Are you wondering how the monsters have changed in the 2025 Monster Manual? Well, one way of showing this is to make side-by-side comparisons of the 2025 monsters to their 2014 equivalents. Today, we're looking at the aboleth.
The aboleth has received a major visual redesign, transforming the fish-like aberration into a hulking, tentaculed....thing. It's possible that the aboleth has retained its fish-like body, but the artwork shows the aboleth lumbering over a cultist, its mouth agape with mandibles and tentacles splayed out. I loved the original fish design, but I'll admit that this aboleth looks a lot more intimidating and eldritch than past depictions.
One major change in the 2025 Monster Manual is that regional effects now have mechanical effects to them. The aboleth fouls all water within a mile of its lair and any creature that drinks the fouled water must succeed on a DC 15 Constitution saving throw or gain the Poisoned condition for an hour. The aboleth can also cast Project Image with a range of a mile while inside its lair, and the aboleth can use its natural telepathy from the image as if it were in the illusion's space.
As for the stats themselves, the aboleth has 15 more HP in the 2025 Monster Manual. It also has received a significant boost to its Initiative bonus - instead of a -1 to its Initiative, it has a +7 Initiative bonus. The aboleth also now has proficiency on Dexterity saving throws, raising its -1 Dexterity saving throw bonus to a +3. All other ability scores and saving throws are the same.
The aboleth now explicitly has an eldritch restoration ability that allows it to reform in the Far Realm 5d10 days after its body is destroyed. I feel like this was present in past aboleth lore/statblocks, but was missing from the 2014 Monster Manual. The aboleth now has legendary resistances as well. The aboleth's mucous cloud effect has also changed. Instead of preventing the affected creature from breathing air, the creature now takes 1d12 acid damage every ten minutes while outside of water unless the creature has moisture applied to its skin. Instead of being diseased, the affected creature is now cursed, which means that the effects can be removed by a Remove Curse spell instead of a disease.
In terms of attacks, the aboleth's multiattack allows it to now use two tentacle attacks and either Dominate Mind (a renamed version of the aboleth's enslave ability) or the new Consume Memories ability. The tentacle no longer inflicts the aboleth's disease, but grapples a target instead. The tail attack is gone from the new statblock and the Dominate Mind ability now only can be used twice a day instead of three times a day. Additionally, Dominate Mind has a higher saving throw DC (16 instead of 14) and its effects are slightly changed, as the aboleth can now only control the creature while its within 60 feet (although the creature remains charmed outside of this range).
The aboleth has a new "Consume Memories" action that targets a creature within 30 feet of it and forces them to make an Intelligence saving throw. On a success, the aboleth deals 10 points (3D6) of Psychic damage and half-damage on a failure. On either a success or a failure, "the aboleth gains the target’s memories if the target is a Humanoid and is reduced to 0 Hit Points by this action." I feel like this means that the aboleth's Hit Points are reduced to zero, but the wording is a bit wonky. Update - Consume Memories only gains the target's memories if the target's Hit Points reach zero. Thanks to those who pointed this out!
The aboleth's legendary actions are changed, with Detect removed, the tail swipe changed to a single tentacle attack, and Psychic Drain now targeting a creature either a grappled or charmed by the aboleth with the Consume Memories action, with the aboleth automatically regaining 5 HP.
