Mindflayer clerics -- associated?

[pawsplay]

I find it particularly hard to keep them alive. I think something about them kicks my campaign's party into high gear and they just totally let loose. They fail their saves all the friggin time, mostly because the party throws so much at them. I would recommend doing whatever you can to boost their saves.

One close look at the psionic blast motivated my players to pull out all stops. I kind of like that about them.

If they have class levels, cloaks of resistance are nice. Their SR fends off Fortitude saves pretty well, though.

 

[lukelightning]

Are mind flayers bad at anything?

They'd make terrible neurosurgeons. They get tempted to snack while they work.

 

[Sejs]

Are mind flayers bad at anything?

Basketball. Squid men can't jump.


Anyway, yes. They're crappy fighters. They're better than undead and fey, but that's not saying much.

 

[moritheil]

RAW, the only associated levels would be sorc (standard) or psion/wilder (in a psionics campaign.) I'm not even sure about sorc, as IIRC they don't have casting ability to add to the way that rakshasas do. The sample advanced mindflayer has sorc levels that seem to count 1-for-1 for CR, but that could easily be some sort of mistake. (I don't have the book; this is all from memory.)

 

[Infiniti2000]

Are mind flayers bad at anything?

They're very good at driving.

 

[pawsplay]

Their favored class is wizard, so wizard has to be associated. As they have a +6 to both charisma and wisdom, and the sample NPC treats sorcerer as associated, I think cleric would have to be considered associated as well.

Where in the RAW does it say cleric is definitely nonassociated, moritheil?

ADDING CLASS LEVELS
If you are advancing a monster by adding player character class levels, decide if the class levels directly improve the monster’s existing capabilities.


It also says

A spellcasting class is an associated class for a creature that already has the ability to cast spells as a character of the class in question, since the monster’s levels in the spellcasting class stack with its innate spellcasting ability.

but to think that implied classes that don't directly add are all nonassociated would be a logical fallacy (illicit major).

 

[pawsplay]

Anyway, yes. They're crappy fighters. They're better than undead and fey, but that's not saying much.

Are they? What if you stuck them in good armor, and optimized them for grappling and brainsucking. It occurs to me that with enough iterative attacks, getting four attached tentacles is a near certainty.

 

[shilsen]

Are they? What if you stuck them in good armor, and optimized them for grappling and brainsucking. It occurs to me that with enough iterative attacks, getting four attached tentacles is a near certainty.

Or just use a mindflayer monk. I used a monk/marshal (wanted a unarmed combatant leader type) vs. my PCs and he was brutal.

 

[taliesin15]

In all seriousness folks, this thread begs the question of origins of Mind Flayers. Since 1st ed. I've always imagined them as humanoidish envoys of the Elder Gods, i.e. Cthulhu, Hastur, Shub-Niggoroth, et al. Lookit what they got in common--psionic type attacks that makes humanoids crazy, squidlike alien appearance, and an overall arrogance and antipathy to humans. How else would one logically explain their existence?

I could see some Clerics worshipping the Elder Gods in some campaign somewhere possibly being associated with Mind Flayers. Perhaps a Mind Flayer happens upon powerful Lawful Good high lvl Cleric of the God of Bunnies and Flowers, and instead of destroying/torturing him, decides here's a useful too for my nefarious designs, and just brainwashes him.

 

[Infiniti2000]

I've always imagined them as humanoidish envoys of the Elder Gods, i.e. Cthulhu, Hastur, Shub-Niggoroth, et al.

Who?