Ghouls

Demons of Worg, the loathsome ghouls crawl forth from the Caverns of Madness to devour the world in the name of their master. In their true forms, ghouls appear as hideous, rotting cadavers, with huge, black teeth. But few see a ghoul’s real face until it is too late. Masters of illusion, ghouls can alter their appearance with little effort, taking on innocent or beauteous shape as they please. They can mask all that is awful about themselves, slipping into towns and cities and dwelling among the populace. Those bitten by a ghoul develop a severe fever that, after a few days, passes without trouble. But the infected becomes a ghoul spawn, in thrall to the ghoul and controlled through dreams and whispers. Ghouls can create whole covens of spawn, many of whom are unaware their ‘dream visitor’ is directing their actions. Ghouls seek to corrupt, to decay, and to drag the world into the rotting stink of Worg’s foul warrens. A ghoul’s greatest foe is sunlight, which causes them to rot. Hila, lord of the sun, despises ghouls as the minions of Worg, who invaded and infected the body of his child Anyu, the Earth Dragon. Thus, ghouls must remain in the shadows, puppeteering their spawn and eating away at the heart of the communities they infiltrate. Alas, ghouls often escape detection, and it is their spawn, identified by witch hunters and the like, who are punished as scapegoats. The ‘ghoul poxed’ are not always obvious, though prolonged contact with their masters can twist even the most benign soul, turning the spawn into a filthy, feral thing that eats offal and vermin. Some spawn come to revere their masters, wishing to be made into immortal beings like them. Many spawn are simply dupes, tools to be used and discarded in a ghoul’s quest for decay. Piteous indeed is the poxed individual dragged wailing to the bonfire, calling out for their ‘dream lover’s’ succor. So, beware the handsome man or fair woman who walks only at night. Beware the smiler in the dark.  
Category:Demons
Category:Spirits