Snowbeasts
Lore
Snowbeasts (or snow-beasts) and their dark-pelted cousins, the hill-beasts, are lumbering ape-like animals that can walk on two legs like a Man. The species also includes the Azhorns, hill-beasts that have been trained for battle by the Orcs, the subterranean cave-beasts of Mount Gundabad, and the kill-beasts, the largest and most fearsome breed. How these bestial monsters fit among the creatures of Middle-earth is unclear. They may be a distant relation of Troll-kind, having evolved from a common ancestor.
Snowbeasts are found in Bruinen Source West in the Misty Mountains and in Forochel where they are known as Peikko in the local folklore of the Lossoth. Hill-beasts are found in Fasach-larran in Angmar, among other regions. Azhorns roam the plains of Elderslade in The War of Three Peaks. Cave-beasts are found in Máttugard in Gundabad. All such beasts are "normal" difficulty and are always aggressive. They are weak to Fire damage and resistant to Cries. In particular, some if not all snowbeasts cannot even be targeted with Invocation of Elbereth.
Background
Snowbeasts do not appear in the work of J.R.R. Tolkien. They are inspired by legends of the Yeti (the Abominable Snowman) and its North American counterpart, the Sasquatch (Bigfoot). However, the name given to them in Forochel -- "Peikko" -- is a Finnish word meaning "troll," indicating that a connection to Tolkien's trolls is a possibility.
Note for Journal keepers
Record these beasts in your journals as 'Snowbeast'.
An index of currently known Snow-beasts: