Wight

Wight
Grouping Legendary creature
Sub grouping Undead
Similar creatures Ghost
Country England

A wight (Old English: wiht) is a creature or living sentient being.[1][2] In its original usage the word wight described a living human being,[3] but more recently, the word has been used within the fantasy genre of literature to describe certain undead. The earliest example of this usage in English is in William Morris's translation of the Grettis Saga, where draug is translated as "barrow wight". Notable later examples include the undead Barrow-wights from the works of J. R. R. Tolkien, others from the works of George R. R. Martin and in the HBO adaption of A Song of Ice and Fire, and the level-draining wights of Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game franchise.

  • In the novel The Fellowship of the Ring (1954) by J. R. R. Tolkien, barrow wights are cruel, evil spirits of the dead men of the Northern Kingdom of Arnor and the realm of Cardolan who fell in battle against the Witch-king of Angmar.
  • In the Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game "white box" set (TSR, 1974), wights are described as being able to drain away energy levels on a touch.[4]
  • In the Warhammer Fantasy Battle setting (1983–2015), wights are deathless warriors from ancient times brought back to life by Dark Magic. This power not only revives them, but twists their armour and imbues them with fell power. Their weapons bear such potent enchantments that a single cut is enough to kill a living human.
  • In the setting of the World of Darkness role-playing game Vampire: The Masquerade (1991–present), the term "wight" is used to refer to vampires who have succumbed utterly to their monstrous natures and become semi-mindless predators. The Vampire: The Requiem game in the updated Chronicles of Darkness setting (2004–present) instead uses the term "draugr" to refer to such creatures.
  • In the setting of the Warcraft online role-playing games (1994–present), Wights are creatures similar in appearance to traditional representations of Frankenstein's monster—large, hulking, pallid skinned monsters that were once human, but have been made mindlessly insane through the power of the Scourge.
  • In the A Song of Ice and Fire novels (1996–present) by George R. R. Martin, and the television series based on it, Game of Thrones (2011–present), wights are humans or animals killed by the Others (also known as the White Walkers) who reanimate as undead creatures with pallid skin, black hands and glowing blue eyes.[5][6] Wights may be physically injured, but even dismembered parts remain animated, so they must be destroyed by fire.[6] The humans who live in the north beyond The Wall—called "wildlings" by the inhabitants of Westeros—burn their dead so that they do not become wights.[7] Wights are not vulnerable to obsidian and Valyrian steel, as the Others are.[8]
  • In the games Heroes of Might and Magic III (1999) and V (2006), wights are creature in the Necropolis faction.
  • In the online role-playing game RuneScape (2001), the Mahjarrat Sliske is notorious for his collection of warrior wights.
  • In the Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children series, wights are evolved hollowgasts which become human by consuming peculiar souls, but have blank white eyes.
  • In the videogame Ghost Master, wights are a type of ghost, bound to Earth and Corpses. Blackcrow is the only ghost falling into that category.
  • In the videogame Dragon's Dogma, wights are a type of lich-like undead creatures, they retain their intelligence and knowledge from their past life and are capable of utilizing sorceries and summoning enemies.
  • In the card game Magic: The Gathering, wights are black-aligned creatures; four wight cards have been printed thus. Wights were once a creature type of their own, before being considered as a zombie type.
  • The song Wight Spider appears on the Marilyn Manson album The High End of Low.
  • In the fantasy game book series Fighting Fantasy, wights are the undead servants of a lord or master, whose devotion to them carries on even beyond the grave. They can only be harmed by silver weapons.[9]

Examples in classic English literature and poetry

See also

References

  1. ↑ Merriam-Webster, 1974.
  2. ↑ T. F. HOAD. "wight". The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Retrieved May 19, 2010 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O27-wight.html
  3. ↑ Wight, in the Webster's New Collegiate Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, 1974 edition.
  4. ↑ Gygax, Gary, and Dave Arneson. Dungeons & Dragons (3-Volume Set) (TSR, 1974)
  5. ↑ Martin, George R. R. (1996). "Prologue". A Game of Thrones. pp. 7–10. ISBN 978-0-553-89784-5.
  6. 1 2 Martin. "Chapter 52: Jon". A Game of Thrones. pp. 533–536, 545–548.
  7. ↑ Martin, George R. R. (1998). "Chapter 13: Jon". A Clash of Kings. p. 155. ISBN 978-0-553-89785-2.
  8. ↑ Martin. "Chapter 46: Samwell". A Storm of Swords. pp. 534–535.
  9. ↑ Mark Gasgoigne, ed. (1985). Out of the Pit. p. 119. ISBN 0-14-031999-9.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.