Monsterpedia 23 - Yuki-onna
Monsterpedia
Yuki-onna
Monster Level - V
Soul Type - Composite
Intelligence - Humanoid
Strength - Human
Magic - Massive
Rarity - Rare
Yuki-onna look like unnaturally graceful human women with pale skin and hair. They dress in winter colors, and rarely make any threatening gestures, but they're incredibly deadly foes.
A yuki-onna has two primary powers that work together to form a terrifying combination. The have incredible ice magic capable of lowering temperatures within sixty feet to sub freezing. But they also can suppress feelings of cold. As such a yuki-onna can kill an entire group of delvers from the other side of a wall without them even noticing they're under attack. Groups that face yuki-onna frequently find they've suffered serious frostbite after the battle ends.
Of course yuki-onna have other ways of using their powers. Their magic skills allow them to toss ice around like a mage. They can also let the sensation of cold suddenly hit their enemies, causing shock and crippling combat effectiveness. And most terrifying of all they can freeze attacks coming at them. The only way to defeat a yuki-onna is with a surprise attack or by overwhelming their magical power with a continuous barrage of fire spells. Groups with less then two mages shouldn't even try to fight one.
There's an argument whether or not yuki-onna should be considered fey or not. They have been known to be kind to humans. But that kindness usually involves cradling the chosen human as they slowly freeze to death. Yuki-onna seem to think that dying in the snow is the best fate someone could hope for.
Yuki-onna are one of the monsters considered 'influenced' types. These monsters form not purely from the labyrinth itself, but also outside conditions. Specifically Yuki-onna can only form if there's a blizzard on the surface, even though the snow and ice could never penetrate into the labyrinth proper.
Merge
Benefits : Unknown
Weaknesses : Unknown
There's no record of a yuki-onna merge. Given how dangerous the monsters are and how hard it is to kill one that's not surprising. There is however one old story from the East about someone believed to be a yuki-onna merge. The 'Moonlight Princess' was said to have slain a yuki-onna with a bow and received the creature's 'curse.' She was famed as a beauty, with "hair that shone like diamond dust, eyes of the palest blue, and a complexion paler than fresh snow."
If we assume some of the tales are true, a yuki-onna merge would give the power to both wield and ignore cold. The Moonlight Princess was famous for making arrows of ice. But also infamous for being only able to bathe in volcanic springs, for any other water would freeze when she breathed on it.
I'd love to hear about someone getting this merge and learning the true powers. But given the tragic tone of the story and the dangers inherent, it's probably for the best that no one alive has merged with a yuki-onna.