I'm seeing a lot of speculation about the "six common types" of Snowland Fae that Linnea mentions, but I think it's too early to call what the actual categories will be based on what we currently know. The issue is that--because "sub-categories" have already been introduced with the three different types of Volkodlak--we have no idea whether any given fae we currently know about falls under a main category or a sub-category.
Currently, in terms of "major" categories, we know only one for certain: the Volkodlak.
The Volkodlak
Blood-drinking animal shifters. They come in three varieties (at least that we've seen so far!): wolf, bull, and bear. It's unclear if they have a specific elemental alignment. It's likely they qualify as one of the "six common types" of fae because they cover multiple sub-categories already, and clearly had a large group of different clans/tribes under their banner.
The readable "A Brief History of the Pale Starborn" mentions several other possible types of fae, but each is complicated by a lack of detail:
The Vila
The readable states that this group of fae had many different fiefs, indicating there is likely a large collection of them. This lends itself to the idea that "the Vila" qualify as one of the "six common types," though we still can't confirm that currently. Vila are traditionally nature spirits associated with air; however, there's a lot of variety in Vila legends, with them sometimes being benevolent and sometimes violent. They also have connections to nature and woodland areas, so there could be a connection to dendro? Harry Potter fans will recognize the "Veela."
The Domovoy
Mentioned only very briefly in the readable, with one character (Grand Duke Alvis). The way this is stated, though, suggests there is a whole group of Domovoy, ruled over by one grand duke. This lends some support to the idea that "Domovoy" may be one of the six common categories of fae, though again, we don't have enough info to confirm currently. Domovoy are household spirits who in-dwell objects in human homes to serve as family guardians. They're associated with the element of earth through the creation of clay golems.
The Nixie/Waterborn
Water imps or spirits. Whether they count as one of the "common" types of fae is complicated by the historical situation in the readable--Miscislav was a Volkodlak but had control over the fiefdoms of the Vila. The Waterborn were already aligned with Miscislav from the start of the readable, so we have no way of confirming whether Nixie/Waterborn count as their own separate group or whether they were considered a sub-category of one of the other groups (Volkodlak or Vila, etc.).
The Aarnivalkea
Flins's type of fae. These are will-o-wisps or sentient flames, obviously elementally aligned to fire/pyro. We have no way right now of knowing whether they count as one of the six major categories or if they're a "sub-type" of another category. (For example, if Domovoy inhabit household items to guard human families, would a fae inhabiting a lantern to guide humans fall under that category?) I'm inclined to think the Aarnivalkea are a separate type, but there is a lot of overlap in folklore!
What's Up With the Elements?
Linnea's drip marketing makes a big deal out of aligning the six common types of fae with the seven nations of Teyvat and the seven hues of the rainbow, which, thanks to Natlan, we know is a reference to the power of the Light Realm/Phlogistion splitting into the seven elements.
This suggests to me that the "six common types" of fae probably have at least some sort of alignment to six of the seven elements of Teyvat, with one element missing--possibly for plot-related reasons. It wouldn't really make much sense to bring up the seven elements in conjunction with the six types of fae if there wasn't some connection there, right?
If Waterborn cover hydro, Aarnivalkea cover pyro, Domovoy cover geo, and Vila cover anemo, that leaves us with cryo, dendro, and electro.
Theoretically, the Belyi Tsar was from the type of fae aligned to cryo. There's overlap with the Tsar and the Tsaritsa to the Morozko and Snegurochka legends, but (also theoretically) those are completely different characters from a completely different part of Genshin's history, so rather than the Belyi Tsar being Ded Moroz himself, there should be a general type of fae that are aligned with cryo, for whom we're currently just missing the group name.
Complicating this is the Belyi Tsar's claim that he came from a "sacred bloodline" that made him different/better than other fae. The readable suggests this is just propaganda, but we have no way of knowing right now. If the Belyi Tsar's bloodline really was unique, it may actually be that cryo is the element not included in the "six common types" of fae. (There's a tiny bit of evidence for this idea in the fact that Miscislav's armies were defeated by an "unexpected icy fog," with the readable clearly stating that no one knew where the icy fog came from. This suggests that none of Miscislav's forces were expecting/knew of a fae who could control snow or ice...)
Anyway, cryo should be covered by whatever the Belyi Tsar was. That just leaves us with dendro and electro. It's unclear what (if any) element the Volkodlak might have been associated with (although they were all animals, so I guess there's at least some nature connection?), so it's difficult to say whether they fit the bill for either dendro or electro currently, and which (if either) element is missing and for what reason one element is missing from the fae.
We just don't have enough info yet. Linnea's character stories and voicelines, we are all counting on you!
But What About Changelings?
Linnea's drip marketing suggests she might count among another group called "Changelings"; however, I'm hesitant to suggest that "Changeling" is a specific type of fae in and of itself without the game giving us more evidence of that.
As I mentioned in the last post, in real world folklore, Changelings aren't one specific type of supernatural creature, but the umbrella name applied to a wide variety of fae who disguise themselves (or their own children) as human children, then swap out the actual human child, allowing themselves (or their fae children) to instead be raised by humans. Changelings can come from any variety of fae--this term applies just to the act of "changing out" a human child for a fae.
Linnea's drip marketing might hint that she experienced this herself:
But again, even the idea that she may have been raised by/among humans hasn't been confirmed.
I know others have suggested that Filipov, the fae who's best known for shapeshifting, might be a "Changeling," but I think it's just the case that many different types of fae can shapeshift, and Filipov just happens to be super good at it. I don't think the current lore out there is enough to say he belongs to any specific type of fae yet, given that being able to change forms is a key feature we've heard about in numerous types of fae already. Filipov is also a "let's wait and see" from me!
Wahhhhh, I want Linnea's voicelines now! Give me the forbidden fairy lore, girl, please!
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There are worlds that open if you look at them the right way. Enough to take a glimpse inside. The world of the Fae is one of them.
It offers no warmth. It gives no explanations. It makes no promises. And yet, if you stand at the edge, quiet and attentive, you may feel it: a shift in the air, a sense that something ancient is watching, measuring, deciding whether you are worth noticing.
This is a world you do not enter to take!
That is the first and most important truth.
You cannot approach the Fae with hunger. No wish to gain beauty, power, knowledge, or transformation. The moment you reach, you have already offered something in return, whether you meant to or not. In their world, desire is a term.
And terms are binding.
The Fae move beyond human deception. They have no need for it… They speak precisely, and they listen even more precisely. Every word matters. A name becomes a thread that can be followed. A gift forms a structure of exchange. A simple acceptance, a careless “anything,” a moment of curiosity without restraint—these are openings. And once opened, they do not close easily.
There are rules, if you want to stand near that threshold without losing yourself.
* Do not give your full name.
* Do not accept what you cannot immediately balance.
* Do not eat or drink what is offered.
* Do not step where you do not understand the boundary.
* Do not agree quickly.
* Do not exaggerate what you are willing to give.
The danger of the Fae lives in permission.
They allow you to participate. To step closer. To say yes. And once you do, the world rearranges itself around that agreement, perfectly and without mercy.
And still, the invitation remains. The Fae are something you need not turn away from completely. They are the shape of a deeper kind of beauty. One that carries edges, consequence, precision. They belong to a world where everything has weight, where nothing is casual, where presence matters. If you are drawn to that, you are not wrong… But you must approach differently. Not as a seeker, or a supplicant. Not as someone hoping to be changed by them.
You stand at the edge as yourself. Observing. Learning the patterns. Respecting the boundaries.
And in doing so, something interesting happens.
You begin to carry that same quality within your own world. The precision, the restraint, the quiet power. The sense that words matter, that actions shape reality, that beauty does not need to beg to be seen.
That is the true gift of the Fae. Not what they “give you.” But what they force you to become, if you refuse to be taken.
Okay I was chatting with a partner about Robbery and the parents discussing/arguing about V’s species and
The idea of him being a nymph (born adolescent, from a tree) makes so much sense but is that mutually exclusive with being gentry? Cuz like Io’s former grove has a gentry matriarch and wouldn’t that gentry also be a nymph? Or something related?
I’m having so much fun digging my teeth into this worldbuilding like I’m about to start drawing diagrams
Gentry typically do not normally spawn in the way in Virgil, Linda and Durant do, or the way Collie and Mimi do in Seedlings. what's usually happening when a fae spontaneously arises like this is that the surrounding ambient magic has become so dense in that spot that it coalesces into a fae
Gentry are so powerful, even as children, that its very hard for enough of this magic to coalesce to spawn one. not impossible, but very rare. Mother is able to create powerful children herself, so its not quite the same thing thats happening to spawned children.
Gentry are one of the few fae that can mostly only reproduce through tab a slot b sexual reproduction, and gentry with periods only have them 1-2 times a year (every 28-30 weeks)
Kissa is Gentry, but her spouse Ama was a nymph, so half their children are gentry who were born by Kissa and the other half are nymphs spawned by proximity. then the next generation spawns more and more nymph proximity children, while the gentry reproduce much slower, so Io and Briar's generation (Briar is Kissa and Ama's great granddaughter) is mostly nymphs
As for whether Virgil is Gentry or a Pooka or a Nymph or a Ghoul or a Whatever well, the answer may be significantly more complicated than any of those. Mother predates those sorts of hard divides between different kinds of fae, and she's not interested in conforming to them when she builds a child aksjdhakh
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For Pride Month the Department of Monster Affairs will cover some examples of queer monster culture. Thank you all for helping us decide which monsters you were most interested in.
A reminder that queerness is a social construct in human culture, and this is true of monster culture as well. What humans consider queer may not be queer among monsters and vice versa.
Faeries, more commonly known as elves, are a species of being that seemingly have a dual nature to them. Being a monster closely aligned with nature perhaps this is a given - nature both gives a bounty but takes harshly as well. That being said the elves are capricious when interacting with mortal species, especially when they are in their homeland with their powers unbound.Â
The reason this is important is because it can be hard for humans to understand the logic and culture of faeries due to their chaotic nature. It is even more difficult for humans to observe pure elven culture if they are not trapped by the fae - a position that rarely allows them to communicate with the outside world. However, because faeries have the habit of binding their power to walk among the mortals, interviews with these elves have revealed more about their culture and their ideas of queerness.
Being creatures highly aligned with nature, elves understand that sexual and romantic attraction to those of the opposite sex, same sex, and other sexes are perfectly natural. In fact, faeries seem not to actually not consider sex or gender when finding someone sexually or romantically attractive. What elves seem to think is the most attractive is also what they find interesting, entrancing, or amusing. Examples of this attraction would be someone’s laugh, a person’s skill at weaving, if someone helped an injured bird, or just because the person wandered into their garden. For clarity, just because an elf finds someone interesting, entrancing, or amusing it does not guarantee they will be sexually or romantically attracted to them.
This difference in attraction style highlights the first part of queerness for Faeries - those that are attracted to someone for no reason. Elves can precisely name why they are attracted to someone - and often do so very poetically - therefore, to be unable to name a reason would be considered queer. As humans often can have difficulty naming why they love or are attracted to someone this idea can be difficult for us to understand but this is true of many things about faeries.
Additionally, elves are creatures of extreme emotional responses. When they find something that catches their interest they obsess over it and this is true of their sexual and romantic partners as well. This also means that one-night stands or casual affairs are extremely rare among faeries. So, elves that do not obsess over their partners or have casual sex would be a form of queerness.Â
Even though faeries have this obsessive tendency they are also creatures that get bored relatively quickly - relative to the sense of time of an elf which to humans would be several decades. A faery becoming bored when there is someone they are attracted to does not necessarily mean they are no longer attracted to that individual. What it means is that the faery will seek out or find another person that interests them.Â
Therefore, polyamory is extremely common, and in fact expected, among the faeries. All but young elves have fairly complicated polycules that they are a part of. These will include other faeries, a variety of monsters, and humans. Thus a faery that is monogamous would be considered queer to the elves. The idea of marriage among elves does exist but this is something that is done for purely political or theatrical reasons. If a faery promises to love their partner forever, that vow will be kept even if the love interest dies, however, that vow does not exclude the faery having other partners. As always with the fae, language is very important.
Regarding cultural ideas of gender, faeries have a bi-modal sense of gender. While they may lean towards human concepts of femininity, elves have social differences between men and women in their society. While most elves identify as either a man or a woman they do not stigmatize against other gender identifications or transgender individuals. Just as with sexuality elves view gender nonconformity and transness as simply a part of nature.Â
It should be noted for this entry that this does describe faeries living among their own people with their power unbound. The vast majority of elves that humans will encounter have their powers bound to walk within mortal society. When faeries are living with humans, or other species, they tend to take on a lot of that society’s social norms because they view it as a game or type of theatre. While elves still hold on to their cultural values, it does mean that their behavior may differ than described here.
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Went to a Japanese Tea Garden yesterday and it was so breathtakingly beautiful and majestic. My mind started to wander as I was looking around and I couldn’t help but imagine how many monsters would be scurrying about if they were real.
Little fairies playing in the plants and playing amusing tricks on the people that pass by. Lighting up the sky once it gets darks and makes the garden look even more lovely.
Trolls hiding under all the bridges and just waiting to squirm out and force the visitors to answer their riddles if they wish to continue over the bridge.
Water dragons gliding through the shimmering waters of the garden. A protective monster who looks out for the wellbeing of the garden and wants to keep it looking pretty. May splash some water in your face if it’s feeling playful.
All sorts of forest entity monsters from all walks of life. Drawn in by the garden’s beauty and the people who come there to see it.
A mix of monsters where even if they don’t always get along there’s a peaceful sense of harmony within the space.
