Thri-Kreen

The Thri-Kreen are a large, four-armed race of insectoid waste nomads. They are resourceful and intelligent predators known and celebrated both for their ferocity and their cunning. But above anything else, they are creatures of unwavering loyalty. Their first and deepest sense of loyalty is to the brood group they're born into, their "clutch"; second, their devotion

is then given to the clan that bore their clutch. Thirdly, they owe allegiance to the Kreen races over any other. Fourthly, they show and pay their respects to the deserts in which they live, and to the prey upon which they depend.

As evolved desert predators, they tend to operate on very different wavelengths from the other "intelligent" races. For instance, they have a hard time understanding typical notions of morality. To the Kreen, the clutch is good, its enemies are bad, and everything else is prey. They aren't utterly lacking in empathy, and have the ability to consider things from the perspectives of other races, but they are fundamentally unconcerned with such frivolities. The Kreen don't need to care, they just need to survive.

Racial Traits

+2 Strength, +1 Dexterity

Ascetic Hunters - Thri-Kreen do not carry packs, and are not used to being weighed down by goods; they suffer from light encumbrance at their Strength score x 3 (instead of x 5) lbs, are heavily encumbered at Strength score x 5 (instead of x 10) lbs, and have a maximum carrying capacity of Strength score x 10 (instead of 15) lbs; their lifting load, however, still remains their Strength score x 30 lbs. A Thri-Kreen carries what it needs with it, and if it discovers, say, a superior weapon, a typical Thri-Kreen's reaction is to simply discard its current one in favor of the new. Excess weight will slow the Kreen down, and make it a worse hunter.

Trance - Thri-Kreen do not sleep, though they do require a 4-hour period of a meditative, torpor-like rest.

Alien Anatomy - Thri-Kreen have 4 arms; their "upper" set joins their body trunk at the shoulder, like most bipedal races, and are much larger and more powerful than their secondary "lower" set, which joins their body near the top of the flank, just below the upper set. Both sets are articulate and clawed, but only the primary set are dexterous enough to wield weapons independently, though the secondary may be used to support the usage of some weapons. Except when wielding a shield (see below), a Thri-Kreen may use the Versatile damage of a gythka, quarterstaff, or a similar weapon as though it were a light, one-handed weapon for the purposes of wielding a light weapon in their primary offhand as well. Because they have 4 arms, Thri-Kreen can wear two sets of bracers. They can still only wear two rings, however, and both must be on their secondary set of arms due to the thickness of their primary claws. If the secondary arms are being used to make unarmed attacks, any applicable damage modifiers are halved, rounded down. The secondary set of arms can be used to retrieve items as a free action if they are within reach of the Thri-Kreen or are on its person.

Chitinous and Intuitive - Thri-Kreen are never considered proficient with any armor. They have a very hard, but light exoskeletal carapace that protects their bodies (which they do often ornament with clothing, jewelry, and pigments). A Thri-Kreen relies on its natural armor and its combat experience for its defense instead of a suits of maille. A Thri-Kreen's unarmored AC is equal to 10 + Dexterity modifier + Proficiency bonus. A Thri-Kreen can use a shield and still retain this bonus, though shields tend to feel awkward and unwieldy to a Thri-Kreen; when using a shield, the Thri-Kreen cannot use the secondary arms for anything (the free item retrieval or to aid in wielding a gythka, quarterstaff, etc). This bonus does not stack with a monk's Unarmored Defense; if a Thri-Kreen would have access to this feature, you may choose to utilize whichever gives the greater bonus. If Unarmored Defense gives the higher bonus, a shield cannot be used in conjunction with it, as per the feature description.

Superb Jumpers - Thri-Kreen have a grasshopper-like jumping ability. They are considered proficient in any Athletics checks made to jump.

Foreign Perspectives - Thri-Kreen are never considered proficient when using Insight or Persuade checks on "city-dwelling races" outside of combat (ie. Proficiency can be used when rolling Insight to understand aggressive body language and anticipating attacks, but not when trying to understand motives; Thri-Kreen typically do not readily understand the motives of other intelligent races).

Thri-Kreen Weapon Proficiency - Thri-Kreen gain proficiency with the chatkcha and the gythka. These weapons also count as Monk weapons for the Thri-Kreen.

Claws - Thri-Kreen unarmed strikes are replaced by 1d4 slashing claw attacks. As weapons, they are considered simple and light, and Thri-Kreen are always considered proficient with them. If the Thri-Kreen would have access to a class feature that would increase the base damage of unarmed strikes, as per the Monk's Martial Arts feature, roll the greater dice value. The Thri-Kreen can choose to apply either bludgeoning or slashing damage with the attack in this case. As mentioned above, attacks made with the Thri-Kreen's secondary set of arms only receive half of their applicable modifier, rounded down.

Venomous Bite - A Thri-Kreen may use its Attack action to bite an opponent for 1d4 slashing damage. If the attack is successful, the opponent must make a DC 10 Constitution save or become wracked with a Thri-Kreen's painful and paralyzing venom. Saves are attempted every round until the save is successful. Until the save is successful, the target grants advantage to any attackers that target it.