FREQUENCY: Rare on Astral Plane; unknown elsewhere
NO. APPEARING: 1
ARMOR CLASS: 0
MOVE: 8" to 16" (see below)
HIT DICE: 8-16
% IN LAIR: Nil
TREASURE TYPE: See below
NO. OF ATTACKS: 1-4 tentacles
DAMAGE/ATTACK: See below
SPECIAL ATTACKS: Dissolving; bag of devouring lure; multiple attacks; "swallowing" whole
SPECIAL DEFENSES: Spell and psionic immunities; blunt weapons do 1/2 damage
MAGIC RESISTANCE: Standard
INTELLIGENCE: Average to exceptional
ALIGNMENT: Neutral
SIZE: L (8' - 16' diameter)
PSIONIC ABILITY: Nil
    Attack/Defense Modes: Nil
LEVEL/X.P. VALUE: VII to X /
    1975 + 10/hp to 13100 + 20/hp

    (Note: See DRAGON Magazine #67 for
more information on the Astral Plane and
the nature of movement and combat in that
environment).

    Ihagnim are among the very few known
creatures that normally inhabit the Astral
Plane. Being native to this plane, they
experience normal feelings of hunger (unlike
visitors from other planes) and have
developed special talents for getting their
food.

    An ihagnim appears to be a large, plastic
amoeba with a translucent body. It is difficult
to see against the background of the
Astral Plane and sighting distances to it are
reduced to 10% of the normal range. The
surface of an ihagnim is generally smooth,
though it is capable of forming large tentacles
to reach out and catch its prey. An
ihagnim moves through astral space by
mental concentration, like all other
astral creatures (10 yards per round per
point of intelligence, which in this case
equates to hit dice).

    There are two major organs within an
ihagnim's body; one is the nucleus, containing
the brain and other organs, and the
other is the stomach (having a volume of 30
cubic feet). The nucleus is capable of manufacturing
a special organ that has a trans-planar
link ot the stomach; this organ looks
remarkably like a bag or sack and radiates
magic if this is checked for. Ihagnim can
cause their baglike organs to plane shift
across to the Prime Material Plane, where
curious humans or other creatures find
them and believe them to be bags of holding
(since the bag connects directly to the stomach,
simulating an extra-dimensional
space). Some ihagnim have a special lure in
their stomachs that resembles a cluster of
beans or a small fuzzy ball, thus causing the
unwary users of the bag to confuse it with
other sorts of magical sacks. Those who are
familiar with such devices call them bags of
devouring, see the description of that item
in the DMG.

    Ihagnim reproduce by fission. A newly
created ihagnim has 8 HD and 57 hp, an
intelligence of 8, and a movement allowance
of 8" in astral space (80 yds./round). It is
capable of detecing any living creatures
within 240 yards and is aware of their exact
locations, and as soon as it finds such creatures
it will make directly for them to
attack. The ihagnim will lash out at its prey
with 1-4 tentacles each round; a tentacle can
reach out to a distance of up to twice as far
as the ihagnim's body diameter (thus an 8
HD monster, 8' across, can reach out to
16'). If a tentacle hits an opponent, it
wraps around it and pulls it toward the
monster's body. A victim has a chance of
pulling free from the tentacle equal to his
chance of pulling free from a bag of devouring
i.e., a 25% base chance, plus 5% for every
point of the figure's strength bonus on
damage; a man with 18/00 strength has a
55% chance of pulling free). If the opponent
pulls away, the ihagnim may roll to
attack the same figure on the next round if
that target is still within range. Those who
are dragged to the ihagnim's body are
transferred to the stomach in the same
round, where digestion by powerful acids
begins. A character will be fully digested on
the following round, and will not be recoverable
by any means.

    The only to avoid being digested is
to expose the stomach's lining to some sort of
poison, which (if it doesn't kill the ihagnim)
will cause it to "spit out" its stomach contents
immediately. This could only be done
on the round in which the ihagnim is trying
to digest its meal; if the attempt to introduce
poison fails (the character has no
poison potions or misses an attack against
the AC 0 stomach wall with a poisoned
dagger), the character is lost. Afterward,
there is a 5% chance per turn that the
ihagnim will "spit out" any indigestible
items (armor, weapons, equipment, etc.).

    Ihagnim can eat any number of creatures
at one "sitting," subject to the rules below.
For every 100 lbs. of living material consumed
by an ihagnim, the ihagnim gains 1
hit point. For every 8 hp gained, the
ihagnim gains another effective hit die
(57-64 hp = 8 HD, 65-72 hp = 8 HD, and so
on up to 121-128 hp = 16HD). Thus, an 8
HD (57 hp) ihagnim that eats a 112 lb.
figure gains a point to 58 hp; after eating an
88 lb. figure on the following round, it gains
another point to 59 hp (carrying over the
excess weight amount from the previous
feeding). Once an ihagnim reaches a total of
128 hp, it will begin to divide into two
smaller ihagnim, each with 8 HD and 57
hp. This process takes 5-10 rounds; the
creature cannot move during that time.

    The number of hit dice an ihagnim possesses
is equal to its diameter in feet, its
intelligence score, and its movement rate in
tens of yards per round. Thus, a 16 HD
ihagnim that undergoes fission will produce
two smaller ihagnim that move at half the
speed of the original (8" instead of 16").

    The thick, plasticlike bodies of ihagnim
reduce all damage taken by blunt weapons
to one-half of its original amount; sharp-edged
weapons do normal damage. All
ihagnim are immune to haste, slow, paralysis,
hold, or charm attacks. Fire-based spells
do half-damage; cold spells do normal damage
and render the creature unable to attack
(though it can still move) for 1-4 rounds
thereafter. Psionic attacks do not affect
ihagnim, and they cannot communicate
with any creatre, except each other.

    Anyone entering the Astral Plane in
possession of a bag of devouring will attract
the ihagnim who made it within 1-12 turns
as an extra encounter. Destroying a bag of
devouring does no harm to the ihagnim,
except to cause the nucleus to start manufacturing
another bag, which will be completed
in 1-4 weeks. An ihagnim may have
only one such bag at any time.

    When encountered, there is a 10%
chance that an ihagnim will have various
treasures contained in its stomach, put there
by someone on the Prime Material Plane
who thinks he or she is filling a bag of holding.
The usual amounts of treasure found
can be determined as follows:

        30% chance of 100-400 gp
        40% chance of 200-800 ep
        40% chance of 200-1200 sp
        30% chance of 1-4 jewels
        10% chance of 1-2 small magical items (potion, scroll, misc.)
 

    by Roger Moore