myriad discussions

The Wild Hunt

Taken from my previous post, here's the summary :

The Wild Hunt - a group of fierce fighting riders who are not aligned with any court or kingdom in the absence of a High King. Despite the long lack of such a king, they have maintained a strict discipline upon themselves.

I'll now flesh this out further, examining a little bit the 'historic' role of the Hunt as well as how I see this existing on the grid (and the characters most overtly affected by this).

K.M. Briggs' 'The Encyclopedia of Fairies' defines the Wild Hunt as follows :

One name given to the Gabriel Ratchets, to the Devil's Dandy Dogs, the Sluagh or 'The Host' and other soul-ravening hunts. Some of these, like the Gabriel Ratchets and the Host, are supposed to fly through the air, others, like the Devil's Dandy Dogs and the Wild Hunt, course along the ground, or only just above it. It was presumably the Wild Hunt that was described in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle of 1127, quoted by Brian Branston in The Lost Gods of England:

The Wild Hunt has been long lived. In the 1940s it was said to be heard going through West Coker near Taunton on Hallow's E'en at night.

It's a concept which has recurred in other mythologies as well, though predominantly seems to be used on the British Isles, taken over and demonized by Catholicism as usual. However, that said, it's one of the concepts which didn't need a lot of twisting to be demonized; I'm going to go into what I perceive the 'actual' Hunt and its role to be on Myriad.

The Hunt traditionally existed in a punishment role, riding after a given quarry either to mete out justice and vengeance or for sport. The quarry would be chased for a variable amount of time; if the quarry were captured, either they would be killed horribly or their souls stolen or both. The role is that of the merciless, unbribable foe who cannot be placated.

The variable amount of time is debatable. Mythologically speaking it's been usually one of the following :

* from dusk until the following dawn
* three days and nights
* a fortnight
* a month
* until their quarry is captured

Traditionally, the Wild Hunt either hunts for sport or at the behest of their master, which controls them through an ivory horn. If bound to the horn, they will answer only to the horn and the person wielding it, leading to significant trouble if the horn should fall out of a person's hands into their enemy's (similar to djinn stories).

For Myriad's purposes, the Wild Hunt is essentially a tool of justice and vengeance. When set on a target, they harry that target in full pursuit until that target is either caught or they are called off by external pressures. If their quarry is captured, he or she is cornered, then torn or hacked to bits. Some trophy is kept of the kill as proof, both for the Hunt's purposes and to handle any remaining political issues relating to the target.

New members of the Hunt are chosen by the Hunt when and if a Hunter is slain. There is a permanent maximum of 50, but this number has dwindled to as little as 20 in times of exceptional strife and hardship. Current to Myriad timeline, there should be about 30; there are members under consideration, but they have not moved to extend invitations yet. The Hunt is slow to swell its ranks, as membership is quite literally for life.

The only one who can formally invoke the Hunt against a foe is the High King. There has not been a High King for some time (easily a thousand years), and as such, the Hunt has had to form its own internal rules for how to fulfill their nature and keep some semblance of normality during what they refer to as the Splintered Era.

Members of the Wild Hunt owe their first and primary allegiance to the Hunt itself, then to each other as blood brothers, and lastly to their families and friends and loved ones. They operate in many senses as an elite mercenary company, and when the Hunt is not convened, many do take contracts as mercenaries. They do not join as courtiers, nor do they affiliate themselves politically; as their primary role is to serve the twin-edged sword of Justice and Vengeance, the only politics in which they may affiliate themselves with relate to either family members or the Hunt's existence itself.

The Hunt may be convened by any landed nobility or king or queen, though until the return of the High King, they may choose to accept or refuse. Each case is weighed upon the evidence, and if the Hunt comes to the conclusion that the case is false, may choose to hunt the people calling the Hunt down in the first place. This tends to minimize framing, and helps to ensure that the Wild Hunt is not invoked lightly or casually.

The Oak King does hold some sway with the Wild Hunt; his portfolio, as it were, does include the chase and the hunt, and as such he is the only one apart from the High King who can directly address the entire Wild Hunt in assembly. All others must send a request for an emissary to come to the appropriate court or the like. The Oak King is the only non-member of the Hunt, apart from the High King, with whom is entrusted the Hunt's full list of members and the location of their halls. Only the High King knows additionally the location of the Hunt's boltholes.

Potential members are selected based upon skill and personality, and typically, a lack of personal encumbrance or baggage. They must be skilled riders, trackers, fighters; they must not have other roles which would interfere with their being part of the Hunt; they must not have crippling derangements or similar interrupting factors. Someone who is expected to run a fiefdom cannot be expected to be impartial on all matters, nor to give their full attention to the Hunt's demands.

At any given time, there are ten members of the Wild Hunt who are publically known. Others may choose to be known if they wish, but it is not compulsory to be known; there are also always at least three members for whom it is compulsory that they NOT be known to be members of the Wild Hunt, as a protection to allow someone to escape to rebuild the Hunt if need be, and to keep an eye and ear out for anything which might threaten the group. As being a member holds a certain cachet and helps get one hired when working as a mercenary, a good number usually do allow it to be known.

Members of the Wild Hunt are characterized typically by having very little overt interest in politics while actually keeping very close tabs on things. They're usually fairly casual, giving a combination of casual respect and cheerful scorn to the nobility and royalty. While they do talk among themselves of their opinions of the nobility and royalty, outside of their own number they rarely discuss their opinions - though will sometimes give character assessments if asked.

There are always three to five Hunt leaders. These take the point and flank positions during the chase and during group exercises, and who handle any internal issues. They decide who in the Hunt will go to answer a call, though it usually boils down to 'who is a public member who's closest to the appropriate area'.

When the Wild Hunt is set after a quarry, they chase that person down regardless of where they go. If they attempt to take shelter in a building, they wait until the person leaves again. It is rare for people to knowingly give a fugitive sanctuary, as noone wants to confront the Hunt. The Wild Hunt will only back off of a quarry if the person who has set them after their target calls them off, if the quarry is dead, if the High King countermands the order, or if something else comes up which the Hunt considers more pressing (rare).

Usually, the Hunt will deliberately avoid catching its prey too soon, instead holding back to prolong the chase. The purpose is to inflict punishment by making the prey run longer. When the Wild Hunt has captured their prey (assuming the prey doesn't drop dead of exhaustion), the quarry is hacked to death with sharpened weapons. A trophy is typically kept as proof of the kill, both for the employer's benefit and for the Wild Hunt's halls.

While personal relationships are not forbidden to the members of the Hunt, many do eschew marriage, preferring not to drag potential conflicting politics into their lives. There are no rules, however, against relationships of any sort provided they do not compromise the Hunter's loyalty to the Hunt.

Characters in the Wild Hunt

Mad Peter - currently, he's the only one definitely defined as being in the Hunt. Whether or not he is one of the leaders of the Hunt is open to debate.

Characters with ties to the Wild Hunt

Davydd - as former Oak King and future High King, he has plenty of links to the Wild Hunt. Whether or not he's used those links in the past is open to discussion.

Rhodri - it's unlikely he knows the members of the Wild Hunt presently, though he will be gaining strong ties to them when he is coronated. He shares a certain affinity with them, considering his Highwayman (Road Warrior, ha) past and nature, and he is about to become the Oak King, which only increases that, I think.

Huw - Huw may well have a position within the Hunt; he might not. Either way, he certainly is on good terms with Peter, and shares the general disinclination to be bound to titles and politics.

I have some more ideas, but I think this is enough. *laugh* Write what you think and what ought to maybe be added or changed and so on.