Guides/Character guides-Wendy

Wendy is a character suited for mid-tier skill levels and above, as tactics and strategy start to play a more significant role in combat. Some of her lesser (but very helpful) features include a lower sanity debuff when darkness falls, making it a somewhat simpler matter to keep one's sanity high due to the passage of time, or during the long nights of winter. Night still wears on her, but to a lesser degree than others. She also mentions some famous works occasionally, so that's interesting. For a little while.

One of the earliest hurdles one will have to face as Wendy is that she simply doesn't have the strength to one-shot the same enemies that some other character could. Her physical strength is equal to Wes's, leaving her more vulnerable to some threats that might have been overlooked with, say, Wilson. While waiting for Abigail to recharge, kiting is almost a necessity and it becomes increasingly important to get a feel for the timing of your enemies' attacks, as well as avoiding getting overwhelmed - something that is easier to fall victim to as Wendy.

Individually she is weaker, but compensates with her twin sister, which is easily her greatest strength and sets Wendy apart from all other characters. Abigail isn't perfect, but can easily carry you through some of the earliest threats in the game and let you rest easy where you could have struggled alone.

Combat with Abigail
As she is more vulnerable by herself, one of the most valuable assets Wendy possesses is the ability to throw her sister at creatures to kill them for her, or to let her take the heat while you rush in after the aggro has been triggered. She regenerates health gradually over time in the same way Chester does and can take quite the beating compared to Wendy, though it isn't hard for Abigail to be bested by certain kinds of enemies.

Abigail attacks things when you click to attack them, making a viable strategy to attack-click, quickly move to break the pathfinding, and let whatever you just moved at feel the burn of ectoplasm.

Unlike the player (usually), Abigail can be brought back several times in the same world. Don't be afraid to throw her to the Hounds or to use her as a scapegoat; your life is far more valuable than hers.

Some of the situations in which Abigail shines are listed as follows:

Enemies to face with Abigail: As well as doing well versus the above listed, Abigail's AoE compliments any engagement versus most enemies. Nine times out of ten, you want to have Abigail around when there's a risk of combat, or when you're about to wrestle with something. Even if she can't do it herself, she's something much sturdier and more painful for enemies to hit while you slip in from the rear and do your own share of damage in relative safety.
 * 1) Spiders melt beneath Abigail by the dozen due to the way they attempt to swarm their prey, making assaults versus dozens of spiders simultaneously a relatively simple endeavor. Send forth Abigail to aggro the nest, plus whatever spiders are in the area, then rush in and back her up while she takes the heat from the horde now rushing towards her. Farming spiders with Abigail can be tricky to manage properly, however, so it's best to keep an eye on her and try to keep an opening for yourself in case she goes down and the swarm targets you instead. Don't be afraid to bail if you think things have gotten out of hand; worst case scenario, you'll just have to make a quick dash through the nest creep to grab her flower again.
 * 2) Bees, likewise, are easy to kill by the hive due to their swarming tendencies. When spread out they can give Abigail a bit of trouble, but most of the time an entire swarm can be stunlocked all at once as she sits on their hive and scowls and thinks ugly thoughts at it until everything dies. Unless you've taken a jog through a killer bee forest or they manage to start kiting her, Abigail can probably handle any amount of bees you'll encounter naturally.
 * 3) Pengulls are a mixed bag; they tend to take a while to attack up close and she can sit on an entire group all at once, but the strength of a Pengull attack is very easy to underestimate and an entire group bellysliding into Abigail can sometimes take her out instantly. She will also stop attacking when her first target is dead, allowing the group to wait for their attack cooldown to rush in and ram her again. Keep issuing attack orders if she gets distracted and be sure to lend a hand, or she might have some trouble.
 * 4) Beefalo are a mixed bag as well, due to their natural tankiness, heavy (yet slow) attacks, and their tendency to rush in from large distances when their comrades are attacked. In the darkest hours of night is the best time to take on a herd due to her higher attack damage, but make sure you back Abigail up or she might not have the power needed to melt through an entire herd. Be prepared to sprint if she falls, but if the group is small enough you should be able to mop up what's left, even if Abigail didn't have it in her to finish the job.
 * 5) Hunted down a Koalaphant and can't catch the thing because you didn't bring a ranged weapon? Run past a Koalaphant and drift to the side, so that Abigail falls behind and you gradually force the Koalaphant between you; issue an attack order on the Koalaphant, and ensure Abigail gets there first. As the Koalaphant tries to flee, you jump in from the other side and land a strike, triggering the aggro and keeping it from getting away. It can work in the opposite way too; one of you forces the Koalaphant into the other as it tries to run, and then gets caught in the crossfire. From there it's a simple matter of securing the kill, and you get a few days' worth of food and some insulation for winter for your troubles.
 * 6) Hound waves, particularly early on, are easily handled by Abigail. Versus larger groups she can be overpowered, but the first several weeks can be spent in relative safety as you can largely ignore the handful of Hounds that came for you, picking up bits and pieces of them when the deed is done. Beware of fires later on.

Enemies to avoid with Abigail: Other notes about Abigail:
 * 1) Tentacles will wreck Abigail. Striking them resets their attack cooldown, and she will do so consistently with no consideration for her own safety, making things that much harder for herself. She can sometimes take a single tentacle, but strolls through the swamp will sometimes trigger the aggro of many tentacles in a row, and each time she will break off from you and attack the thing that just took a potshot at you. The end result will leave you vulnerable for several days or just straight up leave you injured, leaving you open for the next Hound attack as a result. If you must go through a swamp, do so after a Hound wave has passed through recently, and try to stick to the paths; most tentacles don't spawn close enough to them to take a swing at you.
 * 2) Frogs won't destroy Abigail, but an entire swarm,or even a small group, probably will. They don't stun when hit, and her tendency to tank enemies will most likely be her downfall as the frogs constantly attack her over and over. One or two is fine, but it's probably better to avoid them completely.
 * 3) Treeguards could, arguably, be a useful enemy to throw Abigail at. She will fail miserably versus the creature one on one, but when she dies the Treeguard won't remember it was mad at you until you strike it or start to chop another tree down. This makes it makes it possible to run away and equip yourself properly to duel the beast on your own terms without worrying about a lumbering monstrosity looming on the horizon. Be prepared to do a lot of kiting when you do engage it, however; it will take a while by yourself.
 * 4) Pigs are simple one on one, but their kiting AI will give Abigail nothing but trouble. If you intend to fight a pig, Abigail will compliment you very nicely if you both were point blank to it, but if it slips out of range it could give you both a bit of a run-around. Anything higher than two pigs will almost surely be the doom of Abigail, or at least make your day significantly more difficult and less enjoyable.
 * 5) Merms for the above reason, and because you will almost always be swarmed immediately if you were too close to the abandoned house. They're also faster than pigs, making it even harder for you and Abigail to do any damage. Generally speaking, swamps are a bad place to be with Abigail.
 * 6) If you weren't prepared for a tangle with the Walrus family, Abigail will do you no favors by chasing either Walrus major or Walrus minor away, making delivering damage nay impossible. What's more, you could wind up having to go through a winter without her because of where her flower lands, or because you're too low health to make the trip. Unless you're hunting them specifically, bail at the sight of the Walrus hunting party.
 * 7) Boss enemies in general will easily do Abigail in. The supplementary damage is always useful, but in that case you're probably going to wind up taking most of the heat if you didn't start the engagement out with Abigail. It's not always possible to run, but it's recommended to do so unless fighting them is your specific goal and you came prepared.
 * She will pass through walls when trying to avoid you, but her pathfinding forces her to seek openings like normal creatures.
 * Her AI does not consider her health and will attempt to sit directly on top of enemies, regardless of how much damage she takes.
 * Occasionally she will sit just out of range of her AoE attack if her AI hasn't registered it because it's too small a distance; it might be necessary to nudge her a centimeter or so closer to something, or re-issue the attack order.
 * She is a bit slower than Wendy and can be left behind on long walks down paths or roads.
 * If you lose her flower, it will show up on the minimap.
 * Striking Abigail with Wendy will immediately un-summon her...unless you use an ice staff. Then she gets pissed and attacks you for a little while. (Could be patched in the future)
 * Any aggro against you will trip Abigail's aggro, possibly drawing her into un-winnable fights. Be aware of how close you are getting to enemies!
 * After a certain amount of time, Abigail will get distracted and neglect whatever she was attacking unless hit again. You might have to remind her to keep doing her thing if you sent her at a structure via more attack clicks. (Holding the button down doesn't help)
 * Abigail WILL NOT assist you with hostile hallucinations. If you go insane, you're on your own.

Summoning Abigail
Abigail is summoned using her flower, when the flower is fully open killing anything (even yourself!) while the flower is on the ground will summon her, causing you to suffer a a -50 Sanity penalty as a result. However, this will not work if you kill a captured animal by murdering it within the inventory.

Examining Abigail's flower will hint at how close she is to being summoned. When the flower is ready, it will be bright red and float when placed on the ground. Something dying in range, intentional or no, will summon her. Be mindful of how much sanity you have; you go insane at 30.

Summary
Above everything else, it's important to know your own limitations and to keep a watchful eye on your items' durability and your health. Abigail will help, but don't let her presence make you feel indestructible. Be prepared and have a plan for any engagement; Abigail can fail you, and you are much weaker by yourself, particularly if you get blindsided or something breaks unexpectedly. Be conscious in combat with Wendy: surprises and being careless are your worst enemies.

As long as things stay on your terms and you exercise caution, Wendy will carry you well into day 100 and beyond.