The Illithid, also known as mind flayers (or mindflayers)[1], are a major[2] spacefaring race in the Spelljammer campaign setting.[3][4]
"... Never met a mind flayer on the end of my halberd that I didn't like!"
- Saive Flayerbane, Halberd Company[5]
Overview[]
Spaceborne illithid have a significant presence in wildspace, with their own colonies and navies. Unlike their terrestrial cousins (whom they consider to be provincial, even backward), they actively engage in trade with other spacefaring races, even the neogi. Despite being known for keeping slaves, as well as their dietary need for the brains of sentient creatures, the mind flayers have nurtured cordial relations with other spacefaring people by maintaining a facade of civility, principally by keeping their colonies isolated from other communties. They also try to cultivate a less threatening reputation by being seen to be consuming the brains of non-sentient creatures, or "lesser" creatures, such as kobolds,[6] which are considered pests by the more pragmatic races.
The illithid have a good working relationship with the arcane, who helped them develop their own unique spelljamming helms, including the series helms and the pool helms. In turn, the mind flayers act as intermediaries between the neogi and the arcane (who prefer not to be seen dealing directly with the "small masters"). This has resulted in a rather unpleasant trade arrangement between the mind flayers and the neogi. Known informally as the "brain trade", the rapacious and brutish neogi actively pursue and capture slaves who are then sold on to the illithid for food. This arrangement benefits all three races: the illithid get brains to eat, the neogi get access to spelljamming technology, and the arcane get to sell more products without soiling their (somewhat situational) ethics.[7][3]
Description[]
An illithid resembles a human in height and general build, but possesses sickly violet or mauve skin that glistens with mucus. Its hands only have three fingers and a thumb, while its eyes are dead white, and seemingly without pupils. An illithid's most distinctive feature is its bulging head, with four grasping tentacles grouped around a circular many-toothed mouth, similar to that of a lamprey.
Illithids can see in the dark and communicate with any creatures via innate telepathy. They have no spoken language, although they often accompany their thoughts with hissing, and the eager lashing of their tentacles. Mind flayers dress in flowing dramatic robes and cloaks adorned with star-like symbols, and often sport high, stiff collars and dark hats.[4][8]
Behavior[]
"With an illithid's faith" (i.e. "with treachery")
- Spacefarers aphorism[9]
Mind flayers are arrogant, viewing all other sentient species as "skull cattle" to feed upon. However, the vastness of wildspace has suborned their usual overriding drive to "hunt and dominate" with one of "trade and dominate". There is a universe of minds out there to be learned from and/or eaten, and the spacefaring illithid look forward to the day when they can consider everyone their vassals.[3]
Mind flayers have no family structure. Their social activities include eating, communicating with the elder brain, and debating on the best tactics to conquer wildspace. For amusement, they inflict pain on their captives and force slaves to fight in gladiatorial games. They are also extremely self serving, and if an encounter goes against them, they will immediately flee, seeking to save themselves without regard for their fellows.[4]
Combat[]
In combat, a mind flayer's preferred mode of attack is a mind blast, a wave of psionic power projected in a cone 60-feet long, 5-feet wide at point of origin (i.e. the mind flayer), and 20-feet wide at the furthest end. All living creatures within the area of effect may be stunned and unable to act for up to 12 minutes.
Often an illithid will attempt to capture its stunned opponents and incapacitate them before they regain their wits. The mind flayer may choose to enslave its victims, while devouring the brains of one or two of them. When devouring the brain of a stunned victim, the mind flayer inserts its tentacles into the victim's skull and draws out its brain, killing the victim.
A mind flayer can also use its tentacles in combat; however it only does so when surprised or when attacking a solitary, unarmed victim. It attempts to grab hold of its victim's head with all four of its tentacles; if successful, the illithid will force open its victims skull and remove and devour its brain, instantly killing them.
Mind flayers are blessed with significant mental abilities, and are able to use the psionic equivalent of the following arcane spells: suggestion, charm person, charm monster, ESP, levitate, astral projection, and plane shift.[4]
Mind flayers are psionic creatures by definition. However, there are individuals who have developed the ability to use arcane or divine magic. Extremely rare, illithid spellcasters often serve as backup helmsmen on various spelljamming vessels.[3] Sorcerers are able to learn arcane spells quickly but have yet to develop the raw power that other races can achieve.[10] Illithid priests, on the other hand, gain their spells directly from Ilsensine (or Lugribossk), and have the standard spell casting abilities of any clerical devotee.[11]
Society[]
The illithid dislike sunlight and avoid being exposed to bright light if at all possible. This hatred of light carries over into wildspace, where they prefer establishing colonies deep underground, or within abandoned asteroids, usually hollowed out by radiant dragons or dwarves. There are even recorded instances of mind flayers seizing a dwarven citadel, killing or enslaving the entire population in the process. Even their spelljammer vessels have been designed to keep exposure to light to the barest minimum.
On most illithid vessels, advancement is by assassination, and most captains prefer to place their best, brightest, and most dangerous officers in positions of authority and danger; in the hope that they will either be too busy or killed before they become a threat to the captain's position (and life).[12]
The illithid establish colonies ranging in population from 200 to 2,000 illithids, plus at least two slaves per illithid. All the slaves are under the effect of charm spells, and obey their masters without question. At the heart of a mind flayer community is its elder brain, residing within a pool of briny fluid that contains the brains of the city's dead. Due to the mental powers of illithids, the elder brain is still sentient, and the telepathic union of its brains rules the community. The elder brain has a telepathic range of 2 to 5 miles, depending on its age and size. It does not engage in combat, but telepathically warns the community of the presence of any sentient creatures, so a mind flayer within its telepathic radius can only be surprised by non-intelligent creatures. The range of the elder brain determines the territory claimed and defended by an illithid community, though raiding parties are sent far beyond this limit.
Mind flayers will maintain enclaves close to humanoid settlements to maintain trade connections; however, they prefer to keep their cities and communities separate from other races. This is in part to protect the elder brain pools, where the young illithid spawn and grow, and which are sensitive to alien thought patterns. They also prefer to conceal the extent and makeup of their slave population; making it easier overall to keep slaves without outside interference, which is a constant problem near other civilized races. In those rare areas where the mind flayers maintain an enclave near a human settlement, there is usually a notable increase in the "brain-trade".[3]
The mind flayer's dominate several worlds throughout the Known Spheres, including Falx,[13] Ssirik Akuar,[14] Glyth in Realmspace,[15] and Ushathrandra and its moons in Clusterspace.[16] There are also notable populations of illithids on Reorx in Krynnspace,[1] Skullbringer in the Grinder,[17] and the Spectre in Greyspace.[18] There is even an illithid space station known as the Skull of the Void in Realmspace.[19]
Illithid life cycle[]
Illithid are warm blooded amphibious hermaphrodites who achieve their adult humanoid forms through a process known as ceremorphosis. Their internal structures are similar to that of standard humanoids, though illithid flesh is distinct from the tissue of other creatures.[8] Adult mind flayers spawn twice during their lives, depositing clutches of clear eggs along the edge of the community's elder brain's briny pool, where they hatch into tadpoles after a month. Illithids remain as tadpoles for up to 10 years, during which time they grow and develop. Most of the tadpoles in a clutch do not reach maturity (about 1-in-1000 survive). The unlucky majority are subject to predation by the elder brain residing within the depths of the pool. Adult illithid view any surviving tadpoles as the best of the clutch, and suitable for the next stage of their lives.
Ceremorphosis, from cere meaning brain and morphe meaning form, is the process whereby a mature tadpole transforms into an adult illithid. The process begins when a mature tadpole is inserted into the ear of a helpless humanoid. The tadpole burrows into the victim's brain, consuming much of their gray matter, and replacing the missing brain tissue with their own squalid tissue. In effect, the tadpole melds with the uneaten lower brain stem of the victim, destroying all remnants of their personality and spirit while leaving the physical body alive for its own use. Within the next few days, the process replaces the victim's tissue with that of an illithid; when the transformation is complete, the victim is dead. The resulting adult mind flayer does not resemble the original victim, nor does it bear any of its victim's sexual characteristics.
Only certain humanoid races are acceptable for implantation, and then only within a specific height and weight range. Illithids often choose victims for ceremorphosis from among the healthiest of their slaves, though they often cull victims from raids on humanoid communities to assure they have the very best stock. Acceptable humanoids include humans, elves, drow, gith, grimlocks, gnolls, goblins, and orcs.[20]
Ulitharid[]
Ulitharids, also known as noble illithid, are the elite of mind flayer society, and as such are free to exercise their will upon lower status illithids and all other humanoids that fall under their power. Ulitharids tower over their lesser kin by more than a foot, standing 7 1/2-feet tall. Besides their height, ulitharids possess a total of six writhing tentacles, inspiring reverence among most normal mind flayers. A ulitharid can expect to live for at least 250 years, and some have survived for even longer before joining the elder brain.[21]
Uses[]
Mind flayer ichor is an effective ingredient in a potion of ESP.[4]
Notable Illithid[]
- Estriss ("Thought Taker") was a notable historian; captain of the hammership Probe; and one-time companion of Teldin Moore, the Cloakmaster.[22][23][24]
- Ishathrandra was the illithid ambassador to the Rock of Bral.[25]
- Netzarza was a native of Falx and captain of the drow-modified man-o-war Nightstalker.[26]
- "Skull Toucher" was a merchant in the brain trade who procured captured slaves from the neogi slaver Sisk Hal, captain of the mindspider Collector.[7]
- Surrell of the 12 Skulls Ranch was the preeminent humanoid breeder on Glyth in Realmspace and was renowned for his selective breeding techniques.[27]
- Lord Trebek was the leader of the illithid community onboard the Spelljammer.[28]
- The nameless Underbaron who was rumored to control the illegal slave trade on the Rock of Bral was believed to be an illithid.[29]
- Prince Villithandra was the illithid ambassador to the council of war called in response to raids carried out by the Vodoni Empire.[30][31]
Signature Spelljammers[]
The illithid have, with the assistance of the arcane, developed their own unique spelljamming helms, including the series helm and the pool helm. The introduction of the series helm enabled the rapid proliferation of mind flayer colonies throughout wildspace, while the pool helm, which relies on an elder brain to provide the motive force, has the potential of powering significantly larger vessels.[32][33]
The nautiloid is the most common mind flayer ship in operation, though they also use a variety of human-built ships modified to suit their needs. With the introduction of the pool helm, the mind flayers have begun using larger hulls,[3] such as the dreadnought.[34]
During the first Unhuman War, neutral human communities collaborated with the illithid to develop their own unique designs, including the octopus.[35]
Appendix[]
External Links[]
- Illithid article at the Forgotten Realms Wiki, a wiki for the Forgotten Realms campaign setting.
- Illithid article at the Eberron Wiki, a wiki for the Eberron campaign setting.
- Illithid article at Greyhawkonline.com, a wiki for the Greyhawk campaign setting.
- Illithid article at the Villains Wiki, a database of villains or villainous creatures from all media.
- Illithid article at the Dungeons and Dragons Lore Wiki, a wiki for official Dungeons & Dragons content from every edition.
- Illithid article at the Advanced Dungeons & Dragons 2nd Edition Wiki, a wiki for official Dungeons & Dragons content from 2nd edition AD&D.
References[]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Jean Rabe, SJR7 Krynnspace, 1993, (TSR Inc.), Reorx chapter, pages 16-20
- ↑ Jeff Grubb. AD&D Adventures in Space; Lorebook of the Void, TSR, Inc., 1989, Major and Minor Races sidebar (pp.50, 52 and 54)
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 3.5 Jeff Grubb. AD&D Adventures in Space; Lorebook of the Void, TSR, Inc., 1989, Mind Flayers section, chapter 3: Spacefarers (p.61)
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 Tim Beach et al, Monstrous Manual, 1993, (TSR Inc.), Mind Flayer (Illithid) entry, page 251
- ↑ Dale "Slade" Henson, War Captain's Companion, War Captain's Guide, 1992, (TSR Inc.), sidebar, page 17
- ↑ Nigel D. Findley, SJA2 Skull & Crossbows, 1990, (TSR Inc.), The Outpost, chapter 3: Starfaring Races, page 44
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 Nigel D. Findley, SJA2 Skull & Crossbows, 1990, (TSR Inc.), The Brain Trade, chapter 3: Starfaring Races, pages 30-32
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 Bruce R. Cordell, The Illithiad, 1998, (TSR Inc.), ISBN: 0-7869-1206-5, chapter 1: Illithids: What They Are, page 7
- ↑ Nigel D. Findley, SJR6 Greyspace, 1992, (TSR Inc.), sidebar, page 69
- ↑ Sam Witt, The Astromundi Cluster, The Astrogator's Guide, 1993, (TSR Inc.),Illithids section, The Astromundi Cluster chapter, page 7
- ↑ Bruce R. Cordell, The Illithiad, 1998, (TSR Inc.), ISBN: 0-7869-1206-5, chapter 4: History and Theology, pages 40-41
- ↑ Jeff Grubb, The Legend of Spelljammer, Captains and Ships, 1991, (TSR Inc.), The Shipyard, page 15
- ↑ Nigel Findley, SJR4 Practical Planetology, 1991, (TSR Inc.), Falx section, chapter 2 Earth Bodies, pages 7-9
- ↑ Stephen Inniss, "The Sunset World", Dragon Magazine issue #150, 1989, (TSR Inc.), pages 19-25, and 65
- ↑ Dale "Slade" Henson, SJR2 Realmspace, 1991, (TSR Inc.), Glyth chapter, pages 39-41
- ↑ Sam Witt, The Astromundi Cluster, The Celestial Almanac, 1993, (TSR Inc.), Ushathrandra and Moons section, The Almanac chapter, pages 79-83
- ↑ Nigel D. Findley, SJR6 Greyspace, 1992, (TSR Inc.), The Grinder chapter, page 30
- ↑ Nigel D. Findley, SJR6 Greyspace, 1992, (TSR Inc.), The Spectre chapter, pages 68 and 69
- ↑ Dale "Slade" Henson, SJR2 Realmspace, 1991, (TSR Inc.), Additional Astronomicals chapter, page 54
- ↑ Bruce R. Cordell, The Illithiad, 1998, (TSR Inc.), ISBN: 0-7869-1206-5, chapter 2: Life Cycle and Variations, pages 10-12
- ↑ Bruce R. Cordell, The Illithiad, 1998, (TSR Inc.), ISBN: 0-7869-1206-5, chapter 2: Life Cycle and Variations, pages 15-16
- ↑ Nigel D. Findley, SJA2 Skull & Crossbows, 1990, (TSR Inc.), The Outpost, chapter 3: Starfaring Races, pages 43-50
- ↑ Nigel D. Findley, The Cloakmaster Cycle, Into the Void, 1991, (TSR Inc.), pages 35-42 (first appearance)
- ↑ Elaine Cunningham, The Cloakmaster Cycle, The Radiant Dragon, 1992, (TSR Inc.), pages 63-68 (first appearance)
- ↑ Richard Baker, SJR5 Rock of Bral, 1992, (TSR Inc), Part 2: A House Divided, page 30
- ↑ Elaine Cunningham, The Cloakmaster Cycle, The Radiant Dragon, 1992, (TSR Inc.), pages 60-74 (first appearance)
- ↑ Dale "Slade" Henson, SJR2 Realmspace, 1991, (TSR Inc.), Important NPCs section, Glyth chapter, page 41
- ↑ Jeff Grubb, The Legend of Spelljammer, Captains and Ships, 1991, (TSR Inc.), Personalities of the Spelljammer, pages 72-73
- ↑ Richard Baker, SJR5 Rock of Bral, 1992, (TSR Inc), Part 4: Adventuring in Bral, page 95
- ↑ Grant Boucher, SJA4 Under The Dark Fist, 1991, (TSR Inc.), chapter 2: Strange Bedfellows, pages 10, 11 and 12-13
- ↑ Grant Boucher, SJA4 Under The Dark Fist, 1991, (TSR Inc.), Appendix B: Non-Player Characters, page 55
- ↑ Jeff Grubb. AD&D Adventures in Space; Concordance of Arcane Space, TSR, Inc., 1989, chapter 3: Ships Of Wildspace (p.36)
- ↑ Bruce R. Cordell, The Illithiad, 1998, (TSR Inc.), ISBN: 0-7869-1206-5, chapter 7: Illithid Technology, page 85
- ↑ Jeff Grubb, The Legend of Spelljammer, Captains and Ships, 1991, (TSR Inc.), The Shipyard, pages 15-17
- ↑ Dale "Slade" Henson, War Captain's Companion, Ship Recognition Manual, 1992, (TSR Inc.), Ships of the Spelljammer Universe, page 37