Mind Flayer Vampires
Even stranger than illithid sorcerers are illithid vampires. How they come to be is unknown. Unlike other vampires, they do not create spawn or propagate their kind by leaving victims wounded but not yet undead. A vampiric mind flayer bears little resemblance to its kin. Where mind flayers favor rich, luxurious robes, a vampiric illithid wears nothing to cover its dark gray flesh. Its head is smaller and of a different, flattened shape, appearing almost to have shrunk or partially collapsed inward. A vampire illithid’s tentacles are longer and more muscular than those of a living mind flayer, and it uses them for bludgeoning as much as grasping. Such a monster would be truly terrifying if it possessed the mighty intellect of a mind flayer. Fortunately, vampiric mind flayers are completely feral. Their minds hold bestial cunning and savagery, but they do not think or reason. Some portion of their minds must recall their former lives, since their favorite haunts are subterranean, in the types of areas where mind flayers live. Other mind flayers are a vampiric illithid’s worst enemies, because they destroy one whenever given a chance.

Vampiric mind flayers are enigmas. Their origins are unknown, as they cannot spawn other vampires. They need both fresh blood and fresh brains to survive. Furthermore, they are feral, unreasoning killers, with no hint of the formidable intellect they possessed in life. Whatever process transforms a mind flayer into a vampiric state also destroys its rationality. An illithid vampire presents a dire threat to any living thing it encounters. Its hunger for blood and brains is limitless and beyond reason. While it lacks the cold genius it once possessed, the creature is astoundingly cunning, and its inventiveness is matched only by its savagery. A vampiric mind flayer is a unique and specific form of undead, more like a wight or a wraith than a vampire. It is not derived from adding the vampire template to a mind flayer.
An illithid vampire uses every conceivable trick and power at its disposal when confronting prey. Although they are not patient creatures by temperament, they can stalk victims for days before striking. Once combat is joined, a vampire quickly seeks to disable as many foes as possible. If necessary, it strikes and then retreats, hoping to burden its prey with wounded or incapacitated figures before making its final assault. A vampiric illithid’s natural attacks are treated as magic weapons for the purpose of overcoming damage reduction.

Brainstealer dragons combine the worst features of mind flayers and dragons, stunning creatures of the deep world with their mind blast and devouring brains with their dreadful tentacles. Brainstealer dragons tend to be manipulative and scheming, using other underwolrd races to further their ends. A few rare great wyrm brainstealers can boast actual mind flayer communities among their pawns. Many brainstealer dragons view life as a game they intend to win.
A brainstealer dragon has neither bite or wing attacks. Its claws are its primary attack and all other are secondary, including its four tentacle attacks. A tentacle attack deals damage as a bite of a dragon two size category smaller and allows the dragon the use of its improved grab attack. A tentacle has a reach 5 feet longer than normal for the dragons size category.