Dungeons and Dragons Lore: Beholder Secrets

[@totem91]

We're in a labyrinth, trying to pick up gems for a quest, when we see a yellow beholder with no eyestalks, eating the gems. We insight that he's blind, so we start following him as he's eating the gems. Then he eats a bigger gem, and eyestalks pop out and he gets his sight back, so he starts chasing us. A few rounds later he gets blinded again. That repeats 3 times, and then we understand that our DM has us playing Pac-Man as the ghosts for 2 hours while he rolls on the floor laughing...

[@BryantVonMiller]

That is so devious! I would love to include that into a dungeon in my homebrew setting.

[@brightglory5734]

This was better than the video.

[@gblakney1]

@Xavier Foisse wait so Baldur's Gate is a literal D&D video game? which console? is it pre or post PS4/Xbox One?

[@danielbretall2236]

@@gblakney1 old school computer game from the 90s, and it is an epic, awesome game only surpassed by its sequel Baldur's Gate 2: Shadows of Amn. Of course it graphically unimpressive today, but at the time its maps were top notch, not to mention the excellent, and often quite funny writing. If the story is a little cliche in part one, it makes up for it in part 2, and it features the excellent voice acting of David Warner as the villain, Jon Irenicus.

[@gblakney1]

@@danielbretall2236 huh... my laptop could probably run it np. and both are old enough where Steam and its nonsense isnt a factor.

[@smexehcougah3]

I just got an idea for a campaign that I will surely never get the chance to run. The campaign would start in a Beholder lair, the lvl 1 characters all facing a beholder with no idea how they got there. The beholder kills them immediately. Then they all wake up in a cemetery. The beholder dreamed of a group of adventurers that would kill him. You are those adventurers and as long as the beholder fears you, you will never stay dead. I think it could be an interesting take on the normal campaign structure. You could make exploiting the "respawn" system a requirement for success when faced with insurmountable tasks.

[@akrinornoname2769]

I'm gonna yoink that one

[@MetalFire1998]

I might keep that concept

[@specs6637]

That is a very fascinating idea. I think it would be very interesting. However think of this: because the beholder essentially created the adventurers from his dreams. Would they die if the beholder died?

[@levosQc]

@@specs6637 No, beholders literally create other beholders and if ai remember correctly those don't die if the original one dies. So I don't think that would kill the adventurers.

[@TheTsugnawmi2010]

This campaign is sponsored by Dark Souls, Bloodbourne & Sekiro

[@GRex7777]

I actually had some fun with the "limitless" nature of the beholder a few weeks ago while DMing for my group, and actually had a beholder named "Xanathar" (Unoriginal name is unoriginal) who was actually the head scholar for a large group of Bahamut followers. He was also unaware he was a beholder, and used massive amounts of telepathic powers to actually animate a literal army of white gloves around the library he lives in to catalog and research. He ended up being everyone's favorite part of me DMing for the group and I had to promise I'd bring him back later.

[@annethornton9938]

Love this! I, too, have a librarian beholderkin, a spectator, unaware of what, exactly, he is. The wizards' library, long abandoned for reasons unknown, that he guards held a few treasures among the multitude of tomes. Bored over the century or so he's been left alone, he used up all the charges in the Wand of Wonder that was its greatest treasure, and now he's permanently blue. Bob the beholderkin used mage hand, as well as two of his eyestalks occasionally, eventually taking a class level in bard...

[@andresguzman9545]

OMG, I love this. I'm including a beholder in my eberron campaing setting that's a philosopher and a Sharn-crimelord. Unoriginal to me, but that's a pretty cool stuff of the Eberron campaing setting where creatures can be like that and beholders in particular, when not fighting for Belashyrra or themselves, seem to be atracted to philosophy. Xanathat is definitely inspiration for me (though of course, different)

[@EricdosSantosAKAQ]

Another reason this is a great idea is that when the players are high level, you can reveal that there was a mage of some sort who was powerful enough to convince the librarian beholder that it is not a beholder and that it's strongest desire is to organize, maintain, and expand the library. That mage might get power hungry and become the formidable enemy upon which to end the campaign.

[@fezmaster696]

Did he have a guide to everything?

[@Foxuniverso]

Wow that sounds freakin awesome 😂

[@BrigsbyDowers]

I have an idea: what if a beholder dreams about how “humble” it is, and it makes an ACTUAL HUMBLED BEHOLDER!

[@joeywarren60]

Made one, he's a Librarian always willing go help people find information.

[@gex6692]

Oh fuck oh shit the laws of the cosmos, there breaking oh god of fuck.

[@carlywest144]

I'm making my pc off of that.

[@Husster72]

Beholder: "Not to brag, but I'm the most humble beholder to ever exist. There has never and will ever be a more humble being then I!" The party: "BULLSHIT!"

[@gavinboyer4634]

Large Luigi

[@shadycactus6146]

0:16 so... you could theoretically have a beholder that happens to look exactly like mike wazowski?

[@nmf0]

wouldn't be a true beholder but probably

[@boxinearth]

Sarah Mechem

[@firetarrasque4667]

No. It would have arms and legs, and no eyestalks. So no.

[@pokepok3265]

3.14 Dragon *arms and legs with eyes on the ends*

[@firetarrasque4667]

That's 4 stalks then. Not eight.

[@Usernom7475]

1:28 damn I’m accidentally on the moon. Again.

[@SAFIS448]

lol

[@cazador7131]

Greetings brother!

[@artiegatsby4879]

My warlock buddy and I found a lil tiny football sized gazer, the beholder that dreamed it up had been killed by someone else, so we took the little guy with us. His name is Treble and he's the warlock's familiar now and we love him very much.

[@perfidiousprophet]

Ooh, a Gazer? My character (warlock bard) has a Gazer familiar. We call it "Baby-holder" and "Grapefruit" because that's what it looks like? Ironically, its name is just "Beholder"

[@zoesdada8923]

Sounds gay

[@kyokarbstein4177]

Aww! 🥰

[@dragonmanfirebane5078]

A guide to riches and power: Step one: locate a beholder step two: take out the beholder's eye stocks and central eye and make sure it is alive step three: chain it up so it can't nom your legs step four: force it into a permanent sleep state step five: use a psi crystal or enchanted item to control the beholder's dreams to what you want (wealth, beholder kin minions, power, ect.) step six: profit

[@JenoPaciano]

Beholders can be master tacticians all they want, but they are in truth limited by the GM controlling them. I've never met the GM who could outsmart four determined players.

[@Burner.Account..]

Yeah that's kinda why I don't know how to use beholders or incredibly tactical creatures like aboleths. You either create an impossible scenario that's essentially GM cheating or you aren't giving them the real thing.

[@oliverbeckcool]

@@Burner.Account.. The dm spends 3 weeks in advance planning the fight and preping countermeasures. Then turn to your players and say, yeah. This encounter, people WILL die. That should set the tone.

[@Burner.Account..]

@@oliverbeckcool it's more on the fact of, how horrendous is the team wipe gonna be coz they will never win. The beholder will run scorched earth tactics if there is any chance the party can actually slay it, or it will simply pack up and leg it. The only exception is that it's a newly created beholder with a poorly planned den.

[@Burner.Account..]

@@caiawlodarski5339 It's not cheating in a way that I'm breaking the rules. It's just that I believe that beholders according to the lore should be near impossible to slay, which, if I stick to that, means that I will have to device a plan that makes it impossible for the players. I don't have to break the rules, I just follow the rules and make something they can't win in. Say, you can't exchange cards in poker as a player, and you can't pre-stack cards as the dealer. But what if the dealer just leave 5 cards in the deck and burn the rest? He's not technically breaking the rules, he's just making the game impossible to be played fairly.

[@earthobserver1007]

JenoPaciano You have to plan the beholder for several weeks. That should be well enough.

[@arthurjeremypearson]

Actually, the secret origin was a player in Gygax's original Greyhawk campaign: Terry Kuntz. His lost 8-11 page short story about how beholders were discovered on a mountain described them as EDIT: living out a "waning existence" in forlorn places. And had some description of their ecology and family structure. Not to say that they were much different from modern beholders. Gygax only did a few superficial changes to the original monster design by Kuntz.

[@havindatadhd]

Arthur, you wild S.O.B, you had the lost story the whole time that's why you know it!

[@MrChickennugget360]

Beholders sound like they were based on the character of Sauron from lord of the rings if you interpreted him as a giant disembodied Eye. it describes his personality at least- Paranoid narcissists who think they are the high point of existence and anyone who maintains any degree of free will is a threat that needs to be eliminated.

[@sonictheaccursed]

A Beholder is the child of Mike Wazowski with his Girlfriend!

[@Usernom7475]

Oh. My. God. Yesss!

[@cutedarkarts]

Why is this so true!? 😂

[@yuppiedestroyer-]

Arthur do Prado holy fuck you’re right I wonder if that’s why Pixar did it

[@rongpirson5250]

omg so much sense

[@kuroru69]

Arthur do Prado what have you done!

[@DJl3iohazord]

one time when played D&D i took down a beholder with pocket sand.

[@spencerjennings3719]

I killed a beholder with a door. Wanted to kick in a locked door with All Star playing in the background, all the doors were unlocked. Ripped a door off the hinges and carried it around for a while. Found a beholder. It said to the party: give me one reason not to kill you. I bashed its everything in. Happened twice. Would have gotten amazing loot from it had we answered with any reason, but we panicked and I rushed in.

[@williamcarlson6586]

..... little known artifact: +10 beholder bane, blinding, flame burst, anti-magic, piercing, paralysing, loade stone like, ............sand.

[@KS-PNW]

Rusty Shackleford would be proud 😉

[@nateb6180]

We threw the Rouge at it

[@twittersucks8297]

@@nateb6180 reasonable

[@redstoneequinox8670]

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder :P

[@supercool1312]

Redstone Equinox maybe thats where the phrase came from "the eye of the beholder" maybe beauty=an anti magic field

[@kapitan19969838]

Redstone Equinox So there's a beautiful girl trapped ''inside'' of the Beholder!?

[@baconpantsable]

@@kapitan19969838 I can guarantee you that a man named Kenkou Cross already drew a lewd Beholder Girl

[@kapitan19969838]

Lord Slapaman Oh really?

[@baconpantsable]

@@kapitan19969838 Well it's actually a Gazer, but yeah

[@papanoble8378]

These beholders seem very lovecraftian in nature

[@Augustinusgrimdalus]

Gygax was inspired by Lovecraft when creating them.

[@arthurjeremypearson]

Actually they come from a lost short story / ecology written by Terry Kuntz (a player in Gygax's original Greyhawk campaign). They were described as "forlorn" creatures living in the forgotten places like mountaintops. Gygax didn't change much from the original write up by Kuntz.

[@cybercephalopod3913]

They also partially originate from the Far Realm supposedly, which is where D&D is very lovecraftian.

[@rongpirson5250]

mind flayer is lovecrafts Cthulhu

[@Raptorman0205]

I see it like this I feel like A beholder could most certainly pass off for a lesser being in the Cthulu mythos. Not every being in it is an incomprehensible mass of tentacles and eyes of immeasurable power.

[@aaronkennedy6731]

So, Beholders are Asexual, reality bending, varied, egotistical, essentially inmortal, Lovecraftian aliens?

[@memebasterd1080]

Aaron Kennedy more or less

[@firetarrasque4667]

Not immortal. They die.

[@Frostedlyre]

_weh_

[@zavexcapricious2519]

They are not immortal, they are eternal, they don't age but they can still did

[@dogdriver70]

or, as they are otherwise known, tenured liberal college professors

[@kamorikioko]

1:20 "you might find yourself there by accident" Just like our moon 😂

[@MrRhexx]

Dont worry guys, it also tilts me that i pronounced it "the Shadowfall". I just cringed at myself re-watching the video.

[@adent6x7]

im just happy you are still making lore vids! makes me wanna get back into DnD

[@jakublicak1804]

Please do Demogorgon secrets!

[@Hellbeckons]

could you include its references and inspirations of the beholder?for example the demon in WoW or vel'koz in LoL. or its possible inspiration by hp lovecraft

[@MrRhexx]

Encyclopedia Britannica says it is also called Telekinesis though o.O Telekinesis is also the name given to it by the lore on Beholders. That being said, i had no clue that Psychokinesis was even a thing; that's interesting.

[@OrphanCrow]

Telepathy?

[@Matt-md5yt]

Big Trouble in Little China had one, that is pretty cool.

[@Nerdarchy]

Hey +Matt! It sure did! -Nerdarchist Ryan

[@christreedee]

It also had....GREEN FLAME!!!!!

[@straysatyr]

I make green flames all the time. Yay chemistry!

[@difficultbastard]

Onimusha had something like it too.

[@TehNoob1096]

Hey Rhexx, I've been a very long time subscriber of yours, kept up with your channel through many series, your move to Germany, the on-off periods. Just wanted to say, keep doing what you love and keep on going with youtube

[@MrKarnator]

very interesting. Now i just imagine a beholder that has a hobby of collecting knowledge of all kinds. From the tiniest food recepy to the most mind bending puzzle and or spell boyond imagening. And adding them into a massive library, that brings adventurers and wizards and such to him, where he or it could greet them and even talk to them. Learning and adding everything to his collection, and lets them browse around in order to learn more. And probably speaks in a surprisingly polite and well practised manner.

[@thenthapple]

Thoroughly enjoyed the video. Great work :)

[@-Minuano-]

Oh shoot, waddup dude!

[@SAFIS448]

Hey man

[@dafresnokid]

I miss you

[@atariboy9084]

Beholders: Why is a Boss music is playing? Doomguy: Rip and Tear.

[@wolfen26]

Or Goblin Slayer with a sack of flour. BOOM!

[@dnddude9652]

Imagine a Beholder covered in plate-like skin It’d be resistant to slashing, piercing and bludgeoning from non-magical attacks, which wouldn’t be able to hit him anyway due to his basic eye

[@justanothernerdydude4391]

Behind him.

[@memes_the_dna_of_the_soul5487]

The party's barbarian: trust me. A dwarf flies through the air, two grenades, one in each hand, fuses lit. Screaming "BANZI!"

[@FoxItAll]

3.5 book of abarrants gives so much info on beholders. great book. has info on mind flayers too. I used that book to make my campaign. The Far Realm was invading the Prime Material Plane and taking over. so many new beholders and flayers and abbarrants.

[@RaymondKarlVeasey75]

This Is Refreshing, I Started Playing D & D Back In The Mid 1980s. I Still Got Alot Of 1st & 2nd Edition Books & All My Dice Too.

[@Nerdarchy]

Fifth edition's pretty fun if you decide to check it out- it rekindles the earlier edition's simplicity will ironing-out some of the wonkiness of things like THACO and weird saving throw charts. I *love* the concept of bounded accuracy, which just keeps all the math on a lower curve because when you look at 4th and 3rd editions, it was just an arms race of micro bonuses that didn't really mean anything because your enemies' abilities largely kept pace, so it was a net gain of nearly zero. -Nerdarchist Ryan

[@WildBluntHickok]

Wait there are people from the 80s who write like Jaden Smith? (capitalizing every word like it was a book title instead of a sentence)

[@OldMusicFan83]

My daughter went to play with my 30 year old dice and books

[@felixrivera895]

Running a beholder means you can occasionally go wilde with the improv

[@General12th]

Since ordinary real-world humans managed to come up with Beholders, I don't think it's a stretch to imagine in-game wizards doing the same. If we can do it, so can they.

[@baonkang5990]

Beholders have "spawned by horrible miscalculation" vibe , rather then intention creation. maybe some paranoid wizard tried to make him self all knowing and all powerful, only to blow his own head off.

[@hantap8683]

ah yes. one of my fav monster to use as Dm. I love it how you can change the layer based on what ever the beholder is dreaming. it makes up for a fun and intense DnD dungeon

[@ksh2596]

Always thought they looked cool, and I had noticed they were a noticeable "mascot" of DnD, but I didn't know they were so unique and powerful not just a greater monster or something. I don't play DND (no one I know does), so I enjoy being able to learn the lore through other means, because it's a goddamn interesting universe.

[@EdMcStinko]

I love the creativity and imagination that a DM is apparently compelled to use when introducing beholders

[@alejandrotorresriquelme8714]

you might find more information about the history of the beholders and their kind reading the "Book of Abominations" from the 3.5E, book canon for the D&D Universe

[@Urg4nm0m]

looks like this guy is new with the 5.0 edition tho. new comers

[@lorensoth4365]

Right, plus they are not from the "Far Realm"...that all 5E. 2E and 3E did mentioned the "Great Mother" which is they originated found from the Abyss. With Spelljammer, they were re-imagined as a spacefaring race. In most cases they are also a subterranean culture. So.....yeah....no secrets just the warped version of the aligning D&D worlds. They should mention Beholder referenced elsewhere...Big Trouble in Little China, and in other RPGS.

[@alejandrotorresriquelme8714]

And the great mother is the whole 6th layer of the abyss, you just can't enter there...

[@noctusdoesthings]

Nah, the far realms has been around since 2E from "The Gates of Firestorm Peak". But to chime in with the discussion... I much preferred how beholders reproduce in Lords of Madness (The Book of Aberrations): "Beholders are gender neutral, and they become fertile only once in their lives. During this period (which happens within the first forty years of a beholder’s life), the creature grows increasingly more erratic and paranoid in behavior. A strange ovoid organ (6) below the back of the creature’s tongue grows large and swollen; this is the creature’s womb. A typical beholder gestates up to twelve young in its womb over a period of nearly six months, during which time it grows more and more active and cantankerous. A pregnant beholder eats nearly four times its normal amount of food for the first four months of its term, storing up food reserves in its stomach, intestines, and even its lung. During the final two months, the creature’s womb has swollen so large that its mouth becomes incapable of swallowing more food, and its tongue protrudes grossly from its maw. A beholder is at its most paranoid during this time and remains hidden in its lair until it gives birth. The birthing of new beholders is a sight that few have witnessed, and by all accounts, it’s something that even fewer would want to witness. When a brood comes to term, a beholder’s jaw unhinges, and it regurgitates its womb out through the mouth. The creature bites the womb off, and it floats gently in the air. The young beholders are forced to chew their way out of the gory mass to freedom; they are capable of flight immediately, but their eye powers develop later in life. Although a beholder gives birth to up to a dozen young at once, only a handful survive. The parent observes its young and decides which look most like itself. The others are eaten by the ravenous parent, along with the discarded womb, and the surviving young are forced from the parent’s lair within the hour to fend for themselves."

[@YTWgamer]

I'm not into DnD, but I love these videos and I would love to get into it! Is there any way to play it online and to find people to play with?

[@1mad8ro]

YTW Gaming i dont think so but you could go to a club thing i think

[@MrRhexx]

Check out roll20.com, its a website where people play together online. You can seek games in there.

[@YTWgamer]

MrRhexx thank you!

[@TheIoPC]

There are lots of sites, and groups for things like Pathfinder and D&D. My preferred virtual tabletop is Roll20, but there are also things like Fantasy Grounds. :) Facebook has some groups devoted to the different systems too if you go looking for other players to start your own campaign.

[@seeker4it]

There are D&D games, two online games being Dungeons & Dragons Online and Neverwinter.

[@dinohunter6450]

So to summarize, beholders believe *beauty is in the eye of the beholder?* I think I'll see myself out...

[@Undomaranel]

It's DnD. You get bonus XP for how hardcore the pun is.

[@APMedrado]

I'm DMing my first game in a couple weeks and you just started doing these videos. I love you Rhexx.

[@mirzasahinkaya]

6:59 It's a Mount&Blade bandit!!

[@batstoast3560]

It's almost harvesting season

[@Pootis]

Thanks for showing the lore. Its hard to find the lore of things that I want answers too so now I can us this to make my campaigns even better with story and content for the players to learn and even understand in books they may read or using Knowledge checks.

[@IsPs3]

The beholder in Baldurs gate dark alliance was such a pain in the ass. Glad you helped me learn more about the species

[@OrphanCrow]

how do people even kill these in DnD?

[@CaptmagiKono]

I would assume the DM does not posses the vast creative potential that the average Beholder has.

[@thehalf-elfbard9622]

powerful characters and luck. lots and lots of luck

[@spaghettisultan5484]

Keep your group together in an antimagic field and turn the beholder into a pincushion with archery. Warning: the beholder may disintegrate a ceiling above you to cave it in on you and/or use telekinesis to throw heavy objects at you.

[@Punishthefalse]

They cast 'Summon Doomguy'.

[@rickychapman3377]

Acid vial from a slingshot to the central eye and then a gate spell to the 9 hells is how my party beat one

[@QuikVidGuy]

the eye-patch, hook-eye beholder. wow

[@garryame4008]

I feel like, considering when this came out, and how much official content there is dedicated to beholders, and how popular beholders are, this video could benefit significantly from a longer and more in-depth update. Love the videos btw!

[@lordmictian6951]

so theoretically, a beholder could dream of a version of himself being social, being able to roam about the town's without being attacked and could create/turn into a varient of himself that is friendly to humans and other creatures?

[@dark3rthanshadows]

not really see beholders in their core are evil the "nicest" beholder out there would be xanathar . it's in their nature to be xenophobic and see all races like slaves and leesser beings

[@pine.apples.v3527]

I say yes, if they can do literally everything else, why wouldn’t they be able to make a “nice” version of themselves

[@dudewithlaptop8663]

@@dark3rthanshadows Maybe it's a nightmare

[@john7991]

I love the lore of D&D. It takes fantasy outside of one Kingdom, one Realm, One Planet, and off into the far reaches of space. I don’t know many Fantasy series that have a lot to do with space.

[@drunkmunki3196]

I believe the beholders ability to dream things in reality could be an allusion to azathoth, that one Eldritch god dreaming our everything. These also seem to be visually represented similarly

[@marccram6584]

Wently Keslo, Waterdeep's most famous anthropologist, architect and biologist did an extensive study of Beholders that can be found in the stories of Eye of the Beholder and Eye of the Beholder II.

[@15firekid]

Beholders are my favorite fantasy creature because of how weird and cool they are.

[@Fleshwarper]

I played a Fleshwarper with a Beholder's anti-magic eye surgically installed in his chest. Worked really well with the Invoke Magic spell from the compendium. "Ten fighters with shit tons of high level magic gear come charging at you, what do you do." "I look at them..."

[@NinjaTactiks]

When I play the Beholders, I mimic the voices of Daleks lol.

[@cortorwinters9082]

No way!! Someone does think that? Wait. Oooooooh, I thought that said "Donald Trump"!!!

[@jeremybosse5088]

Beholders have always fascinated me cause they seem like one of the most variable (forgot the right word) monster

[@nathonizamboni875]

The moon: someplace you can find yourself by accident. I know, I know it's a metaphor, but as someone who likes to make them myself, I enjoy poking holes in them.

[@projectOMA]

Great video. Watching this has me really want to get back into D&D. Played 2nd editon back in the 90s as a teen. Still have all my books and dice. Think it's time to upgrade to 5th editon.

[@karaokehammick5215]

DM: A beholder floats before you! Everyone in party: Oh c'mon! Seriously! Let's just run! I have been working on this character for 3 sessions! Tank do you job! I will die! Traitor! Let's hide! Try talking to him? That's stupid! Do we need to go through this part!? Does he see us? etc...

[@justnoob8141]

Beholder: hi, I’m Bob, who are you people?

[@Lastofthesigilites]

@@justnoob8141 wizard: Yo I heard from another beholder you weren't the most magnificent beholder and wanted to check. Yep that dude was 100% wrong.

[@rogofos]

beholders are a kind of stand in for the dungeon master themselves the whole "being always prepared for anything" sells it off

[@ConstantChaos1]

You can prevent a beholder from casting certain spells by removing the corresponding eye stalk

[@RaccoonKing1676]

It picked me up with its lazer eyes and shook me like a dog

[@TheBlackParadeHasYou]

What happens if a Succubus enters the dreams of a Beholder? Is it even possible?

[@tracysmith2999]

Exquisitess, the succubus' brain would probably explode because of the vast knowledge and thier unlimited potential of dreams.

[@dark3rthanshadows]

she dies

[@nickcarroll8565]

A sexy beholder with uber-charm skills is born. Beware adventurers!

[@justanothernerdydude4391]

A very hot animated porno.

[@Hektols]

You get the female Beholder seen in the video.

[@BananaDude508]

Ooh, ooh, ooh, a beholder with the eyes come out of the mouth(except the main one)!

[@sorcerermemesupreme]

If they are always paranoid about someone coming to kill them... doesn't that mean that they could potentially spawn into the universe people that will come kill them? That would actually make a neat plot for the player characters: They were actually accidentally created by the beholder to kill the beholder; their entire existence is due to the beholder.

[@TheAlgorath]

It's actually part of their problem. They're literally self realized fears.

[@egregius9314]

'Fun' fact: the beholder deity is called Great Mother, who has her home on the 6th layer of the Abyss, called The Realm of a Million Eyes. That's because that layer has eyes coming out of walls everywhere, and they are ALL her eyes. She lays eggs(!) that spawn beholders. Any beholder seeing her, regardless of their shape, will vow she looks EXACTLY like them. That is if they survive the encounter, because she randomly slays any beholder that displeases her, and because of her vast inscrutable intelligence, she is completely unpredictable.

[@Jus10Ed]

The "epi-tome" of what a Beholder should be? It's e-pit-oh-me

[@zotaninoron3548]

KZbin is awash in mispronounced words. His isn't even the first of many epi-tomes I've heard. I think epi-tome is the rouge of rogue.

[@Jus10Ed]

I think I was a little grouchy when I commented that. Looks a little rude now. It's fine what he said.

[@zotaninoron3548]

I mean, you weren't wrong to begin with. :P

[@LibraGamesUnlimited]

Yes, that's what I thought. :)

[@71775926]

He also mispronounced "preface" as "pree-face" and "despotism" as "dees-position". It was so painful to sit through that.

[@loganb7059]

Idea: campaign where there is a cabal of, let’s say, 6 beholders working towards some apocalyptic or world dominating goal. The only reason they’re able to work together is because they all are paranoid of each other, but also all agree that the end goal they are working towards is worth dealing with each other. Even if one or all of them don’t agree with the end goal, they’re so deep into this 6 way Cold War that they are paranoid that the 5 others will see themself as the main threat to the plan and kill them. Every one of them is convinced they are the leader and the plan is all their idea, but they begrudgingly know they can’t do this just by themself, and they need the power of specifically other beholders to make this work.

[@drowjack]

Please make a video about the drow society

[@earthobserver1007]

Andrew Drow It's a terrible society ruled by cruel female drow. All you need to know is death awaits there.

[@earthobserver1007]

GermanGamer7 That pretty much sums it up.

[@earthobserver1007]

GermanGamer7 You'll need way more than just him. It would take armies of outsiders, plus more to take over an entire city of drow deep in the underdark.

[@earthobserver1007]

GermanGamer7 Gonna need about 25 ancient dragons. You'd likely need szass tam as well. Plus his entire army of undead. Menzobarrenzan is a force to be reckoned with.

[@earthobserver1007]

GermanGamer7 Also do not forget, that lolth will definitely be involved, as evil as she is, she will make a fierce showing of her might when an entire underdark city of her chosen people is at war with a force attempting to overthrow the matron mothers.

[@kfrausto]

I’ve never played DnD, but I find these videos entertaining.

[@kalenrieman3313]

I know what wizard was deranged enough to create the beholders! The wizards of the coast!

[@byronsmothers8064]

Xanathar lacky: goes on lunch break Big eye to lacky's boss: he must be forming a plan to kill us both... Take him out ...logic to me!

[@lorddragon9584]

Who knew Mike Wazowski was so terrifying?

[@IAmCasualty]

just moved to colorado springs and i'm having to find a new group and a new job and it's been hard so watching your videos not only helps me get my fix lol but also helps me relax

[@javiergarrido1728]

This DnD stuff is AWESOME xDD

[@xerothedarkstar]

Now I want to write a campaign where the party follows another party with a sleeping beholder in a bag of holding. They just whisper sweet nothings and get their problems solved, but beholders go crazy so the main party is just cleaning up the mess as they try to track them down.

[@nuggetmaster5181]

A wizard creating a beholder isn’t too hard to imagine because whoever came up with beholders clearly did😂

[@Zeppathy]

This. ^

[@dracoleona]

Hi! I just wanted to comment to say this is such a fantastic video. I love the pacing you use to speak. Keep it up!

[@ShadowmarkReturns]

Shield of Balduran. Boom win, reflect it back to the beholder.

[@sancturillore]

What if the beholder is looking at you with its main eye? You shield suddenly has no power of reflection.

[@ShadowmarkReturns]

It reflects it, it's the shield of Balduran, it's designed to counter beholders.

[@sancturillore]

***** In that case, fine. But I don't personally see the point of such things. It's normal for "Anti-something" to work against that same something. It's not interesting to talk about. I find it much more interesting to find ways to defeat that something without the deus ex machina-like thing that is work just because it does even though it shouldn't based on the lore.

[@ShadowmarkReturns]

It's not really a deus ex machina, it's got penalties for using it.

[@sancturillore]

***** Yeah, lowering your strength by 1. Big deal. That's totally enough to counter a being who should be able to nullify the ability by looking at it. (Sarcasm)

[@TheSwartz]

I absolutely love these videos; it's like video versions of the ecology articles in the old Dragon magazines. There is a TON of lore in the D&D multiverse! I really hope you keep it up. You have a good voice for commentary, and the videos are put together very well too. Thanks! One additional thing to add for proper understanding of the Far Realm and aberrations. These are concepts, realms, and beings heavily inspired by HP Lovecraft.

[@sataricon111]

Can you make a video about the Blood wars?

[@Elderos5]

Really good perspective of a beholder. It makes me want to design an entire campaign around one.

[@marvinkitfox3386]

5:51 "Epitome" You pronounce it as ep-e-tomb Its is actually eh-pit-toh-me.

[@Nob911]

It's just epi tome

[@thelunchlady8276]

I love all the MTG art you sneak in these! Just discovered your channel and, gotta say, I'm impressed. Keep up the D&D secrets!

[@catfoodbob1]

The beholders main eye does not work on divine spells.

[@dandrive3249]

I had a special beholder in a home brew campaign I did. The beholder captured one of my players kids so they went to find him. Only to find out the child was used in a phylactery the beholder had. Now In this home brew campaign they character leveled up like candy I had to add something special. I made it so when they killed him the child’s overwhelming magical energy brought him back to life. He slowly decayed as the fight went on from a normal beholder to a beholder zombie to a death tyrant to a flaming skull and to a Demi lich. He was then killed and they brought back the character kid. The group did see him again, but as a mind witness that helped the group.

[@deviousmile669]

me looking at a beholder: we are so different you are beyond my comprehension beholder: I AM THE PERFECT BEING, I WILL KILL ALL OF THE BEHOLDER WITH A DIFFERENT SKIN COLOR THAN M...WAIT...WHY ARE YOU SMILING? me: we are not so different you and us after all

[@RikkuTakanashi]

If you happen to get lucky and encounter a more philosophical beholder, you just might end up with a friend as you two muse on the nature of the world.

[@memes_the_dna_of_the_soul5487]

"Cut from the same cloth you and i" -Minstral MGR.

[@roamingthereal4060]

Personally, I think of it like this. Fey planes overlap material planes like alternate realities. They share the same physical space but different realities, speed of time passing, etc. The Ethereal plane is space around our solar system. When you cross over into the ethereal, you occupy a different dimension than the material plane, but one which overlaps the same space. It also overlaps the other solar system planets. Basically, you could 'step sideways into the ethereal' and then walk to Mars aka the Fire plane. I use the etheral fog on the material and elemental planes as natural phenomena portals to other places in 'space'. So you don't actually walk through space... you just walk through a foggy area near fire and you're on the fireplane aka mars. The material plane is the 'center' of this solar system and every other solar system has it's own center as well. These are the other realms in the astral sea. When you step sideways into the astral, it is like teleportation to empty space outside the Galaxy. The journey there is between galaxies, but arrival drops you on 'center of the galaxy instead of the edge. The far realm is what lies beyond the horizons edge of the universe. There’s a point beyond which we cannot go, there are things beyond that we cannot know.

[@DomyTheMad420]

"Is it's greatest weakness" YOU CAN NOT END ON THAT AND NOT TELL US HOW TO ABUSE IT COME ON

[@Reddotzebra]

It can't fire its eye-rays into its own cone of antimagic. So that magical shield you use to reflect its rays will work just fine if it's firing them at you. That's the weakness, that and that it can't learn more magic on its own as long as it's got the middle eye. That's why all beholder mages are blind (It's ok, they've got spares after all)

[@smile-tl9in]

a beholder lucid dreamer is probably an epic encounter. Maybe even the beholder god. On a side not if every nightmare they do can become real, no wonder they are so paranoid

[@heimko3618]

aren't you going to make more "skyrim secrets" videos?

[@memes_the_dna_of_the_soul5487]

The party: manages to catch a beholder off guard Beholder: I did not expect that. Beholder: but I also didn't expect anything so it doesn't count.

[@LETMESEE129]

Wait, I am new in D&D...So... Beholders are sentient beings?

[@LucasMN123]

Yes

[@earthobserver1007]

Leonardo Paiva sentient, evil, genius of an alien stock. Levitating death.

[@Timbolus97]

So basically discount Azathoth Pretty cool

[@rickbrasseaux1676]

First time I heard "epitome" pronounced EP-i-tome. It's actually eh-PI-to-ME. Otherwise, very interesting video. Well done.

[@MrFantocan]

Reproduction of Beholders are not only by dreaming, true Beholders carry one single egg, wich hatches a few Beholders, and he picks one to be his apprentice and leaves the rest to die. I guess the ones left to die if they survive will turn intu lesser beholders like the Flame Eye and the Frost Eye. As they lack a proper tutelage they will use more basic forms of magic, and be willing to serve more powerful Beholders, as they may hope to learn from them, and as they lack the arrogance and pride of the chosen for apprenticeship.

[@revolrz22]

5:45 "Api-tome?" It's epitome, pronounced "ee-pit-o-mee" or "uh-pit-o-mee."

[@av3stube480]

What is a beholder? A being that, on one hand, thinks that he's superior to everyone else, but on the other hand, feels extremly insecure and feels that it must destroy everything that threatens it. They are basically walking, living paradoxes.

[@PazuzuDeamon4horsemen]

they are also easy to kill. take out that one big eye and down they go.

[@Rem-n7m]

I've never played dungeons and dragons.... Thanks to the algorithm I'm just fascinated with these crazy creatures out of nowhere

[@furioni333]

in baldurs gate 2 they were super annoying.

[@brycevo]

Now this is just so iconic

[@r603burakkusuta2]

Alien beans of terrible magic!

[@jumanjicostco3248]

I didn't know about all this! I already found these things terrifying just because of the shit they could do and to know that they actually have very lovecraftian like origins made their existence feel a lot more ominous to me.

[@harrythehumansubstitutearr8804]

New to D&D and I started thinking if I ever do Dming I would have a Magic guild that would have a master seen by almost no one and is never seen leaving the guild, and if the party met the guild master they would find the Master is a Beholder who choose to work with humans so that they wouldn’t want to fight him and possibly kill him, at first it was out of selfishness to keep himself safe but overtime the Master became more caring to the people of the city he lived in but was still paranoid as fuck and was willing to use extreme force on seemingly small threats to the people, and still saw himself as better than others (doesn’t help that he’s a Master of a Magic guild members of which are made powerless by his main eye) but this would sometimes manifest itself as a condisending teacher, and “Master would have a deep interest in the politics of the land and any current wars or political issues that could lead to a war so he could hopefully talk to the King and discuss ways to stop the fight, “Master” would also be on the lookout for Beholder level threats knowing his own past (in the past he killed hundreds) he knows what harm another Beholder could inflict, so Master could advise the party how to deal with other Beholders and even possibly join the Party to help the Party avoid the traps of the Beholder... flawed but can’t see his own flaws and believes himself to be perfect, but he means good, he’s killed many in his selfish past but has grown from then and has tried to pay for his sins by caring for others, good character idea?

[@aleserk8637]

Once I was very far of a beholder (I was a fighter) and we only attack it with arrows, then I get bored and rush in with sword in hand... It "kills" me with all kind of spells and almost get destroyed with the desintegrate spell (lucky for me i recover full life and habilites thanks to a magical ítem that prevents death) and when the beholder was close to eat me i get up and punish it really really hard (I think i destroy some eyes and the one that prevents the use of magic) then the party swarm it and it was easy to kill, and thx to that I get the Vorpal Sword that was in his lair :D

[@TheRaistlinMage]

Awesome. The psychology of a BEHOLDER! Love it.

[@chrisdavis7283]

Death Kiss are awesome ! Easily my favorite Beholder, and probably the one I have used the most in my games.