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Sell me on fey!
- Thread starter freyar
- Start date
Klaus
First Post
D&D elves have more in common with the mythological fey than most people think. Check out this painting, "Riders of the Sidhe", by John Duncan, 1911:Dannyalcatraz said:
The riders of the Sidhe ride out of their hollow hills to pay homage to the sun god Belenus.
In this picture, La Belle Dame Sans Merci (H.M. Rheam, 1897), beholds a knight whose infatuation for her will lead to his doom, as ghosts of former fallen knights bear witness. In the poem by Keats, she is described as a "faeries child" (full poem here: http://www.bartleby.com/126/55.html ):
freyar
Extradimensional Explorer
Great responses! What Takyris and Syltorian said, especially, makes me want to go run something with a fey BBEG. But maybe it shouldn't be "evil" guy because what sounds the best about fey is that they're amoral rather than immoral. And that they might go way overboard in playing around with you. So a D&D fey model could play that up and pull away from the individual folkloric roots, maybe? Actually, I'm not sure those are the way fey seemed to me in Greek myth, and it makes them a lot cooler than I'd thought them to be from the Greek stuff. (OTOH, it gives me a good excuse to go refresh my memory with the copy of Edith Hamilton's Mythology I just got.)
Marshall: what do you mean when you say everything about Harry Potter is fey-oriented?
And everybody else: how would you choose to describe fey? How do you determine if a given monster should be a fey or something else? (See the centaur, again.)
Marshall: what do you mean when you say everything about Harry Potter is fey-oriented?
And everybody else: how would you choose to describe fey? How do you determine if a given monster should be a fey or something else? (See the centaur, again.)
Jason Bulmahn
Adventurer
One of the things I did not get to express in my blog post is that I do not really feel like I have ever given fey a "fair shake." Most of my ideas about them are far to tied to whimsy and light-hearted folk lore. That said, after seeing Pan's Labyrinth, I really wanted to give them a serious go, which is part of the reason why they ended up playing a part in W1: Conquest of Bloodsworn Vale. I have seen a lot of great ideas in both this thread and over on our boards discussing the issue.
Jason Bulmahn
GameMastery Brand Manager
Jason Bulmahn
GameMastery Brand Manager
Nonlethal Force
First Post
Razz said:
My prior post exactly. Obviously, I concur. Fey can be inspired from RL, but in order to be truly accepted as a part of everyone's game they really need to be embraced by D&D. They need to be owned by D&D. Up until now, I've gotten the feeling that D&D throws fey a bone and rather than owning fey they seem to be trying to make their rules "fit" fey mythology. That's okay, but it'll never be satisfying enough for me to truly buy into them.
So here's what I did. I've gathered a list of official fey creatures produced by WotC/Dragon/Dungeon and have outlined them here to what I think they embody, supposed to embody, or some other reason why nature spawned them or they have such a tie to nature.
These are written either because it's actually written in their entry or I've read their description and used artistic license to formulate the rest. Quite a handful of them out there, I've noticed, but still not as much as I'd like to see:
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MONSTER MANUAL I
Dryad: Nature spirit tied to a particular tree, probably representing the embodiment of such plants.
Grig: Sprites that seem to embody the whimsy of nature and serve to keep the forests defended.
Nixie: Sprites who're embodiments of pristine ponds and small lakes and guard such areas.
Nymph: Embodiments of nature's entrancing beauty.
Pixie: Sprites that embody the flighty aspects of nature. Their enjoyment in stealing from the rich might be a representation of the fact that material possessions are unnecessary to nature.
Satyr: Embodiments of nature's strong passions that border on the hedonistic.
MONSTER MANUAL II
Jermlaine: Not sure their reason of ties to nature. Maybe nature's embodiment of the nuisances and threats it can subtley cause to others? Since they live underground, maybe the lowest representatives of nature's darker side.
Ocean Strider: Embodiments of the wide open seas, serving as guardians of the seas and oceans.
Sirine: Unsure about this one, too. Seems more like the sirines are more of the embodiment of those who can live wholly and as one with the waters?
Spirit of the Land: Incorporeal spirits that are attached to a large region of land and utilizes the environment to protect the region from harm.
MONSTER MANUAL III
Glaistig: Warped water spirits who hunger for the blood of mortals. A representation of nature's darker side of the lakes, rivers, and ponds maybe?
Petal: Nature's servants and messengers of more powerful aspects, embodiments, and representatives of nature.
Ragewalker: Embodiments of the natural forces of war and combat.
Redcap: Embodiments of the tortures and pain nature can suffer on others.
Shimmerling Swarm: Swarms of spirits drawn from nature's colorful aspects that can be both hypnotizing and deadly.
Splinterwaif: Nature's symbolism given form as creatures who seem to represent the vengeful anger nature has over civilization, possibly?
Thorn: The guardian warriors of nature and its fey.
MONSTER MANUAL IV
Joystealer: Embodiments of nature that fed off the emotions of others.
Lunar Ravager: Embodiments of nature's viciousness.
Verdant Prince: Representatives of the cruel and twisted temptations nature will give to strike at those it hates.
FIEND FOLIO
Feytouched: Humans with a touch of fey ancestry.
Fossergrim: Nature spirit tied to a particular waterfall, probably representing the embodiment of such natural phenomenon.
Half-Fey (Template): Creatures whose parent was a fey.
Kelpie: Murderous nature spirits of shallow waters that represent the bloodthirsty aspects of nature.
Oread: Nature spirit tied to a particular mountain, probably representing the embodiment of such rock formations.
Shadar-Kai: Fey creatures with ties to the darkness and shadow.
Spriggan: Former gnomes that were twisted by nature's darker aspects into a mockery of its former self.
Wendigo: Embodiment's of the cruelty the cold environments can bring to its victims.
D&D OFFICIAL WEBSITE
Bile Wrapped in Beauty: Nature spirits spawned from the elements of acidic substances found in nature, representatives of caustic suffering and pain.
Boggart: Nature spirits that are the manifested will of nature's wanton lusts to lure victims to their death.
Brownie: Helpful forces of nature who assist those in their homes secretly.
Caliento: Fey creatures with natural ties to heat and fire.
Forestfolk: Natural forces of the sound waves emitted from nature, with sonic abilities.
Glitterhaunt: Embodiment of the beauty and mystery of all that glitters in gemstones.
Hoarfroster: Embodiments of ice formed from nature's hatred.
Leanan Sidhe: Manifestations of the gifts and inspiration nature grants.
Malgoren: Embodiments of nature formed by the deepest reaches of the earth.
Murderjack: Represenatives of nature's sadistic and bloodthirsty behaviors.
Nuchlavis: Vile fey with ties to the salt-waters that seem to be the embodiment of the ugly aspects of the waters.
Rime Sprite: Natural aspects of the cold regions that play cruel pranks along arctic coastlines.
Siabrie: Embodiments of the desert and wastelands, serving as guardians of such arid regions.
Sleeping Blossom Sprites: Nature's aspects of fey who seem to embody the lulling beauty of flowers and gardens.
Storm Rider: Embodiments of the quick, destructive power of lightning and storms.
Unseelie Nymph: A twisted mockery of nymphs
DRAGON/DUNGEON MAGAZINE
Chaneque: Mischevious sprites spawned by the elements of the earth.
Changeling: Similar to feytouched but different abilities. Not sure what the differences are in heritage?
Crystalline Cat: Fey creatures that may possibly be embodiments of the natural beauty of crystal formations?
Force of Nature: Raw power of nature in the aspect of a dragon.
Gruwaar: Ancient fey, beyond the establishment of the Seelie and Unseelie Courts, whose motivation is simply manipulating grand and dramatic schemes to watch unfold into chaos.
Half-Nymph: Self-explanatory.
Half-Satyr: Self-explanatory.
Shadowvig: Sprites corrupted by the Shadow Weave.
Spirit of the Woods (Template): A force of nature with sentience and great power, but no form. Despite its name, these spirits are not limited to woodlands. There are spirits of the deep, spirits of the plains, spirits of the mountains, and so on.
Springheel: Embodiments of senseless violence that plagues civilization.
Wild Watcher: The natural world's fey champions, incarnations of nature's desire to protect itself from the most vile of catastrophes.
DEITIES&DEMIGODS
Faun: Creatures tied to nature closely and living in harmony with its musical beauty.
ORIENTAL ADVENTURES
Bajang: Corrupted nature spirits tied to the forces of the trees.
Bisan: Dark nature spirits tied to a tree like dryads.
Nats (Einsaung Nat, Hkum Yeng Nat, Lu Nat): A group of spirits who live in harmony in warm forested areas.
Nature Spirits: Powerful forces of nature given life to guard large regions of land or special geographic areas.
Yuki-On-Na: Possibly spirits of shamans living in cold regions whose close ties with the nature spirits spawned them after their death.
DRAGON COMPENDIUM VOLUME I
Seelie Court Fey (Template): Fey who've entered as members of the elite Seelie Court, the nobles of all fey kind.
Unseelie Fey (Template): Fey who're outcasts of the Seelie Court but members of the more darker Unseelie Court ruled by the elite of the Queen of Air and Darkness.
EPIC LEVEL HANDBOOK
Hoary Hunter: A force of nature's cold environments preying on the weak as it hunts down its quarry.
leShay: The original "elves" and ancient, powerful beings of nature's forces.
MAGIC OF INCARNUM
Duskling: Representatives of a fusion between nature and incarnum.
HEROES OF HORROR
Bog Imps: Cruel creatures that represent the malicious dangers of the swamps.
Gray Jester: A force of nature that feeds on joy and laughter while it drains it away from its victims.
RACES OF THE WILD
Killoren: Embodiments of nature's patience and power along with its ambition and aggression towards humanoid races.
FROSTBURN
Domovoi: House spirits who embody the will to survive in shelters during nature's raging power.
Rimefire Eidolon: Remnants of an ancient cold nature deity.
Rusalka: Embodiments of nature's numbing chill of the waters in cold regions, luring its victims within.
Spirit Animal (Template): Natural manifestations of the collective will of animals that lived and died in nature as they were intended.
Uldra: Arctic fey living in harmony with the natural world's regions that're covered in cold and ice.
Vodyanoi: Similar to the rusalka, only its nature's embodiment of a more direct force then a tempting one.
SANDSTORM
Mirage Mullah (Template): Fey nobles that rule fey oases in the barren regions of sandy deserts.
STORMWRACK
Nereid: Natural embodiments and forces of the waters that reside on the Elemental Plane of Water.
CITYSCAPE
Zeitgeist: Generated by the natural lives and emotions of those living in an urban center.
MONSTERS OF FAERUN
Hybsil: Small woodland creatures tied to and devoted to the deities of nature.
UNDERDARK
Gloura: Good-natured fey creatures tied to the forces of the Underdark environment.
UNAPPROACHABLE EAST
Telthor (Template): Spirit animals bound to the lands of Rashemen.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------
I believe that's all of them. Could be missing a few. Let me know if I am.
These are written either because it's actually written in their entry or I've read their description and used artistic license to formulate the rest. Quite a handful of them out there, I've noticed, but still not as much as I'd like to see:
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------
MONSTER MANUAL I
Dryad: Nature spirit tied to a particular tree, probably representing the embodiment of such plants.
Grig: Sprites that seem to embody the whimsy of nature and serve to keep the forests defended.
Nixie: Sprites who're embodiments of pristine ponds and small lakes and guard such areas.
Nymph: Embodiments of nature's entrancing beauty.
Pixie: Sprites that embody the flighty aspects of nature. Their enjoyment in stealing from the rich might be a representation of the fact that material possessions are unnecessary to nature.
Satyr: Embodiments of nature's strong passions that border on the hedonistic.
MONSTER MANUAL II
Jermlaine: Not sure their reason of ties to nature. Maybe nature's embodiment of the nuisances and threats it can subtley cause to others? Since they live underground, maybe the lowest representatives of nature's darker side.
Ocean Strider: Embodiments of the wide open seas, serving as guardians of the seas and oceans.
Sirine: Unsure about this one, too. Seems more like the sirines are more of the embodiment of those who can live wholly and as one with the waters?
Spirit of the Land: Incorporeal spirits that are attached to a large region of land and utilizes the environment to protect the region from harm.
MONSTER MANUAL III
Glaistig: Warped water spirits who hunger for the blood of mortals. A representation of nature's darker side of the lakes, rivers, and ponds maybe?
Petal: Nature's servants and messengers of more powerful aspects, embodiments, and representatives of nature.
Ragewalker: Embodiments of the natural forces of war and combat.
Redcap: Embodiments of the tortures and pain nature can suffer on others.
Shimmerling Swarm: Swarms of spirits drawn from nature's colorful aspects that can be both hypnotizing and deadly.
Splinterwaif: Nature's symbolism given form as creatures who seem to represent the vengeful anger nature has over civilization, possibly?
Thorn: The guardian warriors of nature and its fey.
MONSTER MANUAL IV
Joystealer: Embodiments of nature that fed off the emotions of others.
Lunar Ravager: Embodiments of nature's viciousness.
Verdant Prince: Representatives of the cruel and twisted temptations nature will give to strike at those it hates.
FIEND FOLIO
Feytouched: Humans with a touch of fey ancestry.
Fossergrim: Nature spirit tied to a particular waterfall, probably representing the embodiment of such natural phenomenon.
Half-Fey (Template): Creatures whose parent was a fey.
Kelpie: Murderous nature spirits of shallow waters that represent the bloodthirsty aspects of nature.
Oread: Nature spirit tied to a particular mountain, probably representing the embodiment of such rock formations.
Shadar-Kai: Fey creatures with ties to the darkness and shadow.
Spriggan: Former gnomes that were twisted by nature's darker aspects into a mockery of its former self.
Wendigo: Embodiment's of the cruelty the cold environments can bring to its victims.
D&D OFFICIAL WEBSITE
Bile Wrapped in Beauty: Nature spirits spawned from the elements of acidic substances found in nature, representatives of caustic suffering and pain.
Boggart: Nature spirits that are the manifested will of nature's wanton lusts to lure victims to their death.
Brownie: Helpful forces of nature who assist those in their homes secretly.
Caliento: Fey creatures with natural ties to heat and fire.
Forestfolk: Natural forces of the sound waves emitted from nature, with sonic abilities.
Glitterhaunt: Embodiment of the beauty and mystery of all that glitters in gemstones.
Hoarfroster: Embodiments of ice formed from nature's hatred.
Leanan Sidhe: Manifestations of the gifts and inspiration nature grants.
Malgoren: Embodiments of nature formed by the deepest reaches of the earth.
Murderjack: Represenatives of nature's sadistic and bloodthirsty behaviors.
Nuchlavis: Vile fey with ties to the salt-waters that seem to be the embodiment of the ugly aspects of the waters.
Rime Sprite: Natural aspects of the cold regions that play cruel pranks along arctic coastlines.
Siabrie: Embodiments of the desert and wastelands, serving as guardians of such arid regions.
Sleeping Blossom Sprites: Nature's aspects of fey who seem to embody the lulling beauty of flowers and gardens.
Storm Rider: Embodiments of the quick, destructive power of lightning and storms.
Unseelie Nymph: A twisted mockery of nymphs
DRAGON/DUNGEON MAGAZINE
Chaneque: Mischevious sprites spawned by the elements of the earth.
Changeling: Similar to feytouched but different abilities. Not sure what the differences are in heritage?
Crystalline Cat: Fey creatures that may possibly be embodiments of the natural beauty of crystal formations?
Force of Nature: Raw power of nature in the aspect of a dragon.
Gruwaar: Ancient fey, beyond the establishment of the Seelie and Unseelie Courts, whose motivation is simply manipulating grand and dramatic schemes to watch unfold into chaos.
Half-Nymph: Self-explanatory.
Half-Satyr: Self-explanatory.
Shadowvig: Sprites corrupted by the Shadow Weave.
Spirit of the Woods (Template): A force of nature with sentience and great power, but no form. Despite its name, these spirits are not limited to woodlands. There are spirits of the deep, spirits of the plains, spirits of the mountains, and so on.
Springheel: Embodiments of senseless violence that plagues civilization.
Wild Watcher: The natural world's fey champions, incarnations of nature's desire to protect itself from the most vile of catastrophes.
DEITIES&DEMIGODS
Faun: Creatures tied to nature closely and living in harmony with its musical beauty.
ORIENTAL ADVENTURES
Bajang: Corrupted nature spirits tied to the forces of the trees.
Bisan: Dark nature spirits tied to a tree like dryads.
Nats (Einsaung Nat, Hkum Yeng Nat, Lu Nat): A group of spirits who live in harmony in warm forested areas.
Nature Spirits: Powerful forces of nature given life to guard large regions of land or special geographic areas.
Yuki-On-Na: Possibly spirits of shamans living in cold regions whose close ties with the nature spirits spawned them after their death.
DRAGON COMPENDIUM VOLUME I
Seelie Court Fey (Template): Fey who've entered as members of the elite Seelie Court, the nobles of all fey kind.
Unseelie Fey (Template): Fey who're outcasts of the Seelie Court but members of the more darker Unseelie Court ruled by the elite of the Queen of Air and Darkness.
EPIC LEVEL HANDBOOK
Hoary Hunter: A force of nature's cold environments preying on the weak as it hunts down its quarry.
leShay: The original "elves" and ancient, powerful beings of nature's forces.
MAGIC OF INCARNUM
Duskling: Representatives of a fusion between nature and incarnum.
HEROES OF HORROR
Bog Imps: Cruel creatures that represent the malicious dangers of the swamps.
Gray Jester: A force of nature that feeds on joy and laughter while it drains it away from its victims.
RACES OF THE WILD
Killoren: Embodiments of nature's patience and power along with its ambition and aggression towards humanoid races.
FROSTBURN
Domovoi: House spirits who embody the will to survive in shelters during nature's raging power.
Rimefire Eidolon: Remnants of an ancient cold nature deity.
Rusalka: Embodiments of nature's numbing chill of the waters in cold regions, luring its victims within.
Spirit Animal (Template): Natural manifestations of the collective will of animals that lived and died in nature as they were intended.
Uldra: Arctic fey living in harmony with the natural world's regions that're covered in cold and ice.
Vodyanoi: Similar to the rusalka, only its nature's embodiment of a more direct force then a tempting one.
SANDSTORM
Mirage Mullah (Template): Fey nobles that rule fey oases in the barren regions of sandy deserts.
STORMWRACK
Nereid: Natural embodiments and forces of the waters that reside on the Elemental Plane of Water.
CITYSCAPE
Zeitgeist: Generated by the natural lives and emotions of those living in an urban center.
MONSTERS OF FAERUN
Hybsil: Small woodland creatures tied to and devoted to the deities of nature.
UNDERDARK
Gloura: Good-natured fey creatures tied to the forces of the Underdark environment.
UNAPPROACHABLE EAST
Telthor (Template): Spirit animals bound to the lands of Rashemen.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------
I believe that's all of them. Could be missing a few. Let me know if I am.
Perhaps what is needed is not so much a Fey Sourcebook, but a setting in which the Fey are returned to their proper status.
IOW, Elves & the others that had their "fey-ness" stripped in the Core game would have it restored in this setting...and might not be available as PC races, depending upon how things are set up.
IOW, Elves & the others that had their "fey-ness" stripped in the Core game would have it restored in this setting...and might not be available as PC races, depending upon how things are set up.
I'd argue that the traditional way of handling fey is just to make them yet more D&D monsters, so I think you have your wish. The fairy-talesque adventures I referred to are very much the exception to the rule, and good IMO because they ignore the traditional D&D treatment of fey, and instead follow that perverse (and often somewhat deadly) Brothers Grimm logic. Both involve visits to the Realm of Faerie, which is ample excuse for wreaking some poetic justice on the PCs...because testing, tempting, terrorising, fooling or playing with mortals is a good deal of what the fey seem to be about, and there's a lot of D&D adventure mileage in that.
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