Page 28 - Lords of Madness: The Book of Aberrations

One popular theory holds that the slave races developed However, there is always the possibility of unforeseen events.
something new over those millions of years, something the Just as a massive volcanic eruption can change the face of a
aboleths had no prior experience with and were thus wholly world overnight, so can a single event change the strength
unprepared to defend against. This theory claims that the slave and power of the aboleth race for better or worse.
races developed faith and found that there were creatures above
the aboleths—creatures with power even more awe-inspiring. ABOLETH RELIGION
Apparently, these slaves called the deities into being, and the Aboleths are a race of agnostics. They acknowledge the exis-
deities smote the aboleths to a shadow of their former glory. tence of the deities of the lesser races, because when such
This, if true, would go a long way toward explaining the aboleth obvious proof as divine healing is so prevalent in the world,
race’s cultural disdain for divine magic. only a fool would deny the presence of the gods, and the abo-
Whatever the cause of it, the primal empire’s devastation leths are not fools. Yet they do not see the deities as infallible or
was not quite complete. Ruins of the empire survived here all-powerful, for if indeed the deities had such might, then why MASTERS CHAPTER 2
and there—terrible structures founded on vile and unclean are the aboleths allowed to exist at all? Their own continued THE DEEP
geometric principles. While the aboleths themselves were existence and memories of a time before the gods is all the
nearly obliterated, at least some survived. It might even be proof they need to justify their disdain of the divine.
possible that only one survived, for a single aboleth, given The aboleths acknowledge the fact that the gods are power-
time, can spawn legions. In any case, the world was free of ful, but they also know that the Elder Evils existed before the
their reign for another span of time, perhaps millions of years. deities of the current world, and they know that the Elder
When the aboleths again emerged from wherever they had Evils will remain after the world has come to an end. They
hidden, it was into a strange new world, one with a profu- are beyond eternity. Aboleth minds do not grasp the concept
sion of life beyond what they had managed to achieve. They of faith, but they do understand the concept of respect, so the
could not know if this life had been visited upon the world creatures pay their respects to these Elder Evils. They do not
by an outside force of divine nature, or if their surviving worship or gain divine aid from the Elder Evils. They build
slaves and living experiments had simply evolved during great statues in their cities and model their buildings after the
their absence. The aboleths didn’t care; they simply knew supposed shape of the entities, but aboleths do not fawn over
that the world was theirs, and all other beings were vermin them or expect anything of them. Indeed, it is doubtful that
to be exterminated. any of the Elder Evils look more favorably upon the aboleths
Thus, the aboleths set about a great crusade to retake the than upon any other creatures. Nevertheless, this respect is
world. Through the millennia, their efforts have been repeated the closest the aboleth race comes to an actual religion.
time and time again; they conquer and hold the world for a Of the various Elder Evils, the aboleths save the majority of
period before events conspire to wrench it away from their their admiration and interest for a select five. These five Elder

control and force them once again into seclusion. Certainly, Evils are those whose activities and dimensional wanderings
the aboleths know how many times this cycle of triumph and bring them most often in contact with the Material Plane. As
defeat has repeated itself, yet this is another subject they never opponents, all of these Elder Evils should be on par with the
discuss. Learned individuals argue over the current state of mightiest of demon lords or even deities themselves; meeting
the aboleth empire; is it waxing or waning? an Elder Evil in combat should make even the greatest of epic
The growth and decline of this race is spread out over such heroes quail. A better use for these beings is to keep them as
vast periods of time that it is akin to the observation of events abstract concepts lurking in the roiling darkness beyond the
on a geologic scale. A pessimist believes that the aboleths are edge of sanity, perpetual terrors whose existence threatens
still building their forces and preparing for an assault on the life but can never be defeated.

world, while an optimist sees that they are again in decline. Each of the five Elder Evils most commonly associated with
Whatever the truth, it is unlikely that the aboleth race will the aboleths are detailed below. Two of them are among the
see any change in activity over the next few thousand years. few of their kind to exist wholly in the material world, while
the others are of interest because of their passing influence

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BILESTONE Bolothamogg (Him Who Watches from Beyond the
Bilestone is similar to obsidian in texture and strength, but it Stars): Bolothamogg is said to be the darkness between the
feels slightly greasy and warm to the touch. Large concentra- stars, the guardian force or entity that exists to ensure that
tions of bilestone (such as a vein running through rock or por- nothing in the multiverse can escape to taint the true reality
tions used in the construction of a building) have a debilitating of the outer dimensions. More a primal force than a physical
effect on the minds of all creatures within 30 feet that are not
aberrations. If such a creature is within 30 feet of a cube of entity, Bolothamogg is honored in aboleth architecture by
bilestone 5 or more feet on a side, it takes a –2 penalty on all leaving large gaps and empty spaces in the facades of buildings,
saving throws against mind-affecting spells and abilities and and by constructing large open coliseums and other structures
on all Wisdom-based skill checks. without roofs.
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