However, many tortured spirits fled from the Witch-kingdom of Angmar to seek shelter from the light of the Sun; demons who had become disembodied looking for other bodies in which their evil spirits could dwell. And so it was the Barrow-wights came into being, who animated the bones and jewelled armour of the ancient Kings of Men.
The Barrow-wights were shape-shifters that could crush the will of an unwary traveller. They appeared in the guise of a dark phantom whose eyes were luminous and cold. The voice was horrible, yet hypnotic; its skeletal voice had a touch like ice and a grip like the iron jaws of a trap. Once under the spell of the Undead, the victim surrendered their will and the Barrow-wight drew them into the treasure tombs on the downs. A dismal choir of tortured souls could be heard as, in the green half-light, the Barrow-wight laid his victim on a stone altar and bound them with gold chains. He draped them in the pale cloth and precious jewellery of the long-dead kings, then took their life with a sacrificial sword. Yet light was still the undoing of the Barrow-wight, for once a stone chamber was broken open, light would pour in and the Barrow-wight would fade like mist before the sun and he would perish.