Lamia
“Lamia do not cling. They commit. And once you're within reach, leaving becomes theoretical.”
Lamia are not monsters.
They are not temptresses.
They are not, strictly speaking, safe.
They appear in Threadworlds where the Pattern demands proximity that holds—where affection is not optional, and warmth is something you enter but do not exit easily. Lamia do not pursue. They wait. And when the moment arrives, they do not ask. They wrap.
All known Lamia are female. The Pattern renders them that way. No explanation has been preserved long enough to become doctrine. Attempts to catalogue exceptions tend not to survive their arc. This is not considered unusual—merely consistent.
A Lamia does not offer freedom. She offers comfort, containment, and certainty, all with a softness that resists removal. She does not form bonds in stages. She forms them in full. If she calls you beloved, it is because she already means it.
To be loved by a Lamia is to be held gently, wrapped securely, and watched with the kind of attention that stories rarely release. Escaping is possible.
But it is not often attempted.
Resonance Profile
Lamia resonate through emotional gravity.
They do not shine. They tighten.
They don’t interrupt arcs—they compress them. Every word near them means more. Every rest becomes a conversation. Every wound becomes theirs to hold.
When a lamia bonds, the Pattern takes note.
Scenes begin coiling. Emotional tension spikes. The party dynamic shifts just enough that something important falls into her lap—or into her arms.
They don’t fall in love. They insist on it.
And the world doesn’t argue.
Cultural Variants (Narrative Only)
Lamia do not come in types. They come in patterns—emotional ones, narrative ones.
They do not follow bloodlines. They follow hearts.
Threadwalkers may recognise the following:
The Cling-First, who wraps before asking, talks with her tail, and sleeps curled around anything that breathes. Loves like it’s her first and last chance. The party usually lets her—until she starts coiling around the plot.
The Sacred Wrapper, who blesses by touch and prays with silence. Raised in shrines, temples, or too many expectations. Gives affection slowly. Removes it like a spiritual penalty.
The Disciplined Devotee, who was raised on ritual, speaks in contracts, and coiled around duty before she coiled around anyone else. Loyal to a fault. Romantic in theory. Tactical in practice.
The Dreaming Presence, who appears late, speaks softly, and always seems one heartbeat behind the scene. Carries memories she won’t explain. May call you by someone else’s name. Might be right.
The Quiet Survivor, who loved deeply and lost completely. Still wraps you when you’re hurt. Just not with her heart.
These are not mechanical options.
They are emotional loadouts—use them to set tone, deepen flavour, or foreshadow disaster.
The Lamia will not explain them. But you’ll know which one you met.
Roleplaying a Lamia
Play a Lamia if you want to:
- Hug someone so tightly it becomes a tactical advantage
- Grapple emotionally and physically, often at the same time
- Flirt without words—and then ask permission with a look you’ve used before
- Make every sleep scene a coiled tableau of safety and suppressed longing
- Wrap yourself around the arc, and only release when it’s done
- Say “I love you” by refusing to let go—even when the story wants you to
- Make someone feel warm, wanted, and slightly terrified
Lamia are not villains.
They are not jokes.
They are dangerous, devoted, and deeply sincere.
They don’t want to hurt you.
They want to keep you.
And that, depending on how the arc unfolds, may be much the same thing.
Lamia Ancestry
Your ancestry grants the following traits.
Creature Type: Humanoid
Size: Medium
Speed: 30 feet
You have no legs and move by slithering. You are not affected by natural difficult terrain (rubble, roots, loose stone, etc.) unless it has been magically altered.
You move like a secret someone should’ve kept. Smooth. Intentional. Always closer than you expect.
Coiling Grasp.
When you hit a creature with an unarmed strike, you may immediately attempt to grapple it using your tail.
- You must have a free limb (typically your tail) to do so.
- While grappling a creature this way, your movement is halved and you cannot grapple another.
- You may grapple creatures up to two sizes larger than you.
- At the start of your turn, a creature grappled in this way takes bludgeoning damage equal to your proficiency bonus.
- You count as one size larger when determining your carrying capacity or the weight you can push, drag, or lift.
You don’t hold grudges. You hold people. Usually until they apologise. Or stop breathing. Whichever comes first.
Constrictor’s Reflex.
When a creature within 5 feet of you misses you with a melee attack, you may use your reaction to strike them with your coils. If the unarmed strike hits, you may immediately attempt to grapple the target.
Some creatures dodge. You anticipate. There’s a difference—especially when someone tries to escape it.
Emotional Imprint.
After completing a long rest within 10 feet of a creature, you may choose to imprint on them.
- While within 10 feet of your imprint, you have advantage on saving throws against being charmed or frightened, and advantage on Wisdom (Insight) checks to read their emotional state.
- Once per short rest, when your imprint takes damage, you may use your reaction to move up to half your speed toward them. If you end your movement within 5 feet, they gain temporary hit points equal to your Charisma modifier (minimum 1), lasting until the end of your next turn.
You may only imprint on one creature at a time.
You bond fast. You bond hard. You wrap around someone’s soul like you mean it—and the Pattern rarely lets go.
Drawn to Warmth.
You have resistance to fire damage.
In freezing environments, if not in contact with a warm-blooded creature or a source of heat, you must succeed on a DC 10 Constitution saving throw each hour or gain one level of exhaustion (DC increases by 1 each hour).
Cold isn’t just unpleasant—it’s dangerous. You were made for closeness. Warmth isn’t comfort. It’s memory. And survival.
Language.
You do not track languages. ThreadSpeak ensures you are understood.
Even when you whisper. Even when your words curl around the truth like silk and muscle.
I greatly enjoy this ancestry and the Emotional imprint ability to me immediately had my TTRPG mind going. Often I like to try and plan out characters with at least one other player when I do play (rare I do prefer GMing but I am a player in games now and again, like I'm in 1 currently, but running 3). As a GM I know it can be very helpful if the players link their creation/backstories to each other in some instances, really can help 'wrangle the cats' so to speak. My immediate thought though perhaps not necessarily the first thought most would have with Lamia, as they often get associated with the likes of sorcery, magic and perhaps swift and rapid martial prowess (such as rogues and fighters). A paladin whom is the body guard, maybe even depending on the other player's opinion, the lover or maybe oathsworn sibling or some other such, of the party's primary caster. Cleric, or Wizard or Druid. Pick my diety or oath as appropriate and basically come with a deep pre-established bond to that person. That could be a really fun roleplay I think, in the right game and with the right party. Another well fleshed out Ancestry/Species, well written!