A Year & A Day: Grugach

Changeling: the Dreaming

Homebrew Rules

Character Creation Guide Download: Grugach.pdf

Quoth the Grugach:

“See that Billy-goat over there? His names Buck-Buck. Tonight, when Farmer Ian goes to bed? I’m going to crash him through a fence, it’s gonna be awesome.”

Kith Excerpt:

A wild and frenzied Crimbil (Kith) of the wild, the Grugach are also considered the most dangerous. This isn’t due to their size, for the tribe is a small one, rarely over 5 feet tall, even in Mortal Mien. They aren’t dangerous because of their battle prowess, for the Grugach rarely engage in battle, and avoid skirmishes if at all possible. They aren’t dangerous for their skull-duggery either. Though they are tricksier than most of the Celtic Fae. In fact, they could care less about outwitting anyone, especially mortals. The Grugachs are dangerous because they don’t care. If someone should be hurt by a Grugach, then most times the Grugach’s would only laugh at their discomfort.

While not exactly Plant Annwn (Unseelie), the Wild Ones care only for the fun they can have on moonlit moors, or fields filled with sheep. They see a herd or cows, or a flock of ewes, even a pen of hens, and they “Borrow” the Animal for the evening. They ride the animal to the point of exhaustion. Some even attempt to do this to mortals who are out late at night on the moors. The Grugach will sneak up on the unsuspecting victim, launch himself up, and then ride the hapless mortal around and around. Broken limbs? Concussions? At least it was a fun ride.

Some wonder where this Plentyn Newid (Changeling)- truly came from. The Grugachs tell the truth or lie as they see fit. They aren’t Pookas despite their ties to the wild and ability to shapeshift. They aren’t related to the Boggans, despite their height. Their limbs are long, and their bodies thin and tight with cord-like muscles. Their appearance paints them as closer to the Sidhe, a shorter Sidhe to be sure, but a sort of wild-elf. Although, of course, no Sidhe would ever condone being so muddy and messy. Some feel that the Grugach is some sort of “Lost-Boy” Fae that was separated from the Sidhe before their mass exodus. Scholars could try to explore this but getting any answers from a Grugach just aren’t worth the headaches.

Flavor

“In front of the house were lush, high meadows filled with sheep, the lambs plump from their mother’s grass-rich milk. Their creamy little shapes bright and clean against the background of pea green.” ― Paula Brackston, Lamp Black, Wolf Grey