Harrower

"Oh, gross." Chelka stepped aside to see a monstrous collection of insects given form floating in the air down the street, buzzing and hissing and humming like the concentrated noise of a swamp. He watched it glide by, its lower half trailing off into a thinner cloud of bugs right above the ground, only releasing his hand from the large hammer he kept at his side when the noise finally subsided.





Harrower is only the name given to this race in the common tongue, as the name in their own language of chitters and hisses and pheromones cannot be translated with precision. A single Harrower, as typically seen by other races, is actually a swarm of thousands of insects that have formed themselves into a roughly humanoid shape.

These insects merge their intelligence to form a hive mind capable of highly intelligent thought. Harrowers' lives are at once very fleeting, due to an individual insect’s short life span, and eternal, due to the swarm’s persistent ever-breeding nature.

Horrifying and varied

Composed of a great many individuals, saying what a Harrower looks like often falters at the word "disgusting," but in broad and generous terms they appear humaoid in shape and height.

Societal Outcasts, But Very Social

A Harrower functions as a hive, and its mind is a hive-mind. As a result, actions are done by consensus, and Harrower society, such as it is, also relies on consensus. While some decisions may need to be quick, 'individual' Harrowers as well as groups of them always take the time necessary, when available, to deliberate a given subject.

The abhorrent appearance of a Harrower, let alone a group of them, preclude them from being tightly integrated into other cultures. The occasional Harrower that risks violent misunderstanding of their nature to become an adventurer will seek out more civilized areas, but quickly learns it is not to be accepted lightly.

Among the other races, the most common profession a Harrower might find include a particularly-disconcerting bouncer, the leader of the occasional doom cult, or as a farmer's assistant, breaking down organic matter... usually out of eyeshot.

Creature Comforts

Harrowers in groups tend to live out in the wilderness, adapted to most non-freezing climates. They neither need nor desire houses and roads, often electing to sleep in a large, unstructured mass or underground. If they expect to interact with other races, though, they do not mind erecting structures to put others closer to ease and do so quickly and with an incredible eye for detail. This occasionally leads to their creations as being seen as "too perfect," giving even normal objects a slightly-unsettling, over-polished, or 'fake' look.

























































Untrusted Everywhere Drow are famously mistrusted among the surface races, but the utterly alien minds and appearances of Harrowers sow intense and immediate distrust. They don't mind, though, as a Harrower is already everyone it needs in its life in most circumstances. Their outlook on life, appearance, extreme rarity in civilization and very nature lend initial impressions to be ones of fear, mistrust, and instinctive revulsion. However, if common interest finds you side by side with a Harrower for more than a short while, its transient, generational perspective may manifest as surprising loyalty, as you become one of the few things the nebulous being has ever known first-hand.





Harrower Names

Since most races cannot pronounce Harrower names, and the Harrowers do not generally mind being called anything in particular, their names in the common tongue often reflect the deeds or appearance of the Harrower, as given by others it has encountered.

As a Harrower is comprised of insects of both sexes, Harrower names tend not to be gendered, and most Harrowers show little preference for any particular pronoun when being addressed.

Appearance-related names: Disgusting, Foul, Wretched, Scary, Gross, Nightmarish, Shroud

Names from deeds: Infester, Harvester, Poisoner, Devourer, Plague-bringer, Quick-builder