Herne Vilhaur
Herne Vilhaur was a hunter from Andoran who found himself in Mendev's Estrovian Forest during the First Mendevian Crusade.1
He and his companions were hunting a white stag, sacred to the druids of the forest, when Herne was badly injured. His companions abandoned him, returning with a false tale that he had deserted them. The druids found him, and hanged him from an oak tree. They then used powerful magic known as the 'curse of the winterthorn' to turn him into a herne, a stag-horned forest avenger. They sought to use him to gain revenge on the foreign crusaders who had been despoiling their forest.1
Unfortunately for the druids, Herne's treatment by his companions and the warping effect of the magic created a creature filled with malice. The new herne killed his creators, and then began hunting any travellers who dared venture into the forest. He passed his curse on to others, and the locals started calling them 'hernes' after him.1
Herne eventually died, and his progeny buried him in a barrow beneath the tree from which he was originally hanged. It has come to be called Herne's Oak, and is sacred to the hernes.1
References
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- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 . “Chapter 2: The Inner Sea” in Campaign Setting, 101. Paizo Inc., 2008