Thri-kreen

Greyhawk Creature

Thri-kreen
A J'hol thri-kreen depicted in Thri-Kreen of Athas. Art by John Dollar.
General information
Alignment:	Chaotic (any)
Type:	Monstrous humanoid
First appearance:	Monster Cards (1982)

The thri-kreen, or "mantis warriors," are an insect-like monstrous humanoid race. "Thri-kreen of Oerth are similar in almost every way to the red-shelled J'hol [of Athas]."

Ecology

Thri-kreen are carnivores. They hunt many creatures, but they are particularly fond of the flesh of elves. They find the pheromonal scent released by elves when they are running or frightened to be delicious. They prefer not to eat insects or sapient life except in times of need, however, and some clutches never hunt sapients at all. This is not out of morality, for thri-kreen do not consider non-kreen who have not been accepted as clutch-mates to be people, but merely because non-sapients are easier prey. They form deep attachments with a small group they identify as their clutch-mates and treat all others as strangers and enemies. City folk and farmers are usually seen as not worthy of their enmity.

Environment

Thri-kreen dwell in warm deserts and arid plains. There are stories of thri-kreen packs in the Sea of Dust, and there may be a few scattered packs in the Dry Steppes to the north. They do not exist in the Bright Desert. They typically reside in small, lightless burrows.

Typical physical characteristics

A Thri-kreen from the 5e Monster Manual (2014). Art by Ilya Shkipin.

Thri-kreen resemble humanoid mantids. Thri-kreen found on Oerth have red exoskeletons and small abdomens, looking more humanoid than the typical thri-kreen of other worlds. They possess six limbs, and usually use one pair for locomotion and the other two pairs as arms. Their hands have three claws their "feet are narrow, and lack the membranes that give [other types of thri-kreen] better purchase on sand. [They] are built for the stony barrens and rocky badlands... ." They have excellent physical capabilities, allowing them to jump great distances. They also have sharp claws and psionic abilities. Thri-kreen of Oerth do not have venomous bites.

Thri-kreen hatch from soft eggs, resembling tiny, more mantis-like versions of their adult forms with two arms and four legs. After molting twice, they are fully grown adults by the age of five. An average thri-kreen has the life expectancy of only 30 years. However, this is countered by the fact that thri-kreen do not require sleep. A thri-kreen truly lives out every moment of its precious 30 years.

Alignment

Thri-kreen have little social structure beyond their clutches. They almost always belong to one of the chaotic alignments and are more often neutral than good or evil.

Society

Many thri-kreen are formidable nomadic hunters who respect the land and hate creatures that despoil it. They will attack anyone who disturbs their home.

Thri-kreen of Oerth (J'hol) "build elaborate cities and make fine clothing and tools. They are the only kreen who routinely work metal."

Thri-kreen have two signature weapons: the gythka, a polearm with a blade at each end; and the chatkcha, a crystal throwing wedge which returns when thrown. However, they will use anything they can find as well.

Variant forms of thri-kreen include the civilized tohr-kreen (of which there are six subspecies including the j'hol on Oerth), the mentally and physically altered zik-trin, the alien zik-chil, and the spacefaring xixchil of the Spelljammer campaign setting.

Thri-kreen are born with a racial memory of their language and useful hunting skills. They have a strong group mentality when with their clutch-mates. They can and do belong to several clutches at once, including their birth clutch and clutches (hunting parties and adventuring bands) formed later in life. A pack is a group of several related clutches which cooperate with one another for hunting and defense. While a clutch may include races other than thri-kreen, packs generally do not.

Religion

Thri-kreen priests are druids, revering nature itself instead of any deity. They do not believe in an afterworld to which souls travel to reside permanently after death, but they have a simple belief in reincarnation. They lay their egg clutches near the graves of dead thri-kreen, believing the memories of their elders will thus be inherited by their young. They also believe in Dej, the Circle, a happy hunting ground where souls dwell between incarnations, and Kano, a place of cold and monsters inspired by the layer of Cania in the plane of Baator. Images of the insectoid devils known as gelugons, which the thri-kreen know as Galug, haunt their racial memory. The word Kano, which means simply "cold," is used to describe any lower plane, however.

Language

Thri-kreen speak their own language, Thri-Kreen, which consists of whistles, clicks, and mandible-snaps. Some have also learned to speak Common.

Creative origins

The thri-kreen race was first introduced to D&D in 1982 by Paul Reiche III for the second set of Monster Cards.

Publishing history

The thri-kreen have persisted through every edition. In first edition, they appear in the Monster Manual II (1983).

The thri-kreen were very prevelent in second edition. They appear in the Monstrous Compendium (1989), Monstrous Compendium, vol 3 (1989), Monstrous Manual (1993), MC12Monstrous Compendium Dark Sun Appendix, Terrors of the Desert, and Monstrous Compendium, Dark Sun Appendix II (1995).

In third edition, the thri-kreen appeared in Monster Manual II (2002), Savage Species (2003), Expanded Psionics Handbook (2004), and various sourcebooks for the Forgotten Realms, as well as Terrors Beyond Tyr, and Dragon #173.

Thri-kreen of Athas (1995) included a short section on the thri-kreen of Greyhawk.

The fourth edition Monster Manual 2 (2009) included thri-kreen.

In fifth edition, the thri-kreen are in the Monster Manual (2014), as well as Spelljammer: Adventures in Space (2022). Additionally, they are included peripherally in Journeys Through the Radiant Citadel and Xanathar's Guide to Everything.

References

Bibliography

• Beach, Tim and Dori Hein. Thri-Kreen of Athas. Lake Geneva, WI: TSR, 1995. Item code TSR2437. ISBN 0-7869-0125-X
• Bonny, Ed, Jeff Grubb, Rich Redman, Skip Williams, and Steve Winter. Monster Manual II. Renton, WA: Wizards of the Coast, 2002. Item code 88268. ISBN 0-7869-2873-5
• Cook, David "Zeb", Steve Winter, Jon Pickens. MC3 Monstrous Compendium Volume Three: Forgotten Realms Appendix. Lake Geneva, WI: TSR, 1989. Item code TSR2104.
• Cordell, Bruce R.. Expanded Psionics Handbook. Renton, WA: Wizards of the Coast, 2004. Item code 96666. ISBN 0-7869-3301-1
• Eckleberry, David, Rich Redman and Jennifer Clarke Wilkes. Savage Species. Renton, WA: Wizards of the Coast, 2003. Item code 88158.
• Gygax, Gary. Monster Manual II. Lake Geneva, WI: TSR, 1983. Item code TSR2016.
• Reid, Thomas M. Shining South. Renton, WA: Wizards of the Coast, 2004.
• Richards, Johnathan M. "The Ecology of the Xixchil." Dragon #266. Lake Geneva, WI: TSR, 1999.
• Slavicsek, Bill. Dark Sun Campaign Setting Expanded and Revised. Lake Geneva, WI: TSR, 1995.
• Beach, Tim. Doug Stewart, ed. Monstrous Manual. Lake Geneva, WI: TSR, 1993. Item code TSR2140. ISBN 1-56076-619-0

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.

Topic	Type	Description	Product	Page/Card/Image
Thri-Kreen {Mantis Warrior}	Monster		Dragon magazine #351	24
Thri-Kreen {Mantis Warrior}	Monster		AD&D Monster Cards, Set 2	Not Numbered
Thri-Kreen {Mantis Warrior}	Monster		MC3 - Monstrous Compendium - Forgotten Realms Appendix 1	Insert (Thri-Kreen (Mantis Warrior))
Thri-Kreen {Mantis Warrior}	Monster		Monstrous Manual, AD&D 2e	342
Thri-Kreen {Mantis Warrior}	Monster		Monstrous Manual, AD&D 2e (Premium Edition)	342
Thri-Kreen {Mantis Warrior}	Monster		Monster Manual 1, D&D 5e	288
Thri-Kreen {Mantis Warrior}	Monster		Monster Manual 2, AD&D 1e	119
Thri-Kreen {Mantis Warrior}	Monster		War Captain's Companion Boxed Set: Book 1	63