Homebrew Beholder (playable) Species Details

Floating balls of magical eyeball terror, beholders are among the most iconic monsters in Dungeons and Dragons. One glance at a beholder is enough to assess its foul and otherworldly nature. Aggressive, hateful, and greedy, these aberrations dismiss all other creatures as lesser beings, toying with them or destroying them as they choose. A beholder’s spheroid body levitates at all times, and its great bulging eye sits above a wide, toothy maw, while the smaller eyestalks that crown its body twist and turn to keep its foes in sight.

Xenophobic Isolationists

Enemies abound, or so every beholder believes. Beholders are convinced that other creatures resent them for their brilliance and magical power, even as they dismiss those lesser creatures as crude and disgusting. Beholders always suspect others of plotting against them, even when no other creatures are around. The disdain a beholder has for other creatures extends to other beholders. Each beholder believes its form to be ideal, and that any deviation from that form is a flaw in the racial purity of its kind. Beholders vary greatly in their physical forms, making a conflict between them inevitable. Some beholders are protected by overlapping chitinous plates. Some have smooth hides. Some have eyestalks that writhe like tentacles, while others' stalks bear crustacean-like joints. Even slight differences of coloration in hide can turn two beholders into lifelong enemies. 

Paranoia of Narcissism

Since you could remember, you've always been highly paranoid of someone, somewhere, is out there to get you. While this does fuel your intelligence and perception of things, making it very easy to think ahead and make plans, it does also sometimes make you blind or overly nervous of everything to ever exist is out there, wanting to kill you and only you.

Life in the Underground

Beholders were often found occupying deep, underground caverns. Frequently, these lairs were carved out by the beholders themselves, using their eye rays to mold the environment for their purposes. Often, these lairs were built vertically rather than horizontally like most buildings, with beholder architecture frequently exhibiting a large number of vertical shafts which beholders and other flying creatures could use with ease, while walking creatures found their navigation hindered.

Air Head

Beholders lac traditional limbs in the forms of arms and legs, thus you are unable to wield weapons and hold shields. Similarly you are also unable to use items which require manipulation, including spell-casting foci, wands, tools, etc, instead you have developed the innate ability to cast mage hand to manipulate certain objects. However an advantage of this is that you ability to always float means you cannot be knocked prone, and have a flying speed, instead of a walking speed, of 35 ft.

Tough Skin

As Beholders lac traditional limbs in the forms of arms and legs, thus you are also unable to wear traditional armor, thus your thick hide plus your sparse scale gives you additional protection your AC is 13 plus you dexterity modifier.

Whether by choice or by racism due to their xenophobic and narcissistic nature, Beholders usually forced into small groups of open-minded people who see them as people despite their appearance, or into complete isolation within the wilds. Those living on the frontier, though, have a much harder time. People there tend to be less accepting of differences. Sometimes a cold shoulder and a suspicious glare are the best beholders can hope for; in more backward places, they face ostracism and even violence from people.

Beauty is in the Eye of the Beholder

Beholders were not particularly strong but were inherently magical creatures, with each of their eyes possessing an innately magical nature. Beholders, who often attacked for seemingly no reason, would often try to end a battle as quickly as possible, unleashing their terrifying abilities all at once. Among the most basic of these attacks was their deadly ability to project magical power from their eyes, in varying forms such as instilling fear within, charming, knocking out, petrifying, disintegrating, slowing, or killing their enemies. Beholders get numerous eye stalks at birth and develop the ability to cast various rays from their eyes.

Beholder Names

Beholders try to seek exotic names, often naming themselves. Typical beholder names would be:
Male.
Xerec, Carablus, Zinnion, Xalphau, Restennion, Polarion, Zlefethus
Female.
Palladyte, Xia, Aragzyl, Dalaphyte, Zalinon, Caraxon, Quraxia
Non-Binary.
Rallius, Qrenadon, Xelphus, Xarigus, Phlethusax, Larixidas

 

Beholder (playable) Traits

Your genasi character has certain characteristics in common with all other genasi.

Darkvision

A result of intense competition and natural selection in the underdark, beholder have developed the ability to see in dim light within 60 feet of you as if it were bright light, and in darkness as if it were dim light. 

Always watching

Because their entire body is covered in eyes, beholders have the capacity to see in all directions at once, making it nearly impossible to ambush them while also giving them an unusually high degree of perceptive ability. You gain proficiency with the perception and investigation skills.

Bite

Your beholder can use, and is proficient in an attack called “Bite” to do 1d6 of piercing damage. That increases to 2d6 at level 5, 3d6 at level 11 and 4d6 at level 17.

Eye Beams

Under stress or by your command, your eyes start to glow an eerie color, they shoot out a 40-foot beam of energy at a target directly in front of you. Roll a d10 and get a random effect.
This can only be done once per long rest, per level. For example at level 1, you can cast 1 eye beam per long rest, and at level two this number is increased to 2, and so on. Your spell save DC for this is 8 + your proficiency bonus, and + your intelligence or charisma modifier.

1. Charm Ray. The targeted creature must succeed on a wisdom saving throw or be charmed by the beholder for 1 minute, or until the creature is harmed, see charmed spell effect.

2. Paralyzing Ray. The targeted creature must succeed on a constitution saving throw or be paralyzed for 1 minute. The target can repeat the saving throw at the end of each of its turns, ending the effect on itself on a success.

3. Fear Ray. The targeted creature must succeed on a wisdom saving throw or be frightened for 1 minute. The target can repeat the saving throw at the end of each of its turns, ending the effect on itself on a success.

4. Slowing Ray. The targeted creature must succeed on a dexterity saving throw. On a failed save, the target's speed is halved for 1 minute. In addition, the creature can't take reactions, and it can take either an action or a bonus action on its turn, not both. The creature can repeat the saving throw at the end of each of its turns, ending the effect on itself on a success.

5. Enervation Ray. The targeted creature must make a constitution saving throw, taking 2d8 necrotic damage on a failed save, or half as much damage on a successful one.

6. Telekinetic Ray. If the target is a creature, it must succeed on a strength saving throw or the beholder moves it up to 30 ft. in any direction. It is restrained by the ray's telekinetic grip until the start of the beholder's next turn or until the beholder is incapacitated.

If the target is an object weighing 300 pounds or less that isn't being worn or carried, it is moved up to 30 ft. in any direction. The beholder can also exert fine control on objects with this ray, such as manipulating a simple tool or opening a door or a container.

7. Sleep Ray. The targeted creature must succeed on a wisdom saving throw or fall asleep and remain unconscious for 1 minute. The target awakens if it takes damage or another creature takes an action to wake it. This ray has no effect on constructs and undead.

8. Petrification Ray. The targeted creature must make a dexterity saving throw. On a failed save, the creature begins to turn to stone and is restrained. It must repeat the saving throw at the end of its next turn. On a success, the effect ends. On a failure, the creature is petrified until freed by the greater restoration spell or other magic.

9. Disintegration Ray. If the target is a creature, it must succeed on a dexterity saving throw or take 2d8 force damage. If this damage reduces the creature to 0 hit points, its body becomes a pile of fine gray dust.

If the target is a Large or smaller nonmagical object or creation of magical force, it is disintegrated without a saving throw. If the target is a Huge or larger object or creation of magical force, this ray disintegrates a 10-foot cube of it.

10. Death Ray. The targeted creature must succeed on a dexterity saving throw or take 2d10 necrotic damage. The target dies if the ray reduces it to 0 hit points.

Languages

You can speak, read, and write Common, Undercommon and Deep speech.

Ability Score Increase

Your Charisma or Intelligence score is increased by 2, also your Constitution score increases by 2.

Age

While Beholders mature at about the same rate as humans and reach adulthood in their late teens. They much longer than humans do, up to 300 years.

Alignment

The xenophobic and narcissistic beholders, tend toward a lawful evil alignment. Although a few instances of a lawful neutral Beholders have been heard of in the past.

Size

Beholders vary in their size, ranging from 6-8 ft in spheroid diameter. Your size is Large.

Speed

Beholders do not possess legs and thus cannot walk, therefore your base flying speed is 35 feet.

Natural Armour

Your thick hide plus your sparse scale gives you additional protection your AC is 13+DEX