Posts
Welcome to the Monsters of the Month!
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One of the challenges I find at the end of epic campaigns is ensuring that the BBEG is a enough of a challenge for a powerful party. Depending on how the campaign has gone. the party may easily overpower the BBEG. I had one Curse of Strahd campaign where the party was able to overpower…
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I previously had a Monster of the Month entry for suspense, but this Monster of the Monster builds on suspense and takes it to the next level – a murder mystery or whodunit Monster of the Month #14 – Suspense – Blog of Holding This Monster of the Month isn’t a monster at all, but…
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As players move up in levels it becomes more and more difficult to provide them the challenges that make combat fun. I’m not looking to kill characters, but I think it is entertaining and fulfilling to at least have the fear of death now and then. 🙂 Players in my campaigns usually learn from previous…
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Sometimes Dungeon Masters gravitate to all the new and interesting monsters, but there is a treasure trove of traditional D&D monsters that I encourage you to not overlook. I highlight four traditional monsters for your consideration: Roper “Camouflaged as rock formations, ropers are aberrant ambushers that lurk in wait for smaller creatures. These bizarre subterranean…
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One challenge I have as a Dungeon Master is always finding interesting and challenging monsters for players that are level 10 and above. This problem becomes even more challenging after level 15-20. I have mentioned other monster books that help with additional original monsters but they also can struggle with providing those monsters that are…
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Although they are not an official monster, some of my favourite challenges for players are Traps, Puzzles, and Riddles. Perhaps it was the impression that the riddle game in the Hobbit had on my psyche. I loved the atmosphere and authentic dialogue in the book and the animated movie was able to be loyal to…
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Although not officially a monster, suspense is an excellent adversary. It can be easy for a Dungeon Master to fall into a routine of monsters, treasures, and role-playing. One way to inject some variety into a campaign is to have your party explore an abandoned castle or mansion. There is something exciting about exploring the…
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One of the problems with monsters in 5E is that there is a lack of monsters that provide consequences even if they are defeated. In 5E it seems that monsters are primarily Armor Classes, Hit Points, and special attacks. But there doesn’t seem to be character altering consequences if if you survived. In Advanced Dungeons…
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I consider Monster Players separate from NPCs or Non-Player Characters. Non-Players Characters are usually played by the Dungeon Master and they help to flesh out the plot or provide key information or assistance to the players. NPCs are pretty shallow characters with a single purpose due to all the items on the Dungeon Master’s plate.…
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Probably my favourite bosses for my previous campaigns have to be Demon Lords or Arch Devils. Sadly, they have become less prominent in Monster Manuals throughout the years and versions. The Advanced Dungeons and Dragons Monster Manuals 1 and 2 were probably the height of their prominence. That was closely followed by the amazing Advanced…
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I’m a bit embarrassed to say I have never used an Oni in any of my games before. I was looking for a creature that could help to marshall and direct the Ice Orcs in my Middle-Earth campaign and out popped the Oni. I am trying to use opponents that are somewhat original but not…
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Perhaps the best monster book I have seen over the past few decades is “The Monster Grimoire” from the Grim Hollow campaign setting. This campaign setting comes to us from GhostFire gaming and it is a work of art. It clocks in with 423 pages of pure creativity and malevolence in the form of opponents/NPCs…
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Anyone that has played in one of my games can attest to the fact that I consistently use non-player characters(NPCs) in my campaigns. NPCs can be used to inform the party about lore, move the plot forward, assist an under-powered party, or my absolute favourite purpose – the double-crossing NPC. An NPC can perhaps fulfill…
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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…
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One of the benefits of playing in person is to be able to create and enhance monsters. Don’t get me wrong, I love the benefits of playing online due to the ease and automation but it can be limiting. Not that you can’t create entire campaigns and monsters, but it just takes more effort than…
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This is a large category of adversaries but all of them share the ability to inflict damage and horror in equal parts. Maybe it is because I was raised on bad B horror movies, but undead creatures still feel to have an additional psychological factor to encounters. In the recent Rings of Power episode, their…
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It might be my love of The Hobbit and Lord of the Rings, but I have always been a bit disappointed with the spiders in the Monster Manual. I had visions of Ungoliant (look it up) and Shelob in my mind and the spiders were middling opponents at best. Thankfully the Rise of the Drow…
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I have renamed these series of posts as “Monster of the month” as I think “Monster of the week” assumed I would be a bit more prolific in my writing. 😉 Before I move on to monsters from adventure and campaign setting books, I thought I should continue first with monsters found in the Monster…
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Usually I break monsters and opponents into two categories, solitary opponents and clans, packs or gangs. Sometimes Dungeon Masters choose tougher solitary opponents more frequently than packs or gangs. (myself included) Many times the more solitary opponents have really cool characteristics, attacks, and feats that draw attention. While both provide challenges, having a pack or…
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This is the first post of a recurring series of monster of the week. This series will be used to share my favourite monsters and the unique capabilities of monsters and strategies that can be used with the monsters. Anyone that has played with me can probably attest that I love Mimics – perhaps too…
