#feldgeist

[briefbestiary]

Be cautious around the fields, for even a seemingly playful hound may be malignant should it be from the midst of those field crops.

[thethistlegirl]

Remember a couple weeks ago when I made a post about Roggenwolves? I decided to draw my concept of one this week, and since it turned out pretty well, I'm posting it for Worldbuilding Wednesday!

My idea for the Roggenwolves is that they're designed to blend into their farmland surroundings, and thus look a bit like they're made from the crops they live in. A tail like corn leaves, coat fringes like the tassels on wheat heads, and ears tipped with long fringes like cornsilk. The front paws are more like hands than paws, giving the roggenwolves an extra measure of dexterity, which can allow them a quicker escape into buildings or help them free themselves from traps. They look enough like a real wolf that at first glance they might pass for one, but anyone who sees them also instinctively finds them a bit unnatural and unsettling, especially if they catch a glimpse of too-human eyes...

Base here, courtesy of Sunnybases and KayFedewa on Deviantart!

[thethistlegirlwrites]

And now...to introduce you to my take on German folklore cryptid that I definitely plan on using in a book at some point...I started with the general lore about a malevolent field spirit that is destroyed when the last ear of grain is cut, and went from there to flesh out a slightly more...potentially likable being for a protagonist of a future project...

The Roggenwolf is a type of German field spirit that is said to live in farm fields and is often considered dangerous. The Roggenwolf is sometimes equated to the werewolf, but there are several distinct differences. Unlike the 'true werewolf' which is capable, in most old German lore, of shifting forms at will with the use of an enchanted belt, piece of clothing, or wolfskin, the Roggenwolf is tied to the crop cycles of the land. For the purposes of my story, the Roggenwolf can only change forms when there is unharvested grain growing or standing on the field it chooses to bind its magic to. If the owner of that field harvests the last standing grain, the Roggenwolf will be forced to change back to its human form until the field is replanted and the growing cycle begins again, or if they choose to bind themselves to a new plot of land in spring. They cannot alter their magic in harvest time, even if there is a more suitable field nearby. While the forced change is due to magic, there is also a very practical reason the magic exists. Standing grain attracts animals for the Roggenwolf to prey on, and without the relatively reliable food source for its wolf form, the Roggenwolf's magic returning it to a human body is protection for both the wolf and whatever town or village it lives near. As a spirit of cultivated land, the Roggenwolf is by necessity bound to human settlement, and thus must safely co-exist with the humans it lives near, or be destroyed. If it cannot safely and reliably find enough food for its wolf form, becoming human is a sort of defense mechanism against attacking the humans it lives in symbiosis with. While in the past, standing grain was left to appease 'feldgeister' like the Roggenwolf, as times have changed, most people want to harvest as much of their crop as possible. Modern Roggenwolf packs or individuals often own their own farms to ensure that their ties to the land are kept, although some seek out farmland with unharvestable low places in the fields, or farms that leave grain standing to lure deer, turkeys, or other wild animals to hunt.

[thors-daughtersthoughts]

Roggenwolf "rye wolf"

Is a feldgeist, "field spirit" from German folklore. It's said to steal and eat children.

(I'm going to draw a bunch of feldgeist)

[lpbestiary]

In German folklore, the Hafermann, or oat man, is a felgeist who lurks in the corn and kidnaps children. He wears a big black hat and is said to carry either a large stick or an iron shillelagh.

While the Hafermann is most often said to snatch those who pass by the corn fields, some say he will appear at the windows of nearby houses, and anyone who sees him will die after a year and a day.

Image source.

Monster master list.

Suggest a spook.

[thethistlegirl]

WORLDBUILDING WEDNESDAY

It's still Wednesday so it's time for me to be REALLY random for a bit and scream about the weird things my brain does because it's "Thistle invents another AU" hour...I'm super excited to talk about some worldbuilding I JUST came up with yesterday for a fic that's been hovering around the edges of my potential writing pile. For this story I'm going to be playing with the concept of the "Roggenwolf", a type of German field spirit that is said to live in farm fields and is often considered dangerous. The Roggenwolf is sometimes equated to the werewolf, but there are distinct differences in the lore, and those are what I wanted to explore in this story. Unlike the 'true werewolf' which is capable, in most old German lore, of shifting forms at will with the use of an enchanted belt, piece of clothing, or wolfskin, the Roggenwolf is tied to the crop cycles of the land. For the purposes of my story, the Roggenwolf can only change forms when there is unharvested grain growing or standing on the field it chooses to bind its magic to. If the owner of that field harvests the last standing grain, the Roggenwolf will be forced to change back to its human form until the field is replanted and the growing cycle begins again, or if they choose to bind themselves to a new plot of land in spring. They cannot alter their magic in harvest time, even if there is a more suitable field nearby. While the forced change is due to magic, there is also a very practical reason the magic exists. Standing grain attracts animals for the Roggenwolf to prey on, and without the relatively reliable food source for its wolf form, the Roggenwolf's magic returning it to a human body is protection for both the wolf and whatever town or village it lives near. As a spirit of cultivated land, the Roggenwolf is by necessity bound to human settlement, and thus must safely co-exist with the humans it lives near, or be destroyed. If it cannot safely and reliably find enough food for its wolf form, becoming human is a sort of defense mechanism against attacking the humans it lives in symbiosis with. While in the past, standing grain was left to appease 'fielgeister' like the Roggenwolf, as times have changed, most people want to harvest as much of their crop as possible. Modern Roggenwolf packs or individuals often own their own farms to ensure that their ties to the land are kept, although some seek out farmland with unharvestable low places in the fields, or farms that leave grain standing to lure deer, turkeys, or other wild animals to hunt.

[lpbestiary]

Feldgeister are a type of nature spirit in Germanic folklore. Their name translates as "field spirits," and they are most often associated with corn fields. There are many different feldgeister, some with animal forms, and some with a more human shape.

Feldgeister usually live in fields, retreating deeper into the corn during harvest season. When the last grain head is cut, the feldgeist will either cease to be, or become trapped in the corn. Sometimes, this last stalk is shaped into a corn doll, while other times, the last crops will be left in place so the feldgeist may remain.

Many feldgeister are seen as harmful and frightening figures, with several acting as boogeymen, snatching up children who wander into the corn fields.

Image source.

Monster master list.

Suggest a spook.

[lpbestiary]

In Germanic folklore, the Windsbraut is a type of felgeist that is the spirit of the whirlwind. The name translates as "wind's bride," and though they are traditionally female, they can occasionally be male. They are said to steal the earnings of farmers, but can be turned away by throwing a knife into the whirlwind.

The Windsbraut was the subject of a 1914 painting by Austrian artist Oskar Kokoschka, though the piece is largely metaphorical and is largely unrelated to the feldgeist.

Image source.

Monster master list.

Suggest a spook.