Variations of the American Ice Cannibal, aka Wendigo

The Wendigo monster as portrayed in Fiend Folio 3e and Pathfinder Bestiary 2 actually has almost nothing to do with the Wendigo of Algonquin folklore except for being a cannibal. The part about flying and lacking feet comes from an Algernon Blackwood short story and the horns originate from an illustration in the June 1944 edition of Famous Fantastic Mysteries.

Algonquin Wendigo

Algonquin folklore concerning the wendigo varies quite widely by tribe. In some stories there is a single wendigo, in others there is a whole race of them. They may be giants made of ice or werewolves. They may be primordial monsters or transformed humans. As with most folklore, there is no consistent or one true myth, contrary to the OCD that characterizes fantasy gaming.

Algernon Blackwood's "Wendigo"

Rather than limiting myself to only one possible interpretation of the Wendigo, I am going to presume that there are multiple different kinds of Wendigo. That is much more fun to work with and lets me use all the primary sources together. Did you know that many Algonquin believe the Wendigo is real?

Stephen King's "Wendigo"

Wendigo variants

Algonquin Wendigo: the original wendigo of Algonquin mythology. An evil spirit which possesses those who engage in cannibalism, turning them into giants of ice (among other possible physical manifestations).

Rugaru: a wendigo variant from Metis mythology that resembles a werewolf due to cross-pollination with the French loup-garou. Oddly enough, variants of the Rugaru have appeared in the television show Charmed and in some Marvel comics (and adaptations thereof).

Rugaru or "Wendigo," in Charmed

Blackwood's Wendigo: appears in "The Wendigo" by Algernon Blackwood. It is a flying creature that feeds on moss; it has charred stumps instead of feet (and one illustration depicts it with antlers). It punishes those it deems guilty of "lust," luring and terrorizing them with its haunting cries. It bleeds out their eyes for the "lust of beauty," and drags them around until their feet are burned off by friction for the "lust of wandering." Victims are left frostbitten and catatonic. The wendigo mimics its victim's face after this, leading some to believe it consumes their soul. ADDENDUM 7/17/2018: This creature may in fact be a conflation with the Inuit ijiraq (a shape-shifting trickster known to flay victims' shins) and Algonquin paguk (a flying creaking skeleton which portends a friend will get lost) or Ojibwe baykok (an undead cannibal that attacks with ghostly weapons).

Roosevelt's Wendigo: appears in "The Wendigo" by Theodore Roosevelt (the U.S. president). This wendigo is never seen, but it kills hunters by ripping open their throats with its teeth. Apparently it is highly territorial. ADDENDUM 11/29/2018: Oddly enough, this story displays none of the traits attributed to the wendigo myth and has been interpreted as referring to bigfoot instead.

Ithaqua, the Wind Walker

King's Wendigo: appears in "Pet Sematary" by Stephen King. This wendigo resembles a rotting corpse and has horns in place of ears, though it is seemingly insubstantial. It attaches itself to a burial ground and animates those buried there as talking zombies under its control, and sends them to torment their living friends and family. It relies on the living to willingly bury their dead at its burial ground, so it causes misfortune for mortals living nearby in order to trick them into playing into its plan. ADDENDUM 7/17/2018: This invites comparison to Kandar and the deadites from the Evil Dead franchise.

Ithaqua: appears in Call of Cthulhu by Chaosium. A primordial giant that matches wendigo myths of a singular, ancient wendigo such as the Iroquois' stonecoat. It forms a triad of arctic deities with Rhan-Tegoth and Aphoom-Zhah. ADDENDUM 6/21/2019: Ithaqua is a direct continuation of Blackwood's story by way of August Derleth. A "wendigo" appears as a monster in some supplements, a servitor of Ithaqua.

Gnophkeh, upright form

Gnophkeh: appears in Call of Cthulhu by Chaosium. A race of creatures native to the far north of Hyperborea. As in some myths of the wendigo, they melt to death above freezing temperatures. In art they have been depicted in both quadrupedal and bipedal forms. The name also refers to cannibal cults of subhumans which worship them.

Gnophkeh, quadrupedal form

Creation myths

I also devised a simple creation myth to tie all these monsters together.

• Ithaqua is the first wendigo and father of all others. He forms a pantheon of arctic deities along with Rhan-Tegoth and Aphoom-Zhah.
• Gnophkeh are a race of primordial man-eating monsters, who cannot survive above freezing temperatures.
• Other children of Ithaqua were bodiless demons that possess the bodies of the wicked and insane, turning them into cannibal frost giants or werewolves.
• Some of Ithaqua's children share little in common with their kin, but are called wendigo anyway. One variety eats moss and kills its victims by dragging them, another simply mauls intruders to its territory, and a third causes bad luck and reanimates the dead.
• The arctic deities and their children are worshiped by various cults, subhuman tribes, frost giants and lycanthropes, all of whom have taken the name of "gnophkeh" or a variation of "wendigo" in reverence.

Addendum 8/14/2019: Looking back on it now with the additional research I did since then, I think this section is unnecessary fanfictiony garbage. Just go read the following entries in the revised third edition Cthulhu Mythos Encyclopedia by Daniel Harms: Borea, Gnoph-keh, Gnophkehs, Ithaqua, Wendigo. You can buy it wherever ebooks are sold.

Gnophkeh's subhuman worshipers

Research links

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