Editing Thriae (section)

==Thriae Dancer==
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For as stoic and pragmatic as the thriae may be, they do appreciate art, grace, and beauty. This is exemplified not only by their ornately crafted weapons, armor, and jewelry, but also by their renowned dancers. These talented individuals are the most honored performers of their race, and they grace the halls and temple chambers of every thriae colony.

While all thriae can be considered the epitome of alien grace and charm, thriae dancers are always among the most beautiful of their kind. They are typically 6 feet tall and weigh 140 pounds.

Other races may scoff at the fact that thriae dancers seemingly rely on royal jelly consumption in order to channel their mystical power into their dances, but there is much more to this act than one might realize.

A thriae dancer’s reliance on royal jelly to execute her awesome performances is akin to a ballerina’s reliance on her specialized shoes—while a ballet can be performed without them, the final result lacks a certain amount of finish without this integral element. So too does a thriae dancer’s use of royal jelly enhance her performance, with the potent serum pushing her body to its utmost limits.

As the royal jelly courses through a dancer, she channels her mysterious art into a spiritual energy capable of thrusting viewers to previously unknown heights of pleasure, awe, and sorrow. It’s true that thriae are a stoic, nigh-unflinching race, but in the middle of a thriae dancer’s performance, it’s rare to see any thriae witnesses unmoved by such a powerful spectacle.

Like all thriae, a dancer’s role in the colony is chosen for her during adolescence, and she’s thereafter cared for and trained by elder members from the same occupation until ready to perform on her own. A dancer’s training takes many years of concentrated effort and tutelage from her superiors, during which time she’s permitted to see no one but her fellow dancers. Thriae seers reason that dancers must be completely virginal in order for them to channel only the purest forms of nature’s secrets. All training takes place within a special temple room in the thriae colony, where incense derived from royal jelly is burned constantly to ensure the dancers’ focus is sustained for hours on end.

Dancers train in troupes, and most performances are choreographed group pieces performed once a month in the colony’s largest hall, with an audience of thriae from all parts of the colony and caste system. The buzz of wings and even the sound of twitching antennae become muted as thriae soldiers, seers, and workers eagerly witness the highly spiritual dance ceremony.

Drones—those humanoid men inducted into thriae society—are not permitted to witness thriae dances, as to behold such beauty would surely drive them irreparably mad.

Only the most talented and coveted thriae dancers are permitted to perform alone—there’s typically only one such dancer in the entire colony, though some colonies might host a pair of honored performers. The solo or duet performances of these honored individuals are considered sacred affairs, and are typically attended only by the queen and upper class thriae such as seers, royal consorts, and generals.

Rarer than standard thriae dancers are the terpsichoreans, who occupy the upper echelons of thriae society. Thriae terpsichoreans are dancers who typically have levels in [[bard]], are at least CR 9, and have access to the following spell-like abilities: 3/day—heroism, suggestion; 1/ day—zone of silence.