Larry Hastings of Vulture Productions brings us this excellent NCR Ranger costume from Fallout: New Vegas. The LAPD riot armor is a kit he just happens to have for sale.
As an aside, I've continued my long history of getting hooked on Bethesda games over the holiday break. After taking two years (!) to finish Skyrim I dove into Fallout 4 just after Christmas. While the main story is terrible, it's really hitting my exploration and crafting buttons.
A tsanta is a traditional trophy of the Jivaro people of South America, made from the heads of slain enemies. At least, that's how things were before contact with Europeans. After that, the foreign demand for the unusual oddities turned their production from a matter of ritualized vendetta killings to commercial gain. Eventually, the tribe figured out that using animal heads to create fake versions was far more lucrative, and safer, than the old way of doing things. Which lead to the Europeans of the 18th and 19th centuries making their own copies of the Jivaro fake versions to meet demand.
It's a funny old world, ain't it?
This example of a traditional sideshow-style shrunken head gaff comes to us from Albino Alligator.
This impressive collection of dwarven arms, armor, and tomecraft, comes to us from Charuzo CosFam. Technically, I think these may be "dwarfen" props, since the Warhammer version of the race is rather particular about their identity. If you click through, be sure to browse around for more Warhammer cosplay goodness.
Jared Ruch of Grizzle Macabre brings us this mounted, mummified vrykolakas heart. If you're raising your eyebrows and saying "What the hell is that?", you're not alone. It's apparently a Greek vampire-like creature that dines on the livers of the living.
In 1932 Prof. Jeremiah Jefferson made an amazing discovery in the archives at Miskatonic University. Somehow, a series of ancient tablets had been stored away for years without being entered into the official catalog. They were written in an unrecognizable language similar to cuneiform, but bore one identifiable element- the seal of Zerzura, the legendary white city hidden in the sands of the Sahara desert.
After months of effort, Jefferson was finally able to translate some of the tablets. Sure that he had the key to finding the fabled treasures of the lost city, he hurriedly put together an expedition to the desert using his own funds. A team of experts from Miskatonic soon departed for Africa. Once there, they hired local guides and traveled to Douz, the "gateway to the Sahara". From there they headed into the desert... where they vanished into thin air.
One survivor, a local worker hired by the name of Feisal, was eventually found, injured and babbling incoherently. While his physical injuries healed, his mental condition never improved. He's hospitalized in Tunisia to this day.
Now, it's 1934. Miskatonic University has partnered with the Royal Geographic Society, the W. Isynwill Foundation, and the French Foreign Legion to launch the Sutton-Gudrian expedition to the Sahara. Their task is to follow in the footsteps of Jefferson's party. Hopefully, they'll discover not only their fate, but the city of Zerzura itself.
That's the set-up for Chaos League's "Sahara Expedition" LARP event, which has been run eight times in the actual Sahara. By all appearances, it was absolutely insane, and I mean that in the best way. Beyond the players actually traveling to Tunisia to take part, the level of costuming and environmental immersiveness is mind-boggling. Beyond the gallery linked above, check out the full player guide for a look at the level of detail.
As the year comes to a close the veil between this world and the next grows thinner. That makes it the perfect time for this Druidic mask from Raven Dark Creations.