Banshee

Banshee

In fact, Banshee are a form of guardian fae spirits, "official mourners," being minor guardian deity spirits dedicated to the aide of a family, House, lineage or Clan. To merit a Banshee, a family must be significant, usually ancient and of sufficient glory or honor - or notoriety - that its history and / or future (or "Doom") are of sufficient importance to the Fates that a Banshee is needed to assure that the family will play its proper role in history. A deed of great historic importance, whether for good or for ill, may also merit "reward" with the creation of a Banshee, perhaps using the ghost of one killed in the deed as its base.

Banshee are psychopomps, "Conductors of Souls," with clairvoyant powers that let them foresee the Doom, or Fate, of their charges. As they warn of disasters, their charges may confuse the messenger (the Banshee) with the message (the disaster.) The purpose of a Banshee is to warn and mourn. While a Doom (or the Fates) cannot be completely avoided, forewarned is forearmed; the Banshee hopes its charges can at least lessen the coming disaster, or make the inevitable event a useful tool.

As an example, the Banshee may predict a death in the family, but the family may be able to substitute a lesser member for a vital leader; grisly, perhaps, but in hard times, sometimes necessary. Or perhaps a stranger (Our Hero, or someone to rescue) could be formally adopted or wed into the family, under guise of friendship, only to be sacrificed to the Doom. (Such treachery may well tempt the Fates to set another trap for such deceitful Folk.) A Banshee's warning might also give the family time to summon allies for a forthcoming battle - or to send only token warriors to aide a doomed liege.

Unfortunately, the Banshee's warning is usually little more than "preemptive mourning," leaving its witnesses to puzzle out the meaning of the omen.

As a guardian spirit, a Banshee exists in ambient form throughout the home territory of its charges. It is aware of all that happens in its territory - and all that has or will happen within the territories of its charges. Its knowledge is, however, very narrowly focused; it is a guardian household deity, not a fully developed personality.

The Banshee can materialize at any place closely associated with its charges; this generally means around their home(s) and stronghold(s), graves and similar significant places. Materialization is preceded by a gathering of chill and (usually) mist; most cannot materialize in light. A Banshee can dematerialize at will, as long as it is not in direct contact with an object that has fixed it (such as a majical item or something of silver or cold iron.)

A Banshee can use its "draining cold attack" whether or not it has materialized; this cold effect is moderated by strong light and greatly decreased by sunlight.

Like many spirits, a Banshee may choose whether or not to interact with mundane material; it may pick up objects or pass through walls at will. Majical, silver, or cold iron objects are not mundane and will affect it.

As a guardian household deity, a Banshee cannot be dispelled, "turned" like some undead, exorcized, or driven off by holy symbols or artifacts (such as holy water); after all, it is, in a manner, itself holy.

Banshee may hang out in the courts of Faerieland, realms of the dead, at the courts of Celtic (or other) gods, or with other oracles in their off-hours. Banshee may be solicited to accompany, guide, and protect the souls of their family, helping them get to a good place in the afterlife safely.

"Banshee" comes from the Gaelic Bean Sith (Scots) or Ben Side (Irish) (which does not use English pronunciation values), meaning "Woman of Faerie" (Sidhe or Shae). Some, upon considering how Elven-beautiful a Banshee can be, wonder which afterlife the Banshee guides souls to.

There are traditional Gaelic stories of Banshee marrying mortals. In these rare cases, the mortal man discovers some mystic anchor that binds the Banshee to her work of doom prediction. Upon taking possession of the anchor or destroying it, the man is able to take possession of the Banshee. Apparently, she is thus deprived of her special powers and rendered a mortal woman. (Traditionally, beautiful alien women, despite their protestations, want nothing more than to be seduced by mortal men; this is considered a good thing, while the seduction of mortal women by alien males is considered an ill fate.)

It seems likely to me that the Banshee in these stories may have been relieved to be freed of their unhappy tasks, and rewarded the mortal with a period of happiness. This might mean actually posing as a mortal for a time, or simply gifting happiness by means of her fae powers of illusion; this happy interlude is exaggerated in to a marriage. Alternatively, a mortal maid who meets a foul end may be transformed in to a Banshee, and, upon release, be freed from beyond death to finish out the mortal life she was originally fated to have. What memories and powers such an ex-ghost might retain would vary. Surely her children would be Fairy-marked, with some odd Talents. It also seems likely, given the amoral nature of the Fae, that the freed Banshee might take her favored mortal beyond the veil in to the Faerie Realms to live in happiness there, at lest for a time.

As always with fae encounters, the happy endings are often fabricated by the taletellers; it is just as likely that the mortal's reward for unbinding a Banshee turns out to be a terrible punishment, especially as it deprives the Banshee's family of its guardian.

Vladpup Home       RPG Home       Bestiary Index

Last update Apr 4, 2006