Homebrew Arachne (Aephoros) Species Details

Children of Ovid

When the Twilight War came to a close, when dawn rose upon the Sundered lands of Aephoros the toll the war wrought was evident for God and mortal alike.  The once numerous fantastical beings often referred to as The Childer Races were all but extinct, their places of power and life having been destroyed.  The Gods that had created them mourned their children and many swore to never again create beings that they feared to lose. Such loss lead to an abstention of creation of new creatures and beings and thus the prophesied new age of becoming never came to be.  It would be many thousands of years later before another race was brought to life.

 

The Patron God of storycraft and tapestries named Ovid had removed himself from the realms of civilized beings at the close of the war, opting to spend his time among the fey forests far away from the constant reminders of what was lost.  Opting for refuge in the ancient forests far away from any hints of civilization Ovid found kinship with the tiny weavers of nature, spiders. Adoring their patterns Ovid began to tell them his tales and to his surprise they seemed to listen, weaving out the scenes of his fantastic tales in their silk for him to enjoy. Finding comfort in their company he began to admire the patience, dedication and essential part they played in their ecosystems, moved by their hospitality Ovid adopted his arachnid companions as his own and soon after gave them a gift not seen in the world for quite some time.  With the gift of his divine essence he wove for his new children a new form, his children would walk as many of the previous children of the gods had, they would think, weave, love, and live as all the other peoples of Aephoros would.  

A Culture that Defies Expectation

Despite appearances, the Arachne are not fearsome predators that would sooner ambush and feast on the flesh of the peoples of Aephoros. Fairly shy and reclusive by nature, Arachne are by and large gentle souls and tend to avoid conflict whenever possible and tend to only bare their fangs and claws that the upmost end of need.  As their patron deity detests violence most Arachne tend to take up trades rather than become soldiers or adventures and choose to live as placidly as possible.  However some few Arachne hear the call of adventure or find a need to take up arms or cause that is dear to them and some few have made names for themselves in the annals of history.  Still Arachne are best known for their works of textile artistry, in this realm they are unrivaled even by the most skilled weavers in history and will most often be found creating clothing and tapestries that fetch obscene amounts of gold when put on the open market or commissioned by wealthy patrons who seek the finest clothing or examples of woven masterpieces such as banners, tapestries or luxuriant bedspreads.

Those Arachne who do venture outside of the norm and weave their own paths are as diverse in their motivations as any adventurer.  Some isolated Arachne choose to see what exists outside of their own reclusive communities, others who have been born and raised in great textile clans might decide that the life of a weaver isn't for them.  Whatever the case may be, Arachne are all bound by their devotion to weave, even if it is something as grandiose as their own destinies.    

 

Arachne (Aephoros) Traits

As an Arachne your inherent talents and traits allow you to weave a destiny all your own

Ability Score Increase

You may choose one ability score to increase by 1 and another by 2

Age

Like their most species of spiders the Arachne a biological dimorphism based on their natural sex.  Males mature quickly and are relatively short lived, reaching maturity at around three years of age and living to thirty years of age on average.  Females mature at a slower rate, roughly reaching adulthood at ten years of age and live roughly around eighty years on average.

Alignment

With Ovid’s distaste for war and a deceptive compassion, most  Arachne lean towards good alignments.  Their alignment actually manifests itself in some manner physically, mainly in their coloring.  Arachne who tend to be on lawful ends of the spectrum tend to have sharply defined and muted colors to their skin with stark contrasting stripes that follow ridgid geometric patterns. Neutral  Arachne tend to have blended color gradients with stripes that blend into the tapestry of their skin.  Those of chaotic alignments tend to be vibrant in color with asymmetrical high contrast markings.

Size

Sexually dimorphic size between males and females differs.  Males tend to be more densely built and on average a full foot to two feet shorter than females.  Most male Arachne tend to be around five feet in height. Females tend to be slender and taller than males, most rounding out between five and a half to six and a half feet tall.

Speed

Arachne have a walking speed of 30 feet, able to climb walls effortlessly they also enjoy a 30ft climbing.  When walking across webbed surfaces you do not consider it difficult terrain.

Tremorsense

While not gifted with darkvision as many races might be, you are granted tremorsense within 30 feet.  Any creature that makes contact with the ground can be sensed as if you could see them visually.

Natural Weavers

As a natural weavers of silk, you have proficiency with Waver’s tools though you do not require physical tools to weave your own silk.

Spiderfolk Ancestory

Tracing their lineage back to ancient primordial spiders, Arachne share some of the qualities with their ancestors.   Arachne can use the spell Web a number of times equal to their proficiency bonus per long rest. Additionally Arachne may use their fangs to inject as weapons that becomes more potent as they age.  Arachne can make an unarmed bite attack that deals 1D6 of poison damage that increases to 2D6 at 5th level, 3D6 at 11th level and 4D6 at 17th level. 

Languages

Arachne can read and write common and can speak it with some difficulty.  Arachne also have their own language of gestures and pheromones that enable them to speak with each other silently.