Buzzling
Small halfling-sized creatures with fly-like bodies, Buzzlings work hard to overcome the stigma that they encounter due to their frightening looks.
Basic Information
Anatomy
Buzzlings have the wings and the face of a fly on a small humanoid body. These wings allow the buzzling a good range and maneuverability of flight that only improves with practice.
Biological Traits
A buzzlings digestive system is quite strong, the acids in its stomach can damage most materials. With training, a buzzling can vomit up this stomach acid as an attack, but few are willing to do so, as it is seen as a distasteful act.
Genetics and Reproduction
Like most Enthos, buzzlings lay clutches of eggs, usually in the range of three to six.
Growth Rate & Stages
Buzzling are hatched as large, maggot-like pupas, which they remain in that state for around 7 years before molting and adopting a more humanoid form. The next 6 years are spent in small groups practicing social graces and working on ways to convince others not to be repulsed by a buzzlings image.
Dietary Needs and Habits
Buzzlings have a diverse diet, ranging from meat to fungi and fruit. Most buzzlings lack the ability to chew their food efficiently, and thus often liquify thier meal beforehand and suck it up with their proboscis. Some remote tribes also consume blood in this manner.
Biological Cycle
While the majority of buzzlings dwell in The Underrealm and are not greatly affected by the seasons, those that do dwell on the surface generally enter a state of hibernation in the winter and a state of high activity in the summer.
Additional Information
Social Structure
Buzzling politics is democratically run, with various members of a tribe running for positions of power and must convince others to vote for them. This means buzzling society is a careful dance of promises and "exact words".
Facial characteristics
Buzzlings have the head of a fly, and thus have compounded eyes, antenna, and the ability to swivel their head very quickly. Due to a lack of recognizable features to express emotion, many buzzlings develop verbal tics to help convey their feelings to non-enthos creatures.
Geographic Origin and Distribution
Average Intelligence
Buzzlings are inherently cunning, their brains adapted to quickly process the large amount of information they take in at once with their range of vision. They spend the early years of their lives educating and practicing public speaking, and are thus good orators.
Perception and Sensory Capabilities
Buzzlings have darkvision and can see in low-light conditions, and their compound eyes allow them to see in a range wider than most other creatures. They also have a keen sense of smell doctored towards corpses, able to smell fresh bodies or heavily wounded creatures from a long distance.
Symbiotic and Parasitic organisms
Many buzzling tribes domesticate giant flies to use as aerial mounts and giant fleas to use as land mounts. Despite their efforts to avoid being viewed as disgusting and gross, many buzzlings can contract diseases and become carries for them, spreading them unintentionally.
Civilization and Culture
Naming Traditions
In Enthos, Buzzlings refer to their own species as ᵑǃuᵑǃ̤uoǀʰuᵑǀ̤; roughly translating to Sky Whisperers.
Beauty Ideals
For females, the length of ones head antenna helps establish beauty, while males with well groomed arm-fibers are considered more attractive. For all buzzlings, the ability to confidently talk up ones traits and make them seem more attractive is often more important than the actual trait itself.
Gender Ideals
While not set in stone, it is more common for a male buzzling to embark out in an attempt gain profit, while the female tends to the children and homestead.
Courtship Ideals
Many buzzlings love to play verbal games as a form of courtship and to express what they have learned in their youth. Females love playing several males against each other in an elaborate game to see who comes out on top.
Relationship Ideals
Buzzlings are communal creatures, and form strong friendships. Once a buzzling youth is placed in its social clique after molting, they often become closer to its members then its own family.
Average Technological Level
Buzzling society is driven heavily by commerce, and thus buzzlings are often coming up with new inventions to market to the rest of The Underrealm.
Major Language Groups and Dialects
Most buzzlings speak Enthos, but due to their love of communication, most speak at least Common, Hive-Dance, Ignan, or Undercommon, and will often attempt to learn all the languages of the creatures in their area.
Common Etiquette Rules
A buzzling never offers anything for free, and never expects anything to be offered for free. To offer a buzzling something for nothing is considered and insult to its intelligence, as they all know that nothing is truly without a price.
Common Dress Code
Many buzzlings try to wear formal clothing that makes them appear professional and precise. Such clothing must make accommodations for the buzzlings wings and bulbous head, and thus are often crafted as vest-like snap-ons that can easily be removed.
Common Customs, Traditions and Rituals
Most buzzlings become merchants of some kind, and often will become diplomates or negotiators on the behalf of other races. Before a buzzling is allowed to leave the nest, it must succeed in verbal debates against other buzzlings, in order to prove itself a reliable member to represent the nest to the outside world.
Common Taboos
Commenting on the buzzlings appearance is quite rude, as they are sensitive about their looks, and a buzzling who doesn't haggle for a better deal is considered cowardly.
Common Myths and Legends
While most buzzlings are not particularly religious, they do pay homage to their racial demigod, Lys, the Dealmaker. It is believed that Lys was a single maggot who was lodged in the skin of the Fiendish Lord Arhima, who was knocked loose in a skirmish between Ahrima and Yai. After the battle, when Yai went to crush the maggot, Lys convinced the deity to spare it, and made a deal to grant that granted him mobility and created the first buzzlings.
Interspecies Relations and Assumptions
Buzzlings have spent decades culturing their image as reasonable and shrewd despite their appearance, and while they are still rare on the surface world, many of The Underrealms citizens happily look beyond the buzzlings grotesque features. Even the more evil-inclined races such as the Drow and Duergar tend to work with the buzzlings rather than enslave them, as they have made themselves useful as traders and neutral diplomats.
Racial Table - Buzzling: Hit Dice: D8; Class Skills: Appraise, Craft, Diplomacy, Knowledge (Local), Perception; Skill Ranks Per Level: 2 + Intelligence modifier; Weapon Proficiency: Simple, plus Greatsword; Armor Proficiency: Light
| Level | BAB | Fort | Reflex | Will | Abilities |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | +0 | +2 | +0 | +0 | Carrion Sense, Compound Eyes, Flight, Sociable, Vermin Empathy |
| 2nd | +1 | +3 | +0 | +0 | Scavenger, Steady Mind |
| 3rd | +2 | +3 | +1 | +1 | Scavenger's Fortitude, All-Around Vision |
| 4th | +3 | +4 | +1 | +1 | Acid Vomit, +1 Intelligence, +1 Charisma |
| 5th | +3 | +4 | +1 | +1 | Greater Flight |
Random Starting Ages
| Adulthood | Intuitive1 | Self-Taught2 | Trained3 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 13 years | +1d4 years (14 - 17) | +1d6 years (14 - 19) | +1d8 years (14 - 21) |
Random Height and Weight
| Gender | Base Height | Height Modifier | Base Weight | Weight Modifier |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Male | 2 ft. 4 in. | +2d6 in. (2 ft. 6 in. - 3 ft. 4 in.) | 25 lbs. | +(2d6 lbs.) (27 - 37 lbs.) |
| Female | 2 ft. 2 in. | +2d6 in. (2 ft. 4 in. - 3 ft. 2 in.) | 20 lbs. | +(2d6 lbs.) (22 - 32 lbs.) |
Buzzling Aging Table
| Middle Age (-1 to Str, Dex, and Con, +1 to Int, Wis, and Cha) | Old (-2 to Str, Dex, and Con, +2 to Int, Wis, and Cha) | Venerable (-3 to Str, Dex, and Con, +3 to Int, Wis, and Cha) | Maximum Age (GM secretly decides maximum age) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 25 years | 42 years | 50 years | 50 + 1d10 years (51 - 60 years) |
Random Buzzling Homelands
| % Rolled | Homeland | Trait Gained |
|---|---|---|
| 01-60 | Subterranean | Surface Stranger |
| 61-75 | Forest | Canter |
| 76-85 | Jungle | Accelerated Drinker |
| 85-95 | Desert | Amiable Briber |
| 96-00 | Unusual Homeland | (Roll on Unusual Homeland table) |
Random Buzzling Families
| % Rolled | Parental Status |
|---|---|
| 01-25 | Only Father is alive |
| 25-50 | Both of your parents are dead |
| 51-75 | Only Mother is alive |
| 75-00 | Both of your parents are alive |
| % Rolled | # of Siblings |
|---|---|
| 01-40 | 1d6 Siblings |
| 41-65 | 1d4+1 Siblings |
| 66-85 | 1d3 Siblings |
| 86-00 | No siblings |
Lifespan
51 - 60 years.
Average Height
2 ft. 4 in. - 3 ft. 4 in.
Average Weight
22 - 37 lbs
Average Physique
Due to their small stature and frail bodies, buzzlings lack physical prowess, and must make up for it with their quick wit and ability to fly away from danger.
Body Tint, Colouring and Marking
Most buzzlings are grey, black, or green colored, but can often sport a wide variety of colors based on tribe, location, or diet.
Geographic Distribution
Buzzling
Type
Vermin (Enthos)
Ability Score Modifier
+2 Intelligence, +2 Charisma, -2 Strength. Buzzlings are cunning, but lack power.
Size
small
Speed
Buzzlings have darkvision of 60 feet and low-light vision.
Language
A buzzling begins play speaking Enthos. A buzzling with a high intelligence score can pick from the following languages: Common, Hive-dance, Ignan or Undercommon.
- Materil: Buzzlings can be tied to either the Air or the Earth Materil, allowing them to become Windcallers or Earthbreakers.
- Darkvision: Buzzlings can see perfectly in the dark up to 60 feet.
- Low-light Vision: Buzzlings can see twice as far as humans in low-light conditions.
- Carrion Sense (Ex): Buzzlings can sniff out carrion. This ability functions as the scent ability, but only for corpses and badly wounded creatures. (Creatures with 25% or fewer hit points.)
- Compound Eyes: Buzzlings gain a +1 racial bonus to Perception checks based on sight, and roll twice and take the better result when making sight-based Perception checks. They gain a -1 penalty, and they roll twice and take the lower result on saves versus spells and effects that rely on sight. These bonuses and penalties increase by 1 for every five hit dice beyond the 1st the buzzling possesses.
- Flight: A buzzling has a fly speed of 30 feet (good maneuverability). This imparts a +6 racial bonus to is Fly checks.
- Sociable: When a buzzling attempts to change a creature's attitude using the Diplomacy skill and fails by 5 or less, they can try to influence that creature a second time, even if 24 hours have not passed.
- Vermin Empathy: All enthos can utilize the Handle Animal skill on vermin creatures, despite them being mindless. An enthos spellcaster can cast spells that normally only affect animals on a vermin creature, and enthos druids can utilize wild empathy on vermin as if they were normal animals. An enthos gains a +4 racial bonus to handling vermin of a similar nature to them.
- Scavenger: Starting at 2nd racial level, a buzzling gains a +2 racial bonus on Appraise and Perception checks to find hidden objects (including traps and secret doors), to determine whether food is spoiled, or identify a potion by taste. This bonus increases by 1 for every 3 hit dice the buzzling possesses beyond 2nd.
- Verminous Mind: Starting at 2nd racial level, a buzzling gains a +2 racial bonus on Will saving throws. This bonus increases by 1 for every five hit dice the buzzling possesses beyond 2nd.
- All-Around Vision (Ex): At 3rd racial level, a buzzling gains the all-around vision ability, meaning they can no longer be flanked.
- Scavenger’s Fortitude: Starting at 3rd racial level, a buzzling becomes immune to the effects of nonmagical diseases. A buzzling can still contract and carry a disease to others.
- Acid Vomit (Ex): Starting at 4th racial level, 1/day a buzzling can spit up the contents of its stomach as a breath weapon. Each creature in a five-foot-cone in front of the buzzling takes 1d4 + the buzzlings Constitution modifier points of acid damage and is nauseated for one round. A successful Fortitude save (DC 10 + ½ the buzzlings hit dice + the buzzlings Constitution modifier) halves the damage and negates the nauseating effect. If the buzzling has eaten a heavy meal within the last 8 hours, such as one provided from a heroes' feast spell, the breath weapon deals 1d6 + the buzzlings Constitution score instead.
- Greater Flight: At 5th racial level, a buzzlings flight increases from 30 feet to 60 feet and it’s maneuverability increases to perfect. This increases the buzzlings racial bonus to Fly checks from +6 to a +10.
Alternate Racial Traits
- Beguiling Liar: Some buzzlings are quite good at telling tall tales. They gain a +4 racial bonus on Bluff checks to lie. This bonus increases by 1 for every two hit dice beyond the 1st the buzzling possesses. This trait replaces the Sociable trait.
- Bloatling: Some buzzings resemble large mosquitos instead of traditional flies. These buzzlings have a Sting primary natural attack that deals 1d3 points of damage and 1 point of bleed damage. If a creature successfully takes bleed damage this way, the buzzling gains 1 temporary hit point. These temporary hit points stack with themselves up to an amount equal to the buzzlings Constitution modifier. This trait replaces the Sociable trait.
- Undersight: Some buzzling have eyes that have adjusted to living in only darkness. These buzzlings lack low-light vision and have darkvision of 120 feet, but have the light blindness trait. This trait alters the buzzlings senses.
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