Arachnids
Arachnid Spider-Like Person Representing The Arachnid Race Of People.
The Arachnids: The Half Spider Half Human People:
Arachnids formally Arachne are Spiderlike people who are similar to the Centaur Race where instead of a Horse Body they have a Spider Body. Their top half can be more or less pretty humanoid-like, it can have all the features that designate them as pretty or they can be more spider-like with claws and spikes. Their top half is composed of a skeletal spine and shoulder bones and muscles which are controlled naturally by the Arachnid. Even though they are human-like or elf-like in their top halves, they do not possess entire bodies composed of organs and a ribcage in their top half. Their normal body functions are housed in their lower part and extended into their human half. The human half is more aesthetically pleasing allowing them to fit into modern society, and this allows for the usage of tools and armor without the need to fully protect them since it is just blood vessels, muscles, tendons, and skeletal bones. The Arachnids have a similar life cycle of a spider with the longevity of both races combined. The Arachnid Queen will lay various forms of eggs, each with a different purpose. They can lay a large mass of spider eggs in a silk net which are smaller ball sized eggs which can hatch into 2-3 spiderlings which are the size of small animals. The larger eggs they lay become nested as it is laid on a large netting of silk threads. These eggs will hatch into a single Arachnid, Arachnid Warrior, Arachnid Harvester, or into a future Arachnid Queen. The Arachnids are intelligent and are the top of the Spider food chain as they tower in size compared to most of them while also using tools and technology. Arachnids like their spider counterparts molt their carapaces when they grow in size and or power. They begin life as a Pale White color with some features unique to their diverse races within. The Primals have sharp spikes and protrusions while the Stoneweavers will have entire chunks of earth and rocks which act as armor. Each Arachnid will have their individual features and characteristics in their respective sections below after their historical section. Arachnids as a spider-like species are born as a pale white and each time they molt their carapace strengthens and grows a shade darker. The adults are of a grey color as the ancient spiders are of a black color. However it has been seen that after reaching the black color, they will evolve into a white color once more but they will have unique patterns of a black hue. As they molt once again the markings will lighten and once they reach the black stage once more their markings will be white. This applies to all species and factions under the Arachnid people.
History: Rise Of The First Broods
The Birth Of The Arachnids:
Upon establishing a base of operations and further cooperations with the Arachnid people who were discovered on the world of Archaea, in the Archaea System. The Empire has researched and explored their culture and way of life. The Arachnids are a kind of generic species with a few different groups of powerful variants that have risen up over their long life span. Their culture and way of life is that of various low technological tribes gathered across the vast world from the deep jungles and forests to the deep spanning caves and caverns. Though their communication skills are less than adequate, they have undergone various training to be able to talk and communicate with the Empire. The Arachnid are a smart species, seeing various people in black uniforms with scales and fur from the animals they hunt stand before them and talk to each other in an unfamiliar camaraderie has them most intrigued. As they have gathered their large mass of Arachnid peoples and spiders alike they realize instantly that the large metal birds high in the sky could annihilate them instantly if they so choose to, the ones before them also radiate with a level of magical power which shakes their cores and all they wish to do is to talk and understand. The spiders leave while the Arachnids gather together and undergo a ritual which allows for them to speak through vibrations to generally communicate in the most simplistic of ways. They converse for a long period of time explaining who they are and where they are from as well as their intentions to find developed intelligent life to bring into the fold of the Astarian Empire. They agree as they begin a deep dive into their history and development with unique mind coping skills and have recorded the following information.
The Primal Spiders:
Long ago their world was plagued by massive spider creatures called The Primal Spiders. They were enormous Spider Creatures which stood 35m tall and had bodies the size of dense forests. They were apart of these huge spider people and first encountered humanoid people who migrated to their area seeking what looked like refuge from something, The Primal Spiders were a low birth rate creature as they took so much space for their massive eggs that they would lay dormant for a long period of time as they slowly absorbed magic energy around them furthering their growth. These human people began to kill off the smaller spiders as they hunted and ate them to the horror of the spider people. Driven by hunger and revenge, the spiders having fought for so long had united together against the thing which hunts them so aggressively, the humans. Wanting to speed up their growth the smaller spiders began to throw themselves and become absorbed into the massive eggs releasing their ancient brethren in defense of their people. The Primal Spiders were released and began to wreck havoc across the lands as they devoured all matters of life on the world as the world's calamities with a revenge against the humans. Shortly after their birth a large metal object landed deep in the jungle and a new group of humans came from them. They fought against these powerful humans and their weapons which can easily penetrate their powerful carapaces as they swarmed them en mass and eventually the metal bird called an Airship fell. They devoured all the spider corpses on the way as well as the new Airship full of people who set out to claim a new world. A few of the Arachnid Creatures that devoured all life from the Airship and then went into hiding as they birthed a new species through immense pain, The Primal Arachnids and they are deep in hiding until a later time. The Primal Spiders however became more aggressive and had large spanning years of conflict as they would birth huge amounts of spiders and war with each other over territory and hunting rights of the primitive people as they began to rapidly grow in numbers to fight against the large walls the human people constructed. Although the people themselves possessed fire and magic, they would never be safe in their large walls that spiders could easily overrun. As the primitive human survivors begin to send search teams out to harvest resources and kill the spiders that stalk them, they begin to bring down these strong spiders and great calamity beasts. They began to harvest the spiders and consume them to gain more power and their carapace was used in the construction of weapons and armor.
Harvesting The Primal Spiders:
As The Primal Spider Carapace is as strong as steel, their body is useful in many ways. As the smaller spider warriors and leapers offer basic gear and poisons, the Primals are extremely tall and hard to bring down. Looking for a new way to hunt, they began scouting the surrounding area during the day while the city fought off the spiders at all times. The scouts got lucky as they discovered the airship wreckage and new metal tools which were unlike anything they have ever used. The wreckage was mostly intact, torn apart from the spider claws but opened up enough for exploration and discovery of people who do not know simple technology like lights. Trying to find a secret weapon as fast as possible, the strength of their walls wane every day as the assault force grows more bold by the day. A section of wall falls as spiders swarm through the walls led by massive walking spiders in their assault on the layered city of survivors.
Discovering The Primal Arachnids:
The scout team followed the recently discovered fresh tracks to a nearby cave from the wreckage, although they were fresh and intact their size was much smaller. As they entered the cave, what they saw was a great surprise. A new kind of Arachnid spider with a top half of a naked beauty with long hair covering herself skittered over to them with her spider bottom. They all stood still as the wind tried to process the situation as a scout drew their weapon and lunged. A male version of the spider immediately got between them and disarmed the scout. The scouts rallied immediately against the newly armed threat as the spider shook his head and tossed the weapon down. He gestured to them to follow and the scouts reluctantly did. Their carapace had a white color hue to it with small dark intrusions over the joints of their body which were so sharp that as they walked through the cave they would scrape and cut the walls. Their features were much like their own with proportions similar or greater than themselves. It is hard not to stare at them, not as an enemy but more as a lustful desire, this has caused them to be more alert due to their innate urges and nature as a primitive people. Deep in the cave they see many more of these new spider people going about their lives as they stop to gawk and gaze at them with looks of not disgust but of lust. They get to a large hovel-like structure and as they enter they are greeted by a young spider girl who is not spared with their lust. She translates for the two groups as they inquire about many things trying to steer the conversation in a way which doesn’t kill them all as they see her as an object and the other spiders see them as food.
They ask her about themselves. They only know they began to slowly reproduce a single spider from an egg at a time and it takes longer. When did it happen? She explained how it seemed to happen after eating the new people and gaining intelligence and sentience. She asked them what they are doing all the way out here. The scouts explain how they are besieged and were looking for a weapon to use against the giant spiders. They wish to seek peace as they grow in power and strength to fight the spiders, therefore they will give them a spider who lays eggs which will act as a riding spider who will only eat spiders. They agree to the good relationship as they send not just a large friendly egg laying spider with them but also outfitted them with many riding spiders to get back faster. A few scouts began the trip back with the spider while the rest made their way back quickly.
The spider riders immediately get to the edge of the wall as the scouts see the horrors within the walls. They charge into the frey as they begin the destruction of the forces inside the walls in a pincer move. The scouts leap from the spiders on top of the massive one as the smaller spiders tear into the enemy ranks and begin to consume the legs of the larger spiders. After the conflicts the scouts report their finding to the survivors who are skeptical at first but then begin to slowly ease into the entire situation. The new force of spider riders and scouts began to hunt and defend against the swarming spiders of the various years. Slowly but surely the Arachnids began to mingle with the humans in their defense and assault against the spiders. Years after the allied front, and the extension of the spiders the human survivors began to slowly pull away. Once they began to develop their magic and technologies, they entered into the dark periods of wars with theArachnid, or the Arachnid Wars.
Arachnid Wars:
After the human survivors developed their advanced magic abilities and tools to match their new found powers, they began to take more and more territory until they were in violation of the treaty between their respective peoples. As the war mongering pushed more people into the military they began to enter into open conflict with the spiders and their Arachnid masters. After their powerful magics were having less effects than desired, they made for a disastrous move. They went to their dens deep in the forest to the cavern they once met the creatures and not only blockaded the entire cavern system by burning and smoking the cavern out killing most of the Arachnids. Knowing only blood shed and war, the humans then began to destroy nests and hunt and kill all the innocent spiders and Arachnids who were farming or hunting. This did not go over as smoothly as the surviving humans who thirsted for the flavors of victory.
Releasing The Calamity:
The Arachnids after having lost most of their populations on the main lands began to send messages to the nearby freshly settled land. The human survivors may have taken back their entire city and the surrounding areas, but that was merely a castle in the vast sands, for the spiders and Arachnids outnumbered them 20,000 to 1 and they will feel the wrath of the intelligent and cunning. First the humans returned to their walls in mass celebration as over the vast horizon they saw a huge grassland full of lush vibrant grass. Over the top of the grasslands they see a few thousand little spiders poking their heads over the top of them, they are very small little heads with many taller ones coming out after a short time. After a scout used a magical device to zoom into the fray did the true horror show on their face. That was not grasslands close to them but instead extremely far away it was a huge slow moving mass of spiders skittering towards them. The thousands of little heads are actually 20-40 meter tall monstrosities. Hundreds of Arachnids march at them in full plate armor and strong weapons. These were not the mass fearful hostile spiders of low intelligence but the mass of highly intelligent and trained spiders marching towards them to completely annihilate them. After completely annihilating the human survivors there was a shift in the Arachnid leadership and colonies as they spread out across the vast land. As the Arachnids developed massive cannon like spider creatures, they gathered a bunch of smaller groups together and sent queens to other nearby worlds. In their current world The Primals split into 2 other main groups forming the big 3 Arachnid factions, The Primals, The Infused, and The Stoneweavers.
Arachnid Culture:
Arachnid Culture:
The Arachnid people have a short lived culture which focuses mainly on the hunting of their prey and carrying a large egg sac to make their own small swarm. Within the Empire, many of these Arachnid people have stopped reproducing and instead focused on building the normal emotional and physical attachments to another. In cases of dire or extreme hostilities the spider can use some genetic code to rapidly grow some large non-intelligent spider servants who will fight for and serve their masters. They live in nested buildings and focus on non skill work to become a very adept worker at non skilled labor focused jobs. Many become rogue adventurers or go into the Demonic army to serve on the battlefields for their demon masters to summon and use their skills.
The Arachnid Broods:
The Arachnid people mass together in broods on various worlds. Although they may be different from one another in slight ways like their carapace being different colors to resist the elements of the world, their specific brood remains nearly unchanged. The main Arachnid race is made up of 3 major species; The Primals, The Infused, and The Stoneweavers.
The Primals:
The Primals are an Arachnid group that developed as the standard Arachnid or Spider-Person. They are agile and able to walk on webs and scale walls with ease. Their top humanoid bodies allow for them to use equipment and tools allowing for them to build a strong society made from buildings made with their webs. Their network of webs allow them to communicate and to respond to threats quickly, this has allowed for their society to grow massive in size. As many of them are female, they will lure men in with their top half to devour them and use their genetic codes to lay eggs. Although they may use their bodies in a non carnivorous way to receive genetic codes, they tend to produce much less eggs and therefore unless needed in society by their rules and regulations they will devour prey. The Primals are large and aggressive as they consume anything which stands in their way through bloodshed, battle, and a hunger unknown to others.
The Infused:
The Infused are an Arachnid group that developed deep into the magic caverns and near magic sources. They are distinct in the fact they have the same bodies as the regular Arachnid people but have crack-like markings across their bodies which have a slow humming glow of magical power. The color denotes their main magic affinity and the brightness denotes their power. They have become one with magic and magic powers that flow through their bodies. Although their birth rate is lower than the other spiders and Arachnids, they are much more powerful and can cast various magical abilities based on their affinity. Their thirst for knowledge has led them to learn and study the world and magic around them as they will defend themselves with a mass amount of magical skills, abilities, and spells.
The Stoneweavers:
Going with their ancient Spider Arachnid Creatures as a base for genetic mutation, the Stoneweavers were birthed in the deepest of caves. From the earth they come, they are smaller than their ancient counterparts as these Arachnids are smaller standing only 4-5 meters with stone skin and rocky features. They are dark in complexion as they blend into the earth around them. They are excellent hunters and seekers of all non magical things. Their curiosity is what leads them into various combative situations as they are always eager to learn and to consume their enemies. They enjoy small wars with the Primals due to the Primals instincts of brutality and devouring.
The Arachnids Of Faltrop
On the nearby world of Faltrop, in the Arachaea System a new breed of Arachnids rises to power unknown to the others. There exist 3 new groups of spiders and Arachnids, The Metalisks, The Toxins, and The Sea Eaters who have evolved on their own on this nearby world.
The Metalisks:
From scavenging their meals from the cave walls they have been ingesting large amounts of metals which have undergone a magical reaction within their bodies causing them to evolve becoming smaller and heavier. Their carapace is armor made from steel itself with markings that absorb spell damage as they can easily walk off almost all forms of damage. They are a smaller size yet their strength and speed remain the same as the others. They can stop moving and cuddle up, thickening their skin to resist damages being made of metal, they will rotate violently and stick their metal legs out to defend themselves and to turn them into very strong sharp spikes on a spinning top.
The Toxins:
Birthed in the poison pools of the deep caverns they are of a greenish hue and they have poisonous spikes protruding from their bodies. They have the ability to coat their weaponry in poison, dealing poison damage on all attacks causing the enemy to slowly lose their constitution and endurance dealing more and more poison damage over time. Everything about themselves is poison and toxic for all races as they are unique weapons. They can balloon themselves to explode after filling their body with a liquid acid which is extremely toxic to biological life.
The Sea Eaters:
The Sea Eaters are a unique group as they are covered in barnacles and sea life as they live and nest within the coasts and oceans. They will bury themselves in the sand and emerge as if they are using trap doors to hunt their prey. They are excellent ambush hunters as they can shoot small projectile magic blasts from their hands to knock air targets out of the skies. Although they are called Sea Eaters as it pays homage to their origin, they are more like Trapdoor Arachnids. They excel at hunting in deserts and sand as their carapace will take up the nearby terrain as a natural camouflage. The Sea Eaters are able to shoot a spine or inject with a bite, a paralysis causing substance which makes the target's body immobile for a short time. Their secretion is used in many different goods as they regularly sell their secretion for extra money when they are able to. They can store a large amount of the substance and in extreme dire situations will rapidly make the substance to help them survive. Many times their secretions are used as drugs and medicines to treat large amounts of situations across the Galaxy. Due to how condensed and pure their secretion is it is more beneficial to buy it from them than it is to make the substance in a large quantity, it is not cost effective to add all the extra vitamins and minerals that occur naturally.
The Empires Thoughts On Each Race:
After discovering these arachnid people on Archaea, they began to investigate the nearby worlds in the system and find even more Arachnids or spider people on a nearby world. The Astarian Empire has brought them into the fold and the nearby Arachnid people. They serve as adventurers, summons, vanguard, and assault troops within the Astarian Empire. They are a highly mobile calvary like race which consumes all life in their endless hunger. Although the Arachnids are not strong individually, they command small hordes of spiders and will overwhelm their enemies.
After The Great Cataclysmic Shift:
A few new broods of spiders-like creatures have begun to spring up on various worlds increasing the population and people around the galaxy. These new races have begun claiming their own independence from the various races they belong to as they begin to pull away from their roots.
The Skorpids
A new breed of Spider-like people which were developed from the larger Scorpion populations on the newly changed desert world of Skorpal. The lush greenery has turned into a vitamin rich dust which has helped the populace grow rapidly. They have a changed body with strong natural energy and magic resistant armor. They are one of the many various groups which have begun to terrorize the Empire at a greater scale.
The Archa
A sub breed of Arachnid Primals which took on the more beautiful side. They are humanoid in nature with large spider legs coming from their back shoulder areas allowing them to fully use tools and equipment while also gaining all the bonuses of spider traversal and movement. The Archa are a new branch of The Primals and developed alongside other humanoid people as they began to repress their spider traits for a better chance at creating offspring. This came with side effects like emotions, hormones, and the new found love they discovered through self identity and lack of communion of the spider people. They are the best middle ground as they act and love like man with some spider-like traits.
Race In Other Media:
Arachnid Stat Chart:
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HP-M STR-M END-L
MP-L DEX-M INT-L
SP-M MAG-L WIS-L
VIT-M PAM-M LUK-L
CON-M MAM-L EVS-L
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Playing Arachnids In TTRPG and or RPG Games:
In most Role Playing Games, Arachnids are seen as combat focused highly mobile assault specialists. They have advanced combat abilities, and decent resistances. Although Arachnids use most forms of equipment on their top half, they don’t use them on their bottom half which makes them weaker than races that have armor or scales.
Playing Arachnids In Turn Based Strategy and or RTS Games:
In most strategy games Arachnids are seen as Calvary Ambush Units that excel at short burst combat situations. A squad of them may completely destroy an entire enemy platoon if they can get the jump on them in close combat. The Arachnids can use leaps and poisons to render their opponents armor to nothing.