“While the very knowledge of the Gwyllt can itself be maddening and corrupting, ignorance is sadly just as often dangerous. For that reason it is wise for the common folk of Tirneach to be aware of at least some of the most common variations of Gwyllt, and, being better informed, hopefully more capable of using their best judgement to keep their community safe from these monsters.”
Sionnach, Iarla of Bruid.
The gwyllt are monsters. They come from another realm to plague the mortal folk of Tirneach. Little is known about where they come from or why they do what they do. To all appearances they are hateful creatures, utterly inimical to mortal life. One of the few crimes that all authorities in Tirneach are compelled to prosecute is knowlingly treating with the gwyllt. The sentence is almost always death.
It is said that, long ago, there was a world without the gwyllt. But that is before any history. In the oldest records, the land of Tirneach was their dominion. Siabhal was the only realm that stood free, but even they could not sleep easy. All lived in constant fear of the torment of the great enemy. That changed when the first Réig came. For they brought with them the might of the Shaper, the god whose power was greater than the gwyllt. The Réig liberated Uasa, Sibheal, Draíod, and Baol from the gwyllt’s grasp. They rallied the folk of Tirneach to the task of claiming Bruid, of felling the great forest, and making the land a place where mortals could thrive.
Even today Bruid is still the realm with the most gwyllt attacks. They are thought to be tied to the forest somehow, and the Iarlas of Bruid put much of their time and effort in clearing it, preventing it growing further north. That is not to say the other realms are safe – far from it. Gwyllt appear in all the realms, wreaking destruction and havoc in their wake.
The church is one of the greatest bulwarks against the gwyllt in Tirneach. The order of the torchbearers was formed solely to oppose them and their works. Its members hunt the gwyllt wherever they are found, and protect the people from their malign influence. The church generally holds that the gwyllt are what limit the Shaper’s power in the mortal world. Were it not for those monsters, many say, the Shaper would be free to create paradise. One of the great debates within the church is whether the war against the gwyllt is winnable. Some say that the quest is eternal, that the gwyllt have sunk their fangs into the mortal world and their poison may be treated but never cured. Others decry that lack of ambition. Destroying the gwyllt, they claim, is the ultimate duty for all mortals.
Despite the church’s best effort, the gwyllt are unfortunately sometimes successful at swaying mortals to their cause. Cults of the gwyllt are usually centred around one or two particularly powerful creatures. Sometimes they will actively lead these cults, using them as a tool to tear the realms apart. Other times, the cult forms simply in fear of a powerful gwyllt, led by mortals who try to appease them and stave off their wrath. The latter are more common, as most gwyllt have little to say to the children of the Shaper.
The gwyllt’s power seems to be in some way tied with the sun. Many of their cults use it as a symbol in their iconography. Gwylllt attacks peak at midsummer. Winter is the quiet season, where despite the cold many can find solace in relative safety. It is sometimes claimed that the gwyllt are more powerful during the day. The stars also are claimed to have some connection, though this is more dubious, and may just be a product of rumour and folklore. It is common rumour that the wildlings, particularly the forest ones, are in some way tied to the gwyllt. This is, of course, rarely repeated in wildling company.
Types of Gwyllt
The gwyllt come in a variety of forms. There are a number of common types, which many people would be familiar with. Some of them can communicate with mortals, but with others it is unclear what they understand.
- Caorthannaigh are rumoured to be related to the firetouched, and burn with a purple flame. They travel the land in warbands in search of their queen.
- Knochenbriseadh are green skinned brutes with great strength. They rampage through the forests, devouring any living thing too slow to escape their path of destruction. Known to be quite dim, they would be simple to trick if not for their volatile temper.
- Blutigcnámh are skinless, glistening with blood and raw flesh. They prey on livestock, and are said to be able to slaughter an entire herd of cattle in a single night.
- Maca Rí are a form of crow like gwyllt. They are spiteful and mischievous creatures with the ability to reflect spells. They can speak, but only in mocking mimicry.
- Wenigadaí are silver mouthed creatures considered more a threat than a nuisance. They are notorious thieves, eating what they manage to steal. They are known to talk, but are said to only speak in lies.
- Helfa Wyllt are known for hunting mortals for sport, and for stoking the beasts around them into a murderous frenzy. Even the most faithful sheepdog has been known to turn on their master at the prompting of this Gwyllt. They have a feral visage not too dissimilar from a Wildlings, often of green and brown with bloody red streaks.
- Gelyn Mellt have thick scales of black and yellow. Stories tell they were the sworn foes of the dragons, fighting them in land and sky. This enmity has continued to their descendants – they often attack the Drakeblooded houses, who make a point of hunting them wherever they are found.
- Scáthán Spiegel are one of the most duplicitous and insidious Gwyllt threats. They are shapeshifters, able to assume the form of those dearest to you. They are the reason Torchbearers always work in very close pairs.
Greater Gwyllt
Sometimes, gwyllt are found who have no relation to others. The particularly powerful ones are sometimes known as greater gwyllt or arch-gwyllt. Many of them have menaced the land of Tirneach over the centuries, their stories still told around campfires in hushed tones.
- The Smiling Gwyllt was a bloody mouthed abomination that devoured mortals en masse. Two hundred years ago, it lay waste to the riding of Trágraig. When it rose again after the Season of Uncertainty, it was slain by Cumhacht na Réig.
- The Caorthannaigh Queen led her people in times of old. They waged war against the entirety of Tirneach, fielding burning armies beyond compare. She is said to have been trapped under a lake by the Shaper, and her warbands have been searching for her ever since.
- The Copúca was a gigantic spider that made the tunnels of Draíod its home. It is said that even the slightest strand of web could ensnare a victim, who could only wait for the spider to claim its meal. It was slain by the band of the Stalwart Hearts.
- The Amber Pretenders were a pair of gwyllt who claimed to be the Amber King and Queen reborn. They drew many highlanders to their banner, and ultimately the highlands and lowlands had to unite to bring them down.
- Ishkavas was a sea serpent that menaced the Blind Coast long ago, sinking any ship that dared those waters. House Velvet Mist assembled an armada. Though many sailors never came back, they ultimately slew the beast.