Homebrew Aranea Species Details

Aranea people are reclusive, sapient spiders, though they act in many ways like natural-born shapeshifters, their twin forms actually stem from carefully developed magic.

As a communal and peaceful people, Aranea ancestors endeavored to establish trade with the neighbors of their homeland. However, these Aranea soon learned that most others found their appearance to be extremely objectionable. Wishing to avoid conflict, ancient Aranea retreated into isolation until they could find a solution. The answer came when their greatest scholars innovated a fusion of transmutation and illusion magic that allowed them to assume a humanoid form. The technique was developed, perfected, and eventually taught to the overwhelming majority of Aranea.

Early efforts with their new approach to diplomacy have yielded much better results, though sporadic contact means that some outsiders whisper false legends about Aranea, such as claims that they are humans who transform into monstrous spiders at moonrise. Even contemporary explorers have reported Aranea as human-spider hybrids. The Aranea people of the current day strive to slowly but surely create a world where they no longer need to hide their true nature.

Physical Description

Aranea in their true form resemble human-sized spiders with a variety of colorations. Some tones look simple or muted while other remain striking and vibrant, with most patterns inherited from an Aranea's parentage. A typical Aranea measures five feet in length from their front legs to their rear legs when standing comfortably.

All Aranea possesses the ability to transform into a human guise. This form can resemble any human ethnicity, but it's usually one that blends in with the region of an Aranea's hatching. Aranea reach physical maturity after 13 years, going through multiple phases of molting along the way. A typical Aranea lives to be about 80 years old.

Society

Aranea live in a communal society, sharing peaceful lives farming mushrooms or weaving warm blankets. Their culture places great value on cooperation and mutual respect. Due to this cultural upbringing, Aranea often have issues facing severe conflict and often come off to other ancestries as very shy. Their history of dealing with arachnophobia in other peoples—which Aranea understand is often instinctual and very difficult to control—likewise means that Aranea do their best to be accommodating and comforting, even in situations that aren't necessarily fair to them.

 

Aranea Traits

As an Aranea, you have the following traits

Ability Score Increase

When determining your character’s ability scores, you increase one of those scores by 2 and increase a different score by 1, or you increase three different scores by 1. Follow this rule regardless of the method you use to determine the scores, such as rolling or point buy. The “Quick Build” section for your character’s class offers suggestions on which scores to increase. You’re free to follow those suggestions or to ignore them. Whichever scores you decide to increase, none of the scores can be raised above 20.

Language

You can speak, read and write common

Change shape

You change into your human or spider shape as a bonus action. Each shape has a specific, persistent appearance.

Human. In your human shape, you are comparable to a regular human

Spider. In your spider shape you can't use weapons, shields, or other held items of any sort. The only actions you can take are to Cast a Spell with somatic components or simple Interact actions such as opening an unlocked door. Your spider legs can't perform actions that require fingers or significant manual dexterity, including any action that would require a check to accomplish. The GM might determine other manipulate actions are appropriate for your spider legs.

Additionally in you spider form, your walking speed becomes 25ft and you gain a climbing speed equal to your walking speed, you can weaves silk and webbing at a fast pace (it would take you around 10 minutes to make a net that would comfortably support you.) for any other kind of weaving, the time depends on what and how you want to weave, the DM will decide the time required (free action, action, minutes, etc...)

Bite. You also gain a bite attack in your spider form, which uses Dexterity, and deals 1d6 damage.

Lightweight. While in your spider form, you count as one size smaller when determining your carrying capacity and the weight you can push, drag, or lift and weigh half compared to your human form.