Yeti
Large, white-furred humanoids with fearsome horns and claws, yeti demonstrate basic sentience in their strategy, language, and use of tools, but almost certainly lack sapience by evidence of their bestial, predatory behaviour.
Basic Information
Anatomy
Yetis are humanoid in shape, and very large. They are covered all over with thick, waterproof fur similar to a polar bear's, and their large but clumsy hands sport long, black, ice-cleaving claws. Curved, backward-facing horns similar to those of some mountain goats adorn their skulls.
Genetics and Reproduction
Yeti are solitary creatures, but may venture into another yeti's territory to seek out a mate. Courtship generally consists of several food offerings. Yetis give birth to live young, usually in singletons or twins. Twins commonly attack each other, with the winner usually consuming the sibling afterward, and so for a long time it was believed that yeti only bear singletons.
Growth Rate & Stages
Yeti are born very small, around the size of human infants, but grow very quickly, reaching six feet high in an average of two years, and reaching full maturity at around five years.
Behaviour
Yeti are ambushers, staying still and hidden in a whiteout blizzard or ice storm until the prey is close enough to pounce. Once the prey is downed, the Yeti carries it somewhere that it can eat undisturbed - usually its lair.
Additional Information
Perception and Sensory Capabilities
A yeti's eyes are bright blue, glittering, and of no particular hue, instead being an unstable swirl of colors that can mesmerize prey who look for too long.
Some Yetis have an icy breath attack similar to a dragon's. This is thought to be a genetic mutation.
Civilization and Culture
Average Technological Level
Yeti have been observed using simple tools such as harpoons and rope traps, but these implements seem to have been looted from humanoid camps and settlements, as no evidence of crafting has ever been recorded from a yeti lair.
Their technological limitations are thought to come partly from their low intelligence, which appears on par with very young human children, their solitary nature which prevents learning through sharing and skill integration, and the limitations of their language.
Major Language Groups and Dialects
Though yeti have a vocal communication system (the Yeti language), it has a very small vocabulary and can only articulate simple concepts such as "this is mine/yours," "food that way" or "stay away."
Interspecies Relations and Assumptions
Yeti have never been observed to keep pets or domesticate any animal. In fact, the only interspecies interaction that has been observed consisted of the yeti either fleeing a larger predator, such as a white dragon, or hunting and attempting to eat a smaller predator.