Fey — Faerie Courts, Folk Spirits and Fantasy RPG Creatures

At the Water’s Edge and Beyond

A horse waits beside a Scottish ford, water dripping from its mane. The traveller who climbs onto its back may never reach the far bank.

In another forest, a dryad stands between woodcutters and the oak that holds her life. Elsewhere, hunters hear a little bell beyond a path their elders warned them not to take. A kelpie, a dryad and a biloko make very different encounters.

Some fey defend their homes; others lure travellers into danger or play tricks. Begin with one of the six illustrated creatures below, choose an encounter, or browse the complete 172-entry Fey collection. The courts and wild places of Faerie offer more than one kind of story.

William-Adolphe Bouguereau's painting of nymphs and a satyr in a woodland — William-Adolphe Bouguereau, *Nymphes et satyre* (1873).

Meet Six Fey Creatures

Start with six illustrated encounters below, or open the complete 172-entry Fey catalogue.

Six Ways into Faerie

Begin with a tree spirit, two very different water and woodland dangers, an Irish shapeshifter or a forest being from Central African storytelling. Each illustration leads to that creature’s own page; the complete 172-entry catalogue remains below.

Dryad

The village needs timber from her ancient oak. The dryad intends to stop the first axe.

Kelpie

A riderless horse waits at the ford. The ferryman knows who climbed onto its back last.

Nixie

The millpond has turned hostile. Find what disturbed its resident spirit before wading in.

Huldra

A stranger guides a lost charcoal burner through the pines. He glimpses her tail as she turns.

Pooka

A shapeshifter offers the road home. By dawn, the travellers may be farther away than before.

Biloko

A little bell rings in forbidden forest. The hunters can turn back or follow the sound.

What Sort of Trouble Are You Looking For?

A dangerous crossing. A kelpie waits beside deep water. A nixie or Wassernixe makes the river itself the centre of the encounter.

Something in the woods. A dryad has a tree to protect. A huldra offers directions. Hunters hear the little bell of a biloko where they were warned not to go.

A bad night on the road. Try the pooka, the headless Dullahan, or a spriggan guarding something the travellers want.

A powerful court takes an interest. Someone has caught the attention of Titania, a Seelie faerie, or the Erlking. Discover what they want before drawing a sword.

Already have a name in mind? Open the complete 172-entry Fey catalogue immediately below.

Complete Fey A–Z Catalogue (172 entries)

This index includes spirits from distinct traditions, historical folklore, rules references and invented fantasy fey. The game category does not make those traditions interchangeable. Use the encounter choices above if you would rather begin with a story than a name.

The search covers all site pages. To browse this collection only, open one of the alphabetical groups below. Links are directly to published entries.

A–C — 43 entries

D–F — 38 entries

G–I — 11 entries

J–L — 15 entries

M–O — 14 entries

P–R — 12 entries

S–U — 27 entries

V–Z — 12 entries

Fey Bonds, Traditions and Older Rules

These additional notes and older-edition rules follow the creature directory so you can find an encounter first. Different kinds of fey do not share a single culture or ruleset.

Water, weather and winter: The kelpie is a dangerous Scottish water-horse; the Cailleach is a powerful figure in Gaelic seasonal tradition; Far Liath belongs to tales of the mist; and the Callicantzaros brings a different kind of seasonal trouble to Greek and Balkan households. These names belong to distinct stories and should not be treated as one fairy species.

Heath and burial guardians: The Witte Wieven of the eastern Low Countries guard old mounds, help lost travellers and drive intruders from their mist-covered hollows.

Courts and wandering figures: Look to Seelie faeries for the behaviour of a court, and to the faun or Aegipan for classical goat-footed figures. The Queen of Hearts is a literary fantasy figure in this collection, not a historical folk spirit.

Beyond European traditions: The Biloko comes from Central African forest traditions. The Tunche belongs to the Peruvian Amazon, where its whistle warns of a troubling forest presence. Their inclusion under the game’s fey rules does not mean the source traditions described them as European-style fairies.

Campaign-created fey: Butterfae and Qasogonaga offer different magical forest and sky encounters. Treat them as fantasy-game creations unless a particular entry supplies a verifiable historical source.

For the rules behind bonds, courts and dealings with mortals, continue to the references below. Each creature entry provides its own abilities and encounter guidance.

Fey Bonds and What They Change

Not every fey has the same bond. A dryad may live or die with her tree, while a satyr can wander without such a tie. The huli jing comes from Chinese fox-spirit traditions; placing it in a fantasy game’s fey category does not make its source folklore obey the same rules as a European tree spirit.

A realm-bound sovereign: In parts of Ladinion, an archfey’s fate may be inseparable from a season or the land it rules. If the Lord of Summer falls, that particular realm might lose its summer until a successor takes the mantle. This is a powerful campaign event, not a universal rule for every forest or fey court.

A local guardian: A marsh watched over by fey may suffer drought, ruined fishing or changes in its wildlife when the guardians disappear. The marsh still exists, but the people who depend on it have an urgent reason to find out what happened. An Autumn sovereign might similarly leave their domain vulnerable to unseasonable storms without preventing autumn everywhere.

A supernatural influence: Elsewhere the mountain remains a mountain if its oread departs; what disappears is the blessing, protection or danger associated with her. Even areas of Ladinion controlled by Fomorians or linnorms can persist without fey stewardship. Decide what a particular bond actually changes before making it the stake of an adventure.

Fey Creature-Type Rules — Pathfinder 1e and D&D 3.5e

The following Hit Die, base attack, saves and skill rules come from the legacy d20 creature-type framework. They are not D&D 2024 or D&D 2014 rules. For those editions, use each creature’s own stat block instead of importing these mechanics.

A fey has the following features.

d6 Hit Die.
Base attack bonus equal to 1/2 total Hit Dice (slow progression).
Good Reflex and Will Saves.

Skill points equal to 6 + Intelligence modifier (minimum 1) per Hit Die. The following are class skills for fey: Acrobatics, Bluff, Climb, Craft, Diplomacy, Disguise, Escape Artist, Fly, Knowledge (geography), Knowledge (local), Knowledge (nature), Perception, Perform, Sense Motive, Sleight of Hand, Stealth, Swim, Use Magic Device.

Traits: A fey possesses the following traits (unless otherwise noted in a creature’s entry).

Low-Light Vision.
Proficient with all simple weapons and any weapons mentioned in its entry.
Proficient with whatever type of armor (light, medium, or heavy) it is described as wearing, as well as all lighter types. Fey not indicated as wearing armor are not proficient with armor. Fey are proficient with shields if they are proficient with any form of armor.
Fey breathe, eat, and sleep.

Fey do not share a single culture, ruler or set of obligations. A Seelie court, a Scottish water-horse and a forest being from Central African storytelling have different histories and expectations. Within Ladinion, particular courts and local spirits may be bound to a sovereign, a season or a place; elsewhere, a fey might owe no allegiance at all. Use each creature’s own entry to establish its relationships rather than assuming that the game category describes a single people.

Not every fey court rules from a throne. In the winter lands of Baba Yaga, the White Rider, Red Rider and Black Rider embody the turning of day, sun and night—and make potent messengers or threats when a party crosses the wrong boundary. Smaller dangers may be harder to notice: a mora can pass for a pale butterfly until it lands on a victim and steals their breath.