Beholder (SLASH'EM)

e Beholder
Difficulty	24
Attacks	Gaze 1d4 Touch of death, Gaze 3d8, Gaze 1d3 stun, Gaze 1d3 confusion, Gaze 1d4 sleep

e Beholder
Difficulty	24
Attacks	Gaze 1d4 Touch of death, Gaze 3d8, Gaze 1d3 stun, Gaze 1d3 confusion, Gaze 1d4 sleep
Base level	15
Base experience	538
Speed	9
Base AC	-4
Base MR	70
Alignment	0 (neutral)
Frequency (by normal means)	Unique
Genocidable	No
Weight	500
Nutritional value	100
Size	Large
Resistances	None
Resistances conveyed	None
The Beholder: can fly. has no limbs. has no head. regenerates HP quickly. does not eat. (*) is not a valid polymorphable form. is neither male nor female. is normally generated hostile. can follow you to other levels. is nasty. wants the Amulet of Yendor, the Bell of Opening, the Book of the Dead, the Candelabrum of Invocation, and your quest artifact. can be seen through infravision.
Reference	SLASH'EM_0.0.7E7F2/monst.c#line4590

The Beholder is the quest nemesis for the Neutral Quest. It holds the Key of Neutrality, one of the three Alignment keys; you need two of these keys to unlock the indestructible doors in Vlad's Tower. Its corpse remains as The Eye of the Beholder when killed.

The Beholder combines the gaze attacks of various creatures. Namely, the catoblepas (instant death), bloodshot eye (stun), umber hulk (confusion), and chasme (sleep). It also has a gaze attack which deals up to 24 damage.

Despite its description, it does not have a bite attack and is, in fact, possibly the easiest Alignment Quest nemesis.

Strategy

The easiest way to defeat the Beholder is to put on a blindfold or towel before entering its room. Even if you don't have telepathy, the Beholder is easy to find if you close the door behind you.

You'll know it has been defeated when the game says "All that remains is a single eye..."

Encyclopedia entry

The beholder (A.K.A the eye tyrant, the sphere of many eyes)
is most frequently found deep underground, although infrequently
it will lair in desolate wilderness.  The globular body of this
monster is supported by levitation, and it floats slowly about
as it wills.  Atop the sphere are ten eyestalks, while in its
central area are a great eleventh eye and a large mouth filled
with pointed teeth.  Each of the eyes is said to have a different
magical property, all of which are deadly or malicious.  The
beholder is hateful, tricky, and avaricious and is known to have
a fondness for both traps and artifacts.

[ Adapted by Ben Lehman from Monstrous Manual, by TSR, Inc. ]

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