Beholders (Spelljammer Supplement)

From D&D Wiki

Jump to: navigation, search

Back to Main Page5e HomebrewSpelljammer (5e Campaign Setting)

The typical groundling adventurer would be appalled at the number of beholders that reside in Wildspace.  The evil Eye Tyrants are known for their solitary and wicked nature on most worlds, and that would be true in Wildspace as well, except for one thing:  the presence of Hive Mothers.  There is a growing body of evidence that the beholder race originated in Wildspace.  It would certainly help explain their body shape and means of locomotion.  Regardless, it is known that the rare beholder Hive Mothers only live in space, and only a Hive Mother can overcome the solitary nature of the common beholders and bring a small nest of them together.  Given their power, they could pose an unimaginable threat to the other races in space.  However, there is one thing that keeps the beholders from conquering wildspace:  they are racists.  Somewhat surprisingly, they aren't xenophobes, since they actually seem to consider humanity and the other races as objects rather than people.  No, it is their own kind that they loathe.  Apparently, there are many racial divisions among the beholders.  Some have hard chitinous shells, while others have softer amorphous hides.  Some have short stubby eye stalks, others have long, slender stalks.  Even slight variations in color of their skin or eyes, or the size of their central eye, is enough to distinguish beholders from different clans.  And each clan believes they, and they alone, are the ideal beholder.  All other clans must be destroyed.  While this tendency exists in dirt-side beholders, which will gladly kill each other when their paths cross, the true depths of this conflict only occur in Wildspace, where the Hive Mothers can overcome their race's solitary nature and forge their offspring into a cohesive unit with which to purge the universe of the "abominations". This racial war is probably the only thing that keeps humanity and the other races from being overwhelmed.  To the beholders, the other races are just things to possess, or to vent their sadism upon, or to use as pawns.  And as long as the real enemy is out there, the other races will never be more than just pawns on the great chess board of the beholder conflict.  For this reason, beholders are actually more likely to manipulate the other races than outright assault them.  Admittedly, they aren't particularly subtle when they think they have the upper hand, so such "manipulation" might take the form of blackmail:  "Do this for us, or we will destroy you" and similar threats.  Such requests will almost always be in furtherance of their war, but Hive Mothers are extremely cunning and intelligent, and it may not be immediately obvious how the requested task will actually help them.  These are difficult situations to resolve, because completing the task may well earn the enmity of an entire clan of beholders, but refusing will likely result in immediate destruction.  The best you may be able to do is twist the task in such a way that either both clans end up happy, or they wipe each other out.  Also remember that the beholders will show no gratitude even if you succeed in their mission, but they may remember a successful service and attempt to use these obviously-useful pawns again. Back to Main Page5e HomebrewSpelljammer (5e Campaign Setting)

Home of user-generated,
homebrew pages!


Advertisements: