On Monday, I mentioned some plans for Basic Bestiary, namely to include many of my various Witch Queens with stat blocks. I wanted to talk about it today.
As my Basic Bestiary project has grown (and grown, and grown) it has also morphed. I originally planned this to be a collection of monsters from my various witch books and monsters from my notes that never had a proper home. Later it morphed as a nod to not just the Monster Manual, the book that got me into D&D, and two of my favorite books the Fiend Folio and Deities & Demigods. What I liked about both was the variety of creatures and beings they included.
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| Tea with the Witch Queens by Brian Brinlee |
While I have a lot of Witch Queens, I can only include some of them. Many belong to other people and IPs. Great for a game here in my home, bad for a publication. Others would not work for the scope and design for Basic Bestiary.
The idea started when I was trying to figure out what to do with Baba Yaga. Was she Faerie Lord? Some sort of Outsider? Something else? No. She was a Witch Queen, and in my worlds, that is something special.
Here are the ones I am thinking about so far. Linking to stats when I have them, but all will need to tweak all of them at some level.
- Baba Yaga
- Circe
- Darlessa
- Elena the Fair (change the name to Vasilisa)
- Marissia (but strip out some of her histories)
- Morgan Le Fey
- Nicnevin / Nic an Neachneohain
I would like to include Ceridwen, Louhi, Lilith, and Sycorax. While I am at it, I would like to also include others like Bloody Mary, Grimhild, Mother Carey, Prättäkitti, and Sebile.
Others I have good substitutes for. For example, much of what I have been doing with Kersy of Mystara is close enough to the witch Urganda to work as a stand-in, much like Vasilisa works for Elena the Fair.
So far, my plan is to put them all in an appendix at the end of the book. They are not really monsters, even if myth and history have portrayed them as such. I also don't think a major heading like Witch Queens (like how many books do with Demons or Devils or Elementals) will work because other than being witches and immortal, they are not allied and don't have a lot of powers in common. Still, I might change my mind about that.
Something fun to look forward to.
I also have to get art for all of them too. And...there is still the question of the cover art for all four books.
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