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| “ | As long as so many people believe we are doing terrible things, the monster will continue to believe we are doing terrible things. There is power in symbols, doctor. The old gods know this, and the old gods are bound by it. The Scarlet King does not have eyes to see brutality, does not have ears to hear screams, does not have a nose to smell blood. But the Scarlet King can sense fear, and we have given it fear. Fear alone is all that it ever required. | „ |
| ~ Dr Oliver Targus about the Scarlet King. |
| “ | I know that the Foundation does not approve of using the term, but it is still the case. The Stag is a god, and it is not a petty local god. It is not one of the mild gods of Earth, or some weaker spirit that is bound by the strength of man’s belief. | „ |
| ~ Consultant ██████ ████████ describing SCP-2845. |
The Old Gods, sometimes also known as the Low Elder Gods, are a loose pantheon of eldritch deities, many of which serve as major antagonists in the universe of the SCP Foundation.
Contents
Overview
(Note: Due to the SCP Foundation-universe having no official canon, the Old Gods are a very loose concept within the mythos, though subtle connections exist in different tales and articles)
Inspired by the Great Old Ones from H.P. Lovecraft (though also being based on real religions, myths and folklore), the Old Gods are among the most powerful beings in the multiverse, usually being beyond the comprehension of humans in terms of scale, power or motivation. Despite, unlike their Lovecraftian inspiration, it appears that humanity can, at least sometimes, hold up against the the Old Gods.
An example for this is SCP-2845: The entity came to Earth on a comet and started to cause havoc, but with much effort the Foundation, with the help of the Global Occult Coalition and at least another occult organisation managed to contain the being with a six-step ritual.
The attitude towards humanity also varies from deity to deity. Some seem to have an interest to improve mankind (Mekhane), while other appear indifferent about them (SCP-3000), while other want to conquer and/or destroy all life (Scarlet King).
The Old Ones also have alliances and conflicts among themselves: Mekhane and Yaldabaoth appear to be opposite enemies, while many lesser gods, like Jeser or the Hanged King, serve stronger ones, such as the Scarlet King. It also speculated that Yaldabaoth for example is the aunt of the Scarlet King.
It is believed by certain cults, such as Sarkicism or the Children of God, that the old gods created the universe.
List of Old Gods
Old Gods
Referred to as an Old God
Associated with other Old Gods
- He Who Walks Beneath Dreams (associated with Pangloss)
- Mekhane (sibling/enemy of Yaldabaoth)
- Nahash (sibling of Mekhane)
- Pangloss (sibling of Saturn Deer)
- Sanna (previous "bride" of the Scarlet King)
- Saturn Deer (associated with SCP-2845)
- SCP-2662 (referenced Mekhane and Yaldabaoth)
- SCP-3000 (sibling of Nahash)
- King Worm (associated with the Scarlet King)
- White Wolf (associated with the Scarlet King)
- Unseelie Queen (associated with the Scarlet King)
Called something similar
- SCP-2975 (called "some eldritch entity from the 'Outer Dark', whatever that is besides Lovecraft's wet dream.")
- SCP-3004-1 (grouped with "The gods of the old world")
- SCP-3388 (referred to as an Elder God)
- SCP-4950 (referred to as "the Archon Lord")
Theorized
- SCP-3125 (theorized to be the Fithist god)
- SCP-3999 (theorized to be a primordial chaos god)
- SCP-4971-▽ (believed to be connected to SCP-2845)
- Tokage-tako (believed to be a Fithist angel)
- Zsar Magoth (referenced planets believed to be where the Old Gods lived)
Powerful beings serving the Old Gods
- Grand Karcist Ion
- Black Lord of Alagadda
- Ab-Leshal
- SCP-096
- Atanti ql-Paneu
- Cousin Johnny
- Lilly
- Hgan
- Orvo
- Ydax
- Lror
Organizations & people serving the Old Gods
Quotes
| “ | The old gods were fickle, twisted, and brutal things. They had no purity in them, and they sought to shape worlds for their own amusement. They created figures in their image, to serve them, and to venerate them. Hundreds of worlds and realities were created, blooming into existence by the hands of the old gods. | „ |
| ~ The Children of God, about the Old Gods. |
| “ | There is a god, called Anantashesha. A serpent, the king of serpents. Said to lie beneath Vishnu in the cosmos. A six headed snake god, isn't that something? (...) I believe that SCP-3000 is Anantashesha. I believe that this… this aberration, this treachery against cognition, is the result of us being in the presence of a god. | „ |
| ~ Venkat Krishnamoorthy. |
| “ | And it was here that I remembered The ominous words of Nadox Who warned that the coming of the Archons would be presaged, Not by the moon and stars, But by the festering of the Void, Cold and black and infinite. |
„ |
| ~ The Doom-Song of Karcist Viekudh. |
| “ | It does not think in the way we think. Truth be told, I would not say that it thinks at all. This is an old god, it does not dabble in decisions. Decisions are for creatures who may act erratically, variably, or out of line. A god of this strength simply Is. It is an absolute. It acts as a force. | „ |
| ~ A Foundation consultant to Site Director Dell. |
| “ | Great beasts were bred there, where they fought and bled and consumed one another; great gods were drawn there, licking this wound of the universe like parasites. But an even greater beast had been there, the God Eater, a titan among them, who had lurked there for aeons. A godly beast of enormous size, she had consumed countless, and all that were in her path would find no escape. | „ |
| ~ The Maker and the Beast about Yaldabaoth. |
| “ | It is pretty insane. There are planets and stars like in your universe, but life ain't the same. We've got stuff like planet-sized, star-eating crystal serpents, sick lightning storms that fertilize the ground to create clockwork plants, some chill oceans filled with diamond corals and also winged carnivorous eggs that never stop singing Spice Girls songs. And yeah, there's like a bajillion guys like me. It's hella hard to stand out from the crowd to get someone to summon you and give a sacrifice, but I get by. | „ |
| ~ Zsar Magoth about his homeworld. |
Gallery
Trivia
- Although they are some of the most powerful beings in the multiverse, their power is seemingly inferior to that of the Pattern Screamers, who are even feared by these gods.
- It is unclear if SCP-343, a being believed to be the Abrahamic God, is affiliated with the Old Gods.
- It is also unclear if Srqnabotf, a corn deity who is called "THE god" by SCP-1846, is affiliated with the Old Gods.
- Other deities or god-like beings that have questionable affiliation with the Old Gods include: the Entity, Eucestodiel, Eov-leusan, Jalakåra, Myran-leusan, Nesren-leusan, Rakmou-leusan, Sauel, SCP-001, SCP-426, SCP-582, SCP-1108, SCP-1541-1, SCP-1843, SCP-1902, SCP-2004, SCP-2257, SCP-2439, SCP-2670, SCP-2788, SCP-2950, SCP-3473, SCP-3547, SCP-4511, Taros'zedbreet, Tree Critter, Uron-leusan, Yorun-leusan, Zeyu-leusan, and other gods from differing mythologies.
- A lot of Old Gods come from an entity that represents a sort of "nothing", the Scarlet King came from the "deep waters of the Darkness Below and the vaults of Darkness Above", Pangloss and Saturn Deer came from a great Nothingness, and Ma'tol and Xiolt-la came from Mother Void.
