Mysterious Manuscripts are books and other documents of supernatural importance, ready to be added to your Call of Cthulhu game. “The Twelfth Book of Moses” — by Adam Gauntlett, © 2011, illustrated by Dennis Detwiller, © 2011 — appears in The Unspeakable Oath 19, now available in PDF and in print with free PDF download.
De Laurence’s Inverted Development Triangle is given FREE with every copy of this catalogue. The triangle has segments in Seven Oriental Colors and is used by many in developing their Spiritual Natures and their Occult Powers.
This grimoire is intended for modern campaigns, but can be used in any post-1960s setting.
First, some historical context.
The Twelfth Book of Moses is an occult scam that has its roots in antiquity. The Torah are the first five Books of Moses, as dictated to Moses by God, but there have been rumours that Moses was granted secret wisdom that found its way into other Books. Written evidence for it goes back to the 4th century: The Key of Moses, Archangelical Teachings of Moses, Secret Moon-Book of Moses, and so on.
Chicago in the early 20th century was a hotbed of immigrant-inspired occultism. If you had a yen for divine inspiration, Chicago was the place to spread the word. William Lauron Delaurence (also known as De Laurence) was such an occultist. He went into self-publishing under the Delaurence, Scott and Company imprint after a bad experience with another publisher. He adopted a vaguely Hindu image, selling his own works (as well as books under his name ripped wholesale from mystics such as A.E. Waite and Levi), and became popular as a wholesaler of magical grimoires and paraphernalia. His works became the mainstay of occult practice in the Caribbean and Africa. They are banned outright in Trinidad; they influenced the Rastafarian movement in Jamaica, where they are also banned; West African magical traditions have become infested with Delaurence’s teachings. Where Europeans and Americans might look to the Far East for occult inspiration, Africans look to the West. To each, the other is foreign and exotic, therefore powerful, infused with magical wisdom.
The above is a broadly faithful account of real-world history; below is the Mythos version.
Though Delaurence died in 1936, his publishing house lives on. Modern occultist characters should be very familiar with Delaurence’s works. They are ubiquitous; every would-be sorcerer or hippie shaman has at least one of Delaurence’s imprints. They can be found among the possessions of a cultist or on the shelf of any magic store. They are particularly common in areas where Caribbean or West African influences predominate.
Physically, Delaurence’s books have several common elements. They are cheap, mass-produced paperbacks, usually printed in black and white, and are stuffed full of adverts for other Delaurence products. Many of them reprint information that can be found elsewhere, and their accuracy is questionable. Keepers who want to insert a random Delaurence tome into their campaign should give the reader no more than +1 to +4% Occult, with no other benefits.
The legendary Twelfth Book of Moses is different. It’s softcover but is more expensively bound and has a color cover. The Book is devoted to love charms, sex charms, engorged virility, and increased libido. Some say you don’t even have to read the contents; just owning the book is enough to guarantee a twofold increase in prowess. It’s a 1967 imprint but became very popular during the hedonism of the ’70s. It’s been referenced in many publications and films, from The Fabulous Furry Freak Brothers and Rolling Stone to Sex Slaves of Blacula (1978) and Night of the Living Dead Porn Stars (2002), possibly the only homosexual-themed zombie movie ever made (tagline: It’s not just about brains!). Jimi Hendrix’s autographed copy is supposed to be worth a fortune to collectors, not that anyone has seen it since a London auction held in 1983. It is the only Delaurence publication that interests so-called “serious” occultists, who say that, unlike the usual Delaurence trash, this book really does contain mystic knowledge.
Some particularly unpleasant occultists claim that the Twelfth Volume of the Revelations of Glaaki was plundered to make this Book of Moses. They are not entirely wrong. The Twelfth Book of Moses does contain several references to “the dark angel, Yeggilac” who, in return for sacrifices, is supposed to shower rewards on the supplicant. However, Mythos scholars soon find, should they read it, that there are important differences between the Revelations of Glaaki and this book.
“Seven times seven will be the benefit to the practitioner, should these rites be followed: meditation is key to long, virile life.” The Book instructs the reader on how to build a private sanctum in which “the dark angel, Yeggilac” is meant to be appeased, usually in a ritual with sexual elements. Onanism is the least of it; bestiality, necrophilia and acts of extreme sadism are more pleasing to the dark angel. These rituals are to be carried out regularly, at least once a month. If this is done, then the worshipper’s POW is rated at +2 for purposes of Luck, Magic Points and Resistance rolls, though the character’s actual POW (and Sanity) remains the same as before. Sanity cost for regular participation in these rituals is 1D4+1 per month.
Moreover, it is said that there are secret pages inside the Book itself, “a sanctum within,” that can be found only by dedicated worship (possibly helped along with hallucinogens). The Book “ends” on page 168 and starts again on 175, but if the petitioner is deemed worthy the missing pages reveal themselves. Some scoff, saying this is just a misprint around which the gullible have invented a mythology, but others say that the missing pages show how a special mandala, or meditative geometric composition diagram, is to be made. Once the practitioner creates this mental focus, constant meditation using the mandala as a ritual object allows a closer connection with the dark angel. Effectively this is a means of Contacting Y’Golonac, at which point the petitioner is given the Old One’s usual choice: obey me in all things or die.
Skimming the Twelfth Book of Moses costs 1D3 SAN and takes 3 hours. Reading it thoroughly costs 1D6+1 SAN, takes a week, confers +3% Cthulhu Mythos and +6% Occult, and grants the spells Dominate and Dream Vision. Should the missing pages be revealed and read, the reader gains an additional +1% Cthulhu Mythos and the spell Contact Y’Golonac.
Investigators may find the Twelfth Book in the library of a cultist or someone without interest in the Mythos. Thousands were published, and their status as a collectible means they can end up in the most unlikely of hands. Film moguls and rock stars are just as likely to covet a copy as a dedicated necromancer.
Owners who go on to carry out the rituals tend to leave a trail of broken victims, if not corpses; the investigators may encounter the Twelfth Book because they investigated a previous owner. Or the investigators might be hired to obtain a copy. The rich and famous rarely do their own legwork and won’t care how the Twelfth Book is obtained, so long as they can boast about it at their next party. Of course, the owner might not want to sell, but that’s hardly the buyer’s problem.
There may even be forgeries. The Hendrix copy sold for a fortune but hasn’t been seen in years. If it reappeared on the market, collectors would want to know: Is it the real thing or a fake? If fake, who made it? Enter the experts, the investigators.
The Twelfth Book of Moses appears in The Unspeakable Oath 19.