01 Of 05 - Modern Compendium: Deity Family, Part 3 - Deity May Queen

01 of 05 - Modern Compendium: Deity Family, Part 3 - Deity May Queen

The May Queen is a demon that shows the difference between what the basis of a myth actually is, and what people think it is. In modern times, the May Queen is a young woman elected to preside over May Day celebrations, to walk at the head of the parade and open the holiday dances. Historically, the May Queen is related to ancient tree worship, as this figure is closely connected with Maypoles, and the celebration of the return of spring. She wears a white dress to symbolize purity, and flowers in her hair to celebrate the renewal and rebirth of nature.

However, the May Queen is a myth whose historical fact has been largely overtaken by popular folklore. There is a popular and persistant urban legend that, somewhere in the murky depths of time, the May Queen was actually a sacrifice in waiting. Supposedly the people of English villages would select a young woman, give her all the best that they had to offer, and then, after May Day had passed, sacrifice her to some vicious pagan god. No doubt bloody stone altars and obsidian knives were involved.

However, and this is important to note, there is no evidence that I can find to actually back up the idea that this was ever done. As far as I can tell, someone somewhere just thought it sounded like a neat thing to tack on to the May Queen, and it stuck. Equally important is the fact that this gory and disturbing footnote to May Day is in fact very widely believed. No doubt the horror film The Wicker Man and its atrocious-bordering-on-comical 2006 remake are at least partially to blame, but whatever the cause, society at large has no trouble imagining a vicious start to this May Day tradition.

In any case, it is unfortunate for the May Queen that the version of any myth that matters for any practical purpose is the one that people actually believe in. And so the May Queen that gets into the Modern Compendium is the one with the disturbing backstory. The May Queen actually sits on the lower end of the Deity family, due in part to the dubious nature of belief in this version of her, but also because May Day celebrations aren’t hugely widespread outside of Europe and select parts of North America.

For more info on this and every other demon in the Modern Compendium, have a look at our Data File, right over (here).

05 of 05 - Modern Compendium: Kishin Family, Part 5 - Kishin Wanjiku

There really is nothing more revealing about a national identity than the figures and ideals they use to represent them. For example, when the United States of the 1950s saw Uncle Sam, they knew they were looking at a paternalistic figure, a figure of authority with just a hint of familial affection. So when the people of Kenya chose to refer to the common man in the street as Wanjiku, it represents an interesting insight into their national identity.

The name Wanjiku comes from the origin myths of the Agikuyu tribe, one of the largest ethnic groups in Kenya. They say that the first man and woman, known as Gikuyu and Mumbi, were created by God and had nine children. Wanjiku was one of these children, and later went on to found the Agikuyu tribe.

Interestingly, the practice of referring to the general public of Kenya as Wanjiku is a relatively recent thing. It seems that during a crisis, former president Daniel arap Moi dismissed calls for a new constitution by saying, “Do you think Wanjiku understands what is a constitution?” Which, frankly, makes the whole thing downright hysterical in my eyes. You have to have a wonderful little contrarian streak to take a name hurled at you as an insult and turn it into the personification of your country.

Though Wanjiku is quite popular in her home country, knowledge of this figure is in no way wide-spread. Because of this, she hovers around the middle of the Kishin family. She does have a nicely broad selection of skills to learn, though, so it’s not a total loss.

For more info on this and every other demon in the Modern Compendium, have a look at our ever expanding Data File, right over (here).

02 of 05 - Modern Compendium: Deity Family, Part 3 - Fallen Hybrid

Say hello to the first member of the Modern Compendium’s Fallen family! In Shin Megami Tensei games, the Fallen family is populated by angels that sided with Lucifer during his rebellion against and subsequent fall from Heaven. They are sort of the Chaos aligned equivalent of the Divine family, which is full of loyal, Law-based angels. In the Modern Compendium, the Divines are benevolent aliens from the mythology of UFO religions, and so the Fallen family shifts, too, becoming a family full of antagonistic aliens. 

The stories around UFOs and aliens represent one of the richest veins of mythology in the modern mind, and one of the more popular tales people tell has to do with the Grey aliens. Often blamed for alien abductions, the Greys are said to perform elaborate and invasive procedures on the reproductive systems of the people they kidnap. These stories have led to theories that Greys are trying to create a race of Grey/Human hybrids, to infiltrate our culture and take over the world.

In fact, the actual purpose of this hybridization varies hugely depending on who is telling the story. Though many conspiracy theorists believe in the whole Greys-are-invading-our-genome-to-enslave-us idea, those who believe in more benevolent aliens tell stories of children with enhanced powers of empathy and kindness. This is best exemplified in this demon’s direct mirror in the Divine family - Indigo Children.

Anyway, I like to think the Hybrid would be roughly equivalent to Melchom or Orias; a low-level Fallen that serves as a common encounter in the early game. Although the Hybrid’s moveset kind of makes it closer to Gremlin, really.

For more info on this and every other demon in the Modern Compendium, have a look at our extensive and expanding Data File, right over (here).

05 of 05 - Modern Compendium: Deity Family, Part 2 - Femme Maria Makiling

A major figure in the folk mythology that surrounds Mount Makiling in the central Philippenes, Maria Makiling is what is known as a Diwata, nature spirits roughly analogous to a nymph or fairy. Maria herself has roots that go back to the native cultures that inhabited the islands of the Philippenes before the European invasions, but as far as we can tell, she has always been seen as a protector of the mountain and surrounding areas.

What I find fascinating about Maria Makiling is how little the modern world has changed her. People that live around Mount Makiling still report seeing a dark haired, dark skinned woman in white wandering the wilderness, aiding those who respect and revere nature, and cursing those who despoil it. She’s even said to confuse those who don’t clean up after their campfires and picnics, turning the forest into an inescapable maze until they tidy up after themselves.

As an eternally young woman who is constantly pursued, but who only allows those she deems worthy to find her, Maria Makiling is eminently suited to the Femme family. Her kind nature does make her a bit of an unusual figure in the normally very offensively-focused Femme family; she’s more interested in healing spells and a few status effects than in actually dealing damage.

For more info on as well as links to every demon in the Modern Compendium, have a look at our extensive Data File, right over (here).

03 of 05 - Modern Compendium: Deity Family, Part 3 - Jaki Jersey Devil

One of the few demons from the official Demonic Compendium to make its way into this project, the Jersey Devil is a shoe-in for the Modern Compendium. Modern America has thoroughly embraced this demon, to the point where there is actually a hockey team called the Jersey Devils. It is deeply ingrained in popular culture, sitting amongst such figures as Bigfoot and Nessie in the collective consciousness.

The myths around the Jersey Devil have a few significant permutations, but the basic story goes like this; In the mid-18th century, the Leeds family lived in the back woods of New Jersey. Mother Leeds gave birth to twelve healthy children, but by the 13th child, she was fed up. As the 13th was born, she shouted, “This one shall belong to the Devil!” The child transformed into a hideous monster, killed Mother Leeds and the midwife, and flew up the chimney and out into the night.

Some variations of the story cast Mother Leeds as a witch who slept with the Devil, while others tell stories of clergymen who exorcised the Jersey Devil, sealing it for hundreds of years. My favorite versions of this story are the ones that include random famous people from history, like the version of the Bell Witch myth that have her tormenting Andrew Jackson. The Jersey Devil is said to have shocked the brother of Napoleon Bonaparte, amongst others, which is just awesome.

These days, the Jersey Devil has been largely recast as a Cryptid, a real, but undiscovered, animal, rather than the spawn of Satan. Which is just another example of people using pseudoscience to fill the mythological gaps left in modern life by scientific advancement. It may seem silly for modern man to believe in a horse-headed, bat-winged demon living in the pine barrens of the East Coast, but an undiscovered six-limbed animal with no precedent in the fossil record? No problem.

At any rate, the Jersey Devil has always occupied a rather moderate place in the Demonic Compendium, and he returns to pretty much the same place here. He fits perfectly in the Jaki family, which in the Modern Compendium represents man-eating monsters who are tied to a specific place.

For more info on this and every other demon in the Modern Compendium, have a look at our extensive and expanding Data File, right over (here)!

01 of 05 - Modern Compendium: Kishin Family, Part 3 - Drake Nucker

The Nucker is a myth on the verge of extinction. See, a long time ago, people thought every stream and lake had its own attendant serpent, and the early Anglo-Saxon people called these critters Nicor. They were said to hide at the bottom of pools of water, guarding fabulous treasure. The beast evolved over time to become a general water serpent, known in modern times as the Nucker.

These days, the Nucker is actually kind of obscure. This actually struck me as kind of weird at first; after all, it seems like every pond and lake in modern times has become home to weird cryptid snake critters, or at least sightings of them. But it occurs to me that most serpents that have surfaced in the last hundred years or so have been named beasts, with a strong connection to the area around them. They serve as a strong identifier of local culture, which isn’t something a more general jack-of-all-trades serpent can do. After all, what kind of sign would a sideshow make for a Nucker? “Come see OUR Nucker, it’s cooler than the Nucker they’ve got over in the next town!”?

Incidentally, a little further back in etymological history the word “nicor” was the Anglo-Saxon word for both “water spirit” and, for some reason, “hippopotamus.”

The Nucker is one of the lowest-leveled demons in the Modern Compendium, and one of the first demons you’re likely to ever encounter. It’s a bulky demon for its level, and actually offers some nice recovery magic for the early game, making it a decent critter to chat up for low level players. It’s also one of the few demons with an evolution, which we’ll be covering later.

For more info on this and every other demon in the Modern Compendium, have a look at our Data File, right over (here).