Scyga/Mantii

The mantii are an odd breed of insects.
Their lifecycle begins in the regular way being laid as eggs. After gestation is finished they hatch into their larval form which has 6 small legs and 2 forward appendages like large crab claws tapering off to very sharp points.
The larvae are omnivorous and will rapidly grow in size. This is a very short part of their life and they will soon build themselves a cocoon. Prior to the cocoon they will spend their life underground digging, exploring, and taking care of the eggs as the mother commands.

Once their cocoon stage is done they will come out as a nymph (scyga's current stage) Males will appear as scyga does. Males are subservient and if the hive dies off they will generally seek out a new nest of almost any insectile species to work for or hibernate till one appears. They build and dig and build and dig. They are swarm insects by nature. Most males will never leave the nymph stage (explained why later) The females on the other hand are extremely territorial, aggressive, and racially focused (they will attempt to kill or run off anything that isn't a mantii. The female mantii is bigger, stronger, and smarter than the male mantii during the nymph stage. They also possess 6 medium sized talons rather than the 2 large ones males have. Not long after leaving the cocoon they will be pushed out of the nest by the mother and forced to fend for themselves. They will spend much of their nymph stage searching out a territory of their own and then building a nest. Once their nest is complete they will begin sending out pheremones to attract males. Oftentimes most males that approach will be killed and eaten. Once a suitable mate is found they will stockpile food and seal off the hive then gorge themselves on the food. Their first mating will not produce children but another cocoon where they will sleep together and grow into their adult stages (this is the only way they can enter into adulthood is together). If a suitable mate is not found the female will seal the hive and enter her own hibernation for a set time before awakening and sending out a new call.

Female mantii are very rare. A hive will produce on average 1 female for every thousand males.

The adult forms of the mantii are referred to as king and queen and are as follows

Male: The male will grow much much larger and develop another 2 scythes. Most of the chitin plates it had during nymphood will drop off and be reformed via the metals it consumed during its time as a nymph. The most pronounced growth however is in its brain. Where it once was little more than a drone, male mantii when entering adulthood achieve almost full sentience and become far far more aggressive though still subservient to its mate.

Female: The female will grow somewhat larger and develop an external egg sac (think alien queen http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-JiFyUFSjPUA/U9TqYbm5LaI/AAAAAAAAMhg/XhsI1n9EMBQ/s1600/alienqueen.jpg) and remain immobilized for the rest of its life. Its 6 talons will morph into hand like appendages more suited to moving the eggs around.

 The female will spend the entire rest of its life overseeing the hive and commanding its mate. The male will become the eyes and ears of the queen commanding the nymphs outside the hive. It will take charge of foraging and attacking anything that seems like a threat to the hive. If heavily wounded, or scared by something the male will do anything in its power to return to the queen for further direction. The male has no issue abandoning its brood in the field if it feels overly threatened by an external power.

The adult male and female mantii are symbiotic. If one dies the other will die shortly afterwards usually going berserk first and killing anything around it including its own brood. The hive will then collapse and the nymphs will go their own way. This is how the mantii were almost wiped out before. By killing off one of the set and then simply massacring the almost directionless drones and nymphs afterwards.


Exceptions to the general rules:
Some male nymphs will develop into hiveguard. More advanced versions of the nymphs but not full adults. These hiveguard are incapable of mating and will spend their life guarding the queen.

Warrior nymphs: Similar to the hiveguard but far more numerous and not as strong or as smart they makeup the backbone of field forces for the hive. They will follow the king into the outside world when he leaves. They are also incapable of mating, the same as the hiveguard.