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NACHT-KOBOLD - (German) A fairy whose name means "night kobold". It appears to children in their nightmares, and can kill them in their sleep.

NAGA - (Hindu) The race of snake-people, who could either take the form of humans, cobras, or any mix of the two. Nagas lived underground, and were supposed to have fabulous treasures and possess great wisdom. Nagas also supposedly carried a gem with great magical powers in their hoods, and unscrupulous people tried to kill them for their magical gem.

NANKYOKU ROUJIN - (Chinese) The human incarnation of the Nankyoku Roujin star, brings about long life, prosperity, and good fortune. Amongst the Seven Deities of Good Luck, he was similar to the god of longevity and the god of happiness, fortune, and long life. Originally, these two were the same god, but over a length of time, they came to be treated as two separate gods. (Nankyoku Roujin means "Old Man of the South Pole, FWIW.)

NANNAR - (Sumerian) The moon god, known by the name of Sin in Babylonian mythology. His daughter was Inanna, the fertility goddess known better known as Ishtar.

NARUKAMI - (Japanese) Narukami Shounin. The main character of Kabuki #16, "Narukami". Performed prayers at the time of the birth of the imperial prince, and a splendid prince was born. But, he was angry because he did not receive his reward as promised, and sealed the Dragon God, bringing about a drought. However, he was tempted by the perfume of one of the foremost court beauties, Kumo-no-Taema-hime, made drunk on alcohol, and eventually told how to break the seal. The Dragon God was released, and rain once again fell on the land. Narukami was awakened from this trance by the voices of the monks, and grew very angry, chasing after Kumo-no-Taema-hime.

NATA - (Chinese) Also called Nataku and Nata Taishi. A hero god that appears in the form of a boy in various stories, including "Saiyuki" and "Houshin Engi". Carries a variety of Paopei (sacred weapons) and defeats demons and dragons.

NEAMHAIN - (Celtic) An ancient war goddess, usually described as one of the Three Forms of the Morrigan.

NEKOMATA - (Japanese) An old cat that has become a monster. Nekomata can be identified by their forked tails. They can assume the form of a human being by eating the person they want to resemble, and they have control over the dead.

NEMESIS - (Greek) The Greek goddess of vengeance and balance, who kept both good and bad fortune from becoming too excessive in life. Later she became known as a goddess of vengeance who punished people both for evil deeds and undeserved good fortune.

NIGHTMARE - (European) The personification of a bad dream, a demon that suffocated sleepers. The word "mare," which originally meant "demon," got confused with the word "mare" that means a female horse, so nightmares are often drawn as black horses.

NIKE - (Greek) The winged Greek goddess of victory

NISROC - (Judeo-Christian) Also known as "the Great Eagle," this fallen angel is the head chef in Hell.

NJORD - (Norse) The god of ships and seafaring, and the father of Freyr and Freya. He, like his children, is from the Vanir race of gods, unlike the rest of the Norse pantheon, which are all Aesir. His seaside home was known as Noatun, which means "harbor."

NODENS (NUATHA) - (Celtic) The Celtic god of health and healing, who was the king of the Celtic Gods. When he lost his hand in battle, he abdicated in favor of Bres, but he gained a silver hand and returned to depose the tyrannical Bres.

NOZUCHI - (Japanese) A snake spirit that lives under trees and attacks people. This may be derived from the field goddess Kayanohime, who was a daughter of Izanami and Izanagi.

NUE - (Japanese) A strange monster with the head of a monkey, the body of a raccoon-dog, the legs of a tiger, the tail of a snake, and the voice of a bird. A nue was supposedly killed by the 12th century general Minamoto no Yorimasa.

NYARLATHOTEP - (Lovecraft) Everyone's favorite Olden God, the Crawling Chaos himself! The general picture that we draw from Lovecraft's writings is that Nyarly acted as sort of an intermediary, a messenger between the blind insane god Azathoth and the rest of the universe; his job was to act out the wishes of Azathoth. What's unique about Nyarly is that he could and did take a human form; in Ancient Egypt he appeared as a black-skinned man who looked like a Pharaoh, and in New England, he took the form of the researcher Henry Akeley (after taking the real Akeley's brain to Pluto in a metal jar, of course.) Humans could directly interact with Nyarly -- usually with unpleasant results. " To Nyarlathotep, Mighty Messenger, must all things be told. And He shall put on the semblance of men, the waxen mask and the robe that hides, and come down from the world of Seven Suns to mock... " (Lovecraft, The Whisperer in the Darkness.) Anyways, another of Nyarly's roles was to teach humankind Things They Should Not Know, usually driving them mad in the process...and as for the "Moon Howler" form, this is the only possible source I could find: "But suddenly I parted the weeds and saw before me the ancient railway car--and to one side a cone-faced thing lifted its head and in the streaming moonlight howled strangely!" (The Thing in the Moonlight) There's also an interesting image on the Chaosium Nyarlathotep RPG page - look familiar? (Thanks, 'Rabi)

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