Thriae, Thriae ConstructorA droning hum surrounds this gargantuan half-bee, half-woman
with insectile wings.Thriae Constructor CR 14Source Bestiary 5 pg. 244
XP 38,400
N Gargantuan monstrous humanoid
Init +0; Senses darkvision 60 ft.; Perception +3DefenseAC 30, touch 6, flat-footed 30 (+24 natural, –4 size)
hp 218 (19d10+114)
Fort +12, Ref +11, Will +14
Immune mind-affecting effects, poison, sonic; Resist acid 20; SR 25OffenseSpeed 20 ft., fly 50 ft. (good)
Melee bite +25 (2d8+10), 2 slams +25 (2d6+10), sting +25
(2d6+10 plus poison)
Ranged sticky wax +15 touch (encase)
Space 20 ft., Reach 20 ft.
Special Attacks encase, merope consumption, poisonStatisticsStr 30, Dex 11, Con 22, Int —, Wis 17, Cha 13
Base Atk +19; CMB +33; CMD 43
Skills Fly +2; Racial Modifiers +4 FlyEcologyEnvironment any
Organization solitary, pair, or troop
(1 plus 6–15 thriae soldiers)
Treasure noneSpecial AbilitiesEncase (Ex) A thriae constructor
produces vast amounts of fastdrying,
adhesive wax. A creature
hit by a thriae constructor’s
sticky wax must succeed at
a DC 25 Reflex save or be
encased in a ball of wax. A
creature that succeeds at
its saving throw gains the
entangled condition,
but can otherwise act
normally. An encased
creature is pinned and
can’t use spells with
verbal components.
On the first round, an encased
creature can attempt to break
out by succeeding at a DC 25
Strength check. If it fails to escape, on all future rounds
the encased creature is helpless and can’t attempt to
escape. A creature that hits a ball of sticky wax with a
natural attack must succeed at a DC 25 Reflex save or
become stuck. A stuck creature can’t move away from the
ball of wax or use the stuck limb until it escapes, but can
otherwise act normally. If a creature strikes the ball of wax
with a manufactured weapon, it must succeed at a DC 25
Reflex save or the weapon becomes stuck. Sticky wax has
hardness 5, has 100 hit points, and is vulnerable to fire. The
save DCs are Constitution-based.
Merope Consumption (Su) Three times per day as a standard
action, a thriae constructor can consume a dose of merope to gain the ability to launch
its wax with crushing force for 1d4 rounds. Starting on the
round after the constructor consumes the merope, its sticky
wax attack deals 6d6+8 points damage on a successful hit, in
addition to the encase effect.
Poison (Ex) Sting—injury; save Fort DC 25; frequency 1/round
for 6 rounds; effect 1d6 Str plus sickened; cure 2 consecutive
saves. The save DC is Constitution-based.DescriptionThriae blend the physical features of graceful
humanoid women with those of giant bees. For
the most part, they are a wise, knowledgeable,
and spiritual race. But unlike others of their
kind, thriae constructors are not philosophers
or seers; they are mindless laborers that
react by pure instinct. Despite their lack
of intelligence, however, these enormous
creatures possess an even more complex
sense of architecture and structure
than bees, and in some ways, their
architectural instincts surpass even the
greatest designs a human mind could
imagine. Other thriae, particularly
those of high rank, are adept at
directing thriae constructors to focus
on those jobs that will most benefit
the community and herding
them to their work. In times
of peace, thriae constructors
labor to build, expand, and
renovate hives and enhance
its fortifications. When a
thriae hive is threatened,
the constructors quickly
descend upon their foes,
encasing these enemies
in the same secretion of
adhesive wax they normally use as
a material to build the hive, and
assailing resilient enemies with
numerous attacks and a vicious poison.
A typical thriae constructor is 18 feet tall with a
wingspan of 30 feet, and weighs about 5,500 pounds.Creatures in "Thriae" CategorySource Bestiary 3 pg. 263
Highly spiritual creatures and keepers of the world's greatest secrets, the thriae are a race of female, beelike seers coveted for their powers of divination and prophecy. Roughly humanoid in size and appearance, thriae keep to the outskirts of civilization, tending to their mysterious rituals and maintaining a watchful—if passive—eye over the machinations of nearby societies. While possessing an eerie air of mysticism, thriae are nonetheless startlingly beautiful, their slender bodies giving an unexpected grace to the otherwise unsightly mannerisms of giant bees.
Settlements that find themselves near the hilly homes of thriae hives often send a chosen citizen to visit the creatures, hoping to glean helpful insight from the wise prophetesses regarding the growth of the settlement's crops, the prosperity of its people, or the strength of its warriors. Thriae have little interest in the affairs of most humanoids, but do aid those who come bearing offerings of gold or physically fit male consorts. All thriae are female, and so the queen must breed with humanoid males in order to propagate the colony. If a colony hasn't received an offering of a suitable consort recently, thriae sometimes visit nearby settlements in the hope of garnering young male volunteers to come and live with them for the rest of their lives—living with the thriae exposes chosen males to many of the mysterious race's secrets, so the prophetesses cannot afford to let them leave the thriae's domains once they have entered. The life of male consorts is one of comfort and luxury, however, as they spend their days in a blissful trance brought on by the mind-altering effects of the thriae queen's nourishing honey, a substance called merope. Once they are too old to continue their duties, the males are put in a deep, numbing sleep, whereupon the thriae painlessly devour the consorts' elderly bodies. Thriae generally do not have emotional ties to their humanoid mates, using them for procreation only—exceptions exist, particularly among non-queen thriae, who cannot lay eggs but sometimes choose a willing mate anyway. Only the queen can lay eggs; a typical queen produce 400 to 500 eggs in her lifetime. The life span of a typical thriae who does not die in battle is about 200 years.
Thriae choose particularly spiritual individuals to become seers, members of the colony who perform the rituals that allow them to divine their cryptic prophecies. These seers drink from merope and derive meaning from their spiritual hallucinations, traveling into the forests or mountains to decode various patterns among nature. Thriae hold a particular reverence for the structures and communication patterns of common bees, patterns which they often study intently while undergoing their merope-induced spiritual journeys. The bond thriae have with common bees and giant bees extends beyond this, however, as many powerful thriae possess the ability to call forth such insects when they are in need of aid, such as while protecting their homes. Thriae are extremely territorial, and disrupt their normally stoic behavior to passionately fight off intruders or creatures otherwise imposing upon their domain. Many thriae colonies can trace back their lineages thousands of years, keeping extensive archives hidden within the catacombs of their labyrinthine hives. The hives thriae reside in resemble the beehives of their miniature relatives, but constructed on a much grander fashion and scale. Since thriae fly wherever they go, they tend to build their most important chambers higher up in order to deter bipedal would-be burglars.
Thriae come in various shapes and sizes, their abilities ranging equally in terms of specialization. An individual thriae's occupation within the particular thriae society she is born into is selected by her elders when she reaches adolescence, several months after her development as a larva and then as a pupa. Once her occupation is determined, a young thriae is assigned a “mother,” and is trained by this elder to perform her tasks perfectly so as to keep the hive in fully autonomous order. Many thriae never see battle in their lifetimes, instead performing tasks such as recording scriptures derived from seers' verbal prophecies, cultivating the crops and herd animals that thriae use for food, or crafting elaborate crowns, necklaces, and other ornaments unique to thriae and renowned by jewelers the world over. Thriae have a fascination with all kinds of rare metals, and the intricate ways in which they utilize these alloys in building their wares exemplifies the race's passion and ingenuity. They do not regularly trade with outside societies except in times of dire need, such as during a feud or war that cuts off access to needed resources. Thriae Merope Merope, the magical honey produced by thriae queens, possesses numerous supernatural properties. Even among thriae, the effects of drinking merope are remarkably diverse. A specific amount of merope for one thriae may put her into a tranquil haze, while the same amount for another could set off a bout of insatiable rage. The effect of merope on a specific type of thriae is marked in a thriae's stat block.
To non-thriae, merope generally has similar effects to strong alcohol. The substance can be addicting to the weak-willed, and those who begin to rely on merope quickly become addicted thralls and servants bound to servitude within a hive. Some thriae claim to have developed merope with the ability to affect non-thriae with more potent effects, but such claims are regarded as something between blasphemy and treason by most thriae hives.
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