Vespiers

Vespiers are an Israidian race that migrated to Calamia during the War of Daishevar. They are distantly related to the Athdraki, although any Athdraki would deny this fact, as Vespiers are considered to be a lesser race. On Calamia, Vespiers are more commonly known as "Werebats" due to their ability to take on a shape resembling that of a large, demonic bat (i.e., NOT humanoid with bat-like wings, but rather a human-sized bat with a fox-like head. Their arms *become* wings during the transformation). They are occasionally confused with Vampires, but Vespiers do not survive solely on blood, nor do they fear the sun. They are, however, carnivorous and primarily nocturnal, although if necessary, they can be active at any time of day.

Left to themselves, Vespiers live in prolific clusters or colonies (made up of "folds" - smaller groups of between 5-8 individuals, usually 1 or 2 breeding males and 6 or 7 females), preferring dark subterranean caverns for homes. Born into their bat forms with few human sensibilities, they're highly efficient predators who spend the first decade of their lives learning to fly and hunt inside their respective colonies. From birth to puberty, they're more animalistic than humans, and given to frenzied packs if not controlled by the adults. When they reach adolescence, however, they begin to develop a more acute understanding of the world around them. Some, though not all, learn how to shift into a secondary form that resembles that of a human. The transformation is not easy to master, and many Vespiers go their entire lives without ever achieving human form. Even those that succeed have difficulty transforming during times of extreme stress. Those that master the ability to physically transform at will are highly regarded and often become leaders.

Vespiers live longer than humans but still have relatively short life spans averaging around 200 years. As adults, they focus on the basics: food, shelter, protection, and procreation. Because of this, colonies can become quite large, numbering from 50 to 100 individuals in a single colony (on average). In particularly large caverns, multiple colonies may join together, increasing their numbers to as high as 500 vespiers.

Vespiers are not monogamous, and they do not form permanent pair bonds. They have an annual breeding season where males jostle for the right to court females. After courtship, the males leave the females to rear their young alone. Fathers play no role in the rearing of their young, but pregnant females will form nursery groups and raise their children jointly. Usually, Vespier females only have one child at a time, though occasionally twins are born. The bond between mother and young is intensely strong, sometimes even after maturity, but most young vespiers strike out on their own once they're weaned off their mother's milk. They grow rapidly, reaching adolescence at about six years of age and full maturity between eight and ten years. All vespiers have an uncanny sense of direction and are able to find their way home over long distances. They also have good hearing and low-light vision.

It should be noted that as a race, Vespiers do not generally behave like humans in terms of morality, social structure, or lifestyle. Vespiers are migratory creatures and do not establish permanent towns or cities. They like to live in caverns, crevices, or deep forests where food is plentiful. In such places, they construct makeshift shelters out of stone, mud, or grasses, but these shelters are rudimentary and more along the lines of nests. Migration patterns are determined by weather conditions, food supply, and available shelter. They will, if necessary, utilize old or abandoned buildings, but typically stay away from human settlements. They have their own language, which is different from the common Calamian dialects, but some Vespiers are capable of learning human speech. They can also be trained (though not easily) to integrate into human society, but it is not something they do naturally. Vespierian magi (both full vespiers or half breeds) are virtually unheard of, requiring training from a non-vespierian source. Natural colonies have no need for magic and so do not attempt to study or pass it on to their young.

In human form, Vespiers are cunning and cold-hearted. This is not to say that they are inherently evil. They are simply less emotional and more focused than humans, making them excellent servants or soldiers (to a master strong enough to control them). In their werebat form, Vespiers increase in strength over their human forms, are highly agile and capable of flight. They remain similar in size to their human forms, but they revert to a primitive mindset, behaving more like animals. As bats, they are violent, less organized, and less responsive to coherent communication, making them very dangerous to confront. This is both their strength and their weakness.

Note: Any full or half-breed Vespierian magus will completely lose the ability to cast spells while in their bat form (regardless of character class - no exceptions).

Vespiers typically have pale eyes and darker shades of hair. Physically speaking, Vespiers tend to be slightly larger than the average human. They can easily blend in with humans because their human form is very similar. The resemblance is close, but not exact. For example, many female vespiers have a soft, downy peach fuzz on their arms and legs. Their hair is thicker and more luxuriant and males commonly have dark, wiry chest and back hair. The eyes are large and often give the impression of a "deer in headlights". The most striking physical feature that sets Vespiers apart from ordinary humans can only be seen in the dark. Their eyes seem to glow red from certain angles, much like a cat's eyes.

Vespiers were first seen on Calamia serving as soldiers for the invading Israidians. However, after the war they dispersed and formed their own colonies. For many centuries, they were hunted and killed as "demons", but because they kept to themselves and did not regularly instigate attacks on humans, the original stigma surrounding their origins passed into history.

Today, some people today still fear them, but many farmers like to utilize their droppings as manure for their fields. In many human settlements, the art of gathering werebat excrement is almost a religion and some tribal peoples revere them. As a result, Vespier colonies are not necessarily destroyed by neighboring humans. Unless colonies become diseased or start to infringe on local food supplies, humans generally leave them alone.

Half-Vespiers

While exceedingly rare, Vespiers can procreate with humans. The resulting offspring retain their Vespierian parent's genetic features, except they are born human first, gaining the ability to change into the secondary form upon reaching puberty. These offspring are not as strong or agile as full-blooded Vespiers in their bat forms, and can only fly short distances. However, they retain more of their human mental control than do full Vespiers. Due to their genetic similarity, these offspring are difficult to tell apart from full Vespiers and are still referred to as such.

They grow exceptionally fast and are little terrors just like full vespiers, but only up to the age of three or four. Once they've learned to walk, their human senses come into effect. They look completely human until they're about seven or eight years old, then they're usually able to change. Compared to full vespiers, they're smarter, less volatile, and have more human-like emotions.