Drider

Drider
(Creature)
Type	Aberration
CR	7
Environment	Darklands
Alignment	LG NG CG LN N CN LE NE CE
Source: SRD

Driders are twisted amalgams of humanoid torsos with the bodies of giant spiders typically found in the Darklands and often associated with the cruelty of the wicked drow.

Appearance

Driders appear as typical humanoids from the waist up, with a clear head and two arms reaching from their torso. Below the waist, however, they possess a monstrous spider's thorax and eight arachnoid legs. Female driders retain their sleek, beautiful, and elven shapes above the waist; below, their spider bodies are similarly sleek and smooth. Males, though, are much more bestial. Their faces are a horrific blend of drow and spider, and their bodies are spiny and rough.

Society

In drow society, driders are seen as freaks and mutants. Becoming a drider is not prestigious—it's physical proof of punishment and a brand of shame. Yet driders are not frail or helpless fleshwarps; they're powerful creatures in their own regard. As a result, in drow society driders are often kept as guardians, soldiers, or bodyguards. Retaining little of their previous life's memories, most driders serve their drow lords and ladies without question. Some female driders, however, possess a stronger sense of aggressiveness and are as headstrong as any unwarped drow. These females have been known to lead drider rebellions, and there exist a number of small tribes of driders throughout the darklands comprised of driders who have freed themselves from drow rule. As a result, most driders seen in drow cities are male.

Origins

Driders are drow who have suffered the punishment of fleshwarping by their evil masters, typically of House Parastric. A drow who undergoes this process develops the arachnid features of a drider and forgets much of their drow memory, making them almost into new creatures entirely.