Nantek

Nantek are a strange type of large butterfly that are sapient only in their chrysalis stage. The chrysalises are entirely stationary, brown, with complicated painted colors and cosmetic 'eyes' on the sides to face whoever they are speaking to.

They are deeply psychic, and use telepathy to control caterpillars of their own species as workers and warriors. Nantek perceive the world entirely through their caterpillar servants. When a Nantek wants to move, caterpillar servants carry them.

Psychology and Magic

Nantek live deep in the interior of Blantyrre. Due to the helplessness of their natural forms, they are highly magically adept, constantly sharing magical insight telepathically within their hives. Their innate Mind Magic allows them to engage human mages on an even level, making them feared by human explorers.

Because of their great magical abilities and relatively benign nature, they are often consulted for advice by other races, though cynical observers point out the Nantek likely use their mind reading skills to get way more out of these conversations than the visitors do.

Nantek are very philosophical. They are aware of how short and unusual their lives are, leading to a language filled with highly abstract concepts that don't translate well, adding to their mysterious reputation.

Biological Experiments

Nantek have a strangely advanced knowledge of their own biochemistry and lifecycle. They use magic to warp their caterpillar workers into specialized forms. While this magic only works on their own species, they are known to experiment heavily on other beings around them, trying to use flesh alterations to manipulate their metabolisms with horrifying results. Some of these experiments occasionally escape, making the land around a Nantek hive prone to "isolated incidents".

Lifecycle

Nantek only live for about 30 years as a chrysalis. After this, they morph into large butterflies. This transformation essentially kills the sapient Nantek mind; the resulting butterfly retains no memories or personality and is a mere animal interested only in eating and mating. Female butterflies instinctively return to Nantek hives to lay eggs in perfectly prepared chambers, continuing the cycle.

Different Nantek hives rarely work together and can even be actively hostile to one another for seemingly no reason.