THE MIND FLAYERS
CHAPTER 4
burst through the skin that forms atop the fluid and befoul Mind flayer “births” are rare, so most of the time, these the air. The floors and walls are streaked with dark stains. A chambers are empty. They could be used for more than dozen thralls wearing masks stir the fetid tanks or add matter one ceremorphosing tadpole at one time, but that seldom to the stew. happens. Mind flayers derive vital psychic and physiological sustenance from consuming brains, but their bodies also need The Pool of the Elder Brain larger quantities of “normal” nutrition to survive. Some of this The elder brain lives in a pool that dominates the center of the comes in the form of meat no different from what a human or chamber. The pool is about 10 feet deep and 50 feet in diameter, dwarf would eat. Most of it is ingested in the form of a nutrisurrounded by a wide lip intricately carved with images and Qualith inscriptions. The liquid in the pool is dark, swirling, ent soup fermented in these vats. Proteins in many forms are added to the tanks, then siphoned off for consumption when and foul smelling. Countless small shapes (illithid tadpoles) “ripe.” Mind flayers derive pleasure only from eating brains. swim to and fro in the murk. At the bottom of the pool, the formless mass of the elder brain stirs listlessly, seen more as a All other consumption serves to keep the body functioning and healthy but it is not a source of enjoyment. shadow than a discernible shape. If a character dares to eat “illithid stew,” he must make a DC Mind flayers regard the protection of the elder brain against 14 Fortitude save or be nauseated for 10 minutes. direct attack (mainly from githyanki and githzerai, their most implacable foes) as the most important duty of the sept. Unlike Temple of Ilsensine other chambers in Hidden Lagurno, the pool of the elder brain The far end of this long, gently curving hall features an idol of is protected by a large, sturdy door that is kept barred and a massive, disembodied, floating brain trailing long ganglia. psionically sealed from the inside. Anywhere from three to five mind flayers are constantly in attendance in this chamber, The stone tendrils twine across the floor in confused knots before separating at regular intervals into rising columns that minding the pool and ready to respond to any request the elder seem to writhe toward the ceiling. Braziers of incense fill the brain might make. Normally, only mind flayers are permitted air with a scent of spices so cloying it overwhelms the lungs to enter, but on rare occasions, the elder brain indicates that particularly interesting captives should be brought before it and stings the eyes. This carved image of Ilsensine is believed by mind flayers for inspection and questioning. The room is guarded by carefully renewed dimensional lock to be a very good likeness and approximately life-size. Since and screen spells, designed to prevent sudden teleportation illithids don’t truly worship the deity, they wander in only as assaults or spying on the chamber. The elder brain itself is the mood strikes them to make sacrifices or request boons. far from defenseless, of course. Its terrible spells and psionic Chambers attached to the central temple house the five powers can quickly scour its chamber clean of life, if need be. clerics and seven acolytes that serve the god. These clerical But it is essentially immobile, unable to leave the confi nes mind flayers seldom leave the temple sector. On rare occaof its pool, and its survival depends on the mind flayers that sions, they conduct processions through the central plaza or to extract their pick of the thralls and captives from the pit for serve it. unknown purposes. Sometimes they move silently through the community on unknown errands. Their purposes and accomplishments are not well understood by other mind Sarkt is an illithid sorcerer. It was cast out of its community flayers, but the elder brain sanctions everything they do, so for its heretical studies (Sarkt was, in fact, lucky to escape their activities are not questioned. These servants of Ilsensine have no cleric levels at all. Two are alive). It didn’t take the cunning creature long to pick up a few sorcerers; the others are simply normal mind flayers trained in thralls and find a new place to live, safe from the murderous the lore of Ilsensine, choosing ranks in Knowledge (religion) intentions of its comrades. in preference to other fields of learning. Sarkt dwells in the subterranean ruins of an ancient, abandoned shrine to Blibdoolpoolp, the crustacean-headed Birthing Pods deity of the kuo-toas. This shrine lies on the fringe of a region Ceremorphosis is not an easy process. The body suffers fits controlled by the kuo-toas, but since Sarkt’s arrival, the fishof madness, delirium, terrible convulsions, and worse as the men avoid the area. A few unfortunate kuo-toas now serve brain is slowly devoured. When a tadpole is implanted into a Sarkt as thralls and maintain the illusion that the shrine still host body, it is brought to this moss-lined chamber to complete serves Blibdoolpoolp. the week-long transformation. At least one mature illithid and one or two thralls watch over the twitching, convulsing body 1. TUNNELS to prevent it from injuring itself and to occasionally wash the Three major passages converge here. A broad but short avenue off the intersection leads to the tumbled-down edifice of a oncefilth from its body when it momentarily stops thrashing.
THE LAIR OF SARKT
82
