HOME | DD

Description
More concept art for my work in progress comicbook, Trollmannens Bestiarium (the wizard's bestiary). This is a tusse, which is one of the three most common creatures in Norwegian folklore, alongside trolls and huldra.

In the forests of Norway and Sweden, after night falls, the darkness is alive. Pitch black darkness is called "tussmørke" in Norwegian, and the reason for this are a mysterious race of creatures known as tusser, the subterraneans, or the invisible ones. They live deep underground, only coming out when it is dark enough that humans cannot see them.
Don't let their small size fool you, these creatures are far more dangerous than they appear. The subterraneans are notorious for their intelligence, creativity, magical powers, and their ability to turn invisible. They are quick to anger, and extremely protective of the forest, which they consider sacred. Luckily for humans, they only come out of their cave homes at night, which is why peasant folk are advised to never enter the forest after dark.
Humans who respect nature and move quietly might be left alone. Those unfortunate enough to encounter an angry tusse, or a crowd of them, may be horribly scratched, cursed, or in worst cases, dragged down into the caves to Tusseheim, where they are never heard from again. People speculate on wether the subterraneans eat humans, or have some other nefarious purpose for their victims, but no word leaves those dark caves.
Unlike the huldrefolk who are just fascinated with humans, most subterraneans outright hate them. The stories go that humans and tusser used to be fine with each other, but then humans abandoned the Norse faith the tusser still worship, and began viewing subterraneans as demons that need to be exterminated. Tusser can live for hundreds of years, and they have not forgotten humanity's betrayal.

The subterraneans are largely shrouded in mystery, and not much is known for sure about the way they live their lives. One thing that is known is that they, alongside their cave-dwelling neighbours, the huldrefolk, are excellent craftsmen, and have an abundance of gold, silver and jewels that they mine from their cave homes. It is said that the most intricate and beautiful pieces of jewelry in the world are crafted by the subterraneans. Sometimes a lucky human might steal one, but by and large these pieces of art are hidden from human eyes. Stories and whispers say the underground palace of the subterraneans is built entirely of gold, and is so beautiful that any human who sees it would be blinded by it.

Tusser are sort of a trollish counterpart to the elven race of nisser, and both look and behave quite similarly, although nisser are far less hostile. Tusser also wear knitted hats on their heads, similarly to nisser, but within this story, they also usually cover their faces with cloaks to protect their mouths and noses from the dirt they're exposed to underground. The easiest way to distinguish a commoner subterranean from a noble one, is that the noble will keep their face uncovered, as they don't need to work in the mines. Both male and female subterraneans dress the same.
Their eyes are large and cat-like, adapted to see very well in the dark. With long, sharp claws for digging (or attacking), and tough skin made to withstand coarse dirt and gravel, they can be very difficult to defend oneself from.
Tusser in Norwegian folklore are hardly described at all appearancewise, with the only details being that they can turn invisible, they're small, and they often dress in green. Famous fairytale illustrator Theodor Kittelsen drew them as small trolls, but I chose to focus more on the creepy nocturnal aspect of them in my design.

Description
More concept art for my work in progress comicbook, Trollmannens Bestiarium (the wizard's bestiary). This is a tusse, which is one of the three most common creatures in Norwegian folklore, alongside trolls and huldra.

In the forests of Norway and Sweden, after night falls, the darkness is alive. Pitch black darkness is called "tussmørke" in Norwegian, and the reason for this are a mysterious race of creatures known as tusser, the subterraneans, or the invisible ones. They live deep underground, only coming out when it is dark enough that humans cannot see them.
Don't let their small size fool you, these creatures are far more dangerous than they appear. The subterraneans are notorious for their intelligence, creativity, magical powers, and their ability to turn invisible. They are quick to anger, and extremely protective of the forest, which they consider sacred. Luckily for humans, they only come out of their cave homes at night, which is why peasant folk are advised to never enter the forest after dark.
Humans who respect nature and move quietly might be left alone. Those unfortunate enough to encounter an angry tusse, or a crowd of them, may be horribly scratched, cursed, or in worst cases, dragged down into the caves to Tusseheim, where they are never heard from again. People speculate on wether the subterraneans eat humans, or have some other nefarious purpose for their victims, but no word leaves those dark caves.
Unlike the huldrefolk who are just fascinated with humans, most subterraneans outright hate them. The stories go that humans and tusser used to be fine with each other, but then humans abandoned the Norse faith the tusser still worship, and began viewing subterraneans as demons that need to be exterminated. Tusser can live for hundreds of years, and they have not forgotten humanity's betrayal.

The subterraneans are largely shrouded in mystery, and not much is known for sure about the way they live their lives. One thing that is known is that they, alongside their cave-dwelling neighbours, the huldrefolk, are excellent craftsmen, and have an abundance of gold, silver and jewels that they mine from their cave homes. It is said that the most intricate and beautiful pieces of jewelry in the world are crafted by the subterraneans. Sometimes a lucky human might steal one, but by and large these pieces of art are hidden from human eyes. Stories and whispers say the underground palace of the subterraneans is built entirely of gold, and is so beautiful that any human who sees it would be blinded by it.

Tusser are sort of a trollish counterpart to the elven race of nisser, and both look and behave quite similarly, although nisser are far less hostile. Tusser also wear knitted hats on their heads, similarly to nisser, but within this story, they also usually cover their faces with cloaks to protect their mouths and noses from the dirt they're exposed to underground. The easiest way to distinguish a commoner subterranean from a noble one, is that the noble will keep their face uncovered, as they don't need to work in the mines. Both male and female subterraneans dress the same.
Their eyes are large and cat-like, adapted to see very well in the dark. With long, sharp claws for digging (or attacking), and tough skin made to withstand coarse dirt and gravel, they can be very difficult to defend oneself from.
Tusser in Norwegian folklore are hardly described at all appearancewise, with the only details being that they can turn invisible, they're small, and they often dress in green. Famous fairytale illustrator Theodor Kittelsen drew them as small trolls, but I chose to focus more on the creepy nocturnal aspect of them in my design.