Dungeons and Dragons Lore: Gas Spore

[@coreyeaston6823]

A more powerful version of this creature created by Wizard Oosemar the Skinky floats towards a creature at 30', extends one of its filaments and says "pull my finger" then explodes.

[@moonringXD]

I wonder if there could be a underwater variant that mimics eyes of the deep? Like some kind of parasitic Coral or barnacles perhaps?

[@florenmage]

Not often does a creature have such fortune as to be able to ignore mind flayers. LOL

[@nicklindberg90]

I used to live with a roommate that could rupture forth a deadly cloud of noxious poison

[@AJPickett]

Haven't we all?

[@DShayShaidarol]

Had the exact same thought AJ. Lol

[@That80sGuy1972]

I was usually that roommate.

[@zacharyweaver276]

I can see these gas spores being from the same plane as beholders and evolved to mimic them either to scare off predators or encourage creatures to attack them but them being engineered also makes sense

[@draxthemsklonst]

I'm thinking they may have been both. Like wolves versus dogs.

[@coryshepherd2802]

I love listening to monster ecology from a fellow Biologist like yourself. The fact that you will take a moment to explain what plant rhizomes are (accurately I may add) is one of the things I love about your channel.

[@NotMyRealName6]

I remember summoning gas spored at one point so my wizard scared an enemy camp by dressing in dark robes and looking like a necromancer strong enough to command beholders.

[@agentchaos9332]

Thats very creative. You Didn't have a wheelbarrow handy, huh?

[@NotMyRealName6]

@@agentchaos9332 No, no wheelbarrow, but I had a magic carpet.

[@mikemccoy5092]

Nasty monsters loved the old art that fighter regretted that attack lol

[@flibbernodgets7018]

I remember seeing these in Bauldur's Gate: Dark Alliance. Massive clouds of them in the lower levels of the thieves' guild

[@WallyDM]

I need to put a few of these Gas Spores in my next Waterdeep Dragon Heist game... shhhhh... don't tell my players. Haha, great video, as always!

[@MoonMoverGaming]

I've used this monster a few times. It never, ever fails. Even if the players realize that it isn't a real beholder, they still assume it is an enemy and attack.

[@ProgZombie]

Backed without a reward as all of my D&D friends have abandoned me in the city, so all my games have to be online now. Kickstarter looked ace though, good luck AJ!

[@AJPickett]

Much appreciated ProgZ, I did design the combat tracker to be very useful for online game sessions, but I totally understand where you are coming from :)

[@drjohndee4322]

Oh the gas spore... Loved it. You can screw with players thinking it was a beholder then when there there finally thinking it is another gas spore make it a real beholder. Oh the long nights of gaming !

[@mushroomwizard1175]

How to screw with your players 101.

[@adrianithhenwood6771]

Classic monster lore and awesome game gear. What a wonderful day.💜

[@Giganfan2k1]

I have been listening for a while. Being on a fixed income it is hard to slot in reoccurring things like patreon. I am happy that I can support the things you do.

[@AJPickett]

Much appreciated!

[@Norwyn]

The ability to use stolen chloroplasts is called kleptoplasty. There are also some sea slugs like Costasiella kuroshimae that are able to do this. It is fascinating that gas spores can do this too.

[@AJPickett]

Those little marine slugs are called Sea Sheep and they are SO CUTE!

[@Norwyn]

@@AJPickett Indeed they are. There are many fascinating sea slugs. There is for example Glaucus atlanticus, also called blue sea dragon (and it looks more like a dragon than most dragons do), which feeds on Physalia physalis, tha man o´war and can do a very simiar thing like the Sea Sheep but with nematocytes!

[@benthomason3307]

Huh. I just assumed that Gas Spores looked like beholders simply due to naturally-evolved batesian mimicry (that's where a harmless organism evolves to look like something dangerous in order to trick would-be predators into not eating it).

[@scatterbug]

Was about to say this. :)

[@DShayShaidarol]

I love this type of monster. They are a great trick to play on PCs.

[@mudshrooze]

Fungus and slime and mud creatures are my favorite aberrant and elemental type creatures. I had no idea there was so much on these little buggers. I love them. Thankyou sir

[@davidevans2863]

Gas spores with fancy names tattooed on them that has modified Gas sacs that sprays various brands of perfume and aftershave at the beauty section of a interplaner supermarket. They crowd you and repeatedly spray you causing you to choke like its earth perfume counter counterparts.

[@Mare_Man]

Ah, the perfect party balloon for a Green Dragon's birthday

[@Lngbrdninjamasta]

Could you imagine a modern spore druid, summoning these withan augmented by find familiar spell

[@Cruuvo]

I love all these weird little creatures I'd've never seen otherwise

[@moonringXD]

Do you think gas spores could have been created by Hive mothers to be used as traps for other enemy beholders?

[@grimroten3299]

Hahaha im gonna hit my players with this they've already seen a beholder but they haven't seen anything like this

[@hangryisangry427]

Just kickstarted. The mat and big bag look very cool.

[@AJPickett]

Thanks Hangry!

[@CyberBeep_kenshi]

Both X files and Fringe had particularly gruesome episodes about spores

[@fireworksfactoryshow]

Excellent review! I am running the 5e version of The Hidden Shrine of Tamoachan and this thing is in there. I now have a better idea on how to use it. Thanks!

[@dropdead234]

Making me hungry for sauerkraut and ghost pepper hot sauce. And I hate my neighbors anyway. Also, gas spores would be a great defense AGAINST beholders.

[@austinstevenson7304]

Would love to see the astral hunters covered.

[@brairag5744]

Every time I hear your intro I expect "I make deep-dive D&D lore videos... so you don't have to." And I don't know why.

[@moonringXD]

A excellent video as always! Also congrats on the success of the kickstarter so far! 👍 Also do you have a video on Nereids?

[@AJPickett]

Hmmm, not yet

[@YOOTOOBjase]

My impression of the blinding in Day Of The Triffids, is that it was military satellites, which also dropped diseases that caused diarrhea and vomiting, wiping out huge amounts of people

[@Kakkarot211]

I would back the kickstarter, but I have only ever played dnd digitally, love your videos man!

[@AJPickett]

The big silicone battle mat might not be as much use to you (though it makes an excellent baking tray), the Combat Tracker and generic character sheet is actually designed with electronic/video chat gamers in mind. The combat tracker helps do just that, keep track of initiative, actions per round, ammunition, number of rounds passed, also there is a little tactical grid to help theater of the mind players illustrate tactical movement with more clarity, particularly over video conference call sessions. (it saves me a LOT of scrap paper)

[@grymhild]

Combine AD&D gas spores, rot grubs and/or green slime

[@johngleeman8347]

Mr. Rhexx shout out. XD

[@glorbojibbins2485]

Hey he mentioned the triffids! Lol love those guys

[@nicholasbrosseau6035]

Thank your so much for all your work AJ, come Friday (which is payday) I'll be ordering that battle mat, and for the 1st time in YEARS I'll be playing d&d with friends. You're a HUGE motivating facture for me. God bless, and keep the art alive!

[@TheSneakyVikingJarl]

I can’t wait for my Big Pockets gear! Hopefully it will be safe to game in person again by the time they ship. Love your stuff AJ.

[@AJPickett]

The vaccines are having an impact already around the world, so, fingers crossed!

[@mikegould6590]

Given the Beholder's tendency to be very territorial, I can see Gas Spores being intentionally seeded across Beholder territory to act as land mines. The paranoia of the Beholder does the rest.

[@filthiman]

Backed! Always happy for another video, thanks AJ!

[@vaaccuummcleaner9214]

Time to use these, thanks for making a video about them!

[@trajanfidelis]

Far realm corticepts fungus? Great video!

[@nicolaezenoaga9756]

Thanks 8:11-1:15 Or a 6th level alchemist artificier.

[@slimithy99]

Good stuff and good luck with the Kickstarter.

[@AJPickett]

Thank you!

[@1337karm]

Oh yeah! I’m always ready for more nerd stuff!

[@aqueousconch1103]

This is perfect. I have been planning a beholder lair and this is just what I need.

[@TheHornedKing]

Do they have any relation to Zuggtmoy?

[@AJPickett]

I would say there is a strong possibility.

[@TheHornedKing]

@@AJPickett I just looked at Zuggtmoy's stat block, and she can summon Gas Spores as a lair action.

[@That80sGuy1972]

Great video AJ... but you know me (as a commenter DM) probably better than I know you by now. I homebrew. This beastie is one of my favorite to homebrew. When I create a campaign world, I use the normal versions as a template... then I have a tweaked version for each continent, each environment, each empire, and each special interest that uses them. One Beholder used them a LOT, even having his lair full of each one being unique. What was his issue? Well, his name was Lord Fungus. And yes, he was a grotesque Beholder that looked like a homebrewed Gas Spore himself who had his own army of Myconids on top of his other fungal traps like his unique Gas Spores, Yellow Musk creepers, Green Slime, Shriekers, Yellow Mold, Yellow Musk (advanced) zombies, and fungal versions of slimes & oozes (same creatures, just fungus-based and-or mold-based). Sounds kind of bland? Nope. Part of the horror of the mission was the entire thing being gross descriptions of fungal and mold growths, including how much slime and smell it was. Nothing to player characters, I know. But, my spice was how I let the horror sink in. When they realized that every horror in the place was based upon those disgusting growths... and that they were pretty much walking into an environment where literally anything anywhere can be an enemy and if you just mass kill via area-of-destruction, you can be buried under a cave-in of mold and fungus-based shatterings of the structure you are in. Late into the game... PC party leader player: Uh... crap. Hey (DM, me)... this is a horror mission, isn't it? Lord Fungus is actually a serious enemy who already has every advantage here, right? Me: **evil grin and nod** Bonus experience per character that needs no reviving after the mission to defeat Lord Fungus is completed. Bonus if you have the Myconids abandon him, double that if they join you. Players characters: **stop exploring and discuss new strategy** By the way... no matter the party's level, Gas Spores are always underestimated even if you use their base scores. You put them in the appropriate environment, they are at the very least the salt in the wound.

[@AJPickett]

Good stuff.

[@purplehaze2358]

Hey man, I’m getting pretty burnt out on watching your content. So, due apologies if I go quiet in terms of comments for a while. Good luck with your channel dude.

[@AJPickett]

No worries Dr Bright, there will be plenty of goodies to binge when you check back in 😎

[@yosakie]

Thanks for another informative and great video

[@yosakie]

Lets go! Yes yes yes!! Whooooaaaaa yeah!! More lore!

[@dumoktheartist]

I like the new intro!

[@halfmask3]

Perfect timing. I'm using a version of these in a dungeon crawl. But they look like myconids and spiders instead of beholders.

[@thatoneguy9615]

3:16 "I understood that reference."

[@TalkativeHands]

I was just about to use these. Thank you for more info

[@supersmily5811]

Before watching the video, just going to outline what I already know: In 5e, the default Gas Spore statblock is one of the deadliest encounters in the game, especially for new players. This is a game about hitting things until they die. This encounter punishes you for doing that by giving you an extremely deadly ailment. I don't think it's bad necessarily. Used well, the Gas Spore can be a tense situation to deal with, and its simplicity offers a lot of room for simple homebrew modifiers because the entry in the MM is literally DESIGNED for that. However, as a warning to DMs, make sure players have at least the opportunity to understand that the Gas Spore is a deadly threat before giving them one. You don't need to give them the answer of don't hit it EVER, but players that haven't read the entry will be at a severe disadvantage that could make the game a lot less fun when they die for winning a fight.

[@AJPickett]

Good tip!

[@jameswilliams2075]

This is why all my characters have some sort of ranged wepon

[@maj562]

Let's get this gent up to 100k subs plus folks!!

[@howardhumbert129]

Great vid. Silent but deadly subject.

[@jeremysmith9291]

It says I'm backer 68 disappointing to be so close but off by 1

[@brewticonmohiswarman1584]

Backed the kickstarter before watching the video, hahha.

[@maxgeckos]

Anyone else having issues backing on mobile? Red box and won't let me back it....

[@AJPickett]

@@maxgeckos Yikes, I hope that is not a common problem with Kickstarter.

[@andresmarrero8666]

And there is nothing that can digest the spores? You would think that would be a creation project for wizards to look into. Perhaps a mix between a manta ray, whale shark, and a whale encased within a sphere of water.

[@AJPickett]

There is bound to be some sort of giant Underdark Weevel...

[@Harrowed2TheMind]

@@AJPickett Pardon my ignorance, but what's a 'Weavel'?

[@AJPickett]

@@Harrowed2TheMind weevels are types of beetles (sorry, just noticed I spelt that wrong)

[@andresmarrero8666]

@@AJPickett so beetles in water bubbles. Now that's an image.

[@zombiemanjosh]

Bump for the algorithm

[@DasMaggie]

Love your videos, man. Also, backed your kickstarter, as we really want to get started with a real dnd campaign again after we all got our shots and all that (frick this pandemic tbh), and we got everything from books to dice, but such mats would be a perfect addition. So yeah, fingers crossed that your project will make it, i think its a pretty great idea. :) Not sure if i'd want to make a pizza on it tho

[@Slayerlord13]

So what I'm gathering from this is that whoever wrote this lore doesn't understand that plants and fungi are completely different things.

[@DEMONOFLOVEANDDEATH]

For the Mighty GlueStick

[@themightymoose5047]

Great video as always!! I see you often do video requests - what is the best way to submit one? I would love to see a video on the Eladrin.

[@AJPickett]

I will be talking about them in future, I have been investigating elven history and lore lately and shall continue to do so this year. Eladrin are very important to the history and origin of the Gold and Silver elves.

[@themightymoose5047]

@@AJPickett looking forward to it! I've been greatly enjoying the elven lore videos. Excited to see what other lore you uncover.

[@kikiblair5132]

I'm thinking about using this.

[@dpme3fan193]

I have two questions. 1. Is pathfinder connected to mainstream d&d? I know that pathfinder is a spin off of d&d 3.0 or 3.5(I dont remember which one) but is it considered to be linked to d&d mainstream cosmology like in a different dimension? 2. Since beholders are spawn when an astral dreadnought sleeps too close an astral pool, if a particular astral dreadnought dies do all the beholders that trace their lineage back to that particular dreadnought wiped from existence? After all, beholders reproduce psionicly. Or, are they independent creatures as far as that goes?

[@AJPickett]

I don't believe the beholders would die from that, though it is a very rare thing for an Astral Dreadnought to die anyway. As for the connection to Pathfinder.. officially no, but I am in favour of including Golarion as a word within a crystal sphere in the D&D prime material plane.

[@Gauldame]

1. pathfinder is dnd 3.75 unofficially, and due to some interesting aspects involving licensing officially pathfinder has always been it's own special place with it's own gods and such. Dnd being dnd however, it's anyone's game. Most of the time dm's seem to bleed them together as needed. It's still two different companies and all that, so lawyers. Pathfinder 2.0, oh no the blood is soured those two don't want to play nice now. 2. interesting...very interesting. This is one of those, my what an interesting plot point you've suddenly brought up questions. Beholders are...weird...so...maybe? What if they're not but one believes this theory to be true.

[@oysuzzy]

Hey! I saw one of those in an old tea glass!

[@doomyablackheart1406]

13:28 damn how does it look like squidward

[@trajanfidelis]

We're all Squidward

[@g3heathen209]

It's the spleen! In beholder form!

[@Adam_First]

Great video

[@TheEvilProfessorMonoCulture]

You like looking in Treasure Chest eh? Monster-In-A-Box!! Gas Spores!!

[@chriscalvin5083]

good video aj

[@movespammerguyteam7colors]

So in other words stay away from them, learn to tell the difference between these things and a Beholder, after that pop it with an arrow or throwing knife from a distance. Oh god the Beholders made their own equivalent to Halo’s Grunts that have to have methane tanks on their armor just to breathe, except these things pop more like balloons.

[@dunker-roo9552]

Love it. Scare the shit out of them or put lots in it’s dark lair so they never know lol

[@rogerburkowski357]

Man, I haven't thought about those guys in years.

[@adamwelch4336]

There fartholders! 💨💥

[@dagingerdude]

wooo! love this stuff

[@TheKejka13]

Another monster I'm sure will confuse my players, while I get to look at them with the smug ( it's cannon, I didn't make this up) look.

[@ClassicMagicMan]

They're Beholder farts.

[@zeroexmachina]

I am stoked for 5e spelljammer to get back to the beholder wars. It has been too long. s00n.

[@AJPickett]

Soooon

[@Harrowed2TheMind]

Great content as always and good luck on the Kickstarter campaign! I'm most willing to back the project and it looks great (I've been wanting a battle mat for years but never actually made my final choice), but that 50% shipping fee (28NZ$!) from NZ to Canada makes me quite hesitant, if I'm being honest. After all, we are indeed at two opposites sides of the world, aren't we? XD

[@AJPickett]

Everything gets shipped from China.

[@Harrowed2TheMind]

@@AJPickett Then I expect the estimated shipping costs to be overestimated. I might just give it a go anyways, one way or another.

[@draxthemsklonst]

AJ, 15:40: did you eat the pizza?!

[@AJPickett]

I did

[@Lngbrdninjamasta]

Spores!

[@Emil-Tiger02]

Yay!

[@Janshevik]

hey, I remember Xoblob from Dragon heist adventure!

[@aubreyackermann8432]

I love this one

[@Bluecho4]

I don't know if it's really good to say one version of a monster is any more authoritative than another. 5e's version is not _wrong_ just because earlier versions of the Gas Spore were more complicated. Nor is it really meaningful to say the earlier lore is the "real" lore. All monster lore is made up, and indeed serves primarily as a toolbox for DMs for creating interesting adventures and encounters.

[@YOOTOOBjase]

Dang AJ what you doing up at 2am?

[@lysander9957]

Ah yes, the beholder silhouettes with which to spook your players.

[@tonyoliver4920]

In day of the triffids and as a chemist. I always thought the meteors that blinded everyone had massive amounts of Lanthanide series metal as they produce UV spectacular lines at high energy. Hail Tharizdun

[@AJPickett]

More Fun with Science!

[@zmishiymishi5349]

So its not necesary for them to look like beholder. It just help

[@GreenLanternCorps2814]

Heyyyyyyy! Mini Monster Mayhem sculpts!

[@youtubeuniversity3638]

Sources for this?

[@AJPickett]

Source for what specifically? There are many sources of lore for Gas Spores.

[@youtubeuniversity3638]

@@AJPickett I was hoping for like a list, essentially. I understand if ye don't have 'em all, or if by now it'd be too much hassle to compile it all together.

[@Meteor2022]

@@youtubeuniversity3638 Lol he's shown his multipage scripts on a few streams, you can take him at his word.

[@thehillz726]

Got the book of wondrous inventions? Look up Kruze's Magnificent Missile

[@AJPickett]

I do, its.... well.... its ok.

[@thehillz726]

@@AJPickett how so?

[@AJPickett]

@@thehillz726 I was a bit disappointed with that book. Just my personal opinion

[@thehillz726]

@@AJPickett fair enough I suppose

[@AJPickett]

@@AncientRylanor69 I don't know.

[@tatsusama3192]

This reminds me of the scarier version of a Pokemon 😅

[@AJPickett]

I was so tempted to add an image of that pokemon... the thumbnail is a homage to it with the three gas spores :)

[@tatsusama3192]

@@AJPickett haha, You're awesome, Professor😂❤️

[@deforesttappan6478]

I'm the first like on this video.