One of the big themes of Beast: The Primordial is family. The characters in Beast refer to themselves collectively as “the Children” (or, if they’re feeling formal, “the Begotten”) and consider themselves the offspring of the Dark Mother. The first monster, the mother of nightmares. Lilith, Tiamat, Hekate, the Queen Mother of the West — she’s been called a hundred different names in tongues still living and long dead alike, described in a thousand ways across ten thousand years, but these days her Children usually call her the Dark Mother. Some say she was the first being to travel the Primordial Dream and absorb its secrets, then brought them back to this world and formed them into her children. Others claim that she is the Primordial Dream given form, and that when she walks once more the world will know fear like it hasn’t since the dawn of time.
Intrinsic to the theme of family are a couple of sub-themes, if you will:
One Big “Happy”
Regardless of the truth, all Beasts recognize the Dark Mother as the first of their kind; not only that, but the first of all monsters. As far as the Begotten are concerned, vampires, werewolves, changelings, and other stranger things are simply younger siblings, branches of the family tree that have diverged but still share common roots. While other beings may scoff, Beasts have powers and abilities that seem to back their claim.
Drama
No one gets along with their family all the time. Families fight, and in the case of the Children, that “fighting” can involve bloodthirsty, frenzied creatures who are capable of wreaking terrible destruction. Is it still just a family squabble if it leads to gore in the streets and nightmares across the dreamscape?
Skeletons in the Closet
Beasts are fundamentally a part of the World of Darkness. They seek out the unseen, the strange and arcane, not because they wish to solve the mysteries (which would be rude), but because they feel that they should be involved. If the extended family is up to something out in the dark, well, maybe one of the Children can be of some assistance? Or, at least, can share in the bounty? But Beasts have their own angle on this investigation of the World of Darkness, of course. The more they learn, the more they uncover, the bigger and more diverse their Lair (but that’s another update).
The Children recognize branches of the Dark Mother’s line, which they simply call Families. Players creating Beast characters choose one of these Families as character creation. The Families are:
- Anakim, the Giants, the Nightmares of Powerlessness: As one of the Anakim, you are power incarnate. Size is secondary; the Giants are raw strength and bottomless Hunger. To hunt as one of the Anakim is to overwhelm your prey by the force of your own, magnificent body. No one stands up to you. Who could, when you stand so tall? Concept: He cracks safes. It’s who he is. His apartment is littered with the refuse of a hundred jobs, a thousand pieces of inanimate victims who fell before his deft fingers and years of experience. But the truth is, he’s not perfect. Sometimes, he just can’t do it, just can’t get through some particularly fiendish piece of machinery. And in the small hours, when he’s had just about enough and can’t stand the thought that he might lose, the Giant comes out, and simply tears the safe open. Few of his clients have ever seen him do it, and fewer would care. All they want is what’s inside, and all he wants are the locks and scrap metal.
- Eshmaki, the Lurkers, the Nightmares of Destruction: Everyone fears being alone. Not just being deserted by lovers, not just being an outcast from society, but being literally alone. Being the only one in a room, listening to the house settle or the pipes creak. Thinking they see the shadows move, even when nothing in the room did. When they’re afraid, most of them worry about the surprise, about the moment that their fear of not being alone will be suddenly confirmed. But you know better. You know that the moment you step into the light, the moment you breathe hard enough that they can really hear it, that you’re about to unleash ungodly hell on the poor bastard who crossed you. Or might have crossed you, had he known you existed. Concept: They say children can see monsters. They’re wrong, at least about him. He’s only seen in his day job, as the administrator of a juvenile justice facility. His facility’s got one of the cleanest records in the state. After lights out, he stalks the corridors of the building, seeing what no one else can see, guarding against the dangers the children bring inside with them, or foment when given too much time to themselves. He says he’d never hurt any of “his kids”… but cross enough lines, and you’re not his kid anymore.
- Makara, the Leviathans, the Nightmares of the Depths: When you were young, you were quiet. People said still waters ran deep. You wouldn’t know. For you, the waters have never been still, even in their darkest depths. You were always set apart. Maybe you lived near the water, maybe not. It didn’t matter. The rush of the tides was always in your veins. And now that you’ve come into your own, you’re both the force of the waves and the thing they hide, the shadow from the deep that claims wary and unwary alike. Some other Beasts see you and shiver at the thought of drowning on dry land. But you’re more than that. You’re not just the choking power of the depths, not just the pounding waves and the crushing pressure, you’re the knowledge, too. You’re a link to the drowned history of humanity, to the knowledge that the oceans have reclaimed. To the sunken temples and lost continents, to the ugly wreckage and watery graves. Concept: The swimming hole is his. Sure, in the summer, the kids can play there. He allows that. He allows the adults to come by and throw coins in, making a wish on a whim. But it belongs to him. Only he knows how deep it really goes. Only he has touched the mind of the thing that slumbers there. The thing that grants those wishes when it wants to, the thing that makes everyone regret wanting. It’s the thing that tells him the secrets. Who wants what. Who wants whom. And those secrets are very lucrative indeed.
- Namtaru, the Gorgons, the Nightmares of Revulsion: Those who call you ugly miss the point. “Ugly” is just another one of those things in the eye of the beholder. No, you’re hideous, terrifying to normal people on a level as atavistic as the heritage that made you a Beast. That hideousness links you back to the earliest monsters, the ones who didn’t wear human shapes because they didn’t care. Maybe it wasn’t always this way. Maybe once you wanted to be one of the beautiful people. Maybe you even were, before you claimed your Birthright and became the holy monster. You wanted to be the one everyone noticed. Well, now you are, and you’re happier it happened this way. Because now you know that stopping someone’s gaze isn’t about catching them with your handsome eyes. It’s about making them feel something. And you’re perfectly all right if what they feel is fear. Concept: She’s the last thing you’ll ever see. Not a murderess, not an angel of death, but the night shift nurse. They keep her on nights because she has a habit of upsetting visitors. She’s plain-speaking, rough-voiced. She offers no comfort where it would be illusory, no word of kindness where it would be forced. But put her on at night… and, well, some of the problems seem to go away. Whatever it is that lives in the basement, that sucks the life out of patients when they’re nearing the end… it’s afraid of her. And so, when your time comes naturally, the last thing you’ll see is a smiling, if rough-hewn, face.
- Ugallu, the Raptors, the Nightmares of the Skies: You ever notice how in the city, people keep their eyes on the ground? More fool them. The sky only looks empty. It belongs to you and your kind, a hunting ground that you share with no other sapient predator. At a moment’s notice, you could plummet from above and snatch any one of those poor bastards off the street. They really should look up. You see an entirely different landscape from other Beasts, much less from other people. For you, the terrain is rooftops, clotheslines, penthouse windows. People don’t close the windows because they assume that so high up, no one’s watching. They don’t know about you. Concept: He has an apartment on the third floor, but you’ll never find him there. Instead, he’s always up on the roof, with his birds. He has friends — human friends — who raise pigeons. It’s an eccentric hobby that reaches across lines of race and class, but even among this select few, he’s a little strange. For he raises crows, not pigeons… yet they’re docile and come home to him at night. In his community, they call him Father Crow. He accepts that, in tribute to the Dark Mother.
Hurry it up with the kickstarter already!
Increasingly intrigued. The new world of darkness feels like so many of the conceptual “spaces” are already filled so it’s great to get insight into where you’re going with this game. You’ve got a big job following Demon (probably the best game since Changeling, which may in turn be the nWoD’s high watermark). Looking forward to seeing if you can manage it.
Sooooooo… you know that nightmare where you’re walking around in public and you’re either naked or wearing just your underwear and you really, really want to get dressed but you can’t? Would that be an Anakim nightmare?
Yeah, I think so. Seems pretty centered on being powerless.
Could also be exposure, which is an Ugallu thing.
Well now I don’t have to explain Families with the imperfect descriptions I could manage based on the teasers anymore. I can just sell people on the idea with this.
Great job, Matt! I can see why Makara are your favorite; they’re looking to be mine too.
Want so bad. When can I have this?
This update has made me even more excited for this game than I was before. Each of the Families are beautifully written, and I love the example characters. The nod to the Swimming Hole was a nice one, too.
The only thing up there that struck me as odd was the inclusion of Hekate as one of the names for the Dark Mother. Although Hekate does have some associations with witchcraft, I’ve never seen her associated with monsters before. I would have expected Ekhidna to be used as the Greek example.
Echidna shows up in the book, too, just not in that section.
I’m glad you liked the writing. A bunch of it was mine, and while Matt invented the Families, they’re my pride and joy.
I didnt know you were also working on this. You and Matt are 2 people whose work I always look forward to. I really enjoyed Demon ( where’s that Storyteller’s Guide?) and I’ll definitely be in on this Kickstarter as well.
Storyteller’s Guide is in redlines. Patience! 🙂
Well that was the best thing I’ve read this morning, I’ll be thinking about being a terrible leviathan all day. Might be to early but what color are you guys thinking for the beast line? Whistfully looking at my shelf trying to imagine another 700pg tome right before my CTL book and I’m having a hell of a time seeing anything but a very regal purple.
Orange or Yellow would be cool, IMO.
I think its Maroon, but I have no idea where I remember seeing/hearing that.
Beast is looking more and more interesting every update. Very neat information this update – enough to sell a few people I know on the concept!
Incredibly looking forward for more.
I’m a big fan of Werewolf, both Apocalypse and Forsaken. But these Beast sound like they could give Werewolves a run for their money. Beasts are almost like a new form of Claimed or Shapechanger. I sense huge crossover potential. I’m excited!
This sounds great and I can’t wait for the KS.
Stupid question time: What exactly do some of the Children look like?
Do they look human for the most part, and can change at will into a more monstrous form? Do each of the families have specific looks that differentiate themselves between one another?
Beasts look like normal people, unless you were to see them in their Lairs. There’s not a lot of shapeshifting going on (we kinda did that with demons and their demonic form).
Wow, that’s actually incredibly disappointing. 🙁 If I can’t turn into a tentacled aquatic chimera, what’s the point?
I hope you reconsider as that really takes the wind out of my sails.
o I dunno…
I can imagine a werewolf wondering why this particular human isn’t running in delirious panic at his sudden appearance. And then outraged when she mutters; “Not impressed. My claws are bigger” Her right hand suddenly transforms into a large tentacle wrapping the werewolf in a vise grip and throwing in the nearby river where she dives in after him. “You’re in MY world now. Welcome to your nightmare!”
I’m cool with that. As long as there’s some amount of shape changing and form building to make the true form cool and crunchy. That’s what I’m after.
I kind of suspect that “unless they see them in their Lair” bit is going to be pretty important. I’m getting a vibe from some of the teasers that the boundary between the Lair and the real world is a bit looser than some of the other supernatural realms.
Pulling people into your nightmare realm where you turn into a massive dragon is pretty sweet, even if you can’t easily turn into a dragon in the middle of the street.
Well many WoD games include some Kind of shape shifting. From the obvious shape shifters (including Werewolves) to the Lucifuge (Mark of the Beast) to Changeling (actually there it is a removal of the illusion of normality – same thing for Prometheans and Mummies) plus of course Demons.
So we have a lot of creatures in the WoD that have a “true” form and they only hide in/behind the flesh of humans.
I hope that with beast there is also the possibility to feel the pure glory of the true form – and make other shriek in fear by showing them.
I would really like to see some shape shifting. At least tell me my Ugallu will be able to manifest monsterous wings.
I mean can’t be an unspeakable terror of the sky without wings!
Oh yeah, this game is gonna be fun. That said, it’s another World of Darkness game I need to run with three or fewer players to make sure the narrative stays on individiuals as much as possible.
thanks to this blog I begin to love this game ever more, the various Family concept is simply awesome, I love all of them and I can’t wait for the release of the game.
Just a quick question if I can ask:
Beast in the corebook will have a signature city settings like Mummy and Demon or a list of city like Vampire and Werewolf 2ed?
Beast is going to be like the second editions, with multiple cities/locales (I wrote three of ’em). A few were spoiled on the RPG.net thread, I believe, but I can’t recall which ones.
The home of the Jersey Devil was mentioned as one of them.
Yes, yes, yes, this does sound oh-so-intriguing. I was all kinds of on the fence about Beast before, which ain’t the worst way to be about a new World of Darkness game, mind you. Now? I’m legit excited.
…It COULD have something to do with that graphic of the Addams Family, of course. If that’s any indication of a possible ‘vibe’ for this game (e.g. spooky, possibly grotesque, outsiders, still fun), then I’m big-time on board. Thanks for all of the above, Matt!
Oooh, I’m having quite a bit of fun dreaming up monsters and trying to fit them into different families.
Eshmaki Shoggoth? Leviathan Ogopogo?
I see a lot of ability in this as a crossover monster. Changeling Dragonslayers having to track down an Eshmaki that’s causing too much trouble in the freehold, or maybe it’s been contracted out by the Scarecrows as a cover.
Could another name for these “beasts” be “The Lilim” because of their connection to Lilith?
Well, that update inspired me to leave some more music lying around: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9-WBZMRFFkU
Now I’m more excited about Beast the Primordial. Could you tell more about the Hero in a future update?
“That hideousness links you back to the earliest monsters, the ones who didn’t wear human shapes because they didn’t care.”
I’m taking this as reinforcement for my hope that Begotten in the Neolithic Mage/Werewolf setting in the works would walk the earth (or swim the seas, or fly the skies) without semblance of human forms in this age before the Sundering.
Mother of monsters is not Gekata, another variant:
Styx – in Greek mythology – is a personification of primeval dread and gloom, from which the first living creatures appeared, and the personification of the eponymous mythological river Styx.
So since the beast’s “true form” can only be revealed inside the lair, is there going be a beast hack that breaks the masquerade a.l.a. mirrors and allows beasts a little more freedom to use their atavisms?
Ooooh man,
This day just keeps on getting better and better! I could not be more happier with what the team has come up with for the Children’s Families. I am a litte curious though, and forgive me if this has already been adressed, will each Family have a sub-catagory ala Changeling Kiths, customizable elevation ala Vampire Bloodlines & Mage Legacies, or be more freely customizable without being bogged down by mechanics like the remainding gamelines?
I’m here to say that I regret my words in the previous post of beast. I though that it would be a game in which you would be an obvious bad guy monster but man, after reading this I couldn’t have been more wrong. Such an incredible diversity in views and types. Hell I may even use the idea of a Addams family monster group XD. I can’t wait to see more of the game, great job guys. 🙂
I am curious about the power level, and the abundance/rarity of beasts relative to other supernatural groups. Any hints?
Kinda cool how in the Gangrel clanbook they believe one of their origins is from the Mother of Monsters.
Also I can now play my Cerberus or Chimera..I’m so happy.
So, will the concept of the Lair be a central part of game play, and will there be a way to shift its location, temporarily or otherwise?
From the RPG.net teaser thread it’s apparent to me that Lairs are not static locations. They are more like pocket dimensions that you can reach through symbolism (like the example given was reaching an oceanic Lair via a swimming pool or something).
So, I’m all for a game being cross-over friendly, but what sort of things can Beasts do by themselves? Beyond sating their Hunger and fighting Heroes, I mean. Personally, I prefer to keep my splats separate, so it’d be good to know what Beasts do beyond cross-over with other lines and fulfill their Hunger.
Looking good! Hoping that the inclusion of the Makara means, Leviathan – the Tempest has been confirmed as basically canon! 😛
Question about the Ugallu. I can see how the other families are linked to primal, universal human fears. Powerlessness. The dark, deeps/the unknown, revulsion/the terrifying truth, but the Ugallu don’t have the same, “primordial, universal fear” sizzle for me. Nightmares of the sky? Like what, when you dream you’re falling but wake up before you land? What I am missing from Ugallu picture?
Being watched. Unexpected danger.
From my own understanding of it, like the Makara, the Ugallu are a portamanteau of several vaguely related fears. Fear of being watched, fear of being taken by some flying monster, fear of heights, agorophobia, fear of falling, all the fears that relate to the heights, just as the Makara relate to all the fears of water and the deep darkness beneath.
I’ve never read Leviathan: The Tempest (nor any of the fan games), because doing that would put me in an awkward position if/when I find myself drawing on the same source material. If it dovetails with Beast, hey, neat.
This all sounds amazing. I particularly like the importance of the Dark Mother to Beast: the Primordial. The Mother of Monsters has been an undercurrent in certain books for Vampire: the Requiem (The Mother’s Army in Danse Macabre along with Gangrel: Savage and Macabre), and it’s nice to see this mythology explored in more depth. Might there, in turn, be any potential overlap between the game lines, or does Beast: the Primordial take the Mother of Monsters in a radically different and even more frightening direction?
Now I’m ravenous for the next blog post on Beast. Hey Matt, when will it be? ^_^
I’m thinking Tuesday and Thursday. Hungers and Nightmares, in that order.
Excellent! I was hoping for Hungers and powers next, so this works out great for my self-satisfaction.
Very, very cool. I’m glad that you gave us examples of how the human/Beast dichotomy works. And it’s nice to have a deeper insight into what the Families are like.
I have an itching desire to make a Ugallu called the Great Owl, who has a close relationship with the Kindred of the city. Hilarity ensues:
-“You mean he’s a-”
-“No, he’s not that kind owl. All the same, don’t mention it to him, he gets… annoyed. Poor Ricardo never recovered from his, well… let’s call it a ‘lesson’ and be done.”
On one hands this sounds marvelous and I can’t wait till it get’s here. One the other I am rather disappointed by the reveal, in the comments, that Beasts cannot be themselves outside of their Lairs.
Well I still believe this to be an awesome game and wont allow such a minor thing to sway me.
Awesome post and can’t wait to hear more.
Thank you for introducing us to the different families in Beast. The first one, Anakim aka The Giants, reminds me of a certain anime series called “Attack on Titan”. For those of you who don’t know it the enemies are giants that feed on humans that the only way to kill them is to slash them in the nape but they are like at least 20 ft tall.
Looking forward for more updates and hopefully the book will release ASAP.
You know, Heroes remind me a bit Terry Pratchett’s definition of the term: a hero is someone who overthrows tyrants (topples established governments), seduce women (rape them), and slay monsters (kill endangered species)
Also, this is more an idle curiosity: as a mythology buff, I recognized all the names…except the Eshmaki. What’s the origins for that name? I’m nothing if not a slave to research…
From what I can find, it comes from the Georgian word “eshmaki,” which means devil. It is believed to derive from Aeshma, the Zoroastrian demon of wrath. Fits pretty well for Nightmares of Destruction.