#lorecebo

First of all, let’s define what our eldritch entities even are. Obviously they’re powerful beyond reason and are greater than mortal man could ever hope to be, but they have a little bit of variety to them. Since cosmic and eldritch are different enemy types, for instance, there’s an entire subclass of eldritch beings that’re more centered in the stars and space. So, some entities are “physically closer” than others, distance-wise. 

As a whole, they tend to keep on their side of the veil and leave us alone if we leave them alone, but some have tapped on the metaphorical glass before and a few others have decided to become a bit more tangible without prompting. 

Brings me to categories. There are two major overarching categories of eldritch being:

Greater Beings - These guys are your typical eldritch creature, at least in terms of how we think of them. These are your gods. These guys tend to be omnipresent and do not interact unless prompted. 

Lesser Beings - These guys are a bit more on the wet cat side of things. They’re still threatening and such, but they don’t have the presence the Greater Beings have. They probably get mistaken for demons or ghosts on occasion, in part because they’re more willing to cross the veil of their own volition.

Let’s get more in depth, starting with the Greater Beings.

Greater Beings are pretty simple since there’s only really two subsets of them. There’s the Old Gods and the New Gods. 

Old Gods are yknow, old. They’ve been around since the universe began, maybe before that. They tend to have egos (for good reason) and even other eldritch entities tend to fear and respect them. These are your royalty, the top dogs. However, their age also means they’re kinda tired and prefer to keep to themselves or nap. They can only be contacted by ancient rituals, almost all of which are lost to time. They never take physical form because they never cross the veil, instead only acting through others who develop pacts with them.

New Gods are the rambunctious teenagers of the Greater Beings grioegjes they’re a lot younger and therefore are more inexperienced and weaker than Old Gods, but they’ve still got the presence needed to stay in the Greater Beings category. They also tend to keep to themselves, but if provoked, they’re more willing to interact with the mortal realm beyond the initial provocation. As such, they’re also willing to cross the veil and take physical form.

Fun fact! The Heart of Darkness classifies as a New God :) 

Now, onto the Lesser Beings!

Lesser Beings are a bit more varied. Basically any in-game enemy that classifies as eldritch falls into this category, but in general the thing that distinguishes the Lesser Beings from their god-like counterparts is their presence and power. Lesser Beings have far less of a presence and are far more limited in what they can do, especially if/when they cross the veil. They’re the most likely to take physical shape and live within the world itself. They can be contacted very easily compared to the Greater Beings and can even be created by “corrupting” mortal things in certain ways. 

The most interesting thing about Lesser Beings, though, is a subcategory of them: host-dependent/parasitic entities. 

These are eldritch creatures whose very existences destabilize upon crossing the veil, leaving them stranded to die. They can only save themselves by latching onto a mortal being of some sort, most ideally a person, giving them something to cling onto so they stay stable. Other sorts of entities if their physical form is loose enough (or if they have one) can also basically glue themselves to a host if they so choose, but they will be stuck with that host until the host dies. 

There’s a lot of complexity to these entity-host relationships, but generally it’s a thing of mutual benefit. The entity needs the host to survive, so it tries to keep the host alive and safe. Most entities that understand their situation try to cooperate with their host, though this “cooperation” is usually extremely manipulative on the being’s part. They just want their host to not fight with them. 

Other aspects of the entity-host relationship:

Bleedover - In cases where the host and the entity are well-linked, there can be mental bleedover. Basically the two identities sharing the body end up mixing a little. The eldritch entity maybe starts to gain some human traits whereas the host begins to take after its parasite. Because most instances of entity-host relationships involve a lot of butting heads, bleedover is relatively rare.

Partial Possession - If the entity has access to the host body, it can take control of the body by overriding the host’s willpower or waiting for their guard to be let down. The host is completely conscious during this and is visibly aware of what is happening, but cannot stop it unless they manage to beat the entity back. 

Full Possession - The entity completely takes over, overriding the host’s control of both their own body and mind. The host may or may not be aware of what’s going on, but there are no visible signs of that. 

Communication - Depending on the entity, it may or may not be able to communicate with its host at all. If it can communicate, it does so through thoughts and feelings, perhaps dreams. It may or may not speak in the host’s language.

Tethering - Parasitic entities can often be removed through harsh “exorcism” rituals, but there are instances when doing so is too dangerous. This is tethering, where essentially an entity is so tangled up in its host’s soul that removing the entity would kill the host. As of now, there is no cure for tethering.

Now for a lightning round of smaller things 

Language!!! The primary eldritch tongue is an incomprehensible mess that is impossible to learn without a metric crapton of dedication. It’s a mix of guttural snarls and growls that all sound the same or sound random unless you really are listening. 

There aren’t synonyms in this language, as that role is fulfilled by slurring and tonal changes. The most literal way to “pronounce” a “word” is usually the coldest, harshest, most commanding and factual way to say it. Meanwhile if you slur your pronunciation to high heaven with a soft tone, well that’s the closest thing you’re gonna get to anything affectionate. Just be really careful with the slurring, since you can often accidentally say an entirely different word. This language is not meant for mere mortals so it’s not exactly people-friendly.

Fun fact! The Collector does not speak in the primary eldritch tongue. It speaks in a series of wheezes and hisses and gasps that can only be loosely translated. It seems to be the only eldritch being that “speaks” this way. 

Rituals and pacts, oh my! There’s a lot of different eldritch rituals out there if you know where to look. There are generalized rituals (such as suppression rituals for hosts with particularly nasty parasitic entities) and highly-specific rituals (such as the ones needed to contact the Old Gods). They have a variety of completion requirements, some surprisingly simple and some having massive costs.

Pacts are the more interesting part. Depending on the entity, making a pact can be simple or not so simple. Generally, it’s advised to always stay on guard no matter what, since most entities are very cunning and wanna either kill you or use you for their benefit. Old Gods are always the hardest and most dangerous to bargain with, but it can be done, it just takes an insane amount of mental fortitude and the ability to not buckle under the pressure (while also not disrespecting the being). 

Eldritch beings tend to be fussy about their pacts, always searching for loopholes they can exploit while making sure their partner doesn’t do the same. Pacts are never a one-and-done deal, they often need to be argued over and refined as time goes on. It’s very mentally taxing, but it does tend to smooth out after a certain amount of time. Just don’t ever ask anything more of the entity than what you set out in your original terms. Keep your hubris in check. 

Pacts look different depending on where the entity is. If it has a physical form, it’ll likely come and go as needed/called. If it is strictly beyond the veil, it can only really be contacted through rituals, though the connection with it through the pact will ensure that you know when it wants to talk and when it is or isn’t pleased with you. If it’s a parasite inhabiting a host, it can either talk directly with the host at any point or must be contacted by ritual. 

Building off of pacts, here’s the deal about sharing power. Eldritch entities are able to share any abilities they have with their partner or host, so long as the entity has no physical form. For partners, entities only share power if requested in the initial terms of the pact, and those powers will not be able to be called upon without some sort of conduit. For hosts, the entity still typically only shares power if it was agreed upon, but in cases of partial or full possession, the entity is very capable of using its own power whenever it wants. Regardless of who is using the power, host bodies do not need a conduit, though it does help to keep the powers under control (especially when it is the host themself that is using them)

And what of names? Well, names are only really powerful to humans. All eldritch entities are nameless by default, and any names they are called by mean nothing to them because they were given to them by humans.  Some lessers have accepted the names and labels given to them by humanity, and some New Gods tend to be okay with titles because they might actually want to be worshipped, but all Old Gods and most other beings tend to go nameless.

First, what are “the depths?” It’s beyond the level you can reach while playing obviously, and it’s nearly impossible to reach without dying first. Anyone who’s been there isn’t able to remember anything special about it or what it’s “really” like since it warps to a far greater degree than the “surface levels.”

This differs a bit from gameplay, but I like to imagine that the depths are the area of the Farmstead surrounding the Mill, which is at the center. There is where the Sleeper resides. Because of that, I like to imagine the Miller and Sleeper boss battles as being...glimpses of what is lurking at the core of the Farmstead. Visions, apparitions, whatever you wanna call it. 

Upon entering the depths, the Farmstead essentially starts rooting around in your brain, trying to figure out what makes you tick. There is no preventing this from happening and it can’t be tricked--it’ll know you’re lying because YOU know you’re lying. It is going to know everything that you do. 

Once it finds something it can use--be it a past experience, present companion, or the like--it will warp. It will create fabrications of people and settings using crystals, but it’ll be borderline impossible to differentiate its creations from reality. The only real tell is light, since the area will be constantly backlit by the farmstead’s lighting, though it is extremely skilled at disguising this or integrating it so well that it’s nearly unnoticeable. 

From there, it uses its fabrications to toy with you. Sometimes it might kill someone dear to you over and over again right in front of you. Other times it might force you to relive traumatic experiences or be chased down by old enemies. Sometimes it keeps to one fabrication, other times it combines multiple at once, still other times it jumps from one to the other or replays the same one many times. It does whatever it takes to break you more and more until your wanderings finally free you from it (it’s only when you stop thinking rationally that you are able to find the way out, apparently). 

Bosanquet has delved into researching the Farmstead a little, especially the depths, and he has figured out a two little tricks to making a trip into the depths more bearable.

1. Before going in, come up with a nonsensical question and a nonsensical response. Do not try to remember the answers to your own question or anyone else’s--trust that your gut will know it when the time comes. The Farmstead cannot read instincts. If you get lost in the depths and encounter someone you were with, ask them your question. If they cannot come up with the answer, assume they’re a fabrication.

2. If someone is going to die in the Farmstead, someone else from the group should die with them. This means that two people go to the depths together, giving them a better chance of holding out than if they were alone (meaning that they will be able to help each other with the warpings of the depths and--hopefully--will be able to find their way out before they mentally break). The remaining two individuals must abandon whatever they are doing and focus on finding the nearest exit. This rule is not always honored because of the risks it poses to the remaining two individuals, and is considered optional because of that and because no one, not even pairs, have been able to escape without breaking first. You prolly can’t leave unless the Farmstead lets you.