The Fae Encyclopedia
(For Curious Humans)

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The Winter Court

The court of death, the court of what which is pale and frozen. The "evil" Faeries.

Summer can be brutal, but nothing is quite as brutal as Winter. It's rarely raw brute force, but... there's an alien strangeness to them, darkness along strange lines, which unsettles humans and triggers that fight-or-flight instinct. There's something downright wrong with the Winter Court, and even its members that don't appear to be deadly, even those that are charming and elegant... you know that deep down they are monstrous.

It's hard to say whether this is born out of some genuine hate for humans (and for the Summer Court) (and for anything alive in general) or if it's no different than the innate instincts of animals. Winter could simply be, dangerous by design rather than out of emotion. That's my working theory. I'd like to think that they bear no ill will -- but reasoning with them may be futile. The Crown of Ice makes no apologies for itself.

The ratio of Summer to Winter in terms of sheer numbers of Fae is really unbalanced. Winter comprises only 25% of the total Fae population, as far as I can tell... but they make up for it by being unique, each and every one. There are few 'races' of Winter Fae, only individuals with their own abilities and their own unique traits. Powerful entities, universally old, with very few 'young' Winters running around. Winter holds its own in the eternal war of seasons through more power per capita than Summer's widespread ranks.

There's almost no structure to the Winter Court, no nobles and no ruling hierarchy. There is simply Lady Winter, the Queen of Darkness, the Mistress of Death (Yeah. She's got a LOT of names like that)... and then the rest of them. If they bend knee to each other in any specific order, it's not an order I'm aware of.

Frankly? I avoid the Winter Court like the plague. They can be friendly, but that friendliness can just as easily conceal your horrible doom. Avoiding horrible doom is easy enough considering mostly they rule over the frozen wastes of Canada, far to the North, leaving the majority of the North American continent in the hands of Summer. Just stick to warmer climes and you'll be okay.

EDITOR'S NOTE: I'll be honest. Winter freaks me out. Despite the Fae being my people, I've never actually met a member of the Winter Court, and I'm glad I haven't. I'm just one guy, you know? Just an elf. I'd be in as much risk as any human would be if I got caught up in the machinations of the Winter Court.

I have to wonder what would happen if the Summer Court finally crushed the Winter Court. Yeah, yeah, we're allies now, but c'mon. There's ALWAYS going to be the war of seasons, it's just how we are. But if we did run those creepshows off the face of the Earth, if Summer had complete dominion over the Fae of this world... would Earth survive it? I've heard the Ladies control the weather. I don't think you want the ice caps melting. I don't think I would want them melting, too.

I live with these people, I AM these people, and even I don't have all the answers.