Certain cunning, magic-using neogi who grow old resist their coming transformation into great old masters, and flee neogi society to achieve undeath through their magic. Strong-willed and ruthless, such individuals transcend the limits of their living fellows and become fell, self-sufficient predators, preying on all weaker creatures.

Undead old masters are similar to living neogi: hairy, brightly-colored spiders with eel-like heads and necks. With time, their flesh shrivels, their pelts fade, and they exude a smell of carrion. An undead old master's eyes are sockets lit by ghostly lights rather than the black, glistening orbs of living neogi. These "night neogi" (as they are sometimes called) are crafty, paranoid planners. They move slowly, but in spell use and anticipating enemies, they are very, very quick.

Undead old masters whose magic runs to illusions tend to disguise themselves to appear alive -grander than they ever were in life. One such disguise is shown on the left-hand side.

Combat: Undead old masters always move in utter silence, avoiding combat when possible. They use their spells without hesitation to lash out at foes, and can fight with their claws and teeth like their living fellows.

The undead state of these creatures causes them to stop producing poison. However, the touch of their claws and jaw-mandibles chills living targets in a similar way that the touch of a lich does. Whenever an undead old master physically attacks, the victim suffers an additional 1-2 points of cold damage, and must save vs. Paralysis or remain motionless on the following round. This temporary "hold" lasts only a single round, but if the undead neogi strikes the victim again during that round, it must save again to avoid being paralyzed on the next round, and so on.

Their particular undead state renders undead old masters immune to sleep, charm, fear, hold, and death magics. They are also immune to poison and paralysis effects. Attacks based on cold or electricity do them only half damage. Undead old masters are unaffected by diseases (although they can carry and transmit them) and insanity. They turn as "Special", and cannot be disrupted./p>

Undead old masters retain the spellcasting abilities they had in life, and in fact can increase them by study, practice, and the acquisition of new spells. Most encountered undead old masters are the equivalent of 8th-level wizards (to find an individual's level of spell use, roll ld8+4).

Those who manage to retain the slaves they had in life do not lose them in attaining undeath. Most encountered undead old masters will have a bodyguard of 3d4+1 umber hulks.

Habitat/Society: Undead old masters hate all other beings, including neogi. They trust nothing and no one, and exist only to gather slaves and treasure, and use these to acquire more slaves and treasure, controlling all they can. What they cannot control, they lust to destroy. They tend to lair in dark, uninhabited caverns or ruins -or in space, aboard derelict ships.

Ecology: Undead neogi can devour things, but no longer need to eat, drink, or breathe, and can now see in the dark. They serve to weed out the weak and the servile in all societies near which they lurk, and on occasion may dominate and shape societies from behind the throne, controlling lesser beings by awe, fear, clever manipulation, and their magical powers.