Tales Surrounding Vodyanoy

The Vodyanoy is a creature of whim and it would be a mistake

to underestimate how cruel it can be. The waters and all that

are within them, are controlled by it and if you are unfortunate

enough to come across this creature on a bad day, well it will

not end well for you.

When the Vodyanoy feel full of good spirits, it will provide for

the people, chasing fish into the nets of the fisherfolk and

guiding the boats to safe harbour in the worst of storms. But

should you come across the Vodyanoy when its spirits are ill, it

is most likely to lure the boats into the eye of the storm itself

and smirk as men meet their end. It will destroy the very mills

it lives under, if the miller has not provided a sacrifice for the

Vodyanoy, be that a farm animal or a man. It makes no

difference, but a sacrifice must be paid before a mill can be

constructed.

People are advised on many occasions not to bathe in the river,

either at midday or at midnight as to do so will anger the

Vodyanoy and I will be dragged to the depths and drowned.

Not a fate I wish to meet.

The Vodyanoy is a creature who delights in the baser human

pastimes and, in human form, can often be found drinking,

gambling at the card tables, or spending time with women of

ill-repute. I have not been able to confirm this as I have not

frequented places such as these, but it may require further

study.

One day a fisherman was sitting in his boat, smoking his pipe

and enjoying the day when he saw a corpse floating

downstream towards him. He did what any God-fearing man

would do and pulled the poor, unfortunate individual from the

water. However, the corpse was not a corpse and once the man

pulled it from the water, it came alive and shrieked in the man’s

face. The corpse was actually a Vodyanoy who was having fun

at the fisherman’s expense.

On shore horses were grazing, too near to the water to avoid

the Vodyanoy and leaping onto the back of the horse, the

Vodyanoy rode away as fast as the horse could run until it

collapsed and died from exhaustion. The Vodyanoy will come

back and repeat this for every horse in the herd until they are

all dead.