Weavers

### **Racial Language**

Talking between spiders has several ways to do so. One is semaphore where a spider taps out a message on the webs. This has the advantage of being received by all who are in range and can feel the vibrations. This would be the equivalent of a person yelling.

Another form of communication is scent, using their scent glands they send out a basic message. This lacks any form of detailed information only things like, Danger, Food, Help, Attack are about the only messages sent this way. It is a means to communicate with each other without the webs, and Skree-Gore can detect this signal as well with their excellent noses.

Now they take in new outside knowledge from the spiderlings who return from their travels on the Skree-Gore or from other nests when they swarm (Covered in Breeding). The Shamans also share knowledge freely with the spiders and the spiders in turn share parts of their ancient knowledge.

Their written language is in webbing, shapes knots and other tactile shapes they can walk over and feel the words. Much like a form of brail they walk the web and orientate themselves by small cue bumps showing the right way to read it. Strung out over open areas in the Skree-Gore caves in layers some going hundreds of yards. This can make their library huge, important skills and information is stored on the webs.

Spanning thousands of years the webs are sacred to them and the Skree-Gore who can not read the webbing and must rely on the Weaver. Glow worms called **Silk Stars** that live with the weaver use the webs as a highway laying down a silk covered mucus. The Worms have a flowing tail and use it to attract flying insects caught inside the cave. The worms strengthen the webs with their slime. Shamans and Acolytes use this slime to help preserve the silk goods the Weavers make. Silk Stars' mucus causes the webbing to stabilize into a form most know when spinning, silk that is strong and lasting.

This allows the webbing to last a great deal of time and only need repairing once in a while. Breaks are repaired by adult Weavers who maintain the webs, It is like a team of librarians. Constantly looking for breaks but also reading and showing others the right webs. They have a very advanced written language which spans tens of thousands of years of use.

Webs that fall or are broken can be replaced by adults who know the writing by heart as they have been the librarians and have walked all the webs in their charge. Spiders have areas or territories they keep up and repair or replace as they have walked the web countless times they know it well and can remember to rebuild it, other weavers will help as well as it is a foundation of their culture and history. Spiders who are old and wise step aside for a new Weaver and show them the path. Now the new charges keep the older one heads to the Shamans living areas. There they live and are honored for an old spider is rare, and one who is a scholar is even more valuable.

## **Appearance**

Weavers look just like other arachnids except they have a humanoid like head, with a lower jaw set much like a terrestrial creature. This look almost gives them a face, the lower jaw is equipped with razor sharp blades for teeth. Legs have twisted joints, which allow the appendages to extend forward like a crab's. Their alignment allows them to move side-to-side, Males have longer legs, although females have larger bodies.

Bodies have a flattened appearance, ideal for squeezing into tight places. Venom from the Weavers causes delirium and convulsions, Weavers lacking the traditional fangs of the arachnid use their jaw blades. The blades when biting are coated with it’s virulent venom as the saliva is constantly flowing when eating or attacking

## **Facial Appearance**

Spider-like as they are arachnids, but the human like jaw makes them very disturbing to most humanoids  as creatures like this aren’t supposed to exist.

### **Fur/Skin Color**

Young spiderlings are black with a mottled grey which makes them very hard to see in the darkness of the tunnels and caves. The webbing of spiderlings is a pure red, the Skree-Gore call it **blood-silk**.

Young adult Weavers are black but now turning a reddish hue which brightens with age. Webbing from older spiders lose the blood red coloring and grows black as their carapace turns red.

Adult Weavers are deep red in appearance, only their legs and head stay black. The webbing is a coal black at this age and quite strong and Skree-Gore use it for many uses including medicinal

## **Behavior**

Being sentient spiders their behavior is complex, spiderlings who are full of the hunting instinct but have not learned to temper it with control hunt the areas outside the Skree-Gore dens and caves. Older spiders run the tunnels and caverns repairing webbing and and marking spots as a location marker, the scent lasts days and is reapplied as needed. Weaving is in their nature as it is their name. Running around the cave adding silk and exploring. When food is presented they begin clicking their jaws, the clicks are audible like a finger snap.

Older spiders about the age of 2 or 3 retreat to the deepest parts of the caves. There they reside next to the Shamans and their acolytes being fed and honored.

## **Distribution**

The Weavers are everywhere the Skree-Gore are, lurking among the shadow. There are also the wanderers who have a desire to see more then a cave. These ones wander far and wide, however they don’t last long as they are alone and small. Adults know danger is out in the open, getting to be an adult is a feat in itself.

There are also treetop Weavers but their whereabouts are unknown

## **History**

Weavers are malicious to the extreme, their predatory nature being stifled and a deep hatred for other sentient species who took the world away from them. The have bonded to the Skree-Gore ands directed them well. Leading them with a dark need to creep up the top of the food chain. Acting as scouts happy to see a new prey before them and lead the Skree-Gore to the town or city. Their devious nature and cunning mind has molded the Skree-Gore into a terror to behold. Having had intelligence for millions of years  they have seen many odd and strange things over the years.  Things like flashes in the sky (Super Novas), Storms, Earthquakes, Volcanoes.

### **Beginnings**

Weavers are a spider that is insidiously intelligent, fully thinking and aware. These spiders have made a hobby of watching the world grow and evolve. Being an arachnid they have been around for millions of years. Being small and unable to make most if any of the tools or inventions, the other new races have. They have watched the emergence of the new races who think themselves alone or in control of the world. The Weavers watched and waited, living among the treetops quite happily watching and waiting for a chance to create a larger place in the world. Being highly predatory the Weavers noticed a tribe among the others that seemed to thrive on their savagery. The Skree-Gore were one of the few who kept to nature’s path, the strong survive by out competing the others or outwitting them.

The Skree-Gore were watched for generations of Weavers which isn’t that long as they only have lives lasting five years or less. Watched and slowly investigated closely, the Weavers were unnoticed to the Skree-Gore. They like all so called higher races thought nothing of a spider as intelligent, arrogance born of ignorance. Being warm bloods they had no clue there were other forms of intelligences, it never occurred to them. Weavers preferred it that way too, as they
didn’t like the fact these so called newcomers grabbed the world right from under them.

The Skree-Gore were different, they still had the spark of ancient nature. The spark that has and will carry them far, and with the Weavers they will be risen to new heights. Only the legends of old will be any match for the dangers and strength of the Skree-Gore. It took several tries to initiate contact, a few deaths were involved. Weavers don’t consider the death of one to be an act of violence, for death is everywhere. Weavers themselves were death in eight legged form, they would cannibalize their own young or weak. It took a trick that Weavers used primarily for hunting flying prey to get their attention. Having the ability to generate scents with a gland under their abdomen, an inventive spider used his scent to catch the Skree-Gore’s attention.

Copying their musk scent was easy as Weavers change their attraction scent at will for different type of prey. Intrigued the Skree-Gore came closer and sniffed, one spider reached out. Reaching out the spider tapped with his legs on the guard hairs. Skree-Gore feel with their guard hairs and the sensation was startling. Looking at the few spiders on a quickly woven web they stood up on their hind legs and waved their arms as if signaling. Soon the two were communicating, the Skree-Gore thought this was marvelous. A species that did not invoke the instinctual desire to kill and destroy it on sight. Using the webs and the Skree-Gore using their hairs to be signaled or told things from key patterns on the web. Weavers also use visual signals and scent to communicate with the Skree-Gore. Now the Weavers have left the trees other then the few who decided to stay, most live life now with the Skree-Gore deep in the tunnels and caves.

### **Notable places or features**

Within the Capital lays the largest library on Nakti, spanning miles twisting and turning in the old Digger city. Each web a book in fine silk holding the lessons of the ancestors and the present. Many are texts on historical events or stuff taught and learned from the Skree-Gore. Some of it is actually on advanced weaving and ideas leading to new theories.

Skree-Gore history is sewn into the library and can be retold or looked back to for specific rituals or ancient laws or even stories and family histories. The Caves also hold a large Spring water lake deep in the dark. The waters spring up and are fresh and pure eventually winding it’s way down to a large hole. No one has been under and into the hole as the water keeps weavers from risking it. There is always something at the bottom of a hole and here, no one knows what things may be lurking even deeper in the dark.

Large stores or Quartz taken from the field and kept for trade or uses if thought of. As far as Weavers are concerned they love the  numerous crevices and huge area to roam and weave.
Areas of the cave and digger city have Glow Worms living among the webs in libraries and where they can make it. Sometimes you will see them among the outer walls like moving night lights in the darkness. Just as the webbing in the Library as the Glow Worms move and hunt their mucus strengthens the webbing.

### **Building Style**

Weavers are spiders who instinctively weave, hence their name. They make huge webbed structures spanning miles under the ground inside the Skree-Gore dens and caves. Above ground their webs reach outward from the main and rear den openings. Side paths and secret escape tunnels are only webbed like the outer sides not as it would be, like a funnel directing you to the opening. Spiderlings and younger Weavers run the outer webs catching prey that flies into it or they catch running by.

Webs are made with several guide lines or communication lines running down them in a pattern they have found to allow the signal the greatest reach. These guide lines are thicker and reinforced as needed. Being spiders they maintain the webs daily and some pride themselves on their craft improving the web or starting another section enlarging the webs.

Weavers also build elaborate textiles for the Skree-Gore or for fun or actual competitions which they hold as they get bored not hunting like they would in the wild. Being fully aware they have to keep the mind moving and stimulated and weaving is part of who they are. Like walking upright is part of a humanoid weaving and spinning silk is part of Weavers.

Building silken items they can adjust the silk to the needs of a job, making them incredibly skilled and priceless. The silk of Weavers is black in adults and A blood red for spiderlings. Using the two colors they can make super fine images and patterns. If gathered they can weave in other silks giving a white to the textile or give shades of black or red depending on how woven.

Given time they can do incredible works, each cave or den taking pride in their weaving and competing when the 7yr Moot comes and clans gather. All the finest silks on Nakti comes from a Weaver, in Jel or another part of the world tucked away. The sheer fact they are willingly helping the Skree-Gore makes things personally made, the finest tailors could not be so accurate. Being small and a spider they can walk the person and get a fitting and keep doing so as needed if they forgot.

Silk products are also made for outside trade with the Sketteh and are very sought after as their are the finest designs and quality. The flag standards of Sketteh are woven by Weavers to announce their quality. Insulting their crafted items is almost never heard of as they are so well crafted it’s usually wear or user losing the item that makes them no longer be able to use the item. Those who bad mouth the weavers openly may find one in their rooms or tent that night not to kill but to show their presence as if everywhere.

## **Culture**

Weavers have an ancient culture spanning millions of years. Their libraries and habitats have been destroyed as the world changed with events over the millennia. Having the opportunity they joined up with the Skree-Gore. Following them down into the dens and caves, they found a completely new way of life compared to their ancient life of treetop living and hunting.

Not not having to hunt or look out for predators every day they flourished, and so did their culture. Having stable places to live and being fed gives them time to think and create new libraries and begin again. Writing down lore and legends of their own as well as stories recalled from the last library visited. Starting slow it built over thousands of years and now the **Library** in some dens is huge layer after layer like hanging scrolls of priceless information. With all this knowledge and stories from long ago their education can be more then one can handle in their short lifetimes.

This is why there are spiders who hold to a subject or two and know it well, dabbling in other knowledge but focuses on it’s chosen focus. Subjects are amazingly diverse considering they are arachnids. Math, Weaving, Scent Mastery, Their history with the Skree-Gore, Observations in the sky from long ago and patterns from it. The knowledge is quite in depth on more spider centered things.

Knowledge from ancient Shamans is also recorded and spans deep in web writing. The whole past culture of the Skree-Gore is on webs and many Shamans ask the Weavers about lost or ancient knowledge. Rituals never seen in generations can suddenly come back if the Shaman needs the aid. Long gathered knowledge on healing and herbs and poisons stored and added to as they learned more.

All of this has shaped their Culture, which is now intertwined with the Skree-Gore. They don’t have a normal culture by any means, theirs is one of weaving. Young Spiderlings are natural explorers and find the hunt thrilling as they are young and the bliss of the kill takes them. Roaming around exploring and settling near the canopy of webs, not willing to to out there alone as even a spider doesn’t want to throw their life away. Traveling with Skree-Gore they go much farther. Some even get stationed at **West Gate** (Or the Border to Hell), there they watch and creep being spies.

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### **Combat**

Weavers rarely engage in open combat as they have the Skree-Gore around and any threat will be swiftly destroyed and devoured. When forced to fight the spiders will emit a pheromone that means “Help assistance!”. The stronger the scent the more help is needed and received, nearby Weavers will flock to the source and join the assault.

Biting with venom and retreating to let it take effect. The venom affects the nervous system, making the target delirious and begin to convulse. This is when they swarm biting and chewing off chunks of flesh with there human like jaws and chewing. The Saliva is their venom and further incapacitates the prey.

Combat among weavers happens often and will take a ceremonial stance to try and prevent more eating of each other. Ceremonial combat only happens among spiders of similar sizes, a larger one will of course eat a smaller. There has never been a war of Weaver’s killing each other like other races do with armies. They have never felt inner separation like many cultures where kingdoms seed off or countries war.

Being smart they use battle for their prey, if a new source of food is needed the Weaver will search the forests. Quickly find the nearest unprotected camps or stupid tradesmen who travel through Jel instead of around. In the case of larger needs like a town or city they will probe towns in small numbers looking to see what all they have available. Word makes it’s way to the Skree-Gore and the monsters come down in the night and are debriefed by waiting spiders.

## **Habits**

Spinning silk, Weaving, hanging motionless, wandering the blackness of the caves and tunnels. Instinctive weavers they wander around looking for flaws or damage to the webbing highway they use. A lot of talking, many Weavers like to banter or chatter to another while weaving. Like comrades they needle the other about his work and in turn gets teased about theirs making them competitive.

Most adult weavers spend the rest of their lives in the caves, some venture to other caves as well. Seeking knowledge or friends and even the Shamans of other caves to talk to. Young adult Weavers spend a great deal of their short lives learning the webs. Weaving they know by instinct but advanced uses require learning, in nature they would naturally know such but as they have evolved such inborn knowledge is hard if not impossible to add to anymore.

### **Taboos**

Destroying a **Silk Script** writing, any willful destruction of a library artifact is Death.
Eating the eggs of another, we do not feed on others children, penalty is Death
Biting a Skree-Gore, Death.

## **Laws**

Never harm a Skree-Gore and and help the web.
The web includes the enormous webbing runways in the forest and cities as well as the depths of the Skree-Gore Dens and caves. The task is huge and impossible for one spider so the thousands of them maintain it as they wander and make sure all is well and feed.

The only other law is Nature, large eat the small and that includes spiderlings that wander too close. The adult will give a small grace for passing through but if enters too close of a space they will pounce.

### **Education**

Weavers vary, some may neglect an education and be more instinct driven. Hunting and roaming weaving more webbing as they go. Instinct driven weaving is a must, almost a compulsion but without any fine training they can not make textiles and only spider webs. This still has tremendous value as they patch up damaged parts and are always looking around for prey and danger. Alert they can spot an intruder and start vibrating the web sending a signal down the lines.

Weavers who take an interest in bettering themselves have a grand library and teachers to assist.
Spiders of about 4-6 months of age or 2 inches are big enough to walk freely except among the Weaver elders. They no longer invoke the automatic instinctual response to feed. Now they can begin by asking the librarians of the silk script for advice. To where the subjects are that they need to know or want to focus on. Many begin their education and are directed as to what steps to take by the librarian.

## **Occupations**

### **Scouts**

The smallest spiderlings go out and repair and expand the shroud of webs that cover the the trees and plants. Running around in numbers they explore and alert the web if something dangerous or delicious comes by. Being small they feed in swarms and will act very much like ants but bite instead of sting. Even at this small age their bites are lethal, in fact it’s more toxic as their fragile size needs the struggle to be quick so they are not damaged.

### **Warrior**

Overly aggressive and older spiders a few molts after being a scout begin to get territorial and aggressive. They run the web looking for prey that landed or invaders, they get into a thrill of the hunt and when danger arises they are the first ones who go into the camps and bite. Being spiders their numbers are massive when in alarm or attacking. Many Colony creatures thrive in the thousands and millions, the Weavers do the same. Most caves have Tens of thousands to hundreds as they are colony creatures.

### **Weaver**

Weavers are the ones who focus on learning advanced silk weaving skills. Weaving textiles and webs of incredible quality. They focus and pride themselves on their talent with silk and will often build fantastic webs that involve images or clever designs. Many practice this way and many Skree-Gore kits love to watch them spin. Weavers are also the ones who repair and maintain the primary talking strings, which are silk threads for communication. Spun in a way that lets the vibrations travel as far as possible. Thus spiders can communicate with it much farther then the normal web radius. These talking strings are throughout the web shrouds.

Weavers are also the ones who lead dances to make crafts or the ritual dances, these can be incredibly complex and wonders in themselves. Many are brought down to be preserved by the shamans and to have them hung in the libraries with the writings.

### **Librarian**

Keeping up a section of the library silk script, repairing and restoring it. Librarians are one of the spiders that go to another cave and share information weaving a **Silk Script** copy of the area they are in charge of and others they know by heart. While there they study and commit the webs they want. They may even make copies in the visiting cave to know the building better and then eat the web as it can be reused. By doing this they can share vast amounts of information as librarians wander and share new stories and information.

### **Elder Weaver**

Elder Weavers are the ones who have lived a long life and now moved to the deeper caves where the Shamans dwell. Librarian spiders who age and become an elder Weaver are extremely valuable as they settle in with the Shaman. Shamans and Elder Weavers talk regularly and with a almost complete understanding. They spend years training themselves and perform rituals to aid this connection. Elder Weavers are the ones who talk frequently with the Shamans and some at times directly to the leaders.

### **Oddities**

A Lighter pale color like in molting but doesn't darken. 1 in 90,000 eggs layed may have one in them. In time weavers may grow more pale as their troglodyte habits keep them in the caves

## **Common Health Issues**

Being eaten by adults, Birds, Lizards, Crushed and all sorts of daily life dangers. As to physical conditions none as the weak are an easy meal and that defect is destroyed. Some spiders can loose legs but still live without them, if young enough they will regrow them with molts. Adult spiders only molt so often so don't grow limbs back if at all.

## **Racial habits**

Spiderlings stay away from the adults for the most part unless it’s a mass feeding. They spend their time along the walls and cracks of the tunnels and caves. Some ride in the fur of Skree-Gore and see the world but also risk crushing, being left behind multitudes of deaths. Those that return tho have brilliant stories to share with the spiders in the caves. Most just wander the web shroud outside the dens.

Ritual dancing when it hits them, one will start by climbing to the highpoint of the caves and drop down with a guideline. Dancing and strumming it which sends the signal up the line into the shroud which makes others feel the need to join. When joined the dance becomes a incredibly complex pattern, each climbing up and dropping another guideline and others attaching to that. The lines can go out in all directions and build up thickness like braiding. The dance brilliant in it's complexity and simplicity allows a ritual function but is also used when building. Using the same principle they dance and weave the same way a modern day rope spinning machine does.

### **Views on Sex**

Sex is danger but the need and the sweet smell of a mate at that time of year is madness.

### **Breeding Info**

Elaborate dances and visual signals begin a mating invite, Males compete spinning webs and dancing on them. A female may turn away many males before she selects one that she will agree to mate with. Once mating is complete the male needs to run or the female will consume him. She controls when she will use the sperm from the male to fertilize her eggs. This can be right away or she can wait for a period of up to a year. She will then focus all her attention the eggs. She creates a sack for them make out of the silk her body produces, males are in a compulsion to mate as the female's scent is intoxicating. Females are choosy and usually pic the best silk spinners as it's a prideful thing to them and a better spinner is a better hunter.

### **Length of Childhood**

4-6 months, having such a short lifespan they have to grow up quick.

### **Relationship Habits**

Mate and run or be eaten. Other then friendships there is no real connection.

## **Additional Info**

Being a arachnid the Weavers have been around for so long they have literally watched the brainless animals rise to intelligence. The event is part of their racial memories. Weavers learn from several methods, one being instinct, another being lifetime, and finally from The grand Libraries of Web Writing. Once in a while a Weaver or two will rise up and leave the tunnels and caves seeking out the other clans burrows and nests. Finding their way by scent which rises up from the dens like a beacon.  Once arriving they strum the web’s trigger lines with a identifying semaphore allowing them to identify themselves and be greeted. They have to do a ritual dance and tactile greeting. One spider rubbing the legs and body of another, a strange greeting but all their own. Once welcomed they make their way to the elder spiders or specific friends among them.  There they give messages sent or come to read the cave’s Web Libraries.

> **We are the Weaver, the Web Walkers, The Whisper Of Death.**
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> "*I skitter in the darkness watching your every move and waiting. I bring death in many forms, my bite can kill and has brought many souls to rest. Life is a gift I can snatch away. My song can whisper to my brothers who will come with hunger and excitement in their eyes. We will feast on your flesh while you still cry for your so called Gods.*
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> *My song can not be heard by your feeble minds and yet here I sit on my web and watching, waiting for you to go to sleep. Then we come and smell your delicious flesh and bite and return to hiding. You mind with twist like your body, breaking and then fading, we will dance and come to clean you to bones.*
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> *We sit and think, we play with our ancestor's memories and remember the days of sun and catching the wild prey. Again we sift the memories and find the birth of life and countless deaths. We laugh as we recall the fine feedings and the screams of pain, delicious and hungered for. Our mind goes back to the times back when we saw the hairy ones, (Skree-Gore) they were curious and more natural. The talking oh the talking, the frustration and the talking, stop... Mmmmm more memories of the hunt, much more fulfilling and interesting.*
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> *Oh my large one, don't worry we haven't forgotten about you, I bring the kiss of eternity and you will sleep."*
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