Homebrew Cicadian Species Details

Sequestered in the Underdark, the Cicadians, sometimes called bugfolk, evoke fear and wonder. Many Cicadians aren’t seen above the Underdark. They hail from hives spread around the darkness.

They are Workers, scouts, warriors, and explorers, their hives functioning as footholds in a world both strange and alien.

Exoskeletal Flyers 

From below, Cicadians look much like large bugs. Only when they descend the cave walls or walk across the ground does their humanoid appearance reveal itself. Standing upright, cicadians might reach 6 feet tall, and they have long, thick legs that are covered in a thick exoskeleton shell.

An exoskeleton covers their bodies. Their plumage typically denotes membership in a hive. Males and Females look exactly the same but lost all of them differ in color, some common colors are black, red, green, and yellow. Their heads complete the avian appearance, being something like a fly or hornet with distinct tribal variations and huge eyes.

Hive Minded

Nowhere are the Cicadians more comfortable than in the dark caves. They can spend hours in the dark, and some go as long as days, locking their arms in place and hang from a cave wall in the dark. In battle, they prove dynamic and heavy fliers, moving with a slow and steady pace looking for the right time to strike, jumping to lash opponents with weapons before retreating back into the darkness to strike again.

Once in the darkness, a Cicadian leaves the dark with reluctance. On their native plane, they can live in the complete darkness for days or months, climbing down only to lay their eggs and feed their young before launching themselves back into the air. Those that make it to a world in the Material Plane find it a strange place. They sometimes forget or ignore vertical distances, and they have nothing but pity for those earthbound people forced to live and toil on the ground.

Cicadian Mannerisms

The resemblance of Cicadians to bugs isn’t limited to physical features. Cicadians display many of the same mannerisms as ordinary bugs. They are constantly at work and often seen as hive-minded, cleaning the hive and trapping any prey who have sadly stumbled their way into their nest. When they begin to descend from the cave walls, they often do so near pools where they can catch prey and bathe themselves.

Many Cicadians punctuate their speech with clicks, sounds they use to convey emphasis and to shade meaning, much as a human might through facial expressions and gestures. A Cicadians might become frustrated with people who fail to pick up on the nuances; a Cicadians threat might be taken as a jest and vice versa.

The idea of ownership baffles most Cicadians. After all, who owns the darkness that lays in the Underdark? Even when explained to them, they initially find the notion of ownership mystifying. As a result, Cicadians who have little interaction with other people might be a nuisance as they drop from the darkness to snatch livestock or plunder harvests for fruits and grains. Shiny, glittering objects catch their eyes.

They find it hard not to pluck the treasure and bring it back to their settlement to beautify it. A Cicadian who spends years among other races can learn to inhibit these impulses.

Confinement terrifies the Cicadians. To be grounded, trapped in the light, or imprisoned by the cold, unyielding earth is a torment few Cicadians can withstand. Even when perched on a high cavern in a cave or at rest in their hive homes, they appear alert, with eyes moving and bodies ready to jump.

Homelands

Most Cicadians live in the Underdark. Cicadians can be drawn into the Material Plane, sometimes to pursue enemies or thwart their foes’ designs there. Accident might also send a hive of Cicadians stumbling into a world on that plane. A few find their way to such a world through portals on their own plane and establish nests in dark caves.

Once hives of Cicadians settle in an area, they share a hunting territory that extends across an area up to 50 miles on a side, with each hive hunting in the lands nearest to their colony, ranging farther should game become scarce.

A typical colony consists of one large, open-roofed hive made of woven vines. The queen acts as a leader 

Cicadian Names

As with much of their speech, Cicadians names include clicks, trills, and whistles to the point that other peoples have a difficult time pronouncing them. Typically, a name has two to four syllables with the sounds acting as connectors. When interacting with other races, Cicadians may use nicknames gained from people they meet or shortened forms of their full names.

A Cicadian of either gender may have one of these short names: Chak-tha, Chit'al, Drik-chkit, Gulnik, Kacht-ta, Kat'chka, Kiktul, Klaktuk, Krik, Pak'cha, Pik-ik-cha, Pok, Ptekwe, Tak-tha, Tal'tich, Tilnak, and Tik-tik. 

CICADIAN BACKGROUNDS

Backgrounds that are most appropriate for Cicadian include the outlander, the hermit, and the sage.

The small hives of cicadians are insular and remote, and few cicadians live away from their hives. In the Underdark in the Forgotten Realms, no more than a few dozen cicadians live away from the hives of their families. Those that do are usually rangers or fighters, constantly patrolling for outside threats.

Cicadian Traits

As an Cicadian, you have certain traits in common with your people. Being able to jump high and climb walls starting at 1st level is exceptionally effective in certain circumstances and exceedingly dangerous in others. As a result, playing an aarakocra requires special consideration by your DM.

Darkvision

You can see in dim light within 60 feet of you as if it were bright light, and in darkness as if it were dim light. You can't discern color in darkness, only shades of gray.

Boosted Jump

 Due to your heavy exoskeleton, you can not fly but instead use your wings to help aid your jumping, giving you a jumping equal to 20ft in any direction, and when falling you can use your wings to glide down taking no fall damage.

Natural Armor

Due to your exoskeleton and the shape of your body, you are ill-suited to wearing armor. Your exoskeleton provides ample protection, however; it gives you a base AC of 14 + your Dexterity modifier. You gain no benefit from wearing armor, but if you are using a shield, you can apply the shield's bonus as normal.

Ability Score Increase

Your Dexterity score increases by 2, and your Wisdom score increases by 1.

Age

Aarakocra reach maturity by age 3. Compared to humans, aarakocra don’t usually live longer than 30 years.

Alignment

Most aarakocra are good and rarely choose sides when it comes to law and chaos. Tribal leaders and warriors might be lawful, while explorers and adventurers might tend toward chaotic.

Size

Aarakocra are about 6 feet tall. They have heavy, exoskeletons that weigh between 150 and 200 pounds. Your size is Medium.

Speed

Your base walking speed is 25 feet. and a climbing speed of 25.

Languages

You can speak, read, and write Common, and Cicadian.