Although Vampires and Dragons seem to be an unlikely combination, they both share the same characteristics that make monsters fun and challenging – a personality and a brain. It can sometimes be too easy to default to the standard monster behaviour of blindly moving and attacking to the death.

It becomes more interesting when the monsters have profound intelligence, deep personalities, motivations, relationships, enmity, and longing. When you add those characteristics to an already deadly encounter, it becomes much more challenging.

In addition to the additional depth these monsters can have, they open up the opportunity for additional tactics in combat as well. These intelligent monsters provide an opportunity to concoct a devious plan with many layers and plots. Rarely is there only one encounter, as negotiation, retreat, and double-crossing are weapons in their cunning arsenal.

Finally, they provide the opportunity for the Dungeon Master to really exercise their story-telling and creativity. These monsters allow for the development of a complex backstory, motivations, and role-playing. I encourage Dungeon Masters to have fun with them and really add depth to the monsters. Opponents like these deserve a name, history, legend, henchmen, pawns, and an unspoken desire. They provide an opportunity to create a cult, a following, a legion that must be destroyed before the final confrontation.

I used Vampires and Dragons as an example of a highly intelligent monster, but almost any monsters can be transformed with a good enough backstory and legend. In fact, I try to create at least one intelligent monster in every encounter to stretch my experience and provide a more challenging encounter.

Have fun with your monsters and create unique opponents for your players.