Monster Mayhem
The Beholder

When one ponders the multitude of monsters created for the Dungeons & Dragons game, there are a select few that players universally place at the top of their list as the most fearsome and challenging foes their adventurers will ever face. Of these, perhaps no creature is as uniquely D&D as the beholder. Read on for a preview of the 3^rd Edition version of the “eye tyrant”, taken directly from the Monster Manual (still under development).

Remember, this is only a preview, and as with any other product under development, changes can and do occur before printing.

Beholder

Medium Aberration
Hit Dice: 11d8+11 (60 hp)
Initiative: +4 (Improved Initiative)
Movement: 5 ft., Fl 20 ft. (good maneuverability)
AC: 20 (+10 natural)
Attacks: bite, +8 melee
Damage: bite 2d4
Special Attacks: eye rays, +8 ranged touch
Special Defenses: all-around vision, antimagic cone, flight, feather fall
Saves: Fort +4, Ref +3, Will +11
Abilities: Str 10, Dex 10, Con 12, Int 17, Wis 15, Cha 15
Skills: Hide +11, Listen +15, Knowledge (arcana) 12, Spot +20, Search +18
Feats: Alertness, Attack on the Run, Flyby Attack, Improved Initiative, Iron Will

The beholder is the stuff of nightmares. This creature, also called the sphere of many eyes or the eye tyrant, appears as a large orb dominated by a central eye and a large toothy maw, and has 10 smaller eyes on stalks sprouting from the top of the orb. Among adventurers, beholders are known as deadly adversaries. Beholders speak their own language and the Common tongue.