Post in the Unique Ship Challenge thread.
This is a "fightable" beholder ship, and could be substituted as the standard of the beholder fleets. The spacelanes would be a lot safer if it was.
The Eye is one of six beholder tyrant ships owned by Clan H'kan, a minor beholder nation in Bralspace. The Eye is unique among her sister ships in that unlike the other ships of the clan, the Eye is not dedicated to the defense of the clanhold. Instead, the Eye has, for the last four months, engaged in a long and bloody campaign of piracy and raiding. The standing orders of Captain Ss'tt'ing is to attack any ship of the Eye's size or smaller, confiscate (steal) everything aboard, and kill everything that moves. So far, three tradesmen and a wasp have all fallen victim to this pirate ship, and there seems to be no end in sight. A great amount of loot has been added to the hive mother's trove, for what purpose is unknown. All that is known about this ship is that several ships have disappeared recently, and that the one ship that did turn up showed evidence of everyone being killed brutally and mercilessly. No survivors were reported.
The Eye is different from the traditional tyrant ship in that it is not entirely crewed by standard beholders. Instead of a hive tyrant, the master of the ship is a standard beholder, and the rest of the crew is comprised of lensmen beholders. These wretched creatures man the weapons and do all the manual labor around the ship while Captain Ss'tt'ing acts captain, ship's mage, and the only officer aboard. All of the crew fear him and follow his orders to the best of their abilities.
The Eye, like all Clan H'kan ships, is built like a great thorn-covered leaf (the Eye resembles a Kreen leafship, only much smaller). It mounts 2 medium ballista just behind the forward spike that serves as a piercing ram. The rear of the craft is enclosed, and contains Ss'tt'ing's personal quarters, a barracks, and a rear-firing medium jettison. The lower deck is but one large cargo hold, where the treasures of raided ships are kept. Usually, this area contains forty ballista bolts (two mage shots), 1-2,000 gp worth of cargo, and 200-500 gp in loose coins (personal treasures of crewmen).
The Eye, like all Clan H'kan ships, has the following statistics:
Captain Ss'tt'ing
Beholder: AC 0/2/7; MV Fl 3 (B); HP 45; THAC0: 11; #ATT 1; Dmg 2d4;
Special attacks: magic; Special defenses: Anti-magic ray; Size M
(4' across); Moral 18; XP
Ss'tt'ing is a typical, run of the mill beholder. He likes to raid shipping lines and cause untold chaos and confusion. He is a decent tactician, using his ship's maneuverability to get in close enough for a ram. Once the ships are locked together, he will order his lensmen to swarm aboard, killing everyone in sight. He will follow in the second wave behind 3 lensmen (whom serve as his personal guard). Anyone not killed is taken captive to be taken back to the Clanhold. This unfortunate souls will ultimately undergo horrific ceremonies that will turn them into more lensmen. The ship will then be stripped of cargo and everything that isn't nailed down. Ss'tt'ing will sometimes leave clues behind pointing to another races, such as illithids or neogi.
Lensmen (14): AC 5; MV 9; HD 2; THAC0 19; #ATT 1; Dmg 2d4 (bardiche); Sz M (5' tall); Moral 14; XP 175;
The crewmen of the Eye have the following powers:
Emotion (hopelessness, 1/turn): one lensman has this power. He is the "moral officer" of the Eye (I.E. he is in charge of ruining enemy moral).
Heal (1/hour): one lensman has this power. The "medical officer" of the Eye.
Dispel Magic (1/hour): 5 lensmen have this power. They form the front line, using their power to disrupt enemy spellcasters and magical items.
Tongues (1/turn): 4 lensmen have this power. They are in charge of interrogating prisoners for valuable information.
Phantasmal Force (1/hour): 2 lensmen have this power. They use their power to mask their ship's crew and confuse enemy ships.
Protection from Fire (1/turn): one lensman has this power. He uses it on Ss'tt'ing, as the Captain is terrified of fire for some reason (under the protection of this power, he can control his fear).
Orbus (2): these harmless creatures are kept in Ss'tt'ing's room, and they power the ship. These mindless creatures follow Ss'tt'ing's orders to the letter.
