Homebrew Ra'zac Species Details

“	They are the monsters in the dark, the dripping nightmares that haunt your race. ... All areas where humans are weak, the Ra'zac are strong.	„

Life-cycle

When a Ra'zac is hatched, it is referred to as a pupa. It develops a roughly human exoskeleton, allowing it to remain somewhat inconspicuous in the company of its favorite prey, humans. During the pupae stage, they wear black cloaks to help hide their true form. In this stage, Ra'zac feed exclusively on human beings, but upon maturing will kill and eat anything that moves.

When the pupae reaches the first full moon of its twentieth year, it sheds its exoskeleton, spreads its wings that have developed from a bulge on its back, and emerges as a fully grown Lethrblaka, said to resemble a type of "monstrous dark dragon". The flying mounts used by the Ra'zac were actually their parents, the Lethrblaka. Lethrblaka had the intelligence of a dragon, but they are much more intelligent than the younger Ra'zac and could give out ear-splitting shrieks that most are not able to stand. Magic users, however, could counter it by casting a spell to "empty their ears". The Lethrblaka then reproduce oviparous, renewing their cycle of life.

It is unknown where the Ra'zac originated, but they are not native to Alagaësia. It is most likely they came from whatever place humans abandoned and they may be the reason that the humans abandoned this place. For many years the creatures roamed wild, killing and devouring humans before the Dragon Riders agreed to put an end to it. During the bloody Ra'zac War, nearly the entire Ra'zac race was exterminated, except for two Lethrblaka, who survived. After his victory over the Riders, Galbatorix sought out the Lethrblaka and their newborn Ra'zac and bartered for their services in exchange for his protection and a limitless supply of their favorite food: human flesh. They then continued their savage eating habits as they did before, finding human flesh a plenty. He also granted them a new home in Helgrind.

History

“	They are the monsters in the dark, the dripping nightmares that haunt your race. ... All areas where humans are weak, the Ra'zac are strong.	„

 

 

The Ra'zac (or Lethrblaka when full-grown) were one of the several ancient races that were thought to have followed the humans across the sea to Alagaësia. They were a race that fed on humans and likely came from the same homelands. Ra'zacs' breath have the power to paralyze humans in a dream-like state, however, it barely clouds the minds of dwarves and is ineffective against elves altogether.

The last two Ra'zac to live before the extinction of their race in Alagaësia (as well as the remaining two Lethrblaka) were servants of Galbatorix, living in their black towers at Helgrind. They were used by King Galbatorix to investigate any rumors of dragons who might have escaped the downfall of the Dragon Riders. They were called by some the king's personal "dragon hunters." They were especially effective against Dragon Riders because their minds were shielded from mental powers.The Lethrblaka is the adult form of the Ra'zac. In the Ancient Language, their name means "Leather flapper." They could hunt anything in Alagaësia. Oromis stated in Eldest that it was strongly believed by the Riders that the Lethrblaka had followed the humans to Alagaësia. Only two of these creatures survived the Ra'zac War. The elves tried to eradicate the Ra'zac and Lethrblaka as quickly as possible. Two Lethrblaka escaped and laid eggs. The remaining Ra'zac and Lethrblaka (two of each) worked for King Galbatorix because he made a deal with them to work for him in exchange for their favorite food (humans). Oromis stated that they are cruel, twisted creatures, somewhat similar to dragons. However, they are described as being something akin to a twisted, cunning, evil dragon, as well as are probably not actually related to dragons. In Brisingr, Saphira fights both Lethrblaka during the assault on Helgrind. She kills one in the cave and the other after chasing it to Leona Lake.

Surviving Ra'zac 

Although this Ra'zac was the last of its kind to have crossed the Silver Sea, others may yet survive beyond the ocean. It was never confirmed that the entirety of the Ra'zac race crossed and as other humans would still be present in their homeland crossing would make little sense for the Ra'zac as much of their prey would still be available in their homeland. It is possible that there are eggs kept and hidden by the clergy of Dras-Leona or Galbatorix.

Powers

The Ra'zac had no access to magic, but they were very effective against magicians because their minds could not be observed or possibly their minds were so alien to magicians that they could not sense them at all. The Ra'zac had a human ally in Galbatorix, who would cast protective wards over them.

The Ra'zac possessed superhuman strength, speed, agility, as well as stamina, equal to an elf. However, they also possessed an ability no elf, Shade, or even Dragon Rider had: an evil breath that fogs the minds of humans (most likely a poisonous gas) and make most people incapable of doing anything. A Dragon Rider is almost completely immune due to their bond with their dragons, who are not affected at all. The Ra'zac also had strong exoskeletons which was as hard and strong as armor and protected the Ra'zac from weak blows without slowing them down with bulky excess weight.

In addition to these abilities, their senses were very strong: they could track scents like hounds, see on a cloudy night or even in complete darkness. But perhaps the Ra'zac's greatest power was the special shields that protected their minds. Even the best human mindbreakers could not detect a Ra'zac's mind. This made it impossible to breach or control them with mental powers, unless the Ra'zac consented to it. It also made the Ra'zac excellent assassins, for not even magicians would be able to detect them until it was too late.

The Ra'zac spoke in their own language of sharp clicks, clacks, clucks, shrieks, chirps and other bird-like sounds. None of this language was translated and the calls may have been unintelligible and even unpronounceable to all but the Ra'zac.

However, the Ra'zac had weaknesses as well. Because their eyes were so sensitive to brightness, strong light pained them, though it was not fatal and wouldn't stop a Ra'zac if they were determined. Powerful light, such as that conjured by the "kveykva" spell would momentarily stun a Ra'zac. Ra'zac also were unable to swim, possibly because of their exoskeleton, as a result, they had a morbid fear of (deep) water and thus kept away from it.

Gender

One of the inconsistencies in the Inheritance Cycle involved the Ra'zac. During the confrontation outside Dras-Leona, Christopher Paolini described both Ra'zac as 'he'. However, when Eragon is facing down the second Ra'zac before battling it, it describes the late Ra'zac as 'she'. In order to make them reproduce, one of them had to be a female. It is not known for sure which Ra'zac is which, but it is more likely that the shorter one was female. During the first appearance of the Ra'zac, the taller Ra'zac was described as a "man", while no such description was attached to the shorter one. It should be considered, however, that all descriptions of the Ra'zac as a "he" or a "man" come from the point of view of Eragon, who would have no way of knowing the gender of the two. It is possible that both Ra'zac could be female. Another possibility is that they were hermaphrodites and thus had no gender but mated with any other being of their species.

Personality

Both Ra'zac were cunning and cruel, but rather narrow-minded. They were capable of conscious thought and consideration, but were not as intelligent as humans, dwarves, elves, or dragons.

The shorter Ra'zac has been consistently portrayed as more blunt, cruel, as well as impulsive than the taller one: both traits could correspond to age. When talking with Sloan, the shorter one was significantly more threatening than their taller counterpart. When they captured Eragon and Brom, the shorter one suggested just murdering Brom, rather than drugging him and putting up with the trouble he caused.

Ra'zac Traits

Ra'zac Traits

Ability Score Increase

Your Dexterity score increases by 2
Your strength score increases by 2.

Age

When a Ra'zac is hatched, it is referred to as a pupa. It develops a roughly human exoskeleton, allowing it to remain somewhat inconspicuous in the company of its favorite prey, humans. During the pupae stage, they wear black cloaks to help hide their true form. In this stage, Ra'zac feed exclusively on human beings, but upon maturing will kill and eat anything that moves.

When the pupae reaches the first full moon of its twentieth year, it sheds its exoskeleton, spreads its wings that have developed from a bulge on its back, and emerges as a fully grown Lethrblaka, said to resemble a type of "monstrous dark dragon". The flying mounts used by the Ra'zac were actually their parents, the Lethrblaka. Lethrblaka had the intelligence of a dragon, but they are much more intelligent than the younger Ra'zac and could give out ear-splitting shrieks that most are not able to stand. Magic users, however, could counter it by casting a spell to "empty their ears". The Lethrblaka then reproduce oviparously, renewing their cycle of life.

Size

Ra'zac range from under 5 to over 6 feet tall. Your size is Medium.

speed

Your base walking speed is 60 feet.

Darkvision

As a ra'zac you can see in all conditions now made how dark. However, the Ra'zac had weaknesses as well. Because their eyes were so sensitive to brightness, strong light pained them, though it was not fatal and wouldn't stop a Ra'zac if they were determined. Powerful light, such as that conjured by the "kveykva" spell would momentarily stun a Ra'zac.

fear

Ra'zac also were unable to swim, possibly because of their exoskeleton, as a result, they had a morbid fear of (deep) water and thus kept away from it.