Vutunuvit, The Hidden Tundra: ANC1 Enhancement

 Vutunuvit, The Hidden Tundra 

A newly detailed region of Anchôromé and expansion for ANC1 The Anchôromé Campaign Guide

Nestled between the coniferous forests of the bird folk to the northwest and the slightly warmer northern reaches of the Adusgi Forest to the southeast, a desolate stretch of permafrost greets the lost and exiled.

Vutunuvit is cold year round, but it is not arctic. While at first glance it may appear uninhabited, this couldn’t be further from the truth. A remote tribe of the minnenewah called the Vitunuk have thrived here for centuries and they mostly keep to themselves. Less common are the tirigan arctic fox folk and the ooktipick snowy owl folk who prey upon them.

An ancient magic is also believed to linger deep below the frozen ground. The local folks are thankful that the entrances to this mystical realm are few and far between as nothing good ever emerges from it.

Few folks have reason to come to Vutunuvit and most believe that there is nothing to be found here. They are wrong, but this is how the locals like it. The Vitunik minnenewah smile when outsiders dismiss their homeland and they are more than happy to refer to it as the Hidden Tundra.

Overview

Vutunuvit hasn’t always been the frozen land it is today and it was once active with thermal vents and towering geysers. Over the ages the fires in the earth subsided and the land above transformed into frozen tundra. The Taqqimic Lake is likely the last remaining vestige of this ancient age when the land was ruled by powerful and tentacled inhuman spellcasters. In its warm depths, there may be something left of that forgotten time.

The coming of the Vitunik who named the land,  heralded the beginning of a new age, yet they have been content for centuries with simple survival. A fair and kind folk, the Vitunik do not hunger for lands or wealth and certainly not for conquest. While undeniably minnenewah, there may have been some interbreeding with small numbers of humans of the same stock as the Ice Hunters from the distant Sea of Moving Ice. These folks likely arrived centuries ago through magic or simple (but dangerous) migration. 

Since their first days, the Vitunik have had to stay clear of the western forest. Its bird folk react with extreme violence towards trespassers. The tribe learned early to keep their hunts outside the forest and the ooktipick make certain they never consider otherwise.

As an offshoot of the aarakocra, the ooktipick are more closely aligned in appearance with the great snowy owls than the eagle and parrot-bred aarakocra. They are predatory and known for cannibalism. While some see them as evil, they are simply consummate survivalists and have existed in their current form for time immemorial. They may be the oldest living race currently known in Anchôromé. While a tribe of minnenewah in the south also have taken features of owls, the two groups are not known to be related or even to have had any form of contact.

The clever and remarkably dexterous white furred fox folk are known as the tirigan. While certainly small in number, getting an accurate count of such a people is nearly impossible. They never form communities larger than immediate families and most who are of age to do so wander the tundra looking for food while avoiding the ever abundant predators.

The last real group of note are not a true separate race unto themselves, but do have a significant culture to speak of. This group is formed from the exiled and the lost who contracted the magical disease of lycanthropy. Known as the apuut, they are a unique breed of snow wereleopards. Generally, the wereleopards were snow elves who fled from from the distant Blacktoe Glacier for one reason or another. Among these lycanthropes there is the occasional human, but the minnenewah thankfully seem immune to this form of the disease.

While not sadistic in nature, the apuut are also not averse to eating the meat of sentient beings. Survival on the tundra is not easy, particularly for carnivores who require so much energy to stave off cold and hunger.

Events

The historical accountings of Vutunuvit are not extensive but there are some notable events in the racial histories and stories told to young Vitunik by the light of a campfire. Dates are not given here because the Vitunik keep no written records of their past.

- When the tribes of minnenewah first arrived in Anchôromé upon the back of the great Thunderbird and subsequently scattered, most remained in the region of the Unole. Others wandered much further abroad and the Vitunik traveled north beyond the prehistoric lands of the Kaaya’yeeda. 

The tribe settled in unclaimed lands which they named Vutunuvit, an amalgam of their tribal name and the name of the chieftain who led them here. This leader, Utunioo, was a hunter and archer of unparalleled marksmanship. He is perhaps the most well known hero of the Vitunik.

- Utunioo lead the Vitunik into the western wood where they were immediately set upon by the ooktipick and their giant owl allies. Many died that day, but Ununioo’s unmatched skills with a bow and arrow allowed for a hasty retreat.

- Vitunik traditions eventually settled and the minnenewah began to focus their worship on three main Great Spirits, including Red Wolf Unole, Nanook the Great Bear and Besparr the Reindeer Lord.

- While following a tirigan thief, a Vitunik hunter stumbled upon a fissure in the earth and wandered inside. The hunter disappears for nearly a full moon cycle before returning to his family with stories of antediluvian horrors that live below the the frozen earth. The hunter muttered and babbled incessantly before dying a few days later in his sleep. His eyes bled out before death, much to the horror of his family. From that moment forward, the underworld became taboo to all Vitunik.

- A Vitunik camp was destroyed by a strange creature whose back burned like fire and whose claws easily rent the most powerful hunters. Finally turned back by a group of elder shamans, this creature was forever after known as the Ilkumaqunik (fire worm). Elsewhere in the world, it is given the name remorhaz.  

Locations

Taqqimic Lake.  Fed by underwater vents, Taqqimic Lake is warm, or even hot, all year round and even in the coldest winters. The water is not poisonous, but it has a mineral taste that finally filters clean when it flows south into the Taqqimic River. 

The ooktipick maintain a presence here, but not in the same numbers they do to the west of Vutunuvit. Still, due to its taste, rumors of strange creatures in its depths, and the few owl folk who are nearby, few minnenewah come here. A blue-tinged salt does sometimes grow crystals at the lake’s edge which is believed to grant a minor form of telekinesis to its consumer. 

Taqqimic River.  Flowing from Taqqimic Lake into lands further south, this river is the lifeblood of the Vitunik people and most of their relatively small settlements run alongside it. Taqqimic River is loaded with fish and never freezes over. A salmon-like fish with an armored back travels the river in massive schools that the Vitunik make good use of, but never fish in numbers that might endanger the population of future catches. 

Occasional threats appear at the ricer, but rarely do they come from the waters. Instead, creatures from many miles around base come to it for a regular and trustworthy source of water. These too the minnenewah attempt to leave alone, though it is not always possible. 

Katringa. Katringa is not a set location and it moves every year. On the first day of spring, families of Vitunik from all corners of Vutunuvit meet and set up hundreds of temporary animal fur tents. A marketplace at its center then becomes a hub for constant trading during the warm months until the temperatures drop again, and the minnenewah abandon the location. 

There is much to be found in Katringa, and besides the usual animal pelts, preserved meats and greens that are shared, the marketplace also holds oddities that have been discovered by lucky (or unlucky) Vitunik throughout the year. Magics have been found that have ancient dweomers unseen for centuries. Of course, there is also plenty of merrymaking, traditional singing and dancing during the one major social event of the Vitunik people.  

Species

There are a number of new playable species in Vutunuvit that may have wandered far from the region, mingling with the strange folk of other lands , but still doing their best to maintain the secrecy of their homeland. 

Vitunik

The Vitunik are a "subspecies" of the minnenewah, whom are detailed in ANC1 The Anchôromé Campaign Guide.  In the guide, each subspecies is known as a "tribe" and each has a set of abilities common to all minnenewah, in additional to some specific to the tribe.  Note that since the creation of the minnenewah, Dungeons and Dragons species no longer assign bonuses to Ability Scores based on species.  If the original description for minnenewah is implemented which still uses the outdated bonuses, you may also wish to add a +1 bonus to a Vitunik's Constitution score.

Survivalist.  Vitunik gain proficiency in Wisdom (Survival) checks.

Cold Resistance.  You have resistance to Cold damage.

Ooktipik

The ooktipik are winged owl-like humanoids that tend to live in colder climes. 

Ooktipick are aarakocra and players use the description found on page 6 of Monsters of the Multiverse with the following exceptions. 

Ooktipik do not have the Wind Caller trait shared by other aarakocra.

Darkvision.  You can see in dim light within 120 feet of you as if it were bright light and in darkness as if it were in dim light.  You discern colors in that darkness only in shades of gray.

Tirigan

Tirigan are tiny snow fox folk no bigger in size than a halfling and possibly distantly related to them. They are white furred, with angular, attractive faces. 

Creature Type: Humanoid

Size: Small (about 2-3 feet tall)

Speed: 35 feet

Tirigan are quick and tiny, making them very difficult to catch or harm.  They are shy and usually solitary, though they can become quite attached to members of their party that they consider family.

As a tirigan, you have the following traits.

Elusive.  When you move out of a creatures reach, you do not have to use a Disengage action in order to avoid suffering an Opportunity Attack.

Natural Comouflage.  In snowy conditions, you gain advantage to Stealth checks.

Burrower.  You have a burrowing speed equal to your land speed.

Tirigan Nimbleness.  You can move through the space of any creature that is a size larger than you, but you can't stop in the same space.

New Monster - Apuut

The apuut is a humanoid, typically a snow elf, inflicted with a form of lycanthropy that allows it to change form into a snow leopard.  Apuuts are powerful predators, but stay clear from large gatherings and aren't needlessly cruel.