Beholder, Death Tyrant (CR 13)

Large Undead
Alignment: Always neutral
Initiative: +0; Senses: all-around vision and Spot +6
Languages: No language


AC: 20 (-1 size, +11 natural), touch 9, flat-footed 20
Hit Dice: 11d12 (71 hp)
Fort +3, Ref +3, Will +9
Speed: Fly 15 ft. (average)
Space: 10 ft./5 ft.
Base Attack +5; Grapple +9
Attack: Bite +4 melee
Full Attack: Bite +4 melee
Damage: Bite 2d4
Special Attacks/Actions: Eye rays +4 ranged touch
Abilities: Str 10, Dex 10, Con -, Int -, Wis 15, Cha 17
Special Qualities: antimagic cone, flight, single actions only, +2 turn resistance, undead traits
Feats: -
Skills: Search +4 and Spot +6
Advancement: 12-16 HD (Large); 17-33 HD (Huge)
Climate/Terrain: Any land and underground
Organization: Solitary
Treasure/Possessions: Standard

Source: Forgotten Realms Campaign Setting

All-Around Vision (Ex): A death tyrant's many eyes give it a +4 racial bonus to Search and Spot checks. Opponents gain no flanking bonuses when attacking it.

Antimagic Cone (Su): Unless it has lost the use of its central eye (see below), a death tyrant continually produces a 170-foot antimagic cone extending straight ahead from its front. This cone functions just like antimagic field cast by a 13th-level sorcerer. All magical and supernatural powers and effects within the cone are suppressed - even the death tyrant's own eye rays. Once each round, during its turn, it decides which way it will face, and whether the antimagic cone is active or not. The creature can deactivate the cone by shutting its central eye.) Note that a death tyrant can bite only those creatures directly in front of it.

Eye Rays (Su): in life, a death tyrant had ten small eyes on stalks atop its body, each with its own supernatural power, plus a large central eye. Typically, a given death tyrant has lost the use of 1d4+1 of these eyes, selected randomly.

Each of the surviving small eyes can produce a magical ray once per round, even when the death tyrant is attacking physically or moving at full speed. The creature can easily aim all its eyes upward, but its body tends to get in the way when it tries to aim the rays in other directions. During a round, it can aim only three eye rays at targets in any one arc other than up (forward, backward, left, right, or down). The remaining eyes must aim at targets in other arcs or not at all. A death tyrant can tilt and pan its body each round to change which rays it brings to bear in an arc.

Each eye's effect resembles a spell cast by a 13th-level sorcerer but follows the rules for a ray (see Aiming a Spell, page 148 of the Player's Handbook). All rays have a range of 170 feet and a save DC of 18.

Charm Monster: The target must succeed at a Will save or be affected as though by the spell.

Charm Person: The target must succeed at a Will save or be affected as though by the spell.

Disintegrate: The target must succeed at a Fortitude save or affected as though by the spell.

Fear: This works like the spell, except that it targets one creature. The target must succeed at a Will save or be affected as though by the spell.

Finger of Death: The target must succeed at a Fortitude save or be slain as though by the spell. A target who makes a successful saving throw still takes 3d6+13 points of damage.

Flesh to Stone: The target must succeed at a Fortitude save or be affected as though by the spell.

Inflict Moderate Wounds: This works just like the spell, dealing 2d8+10 points of damage, or half that amount with a successful Will save.

Slow: This works like the spell, except that it affects one creature. The target must succeed at a Will save to resist.

Sleep: This works like the spell, except that it affects one creature with any number of Hit Dice. The target must succeed at a Will save to resist.

Telekinesis: The beholder can move objects or creatures that weigh up to 325 pounds, as though with a telekinesis spell. Creatures can resist the effect with a successful Will save.

Feather Fall (Sp): The death tyrant's natural buoyancy grants it a permanent featherfall effect with personal range.

Flight (Ex): A death tyrant's body retains its natural buoyancy, allowing it to fly as the spell, as a free action, at a speed of 15 feet.

Partial Actions Only (Ex): Death tyrants are slow and unresponsive, so they can perform only partial actions. Thus, they can move or attack, but can do both only if they charge (a partial charge).

A death tyrant is programmed with specific instructions when it is created. These instructions are usually quite simple; for example: "Attack all humans who enter this chamber until they are destroyed or flee. Do not leave the chamber." A death tyrant with no instructions simply attacks all living things it perceives. Though it is a mindless undead, it still fights as if it had intelligence, using its eyes as effectively as possible.

The death tyrant is an undead form of beholder akin to a zombie, though it retains some of the beholder's innate magical abilities.

A death tyrant appears as a rotting, mold-encrusted beholder. Gaping wounds - whether from injury or simply decomposition - expose the insides of its body, and it is either missing a few eyestalks or has a milky film covering some of its eyes. Because of its zombie like state, it moves and turns more slowly than other beholders, and it does not speak or understand language.