Have you seen an Aboleth in game?

[HelloChristian]

Hall of the Rainbow Mage by Necromancer Games.

Patrick Lawinger wrote that one. Great module!

 

[GQuail]

I ran The Styes from Dungeon Magazine, um, 121? It features an Aboleth or two.

It was actually quite a funky encounter - it's my "secondary" group who rotate the GM slot, and I was keen to run something else but chose D&D as a compromise. None of them are super-fluent in D&D but one guy knew quite a bit of background from 2E days... so when they reached a cultist's lair and an Aboleth rose out of a pool, his PC just screamed and legged it. The others too decided to retreat rather than fight, with only one PC brave enough to face off against it and somehow managing to win thanks to a Dust of Dryness and a lot of luck.

Best of all, when the aforementioned 2E old hand got out the boat and his buddies didn't immediately follow, he proceeded to blow up the cave entrance because he thought they'd be mind-controlled and used against him. There were some tense words exchanged after they tried to follow him and found collapsed rock...

 

[Kunimatyu]

I haven't used one, but that's because I'm waiting for a mini and for the right campaign to use them. Aboleths are too cool to use unless they're a major focus for a campaign.

 

[Richards]

"The Styes" for me as well - in fact, we just finished that adventure last session. I believe that's the only time I've ever used an aboleth (or three).

Johnathan

 

[cildarith]

Yes, in Dwellers of the Forbidden City, of course!

 

[Agamon]

Well, not in 4e, haven't gotten past 3rd level yet. But, yeah, more times than I can remember in the past 25 years, otherwise.

 

[T-Bone JiuJitsu]

I remember using one back in the mid-eighties 1st Ed AD&D. I was new to DMing and the Aboleth was used pretty much just as a mindless aquatic brute. I'm not sure I read anything other than the stat block on that encounter, but that was typical in those younger days.

 

[Fallen Seraph]

As a DM yup, and I didn't even have to bring the players near any water the encounter actually occurred in the middle of a city.

It is fun when Aboleths are grand-masters of a world spanning army and they are transported around in what are essentially rip-offs of the Navigator Containers from Dune.

 

[Fifth Element]

If you want to read an example of an entire campaign based upon the machinations of an Aboleth, get hold of TSR's 2e campaign box set "The Night Below." It's pretty epic, although players had mixed reactions to it. It really is an impressive product.

I'm playing it right now, for the last 16 months or so. We've reached Great Shaboath. The aboleth sightings promise to increase in frequency a great deal.

 

[HelloChristian]

I'm playing it right now, for the last 16 months or so. We've reached Great Shaboath. The aboleth sightings promise to increase in frequency a great deal.

That's quite a commitment! After a year, our effort stalled out soon after encountering the insane Kuo Toa.