Age of Mythology: A Checklist of Beasts

I have been in the midst of a moderate nostalgia kick for Age of Mythology, a real-time strategy computer game from 2005. The premise of setting civilisations and their various deities, monsters and heroes at one another's throats was moderately irritable. The inclusion of a scenario editor was a very good choice - however poor I was at using it versus the versions found in Age of Empires. If you want more of a background or assessment, here's Wikipedia and here's a podcast.

One thing, however, that might appeal to readers is the visual inspiration. Many of the monsters - 'myth units' - took their cues from cinema. Hence, the cyclops looked like this:



reminiscent of this cyclops from Ray Harryhausen.



Likewise, the Gorgon carried a bow and had a serpentine lower half - just as Medusa in Clash of the  Titans. This continues across the civilisations - Greek, Egyptians and Norse (Atlanteans* were added in a less well-received expansion). The Egyptians seem to have come straight out of The Mummy or The Ten Commandments.

But the use of popular culture elements as inspiration, as well as the mix of mythological origins is, on reflection, more than a little reminiscent of Dungeons and Dragons et al**. This said, the best known monsters get used as myth units pretty quickly and the creators (Ensemble Studios) had to fill in the gaps - sometimes using their imaginations pretty freely. It's interesting to see how they plug the gaps.

So, below is a list of myth units from Age of Mythology and The Titans Expansion with notes about each one and if it has appeared elsewhere (that I know of). Age of Mythology wiki link with more information here (elements of the in-game encyclopaedia are hilarious). Reference is made to the first edition Monster Manual in the first instance.

Greek
Pegasus - must be one out there somewhere.
Cyclops - yup.
Minotaur - in skeletal form, even.
Centaur - ahumph.
Manticore - yes.
Nemean Lion - functionally a dire lion.
Hydra - multiheaded dragons are known; not so certain about regenerating heads.
Scylla - basically a multi-headed plesiosaur, rather than a woman with multiple dogs at her waist and a serpentine tail.
Chimera - yes.
Medusa - the correct term would be gorgon, but yes.
Carcinos - giant bloody crab.
Colossos - a bit like Ted Hughes's Iron Giant. But Grecian and with a sword. Think a mass-market Talos.

Egyptian
Anubite - jackal-headed humanoids with two blades. Can jump very far. Found purely as a homebrew.
Wadjet - winged serpent from the Pharonic crown, but scaled up to bigger than a man. Spits poison.
Sphinx - ahumph x 2.
Scarab - no longer tiny. Bigger than a four-door saloon; massive pincers to tear down buildings. Nothing new about giant beetles.
Petsuchos - bejewled laser crocodile. Based on a sacred crocodile, probably without the lasers. Giant crocodiles one can find; lasers are extra.
Roc - giant bird that serves to transport people. See the giant vulture - complete with cage - from Clash of the Titans.
Leviathan - also serves as a transport. Old Testament references now; see Jonah.
Scorpion Man - there's one in the Peridot.
Avenger - nothing to do with John Steed. Mini-Horus with two swords.
Mummy - not hard to find. Can convert you into a minion.
Phoenix - yes, these can be found.
War Turtle - sodding great turtle.

Norse
Troll - these ones throw stones and can get an extra head.
Valkyrie - Nordic-themed mounted female paladin with obligatory Wagnerian metallic bodice.
Einherjar - spirit of heroic Norse warrior. Bit like a Death Knight.
Frost Giant - yes. Elite frost giants get horns, for some reason.
Mountain Giant - standard issue giant with beard and club. 
Kraken - not quite as big as some examples.
Battle Boar - golden boar; think a mass-market Gullinbursti.
Fire Giant - yes. Somewhat like a hornless demon.
Fenris Wolf Brood - functionally a dire wolf; gain greater strength in packs (beyond there being more dire wolves, that is).
Jormund Elver - sea serpent. Though also referred to as elvers - giant eels are also a staple.

Atlantean
Promethean - golem (Prometheus made men out of clay - were these prototypes?). Split into two smaller versions after death.
Automaton - robot suit of armour.
Caladria - winged healer. Doesn't fight herself.
Servant - benevolent water elemental. _ of Oceanus is implicit in the name.
Satyr - ahumph x 3.
Neriad - aquatic woman on a shark with a trident.
Behemoth - triceratops meets armadillo. Eighteen feet long. Old Testament again.
Stymphalian Bird - bird that slings razor sharp metal feathers at you. Can't find any likely suspects.
Argus - floating octopus that can drool acid. Many eyes.
Lampedes - Underworld nymph that keeps Persephone company. Looks a bit like a Drow sorceress.
Man o' War - jellyfish that shoots lightening.
Heka Gigantes - Only four arms, but still giant. 

Go forth and investigate further, if you've a will to.  The game is full of details that could be plucked for ideas. I personally should like to see more laser crocodiles on the tabletop.





* In the first game, Atlantis was Greek with a few extra bits of set decoration. In the expansion, the Atlanteans become Titan-worshipers drawing on Roman elements (IE, Murmillo are the standard infantry unit) with a scattering of other stuff (IE, llamas, implying theories about some Native American civilisations being Atlantean).

It's all a little unconvincing next to the semi-realistic other civilisations - the Greeks have actual hoplites and triremes, for instance. But at the same time, the designers have had freedom to make it all up as they went along. So you get a masonry and metal-heavy semi-Modern architecture, and hints in the flavour text at a slightly egalitarian society. To say nothing of the occasional gem of strange gameplay justification lore:

A Contarius distinguished in battle, upon returning to Atlantis, was presented with a lance made from petrified wood found in one of Atlantis’s most distant western colonies. When the stone lance of a Contarius broke, the soldier’s name was carved on its shaft and the fragments were returned in honor to Atlantis. These fragments were arranged in a palisade around the Palace of the Theocrat. It did not take long for the competitive Contarii to begin seeking out targets that would most swiftly break their lances - namely buildings. 

[Source]

Splendidly evocative stuff, but ultimately not enough of it to satisfy, however daft it all is.

** To say nothing of the unlikely pin-up illustration high fantasy renditions of the gods and goddesses involved (Theia, Hekate and Hyperion spring to mind). Some look reasonable enough; others are begging to have the numbers filed off and to be re-used elsewhere.

Postmodern Architecture, John Outram and Babylon

Currently at the Sir John Soanes Museum of Lincoln's Inn fields in London, there is an exhibition on Postmodern Architecture; see this Link.  I have no notion of what you think of when you hear that, but it basically involves bring traditional forms back into a world of modernist clean lines and corners - though rather having a sense of fun with them, it would seem. Something beyond pastiche, though hardly parody.

Apparently the Vauxhall Cross ziggurat that currently houses the Secret Intelligence Service is an example of the style (you might have seen it in a James Bond flick, if nowhere else).

This is a small exhibition, but quietly fascinating - not because of any great reveals to me, but some of the conceptual designs and art displayed, along with models of the buildings in question. The most impactful stuff was by a chap called John Outram (there's an interview here).

He did a pumping station in the Isle of Dogs that looks like this:

Those capitals are a bit much, really.

The pumping station is thought well enough of by certain of the powers that be that it has been listed. Not something that appeals to me, but some of Outram's other stuff is interesting. The Judge Business School in Cambridge, for instance.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cambridge_Judge_Business_School#/media/File:Judge_Business_School_Cambridge.JPG

Or his design for 200 Queen Victoria Street. But for the best...



This painting, by Carl Laubin is an interpretation of Outram's design for a new building for the Financial Times:

Carl Laubin, Imago Terrarium, 1987. http://www.carllaubin.com/album/capricci.html#40

I should open it in a new tab to see it in the largest size possible.

It is something, is it not? The Thames-flooded Middlesex around it, cypresses atop the ruins that serves as a cutaway diagram, the archeologists uncovering side by side with the builders raising it up. Laubin has done some other fun stuff, cramming architecture together like a Dark Souls map (not that I know a thing about that game).

Carl Laubin, Hawksmoor, 1996-2000, http://www.carllaubin.com/album/capricci.html#21

His website is here: http://www.carllaubin.com, if you want a look. Some of his plaza scenes are quite good.

I think both Outram and Laubin have a notion of a place in history for buildings, which I like. The obsession with ruins and the OSR has been noted, of course (there is even a comment about Sir John Soane as a patron and art of how the Bank of England will look, centuries from now when it is ruined....)

***

What use do I intend to make of this, however? Well, Outram's stuff all has a rather ancient Near/Middle East feel to it. Those aren't Grecian columns in the ruins above (he has even done some specifically Egyptian themed stuff).  The bright colours also rather point me towards Babylon: see the blue tile of the Ishtar Gate.

A reconstruction in Berlin. Doubtless the Punth equivalent depicts Qryth fang-lizards or Behemoth-bests
rather than oxen and dragons.

Now, my in-world Babylon is Punth. Which is fallen and ruined; first by the Tower of Babel equivalent, second by the decay of Qryth technological abilities.

So, a notion of Qryth architecture: when first made, the ziggurats, mansions, walls, &c. were all marvellously parti-coloured and bright - either because that was what the Qryth had, or just how their grand earthmovers and building machines dealt with strange materials. Now, however, the strange coloured panels are cracked, spalled and dusty. Later buildings imitate these in tile and brick (or tapestries, wall cloths or banners for interiors), but are never quite as vivid in tone as the Qryth originals.

This now is Punth: Orwellian four-armed green giants clutching half-functional ray-guns in dusty funhouse vastnesses and a brainwashed populous outside...

Punth: A Primer

An ongoing topic here has been Punth and the Qryth. A desert land, split by rivers, ruled by four-armed folk taller than men - who take the tongues of people for their own.

As other posts have explained, Punth operates rather like Ascia in Wolfe's Book of the New Sun. Language is purely the product of the Codes - as written long ago by the alien Qryth. A Punthite can only communicate in extracts from the Codes.

If this is to be made into something usable, some of those Codes need to be available for use on the tabletop. Whilst I do not presume to write anything meticulously complete as the books of propaganda, law and instruction that constitute the Codes, I can at least produce a comprehensive slice of them. I shall attach to these encounter tables for the land of Punth.

Firstly, the Codes' account of how Punth came to be as it is, the Statement of Being:

1. Let all who hear, attend.
2. In days that are no more, sorcerers had the keeping of the people. Let those days come no more!
3. The wicked man is he that seeks his own power.
4. The sorcerers sought their own power in many lands and drew to them the Sky Princes.
5. By this shall you know the just: intention. By this shall you know the mighty: success.
6. When the mighty are just, their intention will meet with success.
7. In falling, the spiteful seek to confound their victors, but the Sky Princes can ever win through.
8. Yet a people long oppressed will be weak and weaker still when the cruel strike falls.
9. But the Sky Princes extended the arms of might and justice to them.
10. This was all recorded, so that the might and justice of people and princes, but ever renew itself.
11. From the days in which this was written, unto all other days.

Next, the Punthite creed, or Pledge of Allegiance: the Statement of Belonging:

1. Let all who hear, attend.
2. If a man has fallen to the dust, let his neighbour bend to him.
3. If two men fall to the dust together, they must bend to one another.
4. Who must rise first? The mighty. Who shall be raised up? The just.
5. The exile is ashamed of making his new home. The shipwrecked man is not.
6. The might of the scribe is in the pen, the might of the soldier in the sword, the might of the builder in the rod. What might do the Sky Princes lack?
7. The might of the scribes in our books, the might of the soldier is at our gates, the might of the builder is in our homes. What might do the people lack?
8. If there is wisdom in our books, who shall gainsay it?
If there strength at our gates, who shall come against us?
If there is peace in our homes, who shall afflict us?
The foolish, the reckless, the malicious.
9. When the Sky Princes speak, none else shall speak, for they speak wisdom.
When the Sky Princes command, none else shall, for theirs is might.
When the Sky Princes settle, none else shall, for in their gift is peace.
10*. From the days in which this was written, unto all other days.

*If spoken, "From the day in which this is spoken, unto all other days."

***

Ten Encounters in the Deep Deserts of Punth

1. Two young Qyrth, out on a hunt of their own. They are liable to be trigger happy and haughty.

2. A caravan of the Ka-Punth, picking their way over a blasted section of twisted rock. A covered camel bears the fragile spirit-vessel of an ancient sorcerer, and its nervous, twisted keeper.

3. A ruined tower, from the days of the Sorcerer-King. It is sandblasted and scarred - and likely long empty, though who knows what might be visible from the top?

4. Scouts from Kapaleron in the north. They are doing their best not to be seen. The Qryth would pay for news of them; they would pay for news of Punth. Who knows how complete their maps are - or how deep their 'discretionary funds'?

5. A djinn of the desert, once perhaps a sorcerer, circling in the heat haze. Below, a Ka-Punth initiate hopes to commune with it. He has been staked to the ground. The rest of his number are likely out of sight - and earshot.

6. Across a dry riverbed, a column of Punth gendarmes swarm. They are monitored by a stoic, muscular Qryth commander. 

7. A herd of Qryth behemoth-beasts passed this way - as the hoof marks and fewmets suggest. They must have broken the bounds of a reserve - who knows what else lurks out here?

8. A skirmish, atop the flat top of a high mesa in the pitiless sun: Ka-Punth tribesmen scurry to retreat as Punthite gendarmes advance on them.

9. A party of smugglers, lightly laden and watchful. Their packs might have weapons for the Ka-Punth or trade goods for remote, unsupervised Punthite towns. One veiled figure is in fact a priest from the north, hoping to carry the evangelical mission to the enslaved of Punth. 

10. The sand churns; there is a rush of wind - who shall withstand it? What is it that comes through the desert?

John Ruskin: Prophet of Vorn?

Vorn, as many of those reading this may well know is God of Rain and Rust; for whom the city of Vornheim is known - and the 'complete city kit' named for that city.

Of course, I never could quite see the attraction in a god of rust. Rain maybe - good for the crops, refreshing the parched land and so forth, but not rust. That always seems a symbol of decay.  But then, brethren and sistren, I picked up my Ruskin.


'...because we cannot use a rusty knife or razor so well as a polished one, we suppose it to be a great defect in iron that it is subject to rust. But not at all. On the contrary, the most perfect and desirable state of it is that ocherous stain; and therefore it is endowed with so ready a disposition to get itself into that state ... for in that condition it fulfils its most important function in the universe and most kindly duties to mankind. Nay, in a certain sense, and almost a literal one, we may say that iron rusted is Living; but when pure or polished, Dead. You all probably know that in the mixed air we breathe, the part of it essentially needful for us is called oxygen; and that this substance is to animals, in the most accurate sense of the word, 'breath of life'.   ....  The iron keeps all that it gets; we, and other animals, part with it again, but the metal absolutely keeps what it has once received of this aerial gift; and the ocherous dust which we despise so much is, in fact, just so much nobler than pure iron, in so far as it is iron and the air.  Nobler and more useful - for, as I shall be able to show you presently - the main service of this metal, and of all other metals to us ... [is] in making the ground we feed from and nearly all the substances first needful to our existence. For these are all nothing but metals and oxygen - metals with breath put into them. .... [These] have been rendered fit for the service of man by permanent unity with the purest air which he himself breathes. For there is only one metal that does not rust readily; and that in its influence on Man hitherto has caused Death rather than Life; it will not be put to its right use till it is made a pavement of, and so trodden underfoot.'

The Work of Iron, in Nature, Art and Policy.

A Lecture delivered at Tunbridge Wells, February 16th, 1858

A curious inversion of the adventurer's creed, is it not? Rust is good, gold is bad. Go forth and oxygenate happily.

The Monastery on the Sword: Part Two

The Monastery itself is built on a hill. A fast-flowing stream runs past it from north to east. The monastery is surrounded by a stockade, with two main baileys: one outer, with quarters for guests and lay brethren, as well as a field for vaster crowds of pilgrims to camp on. The inner bailey surrounds the Sword itself, as well as housing quarters for the earthbound monks. The hillside is largely covered in low bushes and scrub. They have not yet been cultivated; some berry bushes and the like may be found.

The Abbot is the official head of the Monastery, but spends much of his time atop the hilt; nurturing in a spiritual sense or overseeing the vault. His duties are fufilled at ground level by the Prior. There is a similar division between those monks atop the hilt and those at the base of the blade. The ground has earthly comforts - but none of the prestige, spiritual power or wonder of dwelling on the hilt.

The lay brethren serve to aid the monks in many aspects of day-to-day work, gaining reflected glories and blessings into the bargain. By virtue of largely being muscular and obtuse, they also quietly serve as watchmen and peacekeepers among the pilgrims; keeping them out of the monk's way when necessary and monitoring any travelling salesmen or peddlers that tag along with these holy travellers.  They are, however, hardly an armed force (even if some have been soldiers).

Orange indicates the contours of the hill the Monastery is based on. Values are height in metres above sea level.
Blue-Green is the line of the stockade about the Monastery.
Black gives the outlines of buildings.
Blue is water - in the form of the stream or the cistern.
Green does double service as fields and other planes - elevated or otherwise.
Red numbers or letters indicate an entry on the below table.

1. The Monk's quarters - at least, for those who are spending time down on earth.  The novices, for instance; and the Prior. This block contains a number of individual cells. Any personal possessions here are unlikely to be of any great value. There is a small kitchen at the right-hand end of the block.
Likely occupants: Monks, Novices, the Prior.

2. The Chapel and Reading Room. Whilst the real spiritual home of the monastery is atop the sword, there is a chapel so that the earth bound may receive spiritual nourishment. In addition to a few side rooms for vestments, candles and the like, there is also a Reading Room; not quite large enough to be a library. It also serves as a classroom. The Chapel has some fine fixtures, but no extravagantly ornate or valuable pieces. There are no notably rare/extremely useful books in the library.
Likely occupants: Monks, Novices, the Prior, visiting Priests (look up/create as appropriate hours of prayer).

3. The Sword itself. This demands it's own post. However, the Abbot and a number of the most devout monks live in cells at the hilt. They can lower a cage to draw up people, or to carry provisions - or night soil. From a gantry, covered in rigging, they can operate great polishing pads to scour the sword of rust.  The monks are assisted in this by a very placid, well trained mule on a treadmill. This mule (and it's predecessors) were specially trained in a Church-owned farm. They are expensive beasts to purchase, but uncommonly sensible and obedient.
Likely occupants: (at the hilt) The Abbot, less than a dozen monks, and Patience the Mule.
This is one area that will be expanded upon. As the centrepiece, it would have to be.

4. About the foot of the Sword are a number of bore holes. These were drilled painstakingly with assistance from the hilt. Into these holes is poured tallow - it is held that this will set the Sword firmly at the base.
Likely occupants: none.

5. This platform serves as a way to mount the cage that can be drawn up to the hilt. It can also serve as a stage for outdoor services to massed crowds of pilgrims.
Likely occupants: none.

6. Two storerooms; one holds tallow for the holes, the other oil for the blade. Both are noxious enough to keep away from the living quarters.
Likely occupants: none.

7. Several flights of steps lead down to a fast-flowing stream. There is a small postern in the stockade to allow this. There is no spring on the hill itself; this is the best source of water for the inhabitants o the monastery. Rain isn't quite reliable enough.
Likely occupants: none, though lay brothers regularly trek up and down the steps to the stream.

8. A complex of buildings provide a number of services to visitors and acts as the home of the lay brethren that serve the Monastery. It is known as the Hall. The current Chief of the Lay Brethren, a former soldier, has taken pains that the lower floor has stout shutters and thick doors - intending that the Hall could provide a Redoubt of sorts if it were ever needed.

a. This is a kitchen, serving the whole complex. A back door leads to a midden.
Likely occupants: cooks and scullions.

b. This long room serves as refectory and common room - and indeed, for many of the poorer visitors, dormitory.
Likely occupants: servents of those in c.

c.  A series of more-or-less private chambers are set here, for important visitors - or those who can pay.
Likely occupants: envoys, merchants, the odd noble.

d. This is little more than a covered passageway and a row of storerooms, both for food and hardware.
Likely occupants: none.

e. The stables. Whilst horses can be let in the paddock, those beasts that should be cared for (or with concerned owners) could be lodged here.
Likely occupants: maybe a groom. Horses for anyone in c.

f. The lay brothers mostly lodge in these rooms. Neatly furnished, but not sumptuous.
Likely occupants: The lay brethren - at least, come the end of the day's work.

g. This acts as an office for the Chief (as much a foreman as anything else, even if his reputation and bearing enhances his official position) of the Lay Brethren and as a sort of Reception for guests at the Hall.
Likely occupants: the Chief of the Lay Brethren

h. There are no gates to the Hall, but a stout bar lays across to bridge the gap between c and g. If necessary, this would provide a framework for a barricade.
Likely occupants: none.

9. A number of smallholdings rest here. There is enough produced by these to meaningfully supplement the Monastery's diet - but not to make it self-sustaining.
Likely occupants: during the day - labouring lay brethren.

10. Two large rock cisterns are set here, in order to provide a closer supply of water.
Likely occupants: none.

11. Two fenced paddocks; one is generally home to livestock; the other, draught animals.
Likely occupants: dependant in the number of visitors.  The monks keep a few milch cows and beasts of burden. 

12. A long, shallow ramp gives access to the Monastery.
Likely occupants: travellers.