#drider lore

[flowersandbigteeth]

Vass is the type to scream violently at a guard for not protecting his dumpling and then turning around, sobbing, and ask if we are ok

It's a paper cut

So true, and he would bandage the cut like a massive mitten with hundreds of layers of spider silk! ^_^

I've been playing with the idea that he returns to retake his throne from his mom only to surround his dumpling with armed guards at all times 😅

[karniss-bg3]

Any thoughts on Karniss being venomous?

I’m not sure if you’re asking if Kar’niss is venomous or how I’d feel about him being venomous. I’ll touch on both just in case!

Canonically, drider do produce potent venom which acts as a paralytic.

Driders naturally developed a venom that could sap their victims' strength and paralyze them for upwards of twenty minutes. They could deliver the venom with a bite, or they could alternatively use it as a sticky coating on their weapons. They were immune to all poisons.

This makes sense considering their prey victims are large and would need to be subdued for easier feeding. Drider appear to be ambush predators like jumping spiders rather than web predators like orb weavers. This aligns with the fact that only half of the drider population can spin webs. Why that is I’m not sure and I can’t say I fully agree with the idea. One of the neat aspects of having spider anatomy would be the ability to build webs. You’d think it’d be innate to all driders but who knows the reason behind that bit of lore. The way Kar’niss is designed it doesn’t appear that he was modeled with spinnerets. He has a strange barb on his backside and it appears closed off and solid. Even if that’s the case I still headcanon him as a web spinner, it’s just more fun that way.

As for how I feel about him being venomous, I think it’s cool! Kar’niss is a monstrosity and the more monster features he has, the better. It adds to the dichotomy of how he’s both dangerous and pathetic at the same time. I also like the idea that if Tav invited Kar’niss to bite them he could inject them with venom but actively chooses not to because he trusts them. It’s a strange bonding exercise between the pair and it tickles my brain meat in a good way. Big dangerous drider is secretly a squishy kitten meme. Thanks for the ask!

[lunastrophe]

Cavern Of Driders

[drider-queen-alomancy]

By "realm" do you mean the sea? Because you clearly got (bad) history with Poseidon and he was a part of both while someone like Oceanus remained neutral in both.

"𝐼 𝒶𝓂 𝓃𝑜𝓉 𝑜𝒻 𝓎𝑜𝓊𝓇 '𝑒𝒶𝓇𝓉𝒽'. 𝐼 𝓂𝑒𝒶𝓃 𝓇𝑒𝒶𝓁𝓂 𝒶𝓈 𝒾𝓃 𝓉𝒽𝑒 𝓌𝑜𝓇𝓁𝒹 𝒶𝓇𝑜𝓊𝓃𝒹 𝓂𝑒 𝒶𝓃𝒹 𝓅𝒶𝓈𝓉 𝓎𝑜𝓊𝓇 𝑔𝒶𝓉𝑒𝓈. 𝒴𝑜𝓊 𝒽𝒶𝓋𝑒 𝓎𝑜𝓊𝓇 𝑒𝒶𝓇𝓉𝒽, 𝓌𝑒 𝒽𝒶𝓋𝑒 𝑜𝓊𝓇 𝓇𝑒𝒶𝓁𝓂. 𝒪𝓊𝓇 𝒞𝒶𝓉𝒶𝑒𝒶. 𝒲𝒽𝑒𝓇𝑒 𝒷𝑒𝒶𝓈𝓉𝓈 𝑜𝒻 𝒹𝒾𝓋𝒾𝓃𝑒 𝓅𝑜𝓌𝑒𝓇 𝒶𝓃𝒹 𝒸𝓇𝑒𝒶𝓉𝓊𝓇𝑒𝓈 𝑜𝒻 𝒶𝓁𝓁 𝓈𝑜𝓇𝓉𝓈 𝓇𝑜𝒶𝓂. 𝒢𝑜𝒹𝓈 𝒶𝓇𝑒 𝓈𝑒𝑒𝓃, 𝓈𝓅𝑜𝓀𝑒𝓃 𝓉𝑜, 𝒶𝓃𝒹 𝓉𝒶𝓃𝑔𝒾𝒷𝓁𝑒."

"𝒪𝓃 𝓎𝑜𝓊𝓇 𝑒𝒶𝓇𝓉𝒽, 𝒾𝓉 𝒾𝓈 𝒽𝒶𝓇𝒹 𝓉𝑜 𝓌𝑜𝓇𝓀. 𝒴𝑜𝓊𝓇 𝓈𝓉𝓇𝑒𝒶𝓂𝓈 𝒹𝒾𝓈𝑜𝒷𝑒𝓎 𝓂𝑒, 𝓎𝑜𝓊𝓇 𝓌𝒶𝓋𝑒𝓈 𝓅𝒶𝓎 𝓂𝑒 𝓁𝒾𝓉𝓉𝓁𝑒 𝒽𝑒𝑒𝒹, 𝒶𝓃𝒹 𝓎𝑜𝓊𝓇 𝒸𝓇𝑒𝒶𝓉𝓊𝓇𝑒𝓈 𝒶𝒹𝓂𝑜𝓃𝒾𝓈𝒽 𝓂𝑒 𝓉𝒽𝑜𝓊𝑔𝒽 𝐼 𝒶𝓂 𝓉𝒽𝑒 𝓈𝓉𝑜𝓇𝓂 𝓉𝒽𝒶𝓉 𝒷𝓇𝒾𝓃𝑔𝓈 𝓉𝒽𝑒𝓂 𝓁𝒾𝒻𝑒. 𝒮𝓊𝒸𝒽 𝓊𝓃𝒷𝑒𝒸𝑜𝓂𝒾𝓃𝑔 𝒹𝒾𝓈𝓇𝑒𝓈𝓅𝑒𝒸𝓉, 𝒶𝓁𝓁 𝑜𝒻 𝒾𝓉! 𝐼 𝓈𝒽𝒶𝓃𝓉 𝓋𝒾𝓈𝒾𝓉 𝒶𝑔𝒶𝒾𝓃 𝒾𝒻 𝐼 𝒸𝒶𝓃 𝒽𝑒𝓁𝓅 𝒾𝓉."

"𝒜𝓈 𝒻𝑜𝓇 𝓉𝒽𝒶𝓉 𝒷𝓁𝒶𝓈𝓉𝑒𝒹 𝒻𝑜𝑜𝓁 𝒫𝑜𝓈𝑒𝒾𝒹𝑜𝓃, 𝓁𝑒𝓉 𝒽𝒾𝓂 𝓇𝒾𝓅 𝑜𝓊𝓉 𝒽𝒾𝓈 𝑒𝓎𝑒 𝒶𝓃𝒹 𝑔𝒾𝓋𝑒 𝒾𝓉 𝓉𝑜 𝒪𝒸𝑒𝒶𝓃𝓊𝓈 𝒻𝑜𝓇 𝒫𝑜𝓈𝑒𝒾𝒹𝑜𝓃 𝒽𝒶𝓈 𝒷𝑒𝓉𝓇𝒶𝓎𝑒𝒹 𝒽𝒾𝓂. 𝒪𝒸𝑒𝒶𝓃𝓊𝓈 𝒾𝓈 𝒶𝓁𝓌𝒶𝓎𝓈 𝓂𝑜𝓇𝑒 𝒶𝑔𝓇𝑒𝑒𝒶𝒷𝓁𝑒 𝓉𝒽𝑜𝓊𝑔𝒽 𝒾𝓉 𝒽𝒶𝓈 𝒷𝑒𝑒𝓃 𝑒𝑜𝓃𝓈 𝓈𝒾𝓃𝒸𝑒 𝐼 𝒽𝒶𝓋𝑒 𝓈𝑒𝑒𝓃 𝒽𝒾𝓂."

[namarikonda]

The Drider of Araisodar 🕸️

NPC from my DnD campaign, the Dexial Degenerates.

[nightmarist]

*cries in monsterfucker*

[gortashs-skidmark]

KAR’NISS HEADCANONS and CANON Facts about DRIDERS - for my monster fuckers out there - get out of bed, come get ya’ll’s food -

I used they/them for Kar’niss. They literally canonically do not have genitals. It doesn’t mean they’re non-binary they could have preference but idfk what they go by and being inclusive is fun.

Not proof read. Will be grammatical errors. 18+ MNDI, MATURE CONTENT FAR BELOW WITH FOREWARNING.

CONTENT WARNING: mentions of suicide, gender mentioning, impact of philogynistic Drow society, sterile peenid cum, smut if you read down far enough, self hatred, religious trauma, religion themes, murder, killing, blood suckin’

Canon first, to back up Headcanons

𝕯𝕽𝕴𝕯𝕰𝕽𝕾𝕯𝕽𝕺𝖂𝕾𝕻𝕴𝕯𝕰𝕽𝕯𝕽𝕴𝕯𝕰𝕽𝕯𝕽𝕺𝖂𝕾𝕻𝕴𝕯𝕰𝕽𝕯𝕽𝕴𝕯𝕰𝕽𝕾𝕯𝕽𝕺𝖂𝕾𝕻𝕴𝕯𝕰𝕽𝕯𝕽𝕴𝕯𝕰𝕽𝕯𝕽𝕺𝖂𝕾𝕻𝕴𝕯𝕰𝕽𝕯𝕽𝕴𝕯𝕰𝕽𝕾𝕯𝕽𝕺𝖂𝕾𝕻𝕴

Okay, let's start with CANON FACTS ABOUT DRIDERS, so ya’ll can dig deeper into the Kar’niss iceberg.

Info Source: Forgetten Wiki Realms

Utilizes 4th and 5th Edition DND lore

CANON

What is a Drider and How Do They Live?

- a Drider by definition is; “drows that had been transformed from the waist down so they had the body of a spider. The transformation was typically a punishment for failing a test of Lolth”

𝕯𝕽𝕴𝕯𝕰𝕽𝕾𝕯𝕽𝕺𝖂𝕾𝕻𝕴𝕯𝕰𝕽𝕯𝕽𝕴𝕯𝕰𝕽𝕯𝕽𝕺𝖂𝕾𝕻𝕴𝕯𝕰𝕽

- Driders are transformed into Lolth’s Image, supposedly. They are transformed using a Yochlol process.

- Yochlol; “a lesser type of tanari’ri demons also known as Handmaidens of Lolth, although the term “handmaidens” was used rather loosely. The Queen of Spiders had these 8 limbed abominations infiltrate Drow Societies, normally undetected”

- they have four forms available: ooze, humanoid, spider, and gaseous. Their typical (Drider) forms are 8 feet tall and weigh 160lbs. They’re often Black Widow spiders with fangs.

𝕯𝕽𝕴𝕯𝕰𝕽𝕾𝕯𝕽𝕺𝖂𝕾𝕻𝕴𝕯𝕰𝕽𝕯𝕽𝕴𝕯𝕰𝕽𝕯𝕽𝕺𝖂𝕾𝕻𝕴𝕯𝕰𝕽

- Driders are canonically sexless!!! Lolth didn’t want to have an army of enemy Drow spider babies against her. Clusters of hundreds of spider babies and colonies aren’t possible. As cute as that is.

- they cannot safely live among Drow Society and are outcasts, they leave after they’re turned.

- They’re violent hunters. They’re filled with shame and fear. Explains his dialogue.

- Most of them are suicidal and want to die in battle bc they’re miserable.

- THEY DRINK BLOOD EVERYBODY. They need to sustain life and drink blood every 4 days. I wonder who the unlucky’s at the tower were.

- usually Drow end up killing drider’s for Lolth. Drider’s are super cautious when dealing with Lolthite Drow.

- immune to all poison, they sap your strength, can poison and paralyze for up to 20 minutes. Their dark vision is shorter than regular Drow. Have really really good stealth. Like crazy good hiding skills. Sometimes they’re spies for Lolth among regular Drow society.

- they have about the same abilities at Lolth Sworn Drow that are blessed. But they’re outcasts.

- THEY ARE KNOWN, to be mentally unstable and it’s hard for them to feel fear. When Kar’niss tells about staying in the light he’s mad not fearful.

- Driders walk like spider but cannot walk on ceilings. They’re too fucking heavy dawg.

- only about half of Driders can spin webs.

- the process of turning into a drider is similar to wyll’s, for visual and mental understanding. And it can be undone with a Wish spell.

- Driders typically live alone, or with 1 or 2 buddies. More rarely they can live in nests of other Driders (heaven forbid you walk into 7 Driders living together)

- calling a Drow “eight legs” is seen as a threat

- it’s possible for Drider Living to be temporary with the spell Spiderform, or specialized spell Dridershape.

What is the Rite of Passage given by Lolth?

- it determines loyalty and strength.

- it’s a battle to the death between Drow. The testée(hehe) and a slightly stronger tester.

- Lolth’s loyalty test was placing the Drow against a friend, family, lover, ally who the Drow trusted. Is your god higher than your relationship? Something of that effect.

- if the Drow didn’t have friends or family, a Cleric of Lolth who wasn’t super into their religion was the tester.

- 3 outcomes; the subject that one took the corpses power for a month, you die and your soul is collected by Lolth, if you don’t win or kill the enemy you’re turned into a Drider.

- Drow can suffer memory loss of the entire event (Shar and Lolth have to be on the same wave length) and then Lolth will accuse them of murder of another Drow, which is illegal in Drow Society. So they’re outcasted.

<3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 𝚔𝚊𝚛'𝚗𝚒𝚜𝚜𝚔𝚊𝚛'𝚗𝚒𝚜𝚜𝚔𝚊𝚛'𝚗𝚒𝚜𝚜𝚔𝚊𝚛'𝚗𝚒𝚜𝚜𝚔𝚊𝚛'𝚗𝚒𝚜𝚜𝚔𝚊𝚛'𝚗𝚒𝚜𝚜𝚔𝚊𝚛'𝚗𝚒𝚜𝚜𝚔

Headcanons

��� Kar’niss was turned into a Drider because of betrayal. I think that’s why theyre obsessed with being loyal to their moon lamp. They would’ve been obsessed with Strength if they failed that part of it. (They have 127 hp on explorer dude)

• Drow hate the light, they really do. But Kar’niss loves their lamp like a moth. They are so obsessed with the voice in their head and the lamp they carry. I think the Absolute is their new Jesus, obv, but they didn’t need a tadpole to prove it (although they have one bc you can see inside their mind)

• putting a tadpole in their brain was a loyalty test.

• they lived alone before. I think living around other Drider would’ve slightly improved their mind. Even if they’re all mentally unstable. Suicidal roomies with the same mental problems.

• they still carry some pride, and they’re righteously snide with all the Absolute followers. They’ve found some grace again in the Absolute, after they Failed their Loyalty Test.

• They hate Drow. Completely. Look at what an evil-by-godly-nature did to them.

• can’t have sex. 1) they’re kinda mindless 2) they don’t have the genitals bc of Lolth.

• they can feel intimacy. They do a little spider dance to impress you.

• sometimes you clap your hands to communicate with their tippy taps. It’s your silent language you made with them.

• the shorter extra arms near their abdomen, you find them cleaning and wiping blood off themselves with it. Flicking and wiping in a very spidery manner. Uses it like an extra pair of arms. They’ll hold shit with them if you ask.

• their fractured mind is filled with loyalty, light, and determination. You cannot rip this sucker away from the Absolute. The Absolute accepts all and that’s why they love their new Goddess.

• you could convince The Emporer to give them their own mind but then you’ll have to do recon and emotionally de-attach them from the Absolute.

• if you have Minthara in your camp, and you’re tryin’ to romance Kar’niss, you’re getting twice the challenge. She hates them, and they hate her. They’re not buddies, for a long time. She’s Lolthite and a vengeance paladin.

• They get really offended if you squish spiders instead of gently relocating them out of the way, or just leaving it be. They take it personally.

• They’re not fuzzy. Not one bit. They have a hard shell, shiny and rigid. They’re black-widow adjacent. Their fleshy abdomen and face don’t get poked often but it’s the comfiest part to lay on.

• you could boil their legs like crab meat.

• they have traction alopecia like jojo siwa. Not their fault they have extra eyes.

• some of their eyes are blind, or have near/far sighted problems. They have just okay dark vision but the extra eyes don’t help. You tend to guide them via extra web string or they memorize the way your gait walks.

• females have the worst eyesight, thought both sexes use frequencies disturbance on their webs to see. They use the extra eyes for light and motion, they’re kinda really bad at seeing.

• Kar’niss spins webs, they love to chill in hammocks they spin for themself, and you. It’s super cozy and sticky and warm. They will make intricate woven patterns of webs for you to look at (maybe they’re part orbit weaver). Your favorite is when they leave it overnight to collect dew drops.

• Kar’niss has a super phlemmy hum when they talk, it’s very comforting when you’re against them. They also use it as frequency to communicate with you, the deeper the more dangerous, it almost sounds like a roar when they yell. The lighter and more purr-like, the happier they are.

• they’re really cold. Their hard outer shell, and need to feast on blood (they lack it), means they don’t have blood that pumps through their body. Their webs are warm tho.

NSFW BELOW

¥ Kar’niss can’t fuck you with Spider Dick, but if you really want them to have a sex, then they’re sterile. No Spider babies.

¥ if you do give them a sex, it’s at the lower abdomen on their Drow body. Idk kinda hidden. And it’s cut. (Lolth hates men that’s why I think that). It’s rigid, long, the base gets a hard spider shell.

¥ if you don’t give them a sex, they fuck you with those shorter extra appendages near their abdomen. Those are their extra set of arms (in spider terms)

¥ their nails (fucking claws) are super sensitive. You can’t cut them. They’re more like cartilage, and it’s not unpleasant to be fingered with.

¥ their body is super sensitive and aware. They have that 6th spider sense and they’re good at being quiet, if you ask. You could attempt to pleasure them by stimulating their chest, neck, stomach, certain spots on their spider parts, especially the underside of their spider legs.

¥ they just like to be cuddled and holed up with you. They’re not super fleshy, not terrible comfortable, but they love your soft body.

¥ you let them drink blood from you, sometimes. If you’re into that. Astarion has some competition then.

¥ they’re not poly. Although the spider in them would say other wise, they’re still human most days. They need a lot of attention towards their problems and jealousy is something that comes easy to Kar’niss. Not even up for a one night threesome.

¥ if you’re a girl (she/her), they treat you like you’re above them. It’s natural from their original society. Like it’s a bit weird the way they do it. You gotta talk to them to reassure you’re on the same level. Gotta break that habit. Even in bed you’re like okay this praise is turning in a weird direction.

¥ if you’re a man or they/them, they feel more comfortable immediately. It’s common ground. They do not have to suck up out of habit. Which leads to great sex.

¥ you can feel the cut on their lip when you kiss. You can taste the days of hunger they go without blood. Their nails lightly trace down your back. They kiss you lightly, more often than not.

¥ if they’re kissing you hard, it means in that moment they’re feeling an incredible amount of emotions. You can indulge or take a step back. Kar’niss doesn’t feel a lot but when they do it’s important.

¥ they enjoy it when you praise both of their bodies. They get a little flustered about their spider body but you can show them it’s just as beautiful as the rest.

¥ they’re technically naked at all times. Armor isn’t comfortable. They’re bearing themselves at all times. You have access to their body at all times. By body, I mant pednis nd bawls.

¥ their spider dance, is meant to be mating. It’s gonna charm the pants off of you. It’s like Wyll but more cute-bug-core. With a sense of purpose. They will do different dances, and combine purring/humming frequencies toward you with their taps to woo you.

¥ the spider dancing is a lot of abdomen twitching and hip shaking. It’s a jittery court.

¥ btw fun fact; when jumping spiders wave and kinda dance, they’re signaling others to catch prey. :)

¥ male black widows tend to get eaten after giving their sperm to females, the fact Kar’niss is male, is also pretty rare. They should’ve been eaten by a female by now. When you eat their cum it’s alarming on a spider sense level. They know their sterile but like you’re supposed to store it in your body until you want babies. Which is also not possible unless you’re gith. And Kar’niss is sterile, by the grace of Lolth.

¥ Kar’niss was supposed to be a one night stand. Black widows are incredibly solitary, and only meet up to breed, and possibly be eaten after. They feel lust, but they’re not expecting feelings from you after. The fact you even want to breed with a freak like them gets them all giddy and prepped.

¥ after mating, Kar’niss does feel inclined to try and woo you again. A dance, a dinner, play music, give presents (webbed prey neatly wrapped on your tent step). Thought incredibly spooked. They don’t know how you’ll respond.

¥¥¥Don’t bite them during sexy time it scares the fuck out of them.¥¥¥

¥ I am making them out to be very spider like but they’re also just as human. They hum music, sit/looks like crouching on their legs. They can be playful if you open them up. They find comfort in touch and words.

𝚔𝚊𝚛'𝚗𝚒𝚜𝚜𝚔𝚊𝚛'𝚗𝚒𝚜𝚜𝚔𝚊𝚛'𝚗𝚒𝚜𝚜𝚔𝚊𝚛'𝚗𝚒𝚜𝚜𝚔𝚊𝚛'𝚗𝚒𝚜𝚜𝚔𝚊𝚛'𝚗𝚒𝚜𝚜𝚔𝚊𝚛'𝚗𝚒𝚜𝚜𝚔𝚔𝚊𝚛'𝚗𝚒𝚜𝚜𝚔𝚊𝚛'𝚗𝚒𝚜𝚜𝚔𝚊𝚛'𝚗𝚒𝚜𝚜𝚔𝚊𝚛'𝚗𝚒𝚜𝚜𝚔𝚊𝚛'𝚗𝚒𝚜𝚜𝚔𝚊𝚛'𝚗𝚒𝚜𝚜𝚔𝚊𝚛'𝚗𝚒𝚜𝚜𝚔𝚔𝚊𝚛'𝚗𝚒𝚜𝚜𝚔𝚊

Checkout my Tiefling Canon Facts for fanfic writers and fanartists! more stuff like this coming soon :) or my masterlist <3

Currently working on; He Who Was Headcanons with Shadar'kai facts and events

[mel-0n-earth]

Alright girlies, who saw kar’niss for the first time and learned something new about themselves raise your damn hand.

[cellyjubes]

i found the old lore about lolth’s tests really cool so adding it to vithels backstory.. i also love half spider characters sooo

[flowersandbigteeth]

I’ve been obsessing over driders lately and love your work!! I know the humans are supposed to be quiet, especially in public so what about sign language for dumpling to communicate better? It reminds me of how people have buttons for their dogs/cats to communicate better or even koko (I think that’s the name) the gorilla who did sign language!

If other driders saw they would think it’s so cute and how smart that human is! They’d wonder how difficult it was to train them like that! And maybe if it catches on to other humans then driders could begin to understand how smart humans actually can be and give more rights/become more accepted

Just a quick thought but I think it has a lot of potential,, love your stuff so much!!

Thank you! That's a really good idea ^_^ Sing language would solve a lot of problems, and from what I know of it, it is easy for children to learn. It could be part of the socializing process from the beginning!

[karniss-bg3]

I figured you’d be the right person to ask this question, why is Kar’niss’ skin super pale when he was originally a drow? 🖤

I had the same question myself and I did some digging a bit ago. All of the official drider concept art I've seen has depicted driders with dark skin, so it stands to reason that the transformation alone wouldn't be enough to alter his appearance. This leaves one interesting theory at play; Kar'niss was a Szarkai.

Szarkai, which translates to "ghost spiders", are albino drow. This is a very rare mutation that affects only 0.1% of the drow population. Their skin tones are so light in fact that they are able to pass as surface elves with little trouble. Some would think that this would make them outcasts but in fact Szarkai were viewed as a blessing of Lolth, hence their namesake.

There are some interesting crossover traits between Kar'niss and Szarkai that lean me more toward this theory, such as: -Szarkai look almost identical to drow outside of the skin tone. However, they have also been known to have minor deformities. The most notable is "gnarled and claw-like hands" which we know Kar'niss to possess. Originally I thought this was due to the transformation, but now I think he may have had it prior to the change.

-They are very adverse toward combat, preferring to let others do the dirty work so to speak. When the player engages Kar'niss in a fight one of the first things he does after his multi-attack is cast sanctuary on himself, protecting himself from harm and forcing his companions to take the hits. I also saw a video where someone cast banish on Kar'niss and when he returned he disengaged, healed himself, and ran from the fight. Now this was likely a bug, but it'd be on brand for Szarkai's desire to escape a fight rather than engage in it.

-They were mostly used as spies and gathering information since they could easily blend into surface societies. While there isn't much evidence that Kar'niss has much training in this field, what stuck out to me was the professions Szarkai favored. One of them is bard, and we have at least some notion that Kar'niss is linked to one musical instrument by way of the spider's lyre. I recall someone commenting asking if the lyre may have belonged to Kar'niss at one point and while I can't say with certainty, if it was and Minthara was merely holding on to it then it'd lend credence to him being a bard formerly. That and he's super pissed if you play it poorly!

-I haven't done a playthrough with Minthara in my party so I am not familiar with all of her dialogue lines. However, she does know Kar'niss in some capacity and the lyre is used to call him. Her last name is Baenre which is one of the most notable drow houses in all of Menzoberranzan, famous for Jarlaxle the leader of Bregan D'aerthe. I say this because Szarkai seemed to be far more common in noble houses, which Baenre would be. This could, even if loosely, establish a link between them.

IF this is true, that puts a very intense spin on Kar'niss' potential history. Szarkai were protected, considered valuable, and their existence kept secret. They were removed from drow life, and even kept in far safer conditions than others. This didn't mean they were shielded from the cruelty drow are known for but it was a different kind of cruelty. Often trained from a very young age to be spies and saboteurs, and subsequently being shipped to human cities to do as ordered. It makes me wonder what Kar'niss could've done to incur Lolth's wrath to the extent she warped him into a drider. Betrayal? Failure? Weakness? Or perhaps Lolth just really wanted an alabaster pet, it's hard to say.

Thanks for the ask!

[lunastrophe]

BG3 Drow Lore 🕷️ How To Feed Your Drider

Driders are predators - as soon as the newly transformed drider recovers to some degree from the trauma of change, he begins to crave warm-blooded prey.

Kar'niss probably has no need to hunt for his own prey, being the Absolute's follower. The shadow-cursed lands may be completely desolated - but there is surely more than enough warm blood (...or expendable warm-blooded prisoners) in the Moonrise dungeons to keep him well-fed and strong for a long period of time. Who knows, maybe he even perceives it as yet another blessing of "his Majesty"?

Because in the Underdark, a satisfying prey is not so easy to come by...

🕷️ Thirst For Blood - drider needs to consume blood of a warm-blooded creature at least once every four days because after this time, lack of sustenance begins to affect him: hungry drider grows physically weaker with every passing day and can ultimately die.

It is not really known if driders, besides feeding on blood, consume also bodies of their prey. It is also not known if they can eat and digest regular food - provided they have access to it.

🕷️ Hunting - driders often use traps and ambush their targets. They like to hunt near places that attract warm-blooded creatures seeking food and water (fungal forests, subterranean lakes), near abandoned ruins, or occasionally even around underground settlements or routes.

Sometimes, instead of hunting, driders lure prey into their lairs, attracting attention of an unfortunate passerby with dancing lights spell or other simple trick. Some more powerful driders do not even need to hunt often, enjoying more or less secure access to food (see the quote).

🕷️ Table Manners - driders normally try not to damage their future meal too much. Ruining the prey's body (and its tasty blood) with burning or corrosive spells, for example - or making the wounded prey bleed profusely all over the ground - would be a terrible waste, after all.

Driders also do not like to eat in a hurry. They prefer to weaken and / or immobilize their prey first, and then drain blood at leisure. Some descriptions suggest that driders who are able to spin webs sometimes cocoon corpses of their victims and then hang them in their lairs to consume them later.

Drider's teeth after trasformation become sharp to help deliver venomous bites and drain blood from their prey.

Summary:

🔹 make sure your drider gets a good quality, warm-blooded prey (or an adequate amount of warm blood) at least once every four days,

🔹 before offering your drider a regular food, remember to make sure first that he can safely eat it,

🔹 allow your drider to enjoy his meal at his own pace, preferably in a comfortable, secluded and quiet place,

🔹 if your drider wants to provide for himself, you can help him find a suitable lair surrounded with good hunting grounds and...

🔹 ...important! - discuss boundaries as early as possible, because no one wants their companions or camp followers accidentally ending up as a drider's meal,

🔹 all right, Dark Urge, maybe you want - but remember that you still need at least some of them...

For more of my drow lore ramblings, feel free to check my pinned post 🕷️

[drider-queen-alomancy]

(Questions such as these will be answered in a future longpost I will be making. Feel free to ask more!)

[justabitscrewy]

Just want to say I adore your OC Izen! I don't know his whole story but the snippets I've seen are tantalizing and I really enjoy him. Also his design is so cool like, I'm a tiny bit afraid of spiders but he is adorable and epic and utterly amazing.

Thank you for sharing him and your art!

THANK YOU SO MUCH. i know i should've just answered this ask when i received it, but i was so excited at your words that i spent like,,, two weeks drafting a primer? just so that way you'd have more context?? Theres a LOT of lore that provides the foundation for Izen's backstory, so writing a primer of any kind was DIFFICULT. I've parsed it down substantially. The vibes are there, and i think it all tracks, but I haven't broken down any specific timeline or events, because a) it would be way too long, and b) some of those events haven't come up at the table yet.

Summary:

Izen fled the Monks of Mercy after becoming a drider, and found sanctuary with a formless voice that lives deep in the underdark, a voice lingering on the boundary between life and death. This voice would become Izen's undead patron and friend, and provided Izen with magic and means of defending himself. The patron is missing pieces of himself (ancient relics that were scattered to the surface) and Izen has made it his mission to leave the underdark in order to find his friend's missing pieces.

On the surface, Izen first met Phaela -- who would quickly become the greatest friend he ever had. She would offer him safety and transportation (in the form of her truck) and more importantly, a kind hand and an eagerness to show him how beautiful and wonderful the world can be.

Now, Izen and Phaela are traveling with three more people -- and the more people Izen meets the safer he feels. The world is a kinder place, and these people are good. He believes in them, he trusts them, and he wants to help them.

Breakdown of Themes and Lore are under the readmore!

THE THEMES BABY:

Pre-Campaign:

Izen sees his drider transformation as a victory over death — society told him that he was cursed, condemned, and in need of redemption. He refused to internalize the guilt and blame and fought tooth and nail to separate himself from anyone who would manipulate him.

Izen is driven by equal parts hope and fear. Fear of death, fear of captivity, fear of pain — but an unwavering hope and raw belief that life has to be good, that freedom is obtainable, that there must be a kinder and softer place for him out there somewhere.

Now:

Izen is trying so hard to embrace the second chance at life and freedom that the surface has provided him. He has a best friend in Phaela, someone who has proven to him that he was right all along. He was right to never give up, never give in, that the world could be better and kinder than what he was raised in.

Izen is absolutely enthralled by what he finds on the surface. The moon, the stars, the changing of seasons. And he’s torn between being fully enamored with the people he meets while still harboring a paranoia at being found out and returned to the drow. But every person he’s met, from Phaela, to the party, to strangers along the way, has only reaffirmed that the cruelty he experienced in his past was the outlier.

He loves bright colors, clashing patterns, soft blankets, scented soaps, and beautiful candles. Simple and beautiful things that brings such small but profound comfort and vibrancy

AAAAHHHHH Lore Notes:

Enlightenment: The Drow are a culture that lives in division. There are the days of Enlightenment — the days of now, where they have agriculture, cities, infrastructure, mining, industry — and the days of Descent — the days of a previous age, where they were nothing more than primitive warriors who had to fight to survive in a savage time, barely more enlightened than the monsters and beasts they fought against.

Death: The Drow believe that the moment of death is the most important time in a drow’s life. Death is when they return to Lolth, death is when Lolth sees how far the drow have come. For every drow returned to Lolth, her judgement of their entire progress shifts. This is why the Drow believe that it is imperative for each individual to die with pride and dignity — to never fear death and always welcome its embrace. Only animals fears death, and the Drow are not animals. And the individual will be held against the whole.

Drider: The Drow believe the drider transformation is a divine punishment from Lolth. And given that Lolth has not spoken to the drow in generations, it’s the only form of contact she has with them in this age. The Drow believe that the Drider are a lingering scar of the Descent — a time when they had to become monsters themselves in order to survive. When Lolth turns a beautiful drow into a hideous drider, she’s revoking their progress — reminding them that they haven’t grown at all. It’s a warning that they are still no better than their primitive ancestors that crawled in the dirt of the under dark. And worse of all — given that ever drider transformation is given to a drow near death — its a rejection. Lolth only wants to receive the brave and the enlightened. For Lolth to seeing a dying Drow and instead of ending their misery and welcoming them into her embrace — she prolongs their life by twisting them into a monster that isn’t even a drow anymore. It’s a rejection. A guilty verdict. That drow was so fallen that she spit them out and left them to be an example and warning so that others might learn from their mistakes. This is what they believe.

[venomgaia]

Loboboboboooooo

ft very tiny scribbles below

[damyanoman]

DROW FEMALE-DRIDER ENCHANTRESS #drows #underdark #drizzt #dnd #forgottenrealms #fantasyillustration #drider