Annis

An annis was the most physically powerful of the hags.

Description
Annis hags were the most physically imposing of their race, standing at minimum  and sometimes towering over  in height. Defying the stereotype of the withered crone, they were covered in musculature, although the nature of their builds varied. Some were described as lean and quick with long, lanky limbs but others were more akin to ogresses with gnarled muscles and jutting bones comprising their hulking frames. Such annis hags, even with their hunched backs and humped shoulders, were still massive, known to weigh around. Their stretched skin was covered in scars and blemishes and had a blue-black complexion like that of a deep bruise.

An annis hag's nails were not simply as sharp as blades but were actually made of iron that magically grew like the keratin nails of normal humanoids. Normally they were long but often stylized by annis hags into long spirals that could inflict unnerving, circular wounds. They were naturally a glossy shade of black but like ordinary steel would oxidize over time, turning their shiny nails into rusted corkscrews. Their sharpened teeth were also metallic and their filthy hair had a similar luster. Above an annis's dull, greenish-yellow eyes were a pair of black, upward-arching horns barely longer than a human's thumbs. The nubs were seemingly vestigial, neither long enough to reach enemies or hardy enough to pierce them.

Prone to bodily modification, annis hags were known to deeply scar themselves and use grafts in order to augment their already grotesque features to make themselves even more terrifying. One was said to have chewed through their cheeks to etch a gangrenous grin on their faces and there rumors of an annis that stitched the members of her coven onto her back, trapping her flailing sisters in a semi-conscious state. Normally they wore disheveled peasant's clothes but when needed they could use their illusory abilities to blend into other societies in a variety of ways. Their guises could range from wizened woman to beautiful amazons in the form of tall humans, small giantesses, or ogres, and even animals such as bears.

Lair
An annis made her lair in a dark cave, burrow, or ruin, where she stalked and fed upon the unwary. Of all the hags, an annis delighted in tearing her victims to shreds with her bare hands, all while relishing in the screams of pain and terror.

Notable annis hags

 * Gremma, a powerful annis hag who controlled a group of ogres, and owned a magical cauldron.
 * Tanta Hagara, an annis who acted as a shaman and leader for the Blue Bear tribe in 1358 DR who sought to find the ancestral mound beneath the Grandfather Tree.

Appearances

 * Adventures:
 * Waterdeep: Dragon Heist
 * Nymph's Reward
 * Novels:
 * Bladesinger