Wilson

"Do you like science?"

- Wilson

Wilson Percival Higgsbury is the first available character in Don't Starve and was the first character with a confirmed backstory and as such he is the main protagonist of the game. His backstory can be found below. He has no character-specific item, and his only perk is that he grows a magnificent Beard.

Origin
With the Forbidden Knowledge video published to Klei Entertainment's YouTube channel and hidden in their, Wilson's origin was revealed. He's the only character with an official origin.

Wilson used to live in a rickety wooden house in the mountains, doing experiments all day. After a mixture of some sort exploded in a puff in his face, he sat down, agitated that things weren't working out for him. He didn't have too much time to do so, however, as he heard a mysterious voice coming from his radio (revealed to be Maxwell's later on in the video). Maxwell offered Wilson secret and forbidden knowledge, and Wilson, willing and hungry for this said knowledge, hastily agreed. This caused massive amounts of information to be inserted into his head. What Wilson didn't know was that almost all this information isn't about anything science-related.

With this newfound knowledge, he began building a mysterious machine. When the machine was finished, he gazed upon it in wonder. Maxwell told him to throw the switch - Wilson, however, was hesitant. Only with a bit of egging on - Maxwell shouting "DO IT!" - does he pull the lever. Wilson then realized that this machine was some sort of portal, only meant to lead him to his demise. As Maxwell laughed maniacally, dark shadowy hands appeared from the floor and pulled Wilson into the mysterious wilderness world where Don't Starve takes place.

Strategy
Wilson is one of two characters (the other being Webber) that can grow a beard.

Beard Based Survival
Wilson's beard has two basic characteristics:
 * The beard provides a maximum of 135 insulation against Freezing.
 * The beard can be shaved for beard hair, allowing the player to make a Meat Effigy.

The beard will take exactly 15 days to grow to its full length (full length at the beginning of day 16), and since Winter starts on day 21 on default settings, this proves advantageous for Winter survival. In fact, with a Puffy Vest, a Beefalo Hat, a Heat Stone and the beard at full length, Wilson can have the highest insulation factor in the game at 735. Assuming the player leaves a heat source with a 40 degree body temperature, with 735 insulation he will have about 16.67 minutes before taking damage from freezing, 40.2 seconds longer than two full Day-Night Cycles. This allows him more freedom during the winter days to gather supplies and food. Also, in the event that combat with other monsters in the dead of winter has proven to take longer than expected, Wilson will be able to fight longer before he needs to find a source of heat. This is especially useful when tracking a Winter Koalefant, which usually requires extended time away from fire to follow its trail.

The player should also consider the fact that with the Beard at full length, obtaining sufficient insulation to survive the winter is less difficult, meaning the player can spend time preparing for winter in other ways. For example, instead of tracking down a Koalefant in order to make a Breezy Vest, the player could focus on ensuring enough Rabbit Traps have been placed, or plenty of Logs have been gathered in preparation for the reduced effectiveness of fuel during the winter days. If the player is entering winter with little more than Rabbit Earmuffs, it would be wise to keep the beard for the added insulation. If plenty of insulated clothing has been gathered pre-winter, shaving may be a good option. Bear in mind that a meat effigy will require 4 beard hair, and the soonest this can be obtained outside of lowering Sanity to hunt Beardlings is 16 days with a total yield of 9 hair. This means the player will be with less insulation for the Winter days, but with the nice insurance policy a meat effigy provides. Shaving the beard at any stage before full length will not provide enough hair in a single shaving, but hair can always be stored for later as it does not degrade.

Overall, Wilson is meant for better Winter survival and efficiency, as well as easier access to creating meat effigies due to the fact that he can create them without losing his sanity. He is a good all-around character, and many players from beginner to advanced find that Wilson, as well as his beard, provide welcome advantages to surviving in the wilderness.

Reign of Giants
In the Reign of Giants DLC, having a Beard during Summer will make Wilson overheat faster, so it is advised to shave at the beginning of the hot Season.

Trivia

 * Wilson's voice is sounded by a "Harmon muted trumpet (mixed with some cup muted trumpet as well)".
 * Wilson's age is early 30's.
 * With the introduction of the Insanity update, Wilson was no longer the only character that could build Meat Effigy and with the implementation of Webber in the Reign of Giants DLC, he is no longer the only character that can grow a beard.
 * Wilson is the only character unaffected by the Strange New Powers update, aside from Maxwell, who was not finished in time and got his new powers later on in the All Well That Maxwell update.
 * Wilson has a skull.
 * Before the November 14, 2013 patch, Wilson used to share a lot of examination quotes with the other characters.
 * Wilson is able to be used as a Steam chat emoticon.
 * Team Fortress 2 promoted Don't Starve with a  modeled after Wilson's hair.
 * Wilson is the only character whose full name is known.
 * When struck by Lightning in the Reign of Giants DLC, Wilson, like most other characters, is shown to have bones in his hair.