Large aberration, lawful evil
Armor Class 17 (Natural Armor)
Hit Points 135 (18d10+36)
Speed 10 ft., swim 40 ft.
Proficiency Bonus +4
Proficiency Bonus +7 (5th Edition Advanced Mode)
| STR | DEX | CON | INT | WIS | CHA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 21 (+5) | 9 (-1) | 15 (+2) | 18 (+4) | 15 (+2) | 18 (+4) |
Saving Throws Con +6, Int +8, Wis +6
Skills History +12, Perception +10
Senses Darkvision 120 Ft., passive Perception 20
Languages Deep Speech, Telepathy 120 Ft.
Challenge 10 (5,900 XP)
Amphibious. The aboleth can breathe air and water.
Mucous Cloud. While underwater, the aboleth is surrounded by transformative mucus. A creature that touches the aboleth or that hits it with a melee attack while within 5 ft. of it must make a DC 14 Constitution saving throw. On a failure, the creature is diseased for 1d4 hours. The diseased creature can breathe only underwater.
Probing Telepathy. If a creature communicates telepathically with the aboleth, the aboleth learns the creature’s greatest desires if the aboleth can see the creature.
ACTIONS
- Multiattack. The aboleth makes three tentacle attacks.
- Multiattack (suggested). The aboleth makes four tentacle attacks.
- Tentacle. Melee Weapon Attack: +9 to hit, reach 10 ft., one target. Hit: 12 (2d6 + 5) bludgeoning damage. If the target is a creature, it must succeed on a DC 14 Constitution saving throw or become diseased. The disease has no effect for 1 minute and can be removed by any magic that cures disease. After 1 minute, the diseased creature’s skin becomes translucent and slimy, the creature can’t regain hit points unless it is underwater, and the disease can be removed only by heal or another disease-curing spell of 6th level or higher. When the creature is outside a body of water, it takes 6 (1d12) acid damage every 10 minutes unless moisture is applied to the skin before 10 minutes have passed.
- Tentacle (suggested). Melee Weapon Attack: +9 to hit, reach 10 ft., one target. Hit: 8 (1d6 + 5) bludgeoning damage. If the target is a creature, it must succeed on a DC 14 Constitution saving throw or become diseased. The disease has no effect for 1d4+1 rounds and can be stopped by a greater restoration spell and it can be reversed by a cure wounds spell. After 1d4+1 rounds, the diseased creature’s skin becomes translucent and slimy, the creature can’t regain hit points unless it is underwater, and the disease can be removed only by heal or another disease-curing spell of 6th level or higher. When the creature is outside a body of water, it takes 6 (1d12) acid damage every round.
- Tail. Melee Weapon Attack: +9 to hit, reach 10 ft., one target. Hit: 15 (3d6 + 5) bludgeoning damage.
- Enslave (3/day). The aboleth targets one creature it can see within 30 ft. of it. The target must succeed on a DC 14 Wisdom saving throw or be magically charmed by the aboleth until the aboleth dies or until it is on a different plane of existence from the target. The charmed target is under the aboleth’s control and can’t take reactions, and the aboleth and the target can communicate telepathically with each other over any distance.
Whenever the charmed target takes damage, the target can repeat the saving throw. On a success, the effect ends. No more than once every 24 hours, the target can also repeat the saving throw when it is at least 1 mile away from the aboleth.
LEGENDARY ACTIONS
Aboleth can take 3 legendary actions, choosing from the options below. Only one legendary action option can be used at a time and only at the end of another creature’s turn. Aboleth regains spent legendary actions at the start of their turn.
- Detect. The aboleth makes a Wisdom (Perception) check.
- Tail Swipe. The aboleth makes one tail attack.
- Psychic Drain (Costs 2 Actions). One creature charmed by the aboleth takes 10 (3d6) psychic damage, and the aboleth regains hit points equal to the damage the creature takes.
5th Edition Advanced Mode
Limiting the power of a character and making the overall difficulty of the game harder, does not reduce the creativity, indeed it does quite the opposite.
The Game Master has the option to use any and all of the instances proposed in this guide, or just some of them according to their preference.
It is the lack of something that move and motivate characters, not the abundance of it
DESCRIPTION
An aboleth is a vile amphibian that dwells in underground caverns and lakes. It hates most surface dwellers and plots to enslave them with its mind control powers. It is as smart as it is wicked.
An aboleth looks like a fat fish, measuring 20 feet from its round head to its flat tail. Its skin is blue-green with gray spots, and its pinkish belly hides a soft, toothless mouth. It has three narrow eyes, each a different shade of purple-red, arranged vertically on its forehead. They are shielded by bony plates. Four dark blue holes on its underside ooze gray slime that smells like rotten oil. It has four leathery tentacles, each 10 feet long, sprouting from its head. It uses its tail to swim through the water and its tentacles to crawl on land.
COMBAT
An aboleth fights with its tentacles, dealing damage with each hit. A creature hit by a tentacle must make a saving throw or have its skin turn into a transparent, slimy layer after a short time. The creature then needs to keep the layer moist with cool water or take damage every round. Since it is slow and clumsy on land, the aboleth tries to lure prey close by creating realistic illusions at will, with sound, smell, and other sensory effects. The aboleth can also enslave creatures within a certain range; it can do this a few times per day, one creature at a time. The creature must make a saving throw or obey all of the aboleth’s telepathic commands, except for fighting for it. The enslavement can be ended by a remove curse or dispel magic spell, the death of the aboleth, or, if the creature is far away from the aboleth, a new saving throw.
Underwater, an aboleth surrounds itself with a mucus cloud that covers its body. A creature that touches the cloud and breathes in the mucus must make a saving throw or lose the ability to breathe air. The creature can then breathe water for a few hours. This effect can be renewed by more contact with the mucus cloud. A creature that tries to breathe air while affected will suffocate after a few rounds. Wine or soap can dissolve the mucus.
An aboleth family consists of a parent and up to three offspring. The offspring are as big and as strong as the parent, but they respect the parent’s authority and follow its orders. Aboleth have both male and female reproductive organs. A grown-up aboleth reproduces once every five years by hiding in a cave or a secluded place, then laying a single egg and covering it in slime. The parent aboleth protects the egg while the baby grows inside, which takes about five years. A newborn aboleth matures in about 10 years.
The aboleth spends most of its time looking for slaves, especially humans. Some say that the aboleth use their slaves to build huge underwater cities, but no one has ever seen them. Some also say that the aboleth know ancient, terrible secrets that are older than mankind, but these are also unproven. What is certain is that aboleth have a remarkable amount of knowledge. An offspring inherits all of its parent’s knowledge at birth, and a mature aboleth gains the knowledge of any intelligent creature it eats.
An aboleth’s treasure is made of items taken from its slaves. The items are hidden in caves under a layer of slime that looks like gray mud, but smells like rotten grease.
ECOLOGY
The aboleth is an omnivore that feeds on any organic matter, usually algae and micro-organisms, but it also enjoys intelligent prey so it can gain both nutrients and knowledge. Aboleth have no natural predators, as even the most powerful sea creatures avoid them. Aboleth slime is sometimes used as an ingredient for potions of water breathing.