Difference between revisions of "Ancient prophecies"

From Apocalyptica Arcanum Wiki
 
(2 intermediate revisions by the same user not shown)
Line 17: Line 17:
  
 
'''Modern Interpretation:'''   
 
'''Modern Interpretation:'''   
A shard-twisted spirit of endless hunger, born from cannibalism and betrayal in the frozen wastes.
+
A shard-twisted spirit of endless hunger, now called the "Frozen Hunger" in West America.
  
 
'''Status:'''   
 
'''Status:'''   
**Confirmed Encounter** — Origins: The Wendigo campaign.
+
**Confirmed Encounter**
  
 
=== The Black Dog and the Two-Faced Woman ===
 
=== The Black Dog and the Two-Faced Woman ===
Line 28: Line 28:
  
 
'''Modern Interpretation:'''   
 
'''Modern Interpretation:'''   
An ancient spiritual warning: the Black Dog, harbinger of the world's unraveling, and the Two-Faced Woman, who tempts and destroys seekers of truth.
+
A spiritual warning of unraveling — the Black Dog devours hope; the Two-Faced Woman lures souls into ruin.
  
 
'''Status:'''   
 
'''Status:'''   
**Confirmed Encounter** — Origins: Black Dog and the Two-Faced Woman campaign.
+
**Confirmed Encounter**
  
 
=== Abhartach ===
 
=== Abhartach ===
  
 
'''Source Legend:'''   
 
'''Source Legend:'''   
Irish folklore (pre-6th century)
+
Irish folklore
  
 
'''Modern Interpretation:'''   
 
'''Modern Interpretation:'''   
A vampiric entity impervious to death, transformed by Shardisite influence and rumored to command hidden cults across the drowned isles.
+
An immortal vampiric tyrant, now whispered of as "The Thirsting King" among the drowned cities of Europa.
  
 
'''Status:'''   
 
'''Status:'''   
**Confirmed Encounter** — Second Modern Campaign.
+
**Confirmed Encounter**
  
 
=== The Evangelical Rapture ===
 
=== The Evangelical Rapture ===
  
 
'''Source Legend:'''   
 
'''Source Legend:'''   
Christian apocalyptic tradition (Book of Revelation reinterpretations)
+
Christian apocalyptic tradition
  
 
'''Modern Interpretation:'''   
 
'''Modern Interpretation:'''   
A mass spiritual event recorded shortly after the fall, during which thousands vanished or mutated overnight. 
+
A mass vanishing and mutation event after the fall, interpreted as divine judgment by some and magical collapse by others.
Still debated whether it was divine judgment, magical flux, or collective delusion.
 
  
 
'''Status:'''   
 
'''Status:'''   
**Confirmed Historical Event** — Canonical in post-fall history.
+
**Confirmed Historical Event**
 +
 
 +
---
  
 
== Rumored and Speculative Phenomena ==
 
== Rumored and Speculative Phenomena ==
  
=== The Silent Star ===
+
=== Draugr ===
 +
 
 +
'''Source Legend:''' 
 +
Norse mythology
 +
 
 +
'''Modern Interpretation:''' 
 +
Shard-infested corpse-walkers guarding ruined strongholds across the Sea of Ghosts; also called "The Hollowed Kings."
 +
 
 +
'''Status:''' 
 +
**Rumored**
 +
 
 +
=== Selkies ===
 +
 
 +
'''Source Legend:''' 
 +
Scottish folklore
 +
 
 +
'''Modern Interpretation:''' 
 +
Shard-mutated shapeshifters seen in the fog banks of Europa, now called "Mistwives" by sailors.
 +
 
 +
'''Status:''' 
 +
**Rumored**
 +
 
 +
=== Will-o'-the-Wisp ===
 +
 
 +
'''Source Legend:''' 
 +
European folklore
 +
 
 +
'''Modern Interpretation:''' 
 +
Floating shard lights that lure travelers into bogs, known now as "Green Lanterns" among swamp tribes.
 +
 
 +
'''Status:''' 
 +
**Rumored**
 +
 
 +
=== The Headless Horseman ===
 +
 
 +
'''Source Legend:''' 
 +
German and American folklore
 +
 
 +
'''Modern Interpretation:''' 
 +
A revenant knight fueled by shard-rage, known in Cascadia as "The Rider Without Mercy."
 +
 
 +
'''Status:''' 
 +
**Speculated**
 +
 
 +
=== La Llorona ===
 +
 
 +
'''Source Legend:''' 
 +
Mexican folklore
 +
 
 +
'''Modern Interpretation:''' 
 +
A spirit of endless mourning who drowns shard-tainted children; still called "The Weeping Woman."
 +
 
 +
'''Status:''' 
 +
**Rumored**
 +
 
 +
=== The Green Man ===
 +
 
 +
'''Source Legend:''' 
 +
British Isles folklore
 +
 
 +
'''Modern Interpretation:''' 
 +
A living shard-born entity of tangled forests, revered as "The Verdant King" in Europa.
 +
 
 +
'''Status:''' 
 +
**Speculated**
 +
 
 +
=== The Wild Hunt ===
  
 
'''Source Legend:'''   
 
'''Source Legend:'''   
European comet legends
+
Germanic and Norse folklore
  
 
'''Modern Interpretation:'''   
 
'''Modern Interpretation:'''   
A comet visible only through magical means, believed to herald the collapse of nations.
+
An arcane storm of ghostly riders still seen racing across the wastelands under the green auroras.
  
 
'''Status:'''   
 
'''Status:'''   
 
**Rumored**
 
**Rumored**
  
=== The Crater Chant ===
+
=== Baba Yaga ===
 +
 
 +
'''Source Legend:''' 
 +
Slavic folklore
 +
 
 +
'''Modern Interpretation:''' 
 +
A twisted, shard-warped witch dwelling in the wandering ruins of Southern Asia, now known simply as "The Hag."
 +
 
 +
'''Status:''' 
 +
**Speculated**
 +
 
 +
=== Cockatrice ===
  
 
'''Source Legend:'''   
 
'''Source Legend:'''   
Composite siren myths
+
European folklore
  
 
'''Modern Interpretation:'''   
 
'''Modern Interpretation:'''   
Haunting songs heard near the Sea of Ghosts, growing louder during shard storms.
+
Shard-tainted reptilian beasts that petrify with a hiss; feared as "Stonelash Serpents" in Lemuria.
  
 
'''Status:'''   
 
'''Status:'''   
 
**Rumored**
 
**Rumored**
  
=== The Crimson Capstone ===
+
=== Alp ===
  
 
'''Source Legend:'''   
 
'''Source Legend:'''   
Irish druidic relic legends
+
Germanic folklore
  
 
'''Modern Interpretation:'''   
 
'''Modern Interpretation:'''   
A blood-red shard obelisk hidden in ruined Europa, said to "drink" memory from those who approach.
+
Nightmare creatures feeding on the minds of shard-weary travelers, now called "Dreamleeches."
  
 
'''Status:'''   
 
'''Status:'''   
 
**Speculated**
 
**Speculated**
  
=== The Namahage Warden ===
+
=== The Kappa ===
 +
 
 +
'''Source Legend:''' 
 +
Japanese folklore
 +
 
 +
'''Modern Interpretation:''' 
 +
Amphibious shard-mutants haunting river deltas and flooded ruins in Oceana; often called "Shellbacks."
 +
 
 +
'''Status:''' 
 +
**Rumored**
 +
 
 +
=== The Cintamani Stone ===
  
 
'''Source Legend:'''   
 
'''Source Legend:'''   
Japanese Oni folklore (Namahage)
+
Buddhist and Hindu mythology
  
 
'''Modern Interpretation:'''   
 
'''Modern Interpretation:'''   
A shard-mutated spirit, cloaked in rags and ice, that stalks frontier villages to "collect the lazy and the lost."
+
A shard relic said to grant visions of the Beforetimes, sealed somewhere within the jungles of Atlantis.
  
 
'''Status:'''   
 
'''Status:'''   
 
**Speculated**
 
**Speculated**
  
=== The Green Wall ===
+
=== The Banshee ===
 +
 
 +
'''Source Legend:''' 
 +
Irish folklore
 +
 
 +
'''Modern Interpretation:''' 
 +
Spirit-women wailing across shattered battlefields; modern scavengers call them "Gravewives."
 +
 
 +
'''Status:''' 
 +
**Rumored**
 +
 
 +
=== The Pukwudgie ===
 +
 
 +
'''Source Legend:''' 
 +
Wampanoag Native American folklore
 +
 
 +
'''Modern Interpretation:''' 
 +
Shard-twisted gremlins, tricksters of the ruined forests of West America.
 +
 
 +
'''Status:''' 
 +
**Rumored**
 +
 
 +
=== The Kitsune ===
  
 
'''Source Legend:'''   
 
'''Source Legend:'''   
Shamanic protective veil legends
+
Japanese folklore
  
 
'''Modern Interpretation:'''   
 
'''Modern Interpretation:'''   
An endless, emerald mist wall in East America, whispered to imprison a slumbering god.
+
Shape-shifting shard spirits that weave illusions to steal vital essence; now called "The Ninefold."
  
 
'''Status:'''   
 
'''Status:'''   
 
**Speculated**
 
**Speculated**
  
=== The Bleeding Spear of Harmegis ===
+
=== The Black Shuck ===
  
 
'''Source Legend:'''   
 
'''Source Legend:'''   
Mishmash of ancient lost artifact myths
+
English folklore
  
 
'''Modern Interpretation:'''   
 
'''Modern Interpretation:'''   
A shard-infused weapon lost in the jungles of Lemuria, said to pulse with the heartbeats of those it has slain.
+
Shard-mutated black hounds hunting the lost and the damned across Atlantic coastal ruins.
  
 
'''Status:'''   
 
'''Status:'''   
 
**Rumored**
 
**Rumored**
  
=== The Singing Bones of Uppernavik ===
+
=== The Yuki-onna ===
  
 
'''Source Legend:'''   
 
'''Source Legend:'''   
Norse and Inuit ancestral myths
+
Japanese folklore
  
 
'''Modern Interpretation:'''   
 
'''Modern Interpretation:'''   
In the frozen ruins of Uppernavik, skeletons are found that hum wordless hymns when the auroras are strongest.
+
A shard ghost of the snows, seen luring travelers to their deaths along the glaciers of Arctica.
  
 
'''Status:'''   
 
'''Status:'''   
 
**Rumored**
 
**Rumored**
  
=== The White Maiden of Pitcairn ===
+
=== The Nuckelavee ===
  
 
'''Source Legend:'''   
 
'''Source Legend:'''   
Global “white lady” ghost legends
+
Orcadian (Scottish) folklore
  
 
'''Modern Interpretation:'''   
 
'''Modern Interpretation:'''   
A ghostly figure dressed in burial silks, seen drifting over Lemuria’s southern coasts before major storms.
+
A skinless shard monstrosity that poisons the waters of the Bengal Isles.
  
 
'''Status:'''   
 
'''Status:'''   
 
**Speculated**
 
**Speculated**
  
=== The Crystal Widow ===
+
=== The Dullahan ===
  
 
'''Source Legend:'''   
 
'''Source Legend:'''   
Obscure Appalachian glass spider folklore
+
Irish folklore
  
 
'''Modern Interpretation:'''   
 
'''Modern Interpretation:'''   
A massive shard-infused spider said to spin glowing green webs across abandoned mining tunnels in East America.
+
A shard-blighted herald of death, carrying a burning emerald shard as its lantern.
  
 
'''Status:'''   
 
'''Status:'''   
 
**Rumored**
 
**Rumored**
  
=== The Black Chalice of Erehwon ===
+
=== The Valkyries ===
  
 
'''Source Legend:'''   
 
'''Source Legend:'''   
European dark grail myths
+
Norse mythology
  
 
'''Modern Interpretation:'''   
 
'''Modern Interpretation:'''   
A relic vessel believed to "distill" soul fragments into a black ichor. Allegedly hidden in the ruins of Erehwon.
+
Rogue shard-spirits that harvest souls from dying battlefields; now called "The Shardmaidens."
  
 
'''Status:'''   
 
'''Status:'''   
 
**Speculated**
 
**Speculated**
  
=== The Ash Wolf of Dixie ===
+
=== The Loup-Garou ===
  
 
'''Source Legend:'''   
 
'''Source Legend:'''   
European black dog legends, Southern frontier folklore
+
French-Canadian werewolf myths
  
 
'''Modern Interpretation:'''   
 
'''Modern Interpretation:'''   
A shard-burned wolf pack leader, said to trail polluted skies, feeding only on the dying and the desperate.
+
Shard-mutated berserkers found among the war-clans of Dixie.
  
 
'''Status:'''   
 
'''Status:'''   
 
**Rumored**
 
**Rumored**
  
=== The Veiled King of the Bengal Depths ===
+
=== The Morrígan ===
  
 
'''Source Legend:'''   
 
'''Source Legend:'''   
South Asian ocean demon myths
+
Irish mythology
  
 
'''Modern Interpretation:'''   
 
'''Modern Interpretation:'''   
A drowned monarch chained in the abyssal trenches near the Bengal Isles, allegedly worshipped by coastal cults.
+
A shard-bound war spirit, whispering destruction to kings and generals before their downfall.
  
 
'''Status:'''   
 
'''Status:'''   
 
**Speculated**
 
**Speculated**
  
=== The Walking Cairns of Southern Asia ===
+
=== The Kelpie ===
  
 
'''Source Legend:'''   
 
'''Source Legend:'''   
Mountain spirit traditions (Himalayan ghost folklore)
+
Scottish folklore
  
 
'''Modern Interpretation:'''   
 
'''Modern Interpretation:'''   
Piles of stones in remote mountain passes that rearrange themselves to trap and consume travelers.
+
Water shard-creatures that drag travelers under when crossing marshes and lakes.
  
 
'''Status:'''   
 
'''Status:'''   
 
**Rumored**
 
**Rumored**
  
=== The Gloaming Shepherd ===
+
=== The Chupacabra ===
  
 
'''Source Legend:'''   
 
'''Source Legend:'''   
European fae myths of the "Twilight Herdsman"
+
Latin American folklore
  
 
'''Modern Interpretation:'''   
 
'''Modern Interpretation:'''   
A shard-haunted figure who roams the tundras of Arctica at twilight, gathering beasts and men alike into his phantom procession.
+
Shard-mutated livestock hunters; blamed for the devastation of rural farming villages in Cascadia.
  
 
'''Status:'''   
 
'''Status:'''   
 
**Rumored**
 
**Rumored**
  
=== The Siren Harrow of the Oceanic Sea ===
+
=== The Leshy ===
  
 
'''Source Legend:'''   
 
'''Source Legend:'''   
Mariner ghost ship legends
+
Slavic folklore
  
 
'''Modern Interpretation:'''   
 
'''Modern Interpretation:'''   
An ethereal ship seen only in storms, its crew singing songs that drive sane men to throw themselves overboard.
+
Shard-touched forest guardians that can twist paths and illusions to trap wanderers.
  
 
'''Status:'''   
 
'''Status:'''   
 
**Speculated**
 
**Speculated**
  
=== The Jade Crown of the Shard Queen ===
+
=== The Jorōgumo ===
  
 
'''Source Legend:'''   
 
'''Source Legend:'''   
Various European fairy queen legends
+
Japanese folklore
  
 
'''Modern Interpretation:'''   
 
'''Modern Interpretation:'''   
A crystalline diadem said to control lesser shardborn creatures, last seen in the Sea of Ghosts during the early Green Voyages.
+
Shard-mutated spider spirits that lure prey by singing from ruined cities.
  
 
'''Status:'''   
 
'''Status:'''   
 
**Rumored**
 
**Rumored**
  
[[Category:Forbidden Knowledge]]
+
=== The Tarasque ===
[[Category:Magic]]
+
 
[[Category:Apocalyptic Mythology]]
+
'''Source Legend:''' 
 +
French folklore
 +
 
 +
'''Modern Interpretation:''' 
 +
A colossal shard-beast, blamed for the destruction of early settlements in Southern Asia.
 +
 
 +
'''Status:''' 
 +
**Speculated**
 +
 
 +
=== The Afanc ===
 +
 
 +
'''Source Legend:''' 
 +
Welsh folklore
 +
 
 +
'''Modern Interpretation:''' 
 +
Shard-born lake monsters of Atlantis’s inland seas, hunting travelers beneath the green-glow waters.
 +
 
 +
'''Status:''' 
 +
**Rumored**

Latest revision as of 13:42, 2 May 2025

Ancient Prophecies

“The old stories didn’t die. They changed.”

Overview

This page compiles legends, prophecies, and mythic phenomena encountered or speculated upon in the world of *Apocalyptica Arcanum*. All entries have roots in real-world folklore and mythology prior to January 18th, 1886. Some have been confirmed through direct encounters; others remain the subject of fear, rumor, and forbidden research.

Confirmed Phenomena

Wendigo

Source Legend: Algonquian mythology (North America)

Modern Interpretation: A shard-twisted spirit of endless hunger, now called the "Frozen Hunger" in West America.

Status:

    • Confirmed Encounter**

The Black Dog and the Two-Faced Woman

Source Legend: Lakota mythology

Modern Interpretation: A spiritual warning of unraveling — the Black Dog devours hope; the Two-Faced Woman lures souls into ruin.

Status:

    • Confirmed Encounter**

Abhartach

Source Legend: Irish folklore

Modern Interpretation: An immortal vampiric tyrant, now whispered of as "The Thirsting King" among the drowned cities of Europa.

Status:

    • Confirmed Encounter**

The Evangelical Rapture

Source Legend: Christian apocalyptic tradition

Modern Interpretation: A mass vanishing and mutation event after the fall, interpreted as divine judgment by some and magical collapse by others.

Status:

    • Confirmed Historical Event**

---

Rumored and Speculative Phenomena

Draugr

Source Legend: Norse mythology

Modern Interpretation: Shard-infested corpse-walkers guarding ruined strongholds across the Sea of Ghosts; also called "The Hollowed Kings."

Status:

    • Rumored**

Selkies

Source Legend: Scottish folklore

Modern Interpretation: Shard-mutated shapeshifters seen in the fog banks of Europa, now called "Mistwives" by sailors.

Status:

    • Rumored**

Will-o'-the-Wisp

Source Legend: European folklore

Modern Interpretation: Floating shard lights that lure travelers into bogs, known now as "Green Lanterns" among swamp tribes.

Status:

    • Rumored**

The Headless Horseman

Source Legend: German and American folklore

Modern Interpretation: A revenant knight fueled by shard-rage, known in Cascadia as "The Rider Without Mercy."

Status:

    • Speculated**

La Llorona

Source Legend: Mexican folklore

Modern Interpretation: A spirit of endless mourning who drowns shard-tainted children; still called "The Weeping Woman."

Status:

    • Rumored**

The Green Man

Source Legend: British Isles folklore

Modern Interpretation: A living shard-born entity of tangled forests, revered as "The Verdant King" in Europa.

Status:

    • Speculated**

The Wild Hunt

Source Legend: Germanic and Norse folklore

Modern Interpretation: An arcane storm of ghostly riders still seen racing across the wastelands under the green auroras.

Status:

    • Rumored**

Baba Yaga

Source Legend: Slavic folklore

Modern Interpretation: A twisted, shard-warped witch dwelling in the wandering ruins of Southern Asia, now known simply as "The Hag."

Status:

    • Speculated**

Cockatrice

Source Legend: European folklore

Modern Interpretation: Shard-tainted reptilian beasts that petrify with a hiss; feared as "Stonelash Serpents" in Lemuria.

Status:

    • Rumored**

Alp

Source Legend: Germanic folklore

Modern Interpretation: Nightmare creatures feeding on the minds of shard-weary travelers, now called "Dreamleeches."

Status:

    • Speculated**

The Kappa

Source Legend: Japanese folklore

Modern Interpretation: Amphibious shard-mutants haunting river deltas and flooded ruins in Oceana; often called "Shellbacks."

Status:

    • Rumored**

The Cintamani Stone

Source Legend: Buddhist and Hindu mythology

Modern Interpretation: A shard relic said to grant visions of the Beforetimes, sealed somewhere within the jungles of Atlantis.

Status:

    • Speculated**

The Banshee

Source Legend: Irish folklore

Modern Interpretation: Spirit-women wailing across shattered battlefields; modern scavengers call them "Gravewives."

Status:

    • Rumored**

The Pukwudgie

Source Legend: Wampanoag Native American folklore

Modern Interpretation: Shard-twisted gremlins, tricksters of the ruined forests of West America.

Status:

    • Rumored**

The Kitsune

Source Legend: Japanese folklore

Modern Interpretation: Shape-shifting shard spirits that weave illusions to steal vital essence; now called "The Ninefold."

Status:

    • Speculated**

The Black Shuck

Source Legend: English folklore

Modern Interpretation: Shard-mutated black hounds hunting the lost and the damned across Atlantic coastal ruins.

Status:

    • Rumored**

The Yuki-onna

Source Legend: Japanese folklore

Modern Interpretation: A shard ghost of the snows, seen luring travelers to their deaths along the glaciers of Arctica.

Status:

    • Rumored**

The Nuckelavee

Source Legend: Orcadian (Scottish) folklore

Modern Interpretation: A skinless shard monstrosity that poisons the waters of the Bengal Isles.

Status:

    • Speculated**

The Dullahan

Source Legend: Irish folklore

Modern Interpretation: A shard-blighted herald of death, carrying a burning emerald shard as its lantern.

Status:

    • Rumored**

The Valkyries

Source Legend: Norse mythology

Modern Interpretation: Rogue shard-spirits that harvest souls from dying battlefields; now called "The Shardmaidens."

Status:

    • Speculated**

The Loup-Garou

Source Legend: French-Canadian werewolf myths

Modern Interpretation: Shard-mutated berserkers found among the war-clans of Dixie.

Status:

    • Rumored**

The Morrígan

Source Legend: Irish mythology

Modern Interpretation: A shard-bound war spirit, whispering destruction to kings and generals before their downfall.

Status:

    • Speculated**

The Kelpie

Source Legend: Scottish folklore

Modern Interpretation: Water shard-creatures that drag travelers under when crossing marshes and lakes.

Status:

    • Rumored**

The Chupacabra

Source Legend: Latin American folklore

Modern Interpretation: Shard-mutated livestock hunters; blamed for the devastation of rural farming villages in Cascadia.

Status:

    • Rumored**

The Leshy

Source Legend: Slavic folklore

Modern Interpretation: Shard-touched forest guardians that can twist paths and illusions to trap wanderers.

Status:

    • Speculated**

The Jorōgumo

Source Legend: Japanese folklore

Modern Interpretation: Shard-mutated spider spirits that lure prey by singing from ruined cities.

Status:

    • Rumored**

The Tarasque

Source Legend: French folklore

Modern Interpretation: A colossal shard-beast, blamed for the destruction of early settlements in Southern Asia.

Status:

    • Speculated**

The Afanc

Source Legend: Welsh folklore

Modern Interpretation: Shard-born lake monsters of Atlantis’s inland seas, hunting travelers beneath the green-glow waters.

Status:

    • Rumored**