NEOTHELID – 5e stats

Gargantuan aberration, chaotic evil

Armor Class 16 (natural armor)
Hit Points 325 (21d20 + 105)
Speed 30 ft.

Proficiency Bonus +5
Proficiency Bonus +9 (5th Edition Advanced Mode)

STRDEXCONINTWISCHA
27 (+8)7 (-2)21 (+3)3 (-4)16 (+3)12 (+1)

Saving Throws Int +1, Wis +8, Cha +6
Senses blindsight 120 ft., passive Perception 13
Languages –
Challenge 13 (10,000 XP)

Creature Sense. The neothelid is aware of the presence of creatures within 1 mile of it that have an Intelligence score of 4 or higher. It knows the distance and direction to each creature, as well as each creature’s Intelligence score, but can’t sense anything else about it. A creature protected by a mind blank spell, a nondetection spell, or similar magic can’t be perceived in this manner.

Magic Resistance. The neothelid has advantage on saving throws against spells and other magical effects.

Innate Spellcasting (Psionics). The neothelid’s innate spellcasting ability is Wisdom (spell save DC 16). It can innately cast the following spells, requ iring no components:

Psionic Powers (suggested). The Neothelid has 262 (21d12 + 126) PSPs and can use the following psionic powers, mental attacks and mental defenses:

ACTIONS

  • Multiattack (suggested). The neothelid makes four attacks with its tentacles or one attack with its bite.
  • Bite (suggested). Melee Weapon Attack: +17 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 29 (6d6 + 8) piercing damage. The neothelid gets advantage if the target is grappled by one of its tentacles and the bite counts as a free action.
  • Tentacles. Melee Weapon Attack: + 13 to hit, reach 15 ft., one target. Hit: 21 (3d8 + 8) bludgeoning damage plus 13 (3d8) psychic damage. If the target is a Large or smaller creature, it must succeed on a DC 18 Strength saving throw or be swallowed by the neothelid. A swallowed creature is blinded and restrained, it has total cover against attacks and other effects outside the neothelid, and it takes 35 (10d6) acid damage at the start of each of the neothelid’s turns. If the neothelid takes 30 damage or more on a single turn from a creature inside it, the neothelid must succeed on a DC 18 Constitution saving throw at the end of that turn or regurgitate all swallowed creatures, which fall prone in a space within 10 feet of the neothelid. If the neothelid dies, a swallowed creature is no longer restrained by it and can escape from the corpse by using 20 feet of movement, exiting prone.
  • Tentacles (suggested). Melee Weapon Attack: + 17 to hit, reach 20 ft., one target. Hit: 18 (3d6 + 8) bludgeoning damage. The target is grappled (escape DC 22) until the grapple ends, the target is restrained and has disadvantage on Strength checks and Strength saving throws, and the neothelid can’t use the same tendril on another target.
  • Acid Breath (Recharge 5-6). The neothelid exhales acid in a 60-foot cone. Each creature in that area must make a DC 18 Dexterity saving throw, taking 35 (10d6) acid damage on a failed save, or half as much damage on a successful one.

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

A neothelid is a monstrous aberration that resembles a gigantic, slime-covered worm with a mouth full of tentacles. It is the result of a failed mind flayer reproductive cycle, when an illithid colony collapses and the tadpoles in the pool are left to cannibalize each other until only one survives. A neothelid grows to immense size, reaching up to 120 feet in length, and develops psionic abilities similar to those of mind flayers and elder brains. However, it lacks the intelligence and culture of its would-be progenitors, and instead becomes a mindless predator driven by hunger and instinct. A neothelid has a mauve skin color that often causes it to be mistaken for a purple worm, another subterranean behemoth. It senses its world via innate telepathy with a radius of 360 feet.

COMBAT

A neothelid is a formidable opponent in combat, as it possesses several psionic abilities that can disrupt and damage its enemies. It can levitate at will, resist magical effects, sense the presence and intelligence of creatures within a mile, and use telekinesis to manipulate objects around it. It can also unleash a powerful psychic blast that can stun and confuse its prey, or a corrosive breath weapon that can dissolve organic tissue, leaving only the brain intact for consumption. This weapon is not an acid, but rather an enzyme that liquefies most organic tissue. A neothelid can use its mouth tentacles to grapple and swallow its victims whole, digesting them in its stomach. However, it can also be harmed by creatures that manage to escape or attack from within its body, forcing it to resist the urge to vomit them out. A neothelid’s body glistens with poisonous mucous; a slime trail marks its passage.

HABITAT / SOCIETY

A neothelid is a solitary creature that roams the Underdark in search of food. It has no society or culture of its own, and is hated and feared by all other creatures, especially mind flayers who regard it as an abomination and a reminder of their own vulnerability. A neothelid does not create tunnels of its own, but relies on preexisting ones to travel, often using those made by purple worms. It prefers dark and damp places where it can hide and ambush its prey. A neothelid does not communicate with other creatures, except to emit a loud roar when it senses a potential meal or a threat. A neothelid is the product of a catastrophic event that destroys an illithid colony. In the remarkably rare event that mind flayer tadpoles develop in the absence of illithid adults, a small number survive long enough on their own to develop into neothelids. These creatures indiscriminately hunt any illithids they may chance upon. Illithids, in turn, respond to the news of neothelid emergence with utter disgust, and they quickly organize hunting parties to exterminate the abominations.

ECOLOGY

A neothelid is a rare and unnatural creature that has a negative impact on the ecology of the Underdark. It consumes any creature that has an intelligence score of 4 or higher, regardless of alignment or affiliation. It does not discriminate between friend or foe, predator or prey, sentient or non-sentient. It devours brains for sustenance, but also for pleasure, as it experiences a brief surge of intelligence and memories from its victims. A neothelid does not reproduce or create offspring of its own, but is instead the result of a failed mind flayer reproductive cycle. An illithid tadpole that fails to undergo ceremorphosis gradually grows into a neothelid — assuming it survives its first 100 years as a mindless slug eking out a living on subterranean vermin. Once a tadpole is powerful enough to be called a neothelid (triggered by the eating of its first sentient brain), it becomes a terrible danger, hunting all other living creatures (including illithids) wih an insatiable, insane hunger. A neothelid has no natural predators, except for other neothelids who might compete for food or territory. A neothelid has no allies or enemies, except for those who seek to kill it or avoid it. Unlike some other large predators of the Underdark, neothelids are unable to burrow through solid rock, forcing them to hunt naturally or previously delved tunnels and caverns. When a local subterranean ecosystem is exhausted, neothelids may move to “greener” tunnels via their psychoportive abilities. The existence of the neothelids engenders a host of unanswered questions regarding the actual nature and true origin of illithids – a mystery even to the illithids themselves.