Scattered survivors of a world-ruining, multiversal empire, mind flayers lurk in secret conclaves hidden deep within Material Plane worlds. Within their alien sanctuaries, these wicked masterminds—also known as illithids—reshape the Underdark and its inhabitants to serve their unfathomable whims. Mind flayers are feared for their psionic powers, which allow them to stun and control other creatures, and for their horrific method of feeding: using their four slimy tentacles to extract the brains of their victims.
Mind flayers are infamous plotters and manipulators, concocting plans that reach beyond their subterranean realms. Aside from using their psionic powers to control others, mind flayers often experiment with their own bizarre life cycles, implanting other creatures with illithid young to create unnatural servants. Creatures such as grimlocks and intellect devourers result from mind flayers’ biological tampering, while other Underdark-dwelling monsters—including kuo-toa, quaggoths, and troglodytes—often serve illithid masters. Githyanki and githzerai have a long adversarial history with mind flayers and bear the scars of illithid manipulation.
Mind Flayer Colonies
Mind flayers work as lone schemers, in mysterious cabals, or as part of worlds-spanning illithid conspiracies. In groups, mind flayers work toward bizarre agendas organized by an elder brain—a massive, brain-like being with incredible psionic powers. Without such a leader, groups of mind flayers fall to self-destructive squabbling. Roll on or choose a result from the Mind Flayer Machinations table to inspire an illithid conclave’s plots.
Mind Flayer Machinations
dice: 1d6
The Mind Flayer Colony Seeks To…
1
Blot out the sun so their Underdark-dwelling servants can invade the surface.
2
Create a new monstrous fusion between mind flayers and a legendary monster.
3
Forge a psionic network uniting illithid colonies.
4
Replace world leaders with intellect devourers.
5
Restore a vessel to travel through Wildspace.
6
Sacrifice the mental energy of a planet’s populace to take control of a githyanki bastion.
