The aboleth are perhaps the least well-known and the most misunderstood of allthe races which inhabit the Underdark.The reason for this is very simple ó theaboleth want it that way. The bulk of theirpopulation dwells in seclusion in the great,sunless seas found deep beneath the sur-face of the earth. Only the weakest abo-leth are encountered near the surface, andit is from these creatures that the vastmajority of surface-dwellers have drawnwhat little knowledge they have of thisrace. Because of the unfortunate miscon-ceptions which arise from this practice, itis necessary to explain the true nature ofthe aboleth.In general, all aboleth are cruel, emo-tionless, and logical. All are extremelyintelligent ó some even more so than themost ancient of elven mages. They arebelieved to live for thousands of years, butexact information is difficult to gain forobvious reasons.1 Over their many years ofexistence, the aboleth have developed asociety which far exceeds that of man inits efficiency. In this society, each abolethhas a specific duty which it performs withthe utmost skill. There are four majorroles in the aboleth society. In increasingorder of importance, these roles are: slave-gathering, slave maintenance, scientificresearch and experimentation, and ruling.36 MARCH 1988The role of slave-gathering is delegatedto the common aboleth with which mostsurface-dwellers are familiar.2 Such anaboleth resembles a large, blue-green fishwhich lacks all fins but the caudal. It has ahead with three large, slitlike eyes andfour long tentacles. Its mouth is like agreat sucker and can be found on theunderside of the head section. On each ofits sides can be found four tubelike ori-fices which excrete a vile slime. This com-mon aboleth is about 20í long from tail tohead, and has 10í-long tentacles. It isclumsy on land and is usually encounteredin underground lakes. Despite its goodcombat abilities, this creature prefers toattack with a mental ability which allows itto enslave those with weak minds. It alsopossesses illusion-casting abilities used tohide itself while hunting for slaves. Ingeneral, it is wise not to get close to one ofthese creatures, for not only is the slimethey excrete hazardous to all air-breathingcreatures, but their very skin can causeserious tissue damage if touched to ex-posed flesh. It is important to note thatthese slave-gathering monsters are also theweakest of their kind.Slaves gathered by the common abolethare routinely brought back to certainfloating cities in these underground seas inwhich the more powerful aboleth dwell.3This collection process, along with furthermaintenance of slaves, is the responsibilityof the greater aboleth. These creaturesresemble their lesser brothers in everyway, but are considerably larger. Theyaverage 30í in length and weigh severaltons. They are also more intelligent thanthe common aboleth. They have most ofthe same powers possessed by the com-mon aboleth, but their enslavement abilityis more developed. Generally speaking,anyone enslaved by one of these creaturesnever sees the upper world again. Theremay be as many as a dozen of these crea-tures in a single aboleth city, each main-taining a separate group of slaves.The purpose of slaves in the abolethsociety is quite different from what wouldnormally be expected. Though slaves mayhave been used originally to aid in theconstruction of aboleth cities, these citiesgenerally lack any kind of significant slavepopulation. Instead, most slaves dwell onthe shores of the lakes on which the citiesfloat. There, the slaves serve both asguards and as playthings for the cruelaboleth, who pit slaves against one an-other in strange spectacles of combat. Theexact purpose of this practice is not clear,though it may be a way of eliminating theweak in the breeding of a race of subterra-nean slaves.In order to fully understand the nextmajor class in aboleth society, that of thenoble, it is first necessary to establish thepoint that the aboleth have chosen thepath of science over that of magic. Conse-quently, they have no wizards or conjur-ers as do other races. Noble aboleth, thescientists of the race, are fantasticallyintelligent and ever seek to increase theirpowers through bizarre means.4 In gen-eral, they are similar in appearance to thecommon aboleth. Unlike common aboleth,noble aboleth have an enlarged head sec-tion, and they have two slender arms,each ending in three highly dextrous fin-gers, instead of their two uppermost tenta-cles. These latter appendages are used formore delicate work.5 These scientist-typespossess most of the other abilities commonto aboleth, as well as a few mental powerswhich are useful in their research.Though the full extent of the abolethísscientific knowledge can only be guessedat, it is certain that it is, at the very least,comparable to the magical knowledgepossessed by the dwellers of the upperworld. Each city usually holds about half adozen of these noble aboleth.The last major role in aboleth society isthat of command, which is the responsibil-ity of the greatest class of aboleth. Physi-cally, ruler aboleth resemble commonaboleth, but each is about 40í long andmore intelligent than even the nobles.Each city has but one ruler, and it is hisjob to maintain order. To better accomplishthis, the ruler has some sort of mental linkwith all of his subjects.6 As their knowl-edge increases, so does the rulerís. Rulerspossess all other aboleth abilities andshould be regarded as dangerous in theextreme.An aboleth feeds mainly on microscopicorganisms which abound in its naturalhabitat, but it can also consume largerprey if necessary.7 Aboleth can survive inboth air and water, but prefer water forobvious reasons. Every aboleth has bothmale and female reproductive organs,though mating is rare and is restrictedbetween aboleth of the same class.8
Because of their nonmagical nature,aboleth have a measure of resistance tospells similar to the spell-resistance ofdwarves. This resistance grows greater asthe abolethís size and power increase.9 Allaboleth have psionic powers commensu-rate with their level of intelligence, andthe most intelligent have powers whichrival those of the illithids who, like all ofthe other subterranean races, have ahealthy fear of the aboleth.In closing, it is worthy to note that ru-mors exist of a grand aboleth, a creatureso immense that it dwarfs even the rulers.If so, then perhaps it is better that surfaceand subterranean dwellers alike leave theaboleth to do as they please.Notes1. Common aboleth have a life span ofabout 2,000 years. Greater and nobleaboleth live to be about 3,000 years old.Rulers can live as long as five millennia,while the grand aboleth may well be im-mortal.2. The common aboleth is simply themonster as outlined in the Monster Man-ual II, with slight modifications as notedherein. The illusion-casting power men-tioned in this paragraph is equal to theability to cast phantasmal force (withauditory effects as well as visual ones) atwill, once per round.3. When a common aboleth enslaves atotal of seven creatures (regardless oftheir hit dice), a greater and noble aboletharrive using probability travel and take theslaves back to their city. Each greateraboleth has as many as five common abo-leth gathering slaves for it. It takes from 2-8 turns for the greater and noble abolethto arrive, though they are alerted immedi-ately by telepathy when the quota is met.4. Nobles use their ability of probabilitytravel, as well as many strange drugs anddevices, to travel to alternate Prime Mate-rial planes. There they amass as muchknowledge as possible while enslaving anywho oppose them. Occasionally, severalnobles and a dozen or so common abolethmount a raid into a particularly promisingworld, but this is rare.5. These appendages are also capable ofusing technological items. The abolethnobles have developed several potentoffensive weapons and do not hesitate touse them if they feel the need exists. Notethat they do not care for magic, and willnot use items such as wands, rods, staves,etc. Magical treasures are locked in vaultsas curios or are destroyed.6. This telepathy has a range of 100miles and allows complete communicationwith all subject aboleth in that range. Notethat all other types of aboleth can and docommunicate by telepathic means, thoughthis has a range of no more than 20 milesand must be used consciously. They canalso communicate with other intelligentcreatures by these means, with a range of100 yards, but seldom do so.7. The aboleth does not have an effectivebiting attack because of the position of itsmouth. If, for some reason, its opponent isimmobilized, the aboleth may elect toconsume its victim. If it chooses to do so, itreceives but one biting attack per round.Damage varies with the type of aboleth;common ones do 3-18 hp damage per biteand swallow whole on a roll of 20, greaterand noble aboleth do 4-24 hp damage andswallow whole on a roll of 19 or 20, andruler aboleth do 5-30 hp damage andswallow whole on a role of 18, 19 or 20.The grand aboleth never attacks in thisway. Those swallowed take one quarter oftheir maximum normal hit points in dam-age each round until they die.8. Most aboleth mate about once every500 years. Each participant has one eggwhich it deposits in a safe place about aweek after fertilization. This egg is sur-rounded by a thick cocoon of slime thatprotects and nourishes the egg. The eggbegins about the size of a human head,but over the course of five years it growsto be about 6í long. At this point, the abo-leth hatches and begins a quick, one-yearmutation into a miniature version of itsparent. It takes about 10 more years be-fore the aboleth reaches its adult stage,and during this time it is carefully guardedby other aboleth or, occasionally, by slaves.Ruler aboleth mate only once in their lives,and the growth process takes a total ofabout one hundred years, though it is thesame in its various stages. Some nobleaboleth have performed occasional cloningexperiments, but one has yet to meet withany great success.9. Because of their nonmagical nature,all aboleth gain a bonus to save versusspells equal to their hit dice divided byfour, rounded up. This applies to all abo-leth, including common ones (which get abonus of +2). Also note that rulers andthe grand aboleth are immune to someillusions due to their high intelligence.
