The xhkarsh may be my favorite creature from Tome of Beasts 1. It’s a big bug, and honestly that’s enough to make me happy. I love running a big bug: kruthik,, remorrhaz, chuul. The buggier the better. That said, this bug has a nasty and pretty unique trick:
Seize Strand. One creature whose fate is corrupted by this xhkarsh must succeed on a DC 16 Charisma saving throw or be affected by the geas spell for 8 hours. While under the geas, the affected creature must perform a specific, seemingly minor task that furthers the decades-long goals of the xhkarsh. Such a task could be writing a letter to a specific person, damaging a seemingly random piece of equipment, or speaking a specific sentence to a particular person. The xhkarsh can use Seize Strand on a particular creature no more than once every 24 hours, regardless of success or failure on the saving throw.
Tome of Beasts 1 (2023) p. 400
So you slide one of these critters in, sting a player or two, and run away. They have to deal with doing things that they don’t want to do. Things that probably make their live’s a lot harder. But thing about this:
Xhkarsh: What if They Asked for It?
Maybe your PCs are in a situation where they really need to avoid attention. PCs do stuff like that all the time. They piss off a powerful wizard or lich. Maybe they break the rules of the multiverse and have a Marut or Kolyarut coming after them. Either way, they really need a good way to lie low. This big bug can help. All it will expect in return is a few simple tasks…
Now that we’ve checked out the xhkarsh, take a look at some of the other monsters on my hotlist!
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