Dungeons and Dragons Lore: Astral Dreadnought

One of the most formidable threats to any astral voyager, these titanic monsters have a much, much deeper connection to the most secret of all Dungeons and Dragons lore.
Use Discount Code GLUESTICK for 10% off your high-quality metal dice and accessories: dndwow.com
Join the Discord community: discordapp.com...
Become a patron: / themightygluestick
Shop for Mighty Gluestick Merchandise: teespring.com/...
Also uploading to BitChute: www.bitchute.c...
Friend us on Facebook: / themightygluestick
Channel music by ARES, BRICE and EPIDEMIC SOUND

[@justinbaskall8291]

Time Stamps an Possible Spoilers Below 0:15 Intro 0:35 Allip Video (link below) 1:13 Recap on the Astral Sea 2:25 Cosmology Discussion Begins 3:54 Giving Names to Nature 4:40 Dendar, The Night Serpent 5:12 Atropus, Zargon, Father Llymic, Pandorym 6:39 Ghaunadaur 8:39 Tharizdun, The Chained Oblivion, Mad God of Entropy 9:21 Big Red Button 9:33 Red Pill Blue Pill Warning 10:00 Origins of the Dreadnoughts 11:30 Descriptions of the Dreadnoughts 14:02 Stat-Block discussion 17:42 Critters: We're Screwed 18:59 Welcome to Vecna's List 20:19 Mind Blown/ Red Pill 20:27 Vecna, The Ironic Hero 21:48 Like, Share, Subscribe. This one has some really great discussion on the cosmology of the Astral Dreadnought, the Beholders, Tharizdun, the other Elder Evils, and The universe as a whole, and I would definitely recommend watching the whole thing. Did I miss anything? Leave a comment below and a Like on the comment to bump this towards the top if you got use out of it.

[@dragonballtalk8527]

Do one for every vid make one a day

[@BoojumFed]

Your middle name isn't "Flando" by any chance, is it?

[@dragonballtalk8527]

@@BoojumFed no it bum gardener

[@jeramiedavis6782]

_ c

[@johnymey4034]

You should really re-record these older ones , with better editing and narration

[@AliasEliahus]

Matt mercer: so yeah i was thinking about maybe including tharizdun in the nex- *VECNA HAS ENTERED THE CHAT*

[@gideonjones5712]

I love the idea that it attacks with its form of telepathy. Imagine dying a terribly painful brain melting death because a giant one eyed magic-space lobster looked at you and thought "oi, you!" really really loud

[@TheCrimsonElite666]

Fun fact: Doom Eternal actually references the Cacodemon's relation to the Astral Dreadnought in its codex entry by hypothesising that the former had a connection to ancient cyclopic titans from hell. Another fun fact is in the ultimate form of irony, the Cacodemon was used as inspiration for the Cacodaemon in Pathfinder.

[@mrl9418]

Me : If Thurizdun finds out, the Multiverse as we know it is gone. Xanathar (does a Humphrey Bogart impression) : We will always have the Far Realm

[@CrimsonRaven86]

Vecna the ultimate anti-hero

[@Greenscyth22]

I always thought that any class that lets you stay in an incorporeal state basically make you immortal. The prestige class Psion Uncarnate is one of those classes where the end result is you become a purely psionic entity who lives on the astral plane. But clearly there are ALWAYS things which can kill the seemingly unkillable. Phase spiders, powerful incorporeal undead, and the most horrifying behemoth floating through the astral fog....the Astral Dreadnought.

[@seanryniker3897]

Asmodeus really do be holding up reality. On top of keeping the demons of the abyss at bay, he's keeping watch over Tharizdun's prison. In retrospect Tiamat just seems like a pet to him.

[@ajki9833]

“Vecna has no time for ‘I-told-you-so’s” is such a dope line, I’m gonna use that for my table if it ever comes up. I love binging these videos, your storytelling is phenomenal

[@AJPickett]

Thanks!

[@firetarrasque4667]

So... Beholders aren't creatures, even abberations. They're bombs. Ticking time bombs, placed by Tharizduns servants.

[@muninrob]

I can take it one step further with perfect logic, AJ. After becoming a god, (of secrets no less) and seeing all of time and space, Vecna realized the planes as known held no more secrets for him. Discovering that no one knew what was before the concepts of time and space, he used his godly powers to go there - and his once mortal mind, with it's pedestrian view of how existence "should" work, shattered, being discovered as Therizdun as the moment of creation occured around him. *puts on tinfoil hat* The truly incredible part about this is Vecna KNOWS!! Keeping Therizdun isolated keeps the ultimate secret, that not even a got can know - what would exist before existence existed? *hands out tinfoil hats* now you know too much, Vecna's coming for you, best come to Sigil and learn the rest....

[@gargoyles9999]

Robert Lockard Before time before existence there was nothing, and before there was nothing there were monsters

[@ionman1761]

It's head is the inspiration for cacodemon

[@adamgoldenstein1179]

@Petar Belic lol you obviously didn't

[@billpickles589]

@Level Nine Drow what's a cacodemon?

[@boldbearings]

@Petar Belic came here to say this.

[@boldbearings]

@Level Nine Drow Links?

[@BlitzkriegBryce]

@@adamgoldenstein1179 he obviously did... good god wtf

[@amotl2009]

1:13 Hey look a Cacodemon with a body

[@danielnevill3076]

So you are telling me Vecna. Evil lich god of secrets and general assholeness, one of the worst beings the gods have ever allowed to be born. He is the technically the great protector of the multiverse, as he has taken over from Asmodeus in his role of keeping an eye on Tharizdun and making sure no one knows enough to contact him and end reality? And of course, that actually makes sense.

[@gasmonkey1000]

Vecna wants to rule the multiverse, and he doesn't like the idea of that being dashed because a stupid murderhobo decided to chat it up with a deity as insane as it is powerful that is kept dormant only by being convinced it already won, thereby breaking the illusion. I don't think Vecna's so much protecting the multiverse as much as he is making sure no one takes his clay.

[@jacobfreeman5444]

Indeed. It is not altruism that motivates Vecna but self-interest. If Tharizdun escaped that not just the multiverse of lesser creatures would be in danger. Vecna would be too. Vecna is no doubt the very thing Tharizdun would abhor most. A former mortal rising to divinity and meddling in divine matters.

[@thegnarledpirate9198]

An cave inside a monster? *time to mine boys*

[@droman608]

“Great. So, how do we kill it?” -Unknown Human Hunter #deanwinchester #supernatural

[@AJPickett]

Using hashtags in comments always gets them held for review, just so you know, I have to manually approve all those.

[@AmigoRoberto]

Also... you've doomed us all to an eternity of nothic'ing about

[@AliasEliahus]

This is so underrated it actually hurts, good on you amigo

[@thedarkmaster4747]

I know right. >XD

[@toa_zohaku6]

Just sitting here with my mind blown. Now I can't NOT run a campaign that features this.

[@WEndro333]

*Laughs in Super Shotgun*

[@rhinotyrannus5102]

Vecna, not the hero we deserve but the one we needed😂

[@llewelynshingler2173]

I think Athas might be worthy.

[@mrl9418]

I had the exact same thought !

[@CrimsonRaven86]

Doing what he can, because he must.

[@sanddry738]

I always love the videos where we really go all cosmic. It’s mind bending on time and I can see why Vecna wants *Absolutely* shut down any and all information Also ironic that a mortal made god such as him would be one to realize this and promptly block other mortals knowledge. Although I wonder if few like Acererak or Mordikanin are aware

[@KokoroNoSama]

This whole episode blew my mind. I knew about astral dreadnaughts, but this took it to a whole new level.

[@Mattsen87]

I wonder, if Tharizdun ever broke out of the mind prison, would it be then be eternally paranoid it was still in one? It couldn't tell before, lol.

[@AJPickett]

That's a very good point.

[@gargoyles9999]

Well he would likely destroy creation anyway just to be sure.

[@masync183]

@@gargoyles9999 but how could it be sure that the reality it's destroying is the real one? I think at that point tharizdun would probably try to destroy itself as well as everything else it possibly can.

[@adrenalineunlimited]

Ah, nice awareness of what's happening in the D&D community right now

[@darkeather2]

Damn, I was just coming up with an idea for some great eldest evil was trapped in some great ancient prison for eons just adrift in the astral sea. Long forgotten was its purpose, and only the oldest of gods still remember the raw horror that it was. The prison's denizens self sustained clones that have forgotten why they are there guarding the place, and their idea of their jobs warped into thinking that they have been doing these rituals to free it instead of keep it contained, and view the players as trying to stop them from freeing it, and the players not realizing that their efforts to "stop" these "cultists" is actually setting it free. But this. This is giving me many many ideas to alter, improve, and expand my idea. My thanks!

[@AJPickett]

You are most welcome :)

[@g4m3st3p6]

That happens in terraria 1.3

[@jimmystyles670]

In my own home brewed world, vecna ended up ruling over Humanity, first just to piss off orcus (long story) but then, because he is technically a god Humanity started to change him slowly, turning him good. So now this all makes sense that he has taken it upon himself to protect the universe from Ultimate Destruction, for his own goals and now to protect those he serves.

[@t.b.cont.]

In the far realm, Mike Wazowski is always watching you

[@lonerstoner9258]

Astral dreadnaught is a beholder that slept with a tarrasque lol

[@res2wnor]

What if the reason the tails of the Dreadnaught trails off is because it’s actually attached to something and is just an “eye stock” like a beholder has. I don’t know what it would be connected to though. Lol.

[@agentchaos9332]

Tharizdun. It would be attached to Tharizdun in the flesh. Follow the tail of a dreadnought far enough and you'll find Tharizduns prison

[@project4061]

I did not expect the two-for-one on the D&D multiverse, and the Astral Dreadnaught. This has given me so many ideas. Thanks for this Aj!

[@linguisticallyoversight8685]

Time is a stubbornly persistent illusion

[@pier-lucboivin6645]

Pretty rad. I thought the dreadnoughts were just astral trash collectors. I have been schooled. Thanks again AJ for the quality video and information.

[@firetarrasque4667]

If you survive this one AJ, I think we can all confirm that the Gluestick is not truly mortal at all

[@Gauldame]

Astral "Where's your God's now" Dreadnought.

[@freddykingofturtles]

Well, now I'm convinced the real world is a part of Tharizdun's dream universe and that things are weirder when we're not around because we have his anti-magic eyes. At least, as far as D&D lore is concerned.

[@johnathanbrandt2526]

So the best tactic for dealing with an astral dreadnought is don't fight just jump in the mouth and look around for awhile for anything good then plane shift out with loot.

[@adrenalineunlimited]

Okay, but why would a group of adventurers under extreme time constraints and who are supposed to be going the other direction willingly climb into a dreadnought's mouth?

[@JohnA...]

Internet cool points? Plus they know quite well how their DM thinks and the antics that might possibly happen when being so bold. It seemed that at least a couple of them knew a little about what an astral dreadnought is, enough to think to send something into its mouth and not just think the chains were for some other reason. But they better hope Matt gives them a means out because none of them have planer travel spells yet...

[@jacobfreeman5444]

An idea for the astral dreadnought. They are living portals to the pocket prison realm. They are meant to be the trash collectors of the astral realm. Keep any detritus and unwanted influences penned up until they can be dealt with. But with Tharizdun being utterly mad and out of direct contact these entities just wander around randomly pulling in anything they find.

[@adrenalineunlimited]

Remember the spectator in high rollers that believed he was tharizdun? Mark Hulmes, ladies and gentleman-- an even better DM than I thought

[@arichaast8585]

Can we just admire and thank Asmodeus that he literally holds, protects, and takes responsibility to make sure the D&D universe stays in tact. The guarding the Armageddon stone and the crystal that keeps a overdeity emprisoned

[@idiom2805]

No, he's just making sure there's something for him to rule over. Plus, he's still repairing his body.

[@jonathansnyder4712]

Does this mean that whenever a party kills a beholder they inadvertently wake up dreadnought? Hmmm interesting does that mean that maybe that dreadnought knows/remembers the party that killed them in their sleep? And maybe seek revenge?

[@Xion_Toshiro]

So... High Level Campaigns aren't... "Challenging enough"? Lemme see if I can dig around the Astral Plane and dig up an Astral Dreadnought... Fun fact; Astral Dreadnought inspired the original Cacodemon in DOOM. Wait a minute... Cacodemon... remains of a Titan, in Hell. Astral Dreadnought... a Titan, looks like a Cacodemon... Hm... I wonder... connection?

[@Spectrefoxxiii]

Ironic, I'm starting up my campaign again centered around Tharizdun, considering throwing an Astral Dreadnought in as a teaser, and you put this out for us!

[@krispalermo8133]

This was some how more creepier than hearing about the Abyss. " Where do Beholders come from ?" Uhm, the Far Realms of coarse ....

[@dinkleberg684]

Dnd gameplay: Ha ha ha big barbarian squish tiny goblin Dnd lore: The dreadnoughts are but a minor byproduct of the ដ̸̧̨̢̧̨̡̛̙͖̳͓̤͚̻͎͕͉͕̲̳̘͔̤̱̹̤͍̲̩͍͙̖̦͕̠̝̱͖̲̯̤̤͈̰̞̖̲̜̙͚͚̘̺̣͎͓͍̩̤̟̰̰̗͚͉̲͕̀̀̉̌̾̓̈̈́̋̈́̾̐͛͗͊̂̄̆͋̈́̋̅̓̕͘͜͜͜ͅͅͅ៏̴̨̧̛̗̝̤̠̖͇̞̥̝̜͓̞̼͔̪͚̻̬̦̝̮̤̘̭̺͎̘̪̲͇̘͒̄̌̑̒̔̀̃̍̆̿̽͆͒̉̽̇͋͆̿̒̒̐̓̎͊̏͛͂́͋͂̾͛̊̄̿̿̓̄͌̓̿̈́̈́̃̈́̉͆͂̾̋̍̿̃̇̉͐̕͘̕̚̚̕̚͘͘͠͝͝͝͠͝អ̷̧̨̡̢̗̹̼̥̤̗̝̮͈̞̰͇̼͓̙̩̥̘̭̳͇̱̥̤͍̰̟̪̹̥͈̲̜̝̑̀́̿̿̇̀̈́̋̋̈́͊̽̉̔́̅͒̍́̀͂̀̈́̓̎͂̓̔̐͂̂̀̀͂̃̃͋̈́̾͗̒̃̅̕͘̕͝͝ͅͅស̸̵្̡̡̢̨̨̡̡̧̧̛̦̪͇̝̤͍̜̦͚̘̮̯͚͉̱̗̭̩̲̟̖̟̲̬̪͖̮̤̣̣̪͉͚͙͔͔̹̤̙̯͙̦͔̪͚̤̦̲͉̭͓̱̥̜͕̯̭̳͙̯̹͍̖̜̩̟̩̖̗̹̥̮̺̃̀̋̾̒̌͑͑̓́̿̿̎͗̓̎͂̂͆̅͊́̓͒̓̇̿̿̇̌̒̀̑̏̋͛̀̌̔̔̈́̒́̊͒͒͑̀̓̌̋͑̑̀̈̇̂͋̊̅̀̒́͛̏͐̀̂̏̒͆̿̔̈́̓͐̓̈́̌́̚̕͘̚̕͜͜͜͜͠͠͝͝͠͝͠ͅͅͅͅច̸̨̢͎͉̦̻̩̜̹͙̟̫̥͍̟̰̰̭̩̱͕̱̘͇̠̣̻̩̓͋͑̎̑̆̈́̋̿̉̎̽̈̍͒͐̏̋́̆̉͌͆͊͂͘͘͘̕͜͝͠͠ា̴̢̧̢̛̛̛̱̜̘̭͓̲͔̱̞̟̪͇̠̟͓͙͎̪̦͍̦̫̰̮͉͖̲͚̦̤̠͖̦̰̖̮̤̼̗͖͕̟̪̫͔̮̪͎̎͊̑͑̉͂̅́́̓͗̋̎̐̒̋͊͊̐͒́̔̈́́͊͗̾̽͑̋͐́̃͐̋̆́̕͜͠រ̴̵្̢̛̛̺̲͍̘̹̝͕͙̰̳̗̩̟̺̩̦̖͙̖̮̮͚̙̯͍̞͙̝̜̪̗̗̘͙̻͈̩̗̃͐̅̈́̈͋̈̈́̌̓͒̓̇̋̓̀̉͑͐͐̏̍̿̽̌̓͛̿̓̄́͆̾̔̃̌̍̔̄͑̊̈́̀̏̀̃̓̍́̉̈̍̍̃̆̆́̓̆̎͗̇͒̂̿̃͗̍̄̃͗̆̃͛͛͌͂̓̀̅̐̂́̐̆̈͊̍̀̓̾̚̚̚̕͘͜͜͝យ̶̡̨͔̭͍̗͙̰̺̥̠̟͇̲̻͎̫͍̜̙͓̞̫̟̰̣͚͕́̌̑̃́̿͐̌̓̅̓͒͌͒́͋̐̂̀̎̇͂͛͗̉͐̌̃͐̐̎̈́̓̎́̆͊̀̂̆̍̅̏̈́̀̑́̐̏̊͆̅̃͑̾̀̒͌̋͘̕̚͜͝ͅល̵̢̢̛̛̛̛͚̜͔̜͉̻̗̗̗͎͉̹͖͔̯͖̯̥̬̺̯͇͎͙̦̠̩̹͈͍͈̝̬̱̬̮̮͎̰̩͓̤̭̟͍̻̲̺͐̏͛̽́̐̎̈́̓̒̍̃̎̃͒̾̊̉͌̏̓̏̋͐̽̀̆͌͋̅͑̓́͊̆́̓̏̇̾̑̌́͆̈́́̓̄̇̆͌̕͘̕͘̚̕̚̚̚͜͝͠͠͝͠͠ើ̷̧̡̧̡̢͈̗͕̟͚͓͖̣̖͙̖̤͇̫̟͈̩̭͔͈̘̪̠̞̤̥̟̬̰̹̦̘͔͓̭̠̺̥̮̟͚̱̖̠͚̅̍̓̉̌͆̈́͛̿̀̿̌̊͌͑͗̀̊̆̐̓̀̓̾͊̎̾̈̿̈́̀̆̇̈́̄̈́̈́͐̆̔̃̆̽̄͛̎͛̇̀̓͛͛̽̚̕̚͘͜͠͝͝ស̶̡̧̪͈͎̳̹͔͉̱̭̤̥̟̳͖̗̪̟̦̘͔͖̳̖̹̻̬̦̞̱̞̪̬̬̝̮͉̳̭͙͕̙̱̼̻̂̓̌́͛̉̾̋́̔̈͛̀̔̓̔͋͑̅̊͐̓̽͆̅̑̔̈̋̈́͒́̈̆̉̉̈́̆̏̿̀̏̂̔̓̀̎̉͗̀͆̈́̌̚͘͜͝͝͝ͅͅͅព̷̢̨̧̢̛̛͓̝̝̠̺̣̮̮̺̣̼̜̟̗̰͈͈͙̤̼̜̭͖̙͔̬͇͉̘̱̱̣͇̭̭̺͕̪̦͙̳͍̟̗͓̖̞̀̓͆̄̓̄̅̒͂̐̿̑̈̊̋̐̈́͋̓͒̄̐̄̈̓̕̚͘͝ͅី̸̧̡̢̢̛̙̫̥͙̙̗̜̬̩̞͙̪̞̮̝̤̘̠̻̱̭̤̟̙̖̦̖̯͙̩̺͖͖̗̼͔̯̤͈͇̗͙͎̦͔̬̰͔̤̻̳̺̞̠̭̯̼̗̮͔͈͔̝͑͊̄̅̓̀̆̎͛̈́̊̃̐̊̎͂͒̌͘͘̕͜ͅͅន̵̡̡̨̢̛̤͖̣̣͎̲̹̹͈̭̭͈͎̟̗̳͍͙̮͔̥̭̝͈͚̼̣̳̳̗̤̳͍̲̹̺͔͎͖̩͖̩̼̦̰̦̖̳̺̠̹̜̱̥̫͆̇͒̈́̎̎̈́̿̑̅̑̌́̽̄̓̿̃̔̐́̐̊̈̑̑̓͊̃̔̿̓͒͐̀̈́̎͌͒̐͗͋͌̍͊͐̄͂͐̏͊̑̄̓̎̓̿͛̄̑̆̆͋̓͗̆̄̈́̅̚̕͘̚͘̕͘͜͠͠͠͝េ̶̡̧̨̢̢̨̛̛̛̛͔̦̰͇̠̘͓̣̬̮͍̲̱̬̝̱͚͕͇̺̜͕̻͓͚̩̬̮̟͙͖̝͎̣̠̙͓͓̥̳̗̙̩̦̭͇̩͕̩̻͉̩̬̮̣̱͚͓̭̗̜̹̤̬̯́͂̑̀̆̈́̈̂̉́̏̌́̉̆̔̈́͂̃̋͊̑̆͗̃́͑͐́͑̄́̿̀͐͂̔́̑̋͊̒̾̀̀̆͘͘̕̚̚͜͜͠͝͝͠͠͝͝͝͝ͅͅះ̶̨̡̡̧̨̧̛̘̙͈̩̯̬͖̰̘̟̩̮͈̥̯̪̯̘͔̳̳͖̳̲̗̣͔̖͇̼̭͓̙̘̲̝͓͖̥̤̘͚͇͉͍̦͍̰̗̠̘͍͓̹̘̗̦̝̹̤̓̏̈́̈́̈́̉͗́̄̾͒̂̌̿͑̀͊̿̈́́̈̀̀̔̉̔̉̅̊̂̚̕̕̕͘͝͝ͅͅͅͅͅͅ។̶̨̧̛͇̭͙̼̘͓͍͓̹̳͚͙͙̝̤̖̤̲͚́͂̑̐̄̎̄́̈̈͛̈́̀͑̂̊̽́̅̀̎̆̓̕͜͜͝͠ͅ

[@earthobserver1007]

I remember those, I always thought they looked like a cacodemon with a body.

[@TMoDDD]

Astral Dreadnaught: Son!!!!! Cacodemon: Father!!!

[@Harthorn]

Lol

[@TheCrimsonElite666]

Cacodaemon from Pathfinder: Grandad!

[@kyledorey9459]

I for one will never look at Xanathar's pet goldfish the same again

[@TamTroll]

Gee, it sure would be a mistake to fly into one of these things' mouth without knowing where it's going h'uh?

[@thefightingfedora2976]

So I wonder how the planet filled with nothing but beholders plays into all of that...

[@AJPickett]

Certainly inspires some crazy ideas.

[@joshwist556]

Hey, the Cacodemon finally took the Doomguy Work Out Routine seriously.

[@st4ne4rmthevill63]

I'm thinking of running a campaign where the players become Gods. Then doing a second campaign where they have to be apart of a Celestial War against Tharizdun. They're going to absolutely die but they wont know that tho. The journey to those deaths will be wonderful.

[@UngiftedWatcher]

I love waking up to D&D lore.

[@sagesheahan6732]

Same

[@Gryphon2026]

It's one of life's little pleasures for sure! Stay Nerdy!🤓🤓🤓

[@PhileasLiebmann]

When he first said "This might be mind-blowing" I was like "Yeah, right. Give me your best shot". I was fool for doubting you, AJ, a damned fool.

[@codyhetu1745]

Campaign Idea, Party is flying through the astral when they wake up with their ship crashed inside a cave. Unknown to them they are in a Astral Dreadnought. However this one is so large is basically a dungeon with a town in it.

[@mattmoseley6429]

Some of my players have a warlock patron and I've been doing mental gymnastics to tie it to Ghaunadaur, beholders, & astral dreadnought among a few other things and these ideas and theories helped me soooo much!!! Thanks AJ!

[@AJPickett]

You are most welcome Matthew :)

[@c.g.278]

Tharizdun’s crystal prison is somewhere in the Deep Ethereal? Now that is interesting. Do you think maybe the prison is guarded by the Phantasmal Killer? It’s also “somewhere in the Deep Ethereal,” and it seems to me that the gods would want to protect the crystal prison with something unstoppable if they can.

[@kendrickrochelanzot2053]

Oh God I have seen this monster so many times, but never learned what it's called. This is very different from what I was imagining when my cousin told me it appeared in critical role.

[@brentwitmer1144]

Really loved this video! But who would win, Tharizdun or The Lady of Pain? Or are they same?! Because it is said," We are all the dreams of The Lady of Pain, our pain is hers". When she awakes we vanish. Yet at the same time Tharizdun is trapped in his own dark nightmares, ruling his own universe that exists only in his dreams. When he awakes we also die. Are they connected in some way? Are they opposed? Would love a opinion. "Huh? Oh. Vecna says no. Never-mind. I should go back to my business..."

[@MRlackofoxygen]

i love the idea of the lady of pain being being the containment vessel for the crystal prison of tharizdun, the lady of pain being a godly construct of immense power. her dominion over sigil gives her a labyrinth of possibilities to move around, make copies of herself to confuse others who may know the truth, and have the anti-magic effect of the place itself also aid in concealment. maybe she gets so mad at worshipers of her because they have no idea what she is and doesn't want anyone to know..... at least that's how ill be running my god game in my multiverse.

[@JanusKastin]

It's been decades (back in 2nd edition), but I remember once seeing a homebrew monster modification in which the githyanki managed to trick an astral dreadnought into swallowing its own tail, ourobouros-style. It was called... the Astral DreadDoughnut....

[@AJPickett]

LOL! And people make a big deal over canon material... seriously, 70% of the old stuff is pure slapstick. (castle Ravenloft anyone?)

[@That80sGuy1972]

@@AJPickett More drama than slapstick. Then again, it's DM related game running. If you do the cross-possession in-depth, you can dedicate an entire session to slapstick.

[@dropdead234]

"Ghaunadaur being Primus." This explains Les Claypool so much.

[@sesimie]

As a Doom Player the art is so Cacodemon. As a Long time D&D novel reader i've never heard about these. As a New Player/DM/Critical Role Fan.....This is terrifying!! That Beholder part literally gave me shivers!!

[@Snuusnuu69]

Wow, so the mighty nine just went into one of these last episode.

[@markusnavergard2387]

and yet, for all these horrors,gods, elder evils and nameless abominations, they are nothing compared to the power and vileness of the one simply called "dungeon master"

[@krispalermo8133]

Yeah, it is even worst when they play with Loaded Dice ! Ever seen a Chat of Critical Fumbles ? Random ways to screw over the player characters. Oh, the horrors, the horrors...

[@g4m3st3p6]

They are the true rulers of the earth

[@animefan3794]

Interesting that this video comes the week after the CR cast went and willingly entered the mouth of one of these Monsters.

[@animefan3794]

at level 10, I might add.

[@AJPickett]

I have my informants deep in the Critter camp...

[@animefan3794]

AJ Pickett hehehehehe.

[@chloepechlaner7806]

Which implies that the place they entered is actually its dungeon, though the mechanics of it may have been muddled with by the wizard who imprisoned it.

[@AJPickett]

Vecna Did Nothing Wrong teespring.com/en-GB/vecna-did-nothing-wrong?pid=2&cid=2397

[@thedarkmaster4747]

God! May you never stop... 😈😵🌌

[@joshdavis4438]

It's a little bit interesting that fact Vecna also has only one eye... like the Astral Dreadnought.

[@markusnavergard2387]

well being a normal mortal human and make himself into a God, getting trapped in Ravenloft and then escape it and now making sure none finds out how Tharizdun is trapped. Vecna is not the hero we wanted or deserved, but he is the hero we needed

[@markusnavergard2387]

@@joshdavis4438 well one was lost

[@DG-qq6gz]

This revelation can motivate players to increase their wisdom and charisma scores by wish spells or any other way. Astral Dreadnought are quite alien.

[@elwoodbrown7005]

What if Tharizdan has has already won and we are trapped in a matrix in Sigil maintained by AO and the Lady awaiting Tharizdan to get bored and retreat into his own mind so they can re-start a new universe.

[@kevynhansyn2902]

I like the way you think young one. I am about to start hinting "Tharzadun" in my campaign when we all start back up after this Pandemic BS.

[@pretentiousname01]

what convenient timing

[@loum153]

Right?

[@GregtheGrey6969]

Synchronicity

[@Gryphon2026]

Ikr! Sometimes life just works out! 🤓🤓🤓

[@AJPickett]

*hides messages from Critical Role fans*

[@That80sGuy1972]

@@AJPickett **whispers a plot twist into AJ's ear**

[@finnpead8477]

I've been running a campaign that is centralized around Tharizdun and it's return. I was kind of wavering a little at first, as it seemed like another platitudinous "cultists bring back the old god" story, but this completely changes everything. The campaign was originally going to involve cultists summoning Shothragot to gather the 333 gems to free Tharizdun from it's crystal prison, but now I can add a whole lot more depth, where the goal is to awaken Tharizdun, at which point, the Astral Dreadnoughts (Whom the players will, by then be familiar with) begin swarming the color pools, elemental forces fight against reality and the players are left to try and fight off Tharizdun and the madness that they themselves will suffer through. I love how overarching and deeply nerdy Tharizdun is. What I love is that it's not just your generic old god who wants to undo everything for the purpose of evil--Tharizdun is a being with strict ideals on how the universe is to be run as well as motivation. (and of course, a bit of madness to make the character better) Btw, these videos are super entertaining! The depth of the lore in each video allows the GM to add depth to their monsters as well as learning to roleplay them. The intensive lore also allows inspiration for campaigns--the viewer learns the motivations and personalities of the "big bads" that are usually just placed at the end of the campaign as the final encounter--the fabled CR 26 or whatever. The point is you're doing a great job conveying the complex and interesting lore of the D&D universe, and I hope you continue to do so!

[@kevynhansyn2902]

Theres a Page I seen that has a "Tharzidun Avatar" layout that's insane and truly great to have. Fighting Tharzidun himself would just be a total party Wipe. Fighting an avatar of himself would be a tad easier (and still badass of course). Theres another good KZbinr that does alot of this kind of stuff as well. The name escapes me tho.

[@wolfmoe7398]

This. This is the kinda comment I like to see.

[@user-od3gt6jx4r]

Astral dreadnought: beholders who traded eyes for a tail and "arms"

[@mikemccoy5092]

Hey I suggested the dreadnought thanks for making the video

[@briancorvello3620]

I remember that. It was on the cover of the original Manual of the Planes, but only mentioned briefly in the actual text.

[@sethierot7067]

I just took 10D20 Psychic dmg Thank Vecna that im a Necromancer and had some Bonus Lifes layin arround

[@That80sGuy1972]

Joke's on you. You were the lesser Necromancer seduced into the contract by the master who was taken. He screwed up. You were the life that was supposed to be stolen but he was taken because (again) he screwed up. You had your wards right and now you are the top Necromancer dog... and lots of your master's wisdom is lost.

[@Diditallforthexp]

Finally a creature as big as your video catalog! Our silver cords are ready to be severed!

[@gatall91]

Have you seen what Matthew Mercer did with an Astral Dreadnought? His group is in a puzzle created by an ancient Arch Mage and it's made of hundreds of small dimensional pockets. In one room the group are in the astral sea and the arch image has chained and bound an astral dreadnought in place and one of the many doors thru the area is in its mouth. Next to the door they come thru are two levers. One opens its mouth and the other releases the dreadnought with the party floating on a rock island floating g in the astral sea. It's actually really interesting.

[@NejiWesternmage]

I just came here from powering through all of campaign 2 thus far :p

[@AJPickett]

Mr Mercer is an excellent story teller and makes full use of resources in the game, making whatever changes he sees fit, just as he should.

[@VulpisFoxfire]

I was thinking ot the Critical Role use of the dreadnaught while watching this, which is why my interest was piqued when Venca was mentioned..wasned the stuff inside the dreadnaught one of his lairs/labs or something?

[@towboat4213]

Doomsday scenario where the entire multiverse ceases to exist past present and future? My kind of horror story very cool

[@HighlanderFrag4Life]

Vecna did nothing wrong ^.^

[@kajjak7001]

Now I can only imagine Asmodeus as nervous wreck hiding his nervousness behind a confident facade, knowing one day Tharizdun might undo all of reality. Do gods dream of Far Realm sheep?

[@AJPickett]

Asmodeus sitting on a Throne in Nessus, brooding... he mutters "Its just a house of cards built over a bonfire, and I am the wretched lord of the flames".

[@thedarkmaster4747]

I see it asmodeus being full of pride in his palace in nessus, knowing that he is keeping the "ultimate prisoner" in a cell being tormented by the unknowing of his own delusion of his imagined ultimate and complete triamph. For should his cell be breached, in that breif moment before total distruction and divine wrath is unleashed upon the multiverse - Tharizdun will have realised that not only have all his worse fears have come true, but he was living a lie for countless millenia of rewritten time. Or perhaps asmodeus knows that successfully containing tharizdun is impossible, as he will inevitably escape and when he does, "asmodeus" will also be meaningless in the new multiverse tharidun creates - making every catharic justification he has ever used for "his prison", a hollow and empty false lie told by an insane celestial entity, who's divine consciousness has also been monsterously ruined by violence.

[@adamgrey268]

Vecna also possesses "a single baleful eye". Interesting...

[@AJPickett]

I know right? Lore says he lost it in his assassination attempt by his Lieutenant Kas the Vampire.. but now I am not so sure.

[@adamgrey268]

​@@AJPickett Strahd von Zarovich for example: as the final price he paid to the Dark Powers for his immortality he was slain by a group of mortal men with mortal weapons, and then arose as a True Vampire. It happened almost immediately after the other prices of his pact were paid. Coincidence? Like the mortals who slew Strahd, Kas could have been a mere pawn in the machinations of much greater powers. By attempting to kill Vecna and succeeding in cutting out his eye, perhaps he too, like the mortals who killed Strahd, was fulfilling a price which Vecna previously and perhaps unknowingly paid for secret lore that elevated his powers beyond "mere" lichdom. TL;DR The price to be paid (Strahd, Vecna) is always a combination of reaping the evil seeds you have sown (pissing off a royal family, pissing off Kas--for lack of much better words) and coming to the ends which the dark powers you negotiated with desire (vampirism, removal of an eye). Hopefully I have articulated the point I am trying to make. It was a little difficult getting it from my mind to this comment. Sorry about that.

[@markusnavergard2387]

@@adamgrey268 or it might just be little things for players to build adventures from.

[@toatahu2003]

Goals of the Sword of Kas : ✦ Betray that which is most fiercely loved, whether the owner’s love or another’s. ✦ Wreak harm to Vecna, Vecna’s plans, and any creature affiliated with Vecna. ✦ Destroy all confidences, reveal all secrets, lay bare all that is kept hidden. Vecna CREATED the sword, specifically to PREVENT Kas from betraying him, yet it was the sword itself that convinced Kas to commit the act... Why? Why does the sword seek to undermine its creator? Unless... Vecna created it that way... Funny how Kas attacked Vecna right as he was in the middle of the ceremony that would ascend him to godhood... Kas "defeated" Vecna, dying in the process, yet in the end... Vecna became a demigod anyway... Funny how that all worked out in Vecna's favor in the end, huh?

[@TechnoCheezit]

Wait does this theory imply that Vecna is secretly the protector of the universe?

[@AJPickett]

One of.. yes.

[@unshackledjester]

Depends on how you use view the use of protector, frankly. I don't see this as mind blowing simply because Vecna doesn't want to die or not exist any more than other entities, so him going out of his way to preserve himself doesn't mean he is doing it FOR the multiverse, thus not protecting anything but himself and his vested interests. I was not aware of this bit of lore, but I'm not particularly surprised.

[@pscwplb]

You can't rule all of reality and shape it to your whims if someone else blows it all up first.

[@venkelos6996]

Ah, the Tarrasque...or, well, the upticked astral version of that legendary monster. It's sort of funny, because I feel like the Dreadnought is always a superior stat block; I don't know if it is just because there can be more than one? The Ender of Empires always seems to suffer from "we gave it stats, so players can kill the Unkillable", but then the AD has stats that say "go ahead and try!" Learning the connection between the various perilous powers is a neat thing. Makes me wonder how many Beholders were birthed by AD, and how many by each other, but there arw a lot of them, considering many fight their own dream-spawned kin to the death? Sort of makes me miss the Mother Beholders, who actually gave birth to more, and controlled those progeny to allow their numbers to grow.

[@justaguy5862]

Today on my second ever session of DND I stuck my hand in a bag of devouring and was one foot away from getting ate by this things so that was fun

[@user-od3gt6jx4r]

Audio: Welcome to the Mighty Gluestick My brain: Challenge Audio: channel Brain: Crap! Every time.

[@theouterlimits7788]

No exaggeration my mind literally turn into jelly

[@raptorokc]

I wonder if the mighty nein will have to face one of these.

[@loum153]

...... sarcasm right?

[@fishinatube9028]

When you said this would be mindblowing, I dindn't expect... THAT

[@That80sGuy1972]

I've been playing AD&D since the mid-80s. I find it odd that despite this monster being the cover art of a book about extraplanar things, it did not get covered until about a decade later (I believe over a decade). And now, it has a tangent origin with the "Far Realm" and Beholders. So... how long until it gets an ecology video where it is not a finite number-creation but some kind of slow-reproducing apex predator that lives near "forbidden areas"?

[@AJPickett]

We shall see. The game is ever evolving

[@That80sGuy1972]

@@AJPickett So true, ever-evolving. **old man voice** Yup. Always a-changin'. I remember, way back in my day, kobolds and orcs were part of the "goblinoid" species of humanoid. Yes-sir-ee. That they were. You know why orcs were not originally able to breed with elves? They were inspired by Tolkien's orcs, orcs and goblins pretty much being anti-elf mutations that had elfin ancestors. Kobolds were more doglike than dragonlike as goblinoids until players and DMs obsessed over some of the art. And a party of not-so-tough 5th level adventurers can kill almost any breed of mature dragon. Dragons used to be far more fragile... and had a wizard often lording over it... a wizard usually of level 9 or lower. There were these books now known as 1st edition. They weren't called that back then. They were just the official books!

[@dane3038]

HP Lovecraft tried to warn us about this kind of knowledge.

[@ianfrost8036]

Like many of us, the astral dreadnaught on the cover of Manual of the Plains sold it. I wish I still had all those books

[@zachelkins1229]

The anti-magic eye cone and crown of horns reminds me of beholders

[@Giganfan2k1]

Did you listen to the end? That gets discussed.

[@HammarPwnsYourFace]

This is so bad ass. Thank you. Found you through a recommendation from mr. rhrexxx.

[@AJPickett]

Oh Awesome! I am a fan of his work.

[@yellowmartian]

@@AJPickett I think for me, it was opposite. I found you first and Mr. Rhexx was a suggested channel. I love both channels.

[@patrickfay4685]

That definitely blew my mind a little. I never knew that's where beholders actually came from

[@diegodankquixote-wry3242]

Doom stole the astral dreadnoughts face for cacodemons and I though gws plagiarism of the umber hulk was bad.

[@siegwardinspirit]

Cacodemons are just dreadnought beholders in design. But how could I be mad, looking at that big smile.

[@draxthemsklonst]

Games Workshop was originally supposed to work with TSR to make D&D miniatures. The deal fell through, and now, we have Warhammer and D&D owned by WotC.

[@Pinefr0st]

Doom creators never hesitated to say they took AD face for Cacodemon. They gave credit and cited their source. That's the opposite of plagiarizing.

[@shazamsanders4901]

I'd love a remaster of this video! This creature is amazing!

[@GeneralTantzu]

No way, that is a Cacodemon from Doom!

[@darksaber8487]

Or pain elemental from Doom

[@MyRYNOrunsHot]

Kind of actually, the original cacodemon was made by tracing it's face.

[@GeneralTantzu]

@@MyRYNOrunsHot I'm not surprised. Idea for the original Doom came from DnD games with lot of demonic villains anyway.

[@sagesheahan6732]

Beholders Id say are slightly more accurately Cacodemons from doom. These Astral Dreadnoughts are far far bigger, have arms, a body and a tail. However yeah, the head and face is strikingly similar.

[@3dagalathor]

perhaps the best picture of you ever Sir, I always knew that's how it really was in your workshop.

[@The-official-knudschannel]

And let’s not forget that the head of this thing, what is the inspiration for the Cacodemon from the DOOM series

[@draxthemsklonst]

What do astral dragons do/plan/prepare like, when they figure this all out? Just seemed like a natural question to ask.