Ananasi - Werespider
Organization
Most Ananasi lead solitary lives, each one doing as she sees fit. When they need to organize in groups, either for some great goal or for mutual protection, the do so under the leadership of elder females.
In general, Ananasi society recognises three distinct groups, called the Triumvirate: those who serve Wyrm, those who serve the Wyld, and those who serve the Weaver. Within each group, distinct factions act as warriors, questioners, and balancers. This complex organization of roles keeps the webs of Ananasi society strong and dynamic.
Breeds
Homid
Homid Ananasi, born of one human parent, have an early life that differs little from most human children. As they near the time of their first change, however, they notice significant differences between themselves and their human friends. Normal foods lose their flavour and are eaten only for nutritional value, emotions cool, and logic reigns supreme.
Beginning Stats: 1 Essence, 1 Primal Urge
Metis
Ananasi Metis are never spoken of, they are born twisted lilian-like creatures unable to shift. They are, every one, sent to live in the deep umbra where they serve as guardians for Queen Ananasa.
Arachnid
Ananasi born from a mating with a spider hatch from an egg sac. They must literally eat their way to a size that can accommodate a change in form, usually feasting on their sac-mates and any other spiders in the area until they achieve the necessary size.
Beginning Stats: 5 Essence, 2 Primal Urge, Limited Knowledges.
Aspects
Instead of Auspices that determine the role each werespider plays, Ananasi have aspects, chosen for them by Queen Ananasa. Each of the three aspects of Ananasi - those dedicated to the Wyrm (Hatar), the Weaver (Tenere), and the Wyld (Kumoti) - has three factions. The Warrior, or Myrmidon, fights for her Aspect. The Balancer, or Visker serves as judge, or seeker of truth for her Aspect, and The Questioner, or Wyrsta, acts as the counter to the other two factions and dedicates his to understanding the secrets of the Great Web and his Aspect's place in it.
Hatar
The Hatar live to destroy, under the command of Queen Ananasa. They are often known as violent or cruel, and tend to exhibit the "darker" emotions, if any. They are the Unweavers of the Ananasi Society.
Tenere
Ananasi dedicated to the Weaver have the best control over their emotions and pay the most attention to order and pattern. Tenere tend to value neatness in their personal lives, order in their relationships, and pattern in their day-today activities. Logical, calculating, and precise, they strive to maintain stability in the Great Web.
Kumoti
Dedicated to change, the Kumoti work to affect a dynamic approach to the world. Their goal is to fight stagnation and entropy by instituting subtle changes. Even though some of the changes they support may not be for the best, they believe that any change is better than standing still.
Forms
Homid
The Ananasi's homid form outwardly resembles the human body in size, shape, and other external physical characteristics. This form, however, differs from human in some distinctive ways. After the Metamorphosis, the human body undergoes several alterations. It's internal organs are no longer precisely human. The blood chemistry alters to accommodate both human hemoglobin (or iron-based) and spider hemocyanin (or copper-based) molecules. The Homid form also possesses vestigial fangs and pedipalps in its mouth. The lungs change as well, combining normal human lungs with the type found in arachnids. Despite these changes, the homid form is interfertile with normal humans.
Lilian
This form serves as the Ananasi's primary combat form. Combining characteristics of human and spider, the lilian form appears both formidable and disturbing. While the precise appearance differs from individual to individual, the lilian Ananasi has some general characteristics. An exoskeleton develops, muscles alter drastically, and the circulatory system becomes more spider-like. Beyond that, the variations in the lilian form can include extra appendages, a human head on an upright spider form, a spider head on a human form with a hard carapace, or any other permutation of spider and human. Ananasi typically gain and additional 30% height and weight in this form. Whatever the shape the lilian form takes, once chosen it cannot be altered without some ability or gift.
Pithus
The Ananasi's pithus form resembles nothing more or less than a giant spider. The werespiders weight increases by 50% and the height of the pithus form is roughly 50% higher than the Ananasi's homid form is tall, and twice that in diameter with the legs in a comfortable position. Anatomy changes include a mixture of spider and human organs, flesh and chitin become tougher, and the circulatory system becomes more hydraulic. The pithus form is ideal for producing webs with the tensile strength of steel.
Crawlerling
The most misunderstood of all Ananasi forms, the crawlerling "form" involves the breakdown of the Ananasi's human mass. When she assumes this form, some of the spiders are designated as leaders, with others as followers. These "leaders" possess the sum of an Ananasi's memories and consciousness and direct the movement of their followers. This form is best for escape, hiding, or infiltration. If even a few crawlerlings survive, the Ananasi can eventually reconstitute herself, given time and mass consumption of spiders to rebuild her mass. If a "leader" dies, the portion of memories contained by that spider dies with it. Crawlerlings can produce webs as normal spiders do, and are generally of types that the Ananasi typically consumes.
Lilian | Pithus | Crawlerling |
Str +2 | Str +3 | Str 0 |
Dex +2 | Dex +1 | Dex +6 |
Sta +2 | Sta +2 | Sta 0 |
HL +1 | HL +2 | HL 1 |
Del | Del | Del* |
B/C+1 | B+2 |
Crawlerling only inflicts delerium during the initial change.
Traits
Blood Pool
Ananasi are able to gain power from the blood they drink. These reserves of power are represented by the trait of "blood points", which are measured as a blood pool. All Ananasi have a maximum blood pool of 10, unless they have certain Gifts which permit them to absorb more blood.
• A werespider may spend a blood point to automatically shift into the form of his choice.
• An Ananasi can spend one blood point to gain an extra action in a turn. *
• Ananasi heal by expending blood (see Healing, below).
• Werespiders use blood points to fuel their webmaking abilities (see Webs, below).
• Certain Gifts and Rites require the expenditure of blood points.
Ananasi are limited to the expenditure of one blood point per turn for any purpose, unless they have special compensatory Gifts. The average human can provide up to ten blood points before he's drained completely dry, but most creatures can lose only 20 percent of their blood before their lives are endangered. Taking five blood points from a human will hospitalize him, and more will certainly kill him. Unlike the vampires they often associate with, the Ananasi cannot naturally use their blood pools to increase Physical Attributes. Also, despite enjoying the flavor of Ovid blood, the Ananasi do not gain any special bonuses for drinking the blood of other Changing Breeds.
Healing
Barring the use of Gifts or fetishes, Ananasi heal as normal humans — except that they can spend blood points to mend their wounds. Each blood point spent heals one level of non-aggravated damage; the werespider must be relatively motionless to do this. To heal a level of aggravated damage more quickly than a human would, the Ananasi must expend five blood points all at once; this takes an entire scene. However, unlike Garou and other shape-changers, Ananasi can use their powers of supernatural healing in Homid form; more specifically, they can spend blood points to heal while in any form save Crawlerling (where they can only heal by using the Gift: Replenishment of the Flesh).
Ananasi can catch and transmit diseases, and can suffer from all the ill effects of a disease. However, a werespider can purge her system of a disease by spending blood. This is generally treated like healing aggravated damage, and the severity of the disease determines how much healing is required; for instance, an Ananasi purging herself of the flu would have to heal the equivalent of one aggravated health level, while a werespider who'd contracted AIDS or leprosy might need to heal three to five aggravated health levels' worth of damage. Needless to say, it helps to drink lots of fluids.
Multiple Eyes
In most of their forms the Ananasi have many eyes from which to see. And it's true, especially of the human-born werespiders, that they aren't always used to seeing from extra eyes. While they might have the best peripheral vision in the World of Darkness, they still have to actually look at what they are seeing. Just because somediing is in their field of vision doesn't mean they've actually taken notice of it. For that reason, even Ananasi must make Perception rolls in order to notice something off to the side. Additionally, unless they have certain [[Gifts]], they do not automatically see in 360 degrees at once.
Multiple Limbs
The Ananasi have more limbs than other Ovid, but that doesn't mean they automatically get extra actions or a reduced penalty on taking extra actions. It just means they have more arms and legs. The werespiders suffer the exact same penalties for taking extra actions as everyone else does, unless they have Gifts to compensate for the differences. Mind you, it never hurts to have a few extra hands for carrying weapons, or in case one gets torn off by an irate Garou.
Sex Appeal
Ananasi are very predatory, very compelling creatures. They are able to use their predatory nature (and even a healthy dose of pheromones) to best advantage, attracting members of the opposite sex for both mating and feeding. In game terms, rolling Charisma + Primal Urge - Wits of target.
Umbral Travel
The Ananasi do not travel to the Umbra in the same way as other Ovid. Rather than finding a spot where the Gauntlet is weak enough and staring into their reflections, the Damhan must assume the Crawlerling form and quite literally crawl between the strands of the Great Web. Once they have entered the Umbra, the werespiders may once again assume any form they desire, but for the Ananasi there is no other way to reach the spirit realms.
Venom
Just like their spider kin, the Damhan have special glands which produce venom. The venom can be quite powerful, depending on the Ananasi's form, but the werespiders must use Gifts in order to make their venom strong enough to affect shapeshifters or the undead. The neurotoxins they produce have very detrimental affects on most humans and other creatures; just how serious the results of one of their bites may be is left to the discretion of the Storyteller, but a human bitten by a Pitius is almost certainly dead or paralyzed for hours. The Ananasi can inject full-strength venom while in Pithus and a diluted version while in Lilian. The exact nature of the venom of each Ananasi is a result of the type of spiders which are a part of the werespider.
Tarantulas produce a very painful venom that is seldom lethal, but causes paralysis. Brown recluse spiders produce a necrotizing toxin that will spread through a body over days or weeks (in the case of a single spider biting a human sized target) and kill all flesh it encounters. The bite of a single black widow can cause death in a human-sized opponent, though more often just causes illness. However, without the use of Gifts, the Ananasi have only enough venom for two or three good solid injections; they simply aren't designed to inject venom constantly.
Webs
Ananasi in Pithus form can spin very strong, very durable webs. Creating webs on any substantial level (say, the amount needed to close off a narrow alleyway's entrance or fill a small closet) costs one blood point, as the Ananasi's body breaks down the blood to replenish the natural polymers which create the webbing. The tensile strength of the webs is about the same as steel cables, but more flexible. If the webs are used to snare an opponent, the target must break the webs to escape.
Ordinary Web Dice Pool
Strength: Seven.
Health Levels: Three.
Armor Rating: Zero.
For a target ensnared in these webs, they must accumulate three successes on strength rolls to break free.
Ananasi in Crawlerling form can also spin webs, but these webs are no stronger than an ordinary spider's (or rather, the webs of a thousand or so ordinary spiders).