Billington's Wood?

[kaeru]

Hey all,

My group recently came across Thaumaturgical Prodigies in the New-England Canaan. They decided to skim it, which prompted me to hint at the strange history of Billington's Wood northwest of Arkham (inspired by the Keeper's Compendium.) They might be inclined to visit it shortly!

What other sources besides Arkham Unveiled and the Keeper's Compendium provide background on the place? I am particularly interested in original literary sources. Is the story "Strange Manuscript Found in the Vermont Woods" the place where it was first mentioned?

[AdamAstonbury]

Not 100% certain of this, but I believe the main source on the Billington woods is the 'Lurker at the Threshold' - a novela which I think was written mainly by Derleth...(though Lovecraft is credited, I don't think he had much to do with it)...

[NashTrickster]

There's a few stories taking place in Billington Wood in Chaosium's The Dunwich Cycle IIRC...

[Zoran]

What other sources besides Arkham Unveiled and the Keeper's Compendium provide background on the place? I am particularly interested in original literary sources. Is the story "Strange Manuscript Found in the Vermont Woods" the place where it was first mentioned?

I'm pretty certain that the first place Billington's Wood is mentioned is in the novel Lurker at the Threshold (1945) by August Derleth, incorporating notes and passages written by H. P. Lovecraft. The book is divided into three novella-length sections: Billington's Wood, Manuscript of Stephen Bates and Narrative of Winfield Phillips. If you can get a copy of the book, that's the place to get all the details since everything else is pretty much based on that source.

You may also want to check out the story The Round Tower (Being the Narrative of Armitage Harper) by Robert M. Price in The Dunwich Cycle collection. This is an alternate ending for Lurker at the Threshold since, as Price points out, the original ending, the Narrative of Winfield Phillips goes off at a strange angle to the rest of the story and leaves several plot threads unresolved. Whether or not you accept Price's alternate ending is a matter of taste, but I figured I should mention it.

Other than that, the only game sources I'm aware of are Arkham Unveiled and section on Thaumaturgical Prodigies in the New England Canaan from The Keeper's Compendium reprinted in The Keeper's Companion Volume I.

Regards,

Zoran

[kaeru]

Excellent, thanks for that. It seems I'll have to dig up Derleth's novella then!

[MarkRyan]

Wow Zoran,I was going to contribute to the sourcing of Billington Woods but you've said it all.Respect!

corspe-eater