Illithids [Archive] - Wizards Community - Pages Merged by Solauren

Illithids [Archive] - Wizards Community

Post/Author/DateTime Post
StoneSinger
02-24-08, 12:58 AM I always thought it would be fun to play a mindflayer.
Ofcourse for it to be a pc you would greatly have to dumb it down.
I mean classic mindflayer stats, they would be epic no matter what class they chose (especially monk).
So you lessen the stats to make it fair, which is explainable by taking away their levels in abberation, which is explainable since they are not longer part of a collective illithid community if they are part of an adventuring party.
There would obviously be a lot of bugs to work out.
I do believe that after some work, energy drinks, and a few bouts of depression from having no life, I could make it work atleast semi-decently.
Maybe certain skills would be spread out over levels? Maybe somethings has to have its defenses worn down considerably before consumption? Just ideas spewed out randomly now really. But I will give it more thought.
I just like the alien mindset they represent, like nothing else on the surface or below.

Thoughts and suggestions?
Lycanthromancer
02-24-08, 01:36 AM There's illithid crap in CPsi.

I call it crap because IT IS CRAP.

However, it might give you a starting point in what you want to do.
CrimsonDeath
02-24-08, 01:59 AM There's a Mind Flayer savage progression in Savage Species. It'll take some modifications to make it compatible with the XPH version, though. (You'll have to remove the SLAs and intersperse nine levels of Telepath manifesting.) That, however, will only let you play a Mind Flayer as it's written, from level 1. Playing a no-racial-HD, no-LA version is going to take considerably more work. Lycanthromancer unfortunately may have a point about the Illithid Heritage crap.
The_Mess
02-24-08, 02:00 AM Another starting point would be the Illithid monster class in Savage Species. It will make full-powered, near epic Illithids, though, so you'll have to trim it to what you want.
The_Mess
02-24-08, 02:01 AM Am I required by forum law to say "Ninja'd!"?
StoneSinger
02-24-08, 03:13 AM Probably more work than it is worth.
CrimsonDeath
02-24-08, 03:45 AM Am I required by forum law to say "Ninja'd!"?

Only if you edit your original post to say it.
The_Mess
02-24-08, 01:29 PM Awk!

I'll get it right next time! I promise!
illithid_guy
03-15-08, 07:56 PM Ohhhh man, you would not believe the number of times
I have tried to sneak, cheat, and loophole in an illithid
as my PC, your best bet would be making friends with the
illithids (unlikely) and have them do that whole tadpole-
eat-your-brain-and-turn-you-into-a-illithid thing (deadly).
But I doubt your DM would still let you play like that,
instead he'll probably turn you into a plot hakend recurring
villain, but thats really it, as I have to agree that that
"Illithid Heritage" thing in CP is really crap, I tried it (disappointing).:raincloud
Slagger the Chuul
03-15-08, 09:14 PM If you ditched all the spell-like abilities and racial Hit Dice, you could probably spread the remaining benefits across your normal class progression, with the occasional "level" where you gain +1 level adjustment and a few more mind flayer benefits. I think Unearthed Arcana did something similar as a way of inheriting traits of a monstrous bloodline.

Assuming you ditched mind blast (or possibly turned it into an illithid-only augment for psionic blast), that would leave:

+2 Strength, +4 Dexterity, +2 Constitution, +8 Intelligence, +6 Wisdom, +6 Charisma
4 tentacles (1d4)
+3 natural armour bonus
Improved grab
Extract
Spell Resistance (10+effective character level)
Telepathy 100 ft.

Which could be spread across five or six levels inserted into the normal class progression, with psionic abilities gained through levels in a psionic class.
illithid_guy
03-16-08, 09:55 PM If you ditched all the spell-like abilities and racial Hit Dice, you could probably spread the remaining benefits across your normal class progression, with the occasional "level" where you gain +1 level adjustment and a few more mind flayer benefits. I think Unearthed Arcana did something similar as a way of inheriting traits of a monstrous bloodline.

I like that idea, I'll have to try it.
Slagger the Chuul
03-17-08, 12:53 AM I like that idea, I'll have to try it.

Don't forget to drop the spell resistance back down to account for the loss of the mind flayer's racial Hit Dice and Level Adjustment (but you can count the level adjustments you add in yourself to bump it back up as you increase in level). Stripping off the normal 8 racial Hit Dice and +7 LA (for a total of 15), that leaves the spell resistance at 10 + Effective Character Level.

For example, if the mind flayer gained spell resistance at ECL 13 (let's say 10 class levels and 3 levels of level adjustment), it would have SR 23.
Leopard420
03-18-08, 03:50 AM i made a char that was not an illithid qualify for the illithid savant prc in savage species. Do the SQ, skills, feats - draining abilities only work a max number of times as listed and then no more of it at all, or is it that i select SQ, skills, feats, etc, and i gain the indicated number of what i chose, but i only get to select one of them per brain? does this make sense? sorry i dont have the books right here with me.
syrazemyla
03-21-08, 11:15 AM I had a weird thought.

Could an illithid take the illithid heritage and illithid grapple feats to get even more tentacles?
The_Mess
03-21-08, 10:31 PM RAW, yes.

We finally found a race that can get some use out of the things! With a few more tentacles, he'll have a much easier time of doing a brain-eating attack!
CrimsonDeath
03-21-08, 11:36 PM I wonder how Form of Doom interacts with a creature's naturally occurring tentacle attacks.
Lycanthromancer
03-21-08, 11:40 PM Illithid + form of doom + Illithid Heritage feats? That's an anime movie and a half, right there.
Fatalis_902
03-22-08, 12:01 AM Illithid + form of doom + Illithid Heritage feats? That's an anime movie and a half, right there.

Dude, that's not daytime anime, right there.;)
Ecalsneerg
03-22-08, 08:04 AM Illithid + form of doom + Illithid Heritage feats? That's an anime movie and a half, right there.

Yeah, but it'd make a hell of a BBEG.
Lycanthromancer
03-22-08, 02:32 PM I had a thought for a character concept.

If you haven't heard of The Adversary (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Illithid#The_Adversary), s/he/it is an illithid that retains its original mind after ceremorphosis.

There's also this:Occasionally, ceremorphosis can partially fail. Sometimes the larva does not contain enough chemicals to complete the mutation, sometimes there is psionic interference. Whatever the reason, it has happened that ceremorphosis has ended after the internal restructuring, resulting in a human body with an illithid's brain, personality and digestive tract. These unfortunates must still consume brains, typically by cutting open heads (as they lack the requisite tentacles). These beings are sent as spies to the surface, where they easily blend in with humans.Now, my idea is that, due to sheer chance, a normal person stumbles across some large mushrooms that had grown from the corpse of an illithid after being trapped in the underdark for some days; starving, he eats the mushrooms and is thereafter captured by illithids and subjected to ceremorphosis (the mushrooms have the effects of sickening the illithid spawn that attempts to eat his brain). The ceremorphosis, as noted above, is only partially successful, leaving him both The Adversary and retaining his original form.

Thus, he's human on the outside, illithid on the inside, with a human mind in an illithid brain. He was sent to spy on the PCs, and is supposed to steer them into doing something horrible, but he's a triple agent - he's working for the illithids while being on the PCs' side while manipulating the PCs into doing what the illithids want while doing something else entirely.

Freaky, huh.

Psion/illithid slayer, with the intent of killing the illithids off at any cost, even of his own life.
angelofsorrow66
03-23-08, 05:00 PM Illithid + form of doom + Illithid Heritage feats? That's an anime movie and a half, right there.

Well said!

Post/Author/DateTime	Post
StoneSinger 02-24-08, 12:58 AM	I always thought it would be fun to play a mindflayer. Ofcourse for it to be a pc you would greatly have to dumb it down. I mean classic mindflayer stats, they would be epic no matter what class they chose (especially monk). So you lessen the stats to make it fair, which is explainable by taking away their levels in abberation, which is explainable since they are not longer part of a collective illithid community if they are part of an adventuring party. There would obviously be a lot of bugs to work out. I do believe that after some work, energy drinks, and a few bouts of depression from having no life, I could make it work atleast semi-decently. Maybe certain skills would be spread out over levels? Maybe somethings has to have its defenses worn down considerably before consumption? Just ideas spewed out randomly now really. But I will give it more thought. I just like the alien mindset they represent, like nothing else on the surface or below. Thoughts and suggestions?
Lycanthromancer 02-24-08, 01:36 AM	There's illithid crap in CPsi. I call it crap because IT IS CRAP. However, it might give you a starting point in what you want to do.
CrimsonDeath 02-24-08, 01:59 AM	There's a Mind Flayer savage progression in Savage Species. It'll take some modifications to make it compatible with the XPH version, though. (You'll have to remove the SLAs and intersperse nine levels of Telepath manifesting.) That, however, will only let you play a Mind Flayer as it's written, from level 1. Playing a no-racial-HD, no-LA version is going to take considerably more work. Lycanthromancer unfortunately may have a point about the Illithid Heritage crap.
The_Mess 02-24-08, 02:00 AM	Another starting point would be the Illithid monster class in Savage Species. It will make full-powered, near epic Illithids, though, so you'll have to trim it to what you want.
The_Mess 02-24-08, 02:01 AM	Am I required by forum law to say "Ninja'd!"?
StoneSinger 02-24-08, 03:13 AM	Probably more work than it is worth.
CrimsonDeath 02-24-08, 03:45 AM	Am I required by forum law to say "Ninja'd!"? Only if you edit your original post to say it.
The_Mess 02-24-08, 01:29 PM	Awk! I'll get it right next time! I promise!
illithid_guy 03-15-08, 07:56 PM	Ohhhh man, you would not believe the number of times I have tried to sneak, cheat, and loophole in an illithid as my PC, your best bet would be making friends with the illithids (unlikely) and have them do that whole tadpole- eat-your-brain-and-turn-you-into-a-illithid thing (deadly). But I doubt your DM would still let you play like that, instead he'll probably turn you into a plot hakend recurring villain, but thats really it, as I have to agree that that "Illithid Heritage" thing in CP is really crap, I tried it (disappointing).:raincloud
Slagger the Chuul 03-15-08, 09:14 PM	If you ditched all the spell-like abilities and racial Hit Dice, you could probably spread the remaining benefits across your normal class progression, with the occasional "level" where you gain +1 level adjustment and a few more mind flayer benefits. I think Unearthed Arcana did something similar as a way of inheriting traits of a monstrous bloodline. Assuming you ditched mind blast (or possibly turned it into an illithid-only augment for psionic blast), that would leave: +2 Strength, +4 Dexterity, +2 Constitution, +8 Intelligence, +6 Wisdom, +6 Charisma 4 tentacles (1d4) +3 natural armour bonus Improved grab Extract Spell Resistance (10+effective character level) Telepathy 100 ft. Which could be spread across five or six levels inserted into the normal class progression, with psionic abilities gained through levels in a psionic class.
illithid_guy 03-16-08, 09:55 PM	If you ditched all the spell-like abilities and racial Hit Dice, you could probably spread the remaining benefits across your normal class progression, with the occasional "level" where you gain +1 level adjustment and a few more mind flayer benefits. I think Unearthed Arcana did something similar as a way of inheriting traits of a monstrous bloodline. I like that idea, I'll have to try it.
Slagger the Chuul 03-17-08, 12:53 AM	I like that idea, I'll have to try it. Don't forget to drop the spell resistance back down to account for the loss of the mind flayer's racial Hit Dice and Level Adjustment (but you can count the level adjustments you add in yourself to bump it back up as you increase in level). Stripping off the normal 8 racial Hit Dice and +7 LA (for a total of 15), that leaves the spell resistance at 10 + Effective Character Level. For example, if the mind flayer gained spell resistance at ECL 13 (let's say 10 class levels and 3 levels of level adjustment), it would have SR 23.
Leopard420 03-18-08, 03:50 AM	i made a char that was not an illithid qualify for the illithid savant prc in savage species. Do the SQ, skills, feats - draining abilities only work a max number of times as listed and then no more of it at all, or is it that i select SQ, skills, feats, etc, and i gain the indicated number of what i chose, but i only get to select one of them per brain? does this make sense? sorry i dont have the books right here with me.
syrazemyla 03-21-08, 11:15 AM	I had a weird thought. Could an illithid take the illithid heritage and illithid grapple feats to get even more tentacles?
The_Mess 03-21-08, 10:31 PM	RAW, yes. We finally found a race that can get some use out of the things! With a few more tentacles, he'll have a much easier time of doing a brain-eating attack!
CrimsonDeath 03-21-08, 11:36 PM	I wonder how Form of Doom interacts with a creature's naturally occurring tentacle attacks.
Lycanthromancer 03-21-08, 11:40 PM	Illithid + form of doom + Illithid Heritage feats? That's an anime movie and a half, right there.
Fatalis_902 03-22-08, 12:01 AM	Illithid + form of doom + Illithid Heritage feats? That's an anime movie and a half, right there. Dude, that's not daytime anime, right there.;)
Ecalsneerg 03-22-08, 08:04 AM	Illithid + form of doom + Illithid Heritage feats? That's an anime movie and a half, right there. Yeah, but it'd make a hell of a BBEG.
Lycanthromancer 03-22-08, 02:32 PM	I had a thought for a character concept. If you haven't heard of The Adversary (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Illithid#The_Adversary), s/he/it is an illithid that retains its original mind after ceremorphosis. There's also this:Occasionally, ceremorphosis can partially fail. Sometimes the larva does not contain enough chemicals to complete the mutation, sometimes there is psionic interference. Whatever the reason, it has happened that ceremorphosis has ended after the internal restructuring, resulting in a human body with an illithid's brain, personality and digestive tract. These unfortunates must still consume brains, typically by cutting open heads (as they lack the requisite tentacles). These beings are sent as spies to the surface, where they easily blend in with humans.Now, my idea is that, due to sheer chance, a normal person stumbles across some large mushrooms that had grown from the corpse of an illithid after being trapped in the underdark for some days; starving, he eats the mushrooms and is thereafter captured by illithids and subjected to ceremorphosis (the mushrooms have the effects of sickening the illithid spawn that attempts to eat his brain). The ceremorphosis, as noted above, is only partially successful, leaving him both The Adversary and retaining his original form. Thus, he's human on the outside, illithid on the inside, with a human mind in an illithid brain. He was sent to spy on the PCs, and is supposed to steer them into doing something horrible, but he's a triple agent - he's working for the illithids while being on the PCs' side while manipulating the PCs into doing what the illithids want while doing something else entirely. Freaky, huh. Psion/illithid slayer, with the intent of killing the illithids off at any cost, even of his own life.
angelofsorrow66 03-23-08, 05:00 PM	Illithid + form of doom + Illithid Heritage feats? That's an anime movie and a half, right there. Well said!