#buggane

Buggane from Manx Folklore.

The Buggane, in Manx legend, is an bulky subterranean creature with features akin to those of a mole. It is said to be in bodily appearance similar to a hairy version of the Scandinavian troll, with glowing eyes and massive tusks. Bugganes, as magical creatures, can not cross running water or tread on hallowed ground. Occasionally, fairies may use Bugganes as a sort of hired muscle, having them punish people who have offended them.

A shapeshifter, the buggane is generally described as a malevolent being that can appear as a large black calf or human with ears or hooves of a horse. Another tale describes it as a huge man with bull's horns, glowing eyes, and large teeth.

The most famous tale tells of a buggane who unintentionally ended up on a ship heading to Ireland. He was determined to return to the Isle of Man, so he created a storm and directed the ship towards the rocky coast of Contrary Head. However, St. Trinian intervened after the captain promised to build a chapel in his honor. With the saint's guidance, the ship safely reached Peel Harbour. The buggane, furious, exclaimed, "St. Trinian should never have a whole church in Ellan Vannin." When they tried to build the chapel, the local people had to put a roof on it three times because the buggane kept tearing it off.

Despite its defeat, the roof was never replaced, and the roofless church can be visited to this day.

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Pic: Generated with AI

 Magic can be a source of great wonder, but also great malice and tragedy. Look no further than the foul magics of hags, their masculine skelm counterparts, and other wicked mystics for evidence of this.

Many do not survive such attentions, and those in their clutches may wish for death, especially if they are used for magical experimentation.

Some that do survive, however, gain a sort of sensitivity to magical auras, their old scars throbbing in the presence of magic, which proves a boon for those who seek to rid the world of such cruel magics and their practitioners. Some may be self-taught, while others might be recruited by goodly organizations and taught to hone their talents.

Regardless, these covenbane slayers are talented at punishing wicked spellcasters, particularly hags, witches, and other beings capable of forming covens.

 Using their ability to sense beings capable of magic, these slayers are exceptionally capable of tracking and recognizing hags, spellcasters, and other magical beings, even when their true nature is disguised.

Able to sense the bonds between foes, they also prove capable of reading the behavior of an entire coven of hags or witches just by studying one, making them effective against all three at once. Later on, this extends to other mystical bonds as well.

Additionally, they also train to isolate and disrupt cooperation among spellcasters, making it much more difficult for them to work together.

Later on, they can use their senses to notice invisible foes as well, an fight effectively against them even if they cannot see them.

Strong against spellcasters and magical beings, this archetype can be a fun antithesis against a coven of hags, without changing it so much that it becomes unviable against other foes. If this appeals to you, I’d recommend a build focused on defense and offense against casters, such as disrupting their casting, as well as keeping out of their sensory range to avoid magical reprisal.

 The most obvious character trait one can ascribe to these witch-hunters is their tendency to hate and fear not just evil magic, but most or even all magic. As antagonists they might seek to hunt down the party’s spellcasters under the assumption that they will inevitably use their powers for evil. As protagonists, they might let go of some of that hate as a way to achieve character growth, or they might not. Then again, they might be able to discern between benevolent magic and that which scarred them, even if they are never fully comfortable with it.

  Once a devoted witch hunter, Liac went rogue when his latest target was revealed to be a young changeling girl. Now, he’ll do anything to protect her, but will the party accept a contract to capture him and the girl, or will they help him bring down the callous organization.

 When people start disappearing near Hagfang Cave, many suspect that a new hag has taken residence in the cavern, drawn by the confluence of ley lines. However, in truth the culprit is a brutish buggane, a revelation that could cost the witch hunters delving within dearly unless warned in time.

Image by Ryan Best, accessed at his portfolio here

[Thanks to @inquisitorsirjohannvonfallbaer for finding the art source.

There is an official buggane in Pathfinder, but it bears less resemblance to the Manx folklore. I’ve used both versions, calling the Paizo one a “moldywarp”, after an old-fashioned name for moles.]

Buggane CR 6 NE Fey This hulking, shaggy creature resembles a great humanoid mole with a tusked snout and broad claws on its muscular forearms. Its beady eyes glow with orange light, and a great mane of black hair runs down its back.

Even unholy lands require guardians. The bugganes are the wardens of such unlovely and unloved locations as unconsecrated graveyards, the sites of human sacrifice and abandoned temples of evil deities. Nasty and peevish creatures, bugganes repel all intruders through a combination of trickery and physical violence. Natural shapeshifters, they use this talent in conjunction with their illusory abilities to pose as lost livestock or helpless travelers, the better to lure a victim into a vulnerable position. In combat, bugganes use their Spring Attack feat to its fullest, diving beneath the earth between strikes. Bugganes are such sore losers that they would rather die than be defeated, even in a contest of wits or skill instead of strength, and they are capable of killing themselves in an explosive display of spite by tearing off their head and throwing it like a missile.

Almost all bugganes are pure evil, and unholy energy saturates their very bodies. Although they cannot create undead, bugganes are often found alongside them; the undead attracted to or created by the unhallowed lands bugganes favor are conscripted by the wicked fey into joining the vigil. It is rumored that many bugganes were once more peaceful fey, such as dryads, nymphs or sprites, corrupted into their current monstrous forms by whatever magic ruined their land. Conversely, it may be possible to restore a buggane to its original body by ending the curse on their territory. If this is the case, however, no buggane has ever confirmed it. Tall and broad, bugganes stand over nine feet tall and weigh about half a ton.

Buggane Boons and Banes A buggane will occasionally befriend another evil creature that dwells in its desecrated land, and these allies receive its boon if they especially curry the selfish creature’s favor. Most bugganes simply kill and eat their defeated enemies rather than curse them, but they are crafty enough to try and trick those that attempt to negotiate them into accepting their bane.

Boon: You gain the desecrated strength quality of a buggane. This boon lasts for 1 day.

Bane: You no longer heal hit point damage naturally through rest, and positive energy heals half the normal amount when used on you. This bane is permanent until dispelled.