Star Spawn Larva Mage

D&D 2024 monster: Star Spawn Larva Mage. Source: Mordenkainen's Tome of Foes. challenge rating 16, creature type Aberration, Medium size, speed 30 ft. A larva mage is a nightmarish combination of a mortal body and otherworldly substance. When a powerful cultist of a wormlike entity such as Kyuss or Kezef-usually a warlock or other spellcaster-contacts the comet-borne emissary of an Elder Evil, the emissary can merge with a mortal consciousness to create a larva mage. None of the original cultist's personality survives the transformation, so what emerges is wholly alien. Star Spawn Stars don't spawn these creatures. Such beautiful lights shouldn't be blamed for such balefulness. The Material Plane represents only one small part of the multiverse. Beyond the best-known planes of existence lie realms that are lethal to mortal life. Some are so hostile that even a moment's contact with such a place is enough to plunge a mortal mind into madness. Yet beings do exist that are native to these realms: beings that are eternally hungering, searching, warring, sometimes dreaming. These Elder Evils are far older than most of the mortal races and always horrific to humanoid minds. However much they might desire to enter and dominate the Material Plane, the Elder Evils are unable or unwilling to leave their realms. Some are imprisoned in their dimensions by external forces, some are inextricably bound to their home realities, and others simply can't find any way out. Heralds of Doom The creatures known as star spawn are the heralds, servants, foot soldiers, and lieutenants of the Elder Evils, capable of taking on forms that can journey to the Material Plane. They arrive most often in the wake of a comet-or perhaps such a phenomenon merely signals that star spawn are in the vicinity and available for communication. When the signs are right, warlocks and cultists hasten to gather together, read aloud their blasphemous texts, and conduct the mind-searing rituals that guide the bl...