Races

In any good fantasy world, there are a myriad of supernatural races. Most of those in the Merry universe are based on actual Celtic fae myths and stories.

Table of Contents

Fey

Fey – a general term for all inhabitants of faery, the sidhe are the highest ranking and most powerful members of the fae and considered the nobility. There are lesser non-sidhe fey, some of whom have interbred with humans.

Sidhe

The royalty of the fae, the Sidhe are divided into the Seelie and Unseelie courts. Usually marked with triple irises and bright glowing skin. Sidhe (pronounced 'shee') literally means "people of the (fairy) hills". It is the Gaelic name for the fairies in both Ireland and the Highlands of Scotland.

Seelie Court
Also called "the Bringers of Beauty and Wishes" whose power descends from their King or Queen. The Seelie Court is ruled by King Taranis. It is the court of light.

Unseelie Court - Also known as the lesser court or the dark court ruled by Andais, Queen of Air and Darkness. They take in all those turned away from the Seelie court.

Lesser Fae

Brownie
The worker faeries said to clean your house while you sleep. Merry's grandmother is a brownie who owns a bed and breakfast. One of their powers includes levitating.

Demi-Fey
Small, often winged fey ruled by Queen Niceven. It is said that where the demi-fae travel, faerie follows. The demi-fey seem to have many secrets, one of which is that a few are able to grow larger to become human-size. They are masters of glamour and often appear as birds, butterflies, or other winged insects.

Goblins
Goblins are considered the foot soldiers of the Unseelie Court since they do most of the fighting during war. Described as intimidating horrific creatures (from a human perspective) the Goblins consider moles and extra limbs and eyes marks of beauty. Goblin society is violent and taking blood and flesh during sex is expected among them. Kingship among the Goblins comes not through inheritance but battle challenge. Kurag is the goblin king. They consider anything that comes out of the body more valuable than jewels or weapons. It was also an insult if the men did not leer at your women. It implied that she was ugly and infertile. An alliance can be formed with the goblins if the rights of both blood and flesh are invoked. Sex should always be negotiated before starting when dealing with goblins.

Hellhounds
Also known as the 'hounds of the great hunt'. They foreshadow death or doom. Having nothing to do with the Christian concept of Hell, the Hounds are among the many creatures who disappeared from Faerie but have returned since Meredith's rise to power.

Jack-in-Irons
In folklore, it is a dangerous giant from Yorkshire that can often be found haunting lonely roads. Double tusked is highly prized and a curve on the end is considered a sign of virility. Uther is one of them.

the Nameless
It was the last attempt by both courts to keep the courts from dying. Every fey was required to put magic into the nameless and it was held somewhere within faerie to keep the magic from disappearing. It's a evil manifestation of the powers from all the sidhe combined into one form. It could only be physically seen if it had been hurt because it could move through time and space.

Night Hags
Female nightflyers of the slaugh.

Nightflyer
A winged creature under the command of Sholto. Few creatures in Faerie were stronger than Sidhe, nightflyers were one of them. Most of their body parts are able to regenerate and contain a nest if tentacles resting in their abdomen. The royals have spine down the length of their peni which meant they were fertile males.

Phoukas
A type of fey that can change shape from a horse to a dog to a human or any mix of the above.

Red Caps
A type of goblin.

Selkie
Irish seal fairies. The can step in and out of their skin changing from human to seal form.

Slaugh
A rude name for the lesser Unseelie fey. The Host was a polite phrase. Only the Unseelie could say 'slaugh' and not have it be a mortal insult. Nightmarish creatures, the Sluagh are feared even among the Unseelie where inhumanity is common. Among the Sluagh are the nightflyers and nighthags. Nightflyers make up the creatures of the hunt. The Sluagh are creatures that hunt Sidhe and can be called on by their King to do just that. They are ruled by Sholto, shadowspawn and a half sidhe, half nightflyer mix. Origin: A horde of evil spirits in Scotland, who fly in groups like birds. According to Irish legends, they are the souls of deceased sinners and they try to take other souls with them. They come flying from the west and therefore, when someone is dying, people keep the windows on the west-side closed. This way, the soul of the deceased can not be intercepted before it reaches heaven.

Starvin' Ones
They are the remnants of the first gods. If someone were to discover their name and give them followers, they could, theoretically, rise to "life" again. Human ghosts do not have such options. To raise them would mean automatic execution with no trial.

Will-o'-the-Wisps
The Seelie version of the demi-fey.

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