"We had been stuck inside this cabin for days. The snow and wind howled like a freezing banshee that we barely kept at bay. We hadnt eaten anything in days, our food stuffs running short...

I was starving, the feeling clawing up my throat like bile I needed to expel...

He was all the food that was left,

I'm sorry."   --- Unknown.

 

Physical description

A wendigo's appearance reflects the bitter winters of the remote north and its presence is often signaled by sudden cold and wind. Though the appearance varies greatly per wendigo, depending on its personality, region, and age, they are all a terrifying sight to behold. Each wendigo is different, shaped by the hardships it's faced and the creatures it's consumed. 

Standing between 6 and 9 feet tall, they easily tower over all creatures they encounter. They are gaunt to the point of emaciation, with rotting skin and fur pulled tightly over protruding bones. Large, animal-like skull sits upon their neck, eyes set deep into the sockets that glow in the night. Long limbs, barely held together, end with long claws at the end of fingertips. The odor of rotting flesh follows them, the smell of death clinging to them. 

A wendigo, if sustained on a continual diet of human flesh, may be able to regain their human forms once more, a time before they became creatures of hunger. A wendigo who returns to their human form may find that they still have some characteristics of their monstrous form. Things like glowing eyes, gaunt frames, or sharp teeth may indicate a wendigo is hiding in plain sight.

History

Because tribal history is rarely passed around by any means other than word of mouth, the history of Wendigos is vague. The first wendigo was said to have been a warrior who sought out a deal with a devil to aid his tribe in a war they could not possibly win. In exchange for the skills and stature to outfight his rival tribe, the devil took his soul. When the battle was won and the enemy lay dead at his feet, the warrior found that his mouth watered and his stomach roared at the sight of the corpses - the devil had cursed him with a hunger for human flesh. Rather than praising him, the tribe turned against the warrior and banished him, for he no longer served a purpose to them. The wendigo left his tribe behind for the forests and traveled north until his legs felt like they could not go any further, and even then he still kept going, his body numb from the cold. Here the wendigo remained, forever hungry.

Other stories tell of travellers and tribes in times of extreme famine during the cold, harsh winter and how they were forced to resort to cannibalism as a last resort to remain alive. The consummation of another human's flesh, whether done intentionally or because there was simply no other way to survive, leads one to be overcome by evil spirits and transform into a wendigo.

Names

Wendigos might stick with their human names, wanting to grasp on to the last part of their humanity in vain for some sort of comfort, while others may pick a new name entirely. Some gravitate towards simple noises, like screeches, screams, or shrieks while others pick names from things like plants, trees, or even animals. 

Wendigo Traits

Creature Type

You are considered an Undead.

Size

You are Large or Medium. You choose the size when you gain this lineage.

Speed

Your walking speed is 40 feet.

Ancestral Legacy

If you replace a race with this lineage, you can keep the following elements of that race: any skill proficiencies you gained from it and any climbing, flying, or swimming speed you gained from it.

If you don’t keep any of those elements or you choose this lineage at character creation, you gain proficiency in two skills of your choice.

Darkvision

You can see in dim light within 60 feet of you as if it were bright light and in darkness as if it were dim light. You can discern colors, unlike others.

Deathless Nature

Your undead nature is special. You don’t need to breathe. You also gain a resistance to necrotic energy.

Spidery Nature

With your long limbs and sharp claws, you can climb anywhere. You have a climbing speed equal to your walking speed. 

Claws

Your claws are a natural weapon, which counts as a simple melee weapon with which you are proficient. You add your Strength modifier to the attack and damage rolls when you attack. It deals 1d4 slashing damage on a hit. While you are missing half or more of your hit points, you have advantage on attack rolls you make with this attack.

When you attack with this attack and hit a creature that is a living creature that isn't a Construct or Undead, you can empower yourself in one of the following ways of your choice:

• Meal Time: You can take a bonus action and eat the flesh you have ripped off of the creature and regain hit points equal to the piercing damage dealt by the attack.
• Bloody Frenzy: You gain a bonus to the next ability check or attack roll you make; the bonus equals the slashing damage dealt by this attack.

You can empower yourself with this attack a number of times equal to your proficiency bonus, and you regain all expended uses when you finish a long rest.