Flavor Text List

This is a complete listing of all flavor text that has appeared on the cards to date. Much thanks should go to jgt7771 for compiling the original list on the message boards, and to nyarlazorbec for processing it into HTML for me to display here.

Arkham Edition

Cthulhu for President (AE P02): "Why vote for the lesser evil?"
Blackwood Associate (AE C3): He rubbed his swollen knuckles and tried to forget the thing in the sewers. No such luck. He poured another drink.
Blackwood Detective (AE U4): Norman pored over his father's notes for weeks, searching for clues to his disappearance. What he found made him wish he'd never come home.
Blackwood File Clerk (AE C5): "Didn't you used to work at city hall?" asked Norman.
"Used to," she said, and gave him a look that told him she didn't want to talk about it.
Federal Agent (AE R6): "I was a friend of your father's. There are some people I'd like you to meet."
Freelance Occultist (AE C7): He mopped the sweat off his brow and replaced his handkerchief. "You know, it's not really all done with mirrors."
G-Men (AE R8): The man looked like a Jersey bull in a tight gray suit. Then the rest of the herd climbed out of the car, and Norman realized how high the stakes really were.
Hardboiled Detective (AE C10): Hank was different after his time in the military. He talked less, drank more, and always asked for the tough assignments.
Hired Muscle (AE C11): "I work for Harvey Blackwood," he grunted.
"Harvey's gone, but I'm his son. You want to work for the Blackwood Agency, you can work for me."
Shakedown! (AE R20): "Tell me what you found by the docks," he snarled. "Or they're gonna be scraping you off the street come morning!"
Blackwood Office (AE U24): "Where do I sit?" asked Norman.
No one said anything, but all eyes went to the desk left empty since Harvey went missing.
Ethnobiologist (AE C34): "Professor, will you come into my office for a minute?"
"I'm just heading to class."
"I think you'll want to see this. They found it at the shore, but I don't think you could quite call it aquatic."
Laboratory Assistant (AE C37): She never forgot the time West slapped the reagent out of her hand. It shattered on the floor.
"Look what you made me do," he hissed. "That was supposed to go to Pathology."
Mysterious Benefactor (AE R39): "Funding shall no longer be an issue," he said with a wry smile.
"But who are you?" demanded Armitage.
Two-fisted Archeologist (AE C42): He caught more than malaria in that jungle. Often I noticed his eyes would dart about, as if he was nervously expecting to be interrupted.
Freelance Reporter (AE C64): She didn't want to cover the story at first. But after the second body was found and the police stopped talking, she decided to accept Harrington's offer after all.
Hired Mystic (AE R65): The boys didn't know what to make of O'Bannion's friend from out of town, but they knew better than to make him angry.
Investigative Reporter (AE U67): "Mary, don't hang up! You've got to go on the record with this. What's that? Who's coming? Mary, hello? Hello?"
O'Bannion Gunsels (AE C70): "This is bigger than the Italians, boys. These torpedoes don't want our money."
"It's the Big Zero they're after, Sam. The Bigger Bang."
Behind Closed Doors (AE U74): O'Bannion shook the old man's hand and suppressed a shiver.
"It's a deal," smiled Harrington.
Keeper of the Golden Path (AE U96): Old Father, accept this our offering. The dream in the dark, the terror in the tear, the ocean in the lung.
Knight of the Void (AE C97): Old Father, old Despoiler, stand me now and ever in good stead.
Mature Deep One (AE U99): Marsh could barely remember his old life, arid and sick, unmindful of the master's grace.
Shoggoth Unbound (AE C101): Below us, echoing up the shaft, rose the terrible mindless cry: "Tekeli-li! Tekeli-li!"
Young Deep One (AE C103): Too many of the town's inhabitants seemed to hunch unnaturally within their coats, or shuffle too slowly down the street, as if unused to such a method of movement.
Helpless, Hopeless, and Doomed (AE C107): There was nothing left even to burn or bury.
Byakhee Servant (AE U123): On the roof they discovered a puddle of a bilious liquid, as if something had perched there, dripping its putrescence, all through the night.
Ghost (AE R124): Good lord - that pale figure, that breath of foul air! Was this the spirit of the man I had called a friend? There was no friendship in him now.
Mad Artist (AE C127): "There is nothing else to life, or lifelessness," he told the assembled throng, "than the supreme note of art."
Byakhee Raider (AE U128): Victoria sang louder, but could not drown out the sounds of flapping wings, rending flesh, and gurgling screams.
Street Scholar (AE C130): Though her society friends shook their heads, Victoria Glasser persisted in her literacy project. "If we can get them reading," she insisted, "New worlds will open up to them."
Thrill Killer (AE C131): "Where have you been?" asked Victoria.
"Out," said Emily, and that was all she would say on the matter.
Committed (AE C137): "Ms. Glasser's been real good to us. She visits every Sunday, and sometimes brings us paint. But she won't talk about the party, or the thing flapping on the roof."
Bloated Star Vampire (AE U152): Her screech still rang in my ears. But even worse had been the soft pat-pat-pat of her blood, as it dripped from those hideous mouths.
Fire Vampire Swarm (AE C156): He would have screamed, but that his throat had been seared away.
Nightgaunt Sentry (AE C159): Exhausted and drained of terror, I turned to face my pursuer. But my pursuer had no face to show me.
Render of Veils (AE C160): Speak the words and howl the rites at their seasons. In the darkness invoke the Name and ye shall be the next day delivered.
Shambling Zombie (AE C163): "They are life without mind," explained the old man. "They are the reminder of our inevitable fate, walking abroad."
Adult Chthonian (AE C182): Again the stone shuddered. "For the love of God, get out!" screamed Erickson. "It's here!" The basement floor erupted, and I fled.
Daughter of the Goat (AE C184): His wife, he told me, would often not come home at night, but the next morning would return wild-eyed, smelling of earth and the pungent scent of beasts.
Degenerate Ghoul (AE C185): We had disturbed something with our light. I caught a glimpse of a rubbery, canine face - and then the thing was gone, with a scuttle of bones and a heavy thump as poor Martin's body hit the floor.
Mi-Go Commander (AE U188): A line of electricity lashed out, and Smith fell, struck dead. The thing lifted further into the air and turned its attention to us.
Slavering Gug (AE R193): "Nurse, sedate him."
"Please, no - it waits for me! I can't go to sleep - Its terrible size - The awful slit of its dripping maw!"
Slithering Formless Spawn (AE U194): Slick as oil, the creature gleamed. Then with a sound like crackling branches, Amos was gone.
Burrowing Beneath (AE C197): For days he would not leave his house. We thought it just another sign of his eccentricity. But all the while he could feel it approaching through the earth, and though he was overwhelmed with terror, he found himself unable to step outside his door.
Horrid Mutation (AE C202): Her beauty gave me strength. I felt the swelling of love in my chest, like a new-born life.
Regeneration (AE C203): This flesh is yours, O Mother. This flesh bends for You and in its adoration weeps for You.
Altar of the Blessed (AE R205): The moon shone on the path, and lo, the side of the hill did open, and behold, the Mother emerged to love us, her children.

Unspeakable Tales

Off-Duty Patrolman (UT C4): When his shift ended at midnight, Finn gulped down half a sandwich and a shot of whiskey, then headed back onto the street. Harvey's kid had a lead on what happened to his old man. He might not know it yet, but he was going to need Finn's help.
Street-Smart Rookie (UT C7): "He's just a kid!" Braxton was incensed.
Norman wouldn't be swayed: "That kid has seen more action than half of your department."
Calling in the Feds (UT U9): Norman pulled the blood-stained business card from his wallet and reached for the phone. He'd promised himself never to use the number, but that was before the warehouse, the screaming, and the things he forced himself to forget.
Forced Entry (UT C11): "We go in shooting," Norman said, and silently hoped that bullets would be enough for what lurked inside.
Pray for Dawn (UT U13): Norman huddled in the corner of the warehouse while the scratching at the door intensified. Through the barred window crept the first gray touches of sunlight.
Antiquities Consultant (UT C20): Old man Waite had quite the collection. At the estate auction were representatives of half a dozen countries at least. Franks was outbid on the Assyrian lot by an obsequious little fellow with a hunched back and a soft voice, like a woman's.
Cryptozoologist (UT C22): "The trustees cannot continue to support these outlandish pursuits. Fish-men and giant beasties indeed! The university must uphold a certain reputation."
"I thought you might feel that way. That's why I brought this sample case. Please, allow me."
Professor of Metaphysics (UT U24): "So where did you teach before?"
He smiled nervously and glanced away. "You wouldn't have heard of it."
Arcane Insight (UT C26): "He might be able to help you, if you can get him to speak. But he hasn't managed that in fifteen years."
Breakthrough! (UT27): If it wasn't for Blackwood's notes we never would have made the connection.
Purification (UT C29): When we doused the idol in the water it cracked in half. At once the clutch of dread released my heart and I could breathe again.
Restless and Wary (UT R31): She slept lightly, when she slept at all, for the nightmares kept her ever anxious and on the edge of some nameless panic. Even after waking in the dead of night, she could not be certain the inhuman shapes and sounds that haunted her mind were merely dreams.
Atwood Science Hall (UT U32): "Fine mid-century design, wouldn't you say? You'd have to go to Kingsport to find another one as grand."
Bag Man (UT C37): O'Bannion sent Charlie around to collect what was owed him. Charlie was good at his job. He was never late and never short. So when the strangers moved in on High Street, it was up to Charlie to check them out.
Freelance Photographer (UT R39): Parker's last job was in the war, snapping shots behind enemy lines. Shooting pics or shooting guns, it was all the same to him.
Nosy Columnist (UT C40): "They all have ambitions to move to New York. But what's in New York? There's plenty in Arkham to keep a fella busy."
O'Bannion Thug (UT U41): "Charlie's missing. Take a couple of the boys and check out High Street. And take that camera guy from the paper with you."
Syndicate Liaison (UT U43): He patted the briefcase gently.
"It's from Harrington," he said.
Framed! (UT R45): "For the love of God, we're on the same side!" protested Frances as they bundled her into the sedan.
The cops glanced at each other and chuckled.
Like a Moth (UT C46): "I can find it out. As long as he's a man, I can get it from him."
"A man? That's still an open question, doll."
Panic (UT U47): He ran blindly through the streets. The moonlight was yellow, and the bricks and cobblestones too. The faces that leered from the windows were every one the same.
Velma's Restaurant (UT R54): Velma served awfully good coffee, especially in the back room.
Guardian Shoggoth (UT C57): In the caves they found the crates of liquor and the ruined bodies of the cops.
"You'd think they would've left some more protection," said Charlie, and died.
Arise, Children of Dagon! (UT C63): It was like a vision of that day we all await. All that was sunken was made to rise, and our water swept clean the lands. It was glorious.
Prophecies Revealed (UT C64): The wind, the fire and the child. Never to be found in our home, but in this alien land they revealed themselves and we knew them to be filled with truth.
Sacrificial Offerings (UT U66): On the pile of ruined packing crates lay those who had given their lives for the Master, both friend and foe.
Artist in Residence (UT C75): "They talk about modernism but don't know what it means. What is actually modern has never changed. It renews perpetually, even as it passes into history."
Bound Byakhee (UT C76): When it lifted me into the sky I thought I would collapse from ecstasy. My steed, my joy!
Spawn of Hastur (UT R78): Dimly we spied it scuttling, erratic, over the broken rocks of the shore. This lake might have reminded it of home.
Vessel of Hastur (UT U79): It felt like a whisper of music, or the memory of a painting he'd once seen. Was it a man? He couldn't remember. But it had talked to him, and he was enrapt.
Embracing the Abyss (UT C80): The children skipped and chanted this rhyme:
"Veronica, Victoria, Vincent, Vance
"Knew that destiny was chance
"Vanya, Victor, Violet, Vaughn
"Once were here but now are gone."
Madness Takes Its Toll (UT C81): She learned too late that the imagination has a terrible force, one not always benign.
Private Studio (UT R88): Victoria patronized sculptors, poets, novelists and musicians, but she loved her painters best of all.
Sedated (UT C89): "He'll sleep for a while."
"How long? We have to know how long."
Arcane Initiate (UT C92): The next morning she felt weak and hollowed-out, as if she had attended a debauch. Nothing she did that day could she afterward remember. When the call came in that evening, she rushed out, never pausing even to don her coat.
Nightgaunt Servant (UT C93): In the dream I could see a cloud of dark wings, flapping like sheets of leather. I could see curled horns lifting and bowing, and long fingers stroking. And every one of these creatures was my slave.
Spell-bound Shoggoth (UT U95): "Even Alhazred lies," explained Vaughn to the weeping man in the corner. "It's best to confirm these things with your own eyes."
The thing in the circle quivered, perhaps in fury.
Calling down the Ancients (UT C98): We reject the tyranny of Time. With our Words we arm and armor ourselves, by our Will we travel like flame across the dry earth.
Seal of Isis (UT U102): By the Key and the Gate we declare these events to be inviolate, as once they have occurred, ever it be so.
Warping of Time (UT R103): When he taught at the University, Vaughn often dreamt of these days. Now he could no longer distinguish between that time and now, or between life and dream.
Forbidden Shrine (UT U106): The initiate screamed when he saw the altar. The women caressed his hair and, to soothe him, quietly cooed.
The Doors of Time (UT R108): We adoreth you, Ament-Isis, secret Queen, and know through thee the paths through many gates.
Albino Goat-spawn (UT U110): "Only here are you safe, little sister. Only here, and only in the dark."
Forest Sister (UT C111): "In the city you can't feel it. It's only out here that the spirit is manifest. You can taste it like a liquor for the soul."
Mi-Go Scout (UT R112): It had no capacity for regret, but there was something about this planet that it cared little for. Compared to the icy spires of Yuggoth, this place blossomed with unreason.
The Mother's Messenger (UT C113): The thing spoke in groans and growls, moaning a message of growth beyond nature - beyond humanity itself - and the doom soon to follow.
Wily Goat-spawn (UT C115): "Why, I swear, mister! The little dame jumped clear over the barn and ran away into the woods!"
Norman nodded. This wasn't the first story he'd heard of strange goings-on around the boarding house.
A Time to Reap (UT C116): "It is the cycle of the Mother," Lily told her sisters. "First, the time of sowing, and then the time of growth. The harvest is upon us now, but after this comes the burning, and those who are not ready shall be consumed."
Alien Excavation (UT R118): Simon wondered what they could be digging for. What type of ore could be found on earth that couldn't be more easily acquired elsewhere?
Bred to Survive (UT U119): "Bullets don't stop them! Nothing stops them!"
Curiosity's Price (UT C120): She simply had to know who was buried in that tomb. If the stories were true, it would change everything, and she couldn't wait until daylight to find out.
Shocking Transformation (UT U121): He felt he could breathe in the very earth like air, and breathe it out again as fire.
Dabbler in the Unknown (UT R127): "I love the neophytes," he mused, twirling his cane. "They're just so eager."
Prophecies Fulfilled (UT R133): "They like to call it fate. I call it proper planning."
A Higher Purpose (UT C135): What was there to fight for anymore? He knew the answer, even if he could never explain it.

Forbidden Relics

Norman Blackwood, Sr., The Old Man (FR R1): "Hello, Norman."
Norman looked poleaxed. Finally he managed: "Hi, dad. Where you been keeping yourself?"
Femme Fatale (FR U3): Her expression was aloof, contemptuous. Her dress clung to her like it could never bear to be parted.
"Long time no see, Vaughn."
Vaughn was speechless.
Comprehending the Horror (FR U10): The Somme was never like this. At least the Somme had a purpose.
Cover Fire (FR C11): "I got him, Travis! Didn't you see? I got him!" Travis didn't answer. His head lolled sideways and he slumped against the passenger door.
Strike the Shepherd (FR R12): The warehouse still smoldered. "We did it," said Norman, eyes glittering.
But Harvey scowled. "Nah. The big fella got away."
Professor William Dyer, Respected Archaeologist (FR U19): He stood up too quickly and his back twinged. This would be his last dig, he decided. He deserved a rest after all these years.
Campus Gumshoe (FR U20): "Flappers and hopheads? They're the least of my worries."
Strange Visitors (FR R24): "Gentlemen and ladies, I'd like you to meet --" Victoria screamed.
Back to the Vaults (FR C25): "William found this on his last expedition. Careful! Put these on first."
Armitage handed him a pair of leather gloves.
Dr. Carson's Treatment (FR C27): "Mr. West taught me quite a bit."
Tapping the Shadow Fund (FR R30): "So, Mr. Blackwood. Do you mind telling me where all this money is coming from?" asked Dyer.
Secret File (FR R35): The signature on the first page was nearly illegible, but Steve thought the initials were JEH.
Etienne-Laurent de Marigny, Eccentric Dilettante (FR R37): De Marigny was morbid and rich, which meant naturally that he was a collector.
Continental Agent (FR C38): "Money, darling. Try it sometime."
Cut the Power (FR C43): The ballroom went dark. A confused murmur rose from the guests. Someone chuckled uneasily.
Get On Yer Feet! (FR C44): "Don't worry, Mr. O'Bannion. We'll get you outta here. Then we'll go see about that cop."
Payback (FR U46): "You see this scar? You did that, mister."
Worse For The Wear (FR R48): "Boss! What happened to you?"
O'Bannion just stared.
Cathouse (FR U51): A lot of the girls used to bunk at Mrs. Watkins' old place.
Blasphemous Hybrid (FR U55): She took pride in her heritage, her Old World stock.
Color from the Stars (FR C56): His eyes refused to focus on it. He was glad Stanford wasn't here to mock his discomfort.
Innsmouth Troublemaker (FR C57): "Tsathoggua!" he laughed. "Nog-Soth! Ktulu! You like those funny words, do you?"
Keeper of the Ancient Ways (FR R58): We have kept the faith, and guarded the legacy, down the desolate generations.
Spawn of Cthulhu (FR R60): The children will leave nothing in their wake.
Calling the Great Priest (FR R63): "Ia! Ia! Cthulhu nafltagn!"
Silver Twilight Indoctrination (FR C66): I assist in the purification and consecration by water, all the Hall, of the members, and of the candidate. Lethe om Pax!
Broken Vessels (FR U74): A master sculptor worked this clay. The greatest of all artists shattered it.
Infected by Madness (FR C81): The applause was deafening. Victoria noted wryly that Hildred's chest was puffed out with pride and self-satisfaction.
Unsettling Visions (FR R82): "Holly? Can you hear me?"
When she spoke, her voice was barely audible: "The palace on the shore. The masquerade. The wonder."
Servant of Nodens (FR C95): It could do nothing but obey its master's voice. That this might mean a flight of a thousand years made no matter to it.
Star Vampire Minion (FR U96): By this time, Vaughn felt almost kindly toward it, like a pet or a child.
Wandering Dimensional Shambler (FR U97): "The truth lies not in the spaces we know but between them. Serious explorers require a guide," Vaughn smirked.
Dampen Light (FR U100): Truth is not light, nor beauty.
Sanctify the Stone (FR U102): Space and time shuddered and twitched. Then the robed figure was gone, and Sir William clenched his teeth in fury.
Enchanted Cane (FR U106): "A gift from Carl." He smiled almost shyly.
Ancient Guardian (FR U110): How long had it waited there, that watchman eternal? Longer, certainly, than its children's lifetimes.
Spawn from K'n-Yan (FR R112): Through N'kai and Yoth it traveled, until it arrived finally in this terrible roofless world.
The Mother's Hand (FR C114): Many fingers, he told me. On many, many hands.
Beneath the Harvest Moon (FR R115): The Mother, in her infinite bounty, provides.
Gathering Influence (FR U118): "Mrs. Watkins? You don't need to worry anymore."
Hands of Colubra (FR C119): Shannon gaped. The gat drooped uselessly toward the ground. The priestess chuckled, and her hands hissed.
Everlasting Chalice, Fecund Grail (FR R121): Milk to us and ours, venom to our foes.
Eternal Serpent (FR U128): It found the climate unpleasant, but it endured, knowing the situation temporary.
Guru of the Forgotten Way (FR R130): In future decades his teachings would seem almost benign.
Sword of St. Jerome, The Martyr's Legacy (FR R136): In the name of God, we offer up this brokenhearted prayer to Reason.

Eldritch Edition

Norman Blackwood, Jr., Scholarly Detective (EE R1): Norman suffered from nightmares, but that was all right, since he suffered from insomnia too.
Kirby O'Donnell, Adventurer Abroad (EE R2): He accompanied El Borak to Afghanistan, but returned alone to Cairo.
The Man, Unknown Quantity (EE U3): Apparently he was an old pal of Harvey's, and in fact there was an almost familial easiness about him. But Norman felt little affection for him, or trust.
Undercover Security (EE C4): "Mingle with the locals, they said. What they meant was, go native."
Colonial Guard (EE C6): "It's a burden, lads, but we've the backs to bear it."
Simmons turned back to the kneeling man and shot him through the head.
Man on the Inside (EE U8): "He's been waiting for you, Mr. Clarney. He's been awake all night, throwing his head against the wall, he's so exuberant."
Monster Hunter (EE C9): One would fall in the struggle but another would soon appear. Was there no end to this society of brave-hearted fanatics, these grim avengers?
Senior Associate (EE U12): The heat was oppressive. His old bones weren't used to it. He thought sadly of the last time he'd visited Egypt, with Erickson.
He pushed away the nostalgia. He was here to bury the memories, not unearth them.
Street Prophet (EE U13): "We are the lost generation!"
Dangerous Insights (EE U16): Ever since he'd acquired the dagger, he'd been prey to strange dreams, frightening but not wholly unpleasant.
Gunned Down (EE C18): "They're animals!" sobbed Christine.
Hail of Bullets (EE U19): O'Bannion's men lay all in a heap, and some of the local cops had bought it too. This would have to stop, thought Norman.
Search and Seizure (EE C22): The University folks would prefer Blackwood handed the pieces over for the collection. But Norman was no fool.
Carbine (EE C23): "Long-range. In fact, the more long-range, the better."
Armored Car (EE R25): Harvey opened the heavy doors. Marsh was impressed. That much ordnance could level a city block.
Dr. Ali Kafour, Middle Eastern Scholar (EE R31): This decade had seen a great deal of interest in his country. He was much in demand among Western academics.
Professor Albert Wilmarth, Folklore Expert (EE R32): Wilmarth preferred boisterous company, and avoided the soft-spoken.
The Messenger, Putting the Pieces in Motion (EE U33): The mysterious Egyptian had arrived at the University with unusual news, and within a month the expedition had been funded and planned.
Government Liaison (EE C34): Gossip and speculation was rampant among the students. Who were all these strange, unsmiling men, and what business could Dr. Armitage have with them?
Local Guide (EE U38): "In Cairo, it is important to know the right people."
Theology Professor (EE C43): He suspected that the unique character of Egyptian metaphysics sprang from some earlier, as yet undiscovered, source. Hecate and perhaps Athena had arrived in Greece from Africa, but from where had come Bast, Osiris, and Seth?
Historic Discovery (EE R47): It was one of those moments where everything seemed to fall into place, like magic.
Reversing the Temporal Flow (EE U49): Holland made a joke about a monkey's paw. Wilmarth blanched.
Lost History of Herodotus, Priceless Greek Antiquity (EE R53): "Some have said Nitocris did not die in the embers, but fled to further chambers below the ground, where she was reunited with her brother. There they reign still, regents of this shadow Egypt."
Dirigible (EE U57): "From up here, professor, you can see the entire valley."
Expedition Warehouse (EE C59): Shattered packing crates littered the floor. What had they been searching for?
Mosque of Ibn Tulun (EE R60): "And I will have some peace there..." murmured Dyer. Peace had been elusive, for the West and for his heart.
Dr. Marinus Bicknell Willett, Lost but Determined (EE R62): He wasn't sure how he found himself working for these men. But ever since Charles' death he had drifted into stranger and stranger company.
The Voice on the Phone, The New Boss (EE U63): It was barely a whisper, and the connection crackled with the distance.
Silver Twilight Turncoat (EE C64): She was quite a doll, but no one put the moves on her. Those society creeps had left their mark, that was for sure.
Anarchist (EE C65): "It's a temporary alliance, you realize. My goals are on a bigger scale than yours, sir."
"Mister," growled O'Bannion, "I surely doubt that."
Blind Medium (EE U66): Sightless, yes, but her hearing was all the more acute.
Hijacker (EE U71): He could jack these old heaps in ten seconds flat. Cairo was like his own private garage, and he was over the moon about it.
Abduction (EE U75): "This is just a warning, doll. Make sure your man gets the message."
Auto-de-fe (EE R76): He stumbled through the streets for days, sleeping fitfully in alleys. When he could stand it no more he stole a can of gasoline and bought a penny match off a street urchin. Whatever came next could be no worse.
Blowing the Whistle (EE U77): "Mary? We all thought you were dead! Where have you been? Sure, I'll listen..."
Dry Gulch (EE C78): For a man of Finn's size, it was surprising how silently he could move. All those years on stakeouts, he supposed.
Telling no Tales (EE R81): The burned thing in the alleyway was unrecognizable. No one would ever know the reason for it.
The Bum's Rush (EE C82): "And don't come back!" The big man dusted off his hands and stepped back inside the Clover Club.
Dutch Courage (EE U86): There weren't many to choose from, but eventually they found the best saloon in Cairo. They killed three hours there before they went out into the night and killed a lot more things.
The Beast, Model for the Sphinx (EE U92): It was to a tiger what the pyramids were to a child's building blocks.
Mameluke of Sebek (EE C93): It swam through the deep forgotten tunnels until, prying away the stone, it emerged into the tomb. The shuffling ape-things had been here, it knew.
Chakota (EE R94): O'Bannion stared in horror. Surely that couldn't be Charlie's face on that thing?
Innsmouth Shoggoth (EE R95): "I don't know why Norman didn't shutter this place completely. Really, if they're all in Africa, what are we expected to do? Rescue cats from trees or - oh my God!"
Lord of the Silver Twilight (EE U96): Old Father, work your will upon and through me.
Priest of Sebek (EE C97): A current under sea picks my bones to whispers. I rise and fall and pass the stages of my age and youth entering the whirlpool.
Speaker for the Black Pharaoh (EE U103): "It is said that the Pharaoh speaks for all the Ancient Ones, and it is I who speak for him."
Blood in the Water (EE C105): His life drained into the bowl. It bloomed under the surface like a flower.
Howl of Jackals (EE R109): The priest was pleased with the night's work.
Sky Torn Asunder (EE R111): Howls and shrieks - all lost in the infinite abyss.
Sword of Y'ha-talla (EE C113): In the name of Sebek and Seth, we offer up these souls to chaos.
Chamber of Rebirth (EE U116): The thing slid slickly from the opening, peeling the cocoon from itself. The captives shrieked and wept as they beheld its new face.
St. Toad's Church (EE R119): The cracked chimes echoed dully down the deserted streets, seeming to come from everywhere at once.
Underground River (EE U120): Our Lord Sebek travels many secret roads.
Skinless One, Awful in Mind and Form (EE U122): The creature leaned backward with a lipless grin. Thought clung round its dead limbs as it clung around mine.
Victoria Glasser, The Society Hostess (EE R123): Victoria was the very image of her mother.
Worm-ridden One (EE C124): In Vaughn's marginalia to Ibn Schacabao, Victoria found the following note: "I believe that the wizard does not instruct the worm, but is instructed by it. If we walk at all on this earth, it is only through the sufferance of the dead."
Messenger from Beyond (EE R127): Nothing could be more terrible than that finest of arts.
Enshrouded Sun (EE R137): The sun in tatters,
The lost tomorrow.
And what else matters?
Our softest sorrow.
Legacy of Cassilda (EE C138): Behold we reenact the royal succession.
Nightmare's Grasp (EE U139): Harvey woke up and walked down the hallway. Then, waking up, he walked down the hallway. Within the next dream, he woke and, walking down the hall, he made his way finally down the seven hundred steps and into the cavern of flame.
Schizophrenia (EE U140): She learned that all matter had a mind, and thereupon could be split.
Writhing Wall (EE U142): If you hear its terrible wail, then it's too late.
Book of the Dead (EE C143): Grant us the doorway to immortality and power.
An Unbreakable Oath (EE R146): "Come now Victoria, did you think it was so simple?"
In Rags (EE C148): Victoria was fond of quoting Bierce: "A man, though naked, may be in rags."
The Black Pharaoh, Brother to Nitocris (EE U152): In antique and shadowy Khem he took the form of man.
Wizard of Chorazos (EE C154): He spent a pleasant Spring visiting Mrs. Watkins, but the time came when duty called him back to his own country. She wept tears of milk when he departed.
Dark Attendant (EE U156): The pharaoh had many slaves and servants, and demanded loyalty far beyond simply one lifetime.
Hermetic Scholar (EE R159): The ambassadors to America had proven successful, and Vaughn's people had agreed to share their knowledge.
Son of Yeb (EE C161): Shub-Niggurath begat Nug and Yeb. Nug and Yeb begat Shub-Niggurath. These actions are known as the key and the gate, the twin blasphemies.
Living Mummy (EE R163): The book had warned of this, mused Vaughn. He had succeeded in raising nothing but the liveliest awfulness.
A Single Glimpse (EE C165): She saw it for only the blink of an eye. The four corners of the earth, and its fifth, secret point, became as it were a pentagram of fire, and all was consumed.
Pentagram of Fire (EE U168): Sun in the fifth house, Saturn in trine. Say the verse thrice, and the thing will breed in the Outside Spheres.
Screaming of the Spheres (EE R170): Time flexed its muscles, and for a moment I saw the men as they would become in the End Times, and I fled mindless into the sand-swept wastes.
The Twin Blasphemies (EE C172): There was love between Nug and Yeb, as there was between the two forms of their self-created father.
De Vermis Mysteriis, Von Prinn's Grimoire (EE R173): The worms held no more mysteries for Vaughn.
Back Alleys of Cairo (EE U176): Anything could be found in those narrow streets, and anything lost.
Bent Pyramid (EE U177): They saw Sneferu worshipped a god with two faces, and so built a tomb with two gates.
Execration (EE C178): We curse by these words Norman Harvey Blackwood, his son Norman Blackwood and the spy O'Donnell, known as Ali el Ghazi.
Winlock's Dig (EE R180): Herbert was beginning to grow worried. Not only were there problems with that odd man Trilipush, but now Mr. Vaughn and his strange coterie had set up camp less than a mile away.
The Thousand-Faced Moon, Hecate the Blessed (EE U182): Gorgo, Mormo, thousand-faced moon, look favourably on our sacrifices!
Mother's Avenger (EE C183): The thing howled in fury. It hurried to overtake us, hoofs crushing Mrs. Watkins' smashed body into the mud.
Brood of Bubastis (EE R185): In the morning they awoke unrefreshed, as if the life had been drawn out of them, in a long exhalation, all through the night.
Guardian of the Moon-Lens (EE C189): The hillside grew claws and hoofs and the lights of its eyes were darker than the darkest earth. As the moon reflected the sun, so did this monstrous thing reflect the eldritch horror that was Shub-Niggurath.
Berserk Fury (EE C195): The story goes that Orpheus was set upon by madwomen, and they rent his clothes, and then his flesh, and then tore him all to pieces. This must have come as a relief, after his previous visit to hell.
Claws of Bubastis (EE C198): Was she still in Arkham? Or had she been removed to Egypt? Her back arched, and she raked the earth of two continents. Men screamed, and she gasped with the love of it.
The Forest Laughs (EE U201): And every leaf shook.
The Mother's Fury (EE R202): In this form she became the spirit that always denies.
The Mother's Seed (EE C203): Soon from the sea a noxious birth began.
Ancient Necropolis (EE R205): What was once proud was now laid low. Legrasse felt adrift in this dry country, and imagined these ruined cyclopean towers growing like cypresses from the sands, feeding on the love of the earth.
Ghoul Taint (EE C209): They found him in the basement of the hospital, sobbing but fulfilled.
Mystic Bounty Hunter (EE C218): Their organization had a knack for finding lost treasures that O'Donnell envied.
Over-equipped Investigator (EE U219): Weapons collecting seemed to be a common neurosis.
Overzealous Initiate (EE C220): The streets of Cairo were full of potential recruits, eager to be taught the latest faith.
Crackdown! (EE C223): The King was not sympathetic to the protestors, and had grown less so since the new advisor had joined his government.
I Am It And It Is I (EE U225): Light is dark and dark is light. Far is near and near is far.
Political Demonstration (EE C226): The Brotherhood marshalled demonstrations nearly every week, and under this cover, far more sinister groups were able to operate.

Masks of Nyarlathotep

Captain Isoge Taro, Imperial Japanese Captain (MN R1): Isoge began the necessary project of extermination.
T-Men (MN C2): At this time there were secret meetings, and maybe unfortunate treaties, between the two governments.
Peeler (MN U5): The British boasted a noble tradition of law enforcement, but many of the rest of their traditions, thought Hildred, were less to be admired.
Undercover Agent (MN U7): They met up again in Sydney, but the man could tell them nothing of Huston's whereabouts.
Scouring the Earth (MN R11): "The Old Man's gone for good now, Norman. You have to come to terms." "Fine. But they'll be my terms."
Taking No Chances (MN C12): Willett looked around in distaste at the blood-spattered wreck of a room. "And you call yourself the good guys?"
Mu Hsein, Classical Scholar (MN R19): His erudition extended far beyond China. It had to, because our enemies were not limited to that nation.
Natural Philosopher (MN C20): Some called his area of study antiquated, but he preferred to think of it as holistic.
American Ambassador (MN C21): Negotiations were the same the world over, and Mr. O'Bannion's mouthpiece was no more unpleasant than General Chiang.
Soothsayer (MN U26): Crystal balls and palm readings! Harvey was unimpressed - this was real Middle Ages kind of stuff.
Slumming (MN C29): Finn wanted to enjoy his last nights in New York, but as the evening wore on he grew more apprehensive. Though he was not a superstitious man, these gaunt walls of brick seemed to presage a more terrible environ, one he hoped never to visit.
Unavoidable Delay (MN U30): From Cairo to Bangkok to Marrakesh, Dyer thought ruefully, the only constant was the disrepair of the trains.
Seven Cryptical Books of Hsan, Lost Masterpiece (MN R31): "Brady almost died stealing these." "Why? The fella can't even read them."
Jack "Brass" Brady, Steeped in Violence (MN R37): Brady was elusive, but then he had to be. The same qualities that had kept him alive were now making him frustratingly difficult for Armitage to find.
Gang Boss (MN U42): "First the East End, now the East, eh guv'nor?"
Patsy (MN C43): Jimmy knew how to make a buck, all right, but he wasn't much good with a gun.
Rambling Man (MN U44): He rode the rails from the mountains to the sea, and in that time he never found what he was seeking.
Eye for an Eye (MN U47): Steve Grayce said he knew who killed Leopardi, but the Old Man always suspected Grayce knew more than he let on.
Sleight of Hand (MN R48): Brian figured it was a shell game, and the shells were London, Shanghai, and New York.
The Thing in the Fog (MN C56): "God - there were cold fingers, sticky and foul! They pressed into my mouth and dripped down my throat!"
Leech Mother (MN U59): The transfer of qualities is the primary function of the blood. In this way humans have the advantage, temporarily.
Ocean Crawlers (MN U60): Morris found the thing in the bilge pump, crushed. The next day, two more were found scuttling in the cargo hold. By the end of the week, everyone on the ship was dead.
Shoggoth-Twsha (MN C61): The creature directed the thing like a conductor directs an orchestra. The terrible growths covering its arms seemed to writhe and wriggle in time with the reluctant heaving of the terrible beast in the pit.
Terrible Beauty (MN R67): He who has eyes, let him weep. He who has ears, let him be deafened by our revels.
Hildred Castaigne, Future Emperor of America (MN R73): He was lonely. She who would have been his empress now lay cold as dust, entombed in glass and displayed as a curiosity for Vaughn's visitors.
Twin of You (MN C74): The eyes behold the eyes of mirrors,
The stallion blossoms to a mare,
Victoria to Vaughn appears
As every color, everywhere.
Court Jester (MN C77): In the Palace of Yhtill there are many entertainments.
Language Virus (MN U80): In the beginning was the Word.
Ancestral Voices (MN U82): Years later, Tuttle would claim to hear the voice of Victoria Glasser whispering to him each night, at the moment he fell asleep.
Mass Hallucination (MN R84): I saw, rising from the plains of Africa, a vast mountain, and from that mountain there came a terrible wind, and that wind was love.
Revelations of Hali, Words of the Shepherd's God (MN R86): If thou art truthful and dutiful I will abide with thee in Asturias.
Ho Fong, High Priest of the Bloated Woman (MN R91): Ho knew each of the Seven Gates to Heaven. "Master, but what is Heaven?" Ho smiled. "Heaven is only another Gate."
Cannibal Ghast (MN C95): Vaughn kept them caged during the day, but allowed them to run free on the grounds after dark.
Insubstantial Insect (MN U96): Raymond's ears had been ringing for days. Charles said he'd seen him down in Whitechapel two nights earlier, but when he called to him, Ray didn't answer.
Aklo Sabaoth (MN C100): Simon found it difficult to master the hand gestures at first, but Armitage, bless him, had been a patient teacher.
Haunted Mists (MN R101): But though its lure alone makes life worth living,
None gains or guesses what it hints at giving.
Stone of the Heart (MN U102): "Where is Victoria?" asked Shakti. The Black Man answered: "She has resigned her part in the casual comedy."
The Wave Function (MN R103): "One thing is certain," began Castaigne. "Yes," interrupted Vaughn. "Uncertainty."
Small Ghouls (MN C110): Like all children, they hoarded their toys.
Bright Young Thing (MN U112): They would dance all night, bathing in the admiration of the men. In the last minutes before dawn they would vanish, and the spark of life seemed to leave with them.
Obscene Polyp (MN C115): It was a rushing of air, and an unutterable foulness. The sand swirled and blinded us. I heard Finn's shout, then his screams receding into the black distance.
Thanks Be to Shudde-M'ell (MN R120): It's true that the Limehouse buildings were decrepit, but no one expected this sort of tragedy.
Jackson Elias, Skeptical Reporter (MN R127): "Elias was a friend of ours." O'Bannion chewed on his cigar for a moment before responding: "I'm sure that was a comfort to him, fella."
Independent Operator (MN U132): Clarney and O'Donnell had not yet returned from Palestine, so Wilmarth was forced to employ less trustworthy operatives.
Moving the Scenery (MN U136): Brodighera's opera had only ever been performed once, but the Foundation planned to revive it, for a special weekend of music dedicated to the memory of the late Miss Glasser.
Simple Kindness (MN U137): The German War rewrote all the rules. No government could be said to know how to operate anymore, but the Brotherhood had certainly forged a League of Nations.
Gray Dragon Island (MN R140): The Old Man gave his life discovering the location of the island. Brady wouldn't forget that, and even so, Norman would never let him.
The Ju-Ju House (MN R143): Silas N'Kwane and his establishment were well known in the neighborhood, which is not to say they were well liked.

Forgotten Cities

Paul LeMond, Tormented Psychic (FC R1): Paul had dreamt for months about the man he called Nophru-Ka, a name which sounded disturbingly familiar to Armitage.
Professor Hermann Mulder, Bureau Consultant (FC R2): The streets had never been meaner, or their inhabitants more cruel.
Shamus (FC U3): A year ago he wouldn't have believed any of it. But after what happened at old Buford's place, and what they had buried in the swamp...well, he'd been exposed to a whole new type of race relations.
Bureau Chief (FC C4): He was on his way up, all right. The bureau was in need of serious tightening, and he was the man for the job.
Urban Renewal (FC U12): "Don't you love the Commissioner?" "I love him like a brother. Like an easy-to-bribe brother."
Randolph Carter (FC R20): A man can be harmed in many ways. Time and age are crueller than knives.
Learned Astronomer (FC U21): He lectured to much applause, but in Stanford's inner world there was nothing but the perfect silence of the cold unmoving stars.
Civil Engineer (FC C24): To his mind this project seemed like a boondoggle, but if the Commissioner wanted to tear down half the waterfront tenements to build this bridge, who was he to argue?
Visiting Author (FC C25): They were calling him the new Arthur Conan Doyle, but he preferred to think of himself as the new Wilkie Collins.
Back from Beyond (FC C28): "Where have you been?" Neither seemed willing to answer.
Rush to Judgement (FC U30): Two hours after his release from Dexter, Edward was arrested for harassment.
State Representative (FC U39): "Hell, Mr. O'Bannion, we got Harding elected. I don't see why you should be any problem."
Hard Case (FC C41): In Joliet he refined the reputation he'd made on the streets.
Low Blow (FC C48): "Saving the world is one thing, boys, but we're still in the money-making business, too."
Tainted Informant (FC U57): Some folks have no problem serving two masters...especially when they both pay well.
Lemurian Survivor (FC C60): The killer Kull was long dead, but it still felt the occasional twinge of fear, as if the dead man's hate persisted as a physical thing, like a sticky fog.
Self-Slaughter (FC C66): The Father makes many demands.
Water Colour (FC U75): There was a story spread about by Vaughn's servants: that when Miss Glasser was exsanguinated, what was removed was neither liquid nor wholly real.
Pulp Writer (FC C78): They were calling him the new Wilkie Collins, but he preferred to think of himself as the new Arthur Conan Doyle.
Lost Generation (FC C80): Cities are always built atop the rubble of their own dreams.
Seeing the Light (FC U84): Was it only a statue? Edward saw the trunk twitch, just a fraction, and his mind was shattered.
Child of the Kingdom (FC U93): There was another race, one less sophisticated than those from Yuggoth, and imbued with a terrible perversion.
Child of Yog-Sothoth (FC C95): Wilbur loved his brother, but was unsure if the feeling was reciprocated.
Mi-Go Slave (FC C96): When it died, Vaughn would simply regrow it from the cells he kept in the lab specifically for that purpose.
Starry Wisdom Deacon (FC U97): No human eyes had ever seen this place, and none ever would again.
Lean and Athirst (FC C100): The castles of the Kingdom sometimes wept and moaned.
Space-Eaters (FC U111): "They desire us! Can't you see that from their actions? They have no minds, so they need ours!" Clarney didn't care what they wanted, as long as they kept their attention on Vaughn's men.
Kindly Nurse (FC C113): There were many unfortunate casualties on the night shift.
Progeny of Abhoth (FC C114): The Seven Geases had forced him this far, as they had his unfortunate ancestor. The monster seemed to remember as well, and the things that spewed from its body now sported a noticeable family resemblance.

Asylum Packs: First Series

The Terrible Old Man (AKD F1): His colleagues were not there at all, but only the Terrible Old Man leaning quietly on his knotted cane and smiling hideously.
Neil's Curiosity Ship (AKD F2): Men shall not live without rumor of old strange secrets...
St. Erasmus' Home for Mariners (AKD F7): The old captains of the sea came often to my grandfather and told him of these things...
Visitor from the Spheres (AKD F11): It wasn't right - it was against Nature...
Dreams in Limbo (AKD F12): Whenever he awaked he retained a vague sense of having undergone much more than he remembered.
Basil Elton, Investigator (AKD F13): I sometimes feel strangely alone, as though I were the last man on our planet.
Nodens, Potent and Archaic (AKD F16): Hoary and immemorial Nodens, Lord of the Great Abyss.
Mr. Grey, Corrupt Politician (ACC F1): "Take comfort in the idea that your death serves a much greater purpose."
Mutant Spawn, (Soft and Cuddly.) (ACC F7): After he discovered what he was, he felt his life finally had purpose.
Shrieking Byakhee (ACC F9): The horrible screech seemed to echo. But it hadn't.
Blood Magician (ACC F11): "Don't worry. I only need 10 pints."
Displaced Cthonian (ACC F13): "It left only ruin in its wake."
Beneath the Mire (ACC F20): "This should fix everything..." -Vaughn
Professor Morgan, Lean and Youngish (ADD F4): "Why do I keep being drawn into these things?"
Feathery Watchers (ADD F10): There came the sound of a panic-struck whirring and fluttering...
Sentinel Hill (ADD F14): In the end, three men ascended the mountain alone.