Haan

The slender arthropodan haans soar through the skies in search of prey.

Haans fly not via wings but by deftly weaving their silken webbing into balloons, which they then inflate with buoyant gases expelled from tubes in their shells. Combining this upward lift with web sails and occasional blasts from their gas tubes, haans are able to ride the winds of their homeworld with terrifying speed and precision, often bobbing along just at the leading edge of a storm front. Once they locate prey, haans ignite their jets of flammable gas using sparks from specially evolved strike plates in their leg chitin, creating biological flamethrowers. The roasted prey is then quickly caught and secured to a balloon of its own before it can fall away into the planet’s depths.

Though haans are intelligent, their society is highly traditional and forbids all but the simplest tools. Those rare haans who leave their kin to travel the stars often become starship and aircraft pilots, finding that their experience in flying organically gives them a natural aptitude for the physics involved. Sadly, these individuals are inevitably mourned as dead by their families and never allowed to return home—a fact that leads many haan starfarers to join up with crime families, megacorporations, military organizations, adventuring groups, or other social organizations that promise a sense of belonging.

The average haan is 8 feet long and weighs 180 pounds. Their chitin tends toward a pinkish purple, and they have barbed limbs and spiky pedipalps, which stretch wide on either side of their faces. Though the mottled colors on their shells can be quite beautiful, haan vanity is focused almost exclusively on the large, hairlike spikes extending from the tips of their abdomen. Haans never cover these unless they absolutely have to, and they frequently carve, cut, and decorate them with the same care humans reserve for head hair. Indeed, even traditionalist haans often sneak onto mining settlements in search of off-worlder barbers and other artisans offering “file and style” services to help them establish unique and identifiable looks.

Racial Traits

Ability Adjustments: +2 Str, +2 Dex, –2 Int

Hit Points: 4

Size and Type

Haans are Large monstrous humanoids with a space and reach of 10 feet.

Darkvision

Haans have darkvision with a range of 60 feet.

Firespray

As a standard action, a haan can create a 30-foot cone of flame that deals 1d6 fire. Starting at 3rd level, a haan adds 1-1/2 × her character level to the damage. A creature in the cone can attempt a Reflex save (DC = 10 + half the haan’s character level + her Constitution modifier) for half damage. A haan can’t use this ability again until she has taken a 10-minute rest to recover Stamina Points.

Slow Fall

A haan in an environment with atmosphere can slow her fall by inflating a web balloon as a reaction. This is an extraordinary ability that functions as per flight cast at 1st level.