The Folklore of Wales: Ghosts - A Review

18 February 2024

From the tragic story of Gelert the dog to the fight between the red and white dragons that gave Wales its kickass flag, Welsh folklore and mythology has always had a special place in my heart. So I knew I was in for a treat when I went to a talk from Dr. Delyth Badder (co-author of Folklore of Wales: Ghosts) and Prof. Miranda Aldhouse-Green (author of Enchanted Wales, which I’ll probably also write about after I read it). The talk was also brilliantly MC’d by Owen Staton of the Time Between Times podcast, which everyone should go listen to for ghost stories from across the British Isles.

To be honest with you, reader, I hadn't heard of any of these people when I bought the tickets, I was just happy that there was a talk about something I'm so interested in at my local Waterstones. But I came out of it with three new storytellers I was a major fan of and instantly bought both Delyth and Miranda's books, which they were both kind enough to sign for me.

The thing that most caught my ear during the talk was when Badder explained the rules that Welsh ghosts seem to uniquely obey:

A Welsh ghost will not speak until spoken to.
A Welsh ghost will only appear to one person.
A Welsh ghost will often ask the person it contacts to help them with something.

As a game designer, these rules felt super inspiring, and I knew I wanted to try making a game around them, so I did! But more on that later…

The most wonderful thing about this book is that it contains dozens of Welsh-language sources that have been translated into English for the very first time, and provides both the Welsh and English language quotations whenever they are available. This is such an amazing act for Welsh folklore academia and, while it's not something I personally study in specific depth, I can absolutely appreciate the value of this work.

This book covers so many unique and interesting stories that were an absolute pleasure to read and a great inspiration to my own work. Another uniquely interesting thing about Welsh ghosts is the unconventional forms they may take. From great, rolling wheels of fire to a giant rabbit that turns into… a nun? It all felt very reminiscent of yokai and the many peculiar forms they can take.

My personal favourite ghost, one that I plan to include in a TTRPG adventure of my own, was the toili, a ghostly funeral procession that was said to forebode the death of someone in the village, if only you could see who was in the phantom casket... An encounter with a toili is absolutely brimming with gothic mystery and feels like it would fit perfectly into a folk-horror setting.

Finally, the book ends with a glossary of terms and spirits, which feels like a perfect bestiary for a gothic or folk-horror RPG.

I hope some of these stories are as interesting and inspiring to you as they are to me, but this is just a taste of what the full book contains. I would absolutely implore you to get yourself a copy and give it a read!

As for my game inspired by all this, Dewin is a solo journalling RPG where you play a wizard or folk healer who travels the land ridding it of fierce and friendly ghosts. It's going to be built on the Carta system by Peach Garden Games, which I read recently and knew would be perfect for this game. Dewin is my love letter to Wales and Welsh folklore and I can't wait to get it out into the world!

Thanks for reading this dispatch of Jackalope Mail!