Draiders are huge spiders from which rises the torso of an elf woman, encountered in Vala. They are venomous, wield two-handed swords and are “bigger than you remember”. One of them was the former wife or fiancée of a companion.
| Type | Creature |
| Spanish entry | Draider |
Description
“The body of the spider, and from a part of the spider comes a woman’s torso: they are elves.” The abdomen is the most dangerous part (“the abdomen is nasty”). The spider body gives mass, clawed legs and venom; the elven torso holds a two-handed sword in both hands, so a draider fights as both beast and swordswoman.
Combat
- They are venomous and cause poisoning; how the venom is delivered is not recorded. Immunity removes their worst threat.
- Their neck is exposed and can be struck.
- Under severe trauma, the blood vessels under their skin burst into bruises.
- Paralysis holds them only for a brief moment.
The encounter at la campilla
Two draiders climbed toward a company “at la campilla”. One seemed “out of it, confused” yet hostile: “she doesn’t really understand what is happening and wants your blood”. Huge spiders “happen” in Vala; how common draiders are is not stated.
One of the two was the former wife or fiancée of a companion: “a wife is a draider”; “is my fiancée one of those too?“. Her confused state points to transformation or possession rather than a stable species, but this is not established.
Open questions
- What and where la campilla is, and why the draiders were there.
- Whether draiders are a species, transformed elves or possessed bodies.
- Which companion’s wife or fiancée she was.
- Whether they speak; color, smell and sound are not recorded.
- The name is disputed: draider or Dreader.