Sandy petersens cthulhu mythos (1) 302

IX Mythos Bestiary
species dwelt in the homes of the Outer Gods. After

The custodian can move through the portal itself

millennia of feasting on the leavings and remains of

as a means of travel, and thus show up elsewhere,

the elder gods, they’ve grown to gigantic size. They are

suddenly surprising a group of enemies. A common use

not particularly intelligent, and do not have much will

for the custodian in battle is to open the portal behind

of their own.

its enemies. It then uses its immense physical prowess

These alien organisms evolved or originated from

to shove enemies through the portal to some special

the same branch of life that gave rise to the mi-go.

place—perhaps a dungeon cell, a canyon, or a walled

They are clearly related anatomically to these fungi,

prison compound—as its master commands.

though far more individually powerful. There is not
just a single custodian but many, and other, even more
formidable entities are known to import custodians to
take on tasks for them. Whether or not they fight to
the death depends on the will and instructions of their
master. The death of a master breaks this binding, as
do certain rituals. Custodians want to have a master,
and when deprived of a master, they assiduously seek
out those who know the proper ritual of binding.
The most well-known custodian is that which tends
the Library at Celaeno. It serves as the “janitor” of that
fabulous library and cleans up after the horrendous
beings that peruse the knowledge stored therein.

Appearance
The coloration of an abyssal custodian might range
from a shiny metallic green, to bronze, to copper,
depending on the type of god the creature fed from
to reach its mighty size and strength. Its carapace is
partly made of adamantine and other special materials.
The thickly armored thorax is sometimes a different
color from the softer abdomen. The custodian has
small delicate flippers so it can do tasks requiring
fine manipulation.
An abyssal custodian is about 30 feet long and 14
feet tall.

It serves and is under the command of Celaeno’s

Librarian.

Abyssal Custodians in Combat
The Abyssal Custodian is built for physical strength. It
is heavily armored and highly resistant to most attacks.
The abilities which render a custodian the most useful
are its vast strength (custodians have been known to
shove around starspawn with ease) and also its portal.

The Custodian’s Portal
All abyssal custodians can open up a magical oneway portal to a nearby destination of its choice. This
destination cannot be further away than about a mile.
The portal is only visible on the custodian’s end, and
nothing is seen at the destination, though detect magic
can locate it.

Sandy’s Notes
Whatever its origin, every Abyssal Custodian
encountered by player characters is serving a
master. It always has a master, and this master is
some entity even more powerful and dangerous
than the custodian. In some cases, the master
might not be a single being but an entire cult, a
college of magic, or some other organization that
together is potent enough to hold the custodian’s
loyalty.
Abyssal Custodians are never found simply
wandering around or “in the wild.” They are
always set to protect and tend some structure
or site. It might be a gigantic building, as

with the Library at Celaeno, or it might be an
outdoors location, such as the fabled Monolith of
Abbith—a single colossal metallic spire, which a
custodian keeps polished and clean of life.

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