of the great god Cthulhu?




Ah yes, the correct answer. More than likely Cthulhu would bind the beast to his will, cause chaos and destruction, and let someone else deal with actually killing him. Probably would be like Darth Maul to the Emperor.


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## glass (Nov 30, 2006)

snikle said:
			
		

> Before the Tarrasque could begin his wish, he would freeze in sheer fright at the sight of the mighty god Cthulhu.



Tarrasqes have Int of about 2. Where are they getting wishes from?

Also, IIRC they are immune to mind-affecting effect, so they aren't going to be freezing in fear for anyone. _EDIT: Actually, I didn't recall correctly. According to the SRD he isn't. And his Will save is only +20. What is the DC of Cthulhu's fear aura?_


glass.


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## snikle (Nov 30, 2006)

12 Billion. 

Actually I have no idea.


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## HeavenShallBurn (Nov 30, 2006)

Ah yes great Cthulu...  fear me puny mortal for I am strange and possess many tentacles!

Not much of a contest deities are killable even strange nonsensical deities mad with the taint of noneuclidian geometry.  The tentacled one looks at Big T waiting for the beasts mind to explode, and it eats him.

Then again I really dislike Lovecraft and his pitiful little "oh no it's strange and doesn't make sense I will now go mad and commit suicide in horror" ideas, so I'm biased.


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## Falkus (Nov 30, 2006)

> Not much of a contest deities are killable




Actually, they're not. I don't know about the DnD divinity rules, but the Call of Cthulhu god rules are quite explicit in that gods cannot be killed.


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## HeavenShallBurn (Nov 30, 2006)

I was speaking mythologically but yes DnD divinities are killable though it's not easy.
Somewhere in the homebrew portions of EN World several pages back there's a multi-templated Terrasque specifically created to eat gods.  Just shows you the differences in the assumptions of the game.

What we have here is an example of mutually incompatible systems meeting on ground where they differ most.


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## HalWhitewyrm (Nov 30, 2006)

Dude, this so needed a poll.

And my money's on Cthulhu, hands down.


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## Stormborn (Nov 30, 2006)

Cthulhu, no question.  Of course the real question is, how would Big C do against a Super Sentai Squad in giant Tesla-Crowley Golem-mecha?  Hmmm?


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## Falkus (Nov 30, 2006)

> What we have here is an example of mutually incompatible systems meeting on ground where they differ most.




Actually, they're very compatible. The d20 CoC god stats were specifically created for conflicts between them and DnD characters. Your average CoC investigator wouldn't have a snowball's chance in hell of doing anything to a god in CoC, but a high level DnD character might be able to stand up to him for a round or two.


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## EditorBFG (Nov 30, 2006)

Simm said:
			
		

> Can cuthlu penetrate DR/epic?



He's divine, so yeah, as I understand it.


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## HalWhitewyrm (Nov 30, 2006)

Stormborn said:
			
		

> Cthulhu, no question.  Of course the real question is, how would Big C do against a Super Sentai Squad in giant Tesla-Crowley Golem-mecha?  Hmmm?



  And there's art a-coming to demonstrate this...


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## Angel Tarragon (Nov 30, 2006)

Cthulhu, hands down!


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## Jim Hague (Nov 30, 2006)

HeavenShallBurn said:
			
		

> Ah yes great Cthulu...  fear me puny mortal for I am strange and possess many tentacles!
> 
> Not much of a contest deities are killable even strange nonsensical deities mad with the taint of noneuclidian geometry.  The tentacled one looks at Big T waiting for the beasts mind to explode, and it eats him.
> 
> Then again I really dislike Lovecraft and his pitiful little "oh no it's strange and doesn't make sense I will now go mad and commit suicide in horror" ideas, so I'm biased.




Oh, jeez.  

Go read some of Derleth's stories on the Mythos...or, since we're talking D&D, Robert Howard's.  You _do_ know that conan's 'demons of the Outer Dark' are, essentially, Howard's take on Lovecraftian creatures, right?  

Please don't go crapping on writers you pretty plainly know very little about.  If you want to put an opinion forth, please, in future, make sure it's informed.


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## The Human Target (Nov 30, 2006)

Cthulhu, by the rules as written.

My friends and are are gonna use the D20 stats for Cthulhu and pit his giant Horrorclix mini against the Colossal Red Dragon mini that my buddy bought.

Its gonna be.....  glorious.


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## HeavenShallBurn (Dec 1, 2006)

Jim Hague said:
			
		

> Oh, jeez.
> 
> Go read some of Derleth's stories on the Mythos...or, since we're talking D&D, Robert Howard's.  You _do_ know that conan's 'demons of the Outer Dark' are, essentially, Howard's take on Lovecraftian creatures, right?
> 
> Please don't go crapping on writers you pretty plainly know very little about.  If you want to put an opinion forth, please, in future, make sure it's informed.




I've read Howard and I don't mind his take on the Lovecraft Mythos so much.  Derleth I haven't read.  Regarding Lovecraft I've read precisely two of his stories, one involving the scientist who discovers that the air is really monsters and The Call of Cthulu itself though that was nearly a decade ago. 

 I disliked the themes and motifs of his work and feel that the way he wields the memes that true knowledge will drive men mad as they are inherently unable to handle it and the inevitability of a dark and horrid fate mankind can not prevent are disgusting in their weakness and the renouncement of responsibility for ones own fate.  His writing was not bad by any means I simply find the ideas he used reprehensible from an ethical standpoint and reserve the right to criticize him as I will.  I have not attacked you, do not attack me.


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## ValhallaGH (Dec 1, 2006)

Intelligent, thought out and well written replies!?  On the Internet!?  What's next, world peace?



> reserve the right to criticize him as I will.



A poor policy on these forums.  Personal attacks are frowned upon, regardless of the recipient's health, involvement on these forums or lack of either.  Given your skillful reply to an unwarranted personal affront, I'd hate to see you get banned for any length of time. 


P.S. My money's on Cthulhu.  Not because he should win but because he will win; if nothing else, he'll simply take over the Tarrasque and use it to distract one of the meaner Elder Gods while Cthulhu attempts to usurp the more powerful entity.


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## HeavenShallBurn (Dec 1, 2006)

to critisize I said not attack.  

I was perhaps overly harsh in my first characterization of his work, it is not bad, I simply disagree with its themes.  Lovecraft was a skilled author and from what little I know was not a bad person.  Yet his work is not to my taste and I do not approve of the way he uses certain ideas in them nor will I ever.  

Saying so is not a personal attack and if I have been misinterpreted I hope this has cleared it up.  If not I cannot control what goes on inside the heads of other people nor do I want to.


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## EditorBFG (Dec 1, 2006)

I worship Lovecraft like a god, but I find a disagreement with his central tenet-- that the true nature of the universe cannot be understood by humans without driving them mad-- to be a fair viewpoint for someone to have. I personally enjoy Lovecraft's perpsective in context, but I think if a person disagrees with it, they are certainly not criticizing due to ignorance; it shows that they understand Lovecraft, they just don't like him. Fair enough.

I will say this: There is a lot of genre fiction out there with the opposite viewpoint, so much so that Lovecraft is, in many ways, refreshing, and no doubt he was moreso in his time.


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## snikle (Dec 1, 2006)

I agree, Lovecraft is a god. Try reading some of his other work, my favorites are _The Dunwich Horror_ and _The Shadow Over Innsmouth_.


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## HeavenShallBurn (Dec 1, 2006)

And in the period it was written with the horrors of the First World War still fresh in the minds of the generation that had seen them it would have struck a deep chord with their own fears and inner demons.  

Regarding the systems not meant to be compatible I have not played CoC when the poster said that deities in CoC were unkillable I took that as face value.  That they could not be permanently killed and even in the unlikely event they were overcome would reform back in the void beyond.  Is that the mechanical situation, that such an entity cannot be permanently killed?  If so it would presume a basic incompatibility in the rational behind the mechanics even if both being d20 systems they can be intermingled would it not?


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## Falkus (Dec 1, 2006)

HeavenShallBurn said:
			
		

> I disliked the themes and motifs of his work and feel that the way he wields the memes that true knowledge will drive men mad as they are inherently unable to handle it and the inevitability of a dark and horrid fate mankind can not prevent are disgusting in their weakness and the renouncement of responsibility for ones own fate.  His writing was not bad by any means I simply find the ideas he used reprehensible from an ethical standpoint and reserve the right to criticize him as I will.  I have not attacked you, do not attack me.




IT makes more sense when you realize that in Cthulhu Mythos, mankind wasn't meant to exist in the first place.



> Is that the mechanical situation, that such an entity cannot be permanently killed?




In CoC, all deities have the Immortality quality, in which they can only be killed in special circumstances.



> If so it would presume a basic incompatibility in the rational behind the mechanics even if both being d20 systems they can be intermingled would it not?




The deities in d20 CoC were designed specifically for DnD combat. I don't quite get your point. Cthulhu and other mythos deities are not your run of the mill Greyhawk or Faerun god, who is essentially a normal guy with a few extra tricks. They have different rules for being killed because they are different, in every possible (and a few impossible) definitions of the word different.


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## Jim Hague (Dec 1, 2006)

HeavenShallBurn said:
			
		

> I've read Howard and I don't mind his take on the Lovecraft Mythos so much.  Derleth I haven't read.  Regarding Lovecraft I've read precisely two of his stories, one involving the scientist who discovers that the air is really monsters and The Call of Cthulu itself though that was nearly a decade ago.




I don't think two stories is enough to judge the man by, considering the full body of his work, honestly.



> I disliked the themes and motifs of his work and feel that the way he wields the memes that true knowledge will drive men mad as they are inherently unable to handle it and the inevitability of a dark and horrid fate mankind can not prevent are disgusting in their weakness and the renouncement of responsibility for ones own fate.  His writing was not bad by any means I simply find the ideas he used reprehensible from an ethical standpoint and reserve the right to criticize him as I will.  I have not attacked you, do not attack me.




By your own admission, you've read precisely _two_ stories (From Beyond and The Call of Cthulhu) nearly a decade ago, but you're calling your opinion informed?  I won't disagree that nihilism is a pretty cowardly viewpoint, but before you go criticizing the man, go pick up his Dreamlands stories and do a little bit of research into Lovecraft himself.  Seriously, you'll be better off for it, since the influence he has on the body of modern fantasy and horror literature is incredible.

The world of the Mythos is most assuredly _not_ our own, but a terrible mirror where these themes are played out.  Something to keep in mind.


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## Falkus (Dec 1, 2006)

That's a bit deep for me, but I've never really been that big on analyzing stories. I just think the stories are a good read, and make for a refreshing change of pace from the heroic fantasy I usually prefer.


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## HeavenShallBurn (Dec 1, 2006)

Falkus said:
			
		

> The deities in d20 CoC were designed specifically for DnD combat. I don't quite get your point. Cthulhu and other mythos deities are not your run of the mill Greyhawk or Faerun god, who is essentially a normal guy with a few extra tricks. They have different rules for being killed because they are different, in every possible (and a few impossible) definitions of the word different.




Thank you that makes much more sense now.  Mechanically they were designed to work under DnD combat rules and thus can be mixed with standard DnD creations even fight them.  I may be wrong but I'm thinking that behind the mechanics the overall rationale of the CoC setting is such that they are never really supposed to be "fought" or "killed" in the sense of really anything in DnD.  They are meant to represent the unfathomable horror of that which lurks beyond and in such are supposed to be averted but cannot be truly destroyed.  Thus they are meant to confront those with no hope of truly destroying them and to make the contest more equitable is in a way not true to what they are intended to represent.  

I will trust those with experience if the mechanics say Cthulu wins and wins easily then it is.  Of course perhaps a face-off between Cthulu and the God-Eater(CR90 something templated Tarrasque) would be quite entertaining as long as you weren't there.


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## Jim Hague (Dec 1, 2006)

HeavenShallBurn said:
			
		

> Thank you that makes much more sense now.  Mechanically they were designed to work under DnD combat rules and thus can be mixed with standard DnD creations even fight them.  I may be wrong but I'm thinking that behind the mechanics the overall rationale of the CoC setting is such that they are never really supposed to be "fought" or "killed" in the sense of really anything in DnD.  They are meant to represent the unfathomable horror of that which lurks beyond and in such are supposed to be averted but cannot be truly destroyed.  Thus they are meant to confront those with no hope of truly destroying them and to make the contest more equitable is in a way not true to what they are intended to represent.
> 
> I will trust those with experience if the mechanics say Cthulu wins and wins easily then it is.  Of course perhaps a face-off between Cthulu and the God-Eater(CR90 something templated Tarrasque) would be quite entertaining as long as you weren't there.




Well, there's no permanently defeating the Big C (who is, honestly, middle management in the grand scheme of things, an immoral alien, rather than a god)...but I've often found you can get some very heroic results when characters _try_, despite knowing the personal cost.  While the defeat of the Mythos for a decade ultimately has little meaning to the creatures of the Mythos, that's another decade mankind continues to fight on.  And from humanity's perspective, delusional it may be, that's really all that matters.


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## ValhallaGH (Dec 1, 2006)

It's not like you can ever really keep the Tarrasque down, either.  Sure, you can hammer it into unconsciousness and wish it away but that only keeps it away for a time.  It always comes back and needs to be fought off again.

So immortal alien semi-deity versus immortal god-scaring scourge of the world.

That sounds like a mighty fine and fair encounter to me.


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## Jim Hague (Dec 1, 2006)

ValhallaGH said:
			
		

> It's not like you can ever really keep the Tarrasque down, either.  Sure, you can hammer it into unconsciousness and wish it away but that only keeps it away for a time.  It always comes back and needs to be fought off again.
> 
> So immortal alien semi-deity versus immortal god-scaring scourge of the world.
> 
> That sounds like a mighty fine and fair encounter to me.




I'd say a cooler and potentially more plot-hook producing fight'd be one of the world-ending horrors like Dholes vs. the mighty Tarrasque.  Hell, slap the pseudonatural template on the Tarrasque and _it_ turns into a mythos creature...

Hmm...


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## Whizbang Dustyboots (Dec 1, 2006)

Jim Hague said:
			
		

> By your own admission, you've read precisely _two_ stories (From Beyond and The Call of Cthulhu) nearly a decade ago, but you're calling your opinion informed?



How many bites of a dish does one have to eat to know they don't enjoy it?

I know this is the Internet, but him not liking something (something that's a niche of a genre, at that) does not make him uniformed, it means he has different tastes than you.


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## Allensh (Dec 5, 2006)

When did my silly little thread about two really huge monsters with D20 stats fighting each other turn into a quasi-serious literary discussion/flame war?

Allen


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## SkidAce (Dec 5, 2006)

even sleeping dogs may lie...that thread eternal which never dies....












/sorrygrin


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## Falkus (Dec 5, 2006)

> When did my silly little thread about two really huge monsters with D20 stats fighting each other turn into a quasi-serious literary discussion/flame war?




Don't all threads do that?


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## ValhallaGH (Dec 5, 2006)

Allensh said:
			
		

> When did my silly little thread about two really huge monsters with D20 stats fighting each other turn into a quasi-serious literary discussion/flame war?
> 
> Allen



Around the mid-20's.

I still say Cthulhu.  He's smart enough to actually use strategy and tactics against the raging beast.


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## EditorBFG (Dec 5, 2006)

ValhallaGH said:
			
		

> I still say Cthulhu. He's smart enough to actually use strategy and tactics against the raging beast.



Hopefully, that "strategy" would be unpleasant nightmares about paintings of non-Euclidean geometry and cult orgies in the Tarrasque's hometown, and maybe driving the Tarrasque's kind uncle to alcoholism and insanity. And the Tarrasque just runs off and checks itself into an asylum, and writes paranoid monographs decrying science. 

By the way, ValhallaGH, I tried to email you but says you prefer not to receive emails. Would you mind emailing me regarding a separate matter, so as not to hijack a thread? My address is hamlet3i@yahoo.com


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## ValhallaGH (Dec 6, 2006)

EditorBFG said:
			
		

> Hopefully, that "strategy" would be unpleasant nightmares about paintings of non-Euclidean geometry and cult orgies in the Tarrasque's hometown, and maybe driving the Tarrasque's kind uncle to alcoholism and insanity. And the Tarrasque just runs off and checks itself into an asylum, and writes paranoid monographs decrying science.



I do love the internet sarcasm.  So difficult to detect without the intonations of actual vocalization, thus requiring far more skill to present clearly.
Well played, sir, well played.


			
				EditorBFG said:
			
		

> By the way, ValhallaGH, I tried to email you but says you prefer not to receive emails. Would you mind emailing me regarding a separate matter, so as not to hijack a thread? My address is hamlet3i@yahoo.com



Right.  I'm not anti-social, just paranoid.  But don't worry, derailment has been avoided.


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## pallandrome (Dec 6, 2006)

Yeaaah. Cthulhu is something like a lvl40 cleric demigod. If memory serves, he also has hitpoints in the thousands. My favorite part of his write up is where it states that he kills something like 1d4+4 opponants a round. Outright. Just because. Cthulhu is hilarious.


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## Jim Hague (Dec 6, 2006)

pallandrome said:
			
		

> Yeaaah. Cthulhu is something like a lvl40 cleric demigod. If memory serves, he also has hitpoints in the thousands. My favorite part of his write up is where it states that he kills something like 1d4+4 opponants a round. Outright. Just because. Cthulhu is hilarious.




 

Ladies and gentlemen, fellow gamers, I present to you a prime example of 'not getting it'.  Hilarious isn't a word I'd use for something so horrific and alien that it damages peoples' minds.

Pallandrome, go back and read _The Call of Cthulhu_.  The Big C is a giant, immortal alien that pretty much treats being killed by a boat as a minor inconvenience.  It's not Godzilla in a squid mask, for pete's sake.   You may not agree with the central tenet of the Mythos' nihilism, but it's certainly not funny.

We now return you to your regularly scheduled thread.  Next up - shoggoth versus upgraded Gibbering Mouther.


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## pallandrome (Dec 6, 2006)

No, no, a thousand times no. Cthulhu is not funny, when taken as a horror character. Cthulhu is hilarious _when forced into the rigid structure of DnD_. Non-Euclidian Horrors from The Great Beyond with The Shady Reputation simply don't translate well to DnD. I'm not the one who didn't "get it" here. I'm allowed to laugh at the presupposition that Cthulhu has a class, and levels, and other such silliness if I want. Hell, I'm even allowed to find Cthulhu _itself_ as a literary creation humorous if it pleases me, such is the expansiveness of ones sense of humor, however that is a debate for another time. Needless to say, I find applying DnD rules to Cthulhu hilarious, and you can't stop me. *grin*


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## Mustrum_Ridcully (Dec 6, 2006)

> Hopefully, that "strategy" would be unpleasant nightmares about paintings of non-Euclidean geometry and cult orgies in the Tarrasque's hometown, and maybe driving the Tarrasque's kind uncle to alcoholism and insanity. And the Tarrasque just runs off and checks itself into an asylum, and writes paranoid monographs decrying science.



This is just the "strategy" that comes into play due to his mere existence. If I know this correctly, Cthululu is still sleeping and no human (or Tarrasque) ever encountered it. What he would actually do himself, nobody knows. Maybe killing (1d4 x 1d20)-50 Tarrasques per round...




> o, no, a thousand times no. Cthulhu is not funny, when taken as a horror character. Cthulhu is hilarious when forced into the rigid structure of DnD. Non-Euclidian Horrors from The Great Beyond with The Shady Reputation simply don't translate well to DnD.



Though non-Eucledian space isn't all that special - if I remember correctly from various readings on modern physics, Eucledian space might be approximation of the "real space" (or spacetime"), but there are a lot better - non-Eucledian- models in use today.

Though this doesn't really change your point.


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## snikle (Dec 6, 2006)

Mustrum_Ridcully said:
			
		

> Maybe killing (1d4 x 1d20)-50 Tarrasques per round...




Sounds about right to me. Then send the entire city of New York to the sanitarium just by smiling at the Statue of Liberty.


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## Jim Hague (Dec 6, 2006)

pallandrome said:
			
		

> No, no, a thousand times no. Cthulhu is not funny, when taken as a horror character. Cthulhu is hilarious _when forced into the rigid structure of DnD_. Non-Euclidian Horrors from The Great Beyond with The Shady Reputation simply don't translate well to DnD. I'm not the one who didn't "get it" here. I'm allowed to laugh at the presupposition that Cthulhu has a class, and levels, and other such silliness if I want. Hell, I'm even allowed to find Cthulhu _itself_ as a literary creation humorous if it pleases me, such is the expansiveness of ones sense of humor, however that is a debate for another time. Needless to say, I find applying DnD rules to Cthulhu hilarious, and you can't stop me. *grin*




Eh, since I'm of the mind that giving stats to something that is essentially a plot device is silly, I concede the point.


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## pallandrome (Dec 6, 2006)

Mustrum_Ridcully said:
			
		

> Though non-Eucledian space isn't all that special - if I remember correctly from various readings on modern physics, Eucledian space might be approximation of the "real space" (or spacetime"), but there are a lot better - non-Eucledian- models in use today.




but it _sounds_ cool!

Hey, how about this for a fight: Cthulhu vs. Rincewind and The Luggage!


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## Moonstone Spider (Dec 6, 2006)

Cthulhu as written by Lovecraft is a much frailer, weaker creature than what's been created as a result of the mythos that other writers made.  Cthulhu was so badly damaged by a steamboat doing far less than top speed in CoC that he was forced to return to hibernation for Azathoth-knows how many eons to recover.  It's not at all unlikely in Lovecraft's own world for men to defeat, contain, or even destroy Cthulhu eventually.  That Cthulhu would be so much meat against Tarrasque.

The versions made as fanfiction off of Lovecraft's work is a different matter.


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## NilesB (Dec 7, 2006)

I've read Call of Chtulhu. I've read (a translation of) the french legend thet the Tarrasque came from.

Ten of Cthulhu would stand no chance at all against the Tarrasque.


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## Dannyalcatraz (Dec 7, 2006)

Sure...Cthulhu after he's been beaten down and rising up from his imprisonment is not going to be much of a match for the Tarrasque...but at his peak?

I'm voting for the Molusk-headed Master of Mayhem.


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## Tumbler (Dec 7, 2006)

Might be pretty cool if Cthulhu actually set up Godzilla in a squid mask as a decoy.  Godzilla and the Tarrasque could basically fight forever, since neither has the capability to destroy the other and they both have fantastic regeneration.  This way Cthulhu can get back to work, which is a win to me.


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## Wilphe (Dec 8, 2006)

pallandrome said:
			
		

> but it _sounds_ cool!
> 
> Hey, how about this for a fight: Cthulhu vs. Rincewind and The Luggage!




It's been done.

http://www.macguff.fr/goomi/unspeakable/vault32.html


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## Thanee (Dec 8, 2006)

Allensh said:
			
		

> Has anyone ever staged a battle between the d20 version of Great Cthulhu as given in the D20 CoC book and the Tarrasque?




Nope, but someone has staged a battle between Cthulhu and Sauron (among other such pairings) once. Well, Cthulhu devoured everything sent his (its?) way.

I don't think, in this light, the Tarrasque would be a worthy opponent. 

Bye
Thanee


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## EditorBFG (Dec 8, 2006)

Just out of curiosity, anyone actually out the _stats_ side by side and see who wins? Because I think that was the original poster's intention...

Who wins out of pulp literary monster versus French folk monster, that is hard to decide, and kind of silly. But the statistics do exist for who wins in D&D.


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## DungeonMaester (Dec 8, 2006)

Allensh said:
			
		

> When did my silly little thread about two really huge monsters with D20 stats fighting each other turn into a quasi-serious literary discussion/flame war?
> 
> Allen





When some one forgot to roll for sence motive.

---Rusty


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## MoogleEmpMog (Dec 9, 2006)

EditorBFG said:
			
		

> Just out of curiosity, anyone actually out the _stats_ side by side and see who wins? Because I think that was the original poster's intention...
> 
> Who wins out of pulp literary monster versus French folk monster, that is hard to decide, and kind of silly. But the statistics do exist for who wins in D&D.




This was answered early in the thread.  Like any credible threat for high level characters, Cthulhu crushes the tarrasque like a bug.  It's fitting, since Cthulhu is CR 34 and the tarrasque is CR 21, but sadly I don't think Wizards has published a single CR 21 or higher creature that couldn't tear the tarrasque to pieces but for its _wish_ restriction... :\ 

At that level, dumb melee bruiser monsters with no magic items fare no better than dumb melee bruiser PCs with no magic items.


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## Moonstone Spider (Dec 9, 2006)

EditorBFG said:
			
		

> Just out of curiosity, anyone actually out the _stats_ side by side and see who wins? Because I think that was the original poster's intention...
> 
> Who wins out of pulp literary monster versus French folk monster, that is hard to decide, and kind of silly. But the statistics do exist for who wins in D&D.



Hmm, the CoC game is sufficiently different from DnD that it'd be hard to compare the writeups of the two systems.  The Genre differences are huge.  DnD is about heroes taking on impossible odds and kicking evil's tail.  CoC is about ordinary people taking on impossible odds, failing miserably, and spending the rest of their lives drawing arcane symbols on the inside of the asylum cells with their own feces.


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## MoogleEmpMog (Dec 9, 2006)

Moonstone Spider said:
			
		

> Hmm, the CoC game is sufficiently different from DnD that it'd be hard to compare the writeups of the two systems.  The Genre differences are huge.  DnD is about heroes taking on impossible odds and kicking evil's tail.  CoC is about ordinary people taking on impossible odds, failing miserably, and spending the rest of their lives drawing arcane symbols on the inside of the asylum cells with their own feces.




However, the writeup of Cthulhu in CoC d20, which is what is being referenced here, is explicitly for use in D&D, not CoC d20 itself - Cthulhu is even depicted fighting the 3e iconics in the illustration headlining the section his stats appear in.  

I don't recall offhand - did Cthulhu even have stats in the BRP version of Call of Cthulhu?


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## Falkus (Dec 9, 2006)

> I don't recall offhand - did Cthulhu even have stats in the BRP version of Call of Cthulhu?




I believe it did, and that it was the source of the infamous quote so often used in threads referencing it: Cthulhu kills 1d6+1 investigators each round.


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## Moonstone Spider (Dec 9, 2006)

Hmm, sucks to pick the investigator class then.  Does having just one level of investigator make you vulnerable or would a multiclass investigator/fighter be immune to that power?


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## SkidAce (Dec 10, 2006)

/realizes

he has investigator levels and runs off gibbering into the night.


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## EditorBFG (Dec 12, 2006)

Moonstone Spider said:
			
		

> Hmm, sucks to pick the investigator class then.  Does having just one level of investigator make you vulnerable or would a multiclass investigator/fighter be immune to that power?



Heh. In both versions, I think an investigator is just any character who isn't a cultist. Although Cthulhu's probably pretty hard on cultists too-- he probably just kills 1d6+1 human beings per round, possibly a tiny bit less likely to kill chanting lunatics in robes.


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## Arashi Ravenblade (Dec 19, 2006)

Moonstone Spider said:
			
		

> Cthulhu as written by Lovecraft is a much frailer, weaker creature than what's been created as a result of the mythos that other writers made.  Cthulhu was so badly damaged by a steamboat doing far less than top speed in CoC that he was forced to return to hibernation for Azathoth-knows how many eons to recover.  It's not at all unlikely in Lovecraft's own world for men to defeat, contain, or even destroy Cthulhu eventually.  That Cthulhu would be so much meat against Tarrasque.
> 
> The versions made as fanfiction off of Lovecraft's work is a different matter.





That was the point I was trying to make the other night in a discussion with a friend. While I believe Cthulhu to be basically unkillable, he can be beaten and contained. So I think it's not necessarily silly or inappropriate to have Cthulhu fight the Tarrassque, or be stated up if a boat can put him down.


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## GoodKingJayIII (Dec 19, 2006)

Cthulu wins, but only because the Tarrasque is French!


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## SkidAce (Dec 20, 2006)

YAY...my favorite thread rises from the depths!


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