Undead
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Tenatz
The Tenatz are from Bosnian legends. They are undead shapeshifters. They can turn into mice or other small burrowing creatures to escape from their graves. They return to the form of a walking corpse once above ground. They consume blood. Cutting the hamstrings of a corpse is thought to prevent them from rising as a Tenatz. If they have already risen, they can be stopped with fire or exorcism. Citations: Maberry, Jonathan. Vampire Universe: The Dark World of Supernatural Beings That Haunt Us, Hunt Us, and Hunger for Us. United States, Kensington Publishing Corporation, 2006.
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Taxim
Taxim are creatures from Eastern Europe. They are focused on revenge. They spread plagues and sometimes attack cattle. They are animated corpses. They can be detected by their terrible smell. They only hurt their intended target. Citations: Bane, Theresa. Encyclopedia of Beasts and Monsters in Myth, Legend and Folklore. United States, McFarland, Incorporated, Publishers, 2016. Larousse Dictionary Of World Folklore: An Unparalleled View Of Folktales And Heritage by Alison Jones Melton, J. Gordon. The Vampire Book: The Encyclopedia of the Undead. United Kingdom, Visible Ink Press, 2011.
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Strigoi
The Strigoi is a form of vampiric monster from Romanian myth. The term Strigoi can be used as a general term for any evil entity, and it comes from the Italian word “strega” meaning Witch. They often shapeshift into night birds like owls. Over time they transformed from witch vampires to an undead form of vampire. Citations: Maberry, Jonathan. Vampire Universe: The Dark World of Supernatural Beings That Haunt Us, Hunt Us, and Hunger for Us. United States, Kensington Publishing Corporation, 2006.
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Shinigami
The Shinigami are Yokai of death from Japanese myth. They are sometimes seen as spirits of the dead that possess the living and seek to harm them. They typically resemble humans with pale grey skin and inhuman features. They are drawn to death and linger around areas where people have just died. They thrive in areas where particularly gruesome deaths have occurred, as they haunt areas tainted by evil and look for people to possess. They haunt people and alter their behavior causing them to become obsessed with death and their own sins, eventually leading to suicide. They particularly like targeting bad people but will target anyone. Anyone who sees…
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Revenant
The Revenant is a form of undead creature and at one time it was used as a synonym for “ghost.” Their name is a variation of the French “revenir” meaning “to return.” They return from the grave and can be physical or incorporeal. In Irish folklore, they are physically risen bodies that sometimes attend their own funerals. Other times they are undead, with some being vampiric in nature. Citations: Bane, Theresa. Encyclopedia of Vampire Mythology. United States, McFarland, Incorporated, Publishers, 2017. Guiley, Rosemary. The Encyclopedia of Ghosts and Spirits. United States, Checkmark Books, 2007.
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Ovengua
The Ovengua are from Guinea. They are created when an evil sorcerer or a corrupt person dies. Their bones escape their grave one by one and gather back up in a secret location. They move through the forest and attack travelers at night. They catch and eat people and may drink blood. They live in caverns during the day. They can be attacked by a lot of spears and must be burned completely to ash or they will come back. They may take a ghostly or a physical form, which is for the sake of feeding. The creatures can be appeased by leaving out bowls of animal blood outside the…
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Otgiruru/Owenga
The Otgiruru is an undead creature from the Herero people of Namibia, that may be related to the Ovengua, Ovengwa, or Owenga. They are created when evil sorcerers do not not pass to the afterlife, either by choice or by not being allowed to. Sometimes they are thought to be ancestors that come back due to anger to torment the living. They rise from the dead and construct a new body for themselves out of whatever bad things they can get ahold of such as dirt, raw meat and organs from animals, insects, and other similar things. The body they create typically resembles a dog rather than a human. They…
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Ogolijen
The Ogoljen are from the Czech Republic and specifically Bohemia. They are bloodthirsty undead. They resemble old naked, balding men with rotting skin. Their breath is so bad it can knock someone out from ten feet away. They can be killed by being burned to ashes or decapitated. If they are decapitated, their bodies must be buried so they cannot rise again. Dirt from their graves can be used as a charm to repel the creatures. They can be stopped by being dug up during the day, burying them at crossroads, and sewing shrouds to their navels. Citations: Maberry, Jonathan. Vampire Universe: The Dark World of Supernatural Beings That Haunt…
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Nosferat/Nosferatu
The Nosferat is a form of vampire most commonly known from Bram Stokers’ Dracula, and may have originated there as well. The name supposedly comes from the Greek word “nosphoros” meaning “plague carrier,” but the term Nosferat has not been reliably found in any East European dictionaries. This could make it a form of old Fakelore which became so intertwined with actual myth that it became a part of accepted myth in the modern day. The Nosferat was sometimes seen as a form of living vampire, and has been thought to originate as the illegitimate child of two people who were also born as illegitimate children. Sometimes it is instead…
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Neuntöter/Neuntoter
The Neuntöter is an undead creature from Germany, usually Saxony. The name translates to “killer of nine” or “nine killer” and comes from the belief that these corpses take nine days to rise from the grave. They resemble corpses with rotting flesh and many open sores that smell like feces. They’re linked to the spreading of disease, which comes from their open sores. Because of this they’re typically seen during great epidemics. They are known to drink blood and may kill purely for its own enjoyment. A person will become a Neuntöter after death if they are born with teeth, born with a spoon in their mouth, or if they’re…
