Vifill
“Weevil Man” © Jason Lenox
[From the Fighting Fantasy book Phantoms of Fear. I changed the name for petty taxonomic reasons. The term “weevil” in English typically refers only to beetles in the Curculionoidea, which usually (but not always!) have long snouts. This is in contrast to most other languages with Germanic roots, in which the various versions of the word refer to all beetles. So I changed it to one of these other languages--”vifill” is the Old Norse version.]
Vifill CR 4 CN Monstrous Humanoid This stooped creature resembles a cross between a beetle and a man, with a human-like face, craggy and worn. Its hair is shaggy and grows behind two pairs of antennae. It has two arms and two legs, each ending in a pincer-like claw. A large carapace grows on its back in the shape of a dome—short spurs and spikes protrude from it.
The vifills, or beetle men, are cantankerous hermits with insect features. Their carapace is formed from wing covers fused together—vifills cannot fly, and are somewhat sour about it. This does provide them with exceptional protection, however. They are omnivores that can consume just about anything organic—a vifill will happily eat hair, leather and sinew. Vifills do not hunt humanoids intentionally for food, but are very territorial and tend to throw axes first, ask questions later.
The axe is a nearly sacred object to vifills, able to be tool and weapon both. Most vifills are skilled carpenters and trappers, living in caves or hollows secured by wooden beams and protected by wooden traps. Springing branch spear traps, pitfalls and deadfalls are favorite choices. They typically live alone, but form temporary families in order to care for children. Once the children are grown, young and parents alike go their separate ways and rarely if ever see each other again. Vifills are superstitious when it comes to magic, and an ostentatious display of spellcasting is a sure fire way to intimidate them.
A vifill stands about five feet tall with its permanently stooped posture. Their maximum lifespan is similar to that of a human, but their rough and tumble lifestyle means that few survive to be elderly.
