Legendary Creatures

What is a mythology without legendary creatures? Centaurs, satyrs and nymphs all give a mythological past a flavour that gives depth to the present day of a world that may not have it. They offer colour and contrast to a time that may have been reduced to just humanity and the relentless march of civilisation. More than this though, they also provide hooks to stories and subjects to be examined for moral lessons. Whether that is the barely contained aggression of the centaur or the depravity of the satyr, they are mirrors to human civilisations that are perhaps more palatable to consider.

Similar creatures in created worlds can offer this same function. They give flavour and strangeness to the past, and can be the focus of lessons or rules for the present. But in a created world, there is also always the suggestion that these creatures may be real and still linger on the edges of civilisation.

The Bulodon

The Bulodon, The Kinsolsun and the Wildmen

In Kolgennon, though there are many of these types of creatures mentioned, there are three that I tend to focus on. This is for simplicity, but also because of what each represent.

The Bulodon are the aggressive, uncontained and uncontrolled forces that can blow over a seemingly settled and stable realm and throw it into chaos. They are a force to be feared and placated but never tamed. The Kinsolsun by contrast are something different and more sinister. An intelligent and inhuman being that seeks to rule and control. They don’t destroy, rather they dominate and are a lesson in how societies can descend into corruption and oppression. Outside of these frames are the Wildmen. Beings living just beyond the fringes of the settled world. They are not a threat, but something different, not bound by the rules and conventions of civilised life, they live by a code of their own that can seem alien and harsh, but also idyllic and aspirational.

A Wildman

A Living World

Giving a created world a mythological history allows these beings to come to life in a way that may not directly influence the story you are telling, but gives lessons to the characters, flavour to the world and can be used as a tool to explain and demonstrate cultures and behaviours. They are a place where the rules of your world can be suspended for a moment, to allow for the more outlandish ideas and stories to come to life