Chaos-Spawned Hordes of Limbo
Habitat: Planar (Limbo); Treasure: Any
Slaad tadpoles are ravenous, newborn slaadi. They hatch from eggs implanted into living hosts by red slaadi, but they also appear in great numbers in Limbo and other chaotic realms. Under most conditions, a slaad tadpole transforms into a blue slaad—or a green slaad if its host was able to cast spells of level 3 or higher—within 2d12 hours of hatching.
Unpredictable slaadi devour and multiply across the Ever-Changing Chaos of Limbo. These toad-like, extraplanar beings embody the endless potentiality of their home plane of existence. While slaadi aren’t inherently evil, their impulses are wild and often destructive. Many are driven to propagate through supernatural processes. Unfortunately, these processes typically are fatal for other creatures.
Slaadi have no formal society. Rather, strong slaadi dominate weaker ones. Blue and red slaadi rampage across Limbo and spill into other worlds at the direction of green slaadi. More powerful slaadi have connections to the Spawning Stone, a source of chaotic magic from which the first slaadi originated. The Spawning Stone is hidden deep within Limbo, and legends tie its origins to the modron overlord Primus or the ruinous slaad lords, such as Ssendam, the golden amoeboid terror, and Ygorl, the winged skeleton. These slaad lords and others plot to spread slaadi across the multiverse.
A slaad born from the Spawning Stone has a magical control gem embedded in its head. If a creature claims the gem, the slaad has the Charmed condition and obeys the gem’s bearer. The slaad ceases to be Charmed if it is harmed by the gem’s bearer or the bearer’s allies or if the gem is returned to the slaad. A Greater Restoration spell cast on a slaad destroys the gem, and the slaad ceases to be Charmed.
One can obtain a slaad’s control gem using a Wish or Imprisonment spell. If the slaad fails its saving throw against Imprisonment, the caster gains the gem, and the slaad isn’t imprisoned. An Incapacitated slaad’s control gem can be removed by spending 1 minute and succeeding on a DC 20 Wisdom (Medicine) check. Failing this check deals 22 (4d10) Piercing damage to the slaad.
Fight a slaad and lose, the story’s over. Fight a slaad and win, there’s a thousand more standing in line just to prove they’re tougher.
—Jebeel Sloom, guide to the Plane of Limbo
Magic Resistance. The slaad has Advantage on saving throws against spells and other magical effects.
Bite. Melee Attack Roll: +4, reach 5 ft. Hit: 5 (1d6 + 2) Piercing damage.
