Arcane

Description

(from Planescape Monstrous Compendium Appendix II - 1995)

The arcane are a race of traders and merchants who travel the planes in search of business. [They] prefer to dress in exotic silken robes and broad fur capes or stoles. They don't wear armor, but often carry magical protection such as rings, cloaks, or bracers. Most arcane appear to be only lightly armed, with long, thing weapons such as rapiers, staves, or light long-handled maces.

The arcane typically travel in groups they refer to as "companies." These companies may number only a handful of arcane, but it is quite common for human and demihuman bodyguards to be part of the entourage. It's rare to find an arcane without 4 to 10 bloods nearby.

No one knows the dark of it, but it's said that the arcane've got a strange reluctance to enter Sigil and avoid it at all costs. If an arcane finds [themselves] in the Cage, [they'll] seek to leave immediately by any door available - no matter where that door might lead.

The arcane appear to have no cities or settlements of any kind, existing only as wandering merchants. A company of arcane may number as few as just one of the creatures, or as many as a dozen. Guards and temporary employees numbering 4 to 10 times the actual number of arcane are always nearby.

The arcane seem to work more as arrangers and speculators instead of manufacturers or bulk goods purveyors. It's quite common for an arcane to hire human or demihuman merhcants to handle the shipment of anything larger than four or five chests' worth of materials. If an arcane trader strikes a deal to deliver 1,000 Arcadian swords to Ysgard, [they'll] hire an Arcadian merchant to take the swords to the Outlands and then hire a second merchant to deliver the swords from Glorious to the buyers. To the outside observer, it's all quite mysterious - one day a warehouse full of swords just seems to appear as promised.

It's said that the arcane've got a dark to hide, a racial design of unknown purpose or depth. They've never told of it, since they'll die before they'll spill their secrets. Whatever they're up to, they're very well infromed of each others' activities and know when one of their kind has been rudely treated by any particular basher. Some sages speculate that the arcane share a kind of racial telepathy, or that there's really only one company of arcane, and they can be in several places at the same time... but the arcane don't like to talk much about themselves and leave these questions unanswered. 

Within each arcane company, the creatures seem to be coequal. They operate in perfect coordination with each other and never contradict themselves or quarrel in public. The arcane appear to be sexless, and no one can say they've ever seen a juvenile or aged one.

The arcane have no home on the planes. They don't build cities or settlements of any kind. Instead they constantly move from place to place, arranging deals and amassing wealth. The arcane deal in high-value goods of all kinds, but prefer magic, gems, rare spices, and fine wines - extremely valuable materials that don't take up a whole lot of space.

Through their middlemen, the arcane also deal in weapons and technology of all types. In fact, if there's an arms deal on the planes, there's an excellent change the arcane were involved at some point. Of course, the arcane're extremely wealthy, but beyond that it's hard to say what they gain from their incessant trading. Some people speculate that the arcane are afflicted with a compulsion to make money, and others believe that the arcane require a rare and expensive spice to live. One thing's for sure: The arcane aren't telling.

Combat: Arcane aren't much for a fight; they loathe physical conflict and avoid it whenever possible. Despite their extraordinary height, they're not good fighters; an arcane's only marginally stronger than a stout human for all [their] size, and no match for an ogre or fiend in physical strength. 'Course, an arcane'll be long gone by the time an angry fiend gets past the bodyguards.

Arcane's natural Armor Class is 5, but as noted above they're almost always equipped with magical protection of some kind. Usually, this is sufficient to improve their AC by 2 or better. If force to defend [themselves], an arcane usually wields a weapon that strieks for 1d8 points of damage, plus a minor magical effect such as shocking grasp, heat metal, or blindness that affects the victim unless [they] successfully save versus spell. (The DM is encouraged to be creative; any 1st- or 2nd-level spell is appropriate.) This ability seems to be innate to the arcane and not a property of their weapons.

Despite their minor magical abilities, arcane far prefer to avoid combat altogether. They possess the innate spell-like powers of invisibility and dimension door, each of which can be used three times per day. Often, an arcane vanishes at the first sign of trouble and leaves [their] bodyguards behind to "clean up."

An arcane's bodyguards are usually fighters, thieves, and mages of 1st to 4th level. The arcane pay well for their services. On occasion, a PC party may be offered employment by an arcane seeking extra guards for a specific mission or task. It's also common for the arcane to use guards from the faction they're currently working a deal with, so if the arcare are in business with the Doomguard, their bodyguards are likely to be drawn from that faction.