Arane (3.5e Race)

Author: Eiji-kun (talk) Date Created: 7-31-15 Status: Complete Editing: Clarity edits only please

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Arane

These giant intelligent spiders mean well, honest. However their appearance is often off-putting to others.

Personality

There are some things one would not associated with a spider: Friendly, curious, polite, and kindly do not mesh well with the concept of these creepy critters that crawl just out of sight. Yet the arane do not bear the violent tenancies of spider goddesses such as Lolth, nor to they have any particular desire unto trickery (at least, no more than your average human). In addition to their affable natures, they are artistic, innovative, and studious builders and crafters more akin to a dwarf or more appropriately a gnome than any drow interpretation.

Of course, the fact their appearance frightens humanoids does not escape them, not any more than finding it strange that others keep their soft meats on the outside, or being limited to only two eyes. As a result, they have also gained the reputation of being shy, though this is more through a self-awareness of their being than anything inherent.

Arane, if given the chance to go out in the world and make friends or at least learn something new often do, so that they can return to their homes and tell the stories for others to listen to and grow from.

Physical Description

Arane are giant spiders slightly larger than a man but only about as tall as a gnome, the majority of their body being long, wide, and flat. They possess 8 eyes and complex mandibles and "hands" which they manipulate the environment with just as easily as any humanoid. They have strong exoskeletons, often with a layer of hair making them closer to tarantulas than anything else, and a surprisingly complex set of vocal chords to make all manner of chittering, whistling, and vocal sounds. Though spider on the outside, they have more mammalian insides with warm blood that clots, and something closer to actual lungs which breathe (though the breathing vents remain upon their underside as normal). Their colors vary often, but in general they are brown or black, with similar toned fur and spots or patches generally on the top of their abdomen. Like most spiders, their jaws are poor and they typically inject their food with digestive fluids before sucking it down to finish the job internally. Subsequently, arane culture excels at soups, stews, and soft foods such as bread and cheese.

Arane are omnivores, though they have a high meat requirement in their diet. They are affected by chemicals differently than humanoids, specifically being tolerant to some drugs humanoids would find dangerous, while being abnormally affected by caffeine which humanoids consume for pleasure.

Reproduction occurs in large clutches, where eggs are laid and wrapped in a special webbing which hardens into a thick shell, around some source of nutrients. As the eggs grow, they consume the nutrient soup left by the parent and burst into a swarm of pale arane, barely sentient, but aware enough to find shelter and bond with arane which smell like them. Like humanoids, they have long periods spent as "children" but generally achieve an adult body by age of 10.

Relations

Arane are shy to interact with humanoid beings as a result of appearance, but once friendly relations are established they prove to be fast friends. They often become trade partners, using the opportunity for both cultural and monetary exchange. Among themselves, they take homes within forests and in caves, forming vast cities of web and material. Where rope and mortar is used in humanoid cities, webbing forms the roads and connections for all manner of places. Their webcraft is legendary.

If the arane have a beef with any culture, it would be the drow. While all beings have the right to be treated with respect or prove their honor, the drow seem almost universally evil and they force the stigma of evil spider-kin upon the arane, an act they do not appreciate.

Alignment

Arane are typically neutral good, with more lax on law and chaos than on good and evil. That's not to say that evil arane do not exist, but their culture reminds them of the glut of evil spiders and spider-related things such as drow, and their terrifying appearance, and so they generally overcompensate through politeness.

Lands

Arane settlements are usually found around forests and caves, with large areas that have many connection points to built upon.

Religion

Arane have the strongest connections to gods of art, craft, knowledge, and nature.

Language

Arane speak Common and Undercommon. The latter is due to a thought in their history that they were once somehow related to the drow, or at least rose to the surface from deep underground.

Names

Arane names vary, but family names tend to be long and flowery affairs detailing family history, such as Drawsflowers or Reachesatmoon.

Racial Traits

• +2 Dexterity, -2 Charisma: Nimble and quick to act, they suffer when it comes to relating to others.
• Magical Beast: Arane are greater than the vermin they resemble, and are closer to magical beasts in nature. 
• Medium: As a Medium creature, an arane has no special bonuses or penalties due to its size.
• Arane base land speed is 30 feet. Climb 20 ft 
• Darkvision: An arane can see in the dark up to 60 feet. Darkvision is black and white only, but it is otherwise like normal sight, and an arane can function just fine with no light at all.
• Low-Light Vision: An arane can see twice as far as a human in starlight, moonlight, torchlight, and similar conditions of poor illumination. She retains the ability to distinguish color and detail under these conditions. 
• Inhuman Form: Arane are not of humanoid form, and thus wear armor as a non-humanoid creature (twice the base cost). In addition, they lack the ring body slots (they have what passes for two hands, but no real digits), but instead gain four feet slots instead of one. Finally, they are Medium (long) creatures, and thus have the reach of a creature one size smaller (not a problem for Medium, but a problem for any other size other than Medium). Their hands are small compared to their body as well, and as a result they use weapons for a creature one size smaller as well. 
• Natural Armor (Ex): Arane have a +2 bonus on natural armor. 
• Poison (Ex): Arane can coat their weapons with venom as a move action, and the poison is potent for up to 1 minute. The poison deals 1d4 Con/1d4 Con, Fortitude negates, and the save DC is Constitution based. Once it uses its poison, it cannot use it again for 5 rounds. If the arane gains a bite attack, their bite attack automatically applies the poison with no cooldown, even if it is still recharging. 
• Stability (Ex): Arane have many legs and are very stable. An arane gains a +4 bonus on ability checks made to resist being bull rushed or tripped when standing on the ground or in a web (but not when climbing, flying, riding, or otherwise not standing firmly on the ground or in a web). 
• Vermin Empathy (Ex): Arane have Wild Empathy as a druid of their level, but only for vermin (even if they are mindless). If the vermin is a spider or scorpion, they gain a +4 bonus on the check. 
• Webcraft (Ex): Arane can create simple solid or flexible objects without moving parts out of webbing. The arane can produce an amount of flexible or hardening spider silk equal to their HD squared x 10 in gold value each day as a 1 round action. They can create any material that can be made out of fabric or wood with the material, but with the hp and hardness of leather or hide (hardness 2, 5 hp/inch). Unlike the web spell, arane silk is not flammable and generally reacts as leather or hide to damage. A craft check may be required to construct certain items.

Arane silk eventually decays after 1 week. Via easy to produce but expensive alchemical processing, it can be made permanent by spending 1/6th of the cost of the item to stabilize the webbing. Arane can typically create the required materials on the spot with any amount of water and organic debris, no check is needed to make it, and it has no other purpose than to stabilize arane webbing. 

• Webcrawler (Ex): Aranes are unaffected by webbing, including the web spell and spider webs. 
• Web Shot (Ex): Arane can throw out a natural web which functions like a net which they are proficient with. They may do this a number of times per day equal to 1 + their Con modifier (minimum 1). They are also proficient in actual nets. 
• Skills: Arane have a +2 racial bonus on Craft checks and Knowledge Engineering checks, and may use both untrained. They are always class skills.
• Automatic Languages: Common and Undercommon
• Bonus Languages: Any (except secret languages)
• Favored Class: Rogue
• Level Adjustment: +0
• Effective Character Level: 1

Vital Statistics

Table: Arane Random Starting Ages

Adulthood	Simple	Moderate	Complex
11 years	+1d3	+1d4	+2d4

Table: Arane Aging Effects

Middle Age1	Old2	Venerable3	Maximum Age
40 years	60 years	80 years	+2d10 years
At middle age, −1 to Str, Dex, and Con; +1 to Int, Wis, and Cha. At old age, −2 to Str, Dex, and Con; +1 to Int, Wis, and Cha. At venerable age, −3 to Str, Dex, and Con; +1 to Int, Wis, and Cha.

Table: Arane Random Height and Weight

Gender	Base Height	Height Modifier	Base Weight	Weight Modifier
Male	3' 0"	+2d6	150 lb.	× (1d6) lb.
Female	3' 2"	+2d6	160 lb.	× (1d6) lb.

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