Wild Spirits

The Wild spirits are a kind of spirit being, that are commonly encountered in the wilderness of Salan, and greatly feared by the most mortals.
The wild spirits are not all of the same origin. Among them are counted all the spirits that are not part of the recognised pantheon of gods, not direct followers of any god, and are not ancestor spirits, the spirits of the dead mortals. It is believed that some of them are minor gods, and spirits of the nature, but a powerful mortal soul could become a wild spirit too, if it were to become abandoned by its family.

Basic information

Mental characteristics

Although the mental properties of the spirits varies greatly, some general lines can be drawn. In contrast to the gods, who rarely change in any significant ways, wild spirits are highly unpredictable. They are generally more, or at least as intelligent as humans, and usually highly cunning, although a clever person can manage trick them once in a while. Doing so would be unwise though, because their revenge is vicious if they can get a traitor in their claws.

Anatomy & Morphology

The wild spirits, like all spirits, are immaterial, but can appear in a physical form if they so wish. Wild spirits usually prefer to mimic the appearance of the natural environment they reside in. Water spirits usually appear as water animals like dolphins, air spirits as birds and forest spirits often as plants and trees. However, they can appear in human form when they wish to communicate with the people.

The spirits don't have a physical body, meaning that they can pass through objects freely, but they can also take up a physical form to interact with objects. Forming and upkeeping this form seems to take some time and effort from them.

Interactions with mortals

Despite countless of hours of pondering by the philosophers, no one is quite sure what is driving the spirits to communicate with the mortals. However, they seem to enjoy the interaction. They can gift powerful blessings to the mortals, such as healing, curses, wealth or information, but it comes with a price. Many wild spirits seem to enjoy tormenting the mortals by asking for seemingly random favours in return, such as never again eating shellfish on Tuesdays, while some demand more traditional tasks, such as pilgrimages, prayers and sacrifices.

Cultural views

In the Faren culture, the wild spirits are thought to be dangerous creatures that should be avoided. They much prefer to interact with the gods, and the Táldar, their own deceased relatives. However, in the countryside the local spirits of nature are still central part of the religious life.

On the contrary, the Zeribians think worshipping one's own relatives is quite arrogant, especially if you are not of a notable house. They prefer worshipping various wild spirits, and often develop deep personal bonds with them.

Genetic Ancestor(s)

• Spirit beings