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Baykok
The Baykok is from Ojibwe myth, and is though to exist in the region of the Great Lakes. Its name means “skin draped on bones” or “skeletal decomposed remains.” It is an undead creature that wanders the woods at night looking for lone people to kill so it can eat their livers. It has a club for bludgeoning and invisible arrows to fire. It incapacitates its victims before killing them and feeding on them. It was once an incredibly skilled and proud hunter that got lost in the woods and died of starvation being unable to hunt anything to eat. He swore his spirit would never leave his body. Citations:…
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Baubas/Babauzis
The Baubas is a creature from Lithuanian myth. It is a monster or witch thought to carry off bad children. This creature’s name translates to “one who frightens children.” It is believed to have associations with the goddess of death (possibly Veliuona). Citations: Bane, Theresa. Encyclopedia of Beasts and Monsters in Myth, Legend and Folklore. United States, McFarland, Incorporated, Publishers, 2016.
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Barmanu
The Barmanu is a cryptid from Pakistan. They are hairy hominids whose name means “big hairy one.” They have a terrible smell and makes guttural sounds with a primitive voice box. When locals were shown pictures of the Minnesota Iceman, they saw a similarity to the Barmanu. Citations: Coleman, Loren, and Clark, Jerome. Cryptozoology A To Z: The Encyclopedia of Loch Monsters Sasquatch Chupacabras and Other Authentic M. United States, Touchstone, 2013.
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Bantu
The Bantu (this being separate from the Bantu people group) are from the Republic of Zambia. They are undead vampiric creatures. They are formed from the death of an evil person or from someone who rises from the grave due to improper burial rites. They are drawn to blood, even a singular drop. They will begin to decompose if they don’t consume enough blood. Victims often survive and wake up with a wound and no memory of the attack. If a single drop of blood falls on the ground, it must be dug up and buried in a secret location to avoid attracting the Bantu. Whoever lost the drop of…
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Banshee/Bean Sídhe
The Banshee is a creature from Irish mythology. Once a singular ancestral spirit. Her wail announced the coming death among one of the five main families these being the O’Briens, the O’Connors, the O’Gradys, the O’Niells, and the Kavanaghs. Newer interpretations of the Banshee see them as Psychopomps that foretell death with their calls. Hearing the cry of the Banshee means that someone you know will die the following night. Some believe that groups of Banshee gather together and cry out together at the death of a great or holy person. They are rarely seen but often resemble naked women with long hanging boobs washing shrouds by the river. When…
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Bampu/Kykketsuki/Kyuketsuki
The Bampu is a Japanese mythical creature whose name means “bloodsucker.” Typically, this term is simply used when the European vampire has been absorbed into Japanese culture, most often in filmography. Citations: Bane, Theresa. Encyclopedia of Vampire Mythology. United States, McFarland, Incorporated, Publishers, 2017. Bush, Laurence C.. Asian Horror Encyclopedia: Asian Horror Culture in Literature, Manga, and Folklore. United States, iUniverse, 2001. Melton, J Gordon. The Vampire Book: The Encyclopedia of the Undead. United Kingdom, Visible Ink Press, 2010.
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Ball Tailed Cat
The Ball Tailed Cat is a creature from Lumberjack Folklore. They resemble a mountain lion with abnormally long tails that have hardened masses at the end of them. They swing their tails to kill prey with the hardened mass. Citations: Bane, Theresa. Encyclopedia of Beasts and Monsters in Myth, Legend and Folklore. United States, McFarland, Incorporated, Publishers, 2016.
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Balbal
The Balbal is from the Tagbanua people of the Philippines. This creature is a form of Aswang known to eat corpses. They glide from rooftop to rooftop with membranous wings that stretch from their wrists to their ankles, similar to those of flying squirrels. They are human shaped with long hooked nails that they use to tear open thatched roofs. They snatch up corpses or sleeping people with a long powerful tongue. They often replace the corpses they take with banana stalk doubles. They can be frightened away by placing oil on a doorway. Citations: Bane, Theresa. Encyclopedia of Beasts and Monsters in Myth, Legend and Folklore. United States, McFarland,…
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Bakhtak
The Bakhtak is a creature from Iranian myth. It resembles a humanoid bear and its name translates to “nightmare.” It sneaks into houses and sits on sleeping people’s chests causing them to have horrible nightmares. It may sometimes go as far as killing its victims and eating their bodies. Citations: Bane, Theresa. Encyclopedia of Beasts and Monsters in Myth, Legend and Folklore. United States, McFarland, Incorporated, Publishers, 2016.
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Bajang
The Bajang is a vampiric creature from Malaysia. It can be summoned by a sorcerer using the body of a stillborn baby taken from their family. Some claim it to be the male counterpart to a creature called the Langsuir. They can sometimes be bound as a Familiar and contained in a container known as a Tabong, sealed with leaves and a magical charm. If not fed milk and eggs by its owner, it will seek children to consume. It can take the shape of a cat, polecat, or large lizard. If it takes the form of a cat and meows like a baby then that baby is destined to…
