Not Really Foreshadowing
Rich created a number of intertextual moments for the Monster in the Dark: Scenes that stand on their own but gain additional meaning by referring to an external text, specifically the Monster in the Dark’s D&D stats. Since this other text wasn’t defined until the reveal, these moments are also a kind of prolepsis.
These moments don’t function as traditional foreshadowing, as they don’t predict events in the story. Instead, they serve as subtle evidence that Rich always intended the Monster in the Dark to be a Hunting Horror, rewarding readers familiar with the Hunting Horror’s D&D mechanics while seamlessly fitting into the story for all audiences.
The Rope Scene
In the rope scene, the Monster in the Dark says:
“I’m a lot better at pushing than pulling. Pulling has all those tricky parts where you hold something and move it at the same time.”
This line aligns with two of the Hunting Horror’s Spell Like Abilities:
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“Better at pushing”: Fist of Yog-Sothoth
- This spell allows the Hunting Horror to push targets with magical force but not pull them:
“You can pummel a foe with a magical blow. The force strikes like a big fist, dealing 1d6 points of damage per caster level (maximum 10d6). The target is subjected to a bum’s rush attack as if the fist had a Strength equal to the caster’s Intelligence and was Large.”
- This spell allows the Hunting Horror to push targets with magical force but not pull them:
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“Tricky parts of pulling”: Grasp of Cthulhu
- This spell allows the Hunting Horror to hold people in place but not move them:
“Calling upon the name of Great Cthulhu, you summon magical energies that wrap around a subject, holding it motionless. Each round, the subject takes 2d6 points of subdual damage. The grasp can render targets unconscious but cannot kill.”
- This spell allows the Hunting Horror to hold people in place but not move them:
The “Poor Mr. Stiffly” Scene
In this scene, the Monster in the Dark says:
“Poor Mr. Stiffly! I hoped really, really hard, and he still didn’t escape. I don’t know why it didn’t work.”
When Tsukiko sarcastically responds, the Monster doubles down, agreeing earnestly:
“Yeah, gee, I don’t know why wanting it wasn’t enough to make it happen.”
“Me neither!”
For readers not interested in D&D statistics, this moment plays as a joke about the Monster in the Dark’s comical misunderstanding of how reality works. However, when viewed intertextually, it probably alludes to the Hunting Horror’s Spell-Like Ability Evil Eye, which uses magical intent to curse a target with bad luck:
“You focus magical energy through your gaze and curse someone with bad luck. You must have line of sight to your target when casting this spell. The subject suffers a -4 luck penalty to all attack rolls, checks, and saves. The spell ends at the next sunrise, until dismissed, or until the caster takes at least 1 point of damage from the subject.”
Under this theory, the sequence could be interpreted as follows:
- The Monster in the Dark instinctively activates Evil Eye by focusing on someone and hoping for bad things to happen to them. It may have done this in the past successfully, without understanding its abilities fully.
- In this case, the Monster focuses on O-Chul and wishes him good luck instead. However, Evil Eye can only inflict bad luck, so nothing happens. This disconnect leads to the humorous dialogue in the strip.
The Power Rangers Scene
“Where are your Power Ranger figures right now?”
“Ummm… broken.”
The Hunting Horror has no hands. It has a Ravenous Maw with Improved Grab, and a Tail-Tentacle, also with Improved Grab. Both of these grabs can also do automatic damage. The Maw can Masticate for 5d8+12 damage per turn, and the Tail-Tentacle can Constrict for 2d6+12 damage per turn. Being able to play with its toys using only these deadly weapons may be why its toys break so easily, and might explain Redcloak’s reluctance to let it near the phylactery.
The Footprints Scene
“These tracks are…weird. They’re definitely not hobgoblin footprints, and they’re not Undead Roy’s, either. I don’t know what made them.”
The Hunting Horror has at least two possible explanations for this.
One explanation is that its movement speed is listed as a 30’ slither, which is not a defined movement type for standard D&D monsters. The Hunting Horror doesn’t have a listed walk speed at all. Some Call of Cthulhu creatures have both a slither and a walk speed, but the rules never explain why walking would be preferable when slithering is usually faster.
Belkar, unfamiliar with D&D monsters that have a slither speed instead of a walk speed, naturally finds this confusing.
The other explanation comes from the Hunting Horror’s description itself:
“It does not move in a direct line, but flies in strange, spiraling, non-Euclidean paths, coiling its way across the sky at a great speed.”
While this refers to the creature’s flight rather than ground movement, Rich may have drawn inspiration from it when deciding how to interpret the “slither” keyword for the Hunting Horror.
The Remorhaz Kebab Scene
Snuck peek under old umbrella when you got here. Such majesty! Like in wildest dreams, after remorhaz kebab too close to bed.
The Hunting Horror is described as a legless dragon seen in a nightmare. Oona’s description of the Monster in the Dark matches this idea, as it is compared to dreams brought on by eating too much remorhaz kebab—likely evoking the common trope of unsettling nightmares after eating rich or unusual food.
The Zombie Dwarves Scene
In this scene, Xykon says:
“Really? Didn’t I read someplace that dwarves were like a delicacy for your kind?”
The Monster in the Dark responds:
“I don’t… think so.”
Xykon then concludes:
“Huh. Maybe I’ll just zombify them, then.”
I have to ask Rich about this one, because it’s based on free association:
In The Dream-Quest of Unknown Kadath, ghouls live in communal underground kingdoms, much like dwarves in D&D. Hunting Horrors, as servants of Nyarlathotep, are sent to harass these ghouls. Xykon’s dialogue builds up a connection between dwarves, ghouls, Hunting Horrors, and the Monster in the Dark.
Claiming to have ‘read it someplace’ suggests Xykon is referring to outside sources, like The Dream-Quest.
The phrase ‘your kind’ shifts the focus from the Monster in the Dark to the Hunting Horrors it was adapted from.
The Monster’s hesitation implies that Xykon, while misremembering, is referencing something true about the Monster in the Dark.
Finally, Xykon’s suggestion to zombify the dwarves reframes them as undead, creating a parallel to the ghouls in Lovecraft’s story and strengthening the thematic link.
1 Spell-Like Abilities in Call of Cthulhu are spared the usage restrictions mentioned in The Fine Line; the Hunting Horror can use them freely.