I was enjoying vacation relaxing on the beach during H.P. Lovecraft’s birthday last August 20th. Of course while basking in the sun and staring out over the endless expanse of waves my mind started to wander. I can certainly be counted among those Dungeon Masters influenced by his work. I kept thinking about sea creatures when my daydreaming was interrupted by a purple beach ball that landed nearby. The rich lavender tones stood out in stark contrast against the pale sand.In ancient times the color purple was prized as most clothing was lackluster. A certain dye called Tyrian purple was harvested from sea snails and worth its weight in gold. That is when I had my light bulb moment and decided to create a new ooze to make the rest quiver. The current D&D storyline is Rage of Demons which includes one of my favorites known as Juiblex (JOO-ee-blex). I thought this would be a perfect time to add another monster to the Faceless Lord’s cadre. Presented below in 5th edition stats is a creature that will make you sunbath with one eye open on the beach.
Purple Ooze
This creature is an eldritch amalgamation of a giant sea snail and gray ooze. Giant sea snails are popular sources of purple dye because of the secretions they yield. Although land dwellers milk the gland of the snail for its dye the mucus also has a powerful sedation element. Legend holds that Juiblex recognized this infatuation with the color purple as an opportunity for malevolent intent. Humans considered purple a color of nobility and station. Soon however they would associate it with a grotesque mockery from the deep realms beyond their comprehension.
Purple ooze is a large quivering mass of translucent veiny membrane. The creature is extremely predatory and usually hunts beaches with regular humanoid traffic. Purple ooze has no discernible anatomy but does grow hundreds of small tentacles around its circumference. These are used similar to a cat’s whiskers and provide the ooze with sensory information. Although it does not communicate with any sort of language those which have survived a purple ooze attack tell a different story. Victims are left mentally scarred with terrible nightmares of reality warping around them. The one memory they all share is the sloshing gurgle calling out their name over and over.
PURPLE OOZE
Armor Class 12
Hit Points 142 (15d10+60)
Speed 20ft., swim 40ft., climb 20ft.
STR 16 (+3)
DEX 14 (+2)
CON 18 (+4)
INT 12 (+1)
WIS 11 (+0)
CHR 11 (+0)
Damage Resistances acid, cold, fire
Condition Immunities blinded, poisoned, paralyzed, charmed, deafened, exhaustion, frightened, prone
Senses blindsight 60ft. (blind beyond this radius)
Languages –
Challenge 7 (2,900 XP)
Amorphous. The ooze can move through a space as narrow as 1 inch wide without squeezing.
Magic Resistance. The purple ooze has advantage on saving throws against spells and other magical effects.
ACTIONS
Pseudopod. Melee Weapon Attack: +7 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 11 (2d6 + 4) bludgeoning damage plus 7 (2d6) acid damage, and if the target is wearing non magical metal armor, its armor is partly corroded and takes a permanent and cumulative -1 penalty to the AC it offers. The armor is destroyed if the penalty reduces its AC to 10.
Gurgle of the Deep (Recharge 5-6). The purple ooze magically emits a psychic cacophony in a 30-foot cube centered on itself. Each creature in that area must succeed on a DC 15 Wisdom saving throw or take 22 (4d8 + 4) psychic damage and be stunned for 1 minute. A creature can repeat the saving throw at the end of each of its turns, ending the effect on itself on a success.
Note: Any player character stricken by the gurgle of the deep should have a lingering fear of the color purple and the sea. Moreover they should be ailed with recurring dreams of cosmic horror and being consumed by a sloshing wet blanket of slime. Nothing short of a Remove Curse should help them cure this terrible condition.
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| Juiblex as originally presented in the AD&D Monster Manual |
