Underground Humanoids

Descended from even smaller fey, the mites are among the most pitiful and craven dwellers of the dark. Hideously ugly, even goblins have been known to mock mites for their homely appearances, mockery most mites take to heart and nurture for weeks, months, or even years in their tiny homes, until their distress and anger finally overcome their natural cowardice and impel them forth on short-lived bouts of bloody vengeance from the doubtful safety of a spider’s back. Mites, once closer to the strange realm of the fey, have grown larger and stockier after countless generations spent on the Material Plane. Yet still, their stature places them at the bottom of the pile in the dangerous caverns in which they live. Their traditional enemies are dwarves and gnomes, particularly the svirfneblin of the deep underground caves. The one thing that gives them a significant edge over an enemy in a fight is their natural ability to empathize with normally mindless vermin— mites are particularly fond of spiders, centipedes, and cave fishers, and a mite colony usually has a few of these far more dangerous monsters on hand to defend the group. Although they have lost the supernatural ability to tinker with magic items, luck, or mechanical objects possessed by their more sinister and dangerous gremlin kin, mites retain the ability to perform minor magical tricks with prestidigitation, and often use these tricks to annoy their enemies. When faced with dangerous foes, a mite uses its doom ability to hex a foe—a mite’s eyes bulge hideously open when it uses this spell-like ability. A mite is 3 feet tall and weighs 40 pounds.

Although related to the elves, the drow are a vile and evil cousin at best. Sometimes called dark elves, these cunning creatures prowl the caves and tunnels of the world below, ruling vast subterranean cities through fear and might. Worshiping demons and enslaving most races they encounter, the drow are among the underworld’s most feared and hated denizens. Drow are shorter and a bit more slender than their surface-dwelling kin, but they are otherwise physically similar. Drow have dark skin, ranging from black to a hazy purple hue. Most drow have white or silver hair and white or red eyes, but other colors are not unheard of. Drow society is ruled over by powerful nobility, themselves governed by sadistic and dangerous matriarchs who constantly plot and scheme against rival houses and lesser kin within their own families. The majority of drow are the common soldiers and decadent citizenry, with base stats as presented here—drow nobles are more powerful and dangerous, and are detailed on the facing page. In combat, drow are thoroughly ruthless, with little regard for fairness or mercy. They prefer to attack from ambush or to lure enemies into situations where they clearly have the upper hand. If things turn against them, drow are quick to flee, leaving slaves and minions to cover their escape.

Drow Nobility
About one out of every 20 drow is gifted with special powers from birth—the overwhelming majority of these exceptional drow are female, and as a result, drow society tends to be matriarchal in nature. These special births are engineered and encouraged among the ruling caste, and are far more likely to occur when the mother is of noble heritage. Strangely, the status of the father seems not to increase or decrease the chances of a child being born a drow noble. Common drow children born to nobles are usually put to death—sacrificed to one of the many demon gods to whom the drow offer worship. It is rare for a drow noble to be born to common parents, but those who are usually murder their parents or family before they come of age in order to hide the truth of their base upbringing and to ease the processes of joining one of their society’s noble houses. Drow nobles are more powerful than the majority of their kin, and as such they quickly rise to power within their houses. Advancement through the hierarchy of a drow noble house is usually accomplished through a combination of assassination, seduction, and treachery, leading most drow in power to be overly paranoid.

Cousins to dwarves, duergar are foul-tempered creatures that loathe intruders to their underground realms—but not nearly as much as they do their kinfolk closer to the surface. Duergar dwell in communities deep underground, and appear as darker, more twisted versions of their kinder kin. Their skin is a dull gray, as though rubbed with dust or ash, but this is a natural coloration that better allows them to blend with their underground surroundings. They are a race of slavers, but while non-dwarven prisoners are usually put to backbreaking work, dwarven prisoners are generally slain on the spot. In combat, duergar fire crossbows from a distance, then shift to the warhammer after a few rounds. If outnumbered, or given sufficient threat (and space), a duergar will use its enlarge person ability and begin lashing out at its enemies.

The name “caligni” is an ancient term for the races now collectively known as dark folk, sometimes still used by dark folk communities to refer to themselves. Untold generations ago, these subterranean dwellers aspired to grand destinies, and might have achieved them if not for the planned degeneration meted out by their controllers, the owbs. Yet even today, dark folk are sometimes born bearing an uncanny likeness to the ancients that dark stalkers still imitate. Throwbacks to the time before owb tampering, these individuals—called simply “caligni”—might be born from any dark folk race, reminders of their people’s half-remembered dreams.  The birth of a caligni is a momentous sign, celebrated by many dark folk. Yet it’s not uncommon for a maturing caligni to threaten the caste-clans of dark folk society or offend an owb overlord; as a result, most caligni don’t survive to adulthood in dark folk society, falling victim to suspicious accidents or mysterious murders. The canniest caligni foresee their people’s treachery and leave, seeking homes elsewhere in the Darklands, and putting the talents they have learned among other dark folk to use in their own service, or in that of less treacherous allies.  Caligni measure close to 6 feet tall but weigh as little as 125 pounds. They’re often mistaken for dark stalkers, though their features are more defined and individually distinctive beneath their thick wrappings. Their skin is bleached gray, deepening to obsidian at the extremities. Caligni age at the same rate as half-elves, and don’t typically breed true, instead giving birth to more common dark folk types—typically dark creepers.  Most caligni adventurers become rogues and slayers, adopting the training of their dark creeper and dark stalker brethren. Some become alchemists, and the most depraved commune with the owbs as conjurers and summoners.  

Vegepygmys are created by a dangerous fungus known as russet mold—creatures slain by russet mold serve as incubators for the mold’s spores, and a day later, the dead body bursts to release 1d6 fully grown vegepygmys. A vegepygmy has no real relation to the body from which it emerges, but the creature may yet retain a strange sort of reverence for its “birth corpse” and carry with it a grisly memento from the body, typically a few bones or teeth. Often, a vegepygmy uses such bones to craft a crude spear or some other weapon. Vegepygmy tribes live in tightly knit communities and fiercely guard their patches of russet mold. Vegepygmies cannot speak—they communicate via a crude language of rhythmic taps, beats, and clicks. Hunting parties echo these exchanges through the caves they travel. Vegepygmies stand 2 to 4 feet tall and weigh between 15 to 45 pounds. Approximately 1 in 20 vegepymies are chieftains. A vegepygmy chieftain is an advanced vegepygmy (often one with class levels) that carries an infestation of russet mold spores in its flesh. A vegepygmy chieftain infects any creature it hits with its natural weapons with russet mold spores.

RUSSET MOLD (CR 6)
This hazardous fungus can be found in dark, wet areas, and often grows in great abundance at the heart of a vegepygmy lair. When a creature approaches within 5 feet of a patch of russet mold, the fungus releases a cloud of spores in a 5-foot radius burst. Everyone in the area must make a DC 15 Fortitude save or the spores quickly take root in their victims, inflicting 2 points of Constitution damage per round. A new Fortitude save can be attempted each round to halt the growth. Although immunity to disease won’t protect against russet mold spores, the growth can be halted by remove disease and similar effects. Exposure to sunlight also halts the spores’ growth. Plants are immune to russet mold spores. After 24 hours, a fully grown vegepygmy bursts from the body of any creature slain by russet mold, provided the creature was Small or larger. For each size category larger than Small, the body produces one additional vegepygmy. A patch of russet mold is unharmed by all effects save for acid, alcohol, or remove disease (or a similar magical effect, such as heal), all of which can kill a single patch of russet mold on contact. Sunlight doesn’t kill the mold, but does render it dormant and harmless as long as the sunlight persists.

Though still clad in the tattered dark clothing worn by other dark folk, dark dancers appear to be the most decorated and festive of these strange humanoids. They are intermediaries between clans and factions, and thus clans can’t restrict the actions of dark dancers in their realms. Dark dancers answer only to dark stalkers and dark callers. Though fickle and erratic, dark dancers are well liked and usually welcome among clans for as long as they wish to stay. Yet they rarely stay long, instead insinuating themselves into dozens of underground communities over the course of a year. They serve as storytellers, entertainers, and messengers. One of their favorite stories to share is about the relationship between their kind and the owbs. Though dark dancers are rare and weak, they are highly appreciated by dark folk society. Dark folk consider it a bad omen when a dark dancer dies. Dark dancers stand just under 4 feet tall and weigh 60 pounds.

These pale humanoids, who hail from the distant shores of strange subterranean oceans, have long warred against the encroaching urdefhans. Munavris pilot violet-sailed, intricately carved ivory ships across the inky black depths of underground oceans and are adept at lightless naval battles. They sometimes find allies among the dark folk, but such pacts are far from universal and are marked by distrust.

Skulks are a race of cowardly and lazy humanoids that live on the fringes of society, stealing what they need and doing what they must—even committing casual murder—to survive. Their unabashed cowardice is perhaps their most widely known trait, but skulks don’t see themselves as particularly craven. Instead, they view their dishonorable behaviors as the most expedient method of survival. They hate most other humanoids, viewing them as lazy and foolish, and think nothing of sneaking into a home, killing all the residents, and burglarizing what they can carry off without getting caught. Skulks travel in small groups, rarely forming tribes of more than 16, for in larger groups bickering quickly leads to violent infighting. Murder between skulks is not uncommon, but they understand safety in numbers, and most frown upon treason within a group that is already relatively small, punishing traitors with a quick death. When possible, they set up camps in discreet spots near other settlements, commonly inhabiting sewers, caves, or forests—though their unsavory, murderous tactics often force them to relocate before local law enforcement, quickly alerted to their presence once the remains of a family of victims are discovered, finds them. Skulks are roughly the same size as a human, averaging 6 feet tall, though they are significantly more gangly and nimble, and commonly weigh only 140 pounds. Skinny arms and legs help them sneak around obstacles and squeeze into narrow spaces. Skulks can live up to 50 years, though most die from violence long before that. Although skulks have racial Hit Dice, they generally advance in power by taking class levels. Rogue is a favorite choice among skulks, for their natural abilities at stealth and sneak attacks fit well with this choice, but they also excel in the roles of clerics, fighters and rangers who specialize in ranged weapons, and rarely as wizards (particularly illusionists).

Svirfneblin, or “deep gnomes,” are a reclusive offshoot of the gnome race. They dwell underground in hidden cities, safe from dark elves and other subterranean races. They have skin the color of gray or brown stone. Males are bald, and females have stringy gray hair. A svirfneblin’s ties to the eerie realm of the fey are much stronger than those of their surface-dwelling gnome kin, and this makes them either strangely detached from their emotions or violently random in their outbursts. Svirfneblin have long fought wars against the duergar, and have a difficult time seeing the difference between duergar and other dwarves.

The troglodyte is a feral, savage cave dweller. They are among the most populous denizens of the upper reaches of the endless caverns of the underworld, equally at home raiding the settlements of those who dwell above or below ground, yet for all their race’s fecundity and sprawl, as a whole they represent only a minor threat. At times, great leaders can draw legions of troglodytes to their command to create vast and deadly armies, but left to their own devices, troglodyte tribes are content to keep each other under control with numerous feuds, cannibalistic raids, and bitter civil wars. The troglodyte is one of the oldest of intelligent races, and ruins found in some remote caverns testify to the fact that their empire was once among the largest in the world. At the dawn of time, the troglodyte civilization was generations ahead of other humanoid races—while those races hid in caves and worshiped fire, the troglodytes raised vast cities of stone ziggurats and twisting canals, kept other races as slaves, and worshiped ancient and inhuman gods and demons. Yet as the other races evolved and grew increasingly civilized, they outstripped their onetime troglodyte oppressors. Today, the roles have changed—now it is the troglodyte that hides in caves and lives the life of a feral savage. Religion is strong among troglodyte tribes, and their shamans and priests are universally the highest regarded members of a clan. A troglodyte chieftain is not always a cleric or druid, but those who do not have divine power are usually mere mouthpieces and puppet lords that answer to the beck and call of the local seer or shaman. Troglodytes generally worship one of the countless demon lords, particularly those of a reptilian or primeval shape and form or those whose Abyssal domains most closely resemble the tangled caverns troglodytes prefer. Troglodyte druids are usually neutral evil if they dwell with their own kind (and are universally feared and respected for the eerie command they have over beasts). A typical troglodyte stands about 5 feet tall and weighs 150 pounds.

Dark creepers lurk in the black places deep below the surface of the world, venturing forth at night or into neighboring societies when the urge to steal and cause mayhem grows too great to resist. Endless layers of filthy, moldering black cloth shroud these small creatures, leading some to believe that the creature inside is smaller still. Usually encountered in groups, dark creepers flee from bright light, but are quite brave in the dark. Dark creepers stand just under 4 feet tall and weigh 80 pounds. Their flesh is pale and moist, and their eyes are milky white. Dark creepers exude a foul stench of sweat and spoiled food, owing primarily to the fact that they never take off their clothing—instead piling on new layers when the outermost one grows too ragged. For all the mayhem and trouble a pack of dark creepers can cause, this is nothing compared to the dangers a tribe led by the taller, even more sinister dark stalkers represents. Dark creepers treat their tall, lithe masters almost like gods, presenting them with offerings and obeying their every whim. Invariably, several dark stalkers serve as leaders to dark creeper tribes, with all of the tribe’s heavy work and labor falling on the diminutive shoulders of the creepers, freeing the dark stalkers for their own decadent pleasures. Yet the dark creepers themselves see no inherent imbalance in this arrangement—to a dark creeper, a life in the servitude of a dark stalker is a life fulfilled.

Dark slayers are a relatively rare sub-race of the dark folk imbued with malign energies that grant them a suite of deadly spell-like abilities beyond those normally accessible to their kin. They are usually encountered leading small bands of dark creepers, and seethe with barely concealed envy of the dark stalkers, ever scheming to displace them and claim a dark folk tribe of their own. Dark stalkers direct the slayers for their own ends, grooming them for use against enemies, ever ready to sacrifice a slayer in battle for an advantage, however temporary. Unlike other dark folk, dark slayers embrace their evil impulses. Their pleasures extend more to murder and pain than to theft or mayhem. Dark slayers are obsessed with magical trinkets, coveting them above all else. Sadly, their obsessive need to fiddle and tinker often leaves their pretties broken or depleted. Dark slayers stand just short of 4 feet tall and weigh 50 pounds. Most have a persistent tremor visible in their hands, stilled only when fondling a newfound magic item. Their skin is dead white, dry, and hot to the touch; their eyes are dark and narrow. Dark slayers wear salvaged rags like dark creepers do, but they discard the rags when they grow too tattered or foul-smelling.

Though derros dwell deep under most of the surface world’s cities, very few know of the sadistic creatures’ existence. Descended from mysterious fey that once dwelt deep underground, the derros lust for the comforts of the surface, yet the light of the sun causes them to blister, burn, and die. Derros often abduct surface dwellers to perform hideous experiments on them in their neverending quest to divine what protects those who dwell above from the burning death, yet the intrinsic madness that plagues all derros dooms these experiments to failure every time. In the end, traumatized victims are returned to their homes, memories not quite completely wiped of their ordeal, to live the rest of their lives in vague fear of a nightmare they can’t quite recall. A typical derro fights with a short sword or a repeating light crossbow with plenty of poison bolts. Some derros also carry an aklys—a hooked throwing club attached to a 20-footlong cord. This cord limits the club’s range, but allows the derro to retrieve it as a move action after it has been thrown. Derro leaders are typically sorcerers of at least 3rd level, although they also make excellent rogues. Many derros wield strange and unusual weapons like hooked polearms, eerie whistling aklyses, long hollow spears that can be filled with toxins, or crystalline throwing wedges that shatter on impact to create horrific bleeding wounds. A derro stands 3 feet tall and weighs 70 pounds.

The strange and mysterious dark stalkers are the undisputed leaders of dark folk society. Deep underground, these creatures dwell in strange villages (some rumors suggest entire cities) built of stone and fungus in remote caverns where they are served and worshiped by their coarser, diminutive kin, the dark creepers. Dark stalkers come to the surface rarely, but when they do it is on a mission, and with a force of creatures such that it never ends well for those they seek to rob or torment. Dark stalkers are tall, frail humanoids with incredibly pale skin. They constantly wear multiple layers of dark cloth and black leather armor, yet unlike their lesser kin, a dark stalker’s garb is always clean and spotless. Each dark stalker carries a pair of short swords— they prefer these weapons to all others. Dark stalkers are 6 feet tall and weigh 100 pounds. In a fight, dark stalkers are not above sacrificing lesser creatures, including dark creepers, to win the day or cover their retreat if things go poorly. They hate well-lit areas and always prefer to fight under the cover of deeper darkness. Dark stalkers rarely fight to the death if it can be avoided, preferring to slip away if things begin to look grim. The origins of the dark stalkers and the dark creepers are shrouded in mystery, made more difficult to decipher by the fact that the dark stalkers do not keep records of their history. Many scholars believe that, just as the drow descended from elves, so too must the dark folk have descended from humanity, their eerie powers and spell-like abilities the result of generation upon generation of devotion to profane and sinister magic. Alas, the truth of the race’s history may never be known.

Dark callers hold a position in dark folk society similar to that of lay priests. Dark callers are named for their role in summoning otherworldly creatures called owbs to oversee important rites in their shadowed communities deep underground. Dark callers perform rituals that bring these creatures forth to preside over all manner of ceremonies the dark folk perform, but the most important is the blanching. When dark folk are born, they are exposed to the sinister touch of the owb’s curse of darkness ability, which saps all color and light from the infant dark folk. It’s during this ritual that the infant’s potential is judged. From that moment on, the youngling grows into one of the various types of dark folk. Dark callers are the least physically malformed of the dark folk, but their minds are more twisted than those of their cousins. They’re cruel and inscrutable to most, and they lead their kind alongside dark stalkers, controlling vast underground communities of these strange humanoids. In many cases, one dark stalker and one dark caller lead a clan. A dark caller is highly superstitious, seeing omens in all things. He constantly performs strange rituals whose results are interpreted only by him, then passed to the dark stalker with he’s paired with in leadership. Dark callers are typically 6 feet tall and weigh slightly under 100 pounds. Despite their lanky frames, they’re quite strong, though they avoid physical confrontation. Instead, they’ll use their limited authority to command dark creepers to fight for them, or at least distract attackers while the dark callers cast spells.

Ingesting high doses of the fungus cytillesh imbues derro magisters with heightened mental abilities.

When long-term exposure to radiation or bizarre magical fields doesn’t result in a creature’s death, it might mutate the creature into a twisted version of itself. Some of these mutations can be advantageous, while others are unquestionably a hindrance. Mutants often band together into roving bands of loosely affiliated marauders, traveling the land in search of food, shelter, or whatever else motivates their fractured minds.