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Vargr/Warg/Wearg
The Vargr is a term present in Norse myth with multiple meanings. The word comes from Old German and was sometimes used as a blanket term for supernatural beings. The word referred to wolves, and was also used to describe outlaws and oathbreakers. The comparison was that both wolves and outlaws lived in the wilderness and could be killed without consequence. The term Murðvarg is someone who’s killed someone; this translates to Murder Warg. Brennuvargr is someone who commits arson; this translates to Fire Warg. The famous giant Grendel is also referred to as Heorowearh, meaning Sword Warg. Because the term means wolf, and has been associated with the devil,…
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Ubume
The Ubume is a yokai from Japanese myth. They’re believed to be the ghosts of women who have died in childbirth. They sometimes appear as ghostly women soaked in blood from the waist down. In some versions, the Ubume wanders around saying “be born” over and over. Many stories of the Ubume say they cannot rest until they find a guardian for their child. They may continue to watch over their child, and do not become violent unless their child is harmed. In some versions, they sit on bridges and ask people passing by to hold their child for a moment. When the person holds the child, the Ubume disappears,…
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Saturnians
The Saturnians were aliens supposedly encountered in Baguio City, Philippines. This occurred in May 1980 at 2 am by a 42 year old faith healer named Ricardo “Anding” Mira. He encountered them in the house of another faith healer named Manang Sid. He was there with a man named Dr. Rodolfo Gonzalez to observe her. At 1:00 am, they were praying in a chapel when Mira suddenly felt dizzy and saw a rainbow swirl of lights on the chapel walls. He couldn’t find the source of these lights, and they eventually stopped at 1:45 and went to their rooms. Mira tossed and turned in bed and felt dizzy again until,…
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Roperite
The Roperite is a creature from Lumberjack Folklore. It’s the size of a horse with a long prehensile muzzle that can be used as a lasso. Often they have rattles like a rattlesnake, which they shake when they hunt. Typically, they catch rabbits, but may go after people. They run off after capturing them and drag them through the thorns until the prey dies. No animal is fast enough to outrun them, and they can go over, around, or through any obstacle. Citations: Bane, Theresa. Encyclopedia of Beasts and Monsters in Myth, Legend and Folklore. United States, McFarland, Incorporated, Publishers, 2016.
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Piasa/Piasa Bird
The Piasa is a monstrous creature from the legends of the Illiniwek Native Americans. Its name means “bird that devours man,” and its legend is well known in the region. It was famously depicted on an ancient petroglyph, which originally showed two creatures. This painting was described in the journals of Pére Marquette while he explored the Mississippi River. It was described as a hideous creature the size of a calf. It has also been described as large enough to pick up a full-grown deer in its talons. It had a head and horns like a goat with a man’s face, a tiger’s beard, and red eyes. It had an…
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Peluda/La Velue/Peallaidh/Pehuda
Peluda was a giant dragon from medieval French myth. It’s believed it refused to board Noah’s Ark but survived the flood anyway. After this, it was thought to live in the Huisne River near the village of La Ferte-Bernard. It’s believed that when it entered the river, the water level would rise and flood nearby farms. It had four stubby legs ending in turtle-like claws, and a scaly tail. It had shaggy green hair over its body, and its back was covered in sharp quills. It developed a taste for young maidens and was able to breathe fire. A man went to a wise woman after his fiancée was killed…
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Nagual
The Nagual is a supernatural creature from Aztec myth. Its name is thought to come from the word Naualii, which were dark sorcerers. The youth of this community would go to a solitary area as a coming-of-age rite. The animal that appears to them in their dreams is their Nagual, a guiding or totemic spirit. While rare, the Nagual could appear as a natural phenomenon like lightning or a meteor shower. These spirits could be used to gather information and deliver it to their human while asleep. That can also be sent to antagonize others. Mexican folklore describes them as shapeshifting creatures. They’re believed to stand seven to eight feet…
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Lou Carcolh
The Lou Carcolh is a giant monster from French myth. It’s thought to live in a cave beneath the town of Hastingue, France. It is described as a combination of snail and serpent, with a large shell on its back, and long, hairy tentacles. These tentacles could stretch out beyond the horizon, and it uses these to snatch people up and pull them into its mouth. It is thought to leave a trail of slime, and none would dare to follow it. Citations: Bane, Theresa. Encyclopedia of Beasts and Monsters in Myth, Legend and Folklore. United States, McFarland, Incorporated, Publishers, 2016.
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Lone Pine Mountain Devil
The Lone Pine Mountain Devil is a cryptid local legend from Southern California. Some view this creature as the West Coast counterpart to the Jersey Devil, although others believe it’s a hoax spread by the internet. Some cryptozoologists suspect these creatures could be living Microraptors. The first reported encounter of this creature comes from 1878. The witness was a Spanish man, Father Justus Martinez, claiming that he and his companions had been attacked. When he arrived at the local mission, he told the priests his group of thirty-six others had been attacked by “winged demons.” The mission thought the devil took the form of lizards and attacked. The group had…
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Kurrea
Kurrea is a monstrous creature from Australian myth. It was a large, monster-like creature resembling a giant lizard or crocodile. It lived in a swamp and eventually grew tired of hunting animals and targeted humans. Eventually, a warrior named Toolalla tried to attack the monster by throwing spears at it, but they all bounced off its hide. After this, Kurrea charged at Toolalla by swimming through rocks and soil like water. It began to gain on him until he saw his mother-in-law, and he hurried to her, since she was the only one who scared him aside from the monster. The monster stopped and turned around in fear, leaving a…
