Elder Sign

The Elder Sign is a symbol of protection used to ward against the Great Old Ones and Outer Gods, and in some cases — such as with Cthulhu — are used to seal these creatures inside their slumbering prisons.

Summary

Despite its name, the Elder Sign has been represented at least three ways in popular literature: a six-pointed branch, a misshapen five-pointed star with an eye in the center, and a complex gesture involving the conjoining of pinky and thumb. It is used extensively by the warriors of Righteous that patrol Aucturn, and is taught to members of the occult community practically upon initiation. Little else is known about the Elder Sign other than its representations and their power, although the latter seems to vary depending on the caster and the eldritch being in question.

Historical Basis

Albus Rickette is famously quoted for saying that the "Elder Signs" are just representations of an "Elder Name", which he hypothesized to be the True Name of the Elder Numen species. This was hotly debated in his time, and is still regarded with caution in the modern day. Lod Coster gained some notoriety in his youth for disagreeing with this theory explicitly, claiming that the Elder Signs did represent a name, specifically the "Name of Names", which was itself unknowable.