Quito (3.5e Race)

Quito
Summary::They are the tall thin bloodsucking insect people with a knack for biology and the manipulation of genetics, known as the quito. And who can blame others for being wary for them, for while they are not inherently evil they do have a fascination with the blood, an element of life, a sign of death, a source of food, and the medium in which they work their greatest sciences and magic. These "mosquito people" may come off as creepy, but few can claim mastery over biological knowledge as they.

Personality
The quito, much like their thri-kreen brothers, were born of insectiod stock. Their minds are somehow simultaneously simple and complex, thinking quicky, methodically, almost computer-like. As such they come off as stilted, controled, or unemotional, when this isn't really the case. They simply do not, perhaps cannot, express themselves in the same degree or manner. Their inhuman faces also robs them of common visual expression, leading to their alien appearance to the outside world. Yet while they were not born to socialize, they were born to analyse and take great pleasure in the pursuit of knowledge. They often befriend, if not become, wizards and other people whose role is of the mind and spirit, able to comprehend the nature of the universe analytically.

Physical Description
The quito are too thin, and it makes something seem wrong in the eyes of non-quito. While slightly larger than human height, their bodies are exceedingly thin and frail looking, with glossy, semi-translucent exoskeleton ranging from nearly transparent off-white to deep rich dark chocolate brown. When they feed their bodies bloat with blood, filling them in and darkening their body anything from dull red to pitch black. On their back a pair of small insect wings are folded, used for heat regulation more than flight. Their legs and arms are much longer their their relatively small torso, and their heads are similarly elongated. Two bulbous compound eyes with two-layered eyelids stare out with vision which deeps deeper into the infrared than humans, and where a nose and mouth would be extends a long face which ends in a barbed dull needle point. This "needle" is actually the sheathe to a long prehensile tongue with hair-like thin barbs on the underside. By attaching the tongue to exposed flesh, they stick dozens of tiny hypodermic needles under the skin, drawing blood up through the tongue and into the body.

They have hands with three fingers and two thumbs, and holes along the side of their head which act as both nostrils and mouths to which they vocalize, voices which come out with a distinctive buzzing noise often said to sound artificial. As hemophages they feed only on blood and in fact do not possess the mouths to eat solid food. They may still drink liquids, and many appreciate a variety of beverages. They are capable of surviving on nectar and pulped plant matter, but will grow ill without the compounds found in blood.

Quitos are internally fertialized, but lay eggs after conception in sets of 2 to 6 within a body of water or high humidity. Eggs are surrounded by a sticky rubbery gel which quickly dries and becomes durable, with growth and birth ocurring in 3 months time. Young quitos, called nymphs, are nearly mindless and resemble oversized worms. After 2 months in this state, they enter a cocooned state of their own making, and spend the remaining month developing the body of an adult quito, including sapience. They possess a rudimentary genetic memory and immediate know how to move and feed, with a simple grasp of the language picked up while in nymph stage. They grow quickly, reaching adult size after several feeding frenzies.

Relations
Due to their disturbing appearance, disturbing diet, insectile nature, and unnatural method of speaking, many dislike quitos on principle. The quito are self aware of this, and they keep a wide berth of other races, focusing inward on their own culture and becoming culturally cut off. To those groups which make friendly relations with others, they are more than happy to become trading parteners. Even so, the quito often feel that they are forever outside the concerns of mammelian life, for better or worse. Amongst thri-kreen they share a common bond, and while they cannot be part of the thri-kreen proud warrior race mentality, they find it easy to communicate with them, sometimes using them as a middleman between quito and humanoid outposts.

Alignment
Methodical by nature, quitos tend towards lawful alignments with no strict focus towards good or evil.

Lands
Quito lands are always found in places of high humidity or easy access to water, and high tempatures. The cold freezes the blood and robs it of its life-giving warmth and while adult quitos can survive just fine in a desert, their children cannot.

Religion
The quitos have no unified religion, but due to their blood-focused nature, a vast number of quito have joined the Blood of VolECS. Unfortunately being a religion of a lawful evil diety does make others view them in poor light, even if the quito themselves might have more innocent and lawful thoughts in mind.

Language
Quito speak a language of buzzings and clicks known as Queet. The language is similar to Thri-Kreen, stemming from a common source, and so a speaker of Queet can understand Thri-Kreen with some difficulty (a DC 10 Speak Language check). Those who have been exposed to the outside world (typically PCs) also speak Common.

Names
Quito have a first name and a tribe name, which is effectively the name of their community. They do not have family names per se. Their names are sometimes attached with an honoriffic (such as Bob the Bold or Tim the Dragonslayer) if they have achieved some manner of fame or rank. Names usually lack B, F, and M and instead possess many K, T, and Z sounds with pleanty of breaks and gottal stops. Female names possess more vowels than male names. Male names include T'xorhynchit, N'zrez, Styrt, and N'tkoragrnt. Female names include Kurex, Nat, T'puradae, and Cureek'dah.

Racial Traits

 * ,, , : Thin lanky bodies and alien mindsets devoid of what can be recognized as normal facial expressions make for disturbing creatures without much strength.  Yet their bodies are nimble and their mind sharp and logical.
 * Type::Monstrous Humanoid: They are humanoid but lack anything similar to most mammalian humanlike creatures.
 * As medium creatures quito have no special size bonuses or penalties.
 * Quito base land speed is 30 feet.
 * Blood Drinker : Quito's feed primarily on blood, an act which is difficult to pull off in combat and is usually done against a helpless or willing creature.  If successfully grappling a creature, the quito may make a grapple check.  A successful check deals 1 point of Con damage and gives the quito 5 temporary hp which lasts for 24 hours or until expended.  A quito can drink up to 1 point of Con per HD they possess (therefore a 10 HD quito can deal 10 Con damage a day, and gain up to 50 temporary hp a day).  Temporary hp from this ability stacks with itself, but not other forms of temporary hp.  At minimum a quito must drink at least 1 point of Con in blood a day, the equivallent of a day's meal.
 * Natural Armor : Quito's exoskeleton grants them a +1 bonus to natural armor.
 * Too Thin : Quito's are very lightweight for their size.  They count as one size smaller for the purpose of fitting through spaces and determining if heavy wind effects them, and take a -4 penalty on ability checks made to resist being bull rushed or tripped when standing on the ground (but not when climbing, flying, riding, or otherwise not standing firmly on the ground).
 * Unusual Anatomy : As quito are unnaturally thin, they cannot wear traditional armor and thus purchase armor based on armor for unusually sized or shaped creatures (double mundane cost of normal humanoid armor).
 * Wings : The quito possesses small wings that cannot fly at first, but do protect them from dangerous falls, snapping out even if unconscious and reducing fall damage to a maximum of 1d6 points.  As the quito gains levels it can use its wings better until it can actually fly.  A quito with flight can make a dive attack.  A dive attack works like a charge, but the quito must move a minimum of 30 feet and descend at least 10 feet.  A quito can make a dive attack only when wielding a piercing or slashing weapon; if the attack hits, it deals double damage.  A quito with flight can use the run action while flying, provided it flies in a straight line.  When the quito reaches 4 HD the quito can glide up to 20 ft. for every 5 ft. dropped.  At 8 HD the quito gains a fly speed of 30 ft with average maneuverability.   At 12 HD the quito's maneuverability rises to good.
 * Quitos have a +2 racial bonus on Heal checks.
 * Automatic Languages: Common, Queet.
 * Bonus Languages: Aquan, Auran, Draconic, Giant, and Thri-Kreen.
 * Favored Class: and
 * Level Adjustment: +Level Adjustment::0
 * Effective Character Level: Effective Character Level::1
 * Effective Character Level: Effective Character Level::1