The House of Ananse

Ananse is a folk hero and trickster figure from Akan mythology. He is also considered the god (abosom) of stories and wisdom due to events related in the story Anansi and the Pot of Wisdom.

Adinkra for "spider web"
(ananse ntentan)

Ananse is variously described as a spider, an anthropomorphic spider, or a human with spider-like characteristics. In stories like How Anansi Became a Spider, he is transformed from a man into a spider (most scholarly sources claim that the transformation was performed by Nyame, but I have yet to read an actual story that relates this episode). Other tales such as Why Anansi Has Eight Thin Legs, Why Anansi Has a Narrow Waist, or Why Anansi Has a Bald Head tell how he came to acquire his spider-like characteristics.

Ȯkyeamepoma from the
Metropolitan Museum of Art

Given the malleability of his shape, it's no wonder that Ananse is often used as a source of inspiration for werespiders. The comic book Is'nana the Were-Spider by Greg Anderson Elysée tells the story of one of his sons.

Vol 1: Forgotten Stories

Meanwhile, in RPGs, werespiders inspired by Ananse include the Ananasi from the World of Darkness setting by White Wolf, and the Anadi from the Mwangi Expanse setting for Pathfinder.

I have two miniatures of Anadi in their spider form from the Pathfinder Battle line. On the left is an Anadi Elder (The Mwangi Expanse #2), and on the right is an Anadi (The Mwangi Expanse #15).

Both figures are modeled after official art, with the Anadi Elder seemingly based on some sort of huntsman spider, while the Anadi looks like it was based on a peacock spider (which actually isn't found in Africa as far as I know).

There is also a miniature of an Anadi in hybrid form (humanoid with spider head) from the Mwangi Expanse set, but it was much too tall to be useful for me.

It's not clear how the hybrid forms of Ananse were originally envisaged in Africa, and I can't seem to find modern drawings of Ananse that originate from Africa, but I did take a liking to the following images I found on the Interweb.

Unknown source and artist

From Annancy Stories
by Pamela Colman Smith

Story: Verna Aardema
Art: Lisa Desimini

From Anansi the Spider
by Gerald McDermott

African Folklore Series: Film One

Spiga

Kumonga (クモンガ) is a kaiju from the Godzilla franchise known to English-speaking audiences as Spiga, and inspiration for the Arduin creature of that later name.

GIANT ARMORED SPIDERS. 50% MAGIC RESISTANT VS. 11TH LEVEL MAGE SPELLS. ITS WEB HAS A RANGE OF THIRTY FEET. IT CAN SPIT UP TO SIXTY FEET. THE LARGER ONES ARE ARMOR CLASS 2.
SUGGESTED BY THE FILM "GODZILLA'S REVENGE".

– All The World's Monsters, Volume 2

The original spider is described as being 45m in height and 45m in length.

Kumonga 1967

The more recent version is described as 35m in height and 60m in length.

Kumonga 2004

Hargrave is said to have envisioned the spiga as having a body almost 50' long, but since there is a range of HD for these spiders, I imagine that there are others that are a lot smaller.

SPIGA: HD: 5+1 to 24+1; AC: 2 to 2+5; Speed: 16" to 36"; Dext: 18 to 24; Numbers: 1 to 4; % Liar: 95%; Attacks: 2 leg hits for 1-4 to 3-36, 1 bite for 1-6 to 4-48, plus a paralyzing venom that is 1/2 of the Spiga's HD or 1 web (a 25' to 90' long by 15' to 45' wide cone). The web will hold anything caught in it equal to its own HD plus 50%. Looks: Metallic silver, gold, or blue giant armored spiders. Notes: They are 50% magik resistant, 100% lightning, fire, poison/venom, and paralysis proof. Cold does 50% more damage. They are cruel and intelligent and hate humans.

– The Arduin Grimoire, Volume 1

I chose plastic Warhammer Giant Spiders from the Forest Goblin Spider Rider set to represent my spiga (which I guess might fall in the 5-8 HD category). There are a total of eight spiders in the kit.

The eight spiders can be sorted into four varieties based primarily on differences between their abdominal carapaces.

Three of the four varieties look like proper giant spiders, but I felt the fourth with the skull pattern on the back was a bit hokey (says the person painting garish metallic colored spiders).

The models are single piece, so no assembly is required, but I modified some of them so that their forelegs were in different positions. I might modify the rear legs on some of the spiders later as well.

Spiga poised to attack or cast spells.

Overall, I like the spiders. The legs do not look overly thick like with many spider models, though having all the legs touching the ground for stability would have been nice. The underside of the models are poorly represented, with a blocky sternum and hollow abdomen, but most people won't view them from that angle anyway.

I'm not sure if the metallic colors can be made to look more "realistic" given how unnatural they are in the first place, but I suppose an option could have been to use iridescent colors. Still, I am fine with being literal and taking Hargrave's description at face value.

Lovecraftian Horrors

In honor of Halloween, I've decided to write about some of the miniatures that I own which represent monsters from the Cthulhu Mythos.

Spiders of Leng

These gigantic spiders are denizens of the Plateau of Leng, mentioned briefly in The Dream-Quest of Unknown Kadath, and later fleshed out in the Call of Cthulhu RPG.

There have been various miniatures of Spiders of Leng, but they always struck me as being too pedestrian. However, when I saw the Knobby White Spider (The Force Unleashed #52) from the Star Wars Miniatures Game, the first thing that popped into my mind was that it was a Spider of Leng. The only thing the miniature needs is to be painted purple.

The miniature is quite disturbing. I really have the urge to hit it with a mallet when I look at it, and reaching into a box to take the miniature out... Ugghh!

Cats from Uranus

The Cats from Uranus are creatures from the Call of Cthulhu RPG. They are described as being similar to the Cats from Saturn, except uglier.

There have not been miniatures of either type of cat, but the Bad Kitty (Baxar's War #31) from the Dreamblade CMG would seem to fit the bill for a Cat from Uranus. It is not multi-hued and psychedelic like a Cat from Saturn, but it is definitely hideous.

Moon-beasts

The Moon-beasts were the antagonists in The Dream-Quest of Unknown Kadath, and described as vaguely amorphous grayish-white toad-like beings with a vibrating mass of short pink tentacles on the end of their snouts.

On the left is the recent Pathfinder Moon-Beast (Legends of Golarion #29). In the center is the RAFM Moon Beast (RAFM 2941), and at the right is the Grenadier Moonbeast (Call of Cthulhu 222).

The Grenadier and RAFM miniatures are very similar, and the Pathfinder miniature is not far off either, though it does not have any eyes. I'll have to repaint the Pathfinder Moon-beast because the pink hands and feet make it look more ape-like than toad-like. The Grenadier Moon-beast is fairly hard to find nowadays, since it is one of the CoC miniatures that has yet to be re-released by Mirliton.

Dholes (or Bholes)

Dholes are mentioned in Through the Gates of the Silver Key, and have been described as gigantic worms in later works even though I do not believe they were stated to be worm-like in the story. Bholes on the other hand, were explicitly described as being gigantic worms in The Dream-Quest of Unknown Kadath. It is unclear if they are the same, but both were gigantic creatures dwelling in the Vale of Pnath, so it may very well be that one or the other name came about because of a typographical error. In any event, Dhole was the term used by later Mythos writers, and so we have the Dhole (instead of Bhole) miniature from the Byatis and Dhole box set (RAFM 2030).

I really like this miniature, but it essentially is a newly hatched Dhole, since the creature is supposed to be hundreds of feet long (with fleas the size of rats). I'd say that an in-scale miniature would probably have to be at least a meter in length.

Serpent Men

Originally created by Robert E. Howard for his Kull stories, the Serpent Men of Valusia were introduced to the Cthulhu Mythos by Lin Carter and Clark Ashton Smith. They are mentioned by name in Lovecraft's The Haunter of the Dark.

The two miniatures to the left are Ral Partha Serpent Men Heroes (Children of the Night 13-041). These miniatures are currently available from Ironwind Metals. The trio on the right are Grenadier Serpent Men (Call of Cthulhu 6502; Nightmares 619).

The Ral Partha Serpent Men do not have tails, which may be more accurate as far as descriptions of Serpent Men go. The Grenadier Serpent Men on the other hand do have tails. The one in red comes from the boxed set, and has been described as holding and orb. To me it just looks like he has his hands clasped together, and I cannot make out any sign of an orb in his hands, so I'm not sure if there is another version of this miniature.

Off to answer the doorbell now!