Beholder - Revision history

Tao alexis at 15:55, 12 March 2025

2025-03-12T15:55:47Z

Tao alexis at 15:54, 12 March 2025

2025-03-12T15:54:44Z

Tao alexis at 23:31, 29 October 2023

2023-10-29T23:31:50Z

Maxwell: /* Facing */

2023-09-30T04:42:50Z

Facing

Maxwell: /* Lair */

2023-09-30T04:42:42Z

Lair

Tao alexis at 04:09, 23 May 2022

2022-05-23T04:09:36Z

Tao alexis at 03:42, 23 May 2022

2022-05-23T03:42:09Z

Tao alexis: /* Powers */

2022-05-23T03:40:51Z

Powers

Tao alexis at 03:39, 23 May 2022

2022-05-23T03:39:24Z

Tao alexis: /* Powers */

2022-05-23T03:18:16Z

Powers

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 * '''Eye #8 - Flesh-to-Stone'''.  The reverse of the 6th level magical spell, [[Stone-to-Flesh (spell)|stone-to-flesh]].  Effect transforms a creature into solid stone, including all the creature is carrying or wearing, even another person.  Allows a save against magic; effect is permanent.
-* '''Eye #9 - Cause Wound'''.  Causes 22 points of damage, half if a save versus breath weapon is made. If the total damage is 22, the victim will [[Wounds|continue to bleed]] for 2 hit points per round thereafter, 1 point per round if the save was successful.  Bleeding lasts until the wound is [[Binding Wounds (sage ability)|bound]] or otherwise treated.
+* '''Eye #9 - Cause Wound'''.  Causes 22 points of damage, half if a save versus breath weapon is made. If the total damage is 22, the victim will continue to bleed for 2 hit points per round thereafter, 1 point per round if the save was successful.  Bleeding lasts until the wound is [[Binding Wounds (sage ability)|bound]] or otherwise treated.
 * '''Eye #10 - Death'''. Causes the death of one creature, no saving throw.  Killed creature can be [[Raise Dead (spell)|raised]] or [[Resurrection (spell)|resurrected]], but cannot be brought back to life using [[Death's Door (spell)|death's door]].

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 | attack = '''1''': maw (attack)
 | dmg = maw [3–24]
-| special = [[Anti-magic (natural ability)|anti-magic]], cause [[Wounds|wound]], [[Death|death]],<br>[[Disintegration|disintegrate]], [[Cause Fear|fear]],  [[Hold Person or Monster (spell)|hold person or<br>monster]], [[Hypnotism (spell)|hypnotism]], [[Levitation (spell)|levitation]],<br>[[Petrification |petrification]], [[Sleep (spell)|sleep]], [[Slow (spell)|slow]], [[Telekinesis (spell)|telekinesis]]
+| special = [[Anti-magic (natural ability)|anti-magic]], cause [[Wound|wound]], [[Death|death]],<br>[[Disintegration|disintegrate]], [[Cause Fear|fear]],  [[Hold Person or Monster (spell)|hold person or<br>monster]], [[Hypnotism (spell)|hypnotism]], [[Levitation (spell)|levitation]],<br>[[Petrification |petrification]], [[Sleep (spell)|sleep]], [[Slow (spell)|slow]], [[Telekinesis (spell)|telekinesis]]
 }}

@@ Line 15: / Line 15: @@
 | attack = '''1''': maw (attack)
 | dmg = maw [3–24]
-| special = [[Anti-magic|anti-magic]], cause [[Wounds|wound]], [[Death|death]],<br>[[Disintegration|disintegrate]], [[Cause Fear|fear]],  [[Hold Person or Monster (spell)|hold person or<br>monster]], [[Hypnotism (spell)|hypnotism]], [[Levitation (spell)|levitation]],<br>[[Petrification |petrification]], [[Sleep (spell)|sleep]], [[Slow (spell)|slow]], [[Telekinesis (spell)|telekinesis]]
+| special = [[Anti-magic (natural ability)|anti-magic]], cause [[Wounds|wound]], [[Death|death]],<br>[[Disintegration|disintegrate]], [[Cause Fear|fear]],  [[Hold Person or Monster (spell)|hold person or<br>monster]], [[Hypnotism (spell)|hypnotism]], [[Levitation (spell)|levitation]],<br>[[Petrification |petrification]], [[Sleep (spell)|sleep]], [[Slow (spell)|slow]], [[Telekinesis (spell)|telekinesis]]
 }}

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 == Facing ==
-The Great Eye determines the beholder's facing in combat.  It's ten other eyes are numbered clockwise, starting at the beholder's foremost right eye, designated #1.  It and #2 can attack the brown and purple areas, but cannot reach to attack elsewise.  Similarly, #9 and #10 can only attack creatures in the pink and brown areas.
+The Great Eye determines the beholder's facing in combat.  Its ten other eyes are numbered clockwise, starting at the beholder's foremost right eye, designated #1.  It and #2 can attack the brown and purple areas, but cannot reach to attack elsewise.  Similarly, #9 and #10 can only attack creatures in the pink and brown areas.
 Eye #3 can attack to the right, at creatures in purple and green; #8 can attack to the left, in the blue and pink areas.

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 Typically, the beholder is supported by upper levels of lesser creatures, helplessly in the beholder's thrall.  While allowed to dwell and live out their lives, these slave creatures are organized so as to protect the beholder's lair and give warning to the beast if anyone should attempt to fight their way down through the complex warrens above.  These slaves also feed the beholder, sometimes with their own bodies.  A beholder's appetite is prodigious.
-In reality, the beholder is notably vulnerable.  Despite its powers, if enough creatures were to give their lives in a rush against it's attacks, the beholder could be overwhelmed.  Though many would die, the remainder — with oil and torches — could set the beholder's lair alight.  Another means might to be seal the beholder in its own lair, or somehow bring about an avalanche.  Even if it survived, the beholder would be forced to look for its own food.  This might enable a group of adventurers, or even a large beast to take it by surprise and bring about it's end.
+In reality, the beholder is notably vulnerable.  Despite its powers, if enough creatures were to give their lives in a rush against its attacks, the beholder could be overwhelmed.  Though many would die, the remainder — with oil and torches — could set the beholder's lair alight.  Another means might to be seal the beholder in its own lair, or somehow bring about an avalanche.  Even if it survived, the beholder would be forced to look for its own food.  This might enable a group of adventurers, or even a large beast to take it by surprise and bring about its end.
 The beholder's greatest power is its intelligence: knowing precisely how to make its lair safe and cultivate its minions, so that they're either too frightened or too dependent to turn on their master.

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 The '''beholder''', or ''eye-tyrant'', is well-known as one of the deadliest creatures to exist anywhere.  It's only been encountered at the core of deep dungeons, preferring to make its lair in a small [[Cave|cave]].  The size is chosen to ensure the beholder room enough to unleash its infamous arsenal of magical attacks, while the [[Line-of-sight|line-of-sight]] keeps interlopers in range of the beast's powers.
-[[File:Beholder.jpg|350px|left|thumb]]
+[[File:Beholder.jpg|left|350px|thumb]]
 == Lair ==
 Typically, the beholder is supported by upper levels of lesser creatures, helplessly in the beholder's thrall.  While allowed to dwell and live out their lives, these slave creatures are organized so as to protect the beholder's lair and give warning to the beast if anyone should attempt to fight their way down through the complex warrens above.  These slaves also feed the beholder, sometimes with their own bodies.  A beholder's appetite is prodigious.

← Older revision		Revision as of 03:42, 23 May 2022
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	See [[Bestiary]]		See [[Bestiary]]
		+
		+	[[Category: Don't Review until 2023]]

← Older revision		Revision as of 03:40, 23 May 2022
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	* '''Eye #10 - Death'''. Causes the death of one creature, no saving throw. Killed creature can be [[Raise Dead (spell)\|raised]] or [[Resurrection (spell)\|resurrected]], but cannot be brought back to life using [[Death's Door (spell)\|death's door]].		* '''Eye #10 - Death'''. Causes the death of one creature, no saving throw. Killed creature can be [[Raise Dead (spell)\|raised]] or [[Resurrection (spell)\|resurrected]], but cannot be brought back to life using [[Death's Door (spell)\|death's door]].
		+
		+	Each eye is free to attack an individual creature; usually the beholder seeks to disable as many attackers as it can, in order to destroy the most powerful at its leisure with the death or disintegration eye.

	== Engaging a Beholder in Combat ==		== Engaging a Beholder in Combat ==

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 * '''Eye #10 - Death'''. Causes the death of one creature, no saving throw.  Killed creature can be [[Raise Dead (spell)|raised]] or [[Resurrection (spell)|resurrected]], but cannot be brought back to life using [[Death's Door (spell)|death's door]].
 == Engaging a Beholder in Combat ==
-Obviously, because of the Beholder's formidable power, defenders will be anxious to find strategies to counteract the many eye attacks or at least fool the Beholder into wasting its powers on lesser combatants. As well, knowing which attacks can affect which arcs around the beholder can be useful, if protection spells of various sorts can be obtained.
+Because of the beholder's formidable attacks, defenders should seek strategies that counteract the many eye attacks of the creature — or seek to fool the beholder into wasting its attacks on lesser combatants.  Knowing which attacks can affect which arcs of assault is critical to placing effective combatants into the right positions, so as not to have a high level killed off by the death eye.  Protection spells are unquestionably necessary, despite the Great Eye.
-Most will be anxious to destroy eyes, in order to reduce the beholder's potential for destruction, if only to weaken the creature before a retreat is called, so that another engagement can be arranged by the survivors. It is possible to destroy all of the beholder's eyes ''except'' for the great eye, which will survive so long as the beholder's body remains intact. To destroy the great eye, the beholder must be reduced in [[Negative Hit Points|hit points to -10]] (it counts as a leveled creature). To destroy an eyestalk, however, is easier. It can be struck with a weapon, swung, thrown or fired, so long as AC -5 is successfully hit. The beholder will usually levitate high enough above the floor to preclude direct melee and may save its telekinesis power for the initial salvo, that will tend to take place as a party rushes in. Of course, a beholder may be surprised by someone that is [[Invisibility (spell)|invisible]], under the effect of a [[Sanctuary (spell)|sanctuary spell]] or using various magic items for the purpose of deception, enabling a lucky shot that could take out the death or disintegration eyes (or whichever seems best).
+Destroying the Great Eye requires the beholder be actually killed, but the eye stalks atop its head are fragile and might be destroyed.  However, as the beholder is floating and the stalks are atop its head, beyond the reach of most melee weapons, attackers must target the eyes with either a missile weapon or a [[Pole Arms|pole arm]].  To hit and destroy an eyestalk requires a roll that will hit armour class -5.  Only 1 [[Damage (hit points)|damage]] is needed.  If an eye stalk is attacked, the beholder is sure to use its telekinesis eye, if it can, to belay the attack.
-However, it should not be supposed that the beholder will be alone, or that its lair will have a conveniently flat floor or that there won't be traps set by its minions designed to reveal hidden interlopers. The beholder is of genius [[Intelligence (ability stat)|intelligence]] and will be prepared for most simple tactics; would-be attackers should be warned.
+Potentially, a character could surprise the beholder by employing an [[Invisibility (spell)|invisibility spell]], using a [[Sanctuary (spell)|sanctuary spell]] or using various magic items created for the purpose of deception.  This might give enough time for an individual to take out one of the more powerful eyes.  However, as the beholder need not touch the floor to live, it usually sets up traps to catch or expose this form of stealth attack.  The beholder is of genius [[Intelligence (ability stat)|intelligence]] and will be prepared for most simple strategies.
 See [[Bestiary]]

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 :: The beholder may only affect one creature per round in this fashion, and may commit only one action against that creature. If the creature is viewed as especially dangerous, the beholder can use telekinesis to hold the victim indefinitely.  The beholder may also use its telekinesis power to turn aside a [[Missile Weapons|missile weapon]], discarding that hit and counting this as the eye's attack that round.  Only one missile attack can be stopped in this manner per round.
-* '''Eye #3 — Sleep'''.  Affects creatures like the 1st level magic spell, [[Sleep (spell)|sleep]].  Is able to cause sleep in one creature, regardless of hit dice or levels, without a saving throw; or it may be used like the spell against a number of creatures with 4 or less HD.  Sleeping creatures [Rouse Sleeping Creatures|can be roused]]. However, if the creature isn't acted upon, it won't be awakened by the battle and will sleep for 5-30 rounds.
+* '''Eye #3 — Sleep'''.  Affects creatures like the 1st level magical spell, [[Sleep (spell)|sleep]].  Is able to cause sleep in one creature, regardless of hit dice or levels, without a saving throw; or it may be used like the spell against a number of creatures with 4 or less HD.  Sleeping creatures [Rouse Sleeping Creatures|can be roused]]. However, if the creature isn't acted upon, it won't be awakened by the battle and will sleep for 5-30 rounds.
 * '''Eye #4 - Hypnotism'''.  Affects a single creature like the 1st level illusionary spell, [[Hypnotism (spell)|hypnotism]], except that the beholder's power can be used to force the hypnotized creature to harm his or her allies.  Allows a save against magic; effect lasts 2-5 rounds.
-* '''Eye #5 - Fear'''.  Affects a single creature like the 3rd level illusionary spell, [[Fear (spell)|fear]].  Allows a save against magic; effect lasts for 16 rounds.
+* '''Eye #5 - Fear'''.  Affects a single creature like the 3rd level illusionary spell, [[Fear (spell)|fear]].  Allows a save against magic; effect lasts 16 rounds.
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 == Engaging a Beholder in Combat ==