What's in a Wose?

[Darker_Dreams]

This thread is a place for continuing a conversation started here regarding the lore and history of the Wose. A place to philosophize on the nature of Woses, and question if they would smell as sweet were they to have another name.

as shown

The Woses are an ancient race of enigmatic tree-like creatures, almost never seen outside of the forests and rarely seen within them as well. This is mainly because of their close resemblance to trees, close enough to fool all outsiders except perhaps the most keen-eyed among the Elves. Yet they are not simply magically animated trees, but are rather beings of the faerie realm, dedicated to preserving the world's forests and natural wildlife. As such, they bear a strong dislike towards all beings who seek to alter or destroy the natural order, and will oppose any who try to harm their beloved forests, but remain passive and pacifistic towards those who do not. They may even aid the enemy of their enemies, and have been known to ally with the Elves and, very rarely, with friendly humans.

Woses are gifted with certain unique abilities; like Trolls, they are possessed of an incredible inherent vitality which constantly acts to heal their injuries and gives them tremendous strength. Additionally, their bodies are very similar to those of old, tall trees, being dense and resistant to piercing and bludgeoning force, but very vulnerable to fire. Being inherently magical creatures, like the Elves, Trolls and Drakes, they are also adversely affected by anything that disrupts the magical processes which sustain them. While most Woses are unable to actively channel their internal magic, there are a few exceptional individuals who are able to call upon nature to ensnare their foes in a manner similar to that of the Elvish Shamans, and some who are able to summon the beasts of the wild to their aid.

Little is known about the biology or life-cycles of Woses, except that they are extremely long-lived - possibly immortal. When they are not defending their forests or undoing past damages, they tend to remain dormant, nearly indistinguishable from the trees, basking in the sunlight and growing very gradually.

Geography:
Woses have been known to exist on the Great Continent for ages before the arrival of Haldric and the formation of Wesnoth, and are recorded to have existed on the Green Isle as well. While most Woses usually live within the bounds of their forests, an individual may now or then strike out alone, wandering the world for ages, sometimes settling down in one place for centuries, then inexplicably getting up and moving away again. They may sometimes be found aiding their fellow forest-dwellers, the Elves, but are independent and aloof of the greater Elven civilization.

Expanding

The Woses are an ancient and reclusive race who are tree-like in appearance. These enigmatic beings seldom venture outside of their home forests and even within their arboreal domains they are rarely seen unless they wish to be. This ability to pass unobserved can be best attributed to their close resemblance to the vegetation around them. The appearance of a stationary Wose is close enough to that of a tree to fool all but the most keen-eyed observers. However, Woses are not simply animate trees. They are, rather, close beings of faerie and close relatives to the Elves. The eldest Woses repeat tales told by their forerunners in which they were Elves once, describing a transformation much like that still seen in those who become Shyde.

Woses are deeply plantlike in their physical structure while their tie to faerie grants them a deep wellspring of life and growth. Their plantlike physique is their most obvious feature; granting them the ability to hide in woodlands and giving them a resistance to attacks which pierce or bludgeon their dense forms. The inner faerie nature is not insignificant. This font works throughout their life. A core that connects them to the life around them, drawing in the living energy of the forests they love before releasing it again, much as other creatures draw breath. This wellspring causes the Wose to grow unceasingly and heal wounds dealt at a prodigious rate. It is believed by some that as long as this font continues to function a Wose cannot die. Fire, however, is fed both by the woody structures in their body and the font of life within them, meaning such attacks easily cause deep wounds. Similarly this font of magic can be disrupted by anything which disrupts magic. Such things are intensely painful to these fae beings. In truth, any concentrated assault can cause enough damage to the form of the Wose to overwhelm their life force and cause it to gutter and die. It is unheard of for a Wose to weaken or fail due to age however.

While most Woses are unable to actively channel the life energy that wells up within them there are a few exceptional individuals who are able to summon up and control it in order to manifest effects the in the world around them. The easiest effects for such shamans to accomplish are those which influence the natural order around them; drawing or repelling plants and animals, even causing them to grow or even move beyond their normal ability.

The plantlike nature of Wose and their potential immortality shapes a number of features of the Wose. First, it causes them to take the long view on situations. It is not unknown for Wose to spend decades or centuries contemplating the growth in a clearing or valley. This can be disconcerting to members of shorter lived races if they discover that the ancient tree which has stood above their village for generations untold has been a silent observer which has seen their people struggle and survive difficulty and tragedy.

Their plantlike nature also shapes how Wose reproduce; a process by which individuals grow a small bud which develops, feeding from the parent's life energy, until it develops into a separate font. Once the new font within the bud is able to carry on without the parent the bud is grafted to a sapling which becomes a new Wose within a matter of days.

Geography:
Woses are known to have existed on the Great Continent for ages before the formation of Wesnoth. There are records that they existed on the Green Isle as well. While most Woses live within the bounds of forests an individual may strike out alone, wandering the world. Such wandering may include settling down in one place for centuries then inexplicably getting up and moving away again. Wose may sometimes be found aiding their relatives, the Elves, but are independent and aloof of the greater Elven civilization.

please read the above first, so you can let me know if I alluded to this successfully without saying "this is what's up." This idea may get lots of hate, but it certainly changes up the Wose and opens up possibilities for the race.

IDEA:

The Wose you see is not the actual being. The actual Wose being is an entity of pure fae magic which wears the tree you see as a sort of anchor and life support device. Sort of a reverse driad.

That's somewhere to start.

[Midnight_Carnival]

I actually had a similar idea I was going to use in my Obscure and under represented race lore thread. I think I'm done with Goblins now anyway, I was going to write a Troll saga, This would begin with a sort of creation myth in which I speculated on how the various fairy (faerie, however you want to spell it) races were formed before light came to their realm, and how they were totally different, but then they came over to our realm, they attached themselves to the element they were most drawn to: Trolls to rock, Elves to the evening breeze, Goblins to dark caves and shadows, Woses to trees, etc... And I'd have it so the father or Trolls died and became the earth, sort of stealing norse mythology stuff there.

...to cut a long story short, I really like your idea and I probably won't ever write the Troll Saga

[Jamie]

Looks like this conversation ended a while ago. Anyone still interested in talking about it? I'm reworking some old UMC with a guest appearance of an Elder Wose and there's nothing at all helpful in the wiki. So I resorted to a real world search, curious about the origin of the name. I know within Wesnoth things are whatever we make them and need not follow or reference any other source. Still, I find it helpful to consider other sources.

Turns out the Wose (Woodwose, Wodewose) is a kind of wildman of the forest (not a tree! or even an Ent! more like Bigfoot) typically described as a 'human-like' animal covered in hair (sometimes a long mane like a horse's along the length of the spine). Many images (some are paintings but lots are stone carvings) are not all that hairy, however, and simple bearded and wild-aspect naked or semi-naked men wielding clubs or branches as either weapons or walking sticks are often depicted. This is medieval imagery common on religious structures (chapels to cathedrals) throughout Europe, but especially common in Germanic regions.

'Green Man' images are also very common on the same types of buildings and on the same parts of the buildings where Woses were generally depicted. A Green Man is a face only, made out of leaves (easy to find images on the internet—an excellent example accompanies the wikipedia entry for 'Green Man') and is much more suggestive of an Ent-like plant creature. No doubt the Green Man and Wose were somewhat confounded since they show up in similar locations. A Wose may have a head of hair full of twigs and leaves lending an Entish aspect as well.

I am trying to put a characteristic speaking style to Wose dialog. I have seen Wose dialog written in Scots brogue which just seems wrong to me. I am trying to give my Wose speaker a germanic feel without resorting to phonetic spellings and accents. I am also trying to tone down the tree-ness. For instance, I would use 'Ach!' or 'Hurra!' for interjections and avoid onomatopoeic tree sounds like 'creak' or 'kerack'.

I am also interested in the notion discussed up thread that Wose magic is a form of fairy magic (faerie) and the unit description as it appears in game. Outside sources relate Woses to spirits and even demi-gods, so it makes sense to me that their magic might be similar to, but not at all the same as, Elvish magic (which I think of as tied to—generated from—the forestland they inhabit). I would expect them to have competence with elemental forces and nature magic since they spend their lives exposed to the elements and in a "natural" state (I.e. without cultivation, construction or manufacturing). I think Woses could generate the forests Elves live in. The Wose, it seems to me puts magic into the land. Where a Wose stands, soon a forest springs up. The Elves, I think, draw on that source and depend on it. As the forest declines, the Elves must depart. A Wose in the campaign 'A Rough Life' declares, "The ancient tree power is the power of spring", then proceeds to melt glaciers off the tops of mountains to make them passable.