FESTIVALS AND CUSTOMS

CONCEPT AND WRITING

ALEKSANDRA BROKMAN | twitter.com/ksandra_br

COVER ART AND ILLUSTRATIONS

MARIA DANIELAK | instagram.com/maria_danielak_art/

ORNAMENTS

SETHAME V DERAT | twitter.com/frishavacadoo

© copyright by Aleksandra Brokman, December 2022

If you know a person who would like to enjoy the game but cannot afford
it and get a community copy, feel free to share the PDF and/or print this
book for them. This is a written permission to create your own community
copies of WISE WOMEN.

WISE WOMEN adapts rules ideas from Apocalypse World by Meguey and
Vincent Baker. http://apocalypse-world.com/
CONTENTS
Introduction 4
Jare Gody (yah-reh goh-dyi) 5
Śmigus Dyngus (smee-ghoos ding-oos) 7
Green Week / Stado 9
Kupala Night 12
Zażynki (zah-zhyn-kee) / Beginning of harvest 15
Dożynki (doh-zhyn-kee) / Harvest Festival 17
Dziady (dzhya-dyi) / Forefathers’ Eve 19
Szczodre Gody (sh-choh-dreh goh-dyi) / Generous Festivities 25
Our Lady of Gromnica Holiday / Candlemas 27
Childbirth 29
Haircutting 31
Braiding 33
Wedding 35
Funeral 37
 INTRODUCTION

This supplement presents a selection of festivals and customs that can be

used in your games of WISE WOMEN. Just like the whole game, they are
drawn from Polish and more broadly Slavic tradition. The game is based
mostly on sources from the period between seventeenth and early
twentieth century. As such, many of the folk traditions include elements
of both Christian and earlier Slavic religion. While I chose not to include
the best known Christian holidays such as Christmas or Easter in this
supplement, it presents a mix of practices and festivals drawn both from
pagan and Christian tradition. In many cases I included both the pre-
Christian roots of certain celebrations and practices as well as the form
they took once Christianity became firmly established in Poland.

In each section of this supplement you will find folklore information about
the given festival and suggestions and ideas for using it in your game of
WISE WOMEN.

Ultimately, the aim of including all this information is to inspire. Feel free
to draw from both pagan and Christian practices for your game and use
everything included in this supplement in a way that best fits the village
created at your table and the story you want to tell.

Most of the festivals included in this supplement took place at a specific

time of the year. You can stay true to their dates but of course you can
also have them take place whenever your game is set or create your own
festivals inspired by those included here. Do what will best support the
atmosphere and themes of your story!

4
Jare Gody (yah-reh goh-dyi)
Jare Gody is a several days long festival marking the beginning of spring.
The name links it to Jaryło, a Slavic god of fertility and spring. The root jar-
also commonly denoted vigour and strength associated with youth. Held
on the spring equinox, Jare Gody marked the beginning of the growing
season and celebrated the revival of the natural world.

On the night of the spring equinox people said farewell to winter,

personified by the goddess Marzanna. Her effigy was drowned or burned
to send her into the netherworld. The ceremony was accompanied by
making a loud noise: singing, music, rattling, stomping and shouting. The
laud sounds were to mark the end of the winter, seen as a time of death
and sadness.

During Jare Gody celebrations people lit great bonfires to call forth sun
and heat. A great feast took place and was accompanied by singing and
dancing. Good and joyful greeting of spring was seen as a portent of good
harvest in the coming year, so it was especially important for Jare Gody
celebrations to be successful. Painting eggs and gifting them to other
people was also meant to ensure good harvest.

Jare Gody was also an occasion for visiting the graves of ancestors to bring
them food and drink, and to reminisce.

In WISE WOMEN

Since plants plays such an important role in WISE WOMEN, most games will
naturally take place during the growing season. Jare Gody can be a good
backdrop for the start of a campaign. The celebrations can provide an
occasion for social conflicts and supernatural threats to manifest. Maybe
someone gets lost in the forest when collecting wood for the Jare Gody
bonfires and falls prey to a creature that recently appeared in the area?
Perhaps the effigy of Marzanna goes missing, taken by a malicious
creature or a bitter neighbour who lost a lot in winter storms and didn’t
receive much help from the community? Or maybe some villagers are
attacked when visiting their buried ancestors, as a new undead creature
emerges from its grave?

5
Jare Gody marks the beginning of the renewal of the natural world. As
such, it thematically ties with stories that also are about beginnings and
renewal: new threats, working towards reconciliation after a difficult
winter, changes that are about to happen in the village.

Ideas for plots

The village is preparing for Jare Gody celebrations but things don’t
go smoothly. People who venture to collect wood for the bonfires
are found passed out drunk and upon waking up don’t remember
where they got alcohol from nor what happened. The effigy of
Marzanna goes missing just before celebrations. Musical
instruments all sound out of tune. The food that is being prepared
for the feast starts going bad. People are getting nervous. Some
say that the village has been cursed, grow suspicious and are
quick to throw witchcraft accusations. In fact, the problems are
being caused by a devil who got summoned by one of the villagers
during harsh winter. The person, acting out of desperation, made
a deal with the devil for the village food stores to last until spring.
They promised to do a favour for the devil in return but got scared
of the consequences and refused. The devil is now taking his
revenge on the village, sabotaging Jare Gody celebrations to
cause a poor harvest and starvation next winter. The COVEN needs
to negotiate with the devil and placate him.

Two families in the village (ideally tied to members of the COVEN)

fall into escalating conflict. It is triggered by memories brought
back by visiting the grave of a young man who died in autumn. He
was the son of one of the families, engaged to a woman from
another. His father-in-law to be took him on the hunting trip that
went wrong, resulting in the young man being killed by a bear. Still
grieving, the deceased man’s family is accusing the father of the
bride of not taking proper care of their child or even intentionally
causing his death. The accused family gets defensive and angry.
The conflict begins to spoil preparations for Jare Gody
celebrations and threatens to overshadow the festival. The COVEN
has to navigate social tensions, reconcile the families and help
them deal with their grief and guilt.

6
Śmigus Dyngus (smee-ghoos ding-oos)
Śmigus Dyngus is a practice of splashing other people with water and
exchanging good wishes on Easter Monday, but the custom has older, pre-
Christian roots. Its name is derived from two words denoting separate
practices performed as part of Jare Gody celebrations. Śmigus refers to a
practice in which unmarried men and women whipped each other with
willow withes to increase their health, vigour and fertility. Willow withes
were used because willow was seen as a tree of fertility.

Dyngus denotes a custom of splashing each other with water, to ensure

both fertility as well as rains to water the fields. The name is also to a
custom of buying oneself prosperity. After whipping and splashing of
water, people paid each other visits. The hosts offered food, drink and
painted eggs to their guests to ensure own prosperity. Those who didn’t
show generosity to their guests, risked infertility, bad harvest, illness or
other misfortune.

In WISE WOMEN

Śmigus Dyngus can be used as a part of Jare Gody and incorporated into
plots set against the backdrop of celebrating the arrival of spring. If your
village has a more Christian vibe, it can be included as an Easter tradition.
You can also of course incorporate it or its elements into spring or other
celebrations you created for your game.

The custom offers many opportunities for social drama in the village.
Leaving someone out of traditional whipping might be a form of social
ostracism or bullying. Avoiding the celebrations will definitely raise some
eyebrows and provoke comments from other members of the
community. Ostentatiously not visiting one of the neighbours might be
the first indication of a conflict that will soon disrupt the life in the village.

Of course, in WISE WOMEN the supernatural is real and the superstitions

about Śmigus Dyngus customs might be real as well. Neglecting one of the
customs can start affecting the weather or general wellbeing of the
villagers. Supernatural creatures can also join the celebration, aiming to
cause harm to humans. They can turn friendly whipping or water

7
splashing into violence or abuse villagers’ hospitality in an attempt to leave
them impoverished.

Ideas for plots

The fun of Śmigus disappears as some of the villagers take things

way too far and start whipping other people way too hard, leaving
few of them bloodied and seriously injured. In all cases there is
some conflict, rivalry or jealousy between the hurt person and the
ones who hurt them, but nothing that ever before escalated into
violence. The villagers are clearly on edge. Things only get worse
when unusual outbursts of violence continue during Dyngus, with
one person attempting to drown another in the river. The
perpetrators of violence seem confused afterwards and don’t
remember what they did. This naturally sparks talk of curses and
witchcraft. In fact, the violence is a doing of a kania who is sawing
chaos in the village and preparing to kidnap some of its children.

A young woman refuses to join the Śmigus Dyngus celebrations.

When others try to draw her in, she responds in a fairly aggressive
manner. She might defend herself physically or start crying, and
is clearly deeply distressed. Her closest friends are concerned,
while her parents and some of the older villagers disapprove and
put a lot of pressure on the woman to act “normal.” The woman
has recently been pushed by her parents into engagement. Her
fiancé doesn’t understand her and is angry with her for refusing
to participate in customs meant to ensure fertility. The woman
doesn’t want to have any children nor get married but her parents
refuse to respect it and don’t take her seriously. The COVEN can
help women find a way out of her situation and support her in
establishing a different path for herself.

8
Green Week / Stado
Green Week is the name given to Polish celebrations of Pentecost: a
holiday commemorating the descend of the Holy Spirit, seven weeks after
Easter. A lot of Green Week traditions are tied to pre-Christian festival of
Stado, held at the height of spring and associated with fertility deities.

The celebrations of Stado involved singing, dancing and sporting

competitions. People left offerings of groats, eggs and dumplings under
birch trees to ensure safety of their community.

During Green Week people decorated their houses and fences with green,
leafy branches and flowers to ensure fertility and good harvest in the
coming year. Someimes cows were also decorated to protect their health
and improve the quality of their milk.

Construction of May poles decorated with flowers, green branches and

ribbons is yet another custom associated with Green Week. Unmarried
men placed them – at night and in secret – outside the houses of women
they were interested in. Sometimes a tall pole was also placed in the
village square. Young men competed, trying to climb to the top and claim
the reward that was left there (good shoes, belt, vest or a bottle of vodka)
and to impress the women they liked. The pole was sometimes covered in
oil or soap to make the competition harder.

In the Podlasie region the most beautiful young woman in the village was
dressed in a flower crown and together with other young women was led
around the fields. The procession ended with a feast and dancing. This
custom is probably linked to a Slavic tradition of “leading away the
rusalkas” which ended the period of the creatures’ highest activity.

In WISE WOMEN

The celebrations of Stado involve different competitions and as such are

a good setting for plots about posturing, rivalry and jealousy, particularly
between the young people in the village.

If one of the young women was chosen as the most beautiful, others might
be jealous and act on this emotion in a malicious manner. Perhaps it is

9
one of the witches from the coven who is at least tempted to use dark
magic on this year’s chosen beauty? Similarly, young men might try to
sabotage each other when climbing the May pole or place an unpleasant
surprise with the reward at the top.

The celebrations provide a lot of opportunities for social plots involving

the witches or people close to them, but they can also be details fleshing
out the life in the village as larger, more dangerous things are looming.
Creatures like rusalkas might join the singing and dancing, attempting to
lead some of the young people away from the village. The lush green and
flower decorations can constitute a good backdrop for the appearance of
creatures that cause withering of plants and impoverishment of
households such as cicha or bieda.

10
Ideas for plots

A swisher decides to visit the village to join Stado celebrations. He

arrives few days before and quickly gains trust and friendship of
some of the villagers. He is strong and helps set up the
decorations for the celebrations, but he also encourages
excessive drinking even before the festival. Some decorations get
destroyed and arms broken in the process. Several villagers
began to see the visitor as bad influence. Meanwhile, the swisher
is eager to join in the fun of Stado celebrations. His presence,
however, poses a danger to the village. If he loses himself in wild,
joyous celebrations, he might accidentally hurt people, but if he is
prevented from it by the villagers who dislike him, he might go on
a dangerous, angry rampage. The danger will get even worse if
some of the villagers discover he isn’t human and will attempt to
chase him away, angering him. Once the COVEN realises who the
guest is, they will have to convince him not to join the festivities
or keep his humour in check.

A young man claims the prize as he is the first one to climb the tall
May pole. This is not a surprise. He is one of the two most fit men
in the village and his rival seemed unwell. It is also not a mystery
that the two men’s families are engaged in a dispute over how to
divide a plot of land they both inherited from a mutual relative.
Over the years the dispute has led to various clashes. Now the
family of the man who lost the May contest begins to accuse the
champion of poisoning his rival. The evening celebrations turn
tense as people gossip and take sides. The champion drinks from
the bottle of vodka that he claimed from top of the pole and soon
also gets sick. This causes more accusations, while some people
get angry at both families for spoiling the peace of the village. The
tempers are running high and alcohol isn’t helping. Things
escalate and threaten to take a violent turn. The truth that the
COVEN might discover is that both men tried to sabotage one
another. The champion had a younger sibling slip something into
his rival’s food, while the rival planned to lose and poisoned the
vodka to ruin the other man’s victory. The witches can help to
manage the situation and resolve the conflict, or support one side
over another.

11
Kupala Night
One of the most important festivals in the Slavic calendar, Kupala Night, is
held on the night of the summer solstice. The origins and meaning of its
name are unclear. It is commonly described as derived from the word
meaning bathing, but the customs associated with the night do not
support this interpretation. Kupala is also interpreted as a name of a
fertility deity from the Slavic beliefs, but a number of scholars doubt that
such a deity was ever worshipped, seeing the personification of the term
kupala as a consequence of Christianity’s attempt to transform the festival
into a holiday dedicated to John the Baptiste. The term Kupala is also
interpreted as derived from the root kup associated with physical love.

The key element of the celebrations were the bonfires lit just outside the
village. Women danced around them while singing songs that often
referred to the sun and to matchmaking. People jumped over the fires,
alone or in couples. In certain regions a straw effigy was burned in the
fires. In others, people burned a wheel that symbolized the sun. The
smoke from the bonfires lit on Kupala Night was meant to ensure good
weather for the coming harvest.

Another important custom of Kupala Night was associated with water.

Young unmarried women made flower crowns and place them in the river.
Young unmarried men waited further downstream, caught the crowns
that floated towards them and returned to the village to look for the
women who made them. Couples formed in this way spent the rest of the
night together. They went into the forest to search for the fern flower and
used this opportunity to make love. On the other hand, the women whose
crowns got stuck in the reeds likely wouldn’t get married anytime soon.

Finally, Kupala Night was the time of searching for the fern flower. This
mythical flower was believed to bloom only on midnight on the night of
the summer solstice and to glow with an otherworldly light. Those who
found it would enjoy wealth, prosperity, success in love and great wisdom.
However, the flower was said to be protected by witches, devils and other
terrible creatures who worked to impede the search.

12
In WISE WOMEN

Kupala Night is an important festival, involving several different elements

and customs. As such it can serve very well as a setting for a one shot. A
whole story can play out over the course of this night, with different
elements of the festivities providing colourful background and context for
the important events. The summer solstice festival is also a very suitable
culmination point and conclusion to a longer story. It is a big event that
the whole village will be preparing for with anticipation. It can give a
direction to the story, with conflicts and problems that have been looming
over the course of the game finally manifesting on Kupala Night.

The matchmaking offers a lot of opportunities for social schemes. Young

people might plan who will catch whose flower crown and some might
decide to disrupt these plans. A woman can try to avoid advances by
sabotaging her own crown. A man might grab a crown his rival obviously
desires. If witches are young and unmarried they can participate in the
custom and have their own hopes for its outcome.

Finally, the search for a fern flower is a great opportunity for introducing
and manifesting threats. A lot can go wrong when people wander around
the forest at night, alone or in couples!

Ideas for plots

An unknown young man turns up in the village on Kupala Night,

just as young men are preparing to catch flower crowns floating
down the river. He catches one and is eager to venture into the
forest with the woman who made it. Her fiancé-to-be, who was
expected to catch said flower crown, is angry. He cannot believe
that the woman who already declared her love for him now seems
ready to “search for the fern flower” with a stranger. While some
people are very suspicious of the situation, others seem charmed
by the unexpected guest. Few young people even feel jealous of
the woman who gets to spend a night with him. The witches might
realise that the man’s charm is magical in nature but he quickly
walks into the forest with his chosen woman. She is in great
danger, as the man is a werewolf: the kind who made himself into
a shapeshifter through sorcery and who can wield magic. He is

13
attracted to the woman but is also violent and wants to feed on
her blood. His victim returns visibly tired in the morning and
continues to grow weaker until the werewolf is stopped. She is
under enchantment and sneaks out to see her new “lover.” The
enchantment can be broken, but that won’t stop the werewolf,
who will come for his victim and will lash out at the villagers who
get in the way.

Villagers are enjoying Kupala Night, but the celebrations are

marred by the fact that one person is missing. An older man didn’t
return from the market in another village that he decided to visit
not long before the celebrations. His only son is visibly unfocused
and emotional on the night when most people expect him to
catch a flower crown of the woman he is to marry this summer.
As the night goes on, the wind gets stronger and some people
begin to gossip about seeing an apparition: a slightly hunched
male figure looking with painful, accusatory gaze. The figure is the
ghost of the missing man who didn’t go to the market at all but
has been murdered by his son during an argument. The son
wanted the father to hand over most of the property to him as
soon as he gets married, but the father was unwilling. His son
didn’t intend to kill him but struck him violently enough to do so
and in panic took the body to the forest and made up a lie about
his father’s trip to another village. Now, hearing about the
apparition (or perhaps witnessing it) the young man starts
drinking too much. He might fall in the river when catching the
flower crown or freak out just before jumping over a bonfire.
Several other people are also on edge. Someone might be
paralysed with fear after seeing the ghost. But the night goes on
and despite tension, some couples start going into the forest. The
ghost will be trying to lead some villagers to his body, either
through urging them to follow him or through scaring them to run
in that direction. He wants to receive a proper burial and for the
crime of his son to be known. While at first he isn’t aggressive, he
becomes increasingly so as his frustration increases. He might
turn to inflicting overwhelming fear on people and to tormenting
his murderer.

14
Zażynki (zah-zhyn-kee) / Beginning of harvest
Zażynki is a custom marking the beginning of harvest: an especially
important time for rural communities. It occurred in mid-June. Around
that time people began waiting for the singing of the quail which indicated
that it was now time for Zażynki.

Since the harvest was performed by the whole village together, after the
first ears of grain were cut and collected, the hostess spread a white cloth
in the fields and offered bread, sausage and vodka to all who participated.

The first sheaf cut from the field was kept in the house until Generous
Festivities. The grain from that sheaf was used for sowing the fields next
year.

In WISE WOMEN

The beginning of harvest offers an opportunity for changing the pace of

the game and showcasing some of the social life in the village. Most
villagers will be gathered in the fields. The witches will most likely be
expected to participate in Zażynki and the harvest. This can offer
opportunities for interacting with their neighbours, but it will also leave
less time for other activities. Wandering off during the day might cause
questions and accusations of slacking off.

The harvest is a very important time for the village and requires everyone
to work hard. Conflicts that have been brewing between the villagers are
likely to manifest through accusations of dodging work and living off the
labour of others. Such quarrels can erupt already during Zażynki and only
get more severe as the harvest continues. Lovers might try to sneak away
under the guise of working in another part of the field. Some parents
might be letting their children get away with hardly any work. An elderly,
lonely villager who struggles to feed themself might attempt to steal some
food from the Zażynki feast.

Finally, Zażynki can be a good starting point for a story involving creatures
that appear in the fields, such as południcas or field rusałkas.

15
Ideas for plots

During Zażynki feast two people announce that they will be

getting married at the end of the harvest. The mood turns to
celebratory. Amidst drinking and dancing, some might hear a
distant wailing, but they’re likely to dismiss it. The next day many
people are sleeping off a hangover but the whole village is woken
up by terrified screams as the bride-to-be is found severely
wounded in the fields. Victim’s fiancé suspects an attempted
murder, people are scared and looking for a scapegoat. The
woman was attacked by a południca born of a soul of a girl the
groom-to-be planned to marry when they were teenagers. She
died of an illness before reaching adulthood and now has awoken
as a południca, sad and angry that her beloved plans to marry
another. She will lash out and hurt people, until she is soothed
somehow. Meanwhile, people continue working in the fields and
can find themselves in mortal danger.

A widow and her daughter are shunned by the hostess of the

Zażynki feast who also makes disparaging remarks about them,
particularly about the daughter whom she calls a thief. Some
people in the village disapprove. Others get angry at the young
woman who is revealed to have a necklace that belonged to the
hostess’ family for generations. Everyone knows that the accused
woman is a friend of hostess’s daughter. People gossip about
what happened. The truth is that the women are lovers and the
necklace was given as a gift. The hostess and her husband know
this but set out to punish the woman who in their eyes ‘corrupted’
their child. The two lovers are also unwilling to reveal the truth,
fearing prejudice and ostracism.

16
Dożynki (doh-zhyn-kee) / Harvest Festival
Dożynki was a festival held at the end of harvest. It was an occasion to
celebrate the hard work. The festival used to also be called Wreathing,
deriving its name from its most important symbol – a big wreath made out
of ears of grain, rowan fruits, flowers and nuts.

The last ears of grain were left in the fields until the beginning of the
festival. They could only be cut by the man who showed the most skill with
the scythe this year. Once cut, they were used to weave the wreath for the
festival. People placed live animals on top of the wreath: chickens, gees or
ducks.

The woman who performed best during the harvest carried the wreath
(on her head or in her hands) during the procession around the fields. The
wreath was later kept until the next year and the grain collected from it
was used for re-sowing the fields after winter to ensure the continuity of
good harvest.

The festival involved joyous celebrations: dancing, singing and a feast with
a bread made from the new grain.

17
In WISE WOMEN

If Zażynki can open stories set during harvest, Dożynki can close them. It
is a time to celebrate the hard work and as such thematically lends itself
well to concluding stories about dangers to the village. It can be an
opportunity for the COVEN to relax and unwind after saving their village, or
an occasion to showcase witches’ loneliness as they are shunned from the
celebrations, if their social standing decreases too much.

Of course, the festival can also spark petty and more serious conflicts.
People might resent others for their behaviour during the harvest, be it
laziness or lack of compassion for those who due to illness or a family
tragedy couldn’t work as hard as their neighbours. Decisions on who
performed best during the harvest can cause anger and jealousy, causing
people to sabotage those who received special roles in this year’s festival.

Ideas for plots

A woman who was chosen to carry a wreath during the procession

wakes up with ugly warts on her face. When the news spreads,
the villagers suspect witchcraft. Witchcraft is indeed responsible.
The curse was cast by victim’s younger sister who always lived in
her shadow and was jealous. She found several spells in things
left by her late grandmother. The COVEN can discover this and
decide to expose the young woman to protect themselves from
accusations or to guide her.

On the day of Dożynki, the villagers realise that the last ears of
grain are missing from the field. They were stolen by a malicious
devil who chose to disrupt the festival to entertain himself. People
accuse each other of sabotaging the festival out of jealousy and
spite. They are on edge and conflicts begin to escalate. The
emotions are being stirred up by the devil, who offers people his
special vodka that causes them to lose control quicker than
normal alcohol. He also spreads rumours and accusations, but
nobody notices a stranger. People who speak to him forget that
they saw him the moment the conversation ends. The COVEN has
to navigate the tensions and regain the ears of grain from the
devil to secure the continuity of good harvest.

18
Dziady (dzhya-dyi) / Forefathers’ Eve
Dziady was a time when souls of ancestors returned to visit their family. It
was held several times a year but the biggest celebrations were held in
spring (at the beginning of May) and in autumn (at the end of October /
beginning of November).

To ensure the good favour of the dead, people offered them food and
drink, for example honey, bread, groats, eggs or salt. Drinks were poured
and the food placed on the graves. Dziady feast used to be held on the
cemetery but eventually the custom changed and people began to hold
feasts at home.

The actions that could disturb or hurt a wandering soul were prohibited.
This included cleaning up food leftovers, pouring water out of the window,
lighting fire in the hearth, sewing and loudly leaving the table.

People lit bonfires by the graves and on the crossroads to lead the
wandering souls of their ancestors home and to give them an opportunity
to warm up. Fire was also seen as a protection against malevolent,
vengeful souls or demons (upirs, vampires, spirits of people who took
their own lives) who also awoke during Dziady.

Wandering beggars, seen as mediums capable of contacting the souls in

the afterlife, were generously greeted around the Forefathers’ Eve. People
offered them food, money and other gifts. The beggars were sometimes
also seen as the souls of the ancestors themselves. Feeding them meant
feeding the ancestors, and thus they were treated to the favourite foods
of people who had passed away.

In WISE WOMEN

Dziady offers a perfect background for spooky stories featuring ghosts,

vampires and other undead. People who gather at the cemeteries o
remember their ancestors, might fall prey to such malicious creatures.
Breaking one of the prohibitions associated with the festival might anger
a wandering soul and put the village in danger. The ghosts of those who
felt hurt in life might return to seek vengeance.

19
Of course, stories associated with this festival can also have a very
different tone. A visit from the soul of a deceased loved one can rekindle
melancholy and grief or conversely, provide a chance for a much needed
goodbye and closure. Remembering the dead can bring the villagers
closer together but it can also open old wounds and conflicts, undoing
reconciliation and forgiveness that happened before the festival. Dziady
offers an opportunity to explore how the characters in the village – the
COVEN, people close to them and their rivals – cope with grief, loss and the
memory of the people they lost.

As a festival focused on remembrance, Dziady can be a fitting ending and

epilogue to the story, especially if it included deaths. Remembering the
dead or having their souls visit the village can offer witches an opportunity
to reflect on what happened and provide a sense of closure at the end of
the campaign.

20
Ideas for plots

Two siblings don’t feed the dead during Dziady. While they might
join others in feasting and remembering, they don’t leave any
food on the graves on their recently deceased parents. This
angers the wandering souls, who start haunting the village,
sparking overwhelming fear in people and causing strong gusts of
wind that threaten villagers and their houses. Their anger
naturally concentrates on the two siblings. To makes things
worse, people in the village start suspecting that someone
angered the dead and look for culprits. The siblings get more and
more nervous, but they are determined not to pay respects to
their parents who attempted to control every aspects of their lives
in a manipulative and abusive manner. The parents feel that they
knew and did what was best for their children and see siblings’
behaviour as ungrateful. The COVEN can help resolve the situation,
while navigating the search for the person who angered the dead.

A wandering beggar arrives in the village just before Forefathers’

Eve. He receives a generous and warm welcome. The trouble
begins when members of two families start believing that the man
is in fact a spirit of their recently deceased relative. Both families
see the claim of the other as an insult or delusion, and argue with
each other over whose soul came to visit as a beggar. Initially, they
try to outdo each other with hospitality, but the conflict quickly
escalates. The two families get into turbulent arguments and both
are desperate to receive the confirmation that it is their relative
who visited. In fact both are wrong. The beggar is just an ordinary
man visiting the village. Seeing that he has become the centre of
a conflict and experiencing increasingly desperate and intrusive
demands from both families to confirm his identity as their loved
one, he starts thinking of leaving the village. This is met with fear
by other villagers, who worry that his departure before the festival
concludes will draw misfortune upon the whole community. The
COVEN has to navigate the increasingly volatile social situation and
can help both families process their grief.

21
November divination
In November, on the eve of Saint Catherine’s Day, young men gathered
for a night of divination to learn something about their future marriage.
At the same time young women gathered to spin textiles until midnight.
While the name of the festival is derived from Saint Catherine, her folk
representations suggest her association with a Slavic goddess Mokosh,
who was associated with
spinning textiles.

Few nights later, on the eve of

Saint Andrew’s Day, divination
was performed by young
women. Both nights were
originally treated very seriously
but with time the festivals
transformed into an occasion
to eat, drink and spend time
together. Divination became
just an additional way to have
fun on these nights.

The most common method of

divination was pouring melted
wax into water through the
hole in a key and then
examining the shape it took
once it cooled down. The key
was meant to provide a link to
the other world. The
November divination was
based on a belief that the
ancestors’ spirits visited the
earth to tell young men and
women about their future.

22
In WISE WOMEN

A night of divination can be an atmospheric setting for spooky stories

featuring supernatural creatures. Despite their prejudices against the
supernatural, villagers gather at night to peak into their future. While
some won’t treat it seriously, an air of mystery surrounds both nights. If
something strange happens, people’s imagination will run wild, leading to
tensions, suspicions, possibly even panic.

Divination offers opportunities to explore various characters in the village.

It isn’t necessarily about actually getting insight into the future, but about
how people respond to results of divination. They might become more
focused on it than on reality. Some might be heartbroken, others might
start feeling entitled to affection of another person. Some might push on
others certain interpretation of results, out of selfish goals or spite. While
divination on these two nights was focused on matrimony, in your stories
in can also cover other areas of life – all of which can become a ground for
exploring villager’s anxieties, hopes and rivalries.

WISE WOMEN stories are most likely to be set in spring and summer, but
November divination can still be incorporated into the game in various
ways. Playing a short game set in late November is a great option for
telling a story with a bit different atmosphere, as the village prepares for
cold, dark winter nights. A night of divination can also simply take place at
a different time of the year, whenever your game is set. Finally, November
divination can be used as a prelude to or flashbacks within the stories set
months later, exploring consequences resulting from what the villagers
learned on those autumn nights.

23
Ideas for plots

An engagement is announced, following the results of November

divination. The bride had a crush on the groom for a while and
the results gave her the confidence to pursue him. The groom,
however, is distressed. His younger siblings might gossip that he
doesn’t want to get married at all. He disappears for hours and
neglects his fiancée, who in turn grows distressed and starts
developing an unhealthy obsession with the man being “hers.”
The groom didn’t want to participate in the divination at all, but
got pushed into it by his parents, who are now pressuring him to
get married, as they are eager to have him start a family. He is gay
and in love with another man in the village, whom he’s meeting in
secret. He doesn’t have the courage to refuse his family’s wishes
but he becomes very distressed. Meanwhile, the anxious and
increasingly possessive bride starts making more and more
demands on his time, and might even start following him,
threatening to expose his secret or cause problems for his lover.
The bride’s family also isn’t happy with grooms behaviour, which
causes his own parents to make more and more demands on him.
The COVEN can help the young people resolve the situation and
stop the brewing conflicts.

On the eve of St Catherine’s night an older woman as usually

offers to lead young men in divination. On her way, she drops a
comment to young women that when she was young, she always
snuck up to the place where men gathered to eavesdrop. Some
women indeed do that. As the divination starts, the older woman
interprets results in a way that plays on the insecurities of
everyone present and stirs up conflict. She is, in fact, a devil in
disguise, who put the real woman into deep coma to spread
discord in the village by tapping into people’s envy, desires and
fears. The COVEN might be able to pick up on woman’s behaviour
being unusual and try to stop the conflicts from escalating. They
also need to make the devil leave the village alone.

24
Szczodre Gody (sh-choh-dreh goh-dyi) / Generous
Festivities
This festival began on the winter solstice, celebrating the victory of light
over darkness and the beginning of the new solar year. It ended around
the 6th of January. With the advent of Christianity, the celebrations
transformed into the celebrations of Christmas and Epiphany.

Working during the Generous Festivities was considered dangerous, as it

could bring misfortune upon the whole household. Over the course of the
celebrations people performed divination to learn what the coming year
would bring. A popular method was drawing pieces of straw from under
a cover. The longer and prettier the piece, the better the coming year
would be for the person who drew it.

Children received simple gifts of nuts, apples and special type of rolls
known as szczodraki (stuffed with cheese, meat or cabbage and
mushroom). The nuts were supposed to grant children strength and
health, while the apples would protect them from sore throat.

The celebrations involved a lot of feasting. People prepared twelve dishes

to stand for the twelve months of the year. An extra plate was put on each
table, to be ready for a soul of an ancestor if they wished to visit. Feasts
were also organized at the cemeteries and bonfires were lit for the dead.

The first sheaf of grain cut on the first day of harvest was decorated with
nuts and fruits for the Generous Festivities celebrations and then carefully
kept until spring, when it was used to sow the fields.

In WISE WOMEN

Generous festivities can serve both as a prelude and an epilogue to a

campaign. Marking the beginning of new solar year, they are about both
beginnings and endings. A prelude set during the festival can use its
elements to set the tone for the campaign. Divination, social relationships
shown during a feast and rumours of a visiting spirit can all serve that
purpose.

25
Mistakes made during Generous Festivities can sow the seeds of problems
that will fall on the village few months later. Misfortunes falling on villagers
can be caused by someone who worked during the winter festival.
Neglecting to feed and warm the dead might cause them to come back to
take revenge on the village. Accidentally damaging the sheaf of grain while
decorating it might lead to conflicts, suspicions and accusations when the
time comes to sow the fields.

As an epilogue, Generous Festivities offer an opportunity to revisit the

village few months after the events of the campaign, to show their impact
on the community and social position of the COVEN. It can signal healing
and hope, as the days become longer again, or highlight the poverty and
ongoing struggle of the community damaged by what it went through.

Ideas for plots

Someone the COVEN cares about drew the shortest straw during
the Generous Festivities divination. They tried to laugh it off
initially but in spring/summer they still feel anxiety. They interpret
every single thing that goes wrong as the divination coming true.
On top of that, more superstitious neighbours start avoiding that
person, fearing their bad luck. The villagers no longer want to
share work or trade with them. This affects both their wellbeing
and their material prosperity. They become isolated and start
spiralling into a nervous breakdown, believing that they’re
destined to have bad luck this year and giving up on even trying
to do anything. They need help to heal and change their outlook
and other villagers need to stop avoiding them out of fear.

The last year has been difficult for the village. Many crops failed
and bad weather damaged houses. Already around Generous
Festivities some people are going hungry. A gobbler takes
advantage of the situation. She offers the desperate people,
especially children, szczodraki to lure them to her and kidnaps
them to her lair. She intends to get enough people to last her until
spring, as she gradually eats them. As she wants them to last, she
doesn’t immediately kill them, so the victims can be rescued. The
gobbler will be a danger until she’s chased away.

26
Our Lady of Gromnica Holiday / Candlemas
Celebrated on 2nd February, this Christian holiday commemorates the
presentation of Jesus at the Temple, but in Poland it is also dedicated to
Our Lady of Gromnica – a large candle that in Catholic tradition symbolises
God’s grace and eternal light. The candle was placed in the hands of dying
people but in Polish folklore gromnica was believed to also have other
properties. Its name is derived from the word grom, meaning a thunder.
The candle was believed to protect people from lightnings, hail, storms
and misfortune as well as to scare wolves away from human settlements.
After returning from the church on the 2nd February with a lit gromnica,
people used its flame to burn a cross on the ceiling beams to protect the
house from dangers. Gromnicas were also lit and placed in the windows
during storms throughout the year.

The customs and folk beliefs surrounding gromnica and Candlemas

indicate the influence of pre-Christian Slavic traditions, in which candles
and fires were lit in the middle of winter to summon the warmth of spring
and provide protection from wild animals and storms. The folk
representations of Our Lady of Gromnica also bore similarities to those of
Slavic goddess Dziewanna. She was often portrayed accompanied by a
wolf and with a nest of young larks.

In WISE WOMEN

A winter night when people gather together and walk home with lit
candles can provide a good setting for stories about dangers that wait for
villagers in the darkness beyond the village. Warmth and light are meant
to protect households and those who neglect to light their gromnica or let
the flame go out might find themselves in danger. Some people might
help the candles of their rivals go out or steal them before Candlemas.
Various supernatural creatures might target those who don’t have the
flame of gromnica protecting them.

The holiday can also be an inspiration for stories that feature gromnica but
take place much later in the year. The candle is meant to provide
protection throughout the year, when lit in the window. Accidents and
intentional actions that expose households to danger can happen
throughout a year. Gromnica also has a religious significance to the

27
villagers, so if something happens to it or its flame, they are likely to blame
it on supernatural meddling, such as witchcraft.

Whether gromnica actually protects households from dangers or villagers

just believe it does is entirely up to your preference for your story. Its
flame having some protective power can add an air of mystery but
villagers are likely to suspect dark forces when gromnica fails or goes out,
regardless of whether it has any actual power. Gromnica as an ordinary
candle can feature in stories exploring emotions, conflicts and hurt
resulting from actions based solely on misguided beliefs.

Ideas for plots

A gromnica accidentally goes out in a house, moments before it is

destroyed by a summer storm. One person dies as. Traumatised
and scared, the survivors start suspecting someone of stifling the
flame or cursing the household. As the rumours spread, the
villagers begin to search for the witch who caused the destruction
and death. Accusations are thrown at anyone who was seen to
dislike the affected family or generally has a lower social
standing in the village. In fact, there was no curse nor malicious
witch. What happened was purely an accident, but it caused the
villagers to act on their prejudices and fears. They are likely to
cause real harm, unless the COVEN manages to calm the situation.
They can also help the survivors process their grief.

A malicious werewolf stalks the night on Candlemas. It stays

outside the village, but as people go to church, some can hear
howling in the distance. They might even catch a glimpse of a
shape prowling in the darkness. The creature gets an opportunity
to attack when several children, who are excited by the scary
atmosphere and do not realize the danger, dare each other to
extinguish gromnica flames at their houses. Werewolf enters the
village and attacks people in the houses where the dare was acted
upon. Everyone is in great danger until the creature is dealt with.
The children who put out flames struggle with guilt and trauma
and need help with processing their emotions.

28
Childbirth
Pregnancy and childbirth were simultaneously joyful occasions and a
source of fear. Superstitions regarding the dangers waiting for the new-
born and their mother resulted in various prohibitions imposed on
pregnant people. They couldn’t draw water from a well, because if they
did, the child could be transformed into a poroniec. They couldn’t eat
certain things, such as fish or eggs with two yolks. People also believed
that if the clothes for the baby were prepared before their birth, they
wouldn’t live long. In some regions placing a crib inside a house before the
birth was believed to cause children to be born dead.

People untied knots and tangled things to make the childbirth easier. All
the locks, wardrobes, sacks and chests in the house were also opened.
The woman’s clothing and jewellery were removed and her braids untied.
The childbirth could only be attended by married women.

A new-born child was seen as vulnerable to evil forces. The mother was
not supposed to leave the house for several days or even weeks after
giving birth, as devils or other creatures could steal and replace her child
in her absence. The windows of the house were covered to protect the
child. Red ribbons tied on the crib, sharp objects placed by the door and
thorny plants, salt and garlic put by the windows all protected the child
from evil forces. To confuse them, family also sometimes pretended that
the new-born child had died.

Objects such as salt, grain and coins were placed in the crib, to ensure
happiness and prosperity for the child. Similar objects meant to grant
happiness were also placed in their first bath. Three days after the birth
the family left out a meal of bread, cheese and honey for a trio of deities
– wives of the god Rod – who visited the child to decide their fate.

In WISE WOMEN

Pregnancy and childbirth are certainly topics that can be explored in WISE
WOMEN – both as a source of joy for the pregnant character and as a source
of pain and trauma. The game can be used to tell stories of people who
celebrate starting a family and want to protect their child, those whose joy
was destroyed by supernatural or human malice and those to whom

29
pregnancy and parenthood are traumatising and forced upon them.
These issues can affect the people the COVEN cares about or the witches
themselves.

Before tackling such topics as pregnancy and danger to the new-born

baby, make absolutely sure that everyone at the table is ready and willing
to explore these subjects! No element of the story is ever more important
than comfort and safety of the players and the MC.

Using the information on customs surrounding pregnancy and childbirth

doesn’t have to involve whole stories centred around these topics. It can
also be used as a background detail, giving more depth and verisimilitude
to the world of your village. A witch can help her pregnant friend by
drawing water from the well for her without anything going wrong. A red
ribbon can be tied on the crib as protection, without a supernatural
creature coming for the child.

Ideas for plots

A happily married young woman gives birth and follows all the
customs to protect her baby, but her sister sabotages her efforts.
This allows a devil to steal the child. The sister is motivated by
jealousy for the life and husband of her sibling, but once the baby
is taken, she becomes anxious and starts unravelling from guilt.
The COVEN can negotiate with the devil to get the child back. They
can also help resolve the conflict between sisters, while having to
navigate tense social situation. As the new parents realise
someone removed the protective measures they put in place,
they villagers are likely to start looking for culprits.

A pregnant woman is acting carelessly. She goes to the well and

eats the prohibited food. Her behaviour is desperate and erratic.
Some people suspect she is being influenced by evil magic, while
others criticise her for being irresponsible. Some remember that
she was forced into her recent marriage but almost nobody is
willing to voice the truth: she doesn’t want to be pregnant, was
forced into it and is acting out of desperation. The COVEN can help
her get an abortion and get out of her marriage, but it is likely to
come at the cost of their social standing.

30
Haircutting
Haircutting was a rite of passage that boys went through around the age
of seven. It marked their transition into fully recognised members of their
community. The boy’s hair was cut by his father or by the zhrets (a priest
of the Slavic religion). The ritual symbolised boy’s readiness to take upon
himself some of the men’s duties. If the hair was cut by the father, the
ritual was also seen as an act of recognising the son as the rightful progeny
and heir. Through the haircutting the boy symbolically passed from the
care of his mother under the care and authority of his father. He was now
ready to focus on learning traditionally male activities such as hunting,
fighting and certain crafts.

Haircutting was also when boys received their names. Before the rite
children carried temporary, protective names meant to scare away or
deflect the interest of evil forces.

In WISE WOMEN

Haircutting is an important event in the lives of boys and both the

ceremony itself and the preparations preceding it will involve many
people in the village. The anticipation, anxiety and petty conflicts between
boys can bring an element of everyday village life into the story.

Of course, as is the case with most social occasions in the village,

haircutting can also be a catalyst for conflicts between villagers. A family
of one of the boys can flaunt its wealth by giving their son extravagant
gifts and outfit, which is likely to provoke jealousy in others. A father can
refuse to recognise a son, voicing a belief that his wife has been cheating
on him – a belief that can be true or completely false.

Haircutting and braiding can be important events in the lives of the

witches themselves as their own children or children of their close friends
and relatives go through the ceremonies.

31
Ideas for plots

As the village perpares for the haircutting, three boys about to go

through the ceremony are restless with anticipation. Believing
themselves to be almost adults, they seek to prove their courage
to each other. While initially their challenges don’t result in
anything more than scratches and bruises, eventually one of the
boys goes missing. The other two are shaken and don’t want to
speak about what happened. They are hesitant to leave the
house. They know that their missing friend has been snatched by
the rusalkas who live in a pond deep in the forest. The boys
challenged him to approach the beautiful creatures, not fully
realising the danger. Now they are scared of both rusalkas coming
for them and of adults’ anger. If they are persuaded to talk, the
missing boy might still be rescued, as rusalkas find him
entertaining and cute, as they gradually tire him out with their
dance. But if the COVEN doesn’t act quickly, it might be too late. To
make things worse, villagers who look for the missing boy might
also come across rusalkas and be drawn into their dance.

The night before haircutting the father of one of the boys about
to go through the ceremony gets into a fight with another man in
the village. They have long disliked one another and people gossip
that the mother of the boy had a romance with the other man.
The next day the father, upset and distressed, refuses to
recognise his son and perform the ceremony. The other man is
ready to do so instead, but that causes protest, since he is known
to be an irresponsible drunk. The mother of the boy wants to
protect her son and is angry with both men. She indeed had a
romance, as she was pressured into her marriage and wasn’t
particularly fond of her husband at the time, but she has since
also fallen out with her lover and doesn’t want him near her child.
The COVEN has to navigate the conflict as the villagers begin to take
sides, the mood sours and the boy becomes more and more
distressed.

32
Braiding
Braiding was a rite of passage during which girls received their names (to
replace the temporary, protective names they used as children) and
became fully recognised members of their community. The ceremony
took place when a girl was between 9-12 years old, often when she started
menstruating.

Her hair was braided for the first time by older women of the community,
who also placed a flower crown on girl’s hair. Both braid and flower crown
were the symbols of innocence and virginity. Since their braiding, girls
were preparing for their future role as wives and mothers.

Braiding and haircutting were both accompanied by a feast.

In WISE WOMEN

Braiding is a similar ceremony to haircutting and as such can fulfil the

same role in the story, as a background detail, a side-plot involving
everyday life of the villagers or as an event sparking social conflicts.
Braiding and haircutting can take place at the same time and be an
important event involving the whole village.

Braiding can serve as a setting for stories about girls struggling with
pressure to become wives and mothers, rebelling against it or crumbling
under it. The COVEN can help them navigate social expectations and make
their way in the world. The witches can even start teaching some of the
girls magic. This is of course will anger the villagers if discovered. But
choosing to teach a struggling girl can make for a powerful story about
women sharing knowledge and supporting each other across generations.

33
Braiding and haircutting are both gendered events, not leaving space for
trans children who do not fit into gender roles assigned to them at birth.
The COVEN can also help such children understand themselves better and
provide them with a space where they can be themselves.

Ideas for plots

A girl cuts her hair few days before her braiding ceremony,
declaring that she won’t go through it and she doesn’t ever want
to get married. Her relatives are either angry or dismiss her
rebellion. They attempt to make the girl go through a version of
the ceremony anyway, but her behaviour becomes more erratic
and desperate as she attempts to get out of it. She begins to be
mocked and bullied by other children and becomes severely
distressed. The COVEN can help her by providing support in
navigating social expectations and finding her own place in life.

The most prosperous and respected family in the village offers to

pay for a generous feast to accompany haircutting and braiding
ceremonies, as their beloved daughter is about to become a fully
recognised member of the community. However, the gesture is
soon followed by demands made on behaviour of other children
and threats of some families not being invited if they’re not
sufficiently polite and respectful. The mood is soured and
conflicts begin to brew in the village, as some of the children are
told to wait until next year and people disliked by the family are
excluded from the celebrations.

34
Wedding
Wedding joined together not only bride and groom but also their families,
who provided dowries of equal value that the newlyweds brought into
their marriage. Young people who wanted to get married against their
families’ wishes sometimes arranged a fake kidnapping of the bride and a
secret wedding. If the families accepted the marriage after the fact, a
smaller wedding was still organized to celebrate the union. However, the
families could also respond with anger and refuse to accept the
relationship.

During the wedding ceremony hands of bride and groom were tied
together to symbolise the joining of two families. The wedding was
accompanied by a feast, dancing and singing. Grain was thrown at the
newlyweds to ensure their fertility. Dirty jokes were common during the
festivities, which could last for several days.

At midnight, the bride was taken into a separate room. There, other young
women unbraided her hair and removed her flower crown. Married
women then placed a mobcap on her head. The rite marked her transition
from a maiden into a married woman.

People took great care to ensure that the union didn’t not offend house
spirits nor attract evil creatures. The groom carried the bride into his
house, where she symbolically asked for acceptance from the house
spirits by circling the hearth and the table. Her cut hair was thrown into
the fire as a sacrifice. Sometimes the couple was wrapped in additional
clothing for protection from evil. For the same reason an axe was placed
under their bed on the wedding night.

In WISE WOMEN

A wedding in the village offers plenty of fodder for social drama. The
problems around marriage can affect the witches themselves, people
close to them or less prominent characters. Broken engagement, families
opposing a relationship, staged kidnapping and inability to afford a dowry
can all become prominent part of story or provide a vivid background to
add more detail and verisimilitude to the village.

35
Preparations for a wedding can also be a part of a supernatural plot. They
might draw jealousy of creatures who wish to have the bride or the groom
for themselves. Supernatural beings might wish to sabotage the wedding
and hurt the newlyweds out of their malicious nature or because they hold
a grudge against the village. Celebrations can also draw out creatures
born out of souls of people hurt by either groom or bride, who chose this
moment to have their vengeance.

Engagement and wedding can also be used to frame a story, with the
former sparking troubles that will require the COVEN to intervene and the
later acting as a setting for a culmination point or an epilogue.

Ideas for plots

A young, handsome man arrived in the village before harvest and

got a job with one of the families in the community. Many young
people have a crush on him but he seems especially interested in
the daughter of his employer who also is in love with him and
wants to marry him. Her parents, however, do not agree, since the
man is a stranger. The couple stages a kidnapping of the bride
and marries in secret, hoping to force parents to accept their
relationship. But the situation is more dangerous than it seems.
The man is a latawiec who came to the village looking for love. He
thinks he cares for the woman he married but their love is slowly
draining her strength.

Few days before the wedding, the groom is nowhere to be found.

His friend is also missing, so people fear that the two men got lost
while drunk. Some gossip that the groom wasn’t enthusiastic
about the wedding. Family of the bride-to-be is offended that
groom’s family didn’t control their son. The young woman herself
appears worried, but a perceptive person will notice that she’s
hiding something. She knows that the two men are lovers and ran
away together to avoid the marriage. She doesn’t mind, as she
doesn’t want to get married either, but she is worried for her
friends who are now hiding in the forest. The COVEN can find the
men before they fall victim to creatures that lurk in the wilderness
They can also help the young people navigate expectations of
their community.

36
Funeral
During traditional Slavic funerals the bodies of the deceased were burned,
since fire was believed to have purifying properties. It guaranteed a safe
journey into the afterlife. Burning the body was also an assurance that the
dead person wouldn’t come back as an upir or a vampire. Mourning was
mixed with joyful celebrations, meant to free the bereaved from the
negative influence of spirits of the dead. The celebrations included a feast
as well as competitions such as races or wrestling.

After the advent of Christianity the burning of the bodies was replaced
with their burial in the ground. Funerals continued to be followed by a
feast but the ceremony became more sombre.

When someone died, people opened all the windows in their house to
allow the soul to leave. Sometimes they also hanged a towel in a window
and covered sacred images for 40 days. The deceased had to be dressed
in white linen clothing. It was important to ensure that there were no holes
in it, as they could bring about another death in the family. The clothing
had to be free from knots as they could trap the departing soul. The
mouth of the deceased should be closed, so that they wouldn’t call anyone
to follow them into the afterlife.

Deceased young men and women were dressed in wedding clothes. Their
coffins were carried by young people of the opposite gender. The bodies
were carried in a funeral procession all the way to the cemetery.

In WISE WOMEN

Funeral can provide both a good opening and a satisfying conclusion to

the story. As a backdrop for the first session, it can set the scene for future
events: relationships between villagers and conflicts and resentments
caused by somebody’s death. It can set the mood for a story filled with
difficulties and grief or for one about rediscovering hope.

Burying the body of a deceased villager is a natural start to the stories

featuring the undead. The creature can be the deceased themself, with
the plot exploring and unveiling the hurt that made them unable to rest,

37
but it can also be a different undead, posing danger to mourners who wish
to visit the grave of the loved one.

If the story featured deaths of the villagers, a funeral in the epilogue can
offer witches a chance to reflect on the events that led to it, to process
their emotions and to begin taking the first steps towards healing after the
difficult things they and their community went through.

Ideas for plots

On the day of the funeral, the body of the deceased young man is
missing from the house where is awaited the burial. He died of an
illness and, driven by anger at being deprived of a chance to fully
enjoy life, has risen as an upir. He might be drawn to people he
was close to or admired in life. Once his loved ones realise that he
is still around in some form, they might wish to find him and
protect him. This, however, puts them in grave danger as the man
is no longer himself. He has been twisted into a dangerous
undead and will hurt people unless he is properly laid to rest.

The sister of the village head is found dead in the field. The mood
during the funeral is particularly sombre, as she was well-liked.
She was always close with her brother who speaks up during
funeral feast, declaring that he will find those responsible for his
sister’s death. The woman’s death was sudden but natural and no
signs indicate foul play, but the village head becomes obsessed
with the idea that she was poisoned or cursed. He starts throwing
accusations and some people are quick to join the hunt for
witches and murderers. The COVEN has to navigate the volatile
situation in the community. They can help calm it down and help
village head process his grief, or they can join in the accusations,
to deflect suspicions from themselves and to settle their own
scores.

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