“There Was Nothing Human About It. It Hissed At The Boys. Red-pupiled Eyes Snapped Shut And Open. A

cryptid caught on cam

Three Crows - now with voice over (thanks to Iggydkidd on twitter!).

Valravnen is less of a vættr and more of a fairytale creature. It's only known from medieval folk songs, and only from Denmark.

Valravnen shows up in two folk songs: The appropriately titled "Valravnen" and a version of "Germand Gladensvend," where Gammen is replaced by Valravnen. In the self-titled song, valravnen is a human who has been cursed to become a raven and is only returned to his human body when he drinks the blood of a baby. In Germand Gladensvend, valravnen is a monstrous bird who helps the main characters, but asks for their first-born in return, whom he then eats - he is, however, killed by the child's mother before it is revealed why he ate the child.

Even in the song commonly known as "Valravnen," this word only shows up in two of the nine versions of the song. In the other versions, the character is referred to as Wild Raven, Salmand Raven, or Verner Raven (Salmand and Verner being human names).

According to folklorists Holbek & Piø, "valravn" (battlefield raven) is not the original name for this figure, but is instead a misunderstanding of the more prevalent name "vilde ravn" (wild raven), as the figure never appears to have had anything to do with the battlefield, and "wild raven" is a far more common moniker in medieval sources.

However, during the early-1800s nationalistic romanticist wave, poet Adam Oehlenschläger showed a clear preference for the name "valravn" and chose to exclusively use that name in his reworkings of the folksongs. By the time folklorist Svend Grundtvig started his work, by the mid-1800s, "valravn" had overtaken the earlier "vilde ravn" name in popularity.

It is Holbek & Piø's opinion that valravnen is closely related to the werewolf, since they're both transformed humans who can be freed by drinking the blood of an infant, a belief that seems exclusive to Southern Scandinavia.

According to some modern authors, valravnen is a raven that haunts the battlefield, but I have not been able to trace back the origins of this belief. It seems fairly recent, and appears to be a result of the creature's name, more than its actual folkloric presence.

The heraldic combination of a wolf and a raven has been referred to as a valravn. This has seemingly nothing to do with the folkloric valravn, just as a heraldic antelope has nothing to do with a real life antelope. It does lend some credence to the idea that the valravn and the werewolf are related, though. The werewolf is also rarely described as "varulv" in folk songs, but is more often described as "vilde ulv" (wild wolf) or "grå ulv" (grey wolf).

Sources:

Holbek & Piø (1967) "Fabeldyr og Sagnfolk"

Poul Lorenzen (1960) "Vilde Fugle i Sagn og Tro"

“never eating a chip after midnight again”

Day 1: Crow / Werewolf prompt list

Crows! ( ╹▽╹ ) drawn December 2021

I’m finally reaching the final stage of this illustration, after almost 4 years working on and off on it! 💪

Some details of “Valravn”

Guidance🕯 

A mixed media piece with colored inks, poster color and colored pencils!

NAME: Valravn (Pl: Valravne)

RARITY: ★★☆☆☆

THREAT LEVEL: ★★☆☆☆ | Primarily a concern if they’re after you. But don’t look them in the eyes or you’ll share in their vengeance quest.

HABITAT: Most frequently the woods and in mountainous forests.

DESCRIPTION: Valravne were once ordinary ravens or other corvids. Only after they feed on the heart of someone who was murdered will they become something else – a vengeful bird with eyes that glow red or purple with fury. Though still technically ravens, these birds now have part of the deceased person’s will inside of them, and in addition to playing deadly tricks on unsuspecting people, they will stalk and torment their killers, driving them insane and eventually to their death. They’ll stop at nothing to meet this goal and may even force you into helping with the task by staring into your eyes. Since it isn’t unusual for several birds to pick at a dead person’s body, there are cases where a whole flock of valravn are created from a single person’s heart; these are the most deadly for the murderer to contend with. 

Because valravne are live, mundane animals with the essence and desires of the dead corrupting them, they themselves are not spectral. It’s more akin to possession. As such, both rangers and mediums will be able to feel their presence. Once a valravn slays its killer, the spirit will be at peace and disappear, leaving behind a confused raven. While valravne were originally observed as being ravens or less commonly crows, every once in a while another related bird species will end up becoming one, such as a blue jay or grackle. These smaller birds pose somewhat of a less physical threat.

ABILITIES: Valravne are, in many ways, ordinary ravens. They just have an insatiable desire for revenge, and that drives their actions even when beyond their own understanding. They have animal intelligence, but the spirit inside of them guides them in clever ways. Some misinterpret this as the valravn having supernatural intelligence, but that’s not quite the case. Valravne can feel the presence of their killer, though this grows weaker with greater distance; as such it can take them a while to find their target. Meeting a valravn’s eyes for a prolonged stare will fill you with vengeance for their killer, though you won’t know their identity. Valravne have stirred people into violence with their gaze, even making them commit murder themselves, but that anger is only directed toward the killer or killers. 

WEAKNESS: There are ways to be rid of valravne, such as striking them with a silver weapon, but they’re crafty and swift, making this a difficult task. They can be killed like an ordinary bird, but again, this is difficult in practice. Certain charms may prevent valravne from attacking, but this is a temporary measure, and as soon as the targeted person removes the charm or it becomes worn out, they are vulnerable again. The best solution for a valravne problem is to get help from an exorcist who can pull the volatile spirit out of the bird – forcing the spirit to move on and allowing the raven to live. Not all exorcists would find this ethical considering it’s helping a killer over their victim; they might not see it as helping the living over the dead. 

OTHER VARIANTS:

Vilde valravn: Sometimes the killer of a valravn will die in another way, or their lifespan will reach its natural conclusion. So what happens to a valravn that doesn’t get the opportunity to achieve vengeance? The hatred in the spirit’s heart continues to fuel its existence, leaving the valravn stuck on the earthly plane. These valravn grow incredibly angry and wild, and eventually stop caring about distinguishing between their killer and others who just happen to have killed anyone in the past. They’ll read someone’s heart and, if assessed to be murderous, come at them with all of the fury they reserved for their killer.

Woe betide those that see the king remove his mask.

On a less dramatic note, I'd like to thank you for posting this character, because I didn't know that squishmallow existed until I read the Raven King's description. It's now my sworn duty to acquire one for myself.

The Raven King is the OC of @zappyboicat.

valravn music full video

Song is the pain of relief (we all have our vices) by g0r3sh*t, this is my submission for valravn for @rose-grimm-spirit-does-dumb-shit