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Demons



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Fri Jul 15, 2011 9:57 am
springs616 says...



Okay, so I have a story in mind, and it's roughly worked out, but the antagonistic creatures against which my characters are working are still a little fuzzy to me. I know I can always use creative license on these creatures, but I would like them to be at least mildly based off of something that was once believed. I was envisioning some sort of demon, but I don't know enough about various religions and demon myths to have any idea of where to even start, and I was hoping that someone would be able to point me in the right direction.

In the story, these demons pose as fairies or some other, similar magic creature to strike a deal with some humans. They have the ability to change the physical features of humans and can mess around with their lifespan (specifically to elongate it). They also have the ability to possess humans (although in my story, the demons don't really have the ability to affect possessed humans until the human's adulthood). They get power or something else essential from causing a human pain. They also have to be sexually compatible with a human (as in, capable of having a demon/human hybrid baby). In addition, there needs to be some way to exercise a demon from a possessed person, and this exorcism should be able to work on multiple possessed humans simultaneously. I would rather not have my characters spouting Bible verses throughout my story, as they are a variety of religions, so a non-religious exorcism is preferred, if such a thing even exists (as I said, I'll probably need to use some creative license on this).

Does anyone know of any creatures that fit this description at all, or any sort of myths that would help me refine these creatures? Thanks!
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Fri Jul 15, 2011 10:34 am
SubjectBlue says...



I'd go for Celtic fairies, they seem to feet right.
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Fri Jul 15, 2011 2:11 pm
Rosendorn says...



Dinji are probably another good bet, especially in the "strike a deal with humans" part. Another name for Dinji is genie, after all.

I'd also look into various Native American myths, including Central and South American legends. While they didn't have "demons" persay, they did have evil spirits and non-religious forms of casting the spirits out.
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Fri Jul 15, 2011 2:15 pm
SubjectBlue says...



I'm not trying to argue with you, but I don't think a genie would fit, as it's just the Islamic version of a demon, just not evil.
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Fri Jul 15, 2011 3:44 pm
Rosendorn says...



Dinji and genies are considered separates myths in some cases. One myth I've read said the head Dinji was Satan. Others say Dinji were born of Lilith, Adam's first wife who became a demon.

So it really depends on what you read.
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Fri Jul 15, 2011 3:48 pm
SubjectBlue says...



No, the leader of the genies is Satan, but on the Islam he is considered anti-human but not evil.
That's from the Koran.
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Sat Jul 16, 2011 2:18 am
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Dethl says...



Shinigamis from Japanese folk can be a good base for your creatures. A Shinigami is a Japanese Death God, Part of their abilities is the fact that they can mess around with human lives as they please, they also have the ability to decide who dies and who doesn't (mess around with their lifespan) and even can have an human form. Another interesting fact is that they aren't always evil, since some can be neutral or even good. BTW they feed of human souls.
A good thing is that they have rarely been used in Japanese folklore so their aren't attached only to certain abilities or any specific look, that way you can mess around with them as you please.
  





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Sat Aug 20, 2011 1:50 am
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Cspr says...



I suggest 'generally' basing your creations on certain myths--but not following them to a t. That can get boring. I mean, it's cool when you have a certain creature in mind, but culture is full of change. Tolkien's elves? Supposedly based off of fallen angels. Yet, are they angels? No, they are not.

Maybe you can use a similar name or such, but even picking a new moniker might be fun.

Of course, I don't really know. I tend to base my critters off of vague myths, or use less common myths (aswangs and berserkers) to make things more interesting. Doing that might be cool to. (I also base my critters off of nightmare objects--the dumars in the Coh and Mirabella series specifically are from night terrors I had as a kid.)

So, uh, to the point: If you name an existing creature, you stand a bigger chance of mucking it up. Morder in the same series above is considered a demon or devil. He possesses objects and drives people insane, bending them to his will. Yet, he isn't a fallen angel--he's a giant serpent that lives in a cave in the cold north. He's more comparable to the devil's form in Eden, a snake, than the reddish, horned, cloven footed, and trident-tail devil of today's eye. In that way, and giving a name to him--Morder, murder in German--I was able to own him.

But, yeah, I'm going to stop it here because I doubt I'm being too clear. I have a cold and am just trying not to fall asleep quite yet by staring at a bright computer screen.

In general? Feel free to be expressive. Make your own lore. Also, an idea? 'Demon' is a human word. Maybe these things have a name for themselves, something that sets them apart from human myth?
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