Monster Of The Week: Yeth Hound

It is a dog.  No, a hound.  Tufts of layered, dense, matted purple fur rolls over wide shoulders and long, hunched neck.  A whimpering mule shudders up from the body as I approach.  SNAP.  My boot crunches the twig and a wince.  The muling stops and I watch those shoulders slope forward, the head turning my way...and a pit forms in my stomach.  A humanoid, twisted face with burning red eyes stares back at me, jaw hanging open.  A mix of flat and sharpened teeth jut out from open mouth, and the moaning returns, rising to a howl.  I try to draw my sword, but my body can only shake as I watch the hound rise and float a foot off the ground.  Even as it wales, its head tilts to the side curiously.  Then it flies toward me.

Gifts Of The Dark Fey

If one impresses members of the Old Guard of Fey, they might be gifted with a Yeth Hound.  Such a gift is high praise, as the Yeth is a companion for life, connected telepathically to their master and charged with their protection at all costs.  
  But these hounds reflect their original creators, and are by no means good creatures.  Originally personified by a headless, bloodied hound in some cultures, the origin of a Yeth is one rooted in sorrow, always reflected in their strange, baleful howl.  To hear the howl is a warning, but to see its source often spells doom. 
  According to Volo's Guide, these creatures are large hounds with flat, humanoid faces and features, and though it looks like they may bound quickly, they often HOVER creepily overhead.  It is this unnatural mobility that makes them deadly sentries for their masters.

By The Numbers

In terms of raw defenses and hit points, the Yeth Hound isn't that intimidating, but make sure you're packing something silver.  Their physical stats (Strength, Dexterity, and Constitution) are noticeably high, but they're dumb as a post most of the time.  
Where they become truly dangerous is in their unnatural, creepy mobility and their dreaded "Baleful Baying" howl ability.  The thing's got a 300 foot range, so make sure your Wisdom is decent before engaging with one.  If you happen to be one of the unlucky low rollers against the howl, that frightened condition does a lot more for the Yeth than it does for you, stacking on extra psychic damage for its scared victims.  And I can't blame them; the image of this thing bearing down on you is NOT pleasant.
  As an aside, I was actually very intrigued to write about this thing.
​There is something wholly unnerving about these large Fey doggos with humanoid faces, who creepily hover overhead and paralyze prey with their baleful howl.  It's just such an unsettling image.  Add on to this the fact that as long as it's on the same plane as its master, it can ALWAYS contact it telepathically.  Woof, buddy.

The Yeth In Io

Sentries Of The Deep Night

As servants gifted by old Fey, a Yeth Hound always has a home in the Feywild.  Denizens and visitors alike who gain favor in the Verdant Court may find themselves with a Large, loyal, and evil companion that can't be charmed or frightened away.  
  Just, imagine for a moment, waking up with this thing sitting in your living room.  Just.  THERE.  Totally silent.  And then its red eyes slowly turn your way, like some living furred statue and a voice enters your mind like Dug from Up.  "I sat in your living room in the dark because I love you.  And now I'll love you FOREVER."  The face doesn't change the entire time.  Lol.
  But not just any Fey can gift you a Yeth.  They must be made first, and only one of the four Courts knows how.  Skilled in curses and the binding of souls, the Ladies Of Winter, under the instruction of King Oberon himself, have much practice in plucking the unfortunate mortals of deals gone wrong and pipers unpaid, and supplanting their essence into a new form - one to serve the Deep Night and the citizens of Air and Darkness.
  If a singular entity can be gifted one Yeth for an impression, imagine the army Winter commands.  Hundreds of baleful, wailing sentries silently drifting across the night skies; keeping watch and wary over the fane kingdoms.  
  Watch for the red eyes and motionless face, and keep your distance, lest the mournful cries of a soul forever trapped in servitude reaches your ears...and rends your mind asunder.

Sleep well, travelers.
​-Adamus

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