The Wendigo

[Virtus]

I fell in love with the Wendigo when I first started playing Rasputina, where I was able to devour a full-health Pandora. I'm looking to get a game in with Raspy today, and I really want to make the Wendigo shine. Since the Wendigo is a totem, we can't use soulstones to get the crow we need for devour, so we need to rely on upgrades on other models to make him great. I'm thinking about taking Sub Zero on my one enforcer, the Ice Golem. Keeping him within the 8" aura will help the little 6 wound model survive. With Raspy, I was thinking about going with Shattered Heart, Arcane Reservoir, and Child of December. Shattered Heart is obvious. Arcane Reservoir is already good, but the primary reason I'm planning on taking it is so that Wendigo will have a greater chance of not only having a high crow in hand for devour, but also to be able to cheat the 11 necessary for Raspy's Freeze Over with Wendigo's Magical Extension. The Child of Decemeber upgrade will be new for me (I usually make Ice Pillars with Cold Nights instead). It's awful when you put so much set up into devour by paralyzing a living model and reaching the TN, only to be beat by your opponent cheating in a high card. My only problem with Child of December is that Shatter is a 0 action, so Wendigo can't Magical Extension it. But alas... I also plan on starting with a cache of 7 soulstones, and use a few for Surge triggers in order to draw the cards Wendigo will need.

I'm curious as to how others play the Wendigo, and how much mileage people usually get out of him.

[Rogue1]

For me the best protection for the Wendego is the Cold Nights upgrade.  He can cast it himself on a not unreasonable card and the pillars last until his next activation so if they are well placed he is almost untouchable (though in doing so you make him useless as a mirror). If you really want to try Child of December I would personally drop Arcane Reservoir.  I have had a great deal of success with a list that looks like the following:

 

Rasputina (Cold Nights, Shattered Heart, Child of December, cache 3)

Wendego 

Snowstorm (Armor of December)

Arcane Emmisary (Elemental Conflux)

Silent One

Silent One

Arcane Effigy

Ice Gamin

Snowstorm and the Emmisary go forward to provide the mirror points while the Wendego runs a flank or comes in as a second wave.  The ice gamin goes early each turn for bite of winter.  Rasputina and the Silent Ones do the heavy lifting either through mirrors or once the enemy gets closer attacking directly.

 

If you prefer you can drop Armor of December off Snowstorm to change a Silent One to a December Acolyte.  If you are facing a scheme marker heavy scheme set drop a Silent One for an Ice Dancer.  If you want a more mobile hitter/mirror the Emmisary can be traded out for the Blessed of December.

[bertmac]

Devour is just a situational bonus for me when playing raspy. Wendigo is a great scheme runner with wk6 and being significant.

 

I love full kill raspy arcane resevoir, decembers pawn and shattered heart.