[C&C] Welcome to the Winter Wonderland -- New Creature

[serleran]

Windigo

No. Encountered: 1 [Very Rare]
Size: Medium
HD: 5+
Move: 40 feet, 120 feet (fly)
AC: 19
Attack: Claw x 2 (2d4) and Bite (1d10)
Special: Incorporeal, Disguise, Feed, Regeneration, Vulnerability to Fire
Saves: P
Int: Average - High
Alignment: Chaotic Evil
Type: Extraplanar
Treasure: --
XP Value: 3000 + 100 (or more)

Windigo are maleficent entities from elsewhere, a world lost in everlasting winter. A natural windigo has lanky arms, a humanoid frame, and crisply glowing green eyes that flicker; what little of a windigo that functions as hide is more like bone, but thin and covered in ice, breaking with movement causing the windigo to howl in pain, a sound heard once and never again. Bereft of flesh, they exude terrible hunger for it, as if trying to consume what is lacking; or perhaps to stave the cold they don a cloak of skin as others wear fur. When possible, a windigo will slay a human-sized being and wrap the flesh over its own, concealing itself. Then, it will infiltrate and spread like a plague, leaving partially eaten corpses in its wake. None truly know why windigo despise the material world, but postulations abound - there are only two things certain: if food is scarce and the temperature low, light a fire and keep the door secure, for a windigo is soon to come.

An intelligent predator, windigo are arrogant and care nothing for the subtleties of civilization - the first few weeks a windigo possesses the body of a victim, everything will appear normal, but over time, peculiar traits will arise such as a disdain for bathing or daylight; windigo realize this, of course, so their selection of prey tends toward the already slovenly. Sometimes, a windigo will casually refer to itself as someone dead or unknown to those in its presence, particularly as its feeding increases and more die. Most often, and only to the most astute eyes, a windigo can be noticed by its gradual physical changes - the teeth yellow and grow slightly larger, becoming more carnivorous, and the fingernails curve downward, sharpen, and then recede, as if the fingers themselves had enlarged.

Territorial, a windigo absolutely hates anything else that would dare impugn its status - they will actively hunt or assist in the removal of undead such as ghouls or vampires but also against other creatures such as bears, causing many to consider them, in their preferred form, to be much needed allies, if a tad eccentric and unkempt.

Combat: A windigo attacks with feral velocity, seeking nothing more than the immediate death of its intended. They will grab, slash, bite, rip, tear, sunder, and otherwise decimate any opposition with a sort of happiness that makes demons envious. Windigo are notorious for their tactical knowledge as well, using every available advantage to its fullest, allowing their current shell to expire if it means the fight can continue anew. If forcibly presented with fire, however, a windigo shrieks and attempts to flee.

Incorporeal: In its natural state, a windigo is semitransparent and incorporeal, able to travel through solid objects and ignore the effects of nonmagical armor (only the magical adjustment applies to armor class.) They are not subject to attacks which are not partially magical in nature such as those delivered via spell or imbued magical weapon. Further, under states of darkness, a windigo is effectively invisible. The flight speed listed is for this form only as is the armor class.

Disguise: By emptying the contents of a corpse and donning the excess, a windigo assumes the physical appearance of the deceased with perfect accuracy. When the windigo speaks, only those with intimate knowledge or prolonged contact are allowed a chance to detect dissimilarity, this being a Wisdom check. After 1d3 weeks, others may start to notice unusual traits and habits as well, but these individuals are not granted the effect of Prime (that is, the challenge base remains 18.) Use of this ability nullifies that of incorporeal.

Feed: A windigo may feast on the slain in carnivorous fury, lapping fluids and crushing bone with abandon - the frightful process, if actually witnessed, causes the onlooker to be afflicted with cannibalistic insanity, effectively becoming a non-undead ghoul (use the same stats but unaffected by clerical turning) for one year per hit dice of the windigo, or until death - some whisper even beyond. It takes ten minutes to consume the body of a medium-sized individual. Should a windigo feed upon ten different victims, Hit Dice is increased by one - this is cumulative.

Regeneration: Damage sustained to a windigo is rapidly healed, and the windigo is practically immortal. After the initial injury, the windigo restores two Hit Points per round, but losses inflicted by fire are not regenerated. In fact, unless a windigo is actively disguised and that shell completely and irrevocably destroyed by fire, the windigo will simply flee (assumes a shape not unlike gaseous form only it appears as a snowstorm) to return again at another time - however, when forced to this, the windigo loses two Hit Dice driving it to even more vengeance. Windigo cannot regenerate lost body parts.

Vulnerability to Fire: Fire is especially vicious to a windigo, causing maximum damage when applicable and penalizing the save, if allowed, by six. Windigo also fear fire and will retreat from it if forcefully approached, acting like a turning attempt but lacking the ability to outright destroy.