Wisps are the beings that animate the hollow men fought throughout the Fable games, and are the result of ghosts that are not absolved. Although hollow men appear in Fable and Fable: The Lost Chapters as undead, wisps do not appear until Fable II and Fable III.
Ghosts and Wisps
When a citizen of Albion dies with strong emotional attachments to the world, such as a guilty conscience or important matters left unresolved, they become a ghost instead of moving on. Ghosts are able to freely transform into a Wisp and back as seen in the quest Gone But Not Forgotten.
Over time the human part of a ghost will dissolve into nothing, if their ties to the world are not resolved, leaving only a restless spirit in its place known as a Wisp. These Wisps harbour anger, likely resulting from jealousy towards the living citizens of Albion and animate the bones of the deceased in order to take this anger out physically.
Hollow Men
- Main article: Hollow Man
Hollow Men serve as a host body for the Wisps to exemplify their rage towards the living and upon destroying the Hollow Men, the Wisps leave the body. It is currently unknown if the Wisps are also destroyed along with the body or if they just return to being Wisps.
Notes
- Wisps are never found alone and are often grouped in large numbers, this is likely to be because upon losing their humanity, they revert to a primitive style of thinking; attack those that are different and group with those that are the same.