Wild Hunt

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The Wild Hunt is a mystical organization that appears in various forms throughout myriad European mythologies. At its core, the Wild Hunt is a supernatural hunting party that can be seen racing through the wilderness at night, although details such as who partakes (fey, fiends, ghosts, or some combination thereof have all been cited), who leads the hunt, and what it actually hunts depends on the precise tale that you hear!

As a key bit of European mythology, the Wild Hunt has made appearances in both Dungeons & Dragons and in Pathfinder. Its ties to faerie-lore has seen it appear in Changeling: The Lost as well. It is also a major part of wood elves lore, heavily related to Orion.

D&D

Four different iterations of the Wild Hunt have appeared in D&D.

1st Edition

First detailed in the Celtic section of Deities & Demigods, it is explained as a physical manifestation of the life force that is worshipped by druids that appears whenever there is evil in the land. The hunting party consists of the Master of the Hunt, a huge black-skinned man with deer antlers and glowing green eyes, and a pack of huge black dogs whose tongues and eyes blaze with green fire. Anyone who looks upon the hunt has a random chance to either be drawn in and join the pursuit or to become the object of the hunt.

In Dragon Magazine #65, Robin Emrys Atkinson wrote an article where he revised some of the Celtic deities presented in Deities and Demigods, and added some new ones. Notably, he retconned that the Master of the Hunt is actually the god Cernunnos (for some reason spelled Cerunnos in the article). During a Hunt, Cernunnos loses his sense of self and goes into a berserker-like trance until the Hunt is over.

3rd Edition

Appearing in Dragon Magazine #342, this one is... not very well detailed; the rear-section of the issue dedicates its Divine character option to presenting the Master of the Wild Hunt as a deity that can be worshipped by clerics. He is described as a Neutral (leaning towards Neutral Evil) deity mostly worshipped by druids and rangers, who exists to hunt the most worthy prey imaginable; Wild Hunts in the Prime Material are typical sects of his mortal worshippers, and usually have more specific quarry.

4th Edition

It is first mentioned in the pages of the Monster Manual 2. Here, it is explained that the Firbolgs, a race of fey giants, undertake Wild Hunts as a sacred rite, seeking to prove their worth to the three goddesses whom they worship and to punish oathbreakers. Dragon Magazine #428 would subsequently explain that the Wild Hunt of the Firbolgs is a pale imitation of the true Wild Hunt, which is led by an outcast archfey named Cerunnos, the Horned Lord. The "true" Wild Hunt comprises of many different Gloaming Fey, as well as firbolgs and centaurs, aided by undead (especially vampires; an eladrin vampire demigod named Kannoth was once a member of the Wild Hunt himself) and warlocks.

The Warden Paragon Path called the Horned Champion may be tied to the Wild Hunt in some way, as well.

Ravenloft

In Ravenloft, the Wild Hunt, while superficially similiar to the versions above, is a manifestation created from the mists by the Dark Powers. They most often manifest in Forlorn, but can manifest anywhere temperate, and from there begin searching for any intelligent being of any alignment, except True Neutral, for prey. Any being who sees the Wild Hunt after the prey has been chosen, is compelled to join the hunt, and often evil beings, such as hags, werewolves, fey, and undead, and PCs who've failed a Powers check are invited to join the hunt. Oh, and the Darklords are immune to the call and can't be chosen as prey.

Birthright

The name is also invoked in the Birthright setting as the name of an elf supremacist anti-human hate-group that is striving to drive humanity off of Cerilia through acts of murder and terrorism.

Pathfinder

Appearing in the 6th Pathfinder bestiary, the Wild Hunt of Golarion is a civilization of distinctive fey, who collectively owe loyalty to a god-like archfey called the Horned King, and whose culture revolves around hunting the greatest trophies they can imagine. Stats are presented for three specific varieties of "Wild Hunter"; the Scout, Archer and Monarch. Stats are also presented for their fey hounds and steeds, too.

Changeling: The Lost

The Wild Hunt of Arcadia is not one singular organization, but a phenomena; it refers to one of the True Fey going on the hunt, with an entourage of hobgoblins at their beck and call. A cursed fey artifact allows a changeling to summon a Wild Hunt to their presence, and is regarded as one of the very last things you should ever, ever have to use.

Warhammer Fantasy

Basically the WAAAGH!!! for the Wood Elves. Every midsummer, Orion would lead a bunch of his forest kin to assrape any of his enemies. Everybody that is part of the Wood Elves faction in Athel Loren would often feel their primal instinct arise at this period, such that they would either join the hunt or avoid it. The targets that usually get assraped during this period are either the Bretonnians (because they live nearby) or the Greenskins (live in the nearby mountains but also got assraped in the first ever wild hunt when they tried to WAAAGH!!! the Oak of Ages).

See Also

A video by Overly Sarcastic Productions going into more specific detail about the phenomenon.