Baba Yaga & the Hags
Perhaps one of the most extensive folklore implementations in the multiverse of Dungeons & Dragons represents Baba Yaga and the Hags. They are powerful, often fearsome beings from the Feywild or dark dimensions.
They embody ancient knowledge, magic, and cruelty and are predominantly depicted as manipulative witches with sinister intents. Their circles usually consist of 3 hags, who act both for and against each other.
Baba Yaga herself is a legendary, almost god-like figure: an ancient witch with a magical hut on chicken legs, who travels through various realms of the multiverse. She is considered the creator and progenitor of the hags and the source of dark witch magic. In this context, she is manipulative, unpredictable, and opportunistic.
She loves to trade in secrets, often imposing dangerous and opaque exchanges on interested beings, the true cost of which they often only realize when it is too late. She is equally willing to help her admirers as she is to decide to eat them.
In real folklore, Baba Yaga originates from Slavic mythology, particularly from Russian, Ukrainian, and Polish tales. There, she is also a changeable figure – sometimes evil, sometimes helpful. She also lives deep in the forest in a house on chicken legs that can spin.
She flies in a mortar, stirs with a pestle, and devours people, especially children, when she deems it necessary. At the same time, she can also assist those seeking advice – if they pass her tests or answer her questions correctly.
The hags also find their place in European myths, such as in the three Norns of Norse legends, the Greek Moirai, or the witches of Macbeth.
