Very Important Message for September 1213(Get Iron Weapons!!)

Howdy,

I have reason to believe that we are going to be dealing with Faeries. Lots and lots of Faeries.

Please note the following.

Many of them are weak against iron weapons. Merchants, if you want to make some money, have iron. Don't try to bleed townsmember's dry. Remember, the sword you sell might save your life.

They can be banished back to their native plane.


Below is a synopsis of the types of creatures you could come up against. Spread the word.

The Faeries and Their Courts

While often the term 'faerie' is used broadly to describe all of the inhabitants of the Spaces-Between-Spaces, there are in fact a wide variety of species that co-exist within its kingdoms. While all who inhabit these realms are known for meddling in the affairs of mortals, for good or for ill, most align themselves with one of the two ruling empires – the Seelie or the Unseelie Court. While the first is primarily benevolent, the second is characterized by its malicious cruelty and indifference. Each Court is ruled by members of the Shae race of faeries; insectoid-winged, magical humanoids known for their arcane propensity and ability to change size and appearance. These are what most think of when they hear the term 'faerie', and these are often thought to be the most powerful of denizens of the Spaces-Between-Spaces. Despite the plethora of stories related to them, due to their immense power most Shae will rarely if ever travel to the Prime Material plane, and those that do can only maintain their presence for relatively brief periods of time before having to return to their kingdoms to replenish their magical reserves. The Seelie Court is known most for its isolationism – they rarely take part in the affairs of mortals, and when they do, it is in the subtlest and least intrusive ways. This often might involve leading a traveler to safety or, if a mortal ingratiates herself to the Court in an extreme fashion, inviting her into the kingdom for a period of time. The Unseelie Court, however, has no such internal control and revels in interfering with the lives of mortalkind. This can range from causing travelers to get lost in the wood to brutal hunts and torture of those that don't take the proper precautions. The Seelie Court is ruled by the peaceful Queen Lilahndrini, the Unseelie Court by the malevolent Queen Hyporia.

Brownies & Boggarts: The only real difference between a Brownie and a Boggart is the Court to which they serve. Both are mischievous, small in stature, humanoid, and known for their excellent craftsmanship, and both serve their Queens with endless devotion, either out of respect for Queen Lilahndrini in the case of the Brownies, or out of fear of Queen Hyporia in the case of the Boggarts. They appear as tiny tinkerers in appearance, often in brown caps and with vests and suspenders. They have small pointed ears and swirling designs in shades of brown and copper on their skin.

Sprites & Piskies: Like Brownies and Boggarts, Sprites and Piskies are more alike than they are different, both lithe, with tiny insect-like wings and pairs of horns upon their heads. Their natures and how these characteristics manifest themselves, however, are opposed. Sprites are playful and kind, maintaining attractive yet somewhat alien features. Piskies, while still playful in their own right, are malicious creatures, and often appear nearly demonic in appearance. Both versions draw their powers from elemental magic, and align themselves with the Seelie and Unseelie Courts respectively.

Will o' the Wisps: These are simple faeries so small they only appear as balls of glowing light at night, and sometimes as flocks of butterflies in the daylight. They cannot speak (at least not in a language mortals understand) but understand the languages of mortals. They can be quite charming but are always full of tricks – most are known to lead travelers into danger, but some stories tell of Wisps that have lead mortals to treasure or to fallen comrades. Most Wisps are aligned with the Unseelie Court, but it is not unheard of for some to align themselves with the Seelie Court.

Spriggans: These are a grotesque and giant species of faeriekind, known for their brute strength and little else. They have close ties to dark druidics and are covered in poisoned and decaying vines and foliage, their skin appearing almost like gnarled bark. These are typically the enforcers and bodyguards of the Unseelie Court.

Greenmen: These are large, tree-like faeries with strong connections not only to magic, but to druidic powers as well. The Greenmen are old and full of wisdom, but due to their great strength often serve as guards and sentries of the Seelie Court.


Redcaps: These are sentient, bloodthirsty creatures with little fear of death. Legend says that they must keep their caps soaked in the blood of mortals, for if they dry out they will cease to exist. They have rheumy eyes and ruddy complexions, looking sickly and cruel. Due to their very nature, all Redcaps are aligned with the Unseelie Court.


Fauns, Swan Maidens, Kelpies, Sparrowmen & So Forth: The most diverse and prolific inhabitants of the Spaces-Between-Spaces are those that maintain some cross between animal and humanoid form. If taken as a whole they might be the most numerous of the groups, able perhaps to even outnumber the Shae, but due to their vastly opposing natures they have never been able nor desired to form a cohesive unit. Many of these subraces form their own minor familial kingdoms, some remaining independent from the Courts. Other groups, such as the stag-like Fauns, side with the Seelie in the majority, while some, like the murderous horse-like Kelpies, are only known to exist in tentative alliances with the Unseelie Court. These categorizations are somewhat fluid, and those of this broad category that take characteristics of amphibious or aquatic creatures can dually be considered both of this category and of the Undine.


Undine: The Undine as a whole are perhaps the least likely of the denizens of the Spaces-Between-Spaces to permanently side with a particular Faerie Court. Closely connected to the element of water and all that it entails, the Undine are often far more concerned with their own well-being than with the politics of kingdoms far from their underwater homes. The Undine are not a kingdom, but a loose name for all of the species of faerie that exist in or near bodies of water. While occasionally individual Undine may side with one court or the other, and all vary in temperament, the majority stay unaligned, forming small communities or pods of their own kind with only a vague sense of leadership structure. If challenged as a whole, however, the various groups can be known to form alliances and band together against threats from the outside. The various species, like other faeries, live in pocket realms of faerie adjacent to the plane of water on one hand, and closely tied to bodies of water on the Prime Material plane as well, such as ponds, reefs, whirlpools, streams, springs and even occasionally man-made wells and fountains. Traditionally, well-suited Undine representatives have often been called on to negotiate terms between the Courts or their various factions in the Spaces Between, as they hold no real stake in the results and yet have a deep-seated, if at times misguided and unwanted, curiosity into the affairs of others that facilitates their interaction. Mermaids, Sirens, Selkies, certain types of Sea Serpents, and Hags are all examples of sub-races of the Undine. When in the mortal realm, most Undine will never be found out of sight of a body of water. Only the most powerful are able to devise ways to survive far from their element for brief periods of time.

Bat Cooper wrote:
. If taken as a whole they might be the most numerous of the groups, able perhaps to even outnumber the Shae,

Thanks Bat. Very helpful. Maybe i missed something, but what is a Shae?

Sorry about that. It was mentioned in a slightly earlier part of the research, which has now been added.

Iron weapons!?!  BAH!  Iron is an inferior material that is far too soft to make a decent weapon with!  It’s soft, it bends, and it ain’t to be holdin’ an edge!  As a note to all you would-be wielders of weapon made of iron, expect to see it chip and blunt after one good fight!  I, for one, will not be wasting me time makin’ any of those worthless piles of slag.  Now, if yer wantin’ to be smashin’ some of the wee folk, a nice mithril frying pan with Dwarven runes of cookery lovingly etched into it will do the trick!  Just go find that lass that I made one for and borrow hers, ‘cause I ain’t to be makin’ another.  Targus and Hengus haven’t let me heard the end of it since I made the first two…

 

-Angus Grumblegut

Angus,

While Iron may be a weaker metal, it has a similar effect on faeries as silver does on werewolves, or gold on a true warlock. Both of which are soft metals.
I have made quite a few iron weapons for townsmembers, and they have been used quite effectively at making an unseelie's visit to travance a short and miserable one.

Signed,
Father Elric Ashby.

Elric and Bat Cooper,

Is there other metals that can hurt or affect the fae? It might be difficult to get access to Iron, and I would like to be able to use what I have on hand in case I was attacked by one of the Unseelie.