History Main / TheMarvelousDeer

** While the fairytale-inspired plane of Lorwyn/Shadowmoor didn't have any actual deer, it did get two separate spirits resembling snow-white, winged stags: the [[https://magiccards.info/lw/en/37.html elemental of Purity]] (who has the ability to negate the damage done to you and give an equal amount of health instead) and the steed of the [[https://magiccards.info/m12/en/6.html "Archon of Justice."]] Two more archons, hailing from the Arthurian plane of Eldraine, ride winged stags -- the [[https://scryfall.com/card/eld/3/archon-of-absolution "Archon of Absolution"]] rides a golden stag and wields a lance made from a branching antler, while the [[https://scryfall.com/card/eld/17/harmonious-archon "Harmonious Archon"]] rides a white hart much like the Archon of Justice's.

For the deer to be white -- or golden -- is common. They are more likely to be stags, with magnificent antlers, but not overwhelmingly. A fawn adds connotations of innocence. But these deer can just as easily bend towards [[ EldritchAbomination:unsettling abominations]].

For the deer to be white -- or golden -- is common. They are more likely to be stags, with magnificent antlers, but not overwhelmingly. A fawn adds connotations of innocence.

** Module [=IM3=] ''The Best of Intentions'': During the Olympic Trials, the Immortal {{PC}}s compete in an event called "The Wild Hunt". They must chase and kill a great white hart twice as large as a normal deer. The hart is actually another Immortal in deer form.
** Module O2 ''Blade of Vengeance''. Karelia the faedorne sends a magical and intelligent white stag to lead Erystelle to the Circle of Dreams.

* In ''Literature/TheLostYearsOfMerlin,'' the first book begins with a young Merlin being protected by a stag from a wild boar. It is strongly implied that these are the spirits [[BigGood Dagda]] and [[BigBad Rhita Gawr]], respectively.
* In ''Literature/TheMagicTreehouse'', Merlin is able to turn into a stag.

* In ''Videogame/AssassinsCreedIII'', Connor can accept a quest to hunt a unique deer. According to the huntmaster, several hunters have tried and failed to bring it down before, and they all swear it's got some mysterious power that makes it ImmuneToBullets.
* ''VideoGame/CrusaderKings II'': Your character states his goal to find the fabled White Stag whenever you choose to go on a hunt. There's a small chance of actually encountering one as well, which gives a prestige boost if you manage to bring it down.

* In ''Literature/TheTraitorSonCycle'', the crop of the cream of the [[OurElvesAreDifferent Irk]] cavalry rides magnificent deer.

* In ''Film/TheQueen,'' a stag lose on the grounds of Balmoral forms part of the plot, and the Queen is quite taken when she encounters it. [[spoiler:It's eventually killed by a member of the press]], giving it a symbolic connection with the Queen and/or Diana.

Contrast {{Bambification}}, as well as MooseAreIdiots for a much less favorable portrayal of cervids and OurPerytonsAreDifferent and some portrayals of the {{Wendigo}} for a generally much less pleasant sort of mythical cervine creatures. See also CrownOfHorns. Compare GenialGiraffe, UnicornsAreSacred, and {{Kirin}}.

* ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaBreathOfTheWild'': The magical, deer-like Lord of the Mountain is the best mount in the game but can't be registered at stables, because the stable manager is scared that he'll be cursed for daring to stable a god. It's also called "Satori", and said to be the reincarnation of a [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Satoru_Iwata benevolent sage]] who watches over Hyrule and its wildlife.

* In ''ComicBook/TheSandman'', Cluracan of [[TheFairFolk Faerie]] has a Wild Hart as his nemesis.
* ''Franchise/WonderWoman'':

* A very likely inspiration for the [[UsefulNotes/NationalBasketballAssociation Milwaukee Bucks]]; Wisconsin's state animal is the white-tailed deer.

* ''Podcast/WelcomeToNightVale'': Deer are a recurring motif, and seem to be a symbol of the alien and the other. [[CharacterNarrator Cecil]] has this to say about them;

** The mysterious being known as Huntokar the Destroyer looks like a woman with the head of a deer.

* ''Wiki/SCPFoundation'': [[http://www.scp-wiki.net/scp-2845 SCP-2845]], the Deer God, is a magical extraterrestrial entity that greatly resembles a deer with an antlered human head.

* ''Series/HouseOfTheDragon'': In the second episode, a grand hunt is organized in honor of the king's baby son. The king's men whisper of a magnificent white stag that has been spotted in the woods and aim to catch it as it is a good omen for the young prince, since the stag is said to have ruled the woods before the arrival of the Targaryen dragons. However, it eludes them and they settle for a regular brown stag that they have to hold down for the king to kill. The white stag, however, willingly appears to the king's older daughter Rhaenyra, who seems to take it as a sign of ''her'' path to the throne.

* Myth/KingArthur:

** In Arthurian legend, white stags were supposed to be literally uncatchable, and their pursuit was used to symbolize mankind's quest for spiritual perfection.

[[folder:Music]]
* "[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YRVhJ-1sR2U&ab_channel=sirnori Forest Deer]] by Soviet poets Yuri Entin and Eugine Krylatov.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Music]]
* "[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YRVhJ-1sR2U&ab_channel=sirnori Forest Deer]] by Soviet poets Yuri Entin and Eugine Krylatov.
[[/folder]]

* ''WesternAnimation/InfinityTrain'' has [[AwesomeMcCoolname Alan Dracula]], an all-powerful magical deer generally indifferent to everything that is not grass.

Because they are not predators, they can feature in either the GhibliHills or TheLostWoods. Usually beneficent.

* ''ComicBook/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicIDW'': The "[[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicIDWIssue27To28 Root of the Problem]]" arc involves an encounter with a civilization of magical deer living in [[TheLostWoods the Everfree Forest]] who are essentially Equestria's version of elves, with nature magic [[MagicAIsMagicA entirely alien to the ponies]]. Unfortunately, they're infamous amongst the fandom for invoking [[CantArgueWithElves all of the worst "elves are arrogant!" tropes]] and consequently are [[ScrewYouElves deeply hated by the fans]].

** "Literature/TheTwoBrothers": One brother, having rescued a princess from the dragon and married her, goes hunting in TheLostWoods and is lured into danger by a snow-white hart.

The common portrayal of white deer as magical figures in European mythologies and folklore is likely due to the fact that both the red deer (native to Europe since the last ice age) and fallow deer (introduced into continental Europe by the Romans and present in Great Britain since the first century AD) often produce leucistic specimens[[note]]leucism being a condition where melanin is absent but other pigments aren't, resulting in white or cream-colored animals[[/note]]. Since the gene that causes leucism is recessive, such white deer could appear suddenly out of a population of normally colored deer; this, to ancient people who did not know about genetics and inheritance beyond "like begets like" -- a rule that such white animals would if anything seem to go ''against'' -- would seem like a very mysterious and magical event. Combined with European cultures commonly viewing white as representing mysticality and purity, as well as white coats making their bearers stand out like ghosts in a forest's gloom, it isn't surprising that white deer feature as creatures of mystery and magic in many European folk traditions.

---->'''Nylea:''' ''"It is not yours to hunt, mortal. Be content with its beauty alone."'' -- flavor text for [[https://magiccards.info/jou/en/124.html Golden Hind]].
*** On the plane of Tarkir, according to the card [[https://magiccards.info/ktk/en/62.html Wetland Sambar]], part of the initiation process for Jeskai monks involves approaching one such stag while holding a lotus flower. They can only proceed to the next part of their training if the stag eats the flower from their hand.

** While the fairytale-inspired plane of Lorwyn/Shadowmoor didn't have any actual deer, it did get two separate spirits resembling snow-white, winged stags: the [[https://magiccards.info/lw/en/37.html elemental of Purity]] (who has the ability to negate the damage done to you and give an equal amount of health instead) and the steed of the [[https://magiccards.info/m12/en/6.html Archon of Justice]]. Two more archons, hailing from the Arthurian plane of Eldraine, ride winged stags -- the [[https://scryfall.com/card/eld/3/archon-of-absolution Archon of Absolution]] rides a golden stag and wields a lance made from a branching antler, while the [[https://scryfall.com/card/eld/17/harmonious-archon Harmonious Archon]] rides a white hart much like the Archon of Justice's.
** In "[[https://magic.wizards.com/en/articles/archive/magic-story/episode-1-witch-woods-2021-09-02 The Witch of the Woods]]", the werewolf Planeswalker Arlinn Kord recalls a time when she and her pack hunted a pure white deer with a smell she found strangely bewitching. They chased it for two days before cornering it at a cliff, but after that they let it go -- according to Kord, "sometimes just laying your eyes on something's gift enough".

* In ''[[http://www.surlalunefairytales.com/authors/aulnoy/1892/hindinwood.html The Hind in the Wood]]'', by Creator/MadameDAulnoy, Princes Desiree is turned into a white doe when she is exposed to sunlight by an evil lady-in-waiting (as per a curse). Her fiance, not knowing that she is his bride-to-be, becomes fascinated with her and pursues her through the woods.

* According to Jordanes' ''Gothic History'', the Huns discovered the land of Scythia when a doe pursued by hunters showed them a way westward across the [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maeotian_Swamp Maeotian Swamp]]. The Huns liked the new country so much they invaded it through the trail revealed by the doe, conquering the Goths and beginning their invasion of Europe. They, therefore, believed the doe had been sent by their gods.

* In ''Webcomic/YokokasQuest'', The Forest Goddess, Methuselah, [[https://yokokasquest.com/comic/chapter-6-page-4/ is depicted as a deer when Kalliv talks about her]].

* The [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gundestrup_cauldron Gundestrup Cauldron]] is a silver vessel found in Denmark, dating back to anywhere between 200 BCE and 300 CE. It is inlaid with designs of a number of animals, including a stag, but the most prominent and oft-discussed figure is a [[HornedHumanoid man with antlers]]. This is sometimes linked to the Celtic god Cernunnos (see below under Mythology and Legends) but with no written records, it's impossible to say.

* In ''Literature/ChroniclesOfAncientDarkness'', the World Spirit (effectively a god) takes the form of a HornedHumanoid with deer antlers in the summer (likely based on Myth/CelticMythology's [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cernunnos Cernunnos]]). In the fifth book, we find out [[spoiler:[[OrphansPlotTrinket Torak's medicine horn]] is made from the point of one of the World Spirit's antlers]].