BtP Inspirations

[wyrdhamster]

Topic for movies or TV shows inspiring BtP stories - Did not seen topic for this on search, so started here.

Have you seen (now) Netflix's Lucifer TV series? Titular character is basically a Begotten - he is monstrous being, that Hunger for true Punishment, using his Nightmare powers to solve crimes because he 'need' to point Lessons on humans. ( I would say Lucifer is Anakim, but your assertion may varied on his Family. ) Even if being 'fallen angel' Devil, he is intertwined in whole Celestial Family - whole Dad and Mom issues - and most of TV series main plot revolve on his and his Kin implication on humans and themselves. Hell, even Decker can be seen as non-violent Hero here, blessed with some weird powers to cancel those of Lucifer - like super-Anathema.

[wyrdhamster]

Read or seen Tokyo Ghoul (manga or anime ). Cause Beasts are kinda like Ghouls from this anime, only about mental stress of others rather than eating their meat only. ( But some Beasts can be also about hunger for flesh. )

In series there are even 'your hidden monstrous extensions that let you do inhuman things' - just like Atavisms in Beast.

[Cinder]

Here's my main ones for Beast. It's a list I find useful to look at when it's time to write.

First, there's the group I call "The Hateful Nine" : The Soprano, Breaking Bad, Mad Men, Dexter, Hannibal, Sons of Anarchy, House, Bojack Horseman and It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia. Which are all series about self-centered characters which are deeply, deeply flawed at best and yet, the story is about them and audience find themselves attached to it. These are good series to watch and a lesson in how to make characters who are, let's be fair, assholes bound to their selfish desires interesting and somewhat relatable, if not likable.

Beowulf & Grendel has lots to say about heroes, monsters and cycles of violence.

I can never decide what to think of Ricky Gervais, but After Life is a series about a broken man whose caustic and misanthropic behavior complicates his life and that of those around him, but he does not stop because he does not have a reason to and that's the only way living makes sense to him. He makes no excuses and seeks no forgiveness: that's just how he lives and sees no chance to improve from a situation he's fully aware to be problematic and wrong. It takes tons of effort from in order to aknowledge that treating other people well and perhaps even trying to make their lives better despite the way his mind works is something worth trying, because it makes the world a place a tiny bit less dark and might even be the way to feel better himself. This little show can offer a ton to Beast.

Going to comics, I have a few.

Let's get Hellboy out of the way, because even if I love it so much and never stop talking about it, its themes of "Fate VS Free Will" (or even "What people say you are VS what you want to be) and monsters finding a family among themselves come to mind when talking in this context.

Sandman is rather obvious, with its focus on stories & dreams. Neil Gaiman in general uses several brushes to paint his beautiful art which also can be used for Beast.

The Wicked + The Divine is also about people who inherit mythologically divine identities and power, the destiny and conflicts such nature leads them towards and all that stuff about becoming a legend, being liberated by superpowers while also being shackled by it and more.

Harrow County. Oh, Harrow County. The comic is about a young woman who discovers to be the reincarnation of a powerful (like really powerful) wicked witch, Ester Beck, who once terrorized the titular county. The witch had power over the countless spirit and haunts that lived there, summoned many more and cursed the land and those who killed her, promising terrible retribution. When the protagonist powers awaken after all, everyone expects her to be like the witch. Some want to kill her, some want to worship her, some want to punish her and other members of her supernatural family (which range from sorcerers, to spirits, demons and others stranger things) expect her to behave as they want. But she's not Ester Beck: she's Emmy. And this is her life to live and her decisions belong to her. I think you can see why I consider this great Beast material.

Then there's Monstress, a gorgeous dark fantasy comic about war, vengeance, anger, loss and other terrible hungers who harden people but also risk to devour them from within. More than this is spoiler, but Monstress is one of the best comics out there and has some of the best cats ever drawn on paper.

I Kill Giants tells the story of a girl who's also a powerful giant-slaying hero. There are twists and revelations in there which would ruin the story but also offer some of the best examples of Beast themes I ever saw in fiction.

Speaking of videogames...

The God of War series is filled with mythological goodness, but the latest one touches some points who resonate with Beast themes.

The Wolf Among Us is my favorite Telltale game and its protagonist, a reformed Big Bad Wolf who tries to find a balance between his duties towards other fable people, what many think of him because of his nature and past, and his darker side, are spot on.

The Persona series is also quite relevant, but that's something many people have already discussed around here. Just wanted to say I love it and agree.

As for books, I don't have much when it comes to straight narrative. A Monster Calls is the one I can name out, but others I find more difficult to pinpoint. Tragic, flawed protagonists tend to provide what I need.

But I read a lot of myth books, a lot of anthropology ones (especially those who use myths & legends as a tool to discuss mankind and how we work), some dream analysis and anything Jung I could find. You know, book about symbols, myths, recurrence and emotions. But not Joseph Campbell, no matter how weird that seems.

As said, these are the bunch that first come to my mind when thinking of Beast. Not the only ones, there are plenty of other smaller ones (plus some more big ones I prefer to keep up my sleeve for a variety of reasons) and they of course add to the wider pool of my inspirations, but here they are.

[Penguinbowler]

I have no idea if the source material for Lucifer, The Sandman would qualify (The endless are more a mix of Spirits and True Fae with a bit of human morality thrown in) but Moby Dick i feel works decently well, as least from the perspective of a hero. Ahab's obsession with killing the white whale kills his entire crew with the exception of Ishmael.

[wyrdhamster]

It maybe a bit stretch, but Netflix's Chilling Adventures of Sabrina is a good inspiration on the local Broods and Hive structure as community on day-to-day basis. Especially Empusae variety one ( See Beast Players Guide for this ).

Chilling Adventures of Sabrina – has very much in common with Beast: The Primordial game, especially after Beast Players Guide. (...)

If we looked in to base premise of CAoS, you will see clear analogies with BtP. To start, if we change show’s Dark Lord name for the Dark Mother, Church of Night for the Empusae group of the Begotten and magical spells for the Obcasus Rites – you can clearly see story of Spellman family as tale of local brood of Beasts in Greendale, being also literal family. If you see coming Dark Baptism for Sabrina as her proper Devouring, whole series becomes prelude to her future life as monster. The only thing would be that Sabrina before Dark Baptism would be some Minor Template, preparing only to be Beast – but she could clearly could be Psychic or Thaumaturge Template, they also are related to Dark Mother and her Children in the end. And whole visions and intertwined events in proper series makes great story hooks for your coming to be Devoured characters.

Side note: I really now think about making Church of Night as multiple monster races organisation for the game, where Beasts would be priests to Dark Mother mixed with Circle of Crone, Lancea Sanctum, Mysterium and Autumn Courts members in it. Just cool idea I got from Netflix series and CoD universe here.

[EndlessKng]

I recently made an argument for Boondock Saints being a Mage inspiration to a friend, but it also works as a story of two Predators. Arguably, their Horrors and Legends are based on angelic beings, but it's not about seeing those as opposed to how they go about feeding and the impact they have upon the world around them. Their worldview becomes infectious, turning people into Heralds (won't say exactly who, just to avoid spoilers) by exposing them to the truth of their world.

There is also an argument for Thanos in Infinity War - he is a Collector in his search for the stone, but his desire for balance could be seen as a hunger in itself. We even see an example of needing a higher price to sate you as you start to get full in the scene on the cliff...

Masked heroes in the Batman vein could also be seen as Beasts. The Dark Knight himself merged with an object of fear in order to generate fear around him.

[Deinos]

Witches, Werewolves, and Fairies: Shapeshifters and Astral Doubles in the Middle Ages is highly recommended for any Beast fan curious about mythological analogs to beasts. It talks about the belief in a triple soul that you can see across Europe from Medieval times to Biblical times. While there are few modern fiction bits about something that would fit a beast exactly, the notion of a bestial soul you can eject from your body, even to fight for you, but that can take physical injury and even kill you if it is slain, vs a projection that can scout but cannot physically interact and that won't physically threaten you if attacked, has a lot of mythological basis. In Beast terms, they correspond to the horror and the dream form.

[Teatime]

Cinder I want to thank you for letting me discover Harrow County. I'm seven issues in and I love it. Funnily enough, the vignettes at the end might be the best part for me.

[Cinder]

Cinder I want to thank you for letting me discover Harrow County. I'm seven issues in and I love it. Funnily enough, the vignettes at the end might be the best part for me.

Don't mention it. It's one of my favorite comics ever but not many people know it, so I'm glad to spread the word. And those vignettes are lovely.

My current profile pic is from there too, while we're on the topic.

You agree it offers a lot to Beast (and Chronicles in general) or is it just me? Asking because I never managed to discuss it with anyone.

[Teatime]

You agree it offers a lot to Beast (and Chronicles in general) or is it just me? Asking because I never managed to discuss it with anyone.

I agree, but with a caveat.

So far the comic presented me with a variety of unique creatures and phenomena. Any of these things could have a session devoted to them and that applies to all the gamelines - especially those that encourage off-the-map creativity. Ironically, in its goal of addressing the main gamelines, Beast left miscellaneous strangeness on the wayside. However, that's only a matter of wordcount rather than incompatible themes and ideas presented in the comic are a great fit for the game.

Focusing on Beast, the way *spoilers* interact with the monsters strongly resonates with Beast's focus on exploration, territory, reputation and family. I also like the interplays of Life and Legend we've been presented with. I suspect these aspects will become even more pronounced as the story goes along.

On the other hand, I see Hungers and coming to terms with monstrousity as key elements of the game and since the protagonist is morally spotless, the dynamic I expect from Beast is missing from the comic. That is unless you count the antagonist. I want to stress that I'm only 7 issues in, and that could very well change.