9 Hammer 1468
Apprentices, please review this guide to aberrant ceremorphs and illithid variations. Qaox, before you ask - yes, this information will be on the upcoming exam. I find it particularly important in light of recent events in the Unit. I will be sharing Case Study #73 shortly, for the education of those who were not present at the time.
-Videxthrod
Aberrant Ceremorphs and Illithid Variations
Ulitharids: Anyone reading this has almost certainly met an ulitharid or at least seen one from afar, since Oryndoll has the largest ulitharid population of any colony on Toril. As you all know, an ulitharid is a member of the illithid nobility, and I want to make it very clear that the birth of one is a natural variation of ceremorphosis rather than an aberration. An ulitharid possesses six tentacles rather than the four of a typical mind flayer, with two of these appendages measuring up to twice the length of the others. Since the average tentacle length among illithids is three feet (ranging between two and four) that means that an ulitharid's extra pair of tendrils extends its reach by six to eight feet. In addition to the extra tentacles, ulitharids are taller than the average illithid, standing seven to nine feet in height, and have both higher intelligence and stronger psionic abilities than common illithids. Ulitharids are also the only illithids with the potential to become an Elder Brain, and thus are instrumental to the propagation of our species as a whole.
Tadpoles that will give rise to ulitharids are indistinguishable from their typical brethren at the larval stage, though ulitharid tadpoles grow slower than average and may spend longer than the usual ten years in the brine pool. During ceremorphosis, the usual changes occur with the exception of the development of an extra pair of tentacles and additional bone growth to account for extra height. Newborn ulitharids are often precocious, far surpassing their peers in their rate of intellectual and psionic development. In other colonies, ulitharids often compete with the Elder Brain for power and influence before leaving to form their own splinter colony, but here in Oryndoll this occurs far less often. Instead, ulitharids in Oryndoll are often elevated to the positions of Creedmaster and/or Elder Concord member, in order for the entire colony to benefit from their wisdom.
Gnome Ceremorphs: Gnome ceremorphs are the "successful" result of tadpole implantation into a gnome. (Which I believe should not be done in the first place, due to the high failure rate and the difficulties faced by these ceremorphs, as well as their lack of purpose within a colony... But I digress.) These creatures are created through a modified ceremorphosis process that involves treatment of the tadpole with either arcane magic (a risky avenue of experimentation, considering that overt use of magic is forbidden by the Encephalithid) or alchemical compounds that slow its rate of development, since one of the main causes of ceremorphosis failure in small humanoids is accelerated tadpole development and premature initiation of physical changes. For reasons unknown, this modification does not work in other small humanoids such as halflings, dwarves, and duergar.
A gnome ceremorph appears to be a miniature version of a typical illithid, retaining the average height and body proportions of the gnome host but otherwise possessing the full intellectual and psionic capabilities of an illithid. Interestingly, gnome ceremorphs experience high rates of partialism, because the stalled rate of tadpole development means that the tadpole coexists with the host's brain for an abnormally long amount of time before consuming it. Therefore, aspects of the host's personality are more likely to transfer to the tadpole itself. For reasons I cannot understand or explain, partialism is tolerated in gnome ceremorphs, whereas it would be cause for culling or psychosurgery in any other illithid. However, gnome ceremorphs are not allowed to join the Elder Brain in death, and may face discrimination and ridicule from their fellow illithids.
Gnome Squidlings: More often than not, the process of creating a gnome ceremorph is unsuccessful, and a gnome squidling is created. These creatures have distorted body proportions consisting of abnormally large eyes and facial tentacles but otherwise small heads and bodies. Their intelligence is far lower than that of a gnome ceremorph or even a typical gnome, and is often subsentient. In some colonies, gnome squidlings are culled at birth, but in others (including our own) they may serve as amusing pets or thralls capable of performing simple tasks.
Tzakandi: Tzakandi are the result of implanting an illithid tadpole into a member of the lizardfolk species. Lizardfolk are sentient, though they tend to be less intelligent than many other humanoids. Similarly to dragonborn, their reptilian origin and anatomical differences compared to other humanoids causes ceremorphosis to proceed abnormally. Interestingly, although dragonborn ceremorphs may retain some reptilian features such as scales and a tail, they tend to be of normal intelligence for an illithid. Tzakandi, however, often have a lower degree of intelligence, though they are usually sentient. They tend to attach themselves to a Creed or a specific illithid, whom they naturally prefer to serve in a capacity similar to a thrall. Due to their inferior intelligence and submissive tendencies, tzakandi are not considered to be full citizens of Oryndoll.
Mindwitnesses: A mindwitness is the result of subjecting a beholder to ceremorphosis. Mindwitnesses are rare both due to the difficulty of capturing a beholder for ceremorphosis, and because the success rate of ceremorphosis is low even with alchemical modifications to the process. Tadpoles often fail to develop correctly or cause the host to undergo unpredictable changes. The capabilities of a successfully ceremorphed mindwitness generally include illithid-like psionics as well as the ability to induce different magical effects from each of its eyestalks much like its original beholder host. A mindwitness poses great danger to an illithid colony if it goes rogue, so they are often subjected to intense psionic conditioning (similar to the enthrallment of humanoids and other lesser beings) in order to instill in them an absolute devotion to the colony's Elder Brain and illithid-kind in general. In Oryndoll, when a mindwitness is created, it is often with the goal of improving the speed, range, and efficiency of a colony's telepathic communications network. A mindwitness can serve as a secondary telepathic hub in addition to the colony's Elder Brain, and greatly accelerates the speed of communication relays between illithids across great distances.
Urophions: Result of tadpole implantation into a roper, followed by modified ceremorphosis, though in Oryndoll the precise nature of the modification is proprietary information exclusive to Ceremorphosis Unit 4. A urophion resembles its roper host in many ways, since ropers naturally possess long grasping tendrils much like those of illithids. The urophion also maintains the roper's conical or pillar-like appearance, single eye, and large gaping maw. Ropers are naturally carnivorous ambush hunters, but urophions add to this a reliance on consuming the brain tissue of their meals. Here in Oryndoll, urophions are used as sentinels and guardians around the borders of the colony. Though nonsentient, their combination of acute senses and psionic ability allows them to sense the existence of other intelligent minds over unusually long distances and alert their illithid masters.
Brainstealer Dragons: Brainstealer dragons are extremely rare aberrations resulting from tadpole implantation into, as the name suggests, a dragon. Like most ceremorphs, the brainstealer dragon has four long tentacles in place of a jaw, surrounding a circular maw that looks like an enormous version of a typical illithid mouth. Based on eyewitness reports, brainstealers have thin, purple-colored scales that are partially reabsorbed during ceremorphosis. Their wings, too, are vestigial, and they are incapable of flight. The method of creating such a ceremorph is a closely-guarded secret, and one has not been seen in Oryndoll in living memory. Arcane magic is likely required to make such a transformation feasible, as normally a dragon would be too large for the tadpole to consume the brain and initiate the physical changes in a timely manner. It is possible that dragons subjected to this type of ceremorphosis are forced to use their natural shapeshifting abilities to assume a smaller dragonborn form during the initial stages of infection, then shift back into their native form once the transformation is complete.
Failed/Partial Ceremorphs: The beginnings of physical changes should be visible by the end of the second day of ceremorphosis. Early signs of the process proceeding correctly include a gray tinge to the skin, which should soon be followed by a moderate amount of bleeding from the eyes, nose, and mouth, as well as other orifices. By the third day, hair and tooth loss should occur. Some variation in timing is normal, but if these early symptoms do not occur within the expected time period, it may be due to an underlying defect of the tadpole or an incompatibility of host biology that prevents the host from responding to hormones secreted by the tadpole. If such a case occurs, many colonies will cull such a host before ceremorphosis is complete, but I would advise patience and caution. As long as the tadpole remains alive, the resulting ceremorph may still prove useful to the colony. A partial ceremorph may have a physical appearance ranging anywhere between the original host and an illithid, and its mind may either be fully intact or affected by partialism to varying degrees. If the physical changes are subtle enough and the newborn is normal in terms of personality and psionic ability, then the resulting ceremorph may prove to be a significant asset to the colony for covert operations and intelligence gathering by the Loretaker and Ariser Creeds.
