Glaistig

I have had the opportunity to discourse with one of the Glaistig about the changes wrought upon them by the new tales, and they seem content with the change, at least from what I can remember of our conversation. They recall the old days, but claim that they enjoy this new version of themselves very much. - excerpt from the Lorekeepers' report on the Glaistig.

On the island of Hersey, one of the long-standing myths is that of the Glaistig, or goat-maidens. They have been known to inhabit the mountain of Bheinn Gaoda since before the Clarati came to Ynys, and have endured in the minds of Hersey's inhabitants for millennia. However, in recent decades, the emergence of the legend of Billy the Goat, mistakenly seeded by the Lorekeepers of Foxbridge, has resulted in their story mutating, and the resulting pressure from the Egregoric Force is transforming the Glaistig into a new kind of spirit.

The Glaistig of Old

The goat-maidens of Bheinn Gaoda, also known as the Green Women, were considered dangerous and forbidding spirits of the mountain. They were known to prey upon humans who trespassed into the wilderness, especially any who attempted to observe or molest the glaistig themselves. They would protect the herds of those who paid them proper honor with blood and milk, and punish those who offended them by drinking all the blood from their bodies. They were even called upon to enact the vengeance of the gods upon malefactors in some tales.

They would appear as a beautiful woman in a fine green dress, with blonde hair and skin so pale it could seem the lightest shade of gray. Hidden beneath their skirts were a pair of goat legs, which allowed them to run through the woods faster than any man, and they could also leap and climb with the agility of a wild goat. They would sometimes lure deeper into the forest by staying just out of sight, abandoning them when the foolish pursuer was hopelessly lost. They could also transform into a goat entirely, and were known to vanish into a herd of goats when it pleased them.

The Goat-Maiden's New Form

When the Lorekeepers of Foxbridge came to Hersey to experiment with godcrafting, they made a number of mistakes. This resulted in the creation of Billy the Goat, the drunken sailor-goat god that became the focus of many tavern songs and tales. In the decades since the new god was born, the Glaistig have become caught up Billy's story, appearing in many of those songs and tales as a very different kind of spirit than they once were.

Instead of the forbidding forest guardian, these new Goat-Maidens appear as tavern wenches, alternately encouraging and tormenting Billy in his drunken foolishness. They have adopted a salacious twist, and are said to delight in shocking drunken sailors with their goatish attributes. One story about the new Glaistig is that they have a wandering tavern that can only be found by the very drunk at night. Those who stumble into the tavern will be offered fine food and drink, only to have pranks played upon them. The food becomes straw, and the ale is turned to mud. When the sun rises, the drunkard will find themselves far from where they began the night, in a field surrounded by goats. The legend goes on to add that sometimes, a new kid will be borne to that herd after such a wakening - a goat which displays unusual intelligence and human-like behavior.