forum Tell me some cool mythology and/or legends that you know

Started May 04, 2021 by @zabazoo

tune

I'm worldbuilding for a dungeons and dragons campaign and would love to add in some sort of folklore!

Here's some Chinese folklore :)

1. Probably one of my favorites (and the most famous) - Hou Yi and the Ten Suns. In ancient times, there were 10 suns (sometimes depicted as birds), and they were the children of the Jade Emperor. Each day, only one sun was allowed to play in the sky, and so this continued for many years. However, the suns soon became lonely and bored, one day deciding to play in the sky together - all 10 of them. Of course, this was bad news for the people on the ground - crops shriveled, water dried up, people fainted in the streets. At first, the Jade Emperor tried to convince them to stop, but they wouldn't listen, so he regretfully sent the the archer, Hou Yi, to shoot them down. Hou Yi tried to convince them one more time, but the suns still didn't listen, so he shot down 9 of them. The 10th sun, terrified, hid away in a cave, and the earth was plunged into darkness and cold. Nothing could convince it to leave the cave, except for the shrill call of the rooster.
2. Another folktale that kind of carries on the previous one would be Chang'e Drinks the Elixir of Immortality. Hou Yi was rewarded for his deed with an elixir that could grant him and one other immortality. He agreed to share it with his wife, Chang'e, but they hadn't decided to drink it just yet, so Hou Yi hides it. Unbeknownst to him, one of his close hunting friends finds it and while Hou Yi is on a hunting trip, tries to claim it for himself. Chang'e in desperation, drinks it all, and floats onto the moon, becoming the goddess forever trapped there. Hou Yi, heartbroken, offers her favorite foods and fruits to the moon every night.
3. Kuafu, The Giant Who Chased the Sun - In this story, a giant foolishly tries to catch the sun. Despite his greatest efforts, he could never catch up. As he got closer, he became very thirsty, completely drinking up any rivers or lakes he finds. However, he soon finds that there is no more water to drink, and he dies of dehydration. Some variations say he turned into a grove of peach trees, others say he turned into a mountain range
4. Wu Gang, the Woodcutter - Wu Gang was a man who could never be satisfied. He wasn't satisfied in the countryside, the city, or as a scholar, merchant, or farmer. In his pursuit for greatness, he finally sought out the Jade Emperor, who tried to teach him the secret to immortality, but he didn't put much effort into it or took it very seriously. Furious, the Jade Emperor banished him to the moon, where he would have to try and cut down a self-healing tree for eternity as punishment.

[all of these stories have different versions btw. hope this helps :)]

tysm! that's really cool! :D

I just did some classes on Islamic middle east, it's got some cool stuff

• Griffins originated from this area, using a lion's body and either a hawk or eagle with feather "ears" which is why griffins usually have ears in art
• The Roc is just a really massive bird that can pick up an elephant in each claw, it has a whole mythology story but I never got around to studying it
• Serpopards is the name given to a strange creature found in early Egyptian carvings. It appears to be a leopard with an absurdly long neck. Some scholars think this was from a description of snake with leopard patterned scales taken too literally
• Djinn and Efriti are already in dnd, the lore is fairly accurate to myth and they're really interesting tricksters to have a party go up against

Some other stuff

• There's the Questing Beast from Arthurian legend with a snake's head, leopard body, lion's legs, and deer feet. It was actually a giraffe. It might be funny to have an exotic animal on the loose and have all these fantastical descriptions of it
• Kodama are the little guys in ghibli movies that live in the forest and rattle at people. Fairly accurate to myth, Kodama are Japanese forest-dwelling spirits that can be helpful. They are attached to a tree or trees, and cutting them down curses the woodcutter. Kind of like a version of a dryad.

nice! :D

I am back with more Chinese stories - character edition!

1. Sun Wukong, also known as the Monkey King or 'The Great Sage, Heaven's Equal', according to himself, is a pretty well known mythical character. He's featured in the Journey to the West, in which he joins a monk in a quest to retrieve Buddhist scriptures from the West where the Buddha resides. He also wields a magical golden staff that only he can carry (which he took from the Dragon King of the Eastern Sea) However, before all of this, he was a power-hungry monkey, always searching for a way to become more powerful, gain immortality, and obtain more skills to add to his arsenal. The havoc he causes finally made the deities have enough, and he was imprisoned under a mountain for centuries before being saved by the monk he would come to follow, becoming the monk's first disciple. I guess you could say the journey he takes with said monk was a form of atonement, and at the end, he obtained enlightenment.
2. Zhu Bajie, called Pigsy in English translations, is a pig/human hybrid also featured in the Journey to the West. He often gets the group in trouble with his laziness or desire for food and women. He's also rather jealous of Sun Wukong (and kind of a prick in all honesty). Anyways, he used to be a very high ranking general in the heavens, but after trying to drunkenly seduce the goddess of the moon, he was banished to Earth. However, he accidentally lands in a pigsty and as a result is reborn as a pig monster, causing chaos before joining Sun Wukong and the monk on their journey as the monk's second disciple.
3. Sha Heshang/Sha Wujing, called Sandy in English translations, is a sand-demon - formerly a general in the heavens. After destroying a valuable vase, he was banished to Earth, where he resides in a river. He meets the crew consisting of Sun Wukong, Zhu Bajie, and the monk, though is mistaken for a monster. They fight for a bit before Guanyin stops the conflict and clears up the confusion. He joins the crew as the monk's third disciple, and throughout the journey, he doesn't have much plot relevance but seems to have more manners and common sense than the other two disciples.
4. Tang Seng/Tang Sanzang, also called Tripitaka, is based off of the historical Buddhist monk, Xuanzang, and is the reincarnation of the golden cicada. The Journey to the West as a whole is actually based off of Xuanzang's journey to India. Anywho, Tang Seng is accompanied by his three disciples (the first three characters I mentioned) to obtain Buddhist scriptures. He is often targeted by monsters on his journey since he it's rumored among them that eating him would let them gain immortality.
5. Ne Zha, also known as the Third Lotus Prince, is another pretty well known mythical character. He has Wind-Fire Wheels that he travels on, one under each foot, carries the Universe Ring, the Red Armillary Sash (around his shoulders), and wields a fire-tipped spear. Ne Zha is also sometimes depicted in his three-headed-six-armed form, which he uses for battle. He's the son of _{As a kid, I thought he was a girl cause of how he was depicted in cartoons TvT}

[these are all pretty simplified versions]
if you want more myths, this channel has some info along with history and literature stuff.

I am back with more Chinese stories - character edition!

1. Sun Wukong, also known as the Monkey King or 'The Great Sage, Heaven's Equal', according to himself, is a pretty well known mythical character. He's featured in the Journey to the West, in which he joins a monk in a quest to retrieve Buddhist scriptures from the West where the Buddha resides. He also wields a magical golden staff that only he can carry (which he took from the Dragon King of the Eastern Sea) However, before all of this, he was a power-hungry monkey, always searching for a way to become more powerful, gain immortality, and obtain more skills to add to his arsenal. The havoc he causes finally made the deities have enough, and he was imprisoned under a mountain for centuries before being saved by the monk he would come to follow, becoming the monk's first disciple. I guess you could say the journey he takes with said monk was a form of atonement, and at the end, he obtained enlightenment.
2. Zhu Bajie, called Pigsy in English translations, is a pig/human hybrid also featured in the Journey to the West. He often gets the group in trouble with his laziness or desire for food and women. He's also rather jealous of Sun Wukong (and kind of a prick in all honesty). Anyways, he used to be a very high ranking general in the heavens, but after trying to drunkenly seduce the goddess of the moon, he was banished to Earth. However, he accidentally lands in a pigsty and as a result is reborn as a pig monster, causing chaos before joining Sun Wukong and the monk on their journey as the monk's second disciple.
3. Sha Heshang/Sha Wujing, called Sandy in English translations, is a sand-demon - formerly a general in the heavens. After destroying a valuable vase, he was banished to Earth, where he resides in a river. He meets the crew consisting of Sun Wukong, Zhu Bajie, and the monk, though is mistaken for a monster. They fight for a bit before Guanyin stops the conflict and clears up the confusion. He joins the crew as the monk's third disciple, and throughout the journey, he doesn't have much plot relevance but seems to have more manners and common sense than the other two disciples.
4. Tang Seng/Tang Sanzang, also called Tripitaka, is based off of the historical Buddhist monk, Xuanzang, and is the reincarnation of the golden cicada. The Journey to the West as a whole is actually based off of Xuanzang's journey to India. Anywho, Tang Seng is accompanied by his three disciples (the first three characters I mentioned) to obtain Buddhist scriptures. He is often targeted by monsters on his journey since he it's rumored among them that eating him would let them gain immortality.
5. Ne Zha, also known as the Third Lotus Prince, is another pretty well known mythical character. He has Wind-Fire Wheels that he travels on, one under each foot, carries the Universe Ring, the Red Armillary Sash (around his shoulders), and wields a fire-tipped spear. Ne Zha is also sometimes depicted in his three-headed-six-armed form, which he uses for battle. He's the son of _{As a kid, I thought he was a girl cause of how he was depicted in cartoons TvT}

[these are all pretty simplified versions]
if you want more myths, this channel has some info along with history and literature stuff.

OH MY GOSH-

I’VE BEEN MEANING TO READ JOURNEY TO THE WEST-

Demigods are breeds between half god half human/creature breeds , keep In mind these demigods also have features from both parents , such as Percy , son of Poseidon. But these gods and children can never meet because the gods need to keep the balance in the realm of the gods to prevent chaos from one god wanting total power.

sometimes i just like to think about the will-o-wisps, that lead travelers astray for no reason that i can remember. the general fae have always fascinated me. if anyone has more faerie folklore i'd love to hear it!