Spell weaver
| Spell weaver | |
|---|---|
 a Spellweaver as depicted in the Monster Manual II (2002). | |
| General information | |
| Alignment: | Usually neutral |
| Type: | Monstrous Humanoid |
| First appearance: | Dragon #163 |
Spell weavers are alien sorcerers who travel the planes seeking out magic.
Ecology
Spell weavers live nearly six centuries without showing any weakness from age. As they near the end of their life cycle, they regenerate their bodies using a complex ritual involving the consumption of a nearly priceless amount of magic items. This regeneration process requires them to hibernate in specially prepared coffins for at least a month, although some may require centuries. When completed, the ritual allows them to live for another six centuries before they must regenerate again. At the end of their sixth regeneration, they are unable to regenerate again; instead, they choose this time to reproduce. Spell weaver reproduction involves an elaborate ritual self-sacrifice that produces six new adult spell weavers, each with all the memories of its parent.
Spell weavers are a standoffish race who do not often deign to negotiate with others. They have an alliance with the nerra to use the Plane of Mirrors to travel between nodes; it's been suggested (in fourth edition's Monster Manual 3) that they may even have created the nerra using their own metallic blood. Spell weavers may subjugate other races to work as servants, and they may occasionally work with other races that oppose the gods.
Environment
Typical physical characteristics
Spell weavers are bipeds with six arms. Their eyes are large and black, resembling the eyes of insects. Their long, flexible necks allow them to rotate their heads 180 degrees without strain. Their smooth, hairless skin is generally a gray tone, occasionally with splotches of beige, pink, or yellow. Their skin gets darker every time they regenerate. Their blood is a metallic blue hue.
Alignment
While they are usually neutral in alignment, evil spell weavers, focused on studying cruelty, death, necromancy, and other dark aspects of magic, have been encountered.
Society
Religion
Spell weavers are strict atheists who believe the gods are not truly divine and actively shun their worship. They have no priests or clerics. Despite this, spell weavers do revere their ancestors, meditating in an attempt to comprehend the will of their predecessors. Because they actually share the memories of their ancestors, this is more a pious reminiscence than actual religious devotion.
Language
Spell weavers do not speak aloud, communicating instead via telepathy. Occasionally they might squeal or grunt in surprise or pain. Though they have their own language of clicks and whistles, it has not been spoken in millennia. In the present day, it exists only in the distant memories of the spell weavers and in the form of hieroglyphics.
History
Long ago, the spell weavers ruled an empire that spanned many worlds and planes. Spell weaver colonies were known as nodes, and generally resembled pyramids of metal and stone empowered by magical furnaces powered by magic items or mortal lives. Each node was widely separated from the others, often with only one on any single world or plane; however, at least two existed on Oerth. Two ruined spell weaver nodes can be found today in the Amedio Jungle. One was named Vaprak's Voice by the ogres who later inhabited the site. Another one, a place of terrible experiments into the nature of cold and death, was called Kurran-Kural. Every spell weaver node was connected to the others by a complex series of portals.
The spell weavers in that ancient empire had little to do with other races except to take slaves from them. If other races proved a threat, they would gift them with powerful but dangerous magic items and artifacts with which they would end up destroying themselves. Spell weavers spent most of their efforts studying semantics in order to increase their own magical powers and complete a vast experiment with which they hoped, perhaps, to alter all reality. The experiment backfired, destroying their nodes on every plane within seconds. A few members of the race who were away from the nodes at the time survived to become the ancestors of the modern spell weaver race.
Named spell weavers
- Mak'ar, the Harbinger of Worms (Dungeon #130).
- Schavra (Dragon #338)
Creative origins
The spell weaver was created by Ed O'Connell, and originally published in Dragon #163 (1990).
Publishing history
In fourth edition's Monster Manual 3, the race of weavers includes spell weavers, battle weavers, thought weavers, and hex weavers. Spell weavers specialize in magic, battle weavers specialize in martial combat, thought weavers are psionic in nature, and hex weavers draw powers from the Shadowfell.
Gallery
Bibliography
- Bonny, Ed, Jeff Grubb, Rich Redman, Skip Williams, and Steve Winter. Monster Manual II. Renton, WA: Wizards of the Coast, 2002.
- Decker, Jesse. "Secrets of the Soul Pillars." Dungeon #109. Bellevue, WA: Paizo Publishing, 2004.
- ———. "The Spire of Long Shadows." Dungeon #130. Bellevue, WA: Paizo Publishing, 2006.
- Leati, Tito. "The Demonskar Legacy." Dungeon #104. Bellevue, WA: Paizo Publishing, 2003.
- ———. "Ecology of the Spellweaver." Dragon #338. Bellevue, WA: Paizo Publishing, 2005.
- Mearls, Mike, Greg Bilsland, and Robert J. Schwalb. Monster Manual 3. Renton, WA: Wizards of the Coast, 2010.
- O'Connell, Ed. "The Dragon's Bestiary." Dragon #163. Lake Geneva, WI: TSR, 1990.
- Wise, David, ed. Monstrous Compendium Annual Volume One. Lake Geneva, WI: TSR, 1994.
Encyclopedia Greyhawkania Index
The Encyclopedia Greyhawkania Index (EGI) is based on previous work of Jason Zavoda through '08, continued by numerous other fans. The EGI article has a list of sources, product names, abbreviations, and a link to the full, downloadable index.
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