Being a huge Lovecraft fan, I couldn't help but notice that the author(s) of House of Dust and Ash inserted a clever little reference to the Gate of the Silver Key (and possibly the key itself!) into the adventure. Has anybody else noticed such little subdued witticisms in the book? ("House Koba" in DotDG may be a reference to Stalin, or it might be coincidence.)

Not necessarily in that book, but there are many references and in-jokes strewn throughout the series. The first one I noticed was in the Psyker Sanctioning table, result 36-42. It seems that not only the navigators are taken straight from Dune...

Other than that, Creatures Anathema has a creature that may very easily be the Predator - optical camouflage, slightly Mantid appearance, takes skins and skulls as trophies.

And you definitely need more exposure to classical and popular culture if you can't find references in Sandy Mitchell's works...

Somebody got up on the wrong side of the bed.

The Dune pain box reference is obvious. I was thinking of things a little more obscure.

The skill Forbidden Lore: Black Library doesn't refer to the Eldar Black Library of Chaos, but rather the Black Library Publishing. It mentions "strange industries" (Black Industries) and "pale, hairless things that toil in its walls" (the mostly baldy writers like Dan Abnett).

Didn't notice the silver key reference. However the entire second hald of Xenos in the Eisenhorn trilogy was right out of Lovecraft - but with bigger guns and they actually get away. Much of the warp, ruinious powers, insanity, etc. is very Lovecraftian.

Somebody got up on the wrong side of the bed.

Actually I woke up just fine today, though perhaps the Sandy Mitchell came out wrong. I merely meant that references are numerous enough in there that most people will recognize at least a few.

Idaan said:

Ha! I actually was wondering about the pale, hairless things in the walls.

When I noticed the silver key with "shown me the portals of sleep" written on it in Archaic Terran, I started wondering if all the other trinkets in House were also homages, but couldn't figure any of them out (if homages they indeed be).

40K and Warhammer Fantasy have always been included a large number of tongue and cheek references. Kim Newman aka Jack Yeovil sprinkles them all over his Warhammer Fantasy work, but they go back to the first edition with such gems as "Scottie the Enginseer" and so forth. Some are particularly blatant (Council of Nikea, a not even thinly veiled allusion to a historical event) and some at least pretend to be subtle. Somef the more recent references I've caught are to the webcomic Girl Genius and Glen Cook's Black Company series.

I took the Gilded Widow to be an obscure reference to Metropolis the 1927 german film by Fritz Lang. One of my favorites of all time actually. Anybody not familiar with the film, go here . And also find a way to view it, it is great for inspiration for hive world social dynamics.

Metropolis ! Of course! I can't believe I didn't think of it.

The King in Rags and Tatters is another Cthulhu reference. If I recall correctly (having not read much in the way of the actual stories comprising the Mythos) it is a reference to The King in Yellow , or Hastur .

So, Cthulhu is in the Microsoft dictionary/spellcheck, but not the other one. Lives up to He who is Not to be named, I reckon.

-=Brother Praetus=-

First post ever.

In the Tattered Fates preview, Darke & Cougura's Living Shadow Show can be seen, this must be a reference to Darke's Carnival from Arkham Horror.

The Black Library joke is rather funny.

Buyman said:

Tattered Fates ;

The Eternal Show of Shadows performs numerous plays and operas. It has such a vaunted reputation that noble houses have begun blood fueds over tickets to see their single performance of "The Mask of Camilla." I believe this likely another reference to The King in Yellow , as Camilla is one of the characters in that play, and it takes place during a masquerade ball.

Of course, we could also be simply drawing correlation where there is none.

-=Brother Praetus=-

Not really a joke, but I always wondered whether Lord Inquisitor Anton Zerbe was somehow inspired by Anthony Zerbe (or a role he played).

Just found another one in House of Dust and Ash. Captain Rubio of the Ozmandius. Ozmandius is a sonnet written by Percy Bysshe Shelley, about the inevitable decline of men and the empires they build... hmmm, sound familiar?

Although the authors of the House of Dust and Ash could also have been referencing Ozmandius from the Watchmen comic by Alan Moore, either one would be appropriate given the context of both the setting of DH and the adventure itself.

One of the most blatant joke/pun I found in a Dark Heresy book would have to be in Purge the Unclean. The so called "Joyous Choir" is such an obvious parody of the real world Scientologists. I remember when I first got hold of the book and stated to flip through it during a bus ride and seeing it made me laugh rather loud and drawing the attention of the others on the bus.

So Theodosia must be Tom Cruise, his implants representing Mr Cruise's awesome Scientology powers? It would crack my players up if i had described Theodosia as Tom Cruise

Buyman said:

Nah, Theo is with the Serrated Query. But the charlatan recently converted to Joyous Choir-leader whose name I've forgotten could be Tom Cruise.

from france

theodosia is an empress from the bizantine empire quite appropriate for the bizantine emperium of man. i don't remenber where but in dh there is a quote "there is no arguing wit the barrel of a gun" a common phrase in western.

inquisitor torquemedaz is probably a reference to torquemeda as his wrongly think sentence "kill them all god will reconize his own"

they are other of course chtulu and dune and other fictional element are not the only one real reference exists also.

At the start of Creatures Anathma there's a note from a pursar, and at the end it tells the recipient to go to some training centre and "sit in the BLUE" chair. I swear ive come across this reference before, but im not sure whether its referring to popular culture or actual unironic RL stuff.

Are you sure that's from Creatures Anathema? I can't find it in my copy, although I remember the bit you mean- it's the old 'rocks are not free, citizen' bit, yes? That came from somewhere on the internet in response to the suggestion that orbital bombardment in 40k was a matter of finding asteroids and nudging them out of orbit on to a target world, as, after all, rocks are free... It was published in the back of the first of the 'new' Chapter Approved books (The Second Book of the Astronomicon, back in 3rd Edition). I can't remember if the BLUE chair bit is a reference to anything, not for certain, but for some reason THX1138 springs to mind...

Im certain it is in Creatures Anathma. I havent seen THX1138, but from what I know of it it certainly could be a candidate.

In the Inquistors handbook they mention the Umbrian Heresy which sounds a lot like Cthulu.

A gigantic xeno being living deep beneath the see, worshiped by human followers as god. Even mentions its 'children"

After all see life on the planent was destroyed rummors persisted that some of its children remain watching for a time when it will rise again.

Does say 'when the stars are right" but that would be a little too obvious.

Also, cracked up when I read the silver key line.

WarpGhost said:

It might be a reference to "Rocks are NOT free, citizen," a fan-written missive concerning how propelling asteroids into planets is not cost effective. Google will reveal the full details. Of course, it in turn might be referencing something else.

Buyman said:

Found this thread while googling Darke & Cougura's (preparing to run Tattered Fates). Let's resurrect it!

I am not familiar with Arkham Horror. What is Darke's Carnival there?