Chaos imp

Chaos imps were a diminutive race of tricksters native to the plane of Limbo, who, thanks to an inconsistent appearance, were often mistaken for similarly diminutive pests like gremlins, mephits, or mites. There existed considerable debate among sages over their exact nature, with some speculating chaos imps were manifestations of Limbo's chaos and others alleging they could be minor proxies of the chaotic deities of Limbo.
==Description==
Befitting the chaotic nature of Limbo, chaos imps varied greatly in appearance, with their only consistent traits being monkey-like proportions and a height of no more than . Even their faces and expressions could change at a whim.
==Personality==
Chaos imps were mischievous and clever creatures. They lacked any sort of drive for power, bloodshed, or subjugating others. They strove only to escape from Limbo and then cause chaos and confusion wherever they went, taking delight in their mischief. Some speculated that this drive to spread chaos could be their mission as alleged minor proxies.
==Abilities==
These creatures had the unique ability to meld themselves with any objects they made physical contact with. This merging caused no change in the physical properties of an object, nor in any of its magical properties, and they radiated no detectable aura of magic. While infesting an object a chaos imp was capable of speaking from it and transforming it into another object, though only ones of a roughly similar mass. It was possible for the wielder of an infested object to keep it from transforming, but they had to maintain mental control over it.
There were certain limitations to this melding ability, however. Chaos imps couldn't meld with animate objects, sentient items, objects imbued with a spirit like golems, or objects made of Limbo matter. They could innately sense whether objects were made of foreign, stable matter or the unstable matter of Limbo.
As a matter of preference, chaos imps liked to meld themselves with substantial items like weapons, shields, or armor over flimsy objects like scrolls or most clothing. However, they were most drawn to magic items above all else.
Chaos imps would lay dormant while infesting an item, only revealing their presence once they believed the object was taken outside of their home plane. Planeswalkers experienced in traveling Limbo were known for tricking imps out of their objects by pretending to be outside of the plane, that is, by imposing the image of another plane upon Limbo.
To remove a chaos imp from an item it infested, one had to either destroy the object or cast either abjure, animate objects, banishment, dismissal, or dispel magic on it. Any of these options would cause the imp to be forced out of the object it was infesting, though they would very quickly attempt to merge with whatever the next nearest object was. Without an object to inhabit outside of Limbo, the body of a chaos imp eventually dissipated.
==Combat==
When chaos imps engaged travelers in "combat" they took little interest in actually harming their opponents, but rather focused on trying to infest one of the items on their person. They often attacked in swarms, going after anyone that got within range of their nests, with one acting as a distraction whilst the rest tried to meld with a traveler's objects.
==Society==
It was unknown how, or even if, chaos imps reproduced. Many believed they just manifested spontaneously throughout Limbo. They lived together in nests, which were merely inert bubbles.
===Relationships===
Various fiends, tricksters, and members of the Xaositects were known to utilize chaos imps as mischievous "gifts" for their enemies.
Among the chaotic gods worshiped on Toril, they sometimes acted as servants of Erevan Ilesere.
==Appendix==
===References===
Category:Creatures found in Limbo