The Antisocial Scene - Predators

[Quest Lord]

This is the equivalent to the social scene for predators. What kind of culture would they have built up? How would they interact with each other? For species that kill the male shortly after mating, how would that work out with our new sentient bugs? How would they view eusocial insects?

[Alpharius]

I imagine it would be the stereotypical underworld, full of mercs and what have you.

[Bees]

If the male is eaten, isn't that because he'd die shortly after mating anyway? There may be cultures that practice ritual combat or some other manuever (such as the aerial dance of dragonflies) before mating to indicate the male's fitness and even kill him if he fails the test, though if our insects live for more than one mating mate cannibalism would be rare I suppose.

About the predators, I think their temperament should depend entirely on the species in question. There are social spiders that share their webs to catch large prey, there are mantids that would reflexively snap on anything that comes upon their territory, including potential mates.

[BrokenMuse]

I'd imagine that some species would have complex means of interaction. Territory is important because without territory, you can't easily feed. Entering another's territory could be seen as an intrusion or attempt at a takeover. So if for whatever reason one predator needed to enter another's turf, certain signs would have to be broadcast clearly, maybe a gift would be offered.

[Bogleech]

Specialist predators who don't have a choice would be a little more realistic about their needs, but opportunistic predators might have a personal standards or a common code of honor about what they prey upon. They might prefer to battle and devour only other predators, rather than feasting on frail aphids or grubs. Preying upon larvae might be taboo to some species.

With so many insects that naturally die after mating, it might be cool if some of these have an arrangement with their predators. There might be territories that insects only willingly enter if they've already mated and know that they're going to die, offering themselves up as prey to help two species prosper instead of just their own. In return they might get protection from less honorable hunters.

[ChickenSpider]

Perhaps the predetors realize that adventuring with a party may yield more prey than normal. But when encounters are far in between... watch out.

[Sasha]

There's always the worry that a predator might lose itself - regress to a primal state, one where all it cared about was its next meal. It's rare, but...every bug has heard stories.

I do think that for PC bugs, some kind of unintelligent prey is a good idea. Maybe aphids, or aphid milk, could take the place of livestock? They're already farmed by ants, after all....or for that matter, fungus. It's got a decent protein content.

[Grawflemaul]

I do think that for PC bugs, some kind of unintelligent prey is a good idea. Maybe aphids, or aphid milk, could take the place of livestock? They're already farmed by ants, after all....or for that matter, fungus. It's got a decent protein content.

I don't think it's strictly necessary for those prey and cattle species to be non-sentient. It might be a little grim to basically be involved in genocide, slavery and the predation and consumption of sentient creatures, especially if you're a predator, but we aren't dealing with humans here. We're dealing with insects who're just learning the basics of civilization and morality.

Another option might be to include both sentient and non-sentient examples of all the different species. That works especially if the Sentience was initially location-based. Then you can have raiding parties of sentient species capturing non-sentient ones to serve as food.

Either way, it's going to be grim. But like I say, we're dealing with sentient arthropods. There's going to be a massive ethics and morals gap.

Especially with parasitic wasps. Good god.

[ChickenSpider]

There's always the worry that a predator might lose itself - regress to a primal state, one where all it cared about was its next meal. It's rare, but...every bug has heard stories.

Would there be a roll to represent a predetor losing control of herself? Like when a party member who is a prey species is helpless? I used the same role for Ghoul characters in my D20 Modern campaign, and I think it would apply well to this.

[Sasha]

There's always the worry that a predator might lose itself - regress to a primal state, one where all it cared about was its next meal. It's rare, but...every bug has heard stories.

Would there be a roll to represent a predetor losing control of herself? Like when a party member who is a prey species is helpless? I used the same role for Ghoul characters in my D20 Modern campaign, and I think it would apply well to this.

I hadn't thought of it that way, but that sounds like a great optional mechanic to add...maybe make it more difficult if the predator is hungry or injured, or if the prey species happens to be wearing a tiny little "Eat me, I'm delicious!" hat.

[Quest Lord]

The PC Predators giving in and nomming on a teammate smells of Falling Paladin shenanigans to me. Maybe as an optional flaw, tagged as something to run by the DM first, but even then I'm not sure. Anyone else have any feedback?

[Naryzhud]

I like it, but definitely as an optional, DM only rule... Some groups would not take well to this... At all.

[Grawflemaul]

It seems a good model might be the frenzy rules from Vampire. Dunno about oVampire, but in Vampire: The Requiem, vampires can be driven into a frenzy by hunger if they're very low on Vitae and are presented with an opportunity to feed. It's a Resolve and Composure roll to resist that frenzy, so here it might be based off of Int possibly. Maybe Social. That roll can be modified based on a number of factors, say your relationship with the target (if it's someone you've known for years then it's easier to stay in control than if you're faced with a complete stranger), how long it's been since you ate, and the exact situation you're in. It might be possible to develop skills to help the predator resist the urge to eat.

Predators are naturally going to be better combatants than prey arthropods, so maybe this could be a balancing factor. They have to keep themselves well-fed, and under control or they risk damaging the rest of the party, possibly the only ones keeping the predator going.

In a way, I can kinda see it working like a frenzying barbarian who'll attack anyone they can if not kept on a tight leash.

[Sasha]

It seems a good model might be the frenzy rules from Vampire. Dunno about oVampire, but in Vampire: The Requiem, vampires can be driven into a frenzy by hunger if they're very low on Vitae and are presented with an opportunity to feed. It's a Resolve and Composure roll to resist that frenzy, so here it might be based off of Int possibly. Maybe Social. That roll can be modified based on a number of factors, say your relationship with the target (if it's someone you've known for years then it's easier to stay in control than if you're faced with a complete stranger), how long it's been since you ate, and the exact situation you're in. It might be possible to develop skills to help the predator resist the urge to eat.

Predators are naturally going to be better combatants than prey arthropods, so maybe this could be a balancing factor. They have to keep themselves well-fed, and under control or they risk damaging the rest of the party, possibly the only ones keeping the predator going.

In a way, I can kinda see it working like a frenzying barbarian who'll attack anyone they can if not kept on a tight leash.

That certainly sounds like it might be a good balance for predator species. Maybe something along the lines of "enhanced instincts" could be a flaw of some sort, making it more difficult for any species to overcome their built-in nature (ants and xenophobia/agoraphobia, flies not grabbing a quick meal in the open, beetles not...uh...doing beetley things).

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