Yuki-on-na

A yuki-on-na looks like a young human woman of unrivaled grace and loveliness (Charisma 18), with black hair to her waist, gentle blue eyes, full red lips, and pale blue skin cold as ice. Her snow-white robes swirl and ripple around her even in dead calm. She speaks gently and calmingly, and her laugh sounds like ice clinking in a glass. She knows the tongues of every arctic creature and of nearby human folk, plus the common trade tongue.

She hates humans fanatically, along with anyone or anything tied to them, and tries to kill any lone human who wanders into her land. Cunning as well as cruel, she strikes in snowstorms and similar weather, when her white robes make her nearly invisible at a distance; she is then met at just 3d10 feet, and her opponents suffer -5 on surprise rolls.

Each round she can turn her seductive gaze on one victim, who must save vs. paralyzation at -2 or stand entranced for 2d4 rounds. Her freezing touch deals 1d10 damage. At will she can use ESP, comprehend languages, know history, and disguise, and once a day her touch can make a victim lose the path, leaving him hopelessly lost for 3d6 hours, though an unaffected companion can still lead him. Cold cannot harm her, but every fire attack deals her 1 extra point of damage.

Legend says the original of her kind was a jealous concubine of one of the earliest emperors of the island realms of the far east, who poisoned the emperor's wife, children, and entire family so no one could compete for his affection. The grieving emperor begged the celestial court of heaven for justice, and it transformed her into this creature and exiled her to the frozen north, a land as cold as her heart.

Most still live in those northern reaches, though some have been seen in other arctic lands of the far east. A typical lair is a small mountain cave with an ice floor or a snowy valley ringed by evergreens, and she rarely roams farther than a few miles away. Most are solitary, though small families of two or three turn up now and then. They have no interest in treasure.

All are female and live about 500 years. A yuki-on-na who reaches that age retires to her lair, covers herself in snow, and enters a year-long stasis in which her body slowly turns to solid ice. Suffering even 1 point of damage in that time shatters her into ice crystals and kills her. Otherwise she splits into two or three pieces at the year's end, each growing into a full yuki-on-na with full hit points and all her powers, free to stay together as a family or part ways.

Though merciless to humans, yuki-on-na may share their domain peacefully with other intelligent beings such as animal shapechangers and spirit folk, so long as they are left alone. They eat any meat but favor human flesh, consuming every part of their prey, bones and all.