Page 52 - Lords of Madness: The Book of Aberrations

quarters and the lair entrance are two or more chambers these cases, a beholder employs charmed gatherers—creatures
used to house guardians. Most beholders keep another room capable of traversing great distances quickly and penetrating
off to the side of the main complex to dispose of waste or to secure sites with ease. A beholder sends a spy to determine
hold prisoners. A beholder with a favored minion (such as the probable location of an object or person it needs, and
a representative, see below) allows that minion his or her then sends a gatherer to finish the job. Gatherers are used

own chamber as well. Additional chambers for additional to catch new prisoners, although for particularly dangerous
minions are built as needed. Beholders are quite fond of traps, missions, a beholder sends a combined force of assassins

especially those triggered by pressure plates (which they can and gatherers. Example gatherers: ethereal filchers, mephits,

easily float over), and they incorporate pit traps and similar rangers, wizards.
protections into their lairs. Guardians: The majority of a beholder’s minions are
guardians, creatures selected to protect the lair. Unintelligent
MINIONS guardians are left to squat in dead-end sections of the lair,
Although beholders are tremendously xenophobic, they can while more intelligent minions patrol the lair and look for TYRANTS THE EYE CHAPTER 3
reign in their fears and intolerance when faced with a creature intruders.
that they might be able to use for a time before killing it. A Gas spores (see page 148) deserve special mention. This
beholder never trusts bargains when “recruiting” a minion. unique airborne form of fungus was originally cultivated and
Instead, it uses its charm person or charm monster eyes to magi- shaped by an ancient beholder mage whose name has long
cally control the creature. A beholder is careful to renew any since been forgotten. In the gas spore, the beholder managed
charms it has on its minions as needed, setting aside the waking to create a dangerous yet mindless guardian that served as a
hours of the day for such tasks. form of living sculpture to honor and venerate the classic
Beholders keep minions for many reasons, the most common beholder form, was fecund and self-propagating, and required
of which are detailed below. Beholders normally never use little to no outside maintenance. Gas spores never rebelled
beholderkin as minions—they’d rather simply disintegrate against their masters, never attacked a beholder by accident,
them. Exceptions exist among those that are sane or that have and couldn’t be reasoned with or charmed away by an enemy.
been commanded to employ such minions by an overseer or Since their creation, gas spores have taken to the far corners
hive mother. of the world like a plague, and dungeons that were once under
Assassins: Beholders invent complicated schemes and the rule of a beholder lord that moved on or perished still Illus. by D. Knutson
plans that can go awry when other creatures meddle in their serve as breeding grounds for these terrible fungi. Example
affairs. When a beholder’s plan is foiled, it uses its spies to guardians: athachs, barbarians, bulettes, carrion crawlers,

find out what happened. If it learns that a specific creature dire animals, fighters, gas spores, giants, hydras, minotaurs,
or group of creatures is responsible, it sends assassins to ogres, purple worms, ropers.
remedy the situation. Only if all of its assassins fail to kill Representatives: Rarely, a beholder needs to interact with
the troublemakers does a beholder get personally involved. another society or civilization in a nonviolent manner. A
In such a case, it prefers to use its spies or gatherers to lure beholder put in this unenviable position relies on a charmed
the creatures to its lair, where it has the advantage, and then representative with a high Charisma score. Beholders treat

use all of its resources to finish the job. Example assassins: their representatives much better than they treat their other
assassins, chokers, derro, doppelgangers, driders, rogues. minions, and even though representatives remain charmed,
Entertainment: Although beholders spend much of they are afforded the best personal quarters in the lair and
their time studying magic, plotting, and bullying other are allowed to keep a fair amount of wealth and comforts.
minions, most keep at least a few minions on hand solely for Beholders do this because, of all their minions, representa-
entertainment purposes. Entertainment to a beholder can tives are the most likely to be discovered and “rescued” by
range wildly according to personal tastes, from the sadistic interlopers who dispel the charm. Often, a representative that
glee derived from watching cowering goblins forced to fight is no longer charmed remains loyal to his beholder, thanks

each other under threat of petrification and disintegration to to the preferential treatment that he has received. Beholders

the more cultured displays of magical prowess from charmed keep only one representative, since they find treating other
spellcasters. Beholders particularly enjoy watching illusions, creatures as near-equals to be painful. Example representa-
but observing any magical display by an entertaining minion tives: bards, ogre mages, sorcerers, wizards.
can also help charge the creature’s dweomerlobes. Of all Spies: Spies serve a similar role to that of gatherers,
minions, entertainers are the ones most likely to be eaten at except that gatherers are sent to collect people and objects,
a moment’s notice. Example entertainers: bards, goblinoids, whereas spies are used purely to observe the lands around

sorcerers, wizards. the beholder’s lair. A spy typically remains in the field for a
Gatherers: Beholders prefer to remain in their lairs, week, returning to the lair well before the charm monster ray
surrounded by their guardians and defenses, but they need wears off to report his or her findings. Example spies: cloakers,

items that can be procured only from the world outside. In kobolds, mephits, rangers, rogues, water nagas.

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