Dungeon 144

[Whizbang Dustyboots]

There are two new monsters in The Lightless Depths. One is called a Brain Collector (or Nehthalggu I guess), and is described as being "A hungry polyp upon twelve insectoid legs. Larger than a horse, the thing's tumid mass writhes with whipping tentacles. It has a lipless mouth heavy with protruding row of dagger-teeth, and a ridge of four bulging eyes above. A cluster of twelve knots crown the abomination's misshapen fom, the gray wrinkles of brains trapped within pressed against the semi-transparent membranes." It's a Large CR 7 aberration and can use the brains it captures to apply metamagic like effects to its spells (cast as a 6th level sorc.) without increasing their spell slot level. It can also store more spells known in the collected brains.

Not new -- but always great fun. That's a classic BD&D monster that has also appeared in the Epic Level Handbook, IIRC.

 

[BOZ]

I suppose the next project should be the hydroloth, or maybe the dergholoth...

yes!

then the piscoloth and gacholoth... and of course, the altraloths.

 

[Nightfall]

James,

Just curious but what adventure comes next in the STAP?

Oh and Raloc, can you type up the preview for Dungeon #145 for us?

 

[James Jacobs]

I'm all for the Dergholoth James.

Yeah... I like that guy better than the hydroloth myself, I think. He looks neater, that's for sure.

 

[BOZ]

Nope; generally, if we do a Critical Threat, we won't do a Wandering Monster.

makes sense. i haven't noticed a Critical Threat in awhile - and always cool when it updates a classic characer, like with Warduke and Evard.

 

[Nightfall]

James,

Agreed. While the Piscoloth and Hydroloths are nice "water assault" fiends, the raw power of Dergholoth was much more...interesting to me.

 

[James Jacobs]

yes!

then the piscoloth and gacholoth... and of course, the altraloths.

Piscoloths are updated in the Fiend Folio, and are actually pretty faithful updates at that. Gacholoth's be cool to update just because they first showed up in Dungeon way back when. As for the altraloths... I'm not sure what needs to be done there. That'd probably be best as its own article, or at the least as an adventrue based on them. They wouldn't do as an isolated Wandering Monster at the back of an issue, that's for sure.

 

[James Jacobs]

makes sense. i haven't noticed a Critical Threat in awhile - and always cool when it updates a classic characer, like with Warduke and Evard.

We've got another classic character coming soon... a pretty awesome one at that. Stay tuned!

As for what's coming in issue #145 for Savage Tide... in issue #144 we send the PCs below the isle. In issue #145 we send them to the top. Those familiar with X1 will no doubt recognize the maps of the main dungeon in "City of Broken Idols," althoguh the encounters are a LOT tougher (it's for a 13th level party, after all...).

 

[Shemeska]

or maybe the dergholoth...

The guys over at Dragon didn't seem to share the opinion when I first suggested a degholoth update as part of an article query that's still in limbo with them (something else went in in place of the beach-ball 'loth).

But now if Dungeon wanted to update some of the 'loths on their time, I'd be all for that certainly!

 

[Nightfall]

Thanks James. I get confused as to how far along the "path" this series is. I'm still waiting for an appearance by Orcus.