Star Beasts
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Face Monstrous Threats to Spelljammer Ship and Crew
The vastness of Wildspace and the Astral Sea hides a multitude of secrets¸ both dangerous and benign. One of the strangest is the existence of massive monsters known collectively as star beasts. They vary in temperament¸ capabilities¸ and even general shape and features¸ but overall they are enormous on a scale that threatens life and safety in a wide area.
Thankfully¸ star beasts are rare encounters in most stellar systems. They tend to avoid smaller creatures in favor of targets closer to their size¸ and the most readily available targets of sufficient size are the spelljamming ships sailing the starry seas between planets¸ moons¸ and systems. This makes the presence of a star beast a threat to trade as well.
Star beasts are not fought like regular monsters¸ and they often threaten the spelljamming ship as much as the characters aboard. Facing one requires careful planning and patience as the great star beast moves between modes of attack while damaging the captured ship and targeting those onboard with strange powers and features.
Facing and defeating a star beast aboard a spelljamming ship focuses on the exploration and combat pillars of D&D; these creatures are not intelligent like a humanoid so there's rarely a social component to the larger encounter. The guidelines and rules presented in this supplement are designed to facilitate the types of play involving exploration and combat.
Multi-Phased Encounters
Star Beasts provides guidelines on handling gigantic monstrous threats by breaking up an encounter into distinct phases. The first¸ Research¸ should occur before the crew sets out to face the monster¸ and can provide valuable insight into the nature of the threat. The second¸ Hunt¸ involves finding the star beast within its territory¸ the result of which can tip the confrontation in either's favor.
Facing the star beast is divided into multiple encounter phases where the characters and crew must face tentacles¸ tendrils¸ and all manner of other dangers. Ultimately¸ the star beast reveals its weakness in the third and last phase.
Four star beast encounters are provided¸ each designed to challenge a crew of a different level.
* Rattling thunder serpent (3rd level)
* Yellow slime tentackler (5th level)
* Dark brimstone manta (7th level)
* Painted angel glub (9th level)