Doomsphere

A doomsphere was the ghost of a beholder.

Description
Doomspheres appeared as transluscent, glowing beholders but otherwise looked much as they did in life. When visible, they appeared to be composed of a cloudy substance which had no mass.

Abilities
In addition to the many powers that a doompshere posessed as a ghost, such as being incorporeal and having the abilty to possess living beings, they had several terrible powers unique to their origins as beholders. A doomsphere's central eye retained its antimagic field of vision, but most of its eyestalks developed different and more necromantic powers than the doomsphere had weilded in life. While it retained the eye ray that slowed and the eye ray that caused fear, it also gained the ability to fire a ray of enervation, a ray of hold monster, a ray of animate dead, a ray of unholy blight, a ray that seared flesh with magical acid, a ray that shattered bone and chitine, a ray that caused the victim's strength and fortitude to wither, and a ray of cold light that attacked a target's constitution.

Doomspheres were unable to harness psionics, however they were highly resistant to such powers.

Some doomspheres could compel a victim to harm itself.

Personality
In general, a doompshere was a beholder of such avarice, wrath, and strength of will that it was able to sustain itself as an undead being. Since doomspheres had already tasted death once, they were often cautious and avoided engaging in senseless violence. Nevertheless, they thirsted to punish the living or seek revenge for their deaths.

Most doomspheres could not speak, although they could read and write.

Combat
In a fight, doomspheres attacked with their many ocular powers and with their ghostly, chilling bite. They tended to be careful, preferring to hide inside the ground or ceiling while spying on foes with their eyestalks, and then emerging suddenly to fire off eye rays at surprised targets. Doomspheres made a horrific shriek as they attacked.

Doomspheres were difficult to turn and highly resistant to most mind- and body-altering spells. They were immune to all forms of magical cold and electricity, and could only be harmed by powerful magic weapons and spells. When injured, a chunk of the cloudy substance that comprised their bodies would be carried away. It was not possible to disable the central eye or sever any individual eyestalks of a doomsphere, but directly attacking an eyestalk could cause its power to discharge and then take a short while to recharge.

A doomspere that was slain in combat would simply dissipate and then reform the next day unless the area was clensed with spells of remove curse and protection from evil.

Society
A doomsphere was generally created as a product of a magical explosion, sometimes produced by wild magic from failed efforts to create contingencies against their own deaths. They were solitary creatures, and would haunt the area in which they died. They spent much of their time invisible and unmoving unless they detected a living creature nearby, in which case they became consumed with the desire to kill it. While they could be destroyed in combat with the aid of a cleric, they could also be destroyed if their peculiar or sometimes ironic sense of vengeance for their death was appeased.

Doomspheres avoided contact with other doomspheres, and were liable to destroy each other if they crossed paths.

Some primitive tribes considered doomspheres so terrible as to be worthy of worship. On occasion, a doomsphere would even provide aid to its worshipers.

Notable Doomspheres

 * Thaluul, an infamous beholder originally from the Greypeak Hive who died in the, while fighting the ghost dragon Ghaulantatra in her lair. The two continued to battle each other in undeath through the mid-to-late 14 century DR.
 * Xakamut, a strange doomsphere wreathed in flame. It was bound in service to Mythalanir, the Eternal Flame of Kossuth, beginning in the.
 * Xliilqil, who haunted the sewers of Waterdeep having sworn revenge on its killers, the Company of Crazed Venturers.
 * Xulla, a mindwitness doomsphere allied with the Zhentarim and venerated by a cult at the Temple of the Sky in the Moonsea North as of the.
 * Zormarq the Phantyrant, a ghostly priestess of the Great Mother who sought to exert control over the beholder city of Ooltul in the mid-to-late 14 century DR.
 * A much larger and more powerful than normal doomsphere was known to haunt the Vordrorn Forest.
 * An invisible doomsphere helped to guard the Pit of Stars, the lair of the emerald dragon Raulothim.
 * In the mid-to-late 14 century DR, a doomsphere which haunted the ruins of Myth Drannor plotted to manipulate Sembian merchants into starting wars around the Inner Sea, and thus came into conflict with the Harpers.
 * During the Silence of Lolth, a doomsphere haunted Castle Maerimydra.
 * At least three doomspheres haunted the Daerndar beneath the Ducal Towers of Shantal in the Border Kingdoms.

Appearances

 * Adventures
 * A Harp at Sunset &bull; City of the Spider Queen