User blog comment:AaronHW/Fresh Meat/@comment-5619706-20130324020305

I haven't read it and I don't know how it was portrayed in the book--but I'm Filipino, so I know a lot on the original lore.

Appearance-wise, it varies depending on the region--their looks may range from a monstrous humanoid with sharp claws and fangs (think half-wendigo and half-vampire), others may look like a werewolf, while others may even depict the aswang as a complete shapeshifter who can assume forms such as a big black dog, a massive wild boar, or even a tree. Although some lore say they are vulnerable to sunlight, some can shapeshift into a normal looking human during the day.

Their abilities include super strength, super speed, and flight. Some versions depict them having a long tongue that is almost like a proboscis with which they suck the unborn child directly from within a pregnant woman. Others do not care much for age, so long as they have meat or blood--they are up and running and good to go.

Being an aswang is said to run through the family, while it may also be possible to turned into one if you consume its saliva (usually hidden or mixed through a drink or offered by the aswang). Some lore say that an aswang cannot die until it passes its curse to another person. This is usually in the form of a stone that is revealed in the aswang's mouth, waiting for another person to swallow the stone.

Killing an aswang depends on the lore, but the common listed weaknesses are salt, garlic, palm blessed with holy water (reference to Palm Sunday), or beheading or severely maiming the aswang.

I hope it helped.