Page 75 - Lords of Madness: The Book of Aberrations

They seek to undermine burgeoning empires on the surface. need five thousand human slaves in its feed lots, and a third

Illithids don’t see surface empires as direct threats to their to a half of them would be too young for heavy work. For a
eventual rise. Rather, they interfere with growing empires healthier diet, that number doubles, and it quadruples for an
experimentally. In this, the whole surface world is their ideal diet. The logistics behind such a massive program make
laboratory. By meddling in surface politics to bring about it impossible.

governmental collapse, mind flayers hope to learn what pitfalls Other races mature faster than humans. Goblins, orcs, and
to guard against when erecting their own empire. grimlocks, for example, reach consumable age in one-half to
The longest-range and most ambitious plan of all is to find a two-thirds of the time it takes a human . . . but they are not

means of extinguishing the sun. Mind flayers aren’t harmed by nearly as desirable as food.
Besides the logistic issues, the brains of lifelong thralls
sunlight, but they hate it and avoid it at all costs. If the world
CHAPTER 4 THE MIND FLAYERS could be plunged into darkness, the illithids could expand are less satisfying to mind flayers than the brains of free

from their subterranean lairs onto the surface, where all the
individuals. A thrall has few true experiences to remember
best brains are to be found.
and even fewer emotions, which are the “meat and potatoes”

of a nourishing, fulfilling mind.
THE FLOW OF FRESH BRAINS
The peculiar dietary needs of the illithids generate a significant Preying on Intruders

barrier to maintaining ties with other races. Falling into the The second method for maintaining a supply of brains

clutches of the mind flayers ensures a horrendous fate. No involves pouncing on intruders that wander too near illithid
matter how the mind flayers encourage necessary trade with strongholds: roving monsters, imprudent traders, and, best

other races, no one should ever forget that illithids must devour of all, adventure-seeking heroes. While the active, experi-

brains directly from the skulls of living victims to survive. ence- and magic-filled minds of adventurers are considered
How do they maintain a sufficient supply? among the tastiest of all, they are few and far between.

A mind flayer must have a minimum of one fresh brain per Harvesting such brains involves considerably more than
month. Any less than that and it suffers physical debilitation, an average level of danger. Wizards and paladins who come
becoming so weak that it could die. Its ideal diet is one brain armed with potent spells and magical weapons put up a

per week. A mind flayer that consumes one brain a week does strong fight. The greatest drawback to this method is that

not feel deprived. It can eat more than that for enjoyment and intrusions occur too infrequently to be more than a happy
for the psychic boost, and it will if brains are plentiful. surprise for mind flayers.

Typically, mind flayers consume somewhere between the
minimum of one brain per month and the ideal of one brain per Brain Raids
week, averaging one brain every two weeks and supplement- The third—and only reliable—solution for illithids is to cap-
ing their diet with other foods. This doesn’t sound like much, ture the brains they need through constant, aggressive raids.
but consider the effect of a community of one hundred mind Brain raids can be far-ranging, since illithids prefer not
flayers. To maintain their health, they need fifty brains a week, to depopulate their immediate vicinity. They prey on both

or 2,600 brains a year. Maintaining that supply is the most the subterranean and sunlit worlds. Below ground, their

important and difficult task facing an illithid community. favored targets are drow, kuo-toas, duergar, deep dwarves,

The need for consumable brains is the chief reason why deep halflings, and derro (chiefly because of their delusions

mind flayer communities tend to be small. Large communities of grandeur, which lend their brains a pleasing tanginess).
(one hundred or more illithids) are rare. Cities of up to two Goblins, hobgoblins, and grimlocks are consumed when
thousand are even more so. They are so rare, in fact, that sages necessary, and sometimes become staple foods, but they are
consider them fables. not highly rated due to their mundane intelligence and lack of
To maintain their diet, mind flayers rely on three methods: imagination. Creatures such as umber hulks and xorns become

breeding their own supply, taking the brains of intruders, and illithid food from time to time, but more for their exotic nature
brain raids. than anything else. Illithids avoid eating troglodytes in all but
life-or-death emergencies.
Breeding Their Own Supply The surface, with its wealth of warm-blooded humanoid

Illithids maintain large stocks of thralls, and few die natural races, provides better hunting. Humans, halflings, elves,
deaths. The mind flayers’ needs cannot be met entirely through and dwarves are the most prized. Orcs, goblins, ogres, and

stocks of slaves, however. The races that produce desirable hobgoblins that live on the surface are regarded more highly

brains mature too slowly to be efficient livestock. Using than their subterranean cousins. Sprites, nymphs, satyrs, and
humans as an example, and assuming that a human brain other faerie creatures are hard-to-catch delicacies.
reaches “ripeness” at the age of twenty, each illithid would Raids come in two varieties, distinguished by whether
need more than 250 slaves just to assure its own minimum the goal is food or captives. Food raids are easy to organize

food supply. Even a small outpost of twenty illithids would and short in duration. A few mind flayers marshal their
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