Divák Průchod

Astera shares that while she was in Alandria she had a vision of the future. Whatever Cyrus had been working on, he had obtained his goal or very close to it. There was a darkness rising in the east. If things progressed as they were, the world would fall to Cyrus... and it would fall soon.

Daksina united as it was, did not have the man power to plow through Xantonian forces and stop Cyrus. It would be too late. A small force on its own would stand little chance of going alone as well, since the armies of Xantonia were so vast that it was only inevitable before they were caught.

That was when Lycan had an idea. Use the Daksinian army as a distraction, so that a smaller group could sneak through Xantonia undetected and unoticed.

Gavin would say that for that plan to work, he may have to be part of the distraction, or else Cyrus may see through the ruse... which he may anyway. Ultimately it would be up to the PC's, as they wield the weapons needed to defeat Cyrus.

The Daksinian army can enter Xantia the way the Xantonian army left. through the Mitte pass to the far south, just before the wall.

There are 3 passes that are well watched and guarded through the Xantia mountains. The only way into Xantonia is through Divák Průchod. This is where the PC's must cross into Xantonia.

HIVE MOTHER

Huge Aberration

Hit Dice: 20d8+120 (210 hp)

Initiative: +6

Speed: 5 ft. (1 square), fl y 20 ft. (good)

Armor Class: 35 (–2 size, +2 Dex, +25 natural), touch 10, flat-footed 33

Base Attack/Grapple: +15/+30

Attack: Eye rays +15 ranged touch and bite +20 melee (2d6+10)

Full Attack: Eye rays +15 ranged touch and bite +20 melee (2d6+10)

Space/Reach: 15 ft./10 ft.

Special Attacks: Command beholder, eye rays, improved grab, swallow whole

Special Qualities: All-around vision, antimagic cone, darkvision 60ft., flight

Saves: Fort +14, Ref +8, Will +17

Abilities: Str 24, Dex 14, Con 22, Int 21, Wis 17, Cha 25

Skills: Hide +17, Intimidate +30, Knowledge (any two) +28,

Listen +28, Search +32, Spot +32, Survival +3 (+5 following tracks)

Feats: AlertnessB, Disjunction Ray†, Flyby Attack, Focused Antimagic†, Great Fortitude, Improved Initiative, Improved Natural Attack (bite), Iron Will

† New feats described on page 45.

Environment: Cold hills

Organization: Solitary, hive (1 hive mother plus 3–6 beholders plus 2–4 directors), or city (1 hive mother plus 1–3 overseers plus 10–20 beholders plus 3–10 directors and 20–40 slaves, usually bugbears, gnolls, ogres, or minotaurs)

Challenge Rating: 16

Treasure: Triple standard

Alignment: Usually lawful evil

Advancement: 21–30 HD (Huge); 31–50 HD (Gargantuan);

51–60 HD (Colossal)

Level Adjustment: —

This massive sphere-shaped monstrosity is covered with spiny,

razor-sharp plates of chitin and bone. The creature has a cavernous

maw fi lled with multiple rows of swordlike teeth. A single

huge eye protrudes from above the mouth, and above this eye ten

smaller eyes, each recessed in a bony hood, are scattered across

the upper surface of the sphere in a radial pattern.

The hive mother is an extraordinarily (and thankfully) rare

creature found only in the largest beholder communities.

Called “ultimate tyrants,” or simply “ultimates,” hive mothers

rule beholder communities with tyranny and cruelty, and are

mistakenly worshiped as deities by neighboring creatures of

other races.

A hive mother is larger than a typical beholder, measuring

about 12 feet across. The average hive mother weighs 15,000

pounds. As with other beholders, these creatures are asexual

and genderless. The name “hive mother” was given to these

monsters some time in the past by a misinformed (and now

eaten) adventurer, but the name seems to have stuck.

Hive mothers speak Beholder and Common, and speak

numerous other local languages as well.

Combat

Hive mothers prefer to let their minions do the fighting,

but when drawn into combat, they fight in a manner similar

to beholders. Against smaller opponents that don’t seem to

present a threat, a hive mother approaches to melee range to

eat its foes alive.

Command Beholder (Sp): A hive mother can use dominate

monster at will as a spell-like ability (caster level 20th), but only

against beholders and beholderkin. A beholder can resist this

effect with a successful DC 27 Will saving throw. This is the

equivalent of a 9th-level spell.

Hive mothers are immune to the command beholder ability

of other hive mothers.

If a hive mother loses control of a dominated beholder (as

is the case if a dominated beholder is in the antimagic cone of

another beholder), the hive mother immediately senses the loss

of control, and knows the position and distance to the beholder

at the time control was lost. If control does not return within

a few rounds, the hive mother seeks out the rogue beholder

to investigate and possibly punish it.

Eye Rays (Su): Each of a hive mother’s ten small eyes can

produce a magical ray once per round as a free action. Hive

mothers can rotate and adjust their position with much greater

speed and skill than normal beholders, and they can aim up

to six eye rays at targets in any given 90-degree arc.

Each eye’s effect resembles a spell (caster level 20th). Each

ray has a range of 240 feet and a save DC of 27. The save DCs

are Charisma-based.

The ten eye rays include:

Charm Monster:The target must succeed on a Will save or

be affected as though by the spell.

Charm Person: The target must succeed on a Will save or be

affected as though by the spell.

Disintegrate:The target must succeed on a Fortitude save or

be affected as though by the spell.

Fear: This works like the spell, except that it targets one

creature. The target must succeed on a Will save or be affected

as though by the spell.

Finger of Death:The target must succeed on a Fortitude save

or be slain as though by the spell. The target takes 3d6+20

points of damage if its saving throw succeeds.

Flesh to Stone:The target must succeed on a Fortitude save

or be affected as though by the spell.

Infl ict Critical Wounds: This works like the spell, causing

4d8+20 points of damage (Will save for half).

Sleep: This works like the spell, except that it affects one

creature with any number of Hit Dice (Will negates).

Slow: This works like the spell, except that it affects one

creature (Will negates).

Telekinesis:A hive mother can move objects or creatures

that weigh up to 375 pounds, as though with a telekinesis spell.

Creatures can resist the effect with a successful Will save.

Improved Grab (Ex): To use this ability, a hive mother

must hit with its bite attack. It can then attempt to start a

grapple as a free action without provoking attacks of opportunity.

If it wins the grapple check, it establishes a hold.

Swallow Whole (Ex): A hive mother can try to swallow a

grabbed opponent that is at least two size categories smaller

than itself by making a successful grapple check. Once swallowed,

the opponent takes 2d8+7 points of crushing damage

plus 2d8 points of acid damage per round from the hive

mother’s gizzard. A swallowed creature can cut its way out by

using a light slashing or piercing weapon to deal 15 points of

damage to the gizzard (Armor Class 20). Once the creature

exits, muscular action closes the hole; another swallowed

opponent must cut its own way out. A Huge hive mother’s

gizzard can hold 1 Medium, 2 Small, 8 Tiny, or 32 Diminutive

or smaller opponents.

Antimagic Cone (Su): A hive mother’s central eye continually

produces a 240-foot cone of antimagic. This functions

just like antimagic field (caster level 20th). All magical and

supernatural powers and effects within the cone are suppressed—

even the hive mother’s own eye rays. Once each

round, during its turn, the hive mother decides whether the

antimagic cone is active or not (the hive mother deactivates

the cone by shutting its central eye).

Flight (Ex): A hive mother’s body is naturally buoyant. This

buoyancy allows it to fly at a speed of 20 feet. This buoyancy

also grants it a permanent feather fall effect (as the spell) with

personal range.

DISJUNCTION RAY

A beholder with this feat can narrow its antimagic cone down

to an eye ray that disjoins magic.

Prerequisites: Cha 19, Focused Antimagic, beholder with

functional antimagic ability.

Benefi t: As a standard action, the creature can reduce the

cone-shaped area of effect of its central eye’s antimagic cone

down to a razor-thin eye ray. If the creature hits a magical effect

or magic item with this narrowed eye ray, it disjoins the effect

or item as if it had cast Mordenkainen’s disjunction on the effect

or item.

Beholders avoid using this narrowed ray on magic items

since the destruction of a magic item also destroys a potential

source of magic that could be used to charge their dweomerlobes.

FOCUSED ANTIMAGIC

A beholder with this feat can focus the antimagic of its central

eye to target a single person or object.

Prerequisite: Beholder with functional antimagic ability.

Benefit: The creature can reduce the cone-shaped area of

effect of its central eye to target a single creature or object. The

target must be within range of its normal cone-shaped effect

(150 feet).