Mind Flayers

Herein are gathered all the threads about those creatures that stalk our nightmares and against whom are characters must battle!
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zarathustra
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Mind Flayers

Post by zarathustra »

Has there been a C&C treatment done for mind flayers- official or otherwise- done yet? Copyright issues maybe? But some folks out there must have done them up by now. Anyone come across any good ones?

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Deogolf
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Re: Mind Flayers

Post by Deogolf »

zarathustra wrote:
Has there been a C&C treatment done for mind flayers- official or otherwise- done yet? Copyright issues maybe? But some folks out there must have done them up by now. Anyone come across any good ones?

Mind Flayers are the sole property of WOTC and verboten, if I'm not mistaken. I guess you can do your own write-up and call them brain-eaters, or whatever. But you won't see them in any official C&C product.
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Relaxo
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Post by Relaxo »

There's a critter in the Domesday Book inspired by the Mind Flayer, same kind of conical-area debilitating attacks, kills by grappling first... same HD.

It does vary significantly, you wouldn't mistake it for a mind flayer.
http://johnwright281.tripod.com/sitebui ... day2.4.pdf page 41
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anglefish
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Post by anglefish »

I've seen quite a few 3rd party publishers use the Aboleth as a "poor man's" mind flayer.

Bax Axe Game's Slavelords Of Cydonia (http://www.badaxegames.com/products/sla ... of-cydonia) offers a whole family of Aboleth critters to fulfill the needs for a evil alien mental domination campaign.

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Lord Dynel
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Re: Mind Flayers

Post by Lord Dynel »

zarathustra wrote:
Has there been a C&C treatment done for mind flayers- official or otherwise- done yet? Copyright issues maybe? But some folks out there must have done them up by now. Anyone come across any good ones?

As Deo said. I just use the one from the 2nd Edition Monstrous Manual - it does nicely.
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Joe
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Post by Joe »

Yep...both Mind flayer and Illithid is IP of WOTC.

Gygax invented them...but they now belong to the corporation man.

If anyone owns the credit I would give it to HPL.
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Post by Arazmus »

Lovecraftian Mindflayers...yep sounds about right.
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Post by papercut »

Cthulhid!!! Much nice and more precise, remember TSR stole it from ol Loverboy's estate (not exactly but close)

Cthulhid!!!!

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Cthulhid!!!!
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Post by Arazmus »

Cthulhu is public domain...certain aspects of Lovecrafts work are owned by Chaosium and Arkham House.
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JediOre
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Re: Mind Flayers

Post by JediOre »

Lord Dynel wrote: As Deo said. I just use the one from the 2nd Edition Monstrous Manual - it does nicely.
Would anyone be able to paraphrase, or quote, the important part of how the mind blast ability of the 2nd edition mind flayer works?

I'm hoping, almost praying, that me and my friends six-month dry spell without gaming will end soon and we are mid way into G3-Hall of the Fire Giant King. Mind flayers lurk deep on the third level, and I'm really struggling to grasp how to do their dreaded Mind Blast ability.

Thanks.
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Re: Mind Flayers

Post by mgtremaine »

JediOre wrote:
Lord Dynel wrote: As Deo said. I just use the one from the 2nd Edition Monstrous Manual - it does nicely.
Would anyone be able to paraphrase, or quote, the important part of how the mind blast ability of the 2nd edition mind flayer works?

I'm hoping, almost praying, that me and my friends six-month dry spell without gaming will end soon and we are mid way into G3-Hall of the Fire Giant King. Mind flayers lurk deep on the third level, and I'm really struggling to grasp how to do their dreaded Mind Blast ability.

Thanks.

http://www.lomion.de/cmm/mindflay.php

-Mike

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JediOre
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Re: Mind Flayers

Post by JediOre »

Mike,

Thank ye kindly!
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Re: Mind Flayers

Post by Scipio »

Why not do a magic-based version instead of psionic? Call them Calamarites or Dagonites, they eat the brains of magic users to acquire spells, fighters to acquire battle expertise, etc.

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Re: Mind Flayers

Post by Omote »

Scipio wrote:Why not do a magic-based version instead of psionic? Call them Calamarites or Dagonites, they eat the brains of magic users to acquire spells, fighters to acquire battle expertise, etc.
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mgtremaine
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Re: Mind Flayers

Post by mgtremaine »

Mmmm this one tastes like magic missile... yummy.

-Mike

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Re: Mind Flayers

Post by Relaxo »

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Re: Mind Flayers

Post by Lurker »

Scipio wrote:Why not do a magic-based version instead of psionic? Call them Calamarites or Dagonites, they eat the brains of magic users to acquire spells, fighters to acquire battle expertise, etc.

I like that idea. It solves the problem of making them as dangerous as their D&D counterparts, but doesn't introduce psionics into the world (which does not exist in my home brew).

Plus that can make for a very powerful, scalable, and versatile/non-cookie cutter monster. Just think, a mid level part runs into one that is on the weak end and only has eaten a magic user with a few low level spells saved up, and then easily defeat it. A few months later they meet another one that has recently munched on a fighter so now what they thought was going to be an easy fight turns into a nasty close run melee fight. Then the next one they run into has munched on a couple of mid level mages. They draw swords and get ready for it's attack, but it stands back avoiding the hand to hand fighting that the party is expecting. Then it starts throwing around some good spells.
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JediOre
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Re: Mind Flayers

Post by JediOre »

This reminds me of the nasty creature first introduced in X2-Castle Amber. Wasn't it called a Brain Eater? It could cast spells based upon the number of brains it had consumed.
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kreider204
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Re: Mind Flayers

Post by kreider204 »

Sorry I didn't see this thread earlier - here's my own twist:

viewtopic.php?f=28&t=11650

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