Growing up, I was always fascinated with the stories my mother and her siblings would tell of ghosts, monsters, and other folklore from their native province in the Philippines. The stories of ghosts in the rice paddies and of the manananggal in the mountains always gripped me because of the conviction they had when telling the stories. For them, these things were not myths.
Although not a tale of monsters, my favorite story is one about my mother when she fell sick while she was a child. My mother was around 8 years old and she used to play on the bridge that crossed the river near her home. Everyday she would go to the river to run back and forth across the bridge and occasionally throw rocks into the water. One day she fell extremely ill with a high fever and my grandparents worried she would die if they didn’t get her medical attention. The closest doctor was a woman who wasn’t a medical doctor but rather a practitioner in natural healing. The ‘doctor’ took a plate and held it over a candle until the plate was covered in soot. Then she drizzled oil on the plate. The oil formed an image of a bridge with a bunch of figures standing around it. She told my grandparents that the spirits of children liked my mother so much that they made her sick so that she would pass and could come play with them in the afterlife. The ‘doctor’ and my grandparents then made an offering of cooked chicken and rice to appease the spirits. A few days later, my mother was back on her feet, being a child again, although she avoided playing on the bridge again. I apologize for the tangent, but I love this story and wanted to share.
Back on topic, oh yes, monsters. Anyone of Filipino heritage or with knowledge of Filipino myths has probably heard of the aswang. Depending on which part of the Philippines you are in, you will get different descriptions of an aswang. They are similar to vampires but they are unaffected by daylight and tend to target children or the unborn children of pregnant mothers. Many Filipinos believed the aswang to be the cause of miscarriages and stillbirths. Scary stuff. Let’s make a Dungeon World monster.
Tips for the GM
The aswang can be the centerpiece of an adventure. Perhaps there is a rash of child disappearances or news of a pregnant woman who claims to have seen the devil before suffering a miscarriage. This could lead to an investigation by the players to find out who among the citizens of the nearby village is the aswang. In combat, the aswang will not fight to the death but would flee if it felt outmatched. You can also make the players defy danger to even look upon the hideous creature if need be.
Also, since the aswang touches on some dark themes that may be disturbing to some players, make sure you have safety rules in place to ensure the fun and enjoyment of everyone at the table.
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