Yuki-Onna:
The Snow Woman
"There is no promise of spring in the long white form of Yuki-Onna, for her mouth is the mouth of Death and her ice-cold lips draw forth the life-blood of her unfortunate victims."
---F. Hadland Davis, Yuki-Onna: The Snow Woman
There is no single story of the Yuki-Onna. From dread snow vampire of the mountains to a loving bride and mother, she has played many roles over the centuries; worn many costumes. She is ephemeral as a windblown mist of snow, and as impossible to hold.
Yuki-Onna's are a female only humanoid race that appears in the folklore of cold and snowy regions as a snow spirit of ethereal beauty that would appear before travelers trapped in snowstorms with the purpose of killing them. While the Yuki-Onna is not inherently malevolent, their stoic demeanor and their natural environment being hazardous to most other races, may have given rise to myths that they intentionally cause deaths.
Ice Cold Physiology
Possessing elemental control over ice and snow, Yuki-Onna can not live in high temperature environments without assistance. A Yuki-Onna's appearance is similar to that of beautifully attractive human or elven woman, with very pale skin, blue lips, and long flowing hair of black or white.
Should a Yuki-Onna die, it's body melts away and leaves behind a single icy heartstone: a heart shape shard of unmelting ice that emits a pulsating wave of cold in a rhythm similar to a heartbeat; when attempting the resurrection of a Yuki-Onna, you must use the heartstone submerged in an amount cold water that's near equivalent to her body weight before death.
Cold Hard Facts
There are legends and myths about Yuki-Onna'ss summoning eternal winters, frozing empires and starting ice ages. All of those myths are false, any wizard with enough resources and poware can do that, but popular culture believed that they were responsible of some of those calamities. Althrough their ice magic shouldn't be underestimated. These myths are mostly false.
Cold and Lonely
Since folklore regarding the Yuki-Onna unfairly paint them as harbingers of cold unrelenting death, they often choose to live a life of seclusion hidden away in the coldest mountain tops, or hideaway to live in small close-knit enclaves with other Yuki-Onna, not just for their own safety but the safety of others should they need to defend themselves.
Despite being shunned for their seemingly cold-icy nature, Yuki-Onna are still a female only race, and need to seek out mates to prolong the survival of their race. This in mind, many do under the storybook ideal of love, as many of them are raised under the cultural ideal of life long mates.
Though there are a small population of Yuki-Onna who do live up to the stereotype of icy killers, most Yuki-Onna just want to maintain the peace, and will occasionally risk endangering themselves to help travelers that find themselves trapped during fierce snowstorms.
Yuki-Onna Names
Yuki-Onna names are usually themed around winter or are derived from the common female names found in the snowy regions they call home.
- Common Yuki-Onna Names: Miyuki, Mizore, Oryou, Oyuki, Yuki, Yukihana, Yukiko, Yukime, Yukio, Yusa
Traits
Yuki-Onna have the following racial traits
- Ability Score Increase: Your Charisma score increases by 2, and your Intelligence score increases by 1.
- Size: Yuki-Onna have a similar build to humans. Your size is medium.
- Alignment: Yuki-Onna are usually neutral in alignment. However, a single Yuki-Onna maybe any alignment they wish.
- Age: Yuki-Onna mature at a similar rate to humans but cease to age around their mid-20's . They are known to live to about 1000 years.
- Speed: Your base walking speed is 25 feet.
- Languages: You can speak common, sylvan
- Frozen Heart: You are immune to cold damage. Whenever you are subjected to cold damage, you take no damage and gain a number of temporary hit points equal to half the cold damage dealt.
- Heat Vulnerability: You have permanent vulnerability to fire damage. You also have disadvantage on all attack rolls and ability checks whenever you are adventuring in environments of extreme heat.
- Cold Hands: You know the Chill Touch cantrip. When you reach 7rd level, you can cast the Ice Knife spell once per day, and you learn the Ray of Frost cantrip. When you reach 13th level, you learn how to cast the Ice Storm spell once per day. Intelligence is your spellcasting ability for these spells. Number of times you can cast these spells per day increases by 1 at the 15th level.
- Ice Walker: You are considered to be permanently under the effects of the Feather Fall spell, and are not affected by difficult terrain. You leave no tracks in the snow.
- Snow White Beauty: At 4th level you know the Charm Person spell and can cast it once a day.
- Ice Cold Kiss: Upon reaching 4th level you know the Draining Kiss spell and can cast it once a day.
Credits:
The Snow Woman
Yuki-Onna
Medium, Neutral Evil
- Armor Class 16
- Hit Points 45 (10d6)
- Speed 25
STR DEX CON INT WIS CHA 11 (0) 15 (+2) 10 (0) 13 (+1) 14 (+2) 19 (+4)
- Saving Throws Intelligence, Charisma
- Skills Deception +6,Performance +6, Persuasion +6
- Damage Vulnerabilities Fire
- Damage Resistances bludgeon, piercing, slashing from non-magical attacks
- Damage Immunities Cold
- Condition Immunities Charmed
- Senses Darkvision
- Languages Common, Sylvan
- Challenge 2 (450 XP)
Actions
Chill Touch. The Yuki-Onna creates a ghostly, skeletal hand in the space of a creature within range. Make a ranged spell attack against the creature to assail it with the chill of the grave. On a hit, the target takes 1d8 necrotic damage, and it can't regain hit points until the start of your next turn. Until then, the hand clings to the target. If the attack hits an undead target, it also has disadvantage on attack rolls against it until the end of the Yuki-Onna's next turn.
Fascinating Gaze. Charmed for 1d4 rounds, while within 30 feet, creature must make a DC 20 to negate effects. The save DC is Charisma-based.