Great Dreamer

These vast cetaceans of the void are said to be the source of whales and similar creatures on worlds with plenty of water, and in space. Each travels inside a sphere of breathable water vast enough to have its own weather, making the whole thing look like a gigantic elemental whale crossing the heavens. Within swims its entourage: its court of 1-3 leviathans and their servants, guarded by 2-12 clever delphinid knights, each of 9-12 HD.

Like delphinids, a great dreamer has threefold symmetry, with three eyes spaced evenly around its head that gleam with reflected starlight. Its wide-ranging telepathy makes conversation easy anywhere within 1,000 miles, though its talk meanders dreamily through one subject after another before always circling back to the point.

A great dreamer seldom fights; its power is obvious. Its aura is so overwhelming that foes save vs. spell at -4; failure leaves them lost in wonder at its existence. Against those who resist and still mean harm, it calls on the Elemental Planes of Air and Water and 1d8 elementals answer, each of 12-16 HD. They swamp or wreck an offending starship, and are ordered to kill only if the entourage is badly hurt.

Determined attackers then face the entourage. Each of them can fire a sound lance up to 10 miles; targets save vs. breath weapon or are stunned for 1d4 turns. Delphinids focus on one foe at a time, while the bigger whales aim at entire ships and can match a hull's resonance, shaking the vessel apart for 2d6 hull points per round.

If needed, the dreamer hurls a giant waterspout from its envelope at targets as far as 20 miles off. A struck vessel saves vs. crushing blow; failure means destruction, success still costs it 2d10 hull points. Its bite scales with size: 3d4×2 hull points at 72-83 HD, 3d4×3 at 84-95 HD and 3d4×4 at 96-144 HD. An attack roll that beats the needed number by 2 lets it swallow the target, to digest it or send it to a destination of its choosing. Its tail deals 1d8 per 2 Hit Dice; a 72 HD dreamer's tail does 36d8, or 36-288 points.

Whether the dreamer creates its envelope or keeps a gateway open to the elemental realm of water is unknown, but the envelope responds instantly to its will. Dreamers drift through the flame-sea from crystal shell to crystal shell, overseeing the business of whales and their kin across countless worlds. Once a millennium every world's leviathans travel to the dreamers to report a millennium of news, staying a year before going home.

Dreamers are always lawful and neutral toward humanoids. They safeguard the richness of life across both the flame-sea and the oceans of worlds, seeing existence as an endless song of praise to life, which every member of the entourage sings without pause. Once a year a dreamer may grant immortality to one being, usually a cetacean champion, but occasionally a humanoid who has done its subjects great service.