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Rappy
2010-03-09, 06:03 PM
Greetings, all. First off, apologies if this isn't the right section for this kind of an endeavor. I don't think I've ever really seen a Let's Read outside of RPGNet, much less on GITP.

Second off, what exactly is this thread about? Well, for that, we need a little backstory...

How did this start?
Last month, I decided I wished to undertake the endeavor of reading and commenting on the entirety of the over 400 page title known as the Tome of Horrors; specifically, Tome of Horrors Revised, the 3.5 update to the original 3.0 title. It started off as a blog project, but I realized after a little while that that goes against the spirit of a Let's Read, which includes discussion and interaction on the topic at hand.



How does this work?
Each update, I will take a handful (usually three, four, or five, but sometimes a few more if it's a sparse update) of creatures from the Tome of Horrors and emplace the basics on them and my opinion of them. After these creatures have been posted, discussion can be had amongst those in the thread (and myself) until the next set is posted; note that while most of the thread shall be in order, the demons and devils will be covered later as if they were one of the appendices due to their sheer bulk of numbers.



What the heck is a "Tome of Horrors"?
The Tome of Horrors, from Necromancer Games, is what I personally consider one of the greatest gifts to Dungeons and Dragons. It takes a large collection of TSR's 1st and 2nd Edition monsters (as well as a handful of original creations) and updates them to 3E rules, and emplaces them as Open Game Content, no less! I'm amazed they managed to get Wizards of the Coast to agree to such terms, but...hey, it's beneficial to us, so why pry?



Main Contents
Al-Mi'raj; Amphisbaena; Angel, Monadic Deva; Angel, Movanic Deva (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=8050156&postcount=8)

Animal Lord; Ant Lion; Apparition (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=8056082&postcount=9)

Archer Bush; Ascomoid; Astral Shark; Atomie; Aurumvorax; Axe Beak; Babbler; Banderlog (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=8058359&postcount=19)

Baric; Barrow Wight; Basidirond; Basilisk, Greater; Doombat & Mobat; Beetles: Giant Boring, Giant Death Watch, Giant Rhinoceros & Giant Slicer (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=8063288&postcount=31)

Belabra; Bhuta; Blindheim; Blood Hawk; Bloody Bones; Boalisk (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=8067219&postcount=39)

Bog Beast; Bog Mummy; Boggart; Bone Cobbler; Bonesnapper; Bonesucker (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=8069417&postcount=40)

Brownie; Buckawn; Bunyip; Carbuncle; Carrion Moth; Caryatid Column (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=8081027&postcount=41)

Caterwaul; Cave Cricket; Cave Fisher; Cave Moray; Cerberus; Chrystone; Clam, Giant (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=8110613&postcount=47)

Clockworks: Brain Gear, Drone, Overseer, Parasite, Scout, Swarm, Titan, Warrior (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=8125147&postcount=59)

Clubnek; Cobra Flower; Coffer Corpse; Cooshee; Crab, Monstrous; Crabman; Crayfish, Monstrous (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=8209950&postcount=60)

Crystalline Horror; Crypt Thing; Daemons: Cacodaemon, Charon, Charonodaemon, Darghodaemon, Hydrodaemon, the Oinodaemon & Piscodaemon (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=8212437&postcount=64)

Dakon; Dark Creeper & Dark Stalker; Darnoc; Death Dog; Death Worm; Decapus; (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=8232594&postcount=69)

Demiurge; Demodands: Shaggy, Slime, & Tarry (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=8251872&postcount=70)

Diger; Dire Corby; Disenchanter; Dracolisk (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=8258816&postcount=80)

Dragons: Cloud, Faerie & Mist; Dragon Horse (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=8301907&postcount=81)

Dragonfish; Dragonfly, Giant; Dragonnel; Drake (Fire, Ice and Salt) (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=8332400&postcount=84)

Draug; Drelb; Dust Digger; Eblis; Eel, Giant Moray; Elementals: Psionic & Time; Elemental Dragon; Executioner's Hood (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=8339757&postcount=88)

Eye Killer; Eye of the Deep; False Spider; Fen Witch; Fire Lizard; Fire Nymph (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=8346788&postcount=90)

Fire Snake; Firefiend; Flail Snail; Flind; Floating Eye; Flumph (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=8361349&postcount=91)

Fly, Giant; Fogwarden; Forester's Bane; Forlarren; Frog, Monstrous; Froghemoth (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=8382449&postcount=100)

Frost Man; Gambado; Gargoyle (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=8384800&postcount=111)

Ghoul-Stirge; Giants: Sand & Wood; Gloomwing (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=8391706&postcount=117)

Golems: Blood, Ice, Stone Guardian, Tallow & Wood; Gorbel (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=8403602&postcount=118)

Gorgimera; Gorgon, True; Gorilla-Bear; Grippli; Groaning Spirit (Banshee) (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=8408821&postcount=128)

Gryph; Guardian Daemon; Hangman Tree; Haunt; Hellmoth; Hippocampus (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=8421928&postcount=140)

Hoar Fox; Huecuva; Inphidian, Common; Iron Cobra; Jack-o'-Lantern (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=8434589&postcount=143)

Jaculi; Jellyfish, Monstrous; Jupiter Bloodsucker; Kamadan; Kampfult; Kech (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=8448318&postcount=147)

Kelp Devil; Kelpie; Khargra (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=8473433&postcount=155)

Killmoulis; Korred (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=8528072&postcount=157)

Land Lamprey; Lava Child (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=8550688&postcount=167)

Leech, Giant; Leprechaun; Livestone; Lurker Above (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=8573294&postcount=174)

Magnesium Spirit; Mandragora; Mantari (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=8609995&postcount=190)

Marble Snake; Medusa, Greater (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=8661213&postcount=196)

Midnight Peddler; Mihstu; Mite (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=8668991&postcount=201)

Mongrelman (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=8684611&postcount=203)

Moon Dog; Muckdweller; Mudman; Mummy of the Deep (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=8725816&postcount=209)

Mustard Jelly; Necrophidius (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=8752991&postcount=212)

Nereid; Nilbog (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=8763099&postcount=222)

Obsidian Minotaur; Ogre, Half-; Ogrillion (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=8777544&postcount=229)

Oliphant; Oozes: Crystal, Magma, Mercury & Undead (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=8814589&postcount=233)

Ooze, Vampiric; Orog (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=8829319&postcount=235)

Pech; Phantom Stalker; Phycomid (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=8844859&postcount=236)

Poltergeist; Protector; Puddings: Brown, Dun & White (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=8859184&postcount=240)

Pyrolisk; Quasi-Elemental, Lightning; Quickling (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=8883087&postcount=248)

Quickwood; Rats: Brain, Ethereal, and Shadow (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=8891729&postcount=251)

Rock Reptile; Sandling; Sandman (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=8904707&postcount=259)

Scarecrow; Screaming Devilkin (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=8926874&postcount=260)

Scythe Tree; Shadow, Lesser; Shedu (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=8955001&postcount=266)

Slime Crawler; Slithering Tracker; Slug, Giant (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=9040870&postcount=299)

Soul Eater (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=9062614&postcount=307)

Soul Nibbler; Spriggan; Sprite (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=9101777&postcount=310)

Squealer; Stegocentipede (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=9120047&postcount=313)

Stench Kow; Stone Roper; Stormwarden (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=9141121&postcount=323)

Strangle Weed; Stunjelly; Stymphalian Bird (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=9148046&postcount=329)

Tabaxi; Taer; Tenebrous Worm (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=9156452&postcount=336)

Tentamort; Thorny; Thunder Beast (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=9173956&postcount=340)

Tick, Giant; Transposer; Trapper (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=9188259&postcount=343)

Tri-Flower Frond; Trolls: Cave and Ice (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=9214134&postcount=344)

Trolls: Rock, Swamp, and Two-Headed (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=9224127&postcount=348)

Tsathar; Tunnel Worm; Ubue (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=9237911&postcount=349)

Vampire Rose; Vegepygmy; Vilstrak; Volt (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=9250588&postcount=353)

Vulchling; Wind Walker; Witherstench; Witherweed; Wizard's Shackle (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=9258123&postcount=359)

Wolves: Ghoul and Shadow; Wolf-in-Sheep's-Clothing; Wolf-Spider (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=9268300&postcount=360)

Yellow Musk Creeper; Yeti; Zombie, Brine (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=9275962&postcount=364)



Templates Appendix Contents
Abomination; Beast of Chaos (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=9282655&postcount=365)

Bleeding Horror; Dire Animal (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=9301313&postcount=366)

Foo Creature; Skeleton Warrior (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=9321454&postcount=368)

Slime Zombie; Spectral Troll (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=9327954&postcount=375)

Therianthrope; Thessalmonster (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=9337231&postcount=377)

Zombies: Juju and Yellow Musk (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=9340377&postcount=381)



Hazards Appendix Contents
Bookworm; Ear Seeker; Gas Spore (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=9347769&postcount=388)

Hound of Ill Omen; Memory Moss; Olive Slime (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=9357860&postcount=391)

Phantom; Piercer; Purple Moss (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=9362234&postcount=399)

Rot Grub; Russet Mold; Spinal Leech (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=9369621&postcount=414)

Symbiotic Jelly; Throat Leech; Twilight Mushroom (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=9378233&postcount=420)



Animals Appendix
Barracuda; Caribe, Giant; Deer (post also contains a note on the Snakes appendix) (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=9380792&postcount=424)

Eel, Electric; Fox; Hamster, Giant (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=9389373&postcount=425)

Hippopotamus; Lizard, Giant Rock-Horned, Marmoset, Giant (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=9395568&postcount=428)

Moose; Quipper; Sheep (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=9427089&postcount=429)

Skunk; Tiger Barb, Giant; Turtle, Giant Snapping (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=9432818&postcount=441)



Demons and Devils
Demons: Aeshma, Alu-, and Baphomet (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=9433106&postcount=449)

Demons: Beluiri the Temptress, Cambion, and Dagon (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=9438787&postcount=462)

Demons: Corruptor Demons, Daraka, and Fraz-Urb'luu (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=9459294&postcount=464)

Demons: Gharros, Jubilex the Faceless Lord, and Kostchtchie (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=9472076&postcount=465)

Demons: Maphistal, Nabasu, and Nerizo (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=9478802&postcount=472)

Demons: Orcus, Pazuzu, and Shadow Demon (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=9486050&postcount=473)

Demons: Sonechard, Stirge Demon, and Tsathogga (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=9492104&postcount=480)

Demonic Knight, Devils: Amon and Baaphel (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=9506030&postcount=482)

Devils: Bael, Geryon, and Ghaddar (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=9529528&postcount=483)

Devils: Gorson, Hutijin, and Lucifer (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=9552039&postcount=486)

Devils: Moloch, Nupperibo, Titivilus, and Tormentor Devil (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=9580286&postcount=487)



That's about it for what you need to know, so prepare yourselves for a collection of creepy, kooky, and sometimes downright nonsensical beasts. Get out your masterwork blades and armors, because here there be monsters. And here's the first batch now!

---------------------------------

Adherer
Our very first monster, and we're already at a weirdy. The adherer is a strange CR 3 Aberration that resembles nothing so much as a wet mummy. Then you realize that it's not a bandaged corpse; it's a very living thing with rolls of loose-skin wrinkles coated in a copious adhesive slime (ewww indeed). These freaky fiends like to hang out in temperate-weather forests, coating their sticky body with detritus to camouflage themselves before waiting for whatever happens to come along. Now, as odd as they are, I actually like the adherer. They're an interesting concept in that they're a monster that actively uses their strange abilities and environment to their advantage, and they also provide a challenge to melee combatants due to their adhesive skin folds. They are also damaged by boiling water, which is an interesting anecdote, if a bit silly as a weakness. Overall, a solid B+ monster in my book, and pretty creative for what is basically a low-level melee brute.



Aerial Servant
This creature, on the other hand, I'm not so sure about. The aerial servant is a CR 11 Elemental whose soul purpose is basically to act as a private slave for spellcasters (specifically Clerics, according to the fluff). These lesser genie-like beings of the air have phenomenal Strength (noted as being why they are often summoned for heavy labor), a constricting grapple with their oversized hands, some basic "I blow you over" wind powers, and a constant mental link with its summoner. Now, on its own, I'd give the aerial sla...er...servant a C for being a spellcaster footstool and nothing more, but then I think about the possibilities for the fluff behind it. What makes the aerial servants so tied to servitude? They aren't unintelligent like golems (sure, they are Intelligence 4, lower than even an ogre, but it's still higher than animal Int), they have a physical appearance a bit too close to genies for comfort, and they are compelled to obey. Perhaps they are genies transformed as some sort of penance (a magical community service, if you will), or they may be an even older progenitor race the djinn displaced and geas'd into servitude. The gears turn in my head oh so pleasantly...



Algoid
Algoids, algoids, algoids. What can I say about you that you don't already know? You're a CR 4 Plant type, freaky, you're smelly, you're a freaking humanoid-shaped clump of algae animated by mental energy. But seriously, the algoids are a fun but weird critter. You have this shambling hulk of swamp mulch who has developed a colonial intellect that allows it to perform a MIND CRUSH!! attack (okay, so it's a stunning mental scrambler rather than an utter devastation attack....I still had to make that reference. It's in my contract, I believe) as well as perform some very minor psionics. I wonder what kind of society a species of semi-intelligent (strangely enough, like both the adherer and aerial servant, the algoid also had Intelligence 4...huh) walking algae have? I'd vouch for shamanistic nature-worshipers that revere the "Gracious Swamp", myself. This one's a B-; odd and kinda hard to use, but fun in my honest opinion. I also give kudos to Necromancer Games for what they did with the algoid and every other psionic monster in this title. Any time you find a psionic monster in the Tome of Horrors, you'll find a sidebar detailing spells that you can replace the psionics with if you aren't in a psi-focused campaign. How thoughtful!



Welp, that's it for our first installment, so get some discussion started on these critters. Coming up next time: strange blink bunnies, a twin-headed serpent, and two members of the angelic armies.

bosssmiley
2010-03-09, 08:52 PM
What? Tome of Horrors got rid of the Aerial Servant's iconic RAGEQUIT! get-out clause? What a crock! :smallyuk:

(For the record: "IF thwarted in mission THEN return to summoner and kill his fleshbag self")

Starbuck_II
2010-03-09, 09:17 PM
So does it say how to summon the Aerial Servant? That would help.

Thane of Fife
2010-03-09, 10:37 PM
I wonder what kind of society a species of semi-intelligent (strangely enough, like both the adherer and aerial servant, the algoid also had Intelligence 4...huh) walking algae have? I'd vouch for shamanistic nature-worshipers that revere the "Gracious Swamp", myself.

Hmmm. Maybe they're like some kind of pseudo-illithids. You know, some algae, of course, grows on the surface of the mind flayers' mind pools, and the illithids generally just scrape it off and throw it away. But that algae has been tainted by its birth place. It grows into twisted mockeries of the illithids, struggling to emulate their horrible societies. In the end, though, it's just algae, so maybe it uses its psionic powers to capture people, but is then unable to actually enslave them, although the algoids fail to consider that, and so they are able to just walk out, admittedly into a dangerous locale. Could be a good basis for a low-level "get back to civilization" style adventure.

Olo Demonsbane
2010-03-09, 10:56 PM
I misread the thread title as Tomb of Horrors, and was therefore extremely confused for a good deal of the post. :smalltongue:

Deth Muncher
2010-03-09, 11:00 PM
I misread the thread title as Tomb of Horrors, and was therefore extremely confused for a good deal of the post. :smalltongue:

You're not alone.

Akal Saris
2010-03-10, 12:05 AM
Likewise - I kept thinking: 'There's no flumphs in the Tomb of Horrors...only ability damage and suffering...'

Rappy
2010-03-10, 12:42 PM
What? Tome of Horrors got rid of the Aerial Servant's iconic RAGEQUIT! get-out clause? What a crock! :smallyuk:

(For the record: "IF thwarted in mission THEN return to summoner and kill his fleshbag self")
Looking closer, it does have that clause still in it. It's just kinda sandwiched...the formatting of the aerial servant's paragraphs is smushed together for whatever reason (possibly to keep the entire entry on one page).


So does it say how to summon the Aerial Servant? That would help.
Greater planar ally and greater planar binding, specifically. Sorry about that; these posts were originally written for a not necessarily 3E-familiar audience, so they sometimes seem a little redundant or silly. I'll try to keep that in mind when we reach the posts that aren't prewritten.


Hmmm. Maybe they're like some kind of pseudo-illithids. You know, some algae, of course, grows on the surface of the mind flayers' mind pools, and the illithids generally just scrape it off and throw it away. But that algae has been tainted by its birth place. It grows into twisted mockeries of the illithids, struggling to emulate their horrible societies. In the end, though, it's just algae, so maybe it uses its psionic powers to capture people, but is then unable to actually enslave them, although the algoids fail to consider that, and so they are able to just walk out, admittedly into a dangerous locale. Could be a good basis for a low-level "get back to civilization" style adventure.
This. This is a great idea. I never thought to tie the algoids to one of the Big Minds in psionic monsters, but it's a good idea; it's also not unprecedented when you consider creatures like the illithidae (illithid-dogs, etc.).

Also, to those who mistook this for the infamous Tomb: yeah, I think that's what the TOH's name is a pun of. It actually does have some Tomb of Horrors-related monsters later, but that's not for a ways now.

---------------------------------

Al-Mi'raj
The curious and quirky al-mi'raj is a little CR 1 Magical Beast that resembles a woolly, unicorn-horned rabbit. They are sort of a one-trick pony, with their prime ability being teleportation and dimension-shifting in addition to an immunity to poison and a Spell Resistance rating of 16; it's actually an interesting idea, and one that makes sense for a magically-charged ecosystem to produce as a defense against predators. They are also capable of dealing the same damage as a knife with their horn, which isn't too shabby when you consider that it's a rabbit we're talking about. Also provided are stats for the heftier CR 2 psionic al-mi'raj, which is essentially a slightly heftier al-mi'raj with some basic telekinetic and weather-controlling powers. Fun fact for this entry: al-mi'raj fur comes in white, yellow, green, and pink! Designer al-mi'raj at wizard pet shows, anyone? They also happen to be from Arabic poetry rather than a TSR whole-cloth oddity, believe it or not.



Amphisbaena
Here we have a CR 4 Magical Beast based on Greek mythology; it's a snake with a second head instead of a tail. It works exactly how you'd expect it to for the most part, so....meh. It does have an interesting feature in that it can survive being cut in half, with each half surviving the ordeal (if they aren't killed with their halved hit point count) and rejoining in a day or two. The creature becomes more interesting if you look at its origin story in Greek mythology, wherein it is stated that the amphisbaena were spawned from the blood that fell to the earth from the decapitated head of Medusa. Perhaps amphisbaena are kept as sacred animals by D&Dverse medusae and used in some sort of arcane ritual by them?



Angel, Monadic Deva
These dark-skinned winged musclemen are the ground troop leaders of the angelic armies, and at a Challenge Rating of 12, these Outsiders are nothing to sneeze at. Monadic devas carry a large arsenal of holy magic, a Spell Resistance rank of 28, and wield a mighty adamantine mace that deals utterly decimating damage to Outsiders and Constructs. Outsiders I can understand, demons and devils alike being of that creature type, but...why Constructs? The fluff doesn't explain this, but I'm guessing it's for things like dread golems from Ravenloft or Inevitables. Other than this odd note, they're rather standard "I smash teh ebuls!" celestials, so...they're okay, but not anything great.



Angel, Movanic Deva
If the monadics are the officers of the angelic choirs, then the silvery-sheened movanics are the footsoldiers. These CR 10 Outsiders deal directly with strong mortals such as Paladins in order to snuff out evil. They have similar spells to the monadic deva, but their Spell Resistance is a slightly weaker 26 and their weapon of choice is a good ol' fashioned fiery greatsword. They also have an aura that prevents animals and plants from willingly attacking them, presumably as a side-effect of the fact that they are the direct interactors between the mortal and celestial planes and it'd be rather embarrassing if movanic devas were being constantly chased by guard dogs.

---------------------------------

Up next time, we have our first two unique creatures in the Animal Lords, as well as a big bug and a scary spirit.

Rappy
2010-03-11, 08:26 AM
Animal Lord
The Animal Lords are, as their title implies, Outsiders that are the lords of animals. Two are presented here; the CR 15 Cat Lord and the CR 13 Mouse Lord. Both animal lords have telepathy and the ability to speak the tongue of their animal wards, damage reduction surpassed by magic and cold iron, spell resistance (at 28 and 26 rankage respectively), thematic spell-like abilities (sneakery for the Mouse Lord, speed and agility for the Cat Lord). near immortality, immunity to mind-affecting powers, the ability to command and pacify their chosen animal, and shapeshifting from human to beast form. The Cat Lord has vicious claws and a blinding spittle attack to up his specific powers, while the Mouse Lord augments her ability with plague-spreading.

The lords do not interfere with the general nature of things, but will step in if there is the thread of mass or even localized annihilation of their subjects; thus, the Animal Lords are unlikely to be encountered unless you are traveling to their planes or you've started beating up animals left and right. I'm somewhat disappointed that the two chosen Animal Lords were of such generic creatures, but I guess I can't get my wish for things like Rhino Lords and Crocodile Lords just because I'm an odd person.



Ant Lion
This CR 6 vermin is, unsurprisingly, a giant version of the ant lion. For those of you that don't know, ant lions are the larval form of a species of lacewing; they are chubby little grubs with nasty tweezer-jaws that snap up ants like candy. They dig pits designed to cause an ant or similar small insect to slip and trip right into their waiting maws. As a result, the giant ant lion takes the same concept and upscales it for monstrous vermin...and unfortunate humanoids. I imagine these would be fun to use as an alternate to the standard "it's a sandworm!" desert encounters.



Apparition
Haha, our first undead of the book, and quite the nasty one at that. Apparitions are a hearty CR 7 that, on first gaze, is your typical "can't go out in the daylight, creates spawn, meh" undead; on second look, however, you'll see that it distinguishes itself from other incorporeal spirits in several ways. First is that its unnatural aura scares animals witless, which plays into the whole idea that ghosts get dogs, cats, horses, etc. riled up when they are present. Second is that it knows where every living thing in a 100-foot radius is, and just how lively it is. Third, and most shockingly unpleasant, is that it can implant a mental seed of fear that requires a victim to make a Fortitude save or immediately die of a heart attack! Now that's what I call a nasty monster, friends. While it's definitely an interesting spirit, I can't help but think it might be a bit overkill, and I can't honestly say I would rather use these than the more versatile ghosts, since they can be applied to many creatures of different levels rather than a single static critter. They also don't give people heart attacks. >_>;

----------------------------------

Alrighty, here's your next set of targets, folks. Next time, we'll be looking at two peculiar plants, a freaky fish, and a finicky fey.

Nich_Critic
2010-03-11, 09:19 AM
How would you run an encounter with an ant lion? My players don't tend to dive in as their first action when I say "pit".

Related unrelated question, would the players get experience if in a large spanning desert they found an ant lion pit and walked around it? I'm in two minds. They didn't actually face a challenge (they could have done it just as easily at level 1 then as level 6), so they shouldn't get exp, but I don't want to discourage being cautious either.

Starbuck_II
2010-03-11, 09:45 AM
How would you run an encounter with an ant lion? My players don't tend to dive in as their first action when I say "pit".

Related unrelated question, would the players get experience if in a large spanning desert they found an ant lion pit and walked around it? I'm in two minds. They didn't actually face a challenge (they could have done it just as easily at level 1 then as level 6), so they shouldn't get exp, but I don't want to discourage being cautious either.

Depends on Party Objective: you get Exp for achieving goals. Bypassing an obstacle to that goal = exp.
If monsters not related to goal than not affecting Exp if bypass (fighting it my make achgiving goal harder so Exp).
DMG example, sneaking pass a troll guarding a passage = full EXP.

Rappy
2010-03-11, 11:09 AM
How would you run an encounter with an ant lion? My players don't tend to dive in as their first action when I say "pit".

Related unrelated question, would the players get experience if in a large spanning desert they found an ant lion pit and walked around it? I'm in two minds. They didn't actually face a challenge (they could have done it just as easily at level 1 then as level 6), so they shouldn't get exp, but I don't want to discourage being cautious either.
Real ant lions flick sand at insects that traverse the rims of their pits to make them fall down faster. How exactly you'd replicate this in D&D, I'm not sure...breath weapon, maybe?

Hey, maybe give it the Monstrous Beast template from Savage Species and have a fire-breathing uber-predator giant ant lion! :smallbiggrin:

HenryHankovitch
2010-03-11, 02:45 PM
Real ant lions flick sand at insects that traverse the rims of their pits to make them fall down faster. How exactly you'd replicate this in D&D, I'm not sure...breath weapon, maybe?

Hey, maybe give it the Monstrous Beast template from Savage Species and have a fire-breathing uber-predator giant ant lion! :smallbiggrin:

You could make the antlion's pit more of a sinkhole type of trap that a large animal could unintentionally stumble into, instead of an obvious, conical pit.

Explain it however you like. Like, it creates a cavity in the sand, holding the walls in place with some sort of secreted substance. The solidified goop normally keeps the cavity stable, until a large enough creature walks on it. Or maybe the antlion senses the vibrations of approaching creatures, and deliberately collapses the sinkhole beneath it when something is overhead.

Added bonus if the adventurers falling into the pit have a chance of being immobilized or even buried by the ensuing mini-avalanche of sand.

Eloel
2010-03-11, 03:12 PM
I misread the thread title as Tomb of Horrors, and was therefore extremely confused for a good deal of the post. :smalltongue:

I thought he had a typo all through OP. Thanks for clarification :D

Thane of Fife
2010-03-11, 03:12 PM
Hmm...


Amphisbaena

Does it mention that they move by biting their neck and rolling like a wheel? Because that was always my favorite part about Amphisbaenas.


Devas

In the 2e Planescape MC, Monadic Devas are the ones sent to the Elemental Planes, and their weapons do extra damage against "solid creatures (for example, those made of stone) and metal-armored opponents." Perhaps this was translated into extra damage against constructs?


Apparition

Does it say anything about what causes the creation of apparitions?

And since we got them both together, one wonders what kind of effect apparitions have on animal lords.

Rappy
2010-03-11, 04:26 PM
I thought he had a typo all through OP. Thanks for clarification :D
She, if you meant my opening post. But 'tis a minor quibble due to how small the gender icon is.


Does it mention that they move by biting their neck and rolling like a wheel? Because that was always my favorite part about Amphisbaenas.
That it does, it's the last of the three (yes, only three) fluff sentences given to the amphisbaena, the others being one that mentions its length and one that says that it likes to live in dark, damp places or near water.


In the 2e Planescape MC, Monadic Devas are the ones sent to the Elemental Planes, and their weapons do extra damage against "solid creatures (for example, those made of stone) and metal-armored opponents." Perhaps this was translated into extra damage against constructs?
That would explain it, yes. Thanks!


Does it say anything about what causes the creation of apparitions?

And since we got them both together, one wonders what kind of effect apparitions have on animal lords.
They're spirits "driven to evil" because they died prematurely in an accident. Seriously.

Also, since the apparition's heart attack-induction power is listed as a suggestion-based ability, the Animal Lords are immune to them. Of course, even if they were and somehow saved their Fortitude save, their soul just reforms on the Astral Plane over 9 days.

Oslecamo
2010-03-11, 04:37 PM
Angel, Movanic Deva
If the monadics are the officers of the angelic choirs, then the silvery-sheened movanics are the footsoldiers. These CR 10 Outsiders deal directly with strong mortals such as Paladins in order to snuff out evil. They have similar spells to the monadic deva, but their Spell Resistance is a slightly weaker 26 and their weapon of choice is a good ol' fashioned fiery greatsword. They also have an aura that prevents animals and plants from willingly attacking them, presumably as a side-effect of the fact that they are the direct interactors between the mortal and celestial planes and it'd be rather embarrassing if movanic devas were being constantly chased by guard dogs.

They seriously nerfed the poor thing. Not only it's it's CR higher than the original (foot soldiers at CR 10?), it lost it's main special ability that made it a quite usefull monster instead of just another flying girl with SLAs and random auras.

Eldan
2010-03-11, 04:45 PM
Animal lords! Man, why haven't I found this book a year back when I needed a cat lord. Too bad they didn't bring the Lizard Lord back, he always looked cool.

Rappy
2010-03-11, 05:13 PM
Animal lords! Man, why haven't I found this book a year back when I needed a cat lord. Too bad they didn't bring the Lizard Lord back, he always looked cool.
I hear you there. I only found it last year, after I'd already been converted into a d20 Modern fangirl. That's not to say that it isn't convertible to that system, though...

Also, this time, we have a double-dose. Why? Mostly because I felt like it, and a few of the monsters this time are rather lackluster.

---------------------------------

Archer Bush
The archer bush is a CR 2 Plant whose appearance is that of a slowly shambling pile of leaves and thorny sticks; think a shambling mound, only sucky. The archer bush's sole claim to fame is that it can launch a barrage of projectile needles that deals the same damage as a strike with a longsword (!) and forces the target to remove the spines or be forced to fight impeded. This would be rather interesting...if it weren't for the fact that the attack only has a range of 20 feet. This means that any spellcaster or ranged fighter makes this already rather poor critter even more pathetic. The only way I can see the archer bush being more than a Fighter-fumbler is if you play it as a stealthy ambush predator, hiding itself amongst normal bushes and waiting for its prey to get close.



Ascomoid
Fear the mighty giant puffball! No, seriously, the CR 5 Plant known as the ascomoid is a 10-foot wide sphere of fungal fluff. What makes this amusing creature frightening is that it is both deceptively fast (40-foot base speed for a 'shroom ball? Dang!), resistant to most damage you can throw at it, and can both run over opponents and fire grenade-like explosive spores that deal 2d6 points of Constitution damage. Even more unpleasant is what the ascomoid does with its adventurer quarry; anything slain by the power-puff has its vital liquids suctioned out for sustenance, leaving them as a desiccated husk. I imagine the ascomoid works best as an atmospheric encounter. Imagine a cavern, littered with shriveled corpses coated in a fine powder. What did this? Certainly not any undead, the odd powder and lack of any spawn goes against that idea. Then, all of the sudden, a rumble from higher up in the cavern as an ominous cloud of choking spores fills the air... As a side note, this creature also has 3E stats in Dungeonscape, which was written by someone you are all probably familiar with...you know, considering we're on his website an' all. :smalltongue:



Astral Shark
CR 6 Outsiders that are...well...sharks of the astral plane. Not much to say beyond "Wait, what?" and "holy crap they have an insta-death attack". Yes, dear readers, the astral shark can, on a successful critical hit, sever an astral traveler's silver cord (the tether that keeps an astral projector's mind connected to their physical body, according to popular occult lore) and immediately both dissipate their astral projection and kill their material body. Meh...



Atomie
The miniscule atomie are your typical mischievous fey race; they're tiny, they're "whimsical", and they're annoying. These CR 1 tiny terrors have Spell Resistance 16 and damage reduction 5/cold iron, so even if you do hit the flightly little suckers you probably won't hurt them that much anyway. They also have the standard "fey array" of spell-like abilities: invisibility, entangling plant spells, communication with animals, the like. They do, however, at least have some interesting fluff to work on. It is stated that an atomie family stakes the claim to the entirety of a single tree, in spite of their handheld size. This could be worked on with a refluffing of less whimsical prankster and more classic fae; the atomie may be part of the Trooping Faeries, their warbands stalking the forest floor in search of intruders. These atomies fight fiercely with each other as well, defending their sacred family trees with zealotrous rage. But that's just my take on it, your results may vary.



Aurumvorax
The CR 9 aurumvorax, or "golden gorger", is an eight-legged weasel-like creature with a golden pelt and a vicious temper. Their unpleasant temper, combined with a sweet tooth for gold and gold ores, makes the aurumvorax a key enemy of the dwarves they share the forest-side hills and mountains with. I imagine, however, that a tamed aurumvorax might make a key ally to a dwarven fortress. Since they are primarily carnivorous, all you'd need to do was train it to not eat the deposits it sniffs out and give it a little bit of the gold as a treat now and then. It could also make a good guard "dog" with its Damage Reduction 10 and further Fire Resistance 10. Other than that, there's not much to say, since the aurumvorax is the standard melee tank beyond its odd metallivorous habits.



Axe Beak
These unpleasant animals resemble nothing so much as ostriches on steroids. With thick bodies, powerful legs, and a razor-sharp beak, these CR 2 plains-dwellers are more or less the lions of Lost World environments. They are also extremely vicious and their flocks of 3 to 6 individuals will race after fleeing prey with frightening speed and determination; considering they are as fast a horse, one can imagine how this is a very bad thing. As a fun aside, the fluff states that the mother lays 1d4 eggs, and both the eggs and the hatchlings fetch anywhere from 50 to 80 gold pieces. Why exactly you'd want a vicious murder-bird unless you are running a gladiatorial arena or want a very odd mount, I dunno.



Babbler
Take an allosaur. Stretch its body out like a sausage. Give it stumpy little legs. A weird allegory or metaphor? No, that's simply the appearance of CR 3 Magical Beast known as the babbler. This quirky reptile is not only of human intelligence, but also is a Chaotic Evil anthropophage (who savors dwarven, elven, and human meat above all else) and has a +2d6 sneak attack! Its name comes from its crude, burbling language, if you were curious. I....have little more to say, really. It's weird.



Banderlog
Banderlogs are another sapient beastfolk, this time CR 3 baboon-people of the deep jungles. They travel in groups of 2 to 26 individuals, browsing through the forest for both small animals, fruits, and nuts, under the command of the largest banderlog of the tribe. Their language consists of typical monkey sounds and a form of hand signalling when hunting or hiding...hmm, interesting. According to the Tome, banderlogs typically coexist with other tribes of their kind, but will get testy during times of scarce food.

I say pshh to this! They are baboon-people who wield clubs and projectile coconuts and have Barbarian as their favored class, make those suckers territorial warring tribes that often engage in raids for food. Baboons are by far one of the most unpleasant primates I've had the misfortune to be around, and I'd say that the banderlog, like the orcs they share an Intelligence score ranking with, should be equally unpleasant.

Finally, a fun fact: the banderlogs get their name from the Bandar-Log, the monkey tribe of Rudyard Kipling's famous tome, The Jungle Book. I must admit that the Bandar-Log have, as a result, colored my perception of how I treat the banderlog in my use of them.

---------------------------------

Up next time, we have polybrachial pack-hunting platypi, barrow-dwelling bodies, psychotropic plants, big basilisks, bats, and beetles.

Deth Muncher
2010-03-11, 05:16 PM
So, I'm just gonna go ahead and ask: What the HELL is a Hufflepuff Flindbar?

Rappy
2010-03-11, 05:29 PM
So, I'm just gonna go ahead and ask: What the HELL is a Hufflepuff Flindbar?
Flindbars are weapons wielded by the flind, which are sort of like the gnoll equivalent of hobgoblins. We won't see them for a while, but no one ever said I was a woman of consistency.

Deth Muncher
2010-03-11, 05:32 PM
Flindbars are weapons wielded by the flind, which are sort of like the gnoll equivalent of hobgoblins. We won't see them for a while, but no one ever said I was a woman of consistency.

Oh. Well, carry on then. :smalltongue:

arguskos
2010-03-11, 05:33 PM
Flindbars are weapons wielded by the flind, which are sort of like the gnoll equivalent of hobgoblins. We won't see them for a while, but no one ever said I was a woman of consistency.
You are aware that a good number of these creatures have been printed by WotC, including the Flind (who are awesome, btw), right?

Also, this is entertaining to read, do continue. :smallcool:

Rappy
2010-03-11, 05:43 PM
You are aware that a good number of these creatures have been printed by WotC, including the Flind (who are awesome, btw), right?

Also, this is entertaining to read, do continue. :smallcool:
Correct, they have. Necromancer Games got specific permission to utilize them for the Tome of Horrors; otherwise, they'd be in so much hot water I doubt even their bones would be left.

I'm not complaining, though, since that means that publications like Pathfinder can legally use such creatures due to their appearance in the Tome.

But I digress...

Starbuck_II
2010-03-11, 05:57 PM
So, I'm just gonna go ahead and ask: What the HELL is a Hufflepuff Flindbar?

A Exotic Nunchaku used by Gnolls. No seriously, they just Nunchakus that don't suck.
They are what the nunchaku should have been in the PHB.

Rappy
2010-03-11, 06:05 PM
A Exotic Nunchaku used by Gnolls. No seriously, they just Nunchakus that don't suck.
They are what the nunchaku should have been in the PHB.
Conveniently, along with korred shears (again, stuff we won't be getting to in a while, but yeah...), flindbars are printed with OGL stats in this title. Those are the only weapons in this title besides the artifact called (IIRC) the "Axe of Blood", though, unless I missed some.

But I'm again getting off of the topic of the current creatures, silly me. :smallredface:

Stubbed Tongue
2010-03-11, 10:38 PM
This might be totally off topic or spot on, since I can't remember the source...remember a critter called an 'Aleaxx' ? It was a critter sent after you by a God, it had your exact gear and stats but I think it also had regen. Anyone remember? I'd like to see a 3.x version of that.

The Glyphstone
2010-03-11, 10:53 PM
Didn't they reprint the Aleaxx in BoED?

Stubbed Tongue
2010-03-11, 11:27 PM
Didn't they reprint the Aleaxx in BoED?

LOL, I don't know did they?

Eldan
2010-03-12, 02:58 AM
They did, yes.


Hmm. Anyone know where the Astral Shark is originally from? Because I seem to faintly remember Planescape mentioning that only Dreadnoughts and Silver swords can cut cords.

Rappy
2010-03-12, 11:52 AM
They did, yes.


Hmm. Anyone know where the Astral Shark is originally from? Because I seem to faintly remember Planescape mentioning that only Dreadnoughts and Silver swords can cut cords.
Astral sharks are one of those previous mentioned handfuls of original creatures. Out of the over 400 beasts presented, they are like motes of dust, but they tend to be...erm...how to say it...

Brightly-colored, awakened, screaming dust speck Bards?

---------------------------------

Baric
Looking like nothing so much as a six-legged land-adapted platypus, the CR 1 Magical Beast known as the baric is a vicious pack-hunter of the deep underground. While only about 3 feet in length, they are quite violent and attack with their toothed-beaks and long claws, attacking in groups of up to eight individuals. The fluff is very vague, stating things like that "some races" try (and rarely succeed) to domesticate barics and that the largest baric can reach up to an imposing 7 feet in length. The baric were originally a monster from a specific adventure entitled Palace of the Silver Princess, which I would imagine is why it didn't get much thought beyond a few snippets of fluff. That means, of course, we are left to ponder the fluff ourselves.



Barrow Wight
Now there's a name anyone familiar with Lord of the Rings should at least passingly remember. Barrow wights are CR 4 Undead that prowl burial mounds, guarding the treasures of the dead from the invasions of the living. In addition to the standard wight abilities such as energy draining and spawn creation, the barrow wight's burning gaze can bring insanity in the minds of the weak-willed. This is a creature that has interesting fluff and tough (but not too tough) powers, making it a good encounter for heroes that decide that grave robbing might be a lucrative enterprise.



Basidirond
The basidirond is a relative of the ascomoid..not that you'd know by looking at it, since this CR 5 Plant resembles a hellish tentacled ceiling-cactus more than a fungus. They do, however, share fungal spore-launching; instead of a grenadier blast, however, these fungal fighters release spores laced with hallucinogens. Some of the examples of the effects include the target attacking imaginary spiders on the floor, stripping off armor to get at nonexistent leeches on their body, or dropping a weapon believing it's been polymorphed into a viper. Basidironds are also weak against cold; they don't take any damage from cold attacks, no, but they do become sluggish and relatively inactive as a result of any cold-based damage or environment it is forced to deal with. I really like this creature, to be honest. It's like the Scarecrow (the Batman villain, not the construct) of D&D monsters!



Basilisk, Greater
As its name implies, the greater basilisk is a bigger, tougher basilisk, a CR 7 Magical Beast to be precise. These basilisks resemble multilegged, horned Komodo dragons instead of the pudgy multilegged lizards their smaller kin resemble, showing that they are indeed leaner and meaner active predators rather than ambush hunters. They are for the most part immune to the old "mirror back the gaze" trick so often used on basilisks (the trick only works at a range of 10 feet or less, which is a tall order considering what we're about to learn). They also have an odious breath that exhudes a weakening aura, lowering the Constitution of anyone within its fetid cloud.

Other than that, though, there isn't much interesting to say about the greater basilisk beyond the insinuation that it's a product of the Elemental Plane of Earth that entered the Prime Material in the past rather than being a native entity. If I really want to use a bigger, badder basilisk, I usually always pick a nastier one we'll meet later in the Ds section of this very Let's Read.



Bat
We have two bats, both size Large and both Magical Beasts; these are the CR 4 doombat and the CR 3 mobat. Because we all know we need mo' bat, right? Right? ...Nothing? Ah well... The doombat is of animal intellect, but is actually the more malicious of the two, actively hunting intelligent beings to savor the fear of before it eats them. The mobat, on the other hand, is a giant bat with the same Intelligence score as a troll....yet it's the one that acts more like a normal bat. I'm wondering if the stats weren't mixed up or something.

Both creatues have a screech attack and blindsense, and trade off one's strength for the other respectively; the doombat has a smaller blindsense range but can induce cringing fear in those that hear its screech, while a mobat can see an astounding 120 feet with its blinsense but can only stun targets of its shriek for a short period of time. Whether a doombat or a mobat, though, both critters are rather uninteresting to me. Moving onward!



Beetle, Giant Boring
In spite of what its name may imply to the uninitiated, the giant boring beetle is actually quite interesting from both the fluff and crunch perspectives. On the stats side, we have a CR 3 vermin that has a natural hivemind special quality, allowing giant boring beetles to swarm across the caverns to aid one of their colony that is in danger. On the fluff side, we note that these 9-foot beetles actually farm shriekers for both food and early warning system purposes. They also drag any intruders they kill into their burrows as fertilizer for their fungus gardens! Now that's an interesting plot hook if I ever saw one.



Beetle, Giant Death Watch
This beetle, on the other hand....meeeeh. It takes a real creature and fantasizes it up in the worst way as this human-sized CR 6 monstrosity. According to European folklore, death watch beetles know when someone is going to die and will make noise to proclaim that. Sure, that would have been an interesting idea, constant deathwatch effect. But no, they had to slap a "Fortitude save or you DIE!!" attack onto the giant death watch beetle. It's also immune to death-based effects, so while it can instakill you, you can't instakill it! Preposterously annoying.



Beetle, Giant Rhinoceros
12 feet of pure CR 7 brute. It tramples, it gores, it bites, it...does nothing beyond melee bashing. Meh.



Beetle, Giant Slicer
This unpleasant vermin has no real-life analogue, although it's meant to be a predatory mimic of the giant stag beetle. It's a 10-foot long CR 4 predator whose one claim to fame is that it has an improved criticial hit ratio and vorpal effect on its bite. A CR 4 Vermin-type creature...with a vorpal bite. Nasty. e.e

---------------------------------

Coming up, we have acid aberrations, the brutal bhuta, beaming bufonids, bloody birds, sanguinous skeletons, and petrifying pythons. Will they be good? Will they be bad? Will I run out of alliterative material any time soon? Stick around and find out!

Thane of Fife
2010-03-12, 01:34 PM
Baric
The baric were originally a monster from a specific adventure entitled Palace of the Silver Princess, which I would imagine is why it didn't get much thought beyond a few snippets of fluff. That means, of course, we are left to ponder the fluff ourselves.

That particular module is freely available (http://www.wizards.com/dnd/article.asp?x=dnd/dx20020121x7) on Wizards' website, so you can read all about the Baric (and archer bush) if you want.

Interestingly, in that adventure, they've got 5 HD (!), and could probably slaughter your average low-level party.


Basilisk, Greater

Other than that, though, there isn't much interesting to say about the greater basilisk beyond the insinuation that it's a product of the Elemental Plane of Earth that entered the Prime Material in the past rather than being a native entity. If I really want to use a bigger, badder basilisk, I usually always pick a nastier one we'll meet later in the Ds section of this very Let's Read.


I assume that you're referring to the Dracolisk?

As for the Elemental Plane connections, that's interesting. Perhaps Earth Elementals have some special way of dealing with them, or something. Also, I know there used to be (and maybe still is) a cockatrice variant called the Pyrolisk, which caused creatures to burst into flame with a gaze. Perhaps that could be the Fire Plane equivalent. What, then, comes from the Air and Water (and Ooze, and smoke, and mist, and etc) planes?


Bat
I'm wondering if the stats weren't mixed up or something.

I don't know, but Mobats had that high intelligence even in 2e, giving them a desire for "shiny objects" (remember, that's a clear sign of intelligence :smallwink: )


Boring Beetles

How much of a hivemind does the book give them? Again, the 2e MM says that, together, they can approximate the intelligence of the human brain! Imagine a burrow of boring beetles somehow learning to function as a wizard. You could have adventures where they're raising undead, or summoning demons, or something. Could be an interesting idea for a horror game.

Starbuck_II
2010-03-12, 01:40 PM
I remember summoning those fungi in Temple of Elemental Evil video game with that magic item that has Summon Fungi spell/day.
Good times (until the end when you had to fight a huge amount of them and a Balor at same time)

Rappy
2010-03-12, 01:47 PM
That particular module is freely available (http://www.wizards.com/dnd/article.asp?x=dnd/dx20020121x7) on Wizards' website, so you can read all about the Baric (and archer bush) if you want.

Interestingly, in that adventure, they've got 5 HD (!), and could probably slaughter your average low-level party.
Wow, I didn't know that. Thank you, that'll be useful to have on hand.



I assume that you're referring to the Dracolisk?
Well, that secret didn't last long. :smallwink:


As for the Elemental Plane connections, that's interesting. Perhaps Earth Elementals have some special way of dealing with them, or something. Also, I know there used to be (and maybe still is) a cockatrice variant called the Pyrolisk, which caused creatures to burst into flame with a gaze. Perhaps that could be the Fire Plane equivalent. What, then, comes from the Air and Water (and Ooze, and smoke, and mist, and etc) planes?
I'm guessing the drown-happy nereid might be a good analogue for water version of a creature (the nymph, obviously).

And yes, there was/is a cockatrice variant known as the pyrolisk. It happens to be in the Tome of Horrors as well.


I don't know, but Mobats had that high intelligence even in 2e, giving them a desire for "shiny objects" (remember, that's a clear sign of intelligence :smallwink: )
To be fair, crows like shinies, and they are pretty smart. :smalltongue:



How much of a hivemind does the book give them? Again, the 2e MM says that, together, they can approximate the intelligence of the human brain! Imagine a burrow of boring beetles somehow learning to function as a wizard. You could have adventures where they're raising undead, or summoning demons, or something. Could be an interesting idea for a horror game.
The exact quote (thank you, Open Game Content allowing quotes!) is:


Hive Mind (Ex): All boring beetles within 1 mile of each other are in constant communication. If one is aware of a particular danger, they all are. If one in the group is not flat-footed, then none of them are. No boring beetle in a group is considered flanked unless all of them are.
So...yeah. Don't lose hope, however! There is a d20 Modern creature (the Sentient Killer Bee Swarm) with an ability that could be used as a reference for a full-on human intellect colony of giant boring beetles.

Argentum74
2010-03-12, 03:49 PM
Speaking of hive minds, did the CIFAL make it into Tome of Horrors? It was a creature from the old 1st Edition Fiend Folio. CIFAL stands for Colonial Insect-Formed Artificial Life... I always found it amusing that they gave a creature in a low-tech magical fantasy setting a thoroughly modern-sounding acronym for a name. :smallamused:

Rappy
2010-03-12, 04:46 PM
Speaking of hive minds, did the CIFAL make it into Tome of Horrors? It was a creature from the old 1st Edition Fiend Folio. CIFAL stands for Colonial Insect-Formed Artificial Life... I always found it amusing that they gave a creature in a low-tech magical fantasy setting a thoroughly modern-sounding acronym for a name. :smallamused:
The CIFAL isn't in the Tome of Horrors, but it does have a 3E update in issue 145 of Polyhedron; don't ask me where you'd track down a copy of that, though.

Stubbed Tongue
2010-03-12, 05:16 PM
They did, yes.
Thank you.

Volkov
2010-03-12, 05:18 PM
The tome of horrors, one letter away from bringing back suppressed memories due to constant character death induced post traumatic stress.

Rappy
2010-03-12, 11:13 PM
Belabra
This CR 3 Aberration is, to put it simply, weird. It is a floating jellyfish with an Intelligence rank in between a troll and orc, barbed tentacles, and acidic blood. Piercing one threatens a blast of caustic acid in the face, while struggling in one's grasp means you have twelve tentacles scraping you with their barbed length; in other words, it's not a creature you want to wrestle with by any measure. Strangely enough, there's no effort put into having an interesting society for these sapient but alien beings; they're simple intelligent forest-dwelling predators. I imagine them spending most of their time either finding food or resting...until the deepest parts of the night. Then, the normally solitary belabra gather to worship whatever arcane aberration god they follow. At the very least, I'd give them some eldritch abomination-style maddening alien thought processes.



Bhuta
I'm sure this description will get some people happy. The bhuta, a CR 6 Undead of the corporeal persuasion, is a walking corpse who seeks both vengeance on its murderer and living flesh to feed its voracious appetite, particularly the flesh of elves (See? I told you some of y'all'd like this). Another interesting thing is that the bhuta's body, save for its nails-turned-claws and deathly pale skin, mostly remains the same as when it was alive; this means that it's possible to use these creatures as a more subtle corporeal undea threat than, say, a ghoul. The bhuta can also track its killer as long as they are on the same plane and deal 1d6 points of damage each successful round of grappling an opponent as it strangles them with its powerful hands! In the Indonesian folklore they come from, bhuta are drawn to what they enjoyed in life, which makes for more interesting flavor to add on to the whose "avenging spirit" concept. Imagine, if you will, a strangely pale man in the back of the bar, wrapped in heavy clothing and heavily drinking without any apparent concern for his health; of course, as a bhuta, he won't get ill or hung over, but the drunkenness he experienced in life carries over as an addiction in undeath.



Blindheim
A strangely brilliant idea in a 4-foot tall amphibian package. Such is my praise of the Blindheim, a CR 2 Aberration of deep, moist caverns. It is a creature of animal intellect that is saved from mehness by its strange adaptation. While odd at first, the blindheim makes a lot of sense when I think about it. Many creatures of the underground regions (and even some that aren't, such as orcs) take penalties when exposed to bright lights, and this aberrant little critter's high beams are actually quite the appropriate mechanism for a predator of the deeps as a result. Just think of what a pack of hunting blindheims might be like; four hefty, bloated frogs circling in the shadows, their fetid mouths coated in the fungi they supplement their diet with, eyes aglow as the lurk in the shadows...waiting...watching. In a flash, nictitating membranes flick away, revealing blindingly bright beams of light from their eyes.



Blood Hawk
A CR 1/2 Magical Beast, the blood hawk is essentially just a stronger-than-average hawk with "a taste for human flesh". Bleh, don't really care. Moving forward!



Bloody Bones
This blood- and mucus-drenched skeleton is certainly a creature built for horror campaigns. Bloody Bones, CR 4 Undead, are brutal combatants whose fluid exterior protects them from both fire and restraint, have claws that rend and tear at flesh, and can fire 30-foot long tendrils from their bodies to reel in ranged opponents. While there's a tacked-on "theory" about how Bloody Bones are desecrators of evil temples cursed by evil gods, I prefer the local lore we have here in Louisiana about the folkloric Bloody Bones. He's treated as a bogeyman of the deep waters, snatching those foolish enough to swim in dangerous areas You could expand that idea into various motives and modes of operation for such a being.



Boalisk
At first glance, the CR 4 Magical Beast named the boalisk seems to be a typical large constrictor snake. It constricts, it bites, it climbs and swims relatively well. You then notice a little four-letter word that propels it to whole new levels: "Gaze". Yes, dear readers, the boalisk's name does refer to our dear friend the basilisk.Unlike the basilisk, though, this marsh-dwelling serpent's gaze attack doesn't petrify; instead, it passes on a festering disease known as black rot (!). While an odd choice, I do commend the fact that its implications were thought about in the fluff, as it's stated that a boalisk that is attacked while consuming prey will use its gaze attack instead of forcefully regurgitating its meal to free its mouth to strike like a mundane python.

---------------------------------

Next time, I'll be back to cover a beast of the bogs, a body of the bogs, a boggart that is also from the bogs, a skeletal sculptor, a crushingly strong-jawed carnosaur, and a marrow-munching monster.

Rappy
2010-03-13, 11:27 AM
Bog Beast
As its name implies, the bog beast is a beast that lives in bogs. It's a CR 5 creature that is essentially a swamp-dwelling Bigfoot, its ape-like body covered in shaggy brownish-green fur and its hands sporting claws swarming with disease and capable of raking apart flesh that then runs the risk of infection. Like the banderlogs, bog beasts follow the grand tradition of primatoid monsters having Barbarian as their favored class, even though its fluff as an "avid hunter" of the swamp's wildlife seems to pin it as more of a feral Ranger.



Bog Mummy
Based on Europe's bog bodies, the bog mummy is a CR 6 Undead who augments the standard Dungeons and Dragons mummy abilities such as rotting disease and an aura of despair with the ability to move through the thick marshland bogs without impediment. They are also resistant to fire, the polar opposite of the fire-vulnerable standard mummies. The bog mummy suffers from poor fluff, though, as we are told they "hate all life" and attack anything that enters the bog. Ho-hum. Typical undead fluff. Why not do something interesting based on the bog bodies instead? Perhaps have the bog mummies as part of the "sacred dead", guardians of the bog who were ritually sacrificed and stored beneath the mire. Maybe they have interesting stories to tell to those they deem worthy of learning from their aged occult knowledge?



Boggart
A CR 7 Aberration that has the appearance of a furry dwarf, the boggart is an odd duck indeed. It has a grab bag of abilities, with its powers including electrical discharge around its body, shapeshifting, immunity to magic, mind-reading, a confusion-inducing screech, invisibility, and the ability to suck the essence from a recently deceased individual to heal itself. To make things even stranger, it is stated that boggarts are larval will-o'-wisps! I'm trying to figure out how you can go from the boggart of folklore to this...thing...and I honestly can't give you a legitimate answer.



Bone Cobbler
The children of another plane of existence, the emaciated bone cobblers are macabre artists that create their "art" by cobbling together and animating mish-mashed skeletons. I like these fellows; they live up to their nature as the Aberration type, and are pretty formidable for a CR 4 encounter, since they can use their cobbling hammers, their claws, their skeletal servants, or a breath weapon of movement-degrading vapors in their assaults. I also like the "bone art" aspect, since it really drives home the idea that aberrations have a truly alien mentality. Players can only wonder what drives the strange creatures' use of necromancy as an artistic tool, or even why they are compelled to produce art anyway. You could also use bone cobblers as harbingers of a bigger eldritch abomination; perhaps the mangled skeletons they craft are effigies in the likeness of their horrid master?



Bonesnapper
A CR 3 Magical Beast (for some reason...it has no supernatural abilities or above-average intellect, so it's an odd choice) human-sized tyrannosaurid that likes collecting jawbones for whatever reason. Don't really care much. Mark of mehness for this fellow.



Bonesucker
Hey, we have another Aberration already! This CR 7 weirdo resembles a tentacled, ooze-coated, many-eyed tree trunk...yeah, just picture that one in your head. Unlike the bone cobbler, however, the bonesucker hits that point of aggravation with me by having human-level intelligence but no motivation beyond "eat stuff, eat stuff, hunt eat kill!" And speaking of kill, its name says it all; bonesuckers use their tentacles to inject digestive gunk into a grappled foe, dealing 1d2 Dexterity and Strength damage each successful grapple as their target's bone marrow is slowly turned into a soupy mess. Again, ewww indeed.

Rappy
2010-03-15, 01:13 AM
Wow, tough crowd. :smalltongue:

---------------------------------

Brownie
Brownies, a Lawful Good CR 1 Fey, are essentially toned down atomies. They have similar stat choices, similar spells (save for some new additions such as fire magic and warding circles), and even the exact same amounts of spell resistance and damage reduction. To be honest, I'm wondering why they didn't just put the brownie down as a semi-urban law-abiding variant of the chaotic nature-sprite atomie. They are at least quite interesting to think about. As Kyr mentioned early, lawful fey are few and far between, so the strict and quiet brownies present an interesting alternative to the many helter-skelter "whimsy pixie"-type feykind; they have also stocked up on three Craft skills (Leatherworking, Metalworking, and Woodworking, if you were curious), which makes them good for industrious worker-types.

It might be neat to have the brownies as allies of the gnomes or the servant caste of the faerie courts, downtrodden but essential to do all the dirty work while the higher-ups such as the nymphs and atomies engage in their hedonistic lfiestyles. They toil in sweaty workshops, crafting the clothes, the weapons, the armor, the buildings...everything that makes fey architecture so great rests on the pained backs of the brownie caste. Perhaps the heroes must search for the brownies to craft a special item they require, or stop a brownie worker's strike that threatens the economic structure of the faerie realms?



Buckawn
The buckawn is another fey whose lifestyle is quite unique; in this case, the corpulent handlebar mustache-sporting gnome-like buckawns are always True Neutral and extremely isolationist. Buckawns hate intruders, refuse to engage in any sort of commerce or trade (thus hoarding all their riches and crafted items to themselves), and focus their spell-like abilities on stealth and illusion (plus the ability to summon an insect swarm to help deal with particularly nosy intruders). They buckawn are also masters of poison-craft, enlacing their daggers and darts with an extremely virulent poison extracted from the berries of a plant known as the moonseed.

I like the idea of having buckawns be the paranoid guy in the basement of feykind; they don't like to be talked about, and nobody likes to talk about them either, content to let the eccentric and sometimes violent buckawn clans keep to their forest burrows. They also provide a notable challenge to players in several ways. If the adventuring party wishes to go through the woods of the buckawns, they risk getting a poison dart to the head if they look dangerous. If the adventuring party needs a cure for moonseed berry poisoning and have no healers around, they must look to the buckawns for help, and they aren't exactly willing to oblidge. On the other hand, for a twist, what if the adventuring party members are buckawn? How will the clan deal with such a group of rebels spreading their presence into the outside world?



Bunyip
The Bunyip is one of my favorite beasts in the Dreamtime lore of the Australian aboriginal clans. You have this unspeakable creature whose appearance is supposedly such a horrid amalgamation of features no two descriptions can agree on what it looks like. It's a murderer who dwells in the deeps and commands the waters of the billabongs, a creator and a destroyer alike, the ultimate example of nature's primal chaos. So what does the Tome of Horrors present for us in their Bunyip? Why, a CR 4 Magical Beast that is a shark-bear hybrid with a blood-in-the-water-frenzy rage attack and a vorpal bite, of course!

...Damn you, Tome of Horrors, damn you. e.e



Carbuncle
Moving past that traumatic incident of which we shall never speak of again, we have a quirky little CR 1/2 Aberration called the carbuncle! A beast of Latin American folklore, the carbuncle attains its name from the red garnet stone that is nestled upon its forehead. These odd xenarthans (for those of you who aren't biology-savvy, xenarthans are the group of mammals that contain armadillos and glyptodonts, sloths, and anteaters. The carbuncle is a miniature amalgamation of several of the key features of these creatures) act as a sort of "familiar from hell"; they will follow an adventuring party, acting placid and innocent, all the while transmitting select prophecies and snippets of subconscious communication via its telepathic abilities to sow dissent and discord that threatens to wedge the party apart. The carbuncle is not completely vicious, however, as it will relinquish its pricey gemstone to those that can successfully coerce it. After all, it's no skin off the carbuncle's back, since it just grows a new one in a month. Note that a dead carbuncle's gemstone crumbles to dust, however. Take that, kill-happy adventurers! You've just been DM cruelty-owned again!



Carrion Moth
Carrion moths are huge tentacle-faced moths that are the adult form of a grub-like Dungeons and Dragons staple known as the carrion crawler. With a mind-numbing droning from its wings that induces confusion in those that are subjected to it, paralytic tentacles, and a horrid stench it released when killed, this CR 5 Aberration earns its keep as a solid encounter. It also feeds on decaying flesh, which makes me wonder if they might be a feaster upon the undead as well as the truly dead. It'd be a neat idea to consider, at least.



Caryatid Column
This is a CR 3 Construct that is more or less a stone warrior created from a caryatid column (as its name obviously alludes to). What is a caryatid column, you might ask? Well, to put it simply, they are crafted sculptures of women that were hewn into support pillars in Greece. What exactly differentiates these constructs from stone golems, though? Well, for one thing, they are much weaker than the imposing CR 11 stone golems,by having less hit dice and replacing its Damage Reduction 10/Adamantine for a simple DR 5/-. For another, caryatid columns are melded with the pillars they were created from until they enter battle; thus, they are the perfect sneak attack guardians for temples and other artistically-decorated places. For yet another, striking a caryatid column with a weapon means you risk it being broken to bits by the column's shattering special quality. If that happens, well...you'd better hope you can move out of the way of the caryatid column's imposing stone longsword.

Eldan
2010-03-15, 03:49 AM
Wasn't the Column in one of the WotC books already? Fiend Folio, maybe?

Anyway, good stuff. Except for the beast-I-shall-not-name-here. Curse you all.

hamishspence
2010-03-15, 05:15 AM
It was- and this issue was brought up earlier in the thread:


You are aware that a good number of these creatures have been printed by WotC, including the Flind (who are awesome, btw), right?


Correct, they have. Necromancer Games got specific permission to utilize them for the Tome of Horrors; otherwise, they'd be in so much hot water I doubt even their bones would be left...

The Aurumvorax, for example, was in the Expedition to the Ruins of Greyhawk 3.5 ed WoTC adventure.

Thane of Fife
2010-03-15, 07:15 AM
Brownies, a Lawful Good CR 1 Fey, are essentially toned down atomies.

Wow. 2e brownies cast spells like 9th level clerics. I wonder who hated brownies?

Traditionally, I believe that brownies worked in the homes of good people, so long as they were left a bit of milk, or something. I'm not sure how you could work that into a game (except perhaps as part of an investigation), but there you go.


So what does the Tome of Horrors present for us in their Bunyip? Why, a CR 4 Magical Beast that is a shark-bear hybrid with a blood-in-the-water-frenzy rage attack and a vorpal bite, of course!

I don't suppose that there's a picture of this somewhere, hmm?


Caryatid Column

While I do like Caryatid Columns (I think I might have even used them once), it suddenly strikes me to wonder if they may be a bit structurally unsound. I mean, presumably that column was holding something up, right?

hewhosaysfish
2010-03-15, 07:46 AM
While I do like Caryatid Columns (I think I might have even used them once), it suddenly strikes me to wonder if they may be a bit structurally unsound. I mean, presumably that column was holding something up, right?

I'm sure I remember seeing a column-based construct somewhere that was holding the ceiling up, and destroying it would bring the roof down on your head... Perhaps someone else a 3.5 update of the Caryatid Column before Necromancer games did?

Rappy
2010-03-15, 01:10 PM
Wow. 2e brownies cast spells like 9th level clerics. I wonder who hated brownies?
Judging by what I've read while scrounging around, more than a few players disliked them. Maybe the crew at Necromancer had a bad experience with one in 2E?


I don't suppose that there's a picture of this somewhere, hmm?
Sorry, not that I know of.


While I do like Caryatid Columns (I think I might have even used them once), it suddenly strikes me to wonder if they may be a bit structurally unsound. I mean, presumably that column was holding something up, right
Presumably, they meld out of the column they are made into, but leave the column base intact...or that's how I read it, at least.

Rappy
2010-03-19, 12:43 PM
Caterwaul
The caterwaul is a feline-like elf, with a long tail, fangs, claws, yellow eyes, and blue fur. And no, that is not a joke. And just to prove it isn't a ripoff of a certain popular movie involving blue-furred cat-elves, I shall also note that the caterwauls were originally created by Albie Fiore in 1981, and reprinted in the Tome of Horrors in 2005. But I digress...

Caterwauls are a CR 4 Magical Beast that excels at melee combat. In addition to its rending claws and teeth, the caterwaul has superior evasion to most creatures, the ability to pounce upon unwary prey as its feet join in the clawing fray, sprinting at cheetah speed for short bursts, and a screech that deals 1d8 sonic damage. They are also noted as being found in montane forests, so I have this image of caterwaul clans hiding in both the trees and cliffs, ambushing intruders with death from above.



Cave Cricket
CR 1/2. Vermin. Dog-sized cricket. Meh. Moving on.



Cave Fisher
Take a crab, enlarge it to human-size, and give it adhesive snot. Okay, so it's technically an "adhesive filament", but this CR 2 Vermin draws that comparison since it is produced from its snout. But I kid the poor cave fisher, since I actually do like it. This is one of those monsters that has a unique shtick that involves finesse rather than force; it waits in cavern crags, dangling its sticky filaments into the darkness. Any creature that isn't prepared or doesn't see the thread is subsequently grappled and reeled in like a fish on a rod. They can also be farmed for their adhesive, which can be processed to produce super-strong ropes from the filaments themselves and traction-aiding "nega-grease" from the diluted adhesive.

There is an allusion to cave fishers working in packs to take down overly large or dangerous prey, which makes me imagine the chasm crawlers scene from the Peter Jackson King Kong. Adventurers trapped in the cavern, bones and armor littered across the floor, dozens of creeping crustaceans pouring from holes in the wall, their wet carapaces glistening in what little sunlight comes into the abyss from above. Their mandibles clack and crunch as they drool saliva, their snouts dripping with adhesive chemicals as they swarm forward in a terrifying wave...



Cave Moray
A cave-dwelling CR 2 amphibious moray eel. Myeh. Next!



Cerberus
Yes, this is that Cerberus. The "watchdog of Hades" Cerberus. He's also our first epic-level creature, at an imposing CR 23 (although we will meet epic-level uniques in the D section that make Cerberus look like a whimpering puppy with their power). In addition to having three imposing heads with jaws drenched in venom, Cerberus can expel toxin at a range of 30 feet, a fear-inducing howl, a petrifying gaze (thankfully, all three heads must be used, so no "three gazes at once" cheap shots), regeneration of wounds, and resistance to nearly all forms of damage. To make it even tougher, Cerberus cannot even be moved from his spot, except by deities of divine rank 6 or higher (in non-D&D terms, that means that even demigods can't help you; you have to go to the actual pantheons and ask them to physically move the big mutt). Of course, this doesn't even bring into account the very daemons and undead you'll have to face along the River Styx to even get to Cerberus; I mean, Charon and the charonodaemons (coming up soon in this Let's Read) aren't cheap to bribe, and they aren't easy to fight either.Cerberus has major potential as a big final boss of a campaign; I'd suggest reading the tales of Orpheus and Heracles for more ideas on that front.



Chrystone
As their name implies, chrystones are beasts or rock and crystal. They aren't elementals, though, no; they are CR 4 Constructs that are sort of an amalgamation of rock and gemstone that has been promoted to sapience (albeit at stereotypical orc-levels). They are your standard melee brutes as well, with the same magic immunity and shatter ability as the caryatid column added to a breath weapon that blasts out the spell Color Spray. I'm...not really sure what to make of them. After a few great critters, this one doesn't seem too interesting. Nor is...



Clam, Giant
...This one, a CR 2 Vermin one can find in real life. Why didn't they put the real life-based vermin in an appendix like the mundane animals were?

Eldan
2010-03-19, 12:52 PM
"Charonodaemons"?

What ever happened to the Marraenoloth, the traditional Styx Oarsmen of Planescape? Their leader was even called Charon.

Or are they a conversion of the Marraenoloths? The loths are also called daemon, after all.

Rappy
2010-03-19, 01:07 PM
"Charonodaemons"?

What ever happened to the Marraenoloth, the traditional Styx Oarsmen of Planescape? Their leader was even called Charon.

Or are they a conversion of the Marraenoloths? The loths are also called daemon, after all.
Yeah, Necromancer Games flipped "-loth" the bird and kept the -daemon suffix to match the demons and devils.

Thane of Fife
2010-03-19, 01:39 PM
Caterwaul

While looking about on Google, I found some individual's table (http://www.legolas.org/items/fur.html#menu)of costs for assorted pelts and furs. Somewhat disturbingly, Caterwauls were on the table, though I suppose that shouldn't really surprise me.


Cave Cricket

Don't cave crickets have some kind of noxious stench attack, or something? Maybe I'm thinking of something else.


Clam, Giant

I assume that there are some kind of giant pearl rules here as well, right?

Quietus
2010-03-19, 02:24 PM
While I do like Caryatid Columns (I think I might have even used them once), it suddenly strikes me to wonder if they may be a bit structurally unsound. I mean, presumably that column was holding something up, right?

Sorry to go backward like this, but I just wanted to point out that in the Fiend Folio (I think that was where I saw them), it mentions that one of the ways you can notice a Caryatid Column for what it is, involved a spot check.. or maybe a knowledge (architecture/engineering) check? To tell that it served no structural purpose. Similar to Gargoyles, really.

Eldan
2010-03-19, 02:50 PM
Yeah, Necromancer Games flipped "-loth" the bird and kept the -daemon suffix to match the demons and devils.

Hmm. True. But why not just call it "Oarsman Daemon" or something? Charonodaemon just sounds silly to me.

Starbuck_II
2010-03-19, 02:53 PM
Hmm. True. But why not just call it "Oarsman Daemon" or something? Charonodaemon just sounds silly to me.

Oarsmen sounds silly as well.

Eldan
2010-03-19, 02:55 PM
Hmm. Better than Ferry Daemon, at least.

Nich_Critic
2010-03-19, 03:04 PM
Most of these make me want to design an encounter just to fit them in.

Most of them would never fit in my current campaign without some serious handwaving though, so... :P.

For example, the cave fisher would go nicely with an encounter I'm planning, except that it would absolutely devour the party in numbers greater then 3, and be kind of underwhelming in fewer numbers.

Rappy
2010-03-19, 03:14 PM
While looking about on Google, I found some individual's table (http://www.legolas.org/items/fur.html#menu)of costs for assorted pelts and furs. Somewhat disturbingly, Caterwauls were on the table, though I suppose that shouldn't really surprise me.
That's...rather creepy. Then again, as we'll see later in the D's section of this title, D&D economy is often supported by the bodies of sapient species.


Don't cave crickets have some kind of noxious stench attack, or something? Maybe I'm thinking of something else.
This version doesn't, at least.


I assume that there are some kind of giant pearl rules here as well, right
No, oddly enough; it simply states that giant clams have 50% standard treasure. There's nothing specific for pearl size, weight, and value.

hewhosaysfish
2010-03-19, 05:12 PM
To make it even tougher, Cerberus cannot even be moved from his spot, except by deities of divine rank 6 or higher (in non-D&D terms, that means that even demigods can't help you; you have to go to the actual pantheons and ask them to physically move the big mutt).

Does *it* have divine rank 6 or higher? Can if move from its post of its own volition? Because if not, that's not necessarily a feature that makes it stronger.


Hmm. Better than Ferry Daemon, at least
Too true. If my DM were to introduce as a "Ferry Demon" you can be certain it would swiftly be relabelled "Fairy Demon" or possibly "Furry Demon".


That's...rather creepy. Then again, as we'll see later in the D's section of this title, D&D economy is often supported by the bodies of sapient species.
Reminds me of the this Stupid monsters of D&D (http://www.headinjurytheater.com/article73.htm) article. Scroll down until you reach the Giant Beavers.

Rappy
2010-03-19, 05:17 PM
Does *it* have divine rank 6 or higher? Can if move from its post of its own volition? Because if not, that's not necessarily a feature that makes it stronger.
It's presumably exempt from that rule.


Reminds me of the this Stupid monsters of D&D (http://www.headinjurytheater.com/article73.htm) article. Scroll down until you reach the Giant Beavers.
I've seen it many times. I still disagree with 99% of it. But yes, giant beavers are odd, and they have 3E stats that can be found here. (http://www.enworld.org/cc/converted/view_c.php?CreatureID=1325)

Rappy
2010-03-21, 04:06 PM
Clockwork, Brain Gear
The most important of the clockworks is....surprisingly, little more than a box of gears and gadgets that cannot move at all. The CR 3 brain gear sacrifices movement for superior intellect (twice that of the average human!) and the ability to telepathically communicate with and command the lesser clockworks. In this way, the brain gear is an enigma; it has the potential to be the big bad of a clockwork-themed adventure, but it's too weak on its own and unable to move its small body anywhere if threatened, and is thus relegated to the mere "pay no attention to the box behind the curtain" role. Thus, I propose having the brain gear be akin to a mech pilot, fused in place inside an uber-clockwork throne that carries itself across the battlefield and protects it from harm.



Clockwork, Drone
The weakest of the clockworks, the humble CR 1/8 drones are more or less eyeballs in miniature UFOs...no, I am not kidding you, that's what the fluff states they look like. These little mechanical monsters have no real combat prowess, and are thus relegated to the role of a diminiutive spy that flits around the shadows of the battlefield, relaying information to the brain gear(s) in command.



Clockwork, Overseer
The halfling-sized mannequins known as the overseers act as the relay point for a brain gear, extending its 2-mile controller radius outward to a grand 10-mile radius. This CR 1 field commander-type has no really interesting traits beyond its quirky appearance and their ability to extend the mental grip of the commanding brain gears.



Clockwork, Parasite
Using the tried and true Frankensteinian method of galvanic animation, the CR 2 beetle-like parasites drill into the brain cavity of a corpse and raise it as a zombie puppet they pilot around the battlefield. The parasite isn't the most interesting clockwork either, but it at least has the gimmick of being able to confuse any divine spellcasters in the party into thinking they have an undead to turn before they are swarmed en masse by the parasites. They can also repair the corpse they ride in, replicating fast healing, which allows them to also pull the surprise of having what seems to be a regenerating zombie.



Clockwork, Scout
Scouts of the clockwork army are metal and wood armatures dressed up with hides and furs to look like animals such as dogs. While these CR 1/2 clockworks have a camouflage ability due to their outwardly animalian appearance, I still don't get why they are here when there was already a stealth hunter in the drones.



Clockwork, Swarm
This CR 3 creature is, as its name suggests, a swarm of clockwork debris animated by the brain gear. It is also very, very bland. Other than a self-repairing ability, it has nothing special that would prevent me from simply changing its creature type and labelling it "Generic Swarm #1". Meh.



Clockwork, Titan
The mighty titan clockwork (not to be confused with clockwork titans, which are from a different title) is the strongest of the clockwork army at a relatively imposing CR 4, and is built in the shape of a giant metallic crab with mighty punching fists instead of pincers. They have an exceptionally long reach with their fists for their shape, and their given strategy is to sit behind warrior clockworks and wail on the enemy without fear of retaliation. Thus, the titan earns the Cheap Shot King award for the clockworks.



Clockwork, Warrior
Your standard "suit of armor that moves" enemy. Clockwork warriors are crafted from various bits and bobbles of abandoned armor and linked together by chains and their nanite...erm...."cockroach-like miniature clockwork"...filled innards. These miniclocks constantly swarm out to repair minor damage each round, allowing the CR 3 warriors to take a lickin' and keep on tickin'.

Rappy
2010-04-02, 10:09 PM
Sorry this dropped off the map for a little while, but I've been having a mix of illness and depression that has prevented me from sticking to an entire entry.

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Clubnek
CR 2 Magical Beast, smaller version of other "big mean birds" that focuses on speed in short bursts. It's also one of the more boring big birds out there. In other words, it's axe beak light on all accounts.



Cobra Flower
The cobra flower looks for all the world like some kind of mad botany mage's science fair project; it is indeed a flower that resembles a cobra. It also acts like a cobra, too, believe it or not. This CR 4 Plant is very slow but makes up for it in stealth, hiding until a foolish small animal, humanoid child, or little humanoid such as a halfling or gnome veers to close. It then blasts to life, strangling with its constricting vines and oozing a corrosive acid from its porous flower "head". While I don't have much to say on it, the cobra flower is at least a decent addition to the "plants that want you to die horribly" trope of D&D monsters.



Coffer Corpse
The CR 3 Undead known as the coffer corpse takes the most unpleasant traits of several corporeal undead and mashes them together into one nasty package. Like the zombie, its appearance is that of a rotting corpse. Like the bhuta, it has a strangling attack. Like many undead, it augments vicious claws and thick skin with damage reduction and a resistance to a Cleric's turning powers. Don't imagine for a second that the coffer corpse is just a ripoff of the other undead, oh no; this coffin-haunting creep is a whole other animal. The origin of a coffer corpse is when a dead body is improperly buried by its culture's standards and the soul refuses to leave its body due to this perceived injustice. As a result, the most likely place to find coffer corpses are hastily-crafted shallow graves, crashed funerary barges, and similar locations. This means that these particular undead don't have to share elbow room like they would be if they were sharing the cemeteries with ghouls and ghosts or holed up in a crypt with all sorts of things from beyond the grave. They also have an intriguing special quality. Coffer corpses can play possum, as it were, dropping down and looking even more dead than they technically are. Anyone fooled by this ruse is subjected to the corpse's fear aura as it seemingly rises from its redeath the next round. It's a fun and unique undead encounter, that's for sure.



Cooshee
Take a wolf and add your basic features of the elf; long pointy ears, lithe body, earthen color scheme, resistance to enchanting magic, and a set of "anything you can do, I can do better" abilities such as being able to run at the speed of a cheetah for short bursts; what you've just created is the CR 2 Magical Beast known as the cooshee, or elven hound. These green and brown-mottled elf-dogs were specially bred by the elves to show similar features as they themselves had. This of course brings the question of when elves were able to move at blindingly fast speeds, but I digress...

What purpose the cooshee has beyond flavoring for the elves wanting to have everything made in their own image is beyond me; I had this same problem when I saw dwarven hounds in the Creature Collection (but that's a story for another Let's Read). I mean, they aren't a uniquely-bred race of creatures simply called "hounds" for convenience, like Pathfinder's goblin-bred giant rats that are referred to as "goblin dogs", they're simply sapient hounds that are better at being dogs than actual dogs are.



Crab, Monstrous
It's CR 2 and as big as a bear. And no, it doesn't have a weak spot to hit for massive damage.



Crabman
In spite of their name, the CR 2 Monstrous Humanoids named crabmen are not monogender monsters; their name is simply a holdover from the fact that TSR used male-centric names for creatures such as lizardfolk. These creatures are heavily muscled, coated in thick natural armor, and have four arms (with the upper, more muscular pair ending in claws, thus making me imagine that it will most likely only be utilizing tools in the hands that its lower arms sport). They are a hunter-gatherer society of the shorelines, gathering algae and seaweed as well as filtering detritus from the sand in a manner similar to that actual crabs utilize. Lead by an elder crabman of at least 3rd level, these clans of 9-foot tall crustacean-people make their homes in warrens carved from cliff faces on the shoreline, where they gather driftwood, seaweed, and other "gifts of the sea" for both extra food and for use in their own form of communal art. But not all is well with the crabmen; they are also a conundrum...

What did I mean by that? Well, it is stated that crabmen have up to 100 young within two weeks of every loosely-patterned breeding schedule. This makes me wonder why the crabmen are content with trading their goods with shoreline humanoids. Even counting the potential for predators of unwary young that stray away from the community, numbers of a species like that should mean that the crabmen could easily dominate every other coastal species by sheer biomass alone. So why haven't they? Perhaps they don't live long, perhaps they don't really care about conquest, perhaps they are the unpleasant victims of the dinner tables of less scrupulous coastal species such as the sahuagin...who knows?



Crayfish, Monstrous
I have a bit more to say about this one than the monstrous crab. This mega-crawdad is 10 feet of pure epic CR 3 tastiness...no joking there. Humans, giant turtles, dragon turtles, and even storm giants are listed as dining on monstrous crayfish flesh! Now, as someone that grew up around these crustaceans, I can say that they really do deserve their more vicious constricting pincer attack and overall tougher offense and defense compared to the monstrous crab. Crayfish are nasty little mudbugs that won't hesitate to snap out at things that invade their space, be that bait or a finger. They are also "farmed" in flooded rice patties; I can't imagine how you'd do that on a monstrous scale. Flooded forests?

Rockphed
2010-04-03, 12:26 AM
The that monstrous crab the crab that got advanced and then had a few templates added to it to make the PPDC(Paragon Pseudonatural Advanced Monstrous Crab).

Thane of Fife
2010-04-03, 06:06 AM
Crabman
But not all is well with the crabmen; they are also a conundrum...

Even counting the potential for predators of unwary young that stray away from the community, numbers of a species like that should mean that the crabmen could easily dominate every other coastal species by sheer biomass alone.

The 2nd Edition Monstrous Manual explains the crabman reproductive cycle as:

[The eggs] are laid in the ocean, where they hatch into clear, soft-shelled, crablike larvae. In six months they molt, develop a stronger shell, and begin to dwell on land. The eggs and larvae are delicious, and predators greatly reduce their numbers before they reach adulthood.

I suppose crabmen aren't very protective parents.

But yeah, I've always kind of liked crabmen, and I'm not sure why. Never actually used them in a game, though.

Eldan
2010-04-03, 06:29 AM
You could also take some inspiration from that Futurama episode where it was Zoidberg's mating season: the parents die after reproducing, so there is little social care, and culture is maintained by non-breeding adults.

Rappy
2010-04-03, 11:44 AM
The 2nd Edition Monstrous Manual explains the crabman reproductive cycle as:


I suppose crabmen aren't very protective parents.

But yeah, I've always kind of liked crabmen, and I'm not sure why. Never actually used them in a game, though.
Yeah, this was a post written before I got my hands on a copy of the Monstrous Manual. Later ones should reference it more. Anyway, new post time, as an apology for having to wait so long for the last one.

---------------------------------

Crystalline Horror
As a strange humanoid-shaped lump of crystal, one wouldn't expect that much of the crystalline horror. Of course...well...we all know what happens when one assumes in an RPG. This CR 5 Aberration is one of those "monsters of indeterminate origin", with the "sages" one keeps hearing about in the Tome of Horrors speculating what spawned the horrors but unable to reach a consensus toward any particular theory. The horrors are atypical melee brutes, but share some typical melee brute traits; damage reduction, energy resistance (in this case, cold resistance), claws that create copiously bleeding wounds, and above-average Strength. What makes them unique, however, is the two abilities tied to their crystalline bodies. For one thing, the crystalline horror can expel a 40-foot long blast of razor-sharp crystal shards from its body to bombard attackers at a range. For another, it can gather and unleash a radiant light that deals copious amounts of damage to the undead.

The second ability is what makes them truly curious; crystalline horrors are listed as Neutral Evil, so they aren't exactly the monstrous equivalent of Clerics or Paladins, so why the undead-smiting? Perhaps the crystalline horrors were created eons ago to wipe out an undead plague or something, but slowly succumbed to maddening anger and violence as time passed and their goals always seemed to slip farther and farther out of their grasp.



Crypt Thing
Here we have a CR 5 Undead that bucks the trend of its kin. The crypt thing isn't evil like so many undead are labeled as, instead being a paragon of total neutrality. They are stalwart sentinels of burial areas, with strong damage reduction that can only be surpassed by magic that deals blunt force trauma and a +4 resistance to attempts at turning by a Cleric. They are also unique in that they do not openly attempt to attack their foes. A crypt thing's modus operandi is to attempt to use their powerful magic to teleport an intruder away from the tomb, essentially nullifying the danger unless the assailant is foolhardy enough to attempt another raid. This teleportation is particularly nasty, in that it is random in what direction and how far away it teleports the target, and can actually be used to teleport a creature into mid-air, causing them to fall painfully back to earth. If the opposition returns or is resistant to the crypt thing's magic, it will then and only then resort to brute force with its skeletal claws.

The entry also contains stats for the spell that raises the crypt things, as well as the more powerful crypt guardian. Crypt guardians are less forgiving than the crypt things; if an enemy doesn't subject to its teleportation-based "keep away" sign, a crypt guardian has the ability to induce a powerful paralysis that can last for over a week. Not only that, but the paralyzed victims are turned invisible as a further insult to injury and to prevent anyone from finding them (for good or ill)!

Both the crypt thing and crypt guardian are interesting undead in that they are stone walls rather than vicious monsters, guardians rather than butchers. I like them. I like them a lot.



Daemon, Cacodaemon
The first of the daemons, the rather ugly cacodaemon resembles a vaguely humanoid beast made out of slick, hardened oil. They are CR 12 Outsiders that form the backbone of the forces that police the daemon-controlled realms of Hades, Gehenna, and Tarterus (as if Cerberus guarding Hades wasn't enough). The cacodaemons are truly juggernauts, with strong damage reduction, Spell Resistance 22, resistance to most energy types, immunity to being poisoned or injured by acid, and sporting both wickedly sharp rending claws and a powerful longsword. Of course, this assumes you even get to the cacodaemon. This is a tall order, considering they have an aura of both crippling fear and blinding darkness, the ability to sense your magic and read your thoughts, capability of seeing invisible beings, teleportation and telekinesis, summoning of reinforcement daemons, and the power to shapeshift into any small or medium-size outsider, be it daemon, demon, devil, angel, archon, guardinal, tiefling, aasimar...whatever, it doesn't matter what it is, as long as it's the right size. The result is that the cacodaemon is likely to find you long before you find it, and it's packing enough heat to tear you apart.



Daemon, Charon
The legendary boatman of the River Styx, Charon is a skeletal figure whose skull-adorned skiff sails through the kindgoms of the demons, devils, and daemons alike in order to ferry the dead across. This CR 23 Outsider's rather less appealed about the idea of ferrying living souls into the dark realms of shadow. While formidable and admittedly creepy, though, Charon isn't an unfair daemon. He'll let you pass to the Lower Realms on his boat for the modest fee 1,000 gold pieces, 500 platinums, or a shiny magical item. And if you insist on not paying the toll fee, he can and will unleash an epic-level can of whoopass on you. Charon can control the fetid waters of the River Styx as if they were an extension of his own body, paralyze with his magic staff, induce fear with his burning eyes, and summon both the Charonodaemons and the various daemons of the deep waters of the Styx. This isn't even counting his numerous spell-like abilities that run the gamut from walls of burning flame and symbols that induce deep pain to massive auras of shadow and desecration of the land.

He's also effectively immortal too, did I mention that? Yes, to kill Charon truly and utterly, you must fight him five times, once on each of the Lower Realm Planes. This is obviously a rather tall order. Charon is thus either an expensive but valuable ally or an indomitable enemy, depending on how well off your pockets are. And this isn't even counting Cerberus guarding the gateway to Hades itself, or the even more terrifying and uber-CR'd nightmares we'll meet later...



Daemon, Charonodaemon
Charonodaemons are CR 9 Outsiders that resemble their master, Charon. They aren't as charitable, however. Not by a longshot. While the Great Boatman himself is willing to let you go to the other side for the right price, the vicious Charonodaemons will take your offerings, only to backstab you and attempt to murder you and dump your body in the cold abyss of the River Styx. This is accomplished with spell-like abilities, a fear gaze, water daemons, and a non-magical quarterstaff; in other words, the Charonodaemons (logically) have lesser versions of the powers of their master. While not the most interesting daemons, I do like these critters due to the fact that they present an intriguing sort of mimic-based predation that adds some flavor to the ecology of the Lower Planes.



Daemon, Derghodaemon
The CR 10 derghodaemons resemble an obese humanoid bred with an oversized cockroach, and are just as unpleasant as their smaller "cousins". They are the physically overpowering but mentally deficient grunts of the daemons, relegated to little more than cannon fodder in the various wars and power struggles that rock the Lower Planes. They are loaded up with damage reduction, energy resistance, Spell Resistance 20, and rending claws to augment their physical prowess; they can also sacrifice a few claw attacks to tri-wield their weapon of choice, the longsword. Derghodaemons have a few spell-like abilities based on combat control such as darkness production and sleep or fear induction as well as a confusion-generating thrumming attack produced by their mandibles and the standard daemon-summoning abilities, but they pale in the supernatural powers department compared to other daemons, thus reinforcing their brute role. They do at least have one interesting quirk; derghodaemons can rotate their head 360 degrees, allowing them to both see all around them and pull of creepy Exorcist-style moments to freak out adventurers.



Daemon, Hydrodaemon

The giant, frog-like hydrodaemons are vicious predators of the River Styx, CR 7 brutes that are one of the few creatures that dwells in the fetid river of darkness. They are also incredibly plain. Other than a few unique SLAs such as water elemental summoning and water creation, as well as a sleep-inducing venomous spittle, the hydrodaemon pretty much follows the standard "daemon package". Eh.



Daemon, the Oinodaemon
The mighty Oinodaemon, Anthraxus, is the ruler of all the daemon planes. His body resembles that of a massively-horned and painfully diseased satyr, pustules and skin rot flaking at his skin and fur. In his decayed hands is a powerful staff adorned with skulls, reeking of fear and unholy power, capable of wrenching the will from the minds of others or granting their darkest wishes. He is a CR 37 terror that is nigh-immortal, omniscient, and imposingly frightening. Spells tied to death and decay, ranging all the way up to epic level spells, course through his rotting body, and his gaze produces a paralytic effect so powerful that only the Oinodaemon himself or a wishing spell can break free of it. He grants his Clerics the power of death and decay as well, fueling his power upon the face of the earth.

In shorter terms, Anthraxus is one of the most brutal entities we will meet in the Tome of Horrors. He is a truly horrendous epic level challenge who has enough abilities to rival even the demon lords and Dukes of Hell, and he is not to be taken lightly. He is obviously a titanic challenge that works either as an unseen enemy or a grand finale of a campaign.



Daemon, Piscodaemon
Freakish lobster-octopus-shark hybrids slither through the daemon planes, the CR 10 piscodaemons act as violent bullies of the weaker daemons, most likely as some sort of stress relief for the fact that they are slaves of the crafty arcanadaemons (arcanadaemons have their 3E stats in the infamous Monster Manual II under the name of arcanaloth). In addition to the standard daemon package of spell-like abilities, piscodaemons have 360 degree vision due to their rotating stalk-eyes, venomous bites, and vorpal pincers that can cut up an unwary foe before they can say "off with my head!" Of course, alas, piscodaemons are still daemons, so...they aren't that interesting on their own. That's the big problem with most of the daemons in the Tome of Horrors; they are all so co-dependent on each other that they are rather bland when they stand alone. Of course, this also gives an excuse to forge a complex ecology of the daemonkind if you're into that sorta thing.

Eldan
2010-04-03, 03:32 PM
Now I'm confused. They took Anthraxus, made him a daemon and named him ruler of the daemons? Huh.

The Tygre
2010-04-03, 04:12 PM
Now I'm confused. They took Anthraxus, made him a daemon and named him ruler of the daemons? Huh.

He was always a daemon. Daemon = Yugoloth, sort of. If I recall correctly, he was the Oinodaemon for a while before the current one slithered up to his ear, whispered -something-, and Anthraxus got up and left. Can't even remember the current guy's name. Not anything nearly as epic as 'Anthraxus'.

Eldan
2010-04-03, 04:35 PM
Well, yes... I know who he is. It's just strange that they made him leader agian. The new Oinoloth is Mydianchlarus.

Still, he technically counts as an altraloth. Well, so's Charon, and he's included as well.

Mulletmanalive
2010-04-04, 11:12 AM
I'm rather enjoying this series. Thank you.

Necromancer were notable for two things: almost too literally keeping to the original Fiend Folio creatures [and ending up with stupid critters like their Bunyip which was more like a Selkie in the original's stats] and for having their named creatures being somehow smaller than life and a bit meh. The Slaad lords and Demon Princes they introduced were really lame compared to Fiendish Codex or whatnot.

I look forward to your comments on my favourite critters from the book; the Flail Snail [which i think they did really well] and the Skulleton. My actual favourite critter from back in the day was the Meezle, which has been cut for some reason, despite keeping so much crap.

Rappy
2010-04-06, 07:35 AM
Well, yes... I know who he is. It's just strange that they made him leader agian. The new Oinoloth is Mydianchlarus. Still, he technically counts as an altraloth. Well, so's Charon, and he's included as well.
I think it's best noted that Necromancer Games's slogan is "Third Edition rules, First Edition feel". Hence Anthraxus still being in power.


Necromancer were notable for two things: almost too literally keeping to the original Fiend Folio creatures [and ending up with stupid critters like their Bunyip which was more like a Selkie in the original's stats] and for having their named creatures being somehow smaller than life and a bit meh. The Slaad lords and Demon Princes they introduced were really lame compared to Fiendish Codex or whatnot.
It'll become apparent all too fast that save-or-die powers are something I feel might have been best altered.

----------------------------------

Dakon
CR 1 sapient gorillas that are Lawful Neutral. I can't help but wonder if what spawned the dakon was its creator looking at DC Comics and their long-running smart ape legions and going "I'm gonna make this a D&D monster!" There's not much worthy of note about the dakon beyond the fact that they only trust humans and other dakons, and no other race; why is this? Is it meant to be an allusion to Tarzanesque "ape lords"? Is it because they're only interested in anthropologically similar kin to stimulate their intellectual facilities? If it's the latter, why not one of the other copious sapient primates, including those in this very title? Why humans?



Dark Creeper and Dark Stalker
Collectively known as the Darklings, the dark creeper and dark stalker are more or less an entire race of underground bandits. The halfling-sized dark creepers are the followers and masters of stealth, while the more humanesque dark stalkers are the leaders and masters of poison; this, however, is where the difference ends. Both have caricatured noses and facial features, both are pale gray color, both smell of dung and rotten meat, both wear stereotypical "Arabian bandit" clothing that provide extra defense for some reason, both can create intense darkness around themselves, both explode in a blinding light when they die (!), and both can sense magic and see in even supernatural darkness. Other than their uncomfortable Middle Eastern stereotype vibe, I actually rather like the creeper and stalker. They are a species shrouded in mystery, their cities literally so due to their massive clouds of darkness. Nobody knows what their motivations are or what their lives are like, leaving you free to speculate and craft at your own leisure. They are also Chaotic Neutral rather than Chaotic Evil, so they could always be skewn to be the Robin Hoods of the caverns adventurers so often plunder. And seriously, what's up with the exploding?



Darnoc
The darnoc is a form of undead that is, more or less, an homage to the works of Dante Alighieri. It is a spirit that was filled with great greed in its life, and is punished by the gods to suffer for that greed in death by tediously repeating their greed in ways such as eternally counting the same pile of coins or (if you want to go straight back to the Inferno) toiling under the literal weight of their avarice. They are also understandably grumpy, a darnoc distracted from its toils will fly into a rage and use its vicious arsenal of powers against the offender.

In addition to an aura of fear, the darnoc's vicious claws carry a curse that forcefully prevents wounds from them from healing and a magical symbol that reduces the weak-minded to petty bickering amongst each other. This coin-counting corpse also has the power to become an intangible spirit, using its incorporeality to its advantage. Oh, and it creates spawn. What sense that makes, I don't know, since being able to create undead slaves seems to be the antithesis of "robbed of greed and pleasure".

In any case, sans the spawning ability, the darnoc's a fairly solid and interesting undead. I can easily imagine it being an interesting major adversary in a campaign (even if it is only CR 6...it can always be powered up) as the spirit of a local tyrant or a kind but hoarding merchant that needs to be re-killed to seek freedom of the afterlife. It would also be a perfect resident of the Fourth Circle of Hell in a campaign thematically centered around the Divine Comedy.



Death Dog
A CR 2 Magical Beast that is more or less a two-headed disease-bearing hellhound. Not that interesting, really, since it's so vaguely defined. The only thing I can think of to flavor it up would be stacking the Gigantean and Relentless templates atop it to recreate Orthrus (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Orthrus).



Death Worm
An oversized expy of the Mongolian Death Worm (who I won't explain too much, just Google it), the ferocious death worm is a CR 6 cattle-sized Magical Beast that burrows beneath the desert sands. It has a deadly maw that oozes corrosive saliva and can be used to alternatively fire either a blast of acid or a lightning bolt (!) to assault a foe. It's interesting, but I prefer the smaller Menace Manual version.



Decapus
Here we have yet another Aberration with a human-level intelligence that is relegated to the role of "solitary thing that hunts people". Sigh. In this case, the CR 3 decapus is a furry cephalopod (!) of temperate forests and cavern regions (!!) that is "quite fond of human, elf, and halfling flesh" (!!!). Yes, folks, we have an honest-to-goodness tree octopus (http://zapatopi.net/treeoctopus/) here. How can you not give such a creature some sort of quirky culture? It's practically asking for it when you've given it human-level intellect! Alas, the only info on their social lives we get is that they only gather together to mate and that a starving female will cannibalize her own young. Meh.

Anyway, the decapus brachiates like some sort of hairy squid-monkey, using their tentacles to grapple and constrict creatures moving below its branches. It can also mimic sounds and create illusions, which nets the decapus the trickster award for this round. If there was ever an Ecology of the Decapus put out in any of the long history of Dragon magazine, 3E or not, let me know; I'd really like to see if they actually gave any more thought into these creatures.

Rappy
2010-04-08, 03:21 PM
Demiurge
In an odd coincidence, the demiurge is an incorporeal undead that is a spirit of wrath. Funny that wrath and greed-based undead are this close together in a book of over 400 monsters. Then again, wrathfullness is one of the most common undead stereotypes, so your mileage may vary. Anyway...this CR 6 baddie has a chilling touch, a paralytic spell, and an instakill ability. Ahh, instakill abilities, how we totally did not miss thee. It's also treated as a physical creature when hit with weapons forged with cold iron...huh.

I'm not sure what to make of the demiurge, to be honest. It has nothing to do with its name (which refers to a deity that has a major role in crafting the universe in its mythos), it has a "Will save or you DIE!!" power (an all too common type of thing in the Tome of Horrors, and one of its few major drawbacks for going for its motto of "Third Edition rules, First Edition feel"), and its incorporeality is negated by cold iron in spite of it having no connection to the fey (this isn't explained anywhere). I guess it could be an interesting one-shot encounter, but it's a rather bland creature overall.



Demodand, Shaggy
The strongest of the children of chaos is the shaggy demodand, a CR 15 pile of fat and malice. These 550-pound bruisers wield heavy morningstars that they can imbue with the very essence of chaos and aren't afraid to use them. In addition to this and copious damage reduction and spell resistance, they have a plethora of spell-like abilities that are designed minimize an opponent's combat capabilities (with spells such as See Invisibility, Fog Cloud, Mass Charm Monster, and Ray of Enfeeblement, amongst others) and the power to summon hordes of the lesser demodands to their aide.

There's something I really like about the demodands. Maybe it's that they are truly an image of a powerful fiend, morbidly obese and wallowing in their wealth and power. Maybe it's that they vaguely resemble frogs, and I like frogs. Maybe it's the fact that something as fat as the shaggy demodand can actually fly at a decent speed and maneuverability, which conjures up all sorts of hilarious imagery. I don't know what it is, but I'd prefer the demodands over their neighbors, the daemons, on any average day.



Demodand, Slime
The CR 13 slime demodand is a masochistic blob with acidic slime. Its hobbies are releasing a foul stench, coating people in acid to torture them, engaging in political power plays in Tarterus, using nearly the same spell-like abilities as the shaggy demodand, and self-mutilation. Why self-mutilation, you might ask? Well, to put it simply, the slime and tarry demodands alike can undergo an excruciating process to liquefy themselves completely into slime or tar respectively. Why would they do such a terrible thing? Well, to put it simply, doing so creates a sort of "Make a Monster" kit. This slime/tar can be utilized to create more of their kind later; alas, there are no rules for these slime/tar jars in the Tome of Horrors.



Demodand, Tarry
The lowest of the low when it comes to demodands, the CR 10 tarry demodands are the whipping boys of the big bloated bufonids above them in status. They are relegated to menial labor and cannon fodder positions in the power plays of the shaggy and slime demodands, sent out to battle daemons, demons, and devils alike to attempt to carve out more territory for the demodand breed. The tarrys are violent and unpredictable as well, unleashing the frustrations of their lot in life in the form of a Barbarian-esque rage and pummeling the crap out of foes while holding them tight with their adhesive tar-laden hands. The tarry demodands, like their kin, are interesting, even if only for an introspective of just what makes evil tick.

Eldan
2010-04-08, 03:45 PM
And I still think Demodand is one of the most stupid names ever.

The Tygre
2010-04-08, 03:52 PM
And I still think Demodand is one of the most stupid names ever.

What about Gehreleth?

Eldan
2010-04-08, 03:54 PM
Slightly better. Not as grating to me, and it least it sounds slightly alien.

My explanation (which could be the official one, I forgot) was that Baatezu, Tanar'ri, Gehreleth and Yugoloth were just the words in the fiends own respective languages.

Coidzor
2010-04-08, 03:57 PM
Where's it come from anyway? They ever admit to that? Eeeeewww... Vancian Influence.

The Dark Fiddler
2010-04-08, 04:05 PM
And I still think Demodand is one of the most stupid names ever.

http://oxped.vilammo.com/out.php/i52549_RedDemoman.jpg

If I were a Demoman Demodand....

The Tygre
2010-04-08, 04:45 PM
Where's it come from anyway? They ever admit to that? Eeeeewww... Vancian Influence.

Now, now... You can't knock -everything- from Jack Vance. Just because his spellcasting system is more or less a coelocanth these days doesn't mean his other stuff isn't valid.

Coidzor
2010-04-08, 04:54 PM
Now, now... You can't knock -everything- from Jack Vance. Just because his spellcasting system is more or less a coelocanth these days doesn't mean his other stuff isn't valid.

It... It doesn't? I'm just... the covers... and 1950s Science Fiction...:smalleek:

I just... I just get so scared sometimes....

The Tygre
2010-04-08, 05:11 PM
It... It doesn't? I'm just... the covers... and 1950s Science Fiction...:smalleek:

I just... I just get so scared sometimes....

It's alright.

It's called pulp.

Our protagonists are manly men, even the wizards.

Harem girls are plentiful... and firm if you know where to squeeze.

And every villain is an evil sorcerer with a pseudonatural balor.

You may have heard of us.

Mulletmanalive
2010-04-08, 06:32 PM
Given that Vance's characters would have actually bought the ability to memorise spells individually as Feats and the lowest level effect in the books is a 5th level spell at CL 20, it's not really Vance's problem.

The main issue with the system as written is the scaling caster level piece of the puzzle and the fact that the casters actually try to rely on their spells rather than having them sitting around like nukes in the closet like the dudes in the book. Hell, most powerful characters in Dying Earth have like 6 spells...

Now stop ragging on Vance! As an aside, my impression of 1950s Sci-fi is more Asimov's bizarre assumptions about aliens, his somewhat boring stories about travel and the nifty ones about robots.

Rappy
2010-04-09, 12:49 PM
Diger
This may be one of the most absurd and unusual oozes I've ever seen. The CR 2 diger is literally a transparent ball of slime, that has a fake gemstone "skull" to attract adventurers (because we all know adventurers are a good dietary regiment), and filled with helium it can fart out to fly for limited periods of time. I don't think they could pay me to make up a monster quite this off-beat. Like most oozes, a diger engages in combat by enveloping an opponent with its acidic body; it does, however, have one other ace up its sleeve in the form of an anesthetic chemical it can inject to paralyze a target that is being digested. Pretty nasty, if not so effective against stronger targets.

Seriously, though, I had a hard time trying to figure out how to place the diger in any kind of ecology. The I remembered that they are indeed gemstone-eating monsters out there, like the xorn. What if the digers aren't just adventurer-eaters, but the xorn/other gem-eaters/things that like shiny objects version of a pitcher plant? It merely lies in wait, hiding in plain side, its shiny-sparkly fake jewel glittering in the otherwise shadowy depths.



Dire Corby
The CR 1 Monstrous Humanoid known as the dire corby looks at first like the underground anthro-bird equivalent of orcs; they're zerg rushers, they have nasty dispositions, they have no real special powers to speak of, and they like killing stuff (especially bats, which they find a delicacy). I say nay to this! They're giant anthropomorphic crows, it's hard not to work with that! You can enhance their flavor immensely by plugging in corvid traits, such as an obsession with collecting shiny things (perhaps why an adventuring party would enter their cavernous lairs?) and clever ways of problem solving. Perhaps mesh them in with other underground wildlife and hazards. Adventurers too well-armored to be pecked open? Flush them into an area with piercers or darkmantles. Wizard in the ranks? Thrum 'em up in a swarm of giant cave crickets. Dire corbies may be relatively "stupid" by sapient standards, but they are three times as smart as actual crows, and should act just as cunning as their animalian kin.

As an aside, the dire corby will be getting an entire ecology and more in the upcoming Pathfinder book Misfit Monsters Redeemed (which should be interesting), as will...



Disenchanter
...This fellow! While I can see the dire corby easily being made into an interesting and threatening creature, the disenchanter will be a tough sell, even from Paizo's "Monsters Revisited" line. The disenchanter resembles a sparkly, blue-furred macrauchenia. I'll let that sink in for a moment.

...

...Okay, everyone done laughing? Good? Good. The disenchanter is actually a fairly scary prospect when you get past its (mutable, of course) appearance. It's the wizarding equivalent of a rust monster; it not only has the ability to sniff out magic, but it can drain a magic item of its supernatural abilities! This means that the disenchanter is a very, very unpleasant creature to cross paths with, especially considering it's only a CR 3 Magical Beast. Low level hell indeed...



Dracolisk
Finally, we've reached the creature I alluded to waaaay back in the greater basilisk entry! Meet the mighty dracolisk, a CR 9 Dragon that is the result of a dragon and basilisk getting to know each other a little too well. The result is a horrifying monster that can both incinerate/freeze/melt/zap/toxic gas you with its breath weapon and petrify you with its basiliskine eyes! This creature is so over the top deadly that it becomes innately awesome. And, really, who hasn't thought about having a half-dragon basilisk at least once? And I imagine such a beast would have an interesting ecology as well...not that I can think of one right now.

Rappy
2010-04-15, 09:47 AM
Dragon, Cloud
The graceful cloud dragon is a lithe, crocodile-headed true dragon whose form trails mist as it soars through the sky. Its scales start out a pale blue with reddish tinge, but slowly transforms to a burning orange and finally a radiant gold as it matures. Cloud dragons are one of the most intelligent of the dragons, can transform into mist, create water, have a breath weapon that acts like a focused hurricane rather than a burning/freezing/zapping/acidic/whatever blast, and have a set of spell-like abilities that include mist and fog-related spells, lightning, and weather control. They are also applicable at a large range of levels, with challenge ratings that escalate from the CR 3 wyrmling to the great wyrms at CR 25. Cloud dragons are reclusive and standoffish, but not necessarily a villain; they are more like the cranky old people wanting the adventurers to get off their lawn than the crops-ravaging, princess-eating beast.

While there isn't much fluff on them in the Tome of Horrors, looking at a copy of ye olde 2nd Edition Monstrous Manual, there are a few heres and theres that are of interest. Cloud dragons live in magical islands made in the clouds, where they keep their treasures and young...now there's an adventure hook if there ever was one. They're also kind of jerkish, looking down on creatures that cannot naturally fly and waging turf wars against the silver dragons (which, suffice to say, they usually lose; cloud dragons may be smarter, but silver dragons are stronger, have both paralytic and cold-damage breath weapons, and can produce gravity manipulating hackery when they are at their full growth progression). They also have a diet that consists of...rain water, hailstones, and silver. Yeah, I'm not sure what to say about that.



Dragon, Faerie
Imagine all of those annoying feykind and their tricksy ways, condensed into a cute little dragon with butterfly wings. Now, imagine no more, for that is exactly what the faerie dragon is. These jackass relatives of the pseudodragons spend their whole lives honing their magic (individuals having a 35% chance of being a Druid, the rest being Sorcerers) for the sole purpose of aggravating humanoids entering their realm; indeed, it is stated that some spend months simply to plan a single practical joke. This is added to by a breath weapon that produces euphoric gas (yes, they have literal happy gas) and the ability to become invisible at will. Also, interestingly enough, they have the ability to communicate telepathically at a range of 2 miles; I've never seen a creature with a telepathy range that large...I wonder what's up with that. Thankfully, the TOH didn't reprint the Monstrous Manual's comment that a faerie dragon's voice sounds like "the tinkling of tiny silver bells", which would have cemented their low likability; I mean, really, you're a dragon, not a cartoon chipmunk! All in all, a fun creature, but one whose usefulness depends on how much you're willing to bend its fluff into something more usable (or how comedy-oriented/whimsical your campaign is). A final side note: in addition to their absurd telepathy range, they also have a fairly large number of hit dice (2, upgradeable up to 6) for such a tiny creature; then again, I guess it's the least they could do to make these CR 2 trickster terrors a bit more dragony.



Dragon, Mist
Why this creature exists, I'm not sure, because the mist dragon is more or less a cloud dragon with the Water subtype instead of the Air subtype. Okay, it's a little weaker (it caps out at a Challenge Rating of 23) and breathes a cone of blindingly hot (literally!) fog instead of a wind blast, but its mist transformation, water creation, and spell-like abilities aren't really that different at all. This creature probably would have been better served as a variant of cloud dragon rather than an entire entry of its own.



Dragon Horse
This entry is also annoying, but for a completely different reason. The dragon horse, a CR 9 Magical Beast whose form is that of a supernatural flying horse with draconic features, is mentioned as "being related to the noble ki-rin". This would be fine, but...there are no stats for the ki-rin presented in this title at all! And it's not like this is a monster you can easily pop open your Monster Manual and find; no, it's a creature that you'd have to trawl through the various Asia-themed supplements (Oriental Adventures or third party) to find! There's no real excuse I can think of for them to update the dragon horse and not the ki-rin...but I digress. Anyway, as I noted, the dragon horse is not a creature of the Dragon type like the past three critters in this post, nor is it even related to true dragons, but it is tangentially part of the Dracy Bunch by virtue of the ki-rin. They have a triple-use breath weapon that can either deal cold damage, blast out a gust of wind, or create fog, and they can both transport to different planes and fly. And if that didn't make them odd enough, they are built up as these ultimate paragons of virtue, disdaining material possessions and being of a "free spirit". Oh, and they can auto-detect anyone's alignment, mental defenses or no. Wee.

Thane of Fife
2010-04-15, 10:55 AM
Looking at my Monstrous Manual, I think the major differences between Mist Dragons and Cloud Dragons is in their habitats and spell-like abilities. Given that they both seem to be Oriental-style dragons rather than western ones, I'd be inclined to use them more like wizards than traditional dragons.

You know, there's a famine, and the PCs need to talk to the mighty Cloud Dragon to get him to bring rain. But they can't fly, so they have to go to the mist dragon that lives by the river and hope that he'll take them to the cloud dragon.

So first they have to gather gifts so that the mist dragon will talk to them, then they need to do him a favor so that he'll agree to their request. They need more gifts so that the Cloud Dragon will talk to them, and then they find out that he's causing the famine because his daughter was kidnapped or something, so they have to rescue her.... You get the idea.

Incidentally, I love how in 2e, cloud dragons have a Jump speed. Why??

Volthawk
2010-04-15, 01:23 PM
It's odd Faerie Dragons are in there. They're already in 3.5, in the Draconomicon.

Oh right, these ones are Open Game Content...

Rappy
2010-04-19, 04:16 PM
Dragonfish
This creature is, sadly, of no relation to the real-world dragonfish; instead, it is, strangely enough, nearly identical to a real-life fish known as the stargazer. Like the stargazer, the dragonfish is a bottom-dweller with upward-facing eyes and venomous spines. Unlike the stargazer, the dragonfish is a freshwater creature and a CR 2 Magical Beast...for...some reason. Like the bonesnapper, there's no real reason for this creature to be classed as a Magical Beast rather than an Animal, and the only thing keeping it from being called a "dire stargazer" or something is its 2E legacy name...still, said legacy didn't stop the potential of it being a mere animal. Indeed, the 2E dragonfish was listed in the Fish section of the Monstrous Manual, alongside gars, sharks, electric and true eels, and other denizens of the deep. As an aside, I'm kinda disappointed that the gars were left behind, but the Tome of Horror updated the barracuda, electric eel, giant and cold-weather piranhas (!), and the giant tiger barb (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tiger_barb) (!!).



Dragonfly, Giant
Now that's more like it! An honest to goodness classic "big bug" Vermin, the bane of low-level adventurers (in this case, the giant dragonfly has a Challenge Rating of 4). The book doesn't say much about the giant dragonfly. They are large (for a dragonfly, at least; about 5 feet long) insectile predators that attack animals and giant vermin. That's...pretty much it. Oh, and it is also stated that their shimmering exoskeleton is worth 1,500 gold pieces. Considering how many dragonflies swarm together here during the spring, the marshes of a realm with giant dragonflies must be swarming with adventurers during that time of year, too!



Dragonnel
Dragonnels are a CR 6 Magical Beast that are either a relative of the dragons or a dragon-pteranodon hybrid; our good sage friends aren't sure on that matter. Similarly, it is "thought" that dragonnels can speak Common...what, did no one ever think to ask one? Anyway, dragonnels are mountain-dwelling aerial predators with rudimentary intelligence, using their sapience to outcompete predatory animals such as their presumed pterosaurian kin, and are also used as mounts by "evil races" (why "evil" races? Are "good" races too uppity to have the dragony thing as their sky-steeds?). Eggs of these ferocious pack hunters are worth 4,500 gold pieces a pop, and chicks are worth 9 grand each! Forget dragonfly hides, stealing the babies of a sapient species is where it's at! :P



Drake (Fire, Ice, and Salt)
Fire drakes: they're drakes that are attuned to fire. Simple, huh? ...Okay, I'll tell you more than that. Fire drakes are essentially small, dim-witted red dragons with flammable blood. Handily enough, this burning blood can be used as makeshift molotov cocktails (!) or to create a temporarily flaming weapon. These wary predators dwell deep in the caverns of volcanic regions and guard their territory ferociously. They are presumably based on J.R.R. Tolkien's firedrakes, although it is possible that the original creators went back to old European dragon lore as well.

Ice drakes, on the other hand...yeah. I'm pretty sure these are based off of Tolkien's cold-drakes (although it could just be a coincidence in terminology). Cold drakes and fire drakes alike have a Challenge Rating of 4, but the ice drakes replace physical strength with magical aptitude. These crafty frost dragons can either induce fear in their enemies or put them to sleep in addition to their chilly breath weapon.

Finally, you have the midnight blue-scaled salt drake. These are both the most original and the most powerful of the drakes, an imposing CR 9 predator that dwells in the great expanses of the arid plains and salt flats. They are powerful in both melee and ranged combat, with powerful claws and teeth and a breath weapon that both flays the flesh with salt and grit as well as leech moisture from the body as Constitution damage (if you have a copy of Sandstorm and want to be particularly mean, you could replace Constitution damage with Desiccation damage). They also have a nice ltitle hook, in that it's stated that gnolls, goblins, and hobgoblins are known to use these mighty beasts as war mounts. I don't know about you, but the idea of dragon-riding goblins is terrifying!

The Tygre
2010-04-19, 05:03 PM
It's odd Faerie Dragons are in there. They're already in 3.5, in the Draconomicon.

Oh right, these ones are Open Game Content...

Well, that and ToH was printed out before the Draconomicon.

tbarrie
2010-04-19, 05:30 PM
Darnoc
The darnoc is a form of undead that is, more or less, an homage to the works of Dante Alighieri. It is a spirit that was filled with great greed in its life, and is punished by the gods to suffer for that greed in death by tediously repeating their greed in ways such as eternally counting the same pile of coins or (if you want to go straight back to the Inferno) toiling under the literal weight of their avarice. They are also understandably grumpy, a darnoc distracted from its toils will fly into a rage and use its vicious arsenal of powers against the offender.

I can't help wondering who Conrad was. TSR's accountant back in the day?

Volthawk
2010-04-20, 10:01 AM
Well, that and ToH was printed out before the Draconomicon.

Oh, right. I didn't know that.

Rappy
2010-04-20, 03:40 PM
I can't help wondering who Conrad was. TSR's accountant back in the day?
Who knows? Except the creators of the monster, obviously...

---------------------------------

Draug
It's a ghost pirate, whooo. This CR 4 Undead is based on the sea-bound version of the Norse draugr, but for whatever reason was changed to be an undead pirate rather than an undead Viking...I can only imagine why... They wield cutlasses and have a fancy pirate ship that is immune to fire, stays afloat in any weather (which is a good idea, considering this draug has the ability to conjure storms), and fly. Presumably the flight is based around the Flying Dutchman, which makes me wonder why they didn't just give it a Dutch name rather than a Norse one. I'd rather use the draugr from Frost and Fur, it's a better deal than this one.



Drelb
Drelbs are CR 5 Outsiders that are meant solely to piss off Clerics; they resemble wraiths, but are not undead, and can warp its appearance to appear to be turned as an undead when it's actually standing still (and thus beating those that run after it over the head with its powers). Drelbs have a chilling touch that startles those that feel it and the ability to imitate any psionic power used within 30 feet of it....for...some reason. Meh.



Dust Digger
These giant CR 4 starfish-like Aberrations slowly crawl their way beneath the sand, creating pits that draw prey in to be grappled and swallowed whole. And...what makes this any more viable than an advanced giant ant lion, exactly?



Eblis
CR 3 Magical Beasts. Giant EEEEBUL storks. Can cast spells. You do the math.



Eel, Giant Moray
One of those few creatures in the Tome of Horrors that makes me really question it, the giant moray eel breaks the mold of most giant animals by being of the Magical Beast type. Alas, like the bonesnapper, it has no real reason for this distinction; it has a disease-ridden bite, low intellect, and nothing that really makes this CR 4 beast stand out as deserving to be a Magical Beast rather than stuffed in the animal appendix of the book.



Elemental, Psionic
We have stats ranging from CR 2 to CR 14 of the mighty psionic elementals, living masses of psychic energy. They have a veritable Swiss Army Knife of psionic powers, ranging from mere detection powers to mind crush powers in the larger specimen, and actually have the ability to warp reality to deflect one attack or spell per round. These enigmatic creatures have little fluff and can thus be adjusted to fit into any campaign that allows psionics.



Elemental, Time
Forget what I said about the psionic elementlas; these are truly mighty. The common, noble, and royal time elementals (with Challenge Ratings of 8, 14, and 17, respectively) are only titled so as to differentiate them due to the lack of major size differences that most elementals have; indeed, if these titles have any actual meaning, it's unknown, because our dear sage friends in the fluff have essentially thrown up their hands and said "Hey...we dunno". While just as enigmatic as psionic elementals, these spatial paragons are much, much more dangerous. Their attacks don't heal naturally due to the cell death their touch causes, they can magically age a creature up to an entire age category (for instance, making a teenager into an adult) once per day, have constant foresight that aids them in combat, the ability to stop time or have up to four of itself at once due to time hackery, are immune to time-related magic, and can remove a creature from existence for up to half an hour. I can't help but think that Gary Gygax invented the time elemental for the pure purpose of waving it in the face of spellcasters that overuse time-related spells.



Elemental Dragon
Elemental dragons are...well...elementals shaped like dragons. Why? Who knows. The four elemental dragons are found on their corresponding planes and are all designated Always Evil. Why? Again, who knows, most elementals aren't keen on the whole "fight of Good vs. Evil" thing. In any case, in addition to all four species having "superheated [element here]" breath weapons, air dragons have a cyclone buffet can control wind and weather, earth dragons can meld into stone and appear to be a mere statue (as well as absorbing the bones of those they kill; this has no mechanical benefit for the earth elemental dragon, it's simply a "no easy resurrection for you!" clause), fire dragons have a super-hot aura and can create a literal rain of fire, and water dragons can capsize boats, control water, and douse flames. The elemental air and water dragons are both CR 18, the elemental earth dragon is CR 20, and the elemental fire dragon is CR 22. These are...eh. They really need a better fluff job than "these creatures are mean because they look like dragons...for...some reason".



Executioner's Hood
In the grand tradition of "things that look like stuff you wouldn't expect to kill you", the executioner's hood (a CR 2 Aberration) is a living executioner's hood. Surprised at that revelation, aren't you? Oh, but it gets weirder... While you'd expect a creature that looks like a hood to engulf and try to strangle its opponent, would you expect it to be weak to alcohol? Yes, alcohol. Wine, brandy, ale...all of it is listed as dealing 1 point of damage per quart poured on the executioner's hood. Oh, Dungeons and Dragons, how I love your wackiness...

Eldan
2010-04-20, 03:53 PM
"Quick! He's being strangled by his hood! Douse him with Brandy!"

I can so see my old gnomish archivist saying that.

Rappy
2010-04-21, 03:19 PM
Eye Killer
A snake-tailed bat with vestigial wings and eyes that have an Insta-Kill Death Ray. It's a CR 4 Magical Beast, and kills creatures for the fun of it in spite of having animal intellect. It's also vulnerable to bright lights, allowing you some modicum of protection against them...unless it's an umbral eye killer. In that case, you're pretty much dead in the water; the umbrals can release overwhleming darkness from their bodie so that, while you cannot fend them off, they can crawl through the darkness with ease and pick you off. Fun.



Eye of the Deep
Say hello to the Eye of the Deep, one of the only beholders that has managed to escape the clutches of Wizards of the Coast and enter the realm of Open Game Content. Like the beholder, the Eye of the Deep is a scaly ball with a single large eye and toothy maw in the front, and is of the Aberration type. Unlike the beholder, the Eye has Fabian hair behind two crab-like (rather than "human eyes on snail stalks") eye stalks, and has two imposing crab claws that actually allows it to manipulate objects (!). On one hand, the big eye has a stunning blast, the right eyestalk has hold monster, and the left eyestalk has hold person....as well as the ability to create illusions when the two eyestalks' powers combine, for some reason...which is rather tame compared to the all-out heavy artillery of the bog standard beholder. On the other....well...crab claws! The greatest flaw of the Eye of the Deep is that it will only be encountered in deep-water adventures; Eyes that end up beached have to either crawl their way back into the ocean or die in 2d4 minutes. On the other hand, you could always give it one of the templates out there that grant amphibiousness.... Of course, I'm the same DM that would also be malicious enough to say that giving medusas the Gaze to Ray feat is a good idea, so take that as you will.



False Spider
This heading dictates two giant Vermin: the CR 1 Pedipalp (giant whip-scorpion, also known as the vinegaroon) and CR 3 Solifugid (giant solifugid, AKA the camel spider, sun spider, etc.). Both of these creatures have an improved grab/constricting mandibles combo, which is rather uneventful. Thankfully, there is a CR 2 variant of the former creature that grants a cloud of poisonous fumes, which is a bit more imposing. Sure, it's not the caustic vinegar blast that actual vinegaroons have, but at least it's something.



Fen Witch
The fen witch resembles a frog-handed hag that has had way too many sweets. Like most hags, she is a lower-level Monstrous Humanoid (CR 5, to be precise); unlike most hags, however, she is extremely reclusive and disdains anything and anyone that enters her swamp. Trespassers beware, as the fen witch can read your mind (if you're within 60 feet of her and fail a DC 15 Will save, that is) and then kill you by twisting your truename (again, if you fail a DC 15 Will save). On top of that, she's so hideous that her visage actually deals 1d8 points of Strength damage! This is a rather nasty monster encounter, I'll give them that...



Fire Lizard
About as close as you'll get to a mythological salamander in standard Dungeons and Dragons tomes (although definitely oversized for the job). This CR 8 (!) Magical Beast is said to resemble a wingless red dragon, although the art makes it look like a fire-breathing tuatara...so...yeah. Fire lizards breathe fire. Obviously, right? Well, I just figured I'd tell you that, as it's the only special ability it really has.



Fire Nymph
This CR 4 Fey is a nymph...with fire hair...that casts fire spells...and has intense body heat...and lives on the Plane of Fire. *Shrugs* Your guess on this one is as good as mine.

Rappy
2010-04-23, 04:53 PM
Fire Snake
Hey, look, an Outsider! And a CR 1 individual at that! Doesn't this critter just beg for a summons? Fire snakes don't have much going for them stat-wise beyond a paralytic venom they can inject into your blood stream. No, where they really get interesting is in this line in the fluff:

Sages conjecture that fire snakes are some form of larval salamander from the Elemental Plane of Fire.
Now, for those of y'all out there that are rusty on your Monster Manual-ology, D&D's "salamanders" resemble spiky nagas (of the limbed variant) with elk antlers. That apparently come from snakes made out of fire. ...Sure, why not? There's weirder things out there.


Firefiend
The firefiend (not to be confused with the similarly named firefriend, who won't be making an appearance in this title) is a CR 7 Elemental whose appearance is that of a humanoid hunk of magma with three heads, three arms, and three legs, one of each on its three sides. I know I've seen that monster concept before, but I can't put my finger on it, so moving on.... Firefiends have 360 vision, wield three flaming longswords, and can spit lugees of molten pain. How's that for a random attack? What makes this monster truly memorable, though, is that while it can speak Ignan, all it does is constantly swear in that language. So...they're the sailors of the Elemental Plane of Fire?

Flail Snail
Unlike the firefiend, everyone who's looked into "silly monsters" has heard of this eccentricity at least once. I mean, really, the flail snail is hard to miss....it's a giant snail with four (plus one more for each additional hit die it gains) mace-balls on stalks! That disrupts magic! The random results aren't really that random, with three "the spell misfires and hits somebody, possibly the caster" results (I count rebound as a misfire, yes), "the spell works normally", and "nothing happens, you silly, stupid mage". But I won't hold that against the flail snail, it has an odd sort of charisma with its freakishly unnatural body and unique take on spell resistance. Also, it's shell can be sold for 3,000-5,000 gold pieces (for you monster body part traders keeping track out there), so I doubt the players would hate you that much for throwing one at them... That and they're light-sensitive, which again proves that having the daylight spell around is a godsend in the Underdark.

Flind
Flinds are gnolls. Stockier, more muscular, and slightly shorter gnolls. Stockier, more muscular, and slightly shorter gnolls that have human intellect and wield nunchuks. Okay, sure, they're called flindbars, but they're clearly nunchuks. Anyway, flinds are essentially the hobgoblins of the gnoll world, being stronger, fiercer, and all around better than your bog standard gnoll. Slavering orcs-with-fur hordes not good enough for you? Try the flind, they will command those hordes while smacking you in the head to death! Oh, and as an aside, while their favored class is Fighter, I imagine they'd do better as Clerics due to their intelligence; indeed, it is stated that they are clerics of Yeenoghu (although he is only referred to as "the Demon Prince of Gnolls" here, since unlike Orcus, Dagon, and others, Necromancer Games didn't get the rights for him).

Floating Eye
It's a fish...with a giant eyeball on its side! Their side-eye has a hypnotic power, but beyond that...yeah. They're CR 1/10 Magical Beasts, so they aren't exactly intimidating. I guess you could fluff it as a Beholder experiment gone wrong or something.

Flumph
And here it is, folks. The flumph. The one monster that every "silly monsters" article worth its questionably dated salt will mention. Anyone that reads the webcomic Order of the Stick (which you should, because...yeah) knows of these creatures as unfortunate landing pads...but what do you really know about the freaky flumph? Well, first of all, they're CR 1 Aberrations that are listed as "Always Lawful Good", yet they spend their days spearing small mammals for their foodstuffs. So...yeah. Secondly, they have two attacks: they can either spear you with their spiked tentacles and then spit acid in the wound or spray you with a nauseatingly smelly gunk. Alas, in spite of their rather unpleasant methods of attack, flipping a flumph over with a successful Grapple check renders it a helpless source of cheap XP.

Steveotep
2010-04-25, 07:22 PM
Ah yes, the good old Tome of Horrors. :smallcool:

It is interesting to compare the stats here with the "official" Fiend Folio.

Asbestos
2010-04-25, 07:54 PM
Fire Nymph
This CR 4 Fey is a nymph...with fire hair...that casts fire spells...and has intense body heat...and lives on the Plane of Fire. *Shrugs* Your guess on this one is as good as mine.

Sounds hot.
...
:smallsigh:

Thurbane
2010-04-25, 09:10 PM
Beetle, Giant Death Watch
This beetle, on the other hand....meeeeh. It takes a real creature and fantasizes it up in the worst way as this human-sized CR 6 monstrosity. According to European folklore, death watch beetles know when someone is going to die and will make noise to proclaim that. Sure, that would have been an interesting idea, constant deathwatch effect. But no, they had to slap a "Fortitude save or you DIE!!" attack onto the giant death watch beetle. It's also immune to death-based effects, so while it can instakill you, you can't instakill it! Preposterously annoying.
The Banshee of Celtic myth got the same treatment in D&D - apparently, harbinger of death = death attack.

Bunyip
The Bunyip is one of my favorite beasts in the Dreamtime lore of the Australian aboriginal clans. You have this unspeakable creature whose appearance is supposedly such a horrid amalgamation of features no two descriptions can agree on what it looks like. It's a murderer who dwells in the deeps and commands the waters of the billabongs, a creator and a destroyer alike, the ultimate example of nature's primal chaos. So what does the Tome of Horrors present for us in their Bunyip? Why, a CR 4 Magical Beast that is a shark-bear hybrid with a blood-in-the-water-frenzy rage attack and a vorpal bite, of course!

...Damn you, Tome of Horrors, damn you. e.e
I remember back in our 1E days a particularly malicious DM in our group had one of these attack our characters for having the audacity to...wash in the river! That's right...we we're being punished for trying to be presentable before returning to town. :smallyuk:

Oh, BTW, as an Aussie I always found the shark/seal hybrid version of the bunyip to be incredibly stoopid as well.

Drelb
Drelbs are CR 5 Outsiders that are meant solely to piss off Clerics; they resemble wraiths, but are not undead, and can warp its appearance to appear to be turned as an undead when it's actually standing still (and thus beating those that run after it over the head with its powers). Drelbs have a chilling touch that startles those that feel it and the ability to imitate any psionic power used within 30 feet of it....for...some reason. Meh.

I'm pretty sure these guys first apeared in the original ToEE module. I don't think they had any psionics connection - they were just there as a "gotcha" monster for clerics. They also make it into the ToEE PC game from Troika, but minus any signifcant special abilities.

Executioner's Hood
In the grand tradition of "things that look like stuff you wouldn't expect to kill you", the executioner's hood (a CR 2 Aberration) is a living executioner's hood. Surprised at that revelation, aren't you? Oh, but it gets weirder... While you'd expect a creature that looks like a hood to engulf and try to strangle its opponent, would you expect it to be weak to alcohol? Yes, alcohol. Wine, brandy, ale...all of it is listed as dealing 1 point of damage per quart poured on the executioner's hood. Oh, Dungeons and Dragons, how I love your wackiness...
IIRC, first appeared in the 1E Dungeonland (a D&D version of Alice in Wonderland). Pouring alcohol on attachy-type monsters was a pretty standard tack back in 1E, for some odd reason. Most adventurers had a wineskin in the standard gear for just such an eventuality.

...as a general note, some of the undead here (Bhuta & Bloody Bones) come from a 1E Halloween edition of Dragon. Had a really cool Easley cover of a skeleton with an axe smashing through a door, if memory serves.

Anyhow, loving this thread, thanks very much for the effort you are putting in here. As a fan of both ToH and the 1E sources that most of the beasties come from, it makes me very happy to read. :smallsmile:

Rappy
2010-04-25, 10:46 PM
Thanks for the kind comments. I'm lagging a bit lately since my grandmother is returning home from the hospital next week and I have to get things ready for her, but there should be a new entry before the day is said and done.

Also, the real fun should begin when we get to the appendices and I start rambling about the implausiblity of quippers and the question of why foxweres replace foxwomen/werefoxes in the Tome.

tbarrie
2010-04-26, 11:34 AM
Sounds hot.
...
:smallsigh:

Yeah, I was going to say that this pun is probably the Fire Nymph's reason for existing.

Terraoblivion
2010-04-26, 12:09 PM
I'd imagine that the Draug being based on the flying Dutchman despite being named after a viking ghost can come from something as simple as poor research. I am Danish myself and i find it somewhat puzzling how often people mix up Danish and Dutch. It seems likely that something similar happened here. Or perhaps they just decided to go with "sea ghost" and make something based on that, chucking all other aspects of the the mythological being out.

PairO'Dice Lost
2010-04-26, 12:20 PM
The Banshee of Celtic myth got the same treatment in D&D - apparently, harbinger of death = death attack.

Well, if you're going to kill someone, you're certainly a harbinger of their death, now aren't you? :smalltongue:


IIRC, first appeared in the 1E Dungeonland (a D&D version of Alice in Wonderland). Pouring alcohol on attachy-type monsters was a pretty standard tack back in 1E, for some odd reason. Most adventurers had a wineskin in the standard gear for just such an eventuality.

Probably because a lot of attachy-type monsters, most notably the mimic, specified that they attached with an adhesive that could be dissolved by a weak alcohol.

Thurbane
2010-04-26, 09:22 PM
Well, if you're going to kill someone, you're certainly a harbinger of their death, now aren't you? :smalltongue:
True, true...:smallbiggrin:

Probably because a lot of attachy-type monsters, most notably the mimic, specified that they attached with an adhesive that could be dissolved by a weak alcohol.
Most likely - I'd forgotten the specifics, but I definitely remember a couple of 1E/2E monsters having that stipulation.

Rappy
2010-04-26, 09:55 PM
Fly, Giant
For a creature designated as a refuse crawler, the CR 2 giant fly is actually fairly intimidating for a starter-level party. Sure, they may be only able to bite, but they are fairly quick on their feet and on the wing, and hunt in swarms of 6 to 11 individuals. I dunno about you, but I doubt I'd want to encounter half a dozen 6-foot long flies filling the air with their deafening buzzing.



Fogwarden
The fogwarden, a CR 6 Aberration, manages to epitomize itself as a glass cannon creature. In spite of its Challenge Rating, it only has 4 hit dice, and a barely above-average Constitution score. On the other hand...well, suffice to say, these fog-formed humanoid shapes have enough strong supernatural powers to back up their lack of staying power. Want a creature with a fear aura? The fogwarden has that. Want a non-vampire that can turn into mist, and as an added bonus create the undead? Yep, the fogwarden has that too. Not to mention that its skin crawls with electricity that damages metal that comes in contact with it and allows the warden to blast off lightning bolts. Of course, every great threat has an Achilles heel, and the fogwarden's is....sunlight. Seriously, you'd think that spellcasters would just heft around the daylight spell on every adventure they undergo, considering how many monsters are weak to sunlight.



Forester's Bane
Also known as the snapper saw, the forester's bane is a carnivorous bush with serrated stalks within its heavyset leaves. It also has colorful and enticingly-scented berries to lure in prey to engulf and flagellate until said prey as dead. While I don't have much to say on it, I'd say that while it may not quite be worth the Challenge Rating of 5 it is granted, this plant is a nice addition to those that wish to have a sensible ecology game (it's not like the real world hasn't shown us enough predators with lures to provide ideas for utilization).



Forlarren
"This creature resembles a hairless satyr." Well...that's not a monster entry opener you see every day. Anyway, forlarrens are nymph-daemon hybrids, spiteful of their own existence and driven to attack anyone and anything that crosses their path. It is stated that forlarrens cannot truly make friends, as their fey nature is overriden by the 'inherent bloodlust' of their daemon side. Forlarrens can cast heat metal once per day. Unless you want a low-level Fey encounter (CR 2, specifically) or a monster with an innate struggle with her very nature, then I'm afraid there's not much the forlarren can offer you.



Frog, Monstrous
And hey, it's another animal outside of the "Animals" appendix! Who would have thought? Anyway, the 'monstrous' frogs actually include one perfectly mundane frog (the CR 1 poison dart frog, referred to as the "Poisonous Frog"), three oversized frogs (the size Small CR 1 killer frog, the size Medium CR 2 giant frog, and the size Large CR 4 "giant dire frog"), and an Outsider known as the abyssal dire frog, a CR 5 monster that seems like it would be more fitting amongst the demons or in a sidebar with the Tasthogga, the demon-god of frogs. Suffice to say, monstrous frogs are nice for utility, but bland for commentary.



Froghemoth
What has a single eye stalk, tentacles, and lives in fetid waters? Well....technically, that would be describing the dianoga from Star Wars, but no! It's the froghemoth, a CR 13 Aberration that spits in the face of all that is good and just in the world. With a single, glaring eye stalk, four tentacles instead of its front legs, a tongue that can lash out and suction you into the beast's gullet, and a pseudo-immunity to electrical attack (they produce a slow effect, so it's not a complete loss), the froghemoth is a nightmare of unnatural nature that could actually provide a decent challenge to mid-level players if used right. If I recall correctly, there was a larval form of the froghemoth, but it is (alas) neither statted nor mentioned in the Tome.

The Tygre
2010-04-26, 10:17 PM
Huh, I just noticed... Are you going to be covering the demons and devils section later? And I think Froghemoth larvae got a PF update in Kobold Quarterly.

Rappy
2010-04-26, 10:30 PM
Huh, I just noticed... Are you going to be covering the demons and devils section later? And I think Froghemoth larvae got a PF update in Kobold Quarterly.
Ah, thanks.

And yeah, the demons and devils will be getting their own treatment, as if they were an appendix (they aren't, but their section is tediously long, so they might as well be).

Thurbane
2010-04-27, 05:12 AM
If I recall correctly, there was a larval form of the froghemoth, but it is (alas) neither statted nor mentioned in the Tome.
Indeed there was, the Tadhemoth!

http://www.d20pfsrd.com/bestiary/monster-lists-and-details/-t/tadhemoth

Eldan
2010-04-27, 05:23 AM
Biting flies?

FAIL!

Debihuman
2010-04-27, 08:40 AM
Think of the flies as horseflies...and yes flies do bite.

Debby

Eldan
2010-04-27, 08:51 AM
With some rare exceptions in the most primitive groups of Diptera...
No, they don't. They have no jaws.

Rappy
2010-04-27, 08:58 AM
Think of the flies as horseflies...and yes flies do bite.

Debby

Actually, considering there are separate stats for a giant horsefly in one of the other Tome of Horrors volumes ((II, I think, but I'd have to check), and the fact that giant flies are described as staying near trash and refuse, would seem to indicate that these are giant houseflies.

EDIT: Nope, giant horseflies are in Tome of Horrors III, my mistake.

hamishspence
2010-04-27, 09:21 AM
Could be one of the many species of "biting flies" which actually impale with needle mouthpart, rather than slashing with mandibles.

Unless there are already stats for giant mosquitoes, gnats, midges, blackfly and so on.

Rappy
2010-04-27, 09:39 AM
Could be one of the many species of "biting flies" which actually impale with needle mouthpart, rather than slashing with mandibles.

Unless there are already stats for giant mosquitoes, gnats, midges, blackfly and so on.
The art and fluff makes it out to be a housefly. However, DM's word could always overwrite this to pass the whole "why is the big housefly biting me?" question.

Eldan
2010-04-27, 09:42 AM
"It's a horse-sized housefly with a set of gigantic mandibles!"
"..."
"Shuddup. It's a half-wasp fly. A wizard did it."

Rappy
2010-04-27, 10:14 AM
"It's a horse-sized housefly with a set of gigantic mandibles!"
"..."
"Shuddup. It's a half-wasp fly. A wizard did it."
Funny enough, there is a template in this book that could produce a wasp-fly...but the Templates Appendix is still a ways off, so we'd best get going.

----------------

Frost Man
Did you ever want a race of Neanderthal-like men that could fire ice beams from their right eye, which is kept under an eyepatch most of the time? No? Well, you're getting them with this book anyway. The frost men (who, like the crabmen, do have women and children, but...eh) are a group of arctic warriors that prefer to remain to themselves. You are likely to be attacked on sight for disturbing a frost man, granting the race the coveted title of "Usually cannon fodder Evil" race for the areas too cold for your standard orcs or goblinoids. I guess if you want a low-level cold weather encounter, the CR 2 frost men would be fitting for you.



Gambado
The gambado quite fits is designation as a creature of the Aberration type. It's sort of....kind of like....well, just look.

The gambado is a human-sized creature with a cylindrical torso topped by a humanoid skull-like head. Two long arms ending in razor-sharp claws protrude from the body. Its torso ends in three long, single-toed feet. Its body is gray in color and leathery and can be compressed like a spring. This is its primary means of locomotion. By compressing its body, the gambado can spring up or forward.
Beyond its freakish appearance, though, the gambado isnt' really that special. It's a CR 3 encounter that sits in its lair until something gets too close, then attacks with its teeth and claws. Eh.



Gargoyle
Three gargoyles are presented in the Tome (all, strangely enough, Magical Beasts rather than Monstrous Humanoids as the 3E gargoyle itself is, but otherwise mostly matching the Monster Manual beast), the first being one that should bring up some tears and bad memories. The four-armed gargoyle is a CR 4 encounter that reads pretty much like a standard gargoyle, only with two more claw attacks. Why then, you must be wondering, is it so painful? Well...it originally appeared in the Tomb of Horrors. Similarly, the green guardian is a CR 4 gargoyle with few alterations from your standard gargoyle...with two big exceptions. One is that, unless its gemstone eyes are destroyed, the green guardian will simply reanimate after about a week. Second, two successful claw attacks induce a hold person SLA on the poor assaulted adventurer. Nasty.

Then there's the margoyle. With 6 rather than the standard 4 gargoyle Hit Die, more powerful attacks, but not much else, they are essentially the gargoyle version of hobgoblins or flinds. Indeed, it is stated that the "meaner, eviler, and deadlier" (their words, not mine) margoyles are the de facto leader of most gargoyle get-togethers.

Eldan
2010-04-27, 01:47 PM
I had wondered where the Margoyle in ADOM came from.

Thurbane
2010-04-27, 09:34 PM
Frost Man
Did you ever want a race of Neanderthal-like men that could fire ice beams from their right eye, which is kept under an eyepatch most of the time? No? Well, you're getting them with this book anyway. The frost men (who, like the crabmen, do have women and children, but...eh) are a group of arctic warriors that prefer to remain to themselves. You are likely to be attacked on sight for disturbing a frost man, granting the race the coveted title of "Usually cannon fodder Evil" race for the areas too cold for your standard orcs or goblinoids. I guess if you want a low-level cold weather encounter, the CR 2 frost men would be fitting for you.
I always got a laugh when I flicked past their entry in the 1E FF. The illustration basically looked like a caveman in sunglasses! :smalltongue: AFB, but do they look like that in ToH?


Gambado
The gambado quite fits is designation as a creature of the Aberration type. It's sort of....kind of like....well, just look.

Beyond its freakish appearance, though, the isnt' really that special. It's a CR 3 encounter that sits in its lair until something gets too close, then attacks with its teeth and claws. Eh.
Another 1E FF monster - I think it was supposed to be another "gotcha" beastie. It wears the skull of another creature, so at first glance, you think "Undead! Quick, turn!"

http://www.thearchnemesis.com/images/Gambado.jpg

Rappy
2010-04-27, 09:47 PM
I always got a laugh when I flicked past their entry in the 1E FF. The illustration basically looked like a caveman in sunglasses! :smalltongue: AFB, but do they look like that in ToH?
The Tome's illustration makes them look like Neanderthal Vikings with pirate eye patches. Which is somehow simultaneously silly and epic.



Another 1E FF monster - I think it was supposed to be another "gotcha" beastie. It wears the skull of another creature, so at first glance, you think "Undead! Quick, turn!"
Ahh, that's make sense. And while the Tome's illustration of the gambado is more detailed, I must admit that the FF illustration you showed is better in my opinion. The one in the ToH is jumping out of a bush in a way that makes it look like it has a rigid pole stuck in its body.

The Tygre
2010-04-27, 10:14 PM
Fun fact; 'Gambado' is derived from the Italian word 'gambale' or 'gamba', which means 'leg'.

Thurbane
2010-04-27, 10:16 PM
Ahh, that's make sense. And while the Tome's illustration of the gambado is more detailed, I must admit that the FF illustration you showed is better in my opinion. The one in the ToH is jumping out of a bush in a way that makes it look like it has a rigid pole stuck in its body.
I think that makes at least 3 undead-impersonating "gotcha" monsters that you've listed so far - Adherer (Mummy), Drelb (Shadow/Wraith) and Gambado (Skeleton/Wight). :smallbiggrin:

I'd almost forgotten how fond early editions were of having trick monsters that looked like one thing but were actually something esle. Of course, a lot of these made it into core 3.X anyway (Mimics, Cloaker etc.).

Rappy
2010-04-28, 09:18 AM
Fun fact; 'Gambado' is derived from the Italian word 'gambale' or 'gamba', which means 'leg'.

That would explain things....sort of. Anyway, we're trudging onward, since I've gotten my steam back as of late and don't wish to slow down when we've nearly passed the halfway mark.

----------------

Ghoul-Stirge
Part ghoul, part stirge, all meh.



Giant, Sand
20 feet of tanned skin, muscle, and dreadlocks (!), the mighty sand giants are desert tribespeople that, of course, bully those that are smaller than themselves. They can create earthquakes, soften the earth, and make stony fists rise from the desert sands. Alas, their role as archetypical desert bandits, only larger, makes these CR 14 giants a bit less interesting than other species. Personally, I would have preferred the desert giants from the old Monstrous Manual, since they had some interesting spiritualist aspects.



Giant, Wood
Elves, only supersized! The CR 5 wood giants, also known as the Voadkyn, seem to exist just to prove that there is something out there that can out-elf the elves. They are masterful archers with resistance to enchantments, the ability to take the appearance of any humanoid or giant between 3 and 15 feet in height (the wood giants themselves are 9 feet tall, making them one of the shorter giants), and superb hiding and silent movement in spite of their size. Wood giant villages are sparsely built upon because they, and I quote "prefer to spend their time under the warmth of the day and the serenity of the night." So...yeah.



Gloomwing
Another giant moth, this CR 4 Outsider is the adult form of the tenebrous worm, a creature we'll meet much later in this book. In traditional "why must you make us suffer?" fashion, the gloomwing other lays her eggs in a living creature, which will later be devoured from the inside out by her worm children (but more on them later). In addition, in combat, a gloomwing's....well, wings...produce a confusion effect and its body releases a pheremone that deals minor Strength damage. Of course, that can't be all, can it? Nope. The pheremone also happens to attract other gloomwings via summons for even more painful implanting fun!

----------------

Up next time, we'll get to meet six golems and one of the other few beholderkin that managed to make it into the world of Open Game Content.

Rappy
2010-04-30, 06:44 AM
Golem, Blood
Blood golems (no relation to the Ravenloft construct of the same name) are one of those monsters. You know, the ones that will confuse the heck out of you when you first see them. This is primarily because the blood golem...isn't a golem. Yeah, you heard that right, it's a golem-that-isn't. Instead, the blood golem is a CR 5 Aberration that is a slug-shaped heap of clotted blood. What makes things even weirder is that its abilities are a mish-mash between fitting (fast healing), ooze-like (the ability to split in half into two lesser versions of itself), and golem-like (having a specific spell...in this case, purify food and drink...harm it). Yeah...your guess is as good as mine what they were thinking with this creature. On the other hand, it's not the weirdest creature to hold the title of golem; if I'm crazy enough to go through the other two Tomes of Horrors after this one...which I am...we'll meet such eccentricities as the flagstone golem, gelatin golem, and the mummy golem (I see what you mean about undead mimicry being popular, Thurbane).



Golem, Ice
Do you really need me to explain this one? There are so many ice golems out there that you could easily pick and choose hem at your whim. This particular one has a Challenge Rating of 5, a cold breath weapon, and a chilly aura. Oh, and it's slowed by electricity damage...for...some reason.



Golem, Stone Guardian
Like the caryatid column from way back in the earlier portions of the book, the stone guardian is a variant stone golem. Also like the column, the stone guardian is much weaker than a true stone golem, being made out of mud with some stone patched in rather than fully stony. This CR 4 hulk has a remote control ring of command that wards the owner from the its mindless assaults and the ability to see invisible creatures. Unsurpsingly, stone guardians are usually used as....guardians. If they really wanted another stone golem variant that badly, I personally would have preferred the Juggernaut.



Golem, Tallow
Good old wax figure-based constructs, fun stuff. While this CR 8 nightmare may not be as frightening as Ravenloft's wax golem, the tallow golem does have the benefit of being able to suction chemicals from the human body going for it.



Golem, Wood
Ornately carved, easily flammable, and capable of letting out a screech of alarm to warn its master....ah, wood golems, you are so delightfully quirky.



Gorbel
Last but not least in our morning entry is the gorbel, another beholderkin that managed to slither its way into Open Game Content. In this case, however, your results my vary on whether or not that's a good thing. The gorbel is essentially the unwanted inbred cousin of the beholder world. It may look like a (somewhat deformed) beholder, but it lacks any magical ability and relies on its stubby little clawed arms for defense, smells of sulfur, and uses its mouth for....other bodily functions as well. Oh, and if you pierce or slash it, it must make a Fortitude save or die in a violent explosion. Fun, huh?

----------------

Tonight, we'll have two hybridous horrors, a pair of unique outsiders, frogs, frights, and freaks.

Eldan
2010-04-30, 07:20 AM
How does a thing like the Gorbel ever survive past childhood? I mean, they slice themselves with a kitchen knife (I know, I know, beholders don't do that), and they explode?

2xMachina
2010-04-30, 07:28 AM
They scratch themselves on a sharp stone and they explode.

Hopefully, they don't have shrapnel, or you get chain explosions.

Rappy
2010-04-30, 07:41 AM
If it's any consolation, the gorbel isn't the worst beholderkin out there. We have to wait for the Hazards appendix for that. :smallamused:

Eldan
2010-04-30, 07:42 AM
Did they ever update that fungal spore thingy which posed as a beholder so that adventurers would make it explode? You know, the one frome the "worst monsters" list.

Rappy
2010-04-30, 07:45 AM
Did they ever update that fungal spore thingy which posed as a beholder so that adventurers would make it explode? You know, the one frome the "worst monsters" list.
Yep, that's the one I just mentioned as being in the Hazards appendix. The gas spore.

It's rather pathetic when you're a cheap knock-off of the gorbel.

The Glyphstone
2010-04-30, 01:45 PM
Gas Spore is also in Lords of Madness. It's still not very impressive.

PairO'Dice Lost
2010-04-30, 01:59 PM
It's rather pathetic when you're a cheap knock-off of the gorbel.

Hey, don't knock the gas spore; it came first, showing up all the way back in the 1e MM. The gorbel's the copycat here.

Thurbane
2010-04-30, 06:13 PM
The explosion causes 1d4 damage! In a five foot burst! I mean, I know this is a CR 1 monster, but seriously? Even a 1st level Wizard is going to laugh at that. I know these guys were always a bit lame, but I don't remember them being this pathetic...I suppose a swarm of them might provide some small challenge to a very low level party...maybe. :smallconfused:

I guess a more powerful Beholderkin might use these guys as guard dogs, so that when he hears the "POP!" he knows someone/something is coming...

PairO'Dice Lost
2010-04-30, 06:27 PM
The one time I used gas spores was as guards/decoys for a Beholder Mage. They can pack quite a punch if you cast death throes on them beforehand. :smallamused:

Rappy
2010-05-01, 12:30 AM
The one time I used gas spores was as guards/decoys for a Beholder Mage. They can pack quite a punch if you cast death throes on them beforehand. :smallamused:
That's...sadistically brilliant, actually.

Also, sorry this post was late, but I had a rather rough day. That'll teach me to try and make post schedules. I was going to have six creatures, as I noted before, but....I have no idea what the hell I should write for the next creature, the gryph. It's weird. Really weird.

----------------

Gorgimera
Have you ever looked at a chimera and pondered "Hmm, that's not quite vicious enough...let's give it petrification breath!" No? Well, that's apparently what was going through the head of the creator of the gorgimera. This CR 8 monstrosity takes a chimera and replaces the goat head and back half with the armored hide of the bull-like gorgon of Dungeons and Dragons. Thus, you combine the bite of the lion, the breath weapon of the dragon, and the petrification breath of the gorgon into a single, horrifying entity that will cause your players to scream out to the heavens for mercy from their gods.



Gorgon, True
For those of you who aren't keen on having the whole bull-monster thing in your Dungeons and Dragons as the representative of the name "gorgon", well...here are the real gorgons. Specifically, two Outsiders, the CR 20 Sthenno and the CR 22 Euryale. These wicked serpentine sisters may be on the low end of epic-level creatures, but they certainly shouldn't be underestimated; they both have fast healing, hefty damage reduction, darkvision at a range of 120 feet, immunities to transformation, sleep, stunning, and paralytic abilities, petrification gazes, spell resistance above 30 (slightly more for Euryale, adding to her Challenge Rating) and both claws and venomous snake-hair attacks. Oh, and they are immortal. That means that they cannot be killed by disintegration spells or death effects, aging, or massive damage attacks, so you'd better have a good plan to beat them up fast.



Gorilla-Bear
You know what an owlbear is, so this shouldn't really surprise you. It's a creature with the body of a gorilla and the paws and head of a bear. Combining two strong creatures, one of whom has nasty claws and teeth, into a single monstrous beast. Creepily enough, in the fashion of many "rawr I eat you" monsters, gorilla-bears are noted to "savor the taste of goblins and elves". Eeeyugh....



Grippli
The gripplis (no relation to Ripleys) are a baseline Level Adjustment +0 frog-people race. These amphibious humanoids live in tribes in the jungles and swamps lead by a tribe mother (listed as being usually either a 3rd-level Cleric or Adept), and are fond of fruit, insects, and shiny things...the last of which for decoration, not for food, obviously. they also trade with elves and halflings, presumably of the jungle racial variant. As for actual game rules, gripplis are a bit on the strong side for their listed LA, with three +2 ability score bonuses (to Dexterity, Intelligence, and Wisdom) opposed by only two -2 ability score penalties (Strength and Charisma), the ability to cross mud and other marshy hazards unimpeded, a +6 bonus to Hide checks in swamps and forests due to their coloration, and both land and climb speeds of 30 feet in spite of being size Small. Still, I love the gripplis more than...say...the bullywugs or tsathar (the latter of which we'll meet later in this book).



Groaning Spirit (Banshee)

The groaning spirit is the malevolent spirit of a female elf that is found haunting swamps, fens, moors, and other desolate places. Groaning spirits hate the living and seek to destroy whomever they meet. A groaning spirit appears as a translucent image of her former self.
And now you have seen all the fluff for the banshee, and all you really need to know. It's about as bog standard undead motivation as you can get, and while the elven note is novel, it's also rather confusing. Why are banshees always female elves? Explain, please, Tome of Horrors. The Monstrous Manual didn't really help me in this matter either, so...myeh.

The banshee also has the ability to sense all living creatures within a 5 mile radius, a chilling touch, a fear aura, and the ability to cast wail of the banshee to instakill you if you fail your save (this is a CR 7 monster, mind you!). The only fortunate point is that you get to have a little payback if you're a divine spellcaster; dispel evil works as a Will-save-or-instakill effect on banshees.

Terraoblivion
2010-05-01, 01:29 AM
I would imagine that banshees always being female elves in D&D is a leftover from Lord Soth's curse, which involved the ghosts of female elves who could kill with their screams. I have no proof, but i imagine that was where they entered D&D rules and they just got branched out so they could be used for something not relating to Lord Soth, but they never got around to axing the female elf part.

Divayth Fyr
2010-05-01, 04:30 AM
Perhaps the banshee are always female, because that's how the Irish mitology (from which the creature was most likely taken) portraits them - as female spirits (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Banshee)

Terraoblivion
2010-05-01, 04:35 AM
Doesn't explain the elf aspect, though. Focusing on Lord Soth's wife kind of does, though. Especially since him and his past was in the original Chronicles from 1984 and the campaign setting was from 1982, not unlikely that the banshee didn't enter D&D until after that. Still it is just my most educated guess.

Rappy
2010-05-01, 04:40 AM
Doesn't explain the elf aspect, though. Focusing on Lord Soth's wife kind of does, though. Especially since him and his past was in the original Chronicles from 1984, not unlikely that the banshee didn't enter D&D until after that. Still it is just my most educated guess.

The Tome of Horrors lists the first appearance of the banshee being in 1977, but it's possible that creature evolution lead to Lord Soth's history entering the mix.

Terraoblivion
2010-05-01, 04:48 AM
I see. In that case i am stumped. I guess it was just something along the lines of Celtic=elves. At least i can think of no logical explanation for why banshees have to be elves.

Divayth Fyr
2010-05-01, 05:07 AM
Well the banshee was the "woman of the fairy mounds" and elves seem to fit that more then the other races. (on a sidenote, when did the Seelie Court enter dnd? if it was after the banshee appeared, it might be one of the original reasons for banshee=female elf)

Rappy
2010-05-01, 05:36 AM
I know there was a Seelie fey note from 1992, but I can imagine they stretch back farther. Just how far that is, however, I'm not sure.

Thane of Fife
2010-05-01, 06:23 AM
I've always really liked Grippli. I don't think I've ever used them in a game, but I can recall writing a Redwall-esque story involving frog-people at one point, and naming the main character Grippli. But come on, 700-year-old frog people with opposable thumbs! How can you not love it?!

While Gorgimeras are fun, after reading Cult of the Dragon, I prefer Dracimeras - imagine a Chimera, but replace it's two non-dragon heads with more dragon heads. Brilliant!

I find it odd that Banshees cast Wail ofthe Banshee. Why not give them a similar ability? Surely they shouldn't have to cast a spell named after their best attack method?

PairO'Dice Lost
2010-05-01, 12:57 PM
I find it odd that Banshees cast Wail ofthe Banshee. Why not give them a similar ability? Surely they shouldn't have to cast a spell named after their best attack method?

It's more that they have an ability which was subsequently copied by arcanists and named "wail of the banshee" rather than that they cast a spell to use their ability. Just because the banshee comes later book-wise doesn't mean the spell would have come first in-game.

Rappy
2010-05-01, 01:55 PM
Yeah. And to be fair, it's called "Keening", but is noted to essentially be wail of the banshee.

Thurbane
2010-05-01, 07:44 PM
The earliest mention of Banshees in D&D that I can recall was the 1E MM, and they were listed (with no explanation) as the spirits of evil female elves. Presumably, this was because an evil elf was such a rare thing...obviously, this was before the Drow came along in the 1E FF! :smallbiggrin:

Rappy
2010-05-03, 07:55 AM
Gryph
A four (or sometimes six)-legged ibis that implants its eggs in living organisms. ...Just...I don't know what to say about it...Dungeons and Dragons! *Throws up hands in defeat*



Guardian Daemon
While not quite a true daemon (indeed, they are listed as being True Neutral with "evil tendencies", and they are creations of the daemons for summoning purposes), this CR 7 Outsider certainly isn't to be underestimated. The guardians resemble a mixture of animal (usually an ape, bear, or big cat) and horned daemon and watch over rooms or treasure stores...you know, the typical D&D monster job. A guardian daemon attacks with both its arsenal of claws and teeth, but can also expel a 30-foot gout of fire to snipe targets at a range; this is rather useful, considering that the guardian daemon must stay in a designated 100+ (10 extra per caster level of the summoner) square foot region. While not especially inspired, the guardian daemons are a good gateway drug for later adventures with true daemons.



Hangman Tree
Most likely formed after a few too many ghost stories, the CR 7 hangman tree is a hellish oak with noose-like tentacles for grappling opponents and hallucinogenic spores that can make an opponent believe it is either a treant or a mere oak in the woods. It's also weak against electricity and cold, for whatever reason, and is slowed by darkness spells (again, for whatever reason). The more interesting thing than the monster itself, though, is the fact that this idea was apparently good enough that Necromancer Games decided to do it twice. In the Tome of Horrors II, there is a similar creature known as the gallows tree. The two major differences are Challenge Rating (7 vs. 13) and the fact that the gallows tree took a page from the yellow musk creeper's book and creates plant zombies.



Haunt
The haunt, a CR 4 incorporeal Undead, is essentially a ghost-lite; it can transform into a will-o'-wispy light ball, deal Dexterity damage, and possess a living being, but not much else. It also suffers from some somewhat contradictory flavor text. The haunt is obsessed with achieving rest at last, since the cause of its death has trapped it within a 60-foot boundary zone around the place where its body fell. How does it do that? Why, by mercilessly assaulting with its Dexterity drain and then hijacking the paralyzed body for its own purposes, of course! Just in case you forgot that undead are under contract to be malevolent.



Hellmoth
A giant CR 6 Aberration of a moth. Envelops foes and sets them on fire. Not as interesting as such a premise would indicate.



Hippocampus
A classical Greek legendary "merhorse" with human-level intelligence. Good for sea-going characters and NPCs, particularly aquatic elves and the like, bad for Let's Read purposes. I don't really have that much to say about them, really.

Fhaolan
2010-05-03, 12:33 PM
I see. In that case i am stumped. I guess it was just something along the lines of Celtic=elves. At least i can think of no logical explanation for why banshees have to be elves.

Because shee = elf. It's the same word as 'sidhe' and 'sith', just in a different dialect of Gaelic. In the original mythos, banshee's weren't ghosts as such. They were one of the many types of elf/goblin/whatever.

In old mythos, the dividing line between elves, faeries, and spirits was kinda blurry. This is true for Celtic myth, Norse myth, Japanese myth, etc. When translating those mythos into D&D, which has very specific, tightly defined catagories, there are several glitch points like the Banshee.

BobVosh
2010-05-05, 03:42 AM
Wow, long read from start til here. I ran a module that use those weird Satyrs as demons were devastating the forest that the elves lived in. The PCs were way over level to be threatened by such things, but they added a little flavor.

I also like the hangman tree a lot. Its just kinda neat, and I like vicious stationary plants as well as the more mobile ones.

Rappy
2010-05-05, 03:48 AM
Hoar Fox
This silver-furred tundra creature is essentially another "low-level moving profit" monster. A CR 2 Magical Beast with a relatively strong breath weapon for its size, hoar foxes have pelts that are worth 200 gold pieces on the market...unless it takes fire damage, in which case the pelt is dulled and worthless. So yeah, against all common sense, don't apply fire to this Cold subtype monster.



Huecuva
And finally, we're at a monster that I like again! If demonic knights (which will be covered in the demons and devils "appendix"...I'm almost tempted to start a separate thread for the appendices, starting with the templates appendix, so we can get there faster and finish this book as a whole up sooner. But I won't be greedy unless someone else thinks it's a good idea) are the perversion of the Paladin, skeletal warriors of the Fighter, and liches of the Wizard, then the huecuva is most certainly the perversion of the Cleric. These tattered-garbed skeletal figures are clerics cursed by their gods for an unforgivable sin at the end of their lives, and are forced to wear the form of the undead they loathed as penance.

A huecuva can spread filth fever across the land under the guise of a mortal being (thanks to spell-like abilities to aid in that front) and claw at the living. There's only problem...the huecuva is weak. Horrendously weak. A CR undead isn't going to impress anyone for long, and I can certainly see why Wizards of the Coast themselves made the huecuva as a template. On the other hand...well...this one's Open Game Content. *Shrugs* One could always waive the "3-6 hit dice" advancement and have it have 2 hit dice in addition to all the Cleric levels it had in life. That sounds like a nice fix, actually.



Inphidian, Common
Inphidians are more or less Yuan-Ti with the serial numbers filed off. They are snake-mutants with vipers for hands and, in the case of the common inphidian, capable of expelling a caustic blinding spray like that of a spitting cobra. I'm also curious if the name is an indicator of planning ahead; the common inphidian is the only member of the group in the Tome of Horrors, and is even reprinted in the Tome of Horrors II with two new inphidians. Also included are stats for inphidian gauntlets (hands for creatures without them) and the Serpent domain for Clerics. The common inphidian is a CR 3 Monstrous Humanoid, by the way, before I forget to note that.



Iron Cobra
Does what it says on the tin. The iron cobra is a cobra made of iron, a CR 2 Construct with the multipurpose functions of hoard guardian, bodyguard, and assassin. An iron cobra can, without fail, find a specific target its master has seen or has an object belonging to within a 1-mile radius, hence the assassin part. In addition, an iron cobra's venom compartments can be filled with whatever poison its master favors, which helps in most situations. Whether you want a rival to die or simply to paralyze an attacker for later questioning, an iron cobra can do all that and more.



Jack-o'-Lantern
This vaguely humanoid mess of vines and a carved pumpkin head is essentially the plant version of a golem, with "A combination of druidic magic and fey spirits" animating it instead of arcane magic and elemental spirits, and it has an intellect on par with an ogre rather than requiring constant orders. Its face is carved to bear a resemblance to its personality (read: alignment), so a Chaotic Evil jack-o'-lantern may have a Jokeresque face as it descends upon a Lawful Good jack-o'-lantern with a knightly visage. This is a fun creature, I will admit, as it is a pretty interesting encounter for a CR 3 Plant, and one that won't soon be forgotten. Especially considering that it doesn't just attack with its rending claws...it can shoot flaming pumpkin seeds! Oh yes, you heard that right. Flaming. Pumpkin. Seeds.

-------------------------

Next time, we'll have a grand total of six creatures I'm rather apathetic about as we dip into the next "valley" in the book's quality...well, in my opinion, at least... Don't worry though, the fey will come to bail us out in the update after that, I'm certain of it!

BobVosh
2010-05-05, 03:58 AM
Just as I finished reading this thread, I get pulled back in!

I like the iron cobra as a little buddy to an assassin. A weak undead Huecuva is kinda meh, one of the creatures that works better as a template.

Jack-o'-Lantern is....odd. I'm not too enthused on it, as it seems a bit slapstick in its way. Which, of course, is very TSR.

Rappy
2010-05-06, 02:54 PM
A weak undead Huecuva is kinda meh, one of the creatures that works better as a template.
Oh, I agree wholeheartedly. Hence my suggested fix for it. And speaking of the huecuva and kin, I wonder if there are "undead exemplars" for other classes besides those I mentioned. I am pretty sure I at least remember an undead anti-Rogue with a name to the effect of "Traitorous Thief" or "Cowardly Thief" or something like that.

some guy
2010-05-06, 05:53 PM
I always like reviews of monsters, and this thread is no exception.
That Carrion Moth actually seemed interesting, gives the carrion crawler some hooks. ("If we let that crawler escape, we're going to let something terrible loose.").



Draug
Presumably the flight is based around the Flying Dutchman, which makes me wonder why they didn't just give it a Dutch name rather than a Norse one.

There's not really a good Dutch name for that. Spookpiraat, geestzeerover, zeegeest are all possibilities, but are also terribly lame and have no character or connection with folklore.
If you want a good undead Dutch (undutch?) creature I suggest a vuurman or a wit wief. A vuurman (transl: fireman) was usually a farmer who tried to expand his land by moving a borderstone. After the farmer's death he is cursed to wander around cluelessly, carrying the borderstone and asking "Where should I put it?". It will find peace if told "Where you got it from.". It is also fiery, I don't know why.
A wit wief (transl: white wife) is usually the ghost of a witch. They hang around burial mounds and will not harm anyone who doesn't bother them (they will flip out if you stumble upon their territories or insult them). They can take the shape of mist, or mist and fog surrounds them. Sometimes they're kindred, helping with pregnancies or whatnot.
Could make for interesting encounters.

Anyway, nice work, Rappy!

Rappy
2010-05-07, 10:23 AM
A wit wief (transl: white wife) is usually the ghost of a witch. They hang around burial mounds and will not harm anyone who doesn't bother them (they will flip out if you stumble upon their territories or insult them). They can take the shape of mist, or mist and fog surrounds them. Sometimes they're kindred, helping with pregnancies or whatnot.!
That does sound interesting, yeah. It's somewhat like a less malevolent version of a d20 Modern monster called the doom hag.

-------------------------

Jaculi
An 8-foot serpent with no skin on its face and barb-like protrusions arrayed around its head. It has a CR 1/2 Magical Beast, and takes no damage from falls of 30 feet or less. All in all, it seems to be a weaker equivalent of a jaculus (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jaculus)...although if the name didn't tip you off to that, I don't know what will.



Jellyfish, Monstrous
Here we have a CR 2 Vermin that isn't nearly as "monstrous" as its name implies. It's size Large, and has improved grab, transparency, water jet movement, wavesense, and 1d6 Dexterity damage poison...you know, what you'd expect from a typical jellyfish. They don't really escape the scope of true jellyfish and enter "monster territory" by powers or size. Indeed, when I saw the name, I was expecting something akin to the unsubstantiated reports of shark-swallowing deep-sea jellyfish.



Jupiter Bloodsucker
A CR 3 Plant-type monster with suffocation and blood drain attacks. Another example of the twisted ecology of Dungeons and Dragons, but its sparse fluff detracts from it.



Kamadan
It's a giant leopard with snakes sprouting from its back. It's like a medusa, only...not really. There is a constrictor CR 4 and a venomous CR 6 variant. Both variants breath sleep gas from the leopard head. Why? I don't know. I...I don't know. You've put me at a loss for words again, Tome of Horrors, but I will get my revenge!



Kampfult
A tree that kills by bear-hugging you to death. Again, I don't know why. Don't know, don't care.



Kech
These CR 3 Monstrous Humanoids resemble anthropomorphic spider monkeys, and live in clans found throughout temperate forested regions. They have leaf-like fur that helps them camouflage themselves, and they can pass through a region without a trace. For whatever reason, they are usually Neutral Evil. Sure, they are noted as being predators that snare prey in traps, but so do humans. Suffice to say, the kech aren't quite up there with the banderlog, hadoozee, and su monster on my list of favorite primates.

Fhaolan
2010-05-07, 11:00 AM
Kamadan
It's a giant leopard with snakes sprouting from its back. It's like a medusa, only...not really. There is a constrictor CR 4 and a venomous CR 6 variant. Both variants breath sleep gas from the leopard head. Why? I don't know. I...I don't know. You've put me at a loss for words again, Tome of Horrors, but I will get my revenge!


Yeah, that's pretty much exactly what the original version in the 1st ed Fiend Folio was. There was a mention of it being a displacer beast relative, but that's the only additional info.

There is an advantage to the original Fiend Folio. It actually lists in the appendix who submitted the creature to White Dwarf or TSR UK (Games Workshop who published White Dwarf lost the license to do D&D products when TSR spun up a UK sub, which happened while the book was in production.) So you can find out exactly who is to blame for the insanity.

Asbestos
2010-05-07, 12:46 PM
Yeah, that's pretty much exactly what the original version in the 1st ed Fiend Folio was. There was a mention of it being a displacer beast relative, but that's the only additional info.

There is an advantage to the original Fiend Folio. It actually lists in the appendix who submitted the creature to White Dwarf or TSR UK (Games Workshop who published White Dwarf lost the license to do D&D products when TSR spun up a UK sub, which happened while the book was in production.) So you can find out exactly who is to blame for the insanity.

I could have sworn I've seen a similar creature mentioned in some myth or legend but I wasn't able to track it down. The creature appeared again, though somewhat modified, in the Maztica setting. There it was more like a displacer beast and only had two snakes that sprouted from its shoulders.

Fhaolan
2010-05-07, 01:45 PM
I could have sworn I've seen a similar creature mentioned in some myth or legend but I wasn't able to track it down. The creature appeared again, though somewhat modified, in the Maztica setting. There it was more like a displacer beast and only had two snakes that sprouted from its shoulders.

The best I've been able to come up with is some descriptions of Cerebus having a 'mane of snakes'. That does seem like something that would get ported over to a lion-like creature in somebody's mythology, though. I just can't find an example anywhere.

HenryHankovitch
2010-05-07, 04:01 PM
Gorilla-Bear
You know what an owlbear is, so this shouldn't really surprise you. It's a creature with the body of a gorilla and the paws and head of a bear. Combining two strong creatures, one of whom has nasty claws and teeth, into a single monstrous beast. Creepily enough, in the fashion of many "rawr I eat you" monsters, gorilla-bears are noted to "savor the taste of goblins and elves". Eeeyugh....

I don't...this is... my head, it is full of fsck.

An owlbear actually makes sense compared to this thing. Okay, so we took the fangs and claws of a really strong creature, and put them on...a really strong creature. Whut? What was wrong with the bear in the first place?

Now...on the other hand...I like the idea of a gorilla-ish creature with big fricken claws and such. Is there a Dire Sloth statted anywhere? That would be highly entertaining.

"Oh don't worry guys, it's just one of those sloths, ha ha, what's it gonna do to AAAUUUGH MY FAAAACE OH NOOOOOOO-"

Rappy
2010-05-07, 05:04 PM
Now...on the other hand...I like the idea of a gorilla-ish creature with big fricken claws and such. Is there a Dire Sloth statted anywhere? That would be highly entertaining.

"Oh don't worry guys, it's just one of those sloths, ha ha, what's it gonna do to AAAUUUGH MY FAAAACE OH NOOOOOOO-"
Yes, there is. In the appendix of this very book, actually. Which is another point in favor of having a sister thread for the appendices running at the same time.

Steveotep
2010-05-07, 05:11 PM
I have the 3.0 Tome of Horrors, which credits the original designer. The kamadan was by Nick Louth.

Rappy
2010-05-07, 06:37 PM
The 3.5 Tome of Horrors has the credits as well, but I rarely pay attention to them for the purposes of this thread.

Rappy
2010-05-11, 02:31 PM
Only three entries today because I'm working on d20 statting projects on this forum and elsewhere, but hopefully that's better than nothing.

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Kelp Devil
In a world where every other plant has some sadistic way of killing you, the CR 8 kelp devil manages to stand out. Not by tactics (it has the old "charm monster on you, strangle you, eat you" shtick), but by its environment and sheer tenacity. Here we have a floating organism that acts like and resembles living sargassum, is resistant to most types of damage (and utterly immune to electricity), and is intelligent; sure, it's at the ogre-level of intelligence, but for a hunk of seaweed, that's impressive! Imagine vast herds of kelp devils slowly creeping across the ocean surface, creating "rafts" that inspire fear in sailors that have heard tales of people disappearing without a trace within the "Devil Weed Seas". To make things even more fun, have them form a symbiotic relationship with some weird sea life (an Eye of the Deep, perhaps?) or aquatic undead such as the lacedon, with the more mobile creatures hiding in the weed rafts while the devils charm in prey for their occupants to dismember and disperse into the raft.



Kelpie
No, not the water horse of Celtic legend. This kelpie is a CR 4 seaweed monster that can transform into, and I quote, "a beautiful human female with long flowing dark hair, emerald eyes, and milky-white skin". Once again proving that if there is a female-only monster in Dungeons and Dragons, it is either fickle or wants to kill you. :smallsigh:

Kelpies are essentially weaker versions of the kelp devil as far as powers go, and are indeed presumed to be the progenitors of their stronger and much more epic kin.



Khargra
Essentially a big metallic maw with claws around it. These CR 4 Outsiders are essentially another variant of the "make your Fighter cry" monster trope, with a sundering bite and the ability to rend armor. They also eat ores and minerals. I guess they could be made interesting with a deeper integration into the strange ecology of the Plane of Earth, but as-is they aren't really my cup of tea.

Toric
2010-05-11, 02:56 PM
Giant, Wood
Elves, only supersized! The CR 5 wood giants, also known as the Voadkyn, seem to exist just to prove that there is something out there that can out-elf the elves. They are masterful archers with resistance to enchantments, the ability to take the appearance of any humanoid or giant between 3 and 15 feet in height (the wood giants themselves are 9 feet tall, making them one of the shorter giants), and superb hiding and silent movement in spite of their size. Wood giant villages are sparsely built upon because they, and I quote "prefer to spend their time under the warmth of the day and the serenity of the night." So...yeah.

I don't believe it. Georg from Neverwinter Nights 2 was right. Swamp-elves exist. I gotta look this thing up, see if it has a Flesh to Stone SLA.

[Edit] Nope, they don't. :( Oh well, a little homebrewing and it'd be wonderful to surprise some players with.

Rappy
2010-05-20, 02:53 AM
Sorry it's another small post, folks, I've overloaded myself with multiple d20 statting projects, blogging, and other things lately. In fact, I won't really apologize again because it will most likely be like this for a while. Posts in the future of this thread will most likely have only two or three (maaaaybe four from time to time) monsters in them. Anyway, here we go!

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Killmoulis
This CR 1/6 Fey is said to be possibly "distantly related to brownies and other small, helpful fey". And I'd hope it's only a distant relation, as the poor thing resembles a monkey with a carrot crafted onto its face. Other than its above-par Spell Resistance (15) and telepathy range (100 feet), there's not that much interesting about the killmoulis as far as crunch goes. Fluff-wise, though...it's about as same. They're "deeds for feeds" brownie-types, but with some alteration, they could be made rather interesting.



Korred
Pygmy satyrs with prehensile hair. That's...so absurd it wheels around and becomes rather epic. Oh, and actually manages to get weirder. The korreds have a paralyzing laugh, cast spells related to earth and rocks (including animate objects limited to rocks), throw rocks, and carry scissors into combat because they always have to keep their hair in check. Yeah...just...wow. If you want a low-CR (4 in this case) Fey encounter your players will never, ever forget, go with the korred.

Deca
2010-05-20, 03:33 AM
Korred
Pygmy satyrs with prehensile hair. That's...so absurd it wheels around and becomes rather epic. Oh, and actually manages to get weirder. The korreds have a paralyzing laugh, cast spells related to earth and rocks (including animate objects limited to rocks), throw rocks, and carry scissors into combat because they always have to keep their hair in check. Yeah...just...wow. If you want a low-CR (4 in this case) Fey encounter your players will never, ever forget, go with the korred.

The Korred clearly fights with scissors just in case they have to use it against any paper the PC's might use to counter it's rock magic.

Volthawk
2010-05-20, 09:53 AM
I just got a copy of this, and yeah, it's kinda funny.



Korred
Pygmy satyrs with prehensile hair. That's...so absurd it wheels around and becomes rather epic. Oh, and actually manages to get weirder. The korreds have a paralyzing laugh, cast spells related to earth and rocks (including animate objects limited to rocks), throw rocks, and carry scissors into combat because they always have to keep their hair in check. Yeah...just...wow. If you want a low-CR (4 in this case) Fey encounter your players will never, ever forget, go with the korred.

The shears are even statted out. And my copy says Animate Hair, not Animate Objects.

Rappy
2010-05-20, 07:24 PM
And my copy says Animate Hair, not Animate Objects.
Yeah, there is an Animate Hair special quality. But look under spell-like abilities as well:

At will-animate objects (rock only)

BobVosh
2010-05-20, 08:20 PM
The Korred clearly fights with scissors just in case they have to use it against any paper the PC's might use to counter it's rock magic.

Awww, I was going to say that.

Animate hair? Hmm. Does it actually give a failure based on using the hair that the scissors are needed? Or is it suppose to be a critical failure means they need to trim it...Curious and curiouser.

Rappy
2010-05-21, 12:54 AM
Animate hair? Hmm. Does it actually give a failure based on using the hair that the scissors are needed? Or is it suppose to be a critical failure means they need to trim it...Curious and curiouser.
Animate Hair is essentially a limited animate rope spell, with hair instead of rope and limitations such as only being able to tangle up creatures of a certain size.

The hair cutting is purely fluff, no crunch attached, but it might be fun to intermix the two facets...no idea how, though.

Thurbane
2010-05-21, 01:58 AM
And my copy says Animate Hair, not Animate Objects.
Animate hair? (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WASn6PRG1Fc) :smallbiggrin:

Rappy
2010-05-21, 02:52 AM
Animate hair? (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WASn6PRG1Fc) :smallbiggrin:
That fellow...actually looks disturbingly like what I imagine the korred in the Tome of Horrors would look like if it was polymorphed into a human.

Thurbane
2010-05-21, 02:54 AM
After seeing that ad, I was always hoping for an Animate Beard racial feat for Dwarves! :smallsmile:

Coidzor
2010-05-21, 04:39 AM
And cue subrace of dwarves with prehensile beards in 5.

Cue subrace of beards with prehensile dwarves in 6.

Rappy
2010-05-23, 08:14 PM
Land Lamprey
Does exactly what it says on the tin...it's a lamprey. On land. Wee. *Feigns cheering*.



Lava Child
Resembling what I can only call a chubby azer with a face that indicates a few Intelligence points too few (even though they have an Intelligence score of 10, their face just...doesn't convey it, let's just leave it at that), lava children are CR 3 Humanoids with the Earth and Fire subtypes whose origin lies deep beneath the earth. They are described as a reclusive race whose dealings with the outside world are restricted to interactions with fire elementals and the magmin...in other words, they're another clean-slate race for you to put your own campaign ideas onto. It is worthy of note that while lava children are weak to both Air and Water spells, they make up for that by being immune to Earth spells and metal. Any attacks by metal. Or metal objects. Pretty much, the lava child is one of those creatures that is designed to make your non-casters cry themselves to sleep.

Reynard
2010-05-23, 08:18 PM
How do lava children cope with wooden weapons?

If they're can be hurt by them, and not by metal weapons, I may start to cry.

Rappy
2010-05-23, 08:22 PM
There's no specific mention for or against wooden weaponry in the entry for the lava child, at least not that I noticed (I may have missed it, but..eh).

I'd go with the personal interpretation of "sure, you made it flinch a bit, but now your weapon's on fire. What now, idiot?"

Thurbane
2010-05-23, 10:29 PM
In 1E, the Lava Child's schtick was forcing fighters to use non-metal weapons, like clubs & quarterstaves. There was a neat little full page pic in the 1E FF of a Lizard King stabbing his trident right through one, and it just looking back at him with it's idiotic grin...

Rappy
2010-05-24, 03:40 PM
In 1E, the Lava Child's schtick was forcing fighters to use non-metal weapons, like clubs & quarterstaves. There was a neat little full page pic in the 1E FF of a Lizard King stabbing his trident right through one, and it just looking back at him with it's idiotic grin...
Well, while the Lizard King isn't in the Tome of Horrors, the non-metal weapons note and the idiotic grin are kept intact.

So two out of three isn't bad. :smalltongue:

afroakuma
2010-05-26, 01:49 PM
I really hope this series continues when you find the time. It's a fun read. :smallbiggrin:

BobVosh
2010-05-26, 06:24 PM
So punching a lava child is better than poking it with metal bits...yay for D&D.

Rappy
2010-05-27, 04:25 AM
So punching a lava child is better than poking it with metal bits...yay for D&D.
Aww, but why would you ever want to punch something with a face like this? :smalltongue:
http://www.thearchnemesis.com/images/Lava%20Children.jpg


I really hope this series continues when you find the time. It's a fun read. :smallbiggrin:
Ask and ye shall receive.

-------------------------

Leech, Giant
Unsurprisingly, this CR 2 vermin is a human-sized leech. I imagine it would be fun to team them up with a leechwalker, just for the squick factor it would surely produce in your PCs. Anyway, before we move on from this rather unimportant creature, some things to note:
You have a 50/50 chance as to whether or not the giant leech that's suctioning itself to your face is giving you filth fever. Lovely.
The giant leech may have one of the strangest ability damage powers ever; it deals 1d4 Constitution damage, and...leaves as soon as it's siphoned out 4 points of Constitution. So this could literally be a 1-round hit and run monster if it is really lucky with the die roll.
A pound of salt deals 1d4 damage to a giant leech. Just store the bags by your 10-foot pole, I guess.



Leprechaun
As far as crunch and fluff go, the leprechaun is just like any other low-CR (4, in this case) "tricksy fey". They like pranks, they're pick-pockets, they have spell-like abilities geared toward making you want to strangle them slowly and painfully, and have Perform (Comedy) as one of the skills they put ranks in. The image, on the other hand....I love the image. It's from a somwhat skewed "looking down on the wee man" perspective, and it's noticable that the leprechaun has a knife hidden behind his back. It makes me wonder how much of their "prankster' nature is truly a cover for the fact that they are (in my personal bubble) really murderous thieves and assassins?



Livestone
Livestones are oozes with the power to shift themselves into a form that is as hard as (and indeed resembles) stone. They were, according to lore, a plague unleashed upon the surface world by the dwarves that dug too deep into the earth. Well...it's no Balrog, but eh, it is a rather nasty thing to unearth. The truly horrifying thing about the livestone is that it can engulf someone and then solidify to instantly crush that person within its now stony body. It's thankfully not an insta-kill attack, but still has the double whammy of dealing copious amounts of damage for a CR 6 creature and being a terrifying prospect to a claustrophobic like myself.



Lurker Above
Imagine, if you will, a giant cloaker. A giant cloaker that, while not possessing any special powers such as the cloaker's moaning or shadow capabilities, does have the capability to smother someone in its girth, slowly suffocating them to death. That, in a nutshell, is the CR 7 Aberration known as the lurker above. This is another monster that isn't exactly a massively exciting creature, although it does have a curious note in its fluff:

Mating habits among lurkers is unknown to sages as no two of these creatures have ever been encountered together.
Why they even wanted to bring up mating habits is beyond me...

Eldan
2010-05-27, 04:29 AM
Why wouldn't you want to bring up mating habits? As an ecologist I can tell you that they are often one of the most interesting things about unusual critters!

Rappy
2010-05-27, 04:47 AM
Why wouldn't you want to bring up mating habits? As an ecologist I can tell you that they are often one of the most interesting things about unusual critters!
True, but that's literally a third of the limited fluff they get, and it comes out of nowhere.

Mulletmanalive
2010-05-27, 05:37 AM
Yay! An update!

I know its a couple of days after the fact but yay!

Deca
2010-05-27, 06:36 AM
The Livestone is actually pretty nice. The Lava Child looks like it has no mind, but is instead a vacant shell inhabitated by strange things unknown to mortal kind.

Seriously, I can't stop looking at it's freakish idiot grin.

afroakuma
2010-05-27, 02:20 PM
Surprised lurkers aren't more popular, honestly; they were always classic cavern monsters in earlier editions. I love 'em.

You're setting a bad precedent, Rappy, cause you know I'm just going to keep asking now. :smallwink:

Reynard
2010-05-27, 02:39 PM
Aww, but why would you ever want to punch something with a face like this? :smalltongue:
http://www.thearchnemesis.com/images/Lava%20Children.jpg

It looks like a sex-pest. 'Rubs' in the corner makes it even creepier.

Thurbane
2010-05-27, 05:48 PM
I have a soft spot for the Lurker Above...it’s one of Uncle Gary’s classic “gotcha” monsters. I remember in a 1E or 2E adventure we ran (maybe from Dungeon magazine?) where you enter a room with a Lurker Above on the ceiling, and a Trapper on the floor (basically, a Mimic that impersonates floors). Oh, fun times! :smallbiggrin:

Volthawk
2010-05-28, 12:37 AM
I have a soft spot for the Lurker Above...it’s one of Uncle Gary’s classic “gotcha” monsters. I remember in a 1E or 2E adventure we ran (maybe from Dungeon magazine?) where you enter a room with a Lurker Above on the ceiling, and a Trapper on the floor (basically, a Mimic that impersonates floors). Oh, fun times! :smallbiggrin:

Isn't that the kind of thing where the furniture was some kind of monster too? And everything else in there?

Rappy
2010-05-28, 01:35 AM
The trapper is in the Tome of Horrors too, Thurbane, so your love for 'gotcha' monsters won't be unanswered for good.

The Tygre
2010-05-28, 03:40 AM
Isn't that the kind of thing where the furniture was some kind of monster too? And everything else in there?

Yes. Because THERE AIN'T NO SCHOOL LIKE THE OLD SCHOOL.

Rockphed
2010-05-28, 03:47 AM
I have a soft spot for the Lurker Above...it’s one of Uncle Gary’s classic “gotcha” monsters. I remember in a 1E or 2E adventure we ran (maybe from Dungeon magazine?) where you enter a room with a Lurker Above on the ceiling, and a Trapper on the floor (basically, a Mimic that impersonates floors). Oh, fun times! :smallbiggrin:

Obviously one of those is the male and the other the female form of the same monster.

Eldan
2010-05-28, 04:02 AM
That's why you never see two of the same kind together.

Now, they can only mate in case of a cave-in. That's why it's so rarely seen.

Steveotep
2010-06-01, 10:42 AM
The preface to the 3.0 version contains a statement that I bet did not appear in the 3.5 version (the bold is theirs).

"And here is the important part:

You won't find any of the monsters in Tome of Horrors in any other official Wizards of the Coast product!

We worked directly with Wizards of the Coast to make sure that no monster in this book (well, only a handful) would be included in a later WotC product. So you can rest assured that the contents of this book will not be superceded by any later 'official' book."

The Glyphstone
2010-06-01, 11:13 AM
I have a soft spot for the Lurker Above...it’s one of Uncle Gary’s classic “gotcha” monsters. I remember in a 1E or 2E adventure we ran (maybe from Dungeon magazine?) where you enter a room with a Lurker Above on the ceiling, and a Trapper on the floor (basically, a Mimic that impersonates floors). Oh, fun times! :smallbiggrin:

Don't forget the...Dungeon Ooze? Can't remember its name, but it was almost the same monster except it could attach to and disguise itself as a wall.

Thurbane
2010-06-01, 08:04 PM
Don't forget the...Dungeon Ooze? Can't remember its name, but it was almost the same monster except it could attach to and disguise itself as a wall.
http://i49.tinypic.com/5ozhww.jpg

Rappy
2010-06-01, 10:18 PM
The stunjelly is in the Tome of Horrors as well, amusingly. Anyway, here's some more entries.

-------------------------

Magnesium Spirit
It's a Designatedly Evil elemental creature from an unknown plane whose entire goal in the Material Realm is to get back home in a nonsensically complicated ritual involving Strength drain, body snatching, negative level drain, and making its host go poof. It's also vulnerable to holy water and can do explodey things of explosive brightness. It's also only CR 5, so...have fun with that level drain, folks.



Mandragora
Wait, what's this? A monster that could plausibly have a death knell affect that has no such thing?! Madness I say, madness! Yeah, this mandragora is a CR 1 Plant that chokes people to death. Not that interesting, to be honest.



Mantari
Toothed, flying manta rays that live in caves and absolutely crave gnome and human flesh above that of all other creatures, making them automatically Evil in spite of only having animal level intellect.

You do know I can't make this stuff up, right? I think this is a big problem with the Tome of Horrors as a whole. When it has its highs, it is really high, but when it has its lows...dang, are they low. And what's even worse is that some of these monsters could be really fun with more of an ecology and backing behind them rather than simply stating "these things are Evil and want to eat you! Go hit them with your sword".

Eldan
2010-06-02, 02:57 AM
Well, looking at the 3.5 monster manual I, I often thought that about half these critters
a) never get used,
b) would really need more fluff.

I mean, some of these things in there are just weird. So, why would the Tome of Horrors be any better?

Anyway, can the Mandragora at least heal diseases?

Rappy
2010-06-02, 03:39 AM
Oh, I agree. I've made it my personal goal to comb nooks and crannies of d20 bestiaries and give life to those monsters that have been left out.

Also, nope, no healing from the mandragora (unless I missed it). It's literally just a plant equivalent of an orc or hobgoblin: pure melee mook.

Mulletmanalive
2010-06-06, 07:53 AM
You mentioned a much preferable version of the Draugr from Frost and Fur. Is there any chance of us [or just me] seeing that piece of OGL goodness because i can't seem to find it available for download...

Volthawk
2010-06-08, 10:47 AM
The preface to the 3.0 version contains a statement that I bet did not appear in the 3.5 version (the bold is theirs).

"And here is the important part:

You won't find any of the monsters in Tome of Horrors in any other official Wizards of the Coast product!

We worked directly with Wizards of the Coast to make sure that no monster in this book (well, only a handful) would be included in a later WotC product. So you can rest assured that the contents of this book will not be superceded by any later 'official' book."

Hmm...there's a 3.0 and a 3.5 version?

Looks like I have the 3.0 one.

BobVosh
2010-06-08, 12:50 PM
Aww, but why would you ever want to punch something with a face like this? :smalltongue:
http://www.thearchnemesis.com/images/Lava%20Children.jpg

....It looks like a giant evil ginger from south park

...My god, Cartman was right!

Rappy
2010-06-09, 04:02 AM
You mentioned a much preferable version of the Draugr from Frost and Fur. Is there any chance of us [or just me] seeing that piece of OGL goodness because i can't seem to find it available for download...
Sure thing. It's Open Game Content, so I can share that. Just check your PMs.


Hmm...there's a 3.0 and a 3.5 version?

Looks like I have the 3.0 one.
The 3.5 version was only given a PDF release. Something about the logistics of reprinting that much material or some such, I forget the exact reason.

Anyway, couple entries for this morning. Sorry I've been so brief lately, but other projects are still taking precedence, as is work. Hopefully, while often brief, these entries are still entertaining, or at the very least able to spark curiousity and discussion.

-------------------------

Marble Snake
A CR 2 Magical Beast whose appearance...and indeed, its purpose...is somewhat baffling. It's a pale snake with insectoid eyes and a lion-like mane of hair that can produce a whistle that entrances people.

...Yeah, your guess is as good as mine.



Medusa, Greater
Okay, now we're finally on an entry that I can give a bit more detail on than just saying "what?" repeatedly. As their name implies, greater medusas are a higher step on the medusan hierarchy, similar to flinds for gnolls, hobgoblins and bugbears for goblins, etc., etc. They have the lower body of a rattlesnake rather than standard medusa legs and have poisonous blood in addition to the standard medusa traits. They really strike me as something made in homage of the Ray Harryhausen medusa design from Clash of the Titans, which is an ace in my book, at least. All in all, while these CR 8 Monstrous Humanoids are not absolutely stunning, they do provide a step up from standard medusas (medusae?) as well as giving you an option if you want to evolve your medusa culture further.

Volthawk
2010-06-09, 09:51 AM
The 3.5 version was only given a PDF release. Something about the logistics of reprinting that much material or some such, I forget the exact reason.


Managed to track down a copy. I like.

By the way, you going to do the appendixes too, right? I can't wait for Abominations...

Octopus Jack
2010-06-09, 10:16 AM
Marble Snake
A CR 2 Magical Beast whose appearance...and indeed, its purpose...is somewhat baffling. It's a pale snake with insectoid eyes and a lion-like mane of hair that can produce a whistle that entrances people.

...Yeah, your guess is as good as mine.


I want one :smallbiggrin: I really want one, I really really really want one. These are going straight into my campaign setting.

Rappy
2010-06-09, 05:12 PM
Managed to track down a copy. I like.

By the way, you going to do the appendixes too, right? I can't wait for Abominations...
But of course! It'd be unfair to not look at the appendices when it has such wonders as the antherions/therianthropes and the abominations.


I want one :smallbiggrin: I really want one, I really really really want one. These are going straight into my campaign setting.
Well, I'm glad someone besides me liked them. In spite of my incredulous comments, I feel that the marble snake could actually be rather interesting with the right fluff added onto it. It reminds me a lot of a local legend we have here about the "snake that charms".

Thurbane
2010-06-09, 10:13 PM
The 3.5 version was only given a PDF release. Something about the logistics of reprinting that much material or some such, I forget the exact reason.
Good to know - I've constantly been scouring Amazon and Ebay for a hard copy of the 3.5 version...this explains why I never found one! :smalltongue:

Rappy
2010-06-10, 04:11 AM
Indeed. Here's the quote, actually:


The book was just too big to reprint without cutting content or substantially raising the price, or both. There was no way we were going to cut down on the number of monsters. If people buy a revised version of a book, I think they rightfully expect all the monsters from the original to be revised. And it just didn’t seem right to charge a higher price for a revision than for the original book. So because we refused to cut the size of the book and because we refused to raise the price of the book, there was no book. And that is where I thought the decision would end. But luckily it didn’t. That’s where DriveThruRPG.com came in…
So the only real chance of seeing a new Tome of Horrors in print would be the whispered-about Pathfinder version, but as far as I know that's either in Development Hell or has disappeared off the map. I'm no expert, though, so don't take my word for it.

Also, belatedly at Steveotep: No, the 3.5 still has that screed, but it's listed as merely the "Introduction to the Classic Edition". It's no longer made as a claim, but it's in the PDF as either legacy material or a middle finger to Wizards of the Coast's apparently broken claim.

-------------------------

Midnight Peddler
A strange Outsider resembling a haggard old man pushing a rickety old cart that always carries different goods from the Material Plane on each of his visits there, which occur only on nights deeply shrouded in fog. Like a creepier version of the arcanes/mercanes, the midnight peddler's agenda is mysterious beyond his...well...peddling. He can divine any single question from someone that buys an item from him, but there's no real "deal with the devil" or anything; midnight peddlers are listed as Always Neutral, and while he does have a negative level-based drain attack, he only uses it in self defense. As such, the midnight peddler is a mysterious figure that you can mold and shape into whatever arcane and ill-understood agenda you wish.


Mihstu
A CR 6 air elemental that is designated as EEEBUL. Like a vaporous version of the belker, these tentacled spectral air beasts kill by suffocation; in this case, engulfing prey or draining its Constitution. The damp air-loving mihstu is stunned by Cold-based attacks, but exchanges that weakness for a 50% miss chance when it is struck by any projectile, including magic missile (!). Why is is a Neutral Evil creature, I don't know...it's stated that it uses its nasty powered when threatened, so... *Shrugs*


Mite
No, not a giant arachnid-type mite; this mite is a CR 1/4 goblinoid. Mites are...somewhat of a conundrum. They don't really seem to have a solidified niche; they have the Intelligence score and "RUSH IT!!" mentality of archetype orcs, the trap-making and engineering ingenuity of your bog standard kobolds, and the backstabbing and thieving nature of the stereotypical goblin. This is made even stranger by the "pesty", a variant of the mite that exchanges even more of it Intelligence score (down to troll levels) in favor of being able to move with a base speed of 40, rather than 20, feet. With some work, I imagine the mites could be interesting enemies, but as is they seem to be a sort of amalgam of concepts that weren't totally thought out.

Thurbane
2010-06-10, 09:28 PM
Midnight Peddler is an awesome plot device. I think there was a similar creature in one of Fritz Lieber's Nehwon stories...except the stuff they peddled was actually junk with an illusion cast over it.

I might see if I can work a Midnight Peddler into the current EtCR game I'm running - the party are trapped in the Village of Borovia, and the local store has a very low GP limit...

Rappy
2010-06-12, 07:41 AM
Midnight Peddler is an awesome plot device. I think there was a similar creature in one of Fritz Lieber's Nehwon stories...except the stuff they peddled was actually junk with an illusion cast over it.

I might see if I can work a Midnight Peddler into the current EtCR game I'm running - the party are trapped in the Village of Borovia, and the local store has a very low GP limit...
Since Midnight Peddlers can take class levels, you can mold them to your whims. Indeed, I imagine you could have the junk peddler type with a few levels of Illusionist Wizard.

Anyway, now that I no longer feel like someone is punching me in the face due to my sinus headache, I've got one short entry.

-------------------------

Mongrelman
Yes, we've finally reached the entry I've been waiting for. The mongrelmen! These CR 1 Monstrous Humanoids take the concept of "it can breed with anything" to its logical extreme; a mongrelman is literally the patchwork results of way too many interspecies love-ins. They are skilled mimics and pickpockets, living on the fringes of society because...well...most of the "civilized" races hate their guts. Assumedly because they're ugly, but I personally think the whole pickpocketing thing doesn't help.

The only drawback to the mongrelmen is that some might find creating them a bit overwhelming. You have to roll 1d20 on a chart of creatures (and one whammy roll result of losing a body part) to create your menagerie....17 times. You have to roll for the right and left sides of the head separately, as well as for the jaws, the right upper arm, the right lower arm, the left upper arm, the left lower arm, the right hand, the left hand, the upper torso, the lower torso, the upper right leg, lower right leg, upper left leg, lower left leg, right foot, and left foot.

Now, just because I felt like doing it for the hell of it, I actually rolled on this chart specifically for this thread to show you the general gist of it. So, without further adieu, here is our aberrant monstrosity!

Our poor, tortured soul has a distorted face that has ogre features on the right side, goblin ones on the obviously mismatchedly-sized left side, both of these sitting atop the muzzle of a minotaur. His chest is the heavily-armored carapace of a crabman, leading down to the thickly-scaled abdomen of a lizardfolk, tail included. His left arm twistedly bulges from the carapace, a gnoll's furry arm above the elbow and a gnome's slender one below, ending in the heavy pawed hand of a flind. The right arm manages to pull an even stranger act, starting out as a wiry elf arm before grossly bulging out into the ham-handed arm of an ogre below the elbow and finally ending in the dainty fingers of a halfling. As if this wasn't enough to make our poor mongrelman cry, we still have his legs! The upper half of his right leg is a fat orc thigh that leads down to a stout dwarven lower leg that teeters on the little foot of a halfling; his other leg goes from bugbear above the knee to the digitigrade stance of a gnoll below it, and ends in the uselessly flopped over fin of a merfolk's tail.

...Yeah, I think we can safely say that this dice roll has created a sad, sad little individual.

2xMachina
2010-06-12, 07:46 AM
... halfway to FATAL...

Reynard
2010-06-12, 07:52 AM
Our poor, tortured soul has a distorted face that has ogre features on the right side, goblin ones on the obviously mismatchedly-sized left side, both of these sitting atop the muzzle of a minotaur. His chest is the heavily-armored carapace of a crabman, leading down to the thickly-scaled abdomen of a lizardfolk, tail included. His left arm twistedly bulges from the carapace, a gnoll's furry arm above the elbow and a gnome's slender one below, ending in the heavy pawed hand of a flind. The right arm manages to pull an even stranger act, starting out as a wiry elf arm before grossly bulging out into the ham-handed arm of an ogre below the elbow and finally ending in the dainty fingers of a halfling. As if this wasn't enough to make our poor mongrelman cry, we still have his legs! The upper half of his right leg is a fat orc thigh that leads down to a stout dwarven lower leg that teeters on the little foot of a halfling; his other leg goes from bugbear above the knee to the digitigrade stance of a gnoll below it, and ends in the uselessly flopped over fin of a merfolk's tail.

...Yeah, I think we can safely say that this dice roll has created a sad, sad little individual.
Someone must draw this.

Eloi
2010-06-12, 11:05 AM
... halfway to FATAL...

No, what would be halfway to FATAL would be adding 'buttocks' to the list of things we have to roll for, making you have to roll a xd100 in order to roll for features of all of the monsters in every single core rulebook and Monster Manual presented in a complex percentile manner, of which you have to stat out the BPP (Body Part Proportion) making the fluff about Mongrelwomen slaves to the Mongrelmen for arousing (somehow) purposes, and then adding a bell-chart for impacts to your to Facial Charisma and Bodily Attractiveness.

Now thats (only!) half-way FATAL.

Kris Strife
2010-06-12, 12:44 PM
Midnight Peddler
A strange Outsider resembling a haggard old man pushing a rickety old cart that always carries different goods from the Material Plane on each of his visits there, which occur only on nights deeply shrouded in fog. Like a creepier version of the arcanes/mercanes, the midnight peddler's agenda is mysterious beyond his...well...peddling. He can divine any single question from someone that buys an item from him, but there's no real "deal with the devil" or anything; midnight peddlers are listed as Always Neutral, and while he does have a negative level-based drain attack, he only uses it in self defense. As such, the midnight peddler is a mysterious figure that you can mold and shape into whatever arcane and ill-understood agenda you wish.


I could see these being like The Collector from Superman: TAS. Small, wimpy creatures under normal circumstances that turn into giant brutes when pressed, possibly triggered by draining X levels in one combat.

Rappy
2010-06-12, 01:53 PM
Someone must draw this.
Not quite on the same level, but here's the 2E Monstrous Manual's illustration of a mongrelman:

http://www.mmadnd.chat.ru/mongrlmn.gif

Presumably, he got more identical rolls. :smallamused:

Rappy
2010-06-17, 04:15 PM
Been feeling up and down lately, but I'll be damned if I won't update some when I'm feeling okay.

Moon Dog
These are...dog-monkey things. That are intelligent. And can use supernatural powers to combat evil. And healing slobber.

...Yeah.



Muckdweller
Like lizardfolk, only smaller and less important. ...Okay, to be a bit more notary, the muckdwellers are CR 1/4 Magical Beasts that resemble miniature lizardfolk or bipedal lizards (depending on which description you feel is more fitting) and typically hang out with their bigger relatives. They aren't particularly strong and have brightness on the same level as an orc, but they are rather agile and perceptive, and fill the opposite role of creature such as flinds and other "bigger, badder versions of ". A threatened muckdweller can use Water Gun fill its mouth with muddy water and blind its opponents with the resulting stream spat from its mouth.



Mudman
http://img349.imageshack.us/img349/425/book116tg.jpg

((Image from Blogger Beware, just in case I needed to make that note.))


Mummy of the Deep
A mummy.

An [I]aquatic mummy.

An aquatic mummy that kisses you before vomiting up seawater into your lungs.

...Okay, can we bring the moon dog back, please?

Thurbane
2010-06-17, 04:34 PM
I like the Moon Dog...it was a monster that emerged back in the days when a good creature that would help the party was a genuine rarity. And I like dogs...

Rappy
2010-06-17, 04:44 PM
I like the Moon Dog...it was a monster that emerged back in the days when a good creature that would help the party was a genuine rarity. And I like dogs...
Ah, I figured it was probably an edition dissonance. Thanks for that note, Thurbane. :smallbiggrin:

Rappy
2010-06-21, 03:37 PM
Mustard Jelly
Hey, we're back to the "monster+" theme already! This CR 7 Ooze is billed as a relative of the ochre jelly, and is essentially that creature on steroids. In addition to what jelly traits you'd expect, the mustard jelly has damage reduction, a foul aura of slowing poison, and immunity to electricity and magic missiles (indeed, magic missiles actually increase its hit points), and above all an Intelligence score on par with a human's. Now, while I could just stop right there because...well, to be honest, what can I tell you about jellies that you don't already know?...there is one footnote from the Monstrous Manual of old that the Tome of Horrors forgot to mention: the fact that all the mustard jellies in the world are the result of a failed attempt by a spellcaster to polymorph herself into an ochre jelly. Why exactly one would want to become an ochre jelly, of all things, is beyond me, but...hey, there it is.



Necrophidius
Here we have another monster designed to be part of the great arsenal that is the legendary "DM's Middle Finger to Clerics". It resembles a snake skeleton with a human skull on the end of it; surely it must be undead, right?

WRONG!! It's actually a CR 3 Construct, a strange serpentine golem that (IIRC) originated in Ravenloft*. In addition to having a paralytic bite, the necrophidius has either a daze or confusion spell-like ability, depending on whether it's made from a constrictor (or average viper) or a rattlesnake respectively. All in all, while somewhat novel, the necrophidius certainly isn't my first choice when I think of undead-themed golems, but...eh, not my book, not my choices.

*I have since noticed that the Fiend Folio has seniority on Ravenloft for the necrophidius.

2xMachina
2010-06-22, 01:33 AM
Hmm, so a failed attempt to polymorph into a jelly makes you a stronger jelly? And permanently too it seems.

Why not try for dragons? You turn into an even better dragon if it fails!

Eldan
2010-06-22, 02:23 AM
Also, more intelligent. The idea is interesting.

So, if you try to polymorph into a red dragon, can you become a time dragon instead?

nyjastul69
2010-06-22, 03:15 AM
Necrophidius
Here we have another monster designed to be part of the great arsenal that is the legendary "DM's Middle Finger to Clerics". It resembles a snake skeleton with a human skull on the end of it; surely it must be undead, right?

WRONG!! It's actually a CR 3 Construct, a strange serpentine golem that (IIRC) originated in Ravenloft.

It originally appeared in the 1e Fiend Folio.

BobVosh
2010-06-22, 05:50 AM
I like the moon dog and mummy :(

The snake is kinda interesting, but seems pointless to build.

Eldan
2010-06-22, 05:55 AM
Also it's a stupid name. Death Snake. Great.

The Tygre
2010-06-22, 01:34 PM
Also it's a stupid name. Death Snake. Great.

Coming this Summer! Only on the Most Dangerous Night on Television!

Shademan
2010-06-22, 04:55 PM
Also it's a stupid name. Death Snake. Great.

how about "death-cobra"?

COOOOOOOBRRRRRRAAAAAAAAAAAA!
http://rashaunhall.files.wordpress.com/2009/04/cobra_commander.jpg

Mulletmanalive
2010-06-22, 05:56 PM
Why exactly one would want to become an ochre jelly, of all things, is beyond me, but...hey, there it is.

Squeeze under a door, slide silently up a dude's bedposts, dissolve both him and the bed, slither out. No trace, no leftovers, it's as if the victim just melted randomly in the night.

I think that's a pretty solid assassination strategy right there and no teleport or scry traces to follow back to you...

senrath
2010-06-22, 08:19 PM
I think the real question is does the Mustard Jelly taste like mustard?

Rappy
2010-06-22, 08:28 PM
It originally appeared in the 1e Fiend Folio.
I would say I found this surprising, but...I don't.


I like the moon dog and mummy :(
I'm alright with the moon dog, but I still can't fathom the deep mummy. It seems antithetical of the very idea of a mummy, and it's not like it's a bog mummy-style corpse either...it's the literal shriveled-corpse style mummy.


Squeeze under a door, slide silently up a dude's bedposts, dissolve both him and the bed, slither out. No trace, no leftovers, it's as if the victim just melted randomly in the night.

I think that's a pretty solid assassination strategy right there and no teleport or scry traces to follow back to you...
I imagine there are better ways to assassinate than an ochre jelly when it comes to polymorphing, but I see your point.

-------------------------

Nereid
In the grand tradition of "beautiful things will murder you", nereids are venomous (!) fey that can spit poison at you, enthrall you, or if they're particularly sadistic...ugh, flash backs to the deep mummy...kiss you before expelling water into your lungs to damage you. Oh, and if that wasn't enough, she can control and transmute the very waters she is formed from. And don't worry if you're a female adventurer, we don't get to escape the wrath of the nereid either; a nereid can take the shape of any female or male humanoid of Medium size, just to make them all the more sadistic. And why do the Chaotic Neutral nereids do such violent acts? Because they are "honeyed ones" that deal inappropriate vengeance against those that "steal a glance or kiss" from them, not for stealing the sea-shawl that contains their life force or anything logical like that. Of course, as we all know, Chaotic Neutral means "absolutely nutty as a fruitcake"... :smallsigh:



Nilbog
As should be no surprise to you, nilbogs are goblins from the Plane of Water.

...Okay, okay, yes, as you all really probably guessed, nilbogs are nega-goblins. These quirky little critters are mostly what you'd expect from a goblin, but have a confusion-inducing aura and that ever-popular "healed by damage, hurt by healing spells" effect. All in all, this is more one of those "I could mold this creature into something interesting" types rather than a "must use now!" type.

As a final aside on these strange goblinoids, if I recall, there was a similar trollish creature called the llort. Perhaps there are also cros, fles, frawds, and emongs out there too.

Thurbane
2010-06-22, 09:27 PM
Why exactly one would want to become an ochre jelly, of all things, is beyond me, but...hey, there it is.
Much better to be an Ogre Jelly (http://www.dmtools.org/details.php?id=1683)! :smalltongue:

Makiru
2010-06-23, 12:57 AM
These quirky little critters are mostly what you'd expect from a goblin, but have a confusion-inducing aura and that ever-popular "healed by damage, hurt by healing spells" effect. All in all, this is more one of those "I could mold this creature into something interesting" types rather than a "must use now!" type.

Favored Environment: Tomb of Horrors.

Fhaolan
2010-06-23, 01:35 AM
Perhaps there are also cros, fles, frawds, and emongs out there too.

There was Cros, if I remember correctly, in a 2nd edition SpellJammer Monstrous Compendium thingy.

Eldan
2010-06-23, 03:36 AM
I think they were called Scro.

Anyway, I like the name frawd. Pronounced like "fraud".

Rappy
2010-06-23, 09:04 PM
I think they were called Scro.
Hm. I knew about the llorts, but not the scro.


Anyway, I like the name frawd. Pronounced like "fraud".
That was the appeal of it to me. They are literally dwarven frauds, so frawd is a fitting reverse-name.

Mulletmanalive
2010-06-24, 05:46 PM
I imagine there are better ways to assassinate than an ochre jelly when it comes to polymorphing, but I see your point.


I'd agree if you'd said "better ways to kill" but leaving no evidence of your presence and no body to hunt you with strikes me as a better option with polymorph than just being able to kick in the door and rip him limb from limb. Bear in mind, this is polymorph so no [su] or [sp] abilities.

Rappy
2010-06-24, 06:13 PM
Obsidian Minotaur
Have you ever wanted a huge hunk of black rock hewn into the shape of a minotaur and animated into a fire-handed golem with a Dexterity-draining breath weapon?

...I doubt it, but if you have for whatever reason, it's here and it's a rather nasty CR 8 encounter.



Ogre, Half-
For whatever reason, these human-ogre hybrids have had a popular following in the d20 system, judging how often they've appeared. In addition to being present here, they have been in several WOTC-producing D&D books as well as a playable species in the d20 Modern book Urban Arcana, which was the first (and one of only two) full campaign settings released for the game by Wizards of the Coast themselves. What does this particular variant bring to the table? Well, comparing it to two other half-ogres presented, let's find out.
The half-ogre in Urban Arcana has +10 Strength, -2 Dexterity, +4 Constitution, -2 Intelligence, and -2 Charisma, as well as having 4 natural hit dice and being size Large humanoids (a rarity, considering those are usually auto-classed as giants).
The half-ogre in the Tome of Horrors have +6 Strength, +4 Constitution, -2 Intelligence, and -2 Charisma, and are size Medium humanoids with 2 natural hit dice. Definitely weaker, but also a more player-friendly option.
The half-ogre in Savage Species...well, obviously I can't state that piece by piece since it's not Open Game Content like the other two I've noted, but suffice to say they seem to be the middle ground between the two, with most of the ability scores of the Tome of Horrors version but the size of the Urban Arcana version.
Which one would I personally recommend? Well, from my personal standpoint, the Urban Arcana version is my favorite from a DM/GM standpoint, but the Tome of Horrors one definitely wins for player friendliness.



Ogrillion
Another half-ogre, but instead of having human blood, the ogrillion is the spawn of a male ogre and female orc. Oh yes, there is a different variant for a male orc and a female ogre, similar to the whole liger/tigon variation in reality...but that's a story for another entry. Suffice to say, the ogrillion is plenty like the half-ogre. It is a 2 HD Medium-size Humanoid like the half-ogre, it has +4 Constitution and -2 Charisma penalties of the half-ogre, and it is has the "both parent's blood"-type trait like the half-ogre. The only major difference is that the ogrillion has traded an extra 2 penalty points in Intelligence for a grand total of+8 in Strength. It also has a -2 penalty to Wisdom, but there's no real net gain for that one. Its only major claim to fame is its Reinforced Fists special quality, which lets its unarmed strikes be considered armed weapons and deal lethal rather than nonlethal damage. Otherwise, there's not really that much special here beyond some potential ecology-building if you have an orc- and giant-heavy campaign.

Thurbane
2010-06-24, 09:22 PM
Ogre, Half-
For whatever reason, these human-ogre hybrids have had a popular following in the d20 system, judging how often they've appeared. In addition to being present here, they have been in several WOTC-producing D&D books as well as a playable species in the d20 Modern book Urban Arcana, which was the first (and one of only two) full campaign settings released for the game by Wizards of the Coast themselves. What does this particular variant bring to the table? Well, comparing it to two other half-ogres presented, let's find out.
The half-ogre in Urban Arcana has +10 Strength, -2 Dexterity, +4 Constitution, -2 Intelligence, and -2 Charisma, as well as having 4 natural hit dice and being size Large humanoids (a rarity, considering those are usually auto-classed as giants).
The half-ogre in the Tome of Horrors have +6 Strength, +4 Constitution, -2 Intelligence, and -2 Charisma, and are size Medium humanoids with 2 natural hit dice. Definitely weaker, but also a more player-friendly option.
The half-ogre in Savage Species...well, obviously I can't state that piece by piece since it's not Open Game Content like the other two I've noted, but suffice to say they seem to be the middle ground between the two, with most of the ability scores of the Tome of Horrors version but the size of the Urban Arcana version.
Which one would I personally recommend? Well, from my personal standpoint, the Urban Arcana version is my favorite from a DM/GM standpoint, but the Tome of Horrors one definitely wins for player friendliness.

I have much love for 1/2 Ogres - my group has been playing them since our AD&D 1E days. The earliest mention of them I can remember was in an issue of Dragon (article was called "Smiting him hip and thigh"), reprinted in Best of Dragon Vol 1 from memory.

FYI - in 3.X, the official 1/2 Ogre has been officially updated from 3.0 Savage Species in 3.5 Races of Destiny. They got more LA, so less fun to play, but level buyoff is an option.

I believe there was also a 3.0 Dragon Mag that has 1/2 Ogre as a template, rather than a race.

My fave 1/2 Ogre was Massive Ferguson, my 2E 1/2 Ogre Fighter. :smallsmile:

BobVosh
2010-06-29, 06:58 AM
I have much love for 1/2 Ogres - my group has been playing them since our AD&D 1E days. The earliest mention of them I can remember was in an issue of Dragon (article was called "Smiting him hip and thigh"), reprinted in Best of Dragon Vol 1 from memory.

FYI - in 3.X, the official 1/2 Ogre has been officially updated from 3.0 Savage Species in 3.5 Races of Destiny. They got more LA, so less fun to play, but level buyoff is an option.

I believe there was also a 3.0 Dragon Mag that has 1/2 Ogre as a template, rather than a race.

My fave 1/2 Ogre was Massive Ferguson, my 2E 1/2 Ogre Fighter. :smallsmile:

Dragonlance had a fairly player friendly 1/2 ogre.

Also the obsidian minotaur is pretty neat to imagine what it looks like.

hamishspence
2010-06-29, 07:39 AM
I believe there was also a 3.0 Dragon Mag that has 1/2 Ogre as a template, rather than a race.

Actually it was very early 3.5- I think it was either issue 313 or 314.

Rappy
2010-06-29, 09:56 PM
Also the obsidian minotaur is pretty neat to imagine what it looks like.
I will admit that, in spite of its oddness, the obsidian minotaur is a pretty awesome way of saying "Wizard lives here, keep out".

-------------------------

Oliphant
Like halflings, orcs, and treants, the oliphant draws its inspiration from Lord of the Rings. Unlike the mumakil, however, oliphants are more or less just mastodons with an Intelligence score of 6...that are still of the Animal type in spite of said intelligence.

...Huh?



Ooze, Crystal
A water-dependent, transparent variant of gray ooze. Wee.



Ooze, Magma
A CR 7 ooze that deals fire damage instead of acid damage. Weeee.



Ooze, Mercury
An ooze that can give you mercury poisoning. Weeeeee.



Ooze, Undead
A foul black goo made of necromantic energy and rotting bodies, swirling across the ground and dealing cold damage as it expels skeletons to combat its foes. Wee-wait. That actually is rather novel. On top of being of the Undead type (it's in the name, after all), we have a CR 6 ooze that is not only intelligent, but actually uses the gunk its made up of as a strategy for raising skeletal hordes to fight for it!

...Oh. Says here it's from the Creature Collection, not a converted 1E or 2E D&D ooze. No wonder it was so novel.

senrath
2010-06-29, 10:33 PM
...I think I'm gonna use the Undead Ooze in my next campaign.

Rappy
2010-07-01, 07:10 PM
Ooze, Vampiric
Because you can never have enough oooooooze!

This creature is essentially an undead ochre jelly that can create zombies from people it kills, for some reason. And command them in spite of having Intelligence -. To be honest, I prefer the template version of Vampiric Oozes from Silverthorne Games, myself, but that's just me.



Orog
Orogs are the opposite of ogrillions, being the result of a union between a male orc and female ogre. For some unfathomable reason, this combination of Intelligence-penaltied species results in a creature that has a base Intelligence score of 10, just like humans. Why?

...I'm not sure, really. All the other traits of the orog fit, like a powerful Strength and Constitution bonus and a penalty to Wisdom and Charisma, but having an intellect above the average of both of its parents stumps me. I guess you could explain it as a fantasy version of hybrid vigor, but that doesn't quite fit. ...Hmm...

You know, actually, I may have an idea. What if, rather than the sages' suspection of ogrillions and orogs being the results of gender-flipped mated pairs, they are actually the progeny of different subpecies? Perhaps the ogrillions are your bog standard ogre-orcs, while the smarter, militaristic orogs are part ogre mage?

Rappy
2010-07-04, 01:11 AM
Pech
Pulled from Scottish legend, the pech are gnome-like fey known for being small, earth-attuned, and strong for their stature. They certainly live up to their legendary counterparts in that facet, too, having a Strength score of 19 in spite of being size Small. In addition to their prodigious strength, pechs gain attack bonuses both against opponents that are fully on the ground along with the pech and against opponents made out of stone and earth (which happen to usually be rather heavy and thus connected to the ground, so double score!), are immune to petrification, and they can shape and speak with stones. Groups of pechs can do even more; four pechs can cast wall of stone, while eight pechs can cast stone to flesh, making groups of pechs being creatures you want to have on your side. Thankfully, like so many D&D creatures, they have light sensitivity, once again giving a touchdown to the spellcaster who stocked up on light spells.



Phantom Stalker
In spite of its name, the phantom stalker isn't a phantom, merely a strange fire elemental. It can shapeshift and explodes in a damaging fireball when killed, deals fire damage (duh), and is healed by fire, but otherwise..well, there's not much to say. Really, the main reason they exist can be summed up by the fact that the majority of their fluff is merely saying that they are usually only seen when summoned by use of summon nature's ally IV.



Phycomid
Fear the crawling patch of CR 4 mushrooms, for it can infect you with its spores and turn your corpse into a phycomid colony!

BobVosh
2010-07-04, 08:00 AM
Ooze, Undead
A foul black goo made of necromantic energy and rotting bodies, swirling across the ground and dealing cold damage as it expels skeletons to combat its foes. Wee-wait. That actually is rather novel. On top of being of the Undead type (it's in the name, after all), we have a CR 6 ooze that is not only intelligent, but actually uses the gunk its made up of as a strategy for raising skeletal hordes to fight for it!

...Oh. Says here it's from the Creature Collection, not a converted D&D ooze. No wonder it was so novel.

If I ever use this creature it will move by means of skeletal arms reaching out to drag it across the floor.

Why are all oozes so bland though? Although I will always like the iconic gel. cube simply because its main threat to you is if you walk into it.


Phycomid
Fear the crawling patch of CR 4 mushrooms, for it can infect you with its spores and turn your corpse into a phycomid colony!

...How does a mushroom crawl, or even a patch of em?

Rappy
2010-07-05, 03:30 AM
If I ever use this creature it will move by means of skeletal arms reaching out to drag it across the floor.

Why are all oozes so bland though? Although I will always like the iconic gel. cube simply because its main threat to you is if you walk into it.
There are some more interesting oozes out there. For example: the d20 Modern equivalent of the Monster Manual, appropriately entitled the Menace Manual, has an intelligent, bodysnatching ooze called the Satanic Ichor.


...How does a mushroom crawl, or even a patch of em?
Through Science Magic, of course!

Eldan
2010-07-05, 03:33 AM
Well, look up slime molds. Technically unicellular fungi several centimeters across, which crawl like amoeba, or form a network of tubes. They've always been my model for oozes.

Rappy
2010-07-06, 04:31 AM
Well, look up slime molds. Technically unicellular fungi several centimeters across, which crawl like amoeba, or form a network of tubes. They've always been my model for oozes.
Funny enough, there is a fantasy-ized slime mold in one of the other volumes of Tome of Horrors, so oozes go full circle in a way. But let's not jump the gun and discuss that, we've still got a good chunk of this one left!

-------------------------

Poltergeist
Unless you have no real experience with ghost stories, the fundamental idea of the poltergeist monster should be familiar to you: an invisible, incorporeal creature that throws stuff around like it's having an undead temper tantrum. While carrying a challenge rating of 2, the poltergeist is more of a nuisance than a nightmare. Sure, it has a fear aura and can toss stuff, but unless it has a ready supply of large objects to toss, it won't be doing much damage to you. The only way you'd be likely to die by the telekinetic hand of a poltergeist would be if you had no way of attacking incorporeal creatures, were too stupid to just leave its area of haunting, and had unimpressive hit points.



Protector
Essentially an exalted monk (but not an Exalted monk; you're in the wrong thread if you want that), these CR 7 Outsiders are bald, robed men of the Lawful Neutral persuasion that happen to be able to walk on air, sense your alignment, and cast spells as a Cleric of their hit dice count (7th for a basic Protector). They are essentially the angels of Law, presumably working in tandem with the Modrons for the greater good Law.

...Did I mention Laaaaaaw enough yet?



Pudding, Brown
Brown puddings are a variant of the black pudding. I use "variant" rather loosely as the only differences I notice are one (just one) extra hit die and living in marshes instead of underground. Weeeeee.



Pudding, Dun
A variant of the black pudding that has two less hit die and one less point of Constitution and lives in any warm land, but is otherwise unremarkable and similar to the black pudding. Weeeeeeee.



Pudding, White
Lives in the cold, has one less hit die and one less point of Constitution. It at least has a camouflage bonus when in the snow to make it barely more tolerable than the other black pudding variants that get an entire page each...

Eldan
2010-07-06, 04:41 AM
Hmm. I used a home-made Poltergeist once in a level 1 introductory adventure. It could animate small objects. The plot was that the characters (who didn't know each other yet) and a few groups of NPCs were snowed in on a pass. Then the ghost started murdering people by pushing them down stairs, setting rooms on fire, strangling them with ropes...
In the end, everyone got quite a little paranoid. The dwarves and the elves were ready to kill each other. Even the players. (especially since two of the players did have hidden agendas and sent me secret actions via pieces of paper.)

So it can really be more than a nuisance, I guess.

Rappy
2010-07-06, 05:07 AM
Hmm. I used a home-made Poltergeist once in a level 1 introductory adventure. It could animate small objects. The plot was that the characters (who didn't know each other yet) and a few groups of NPCs were snowed in on a pass. Then the ghost started murdering people by pushing them down stairs, setting rooms on fire, strangling them with ropes...
In the end, everyone got quite a little paranoid. The dwarves and the elves were ready to kill each other. Even the players. (especially since two of the players did have hidden agendas and sent me secret actions via pieces of paper.)

So it can really be more than a nuisance, I guess.
True, I didn't think of it in those terms. I think my eyes being stuffed with painted puddings broke my brain.

Eldan
2010-07-06, 06:32 AM
Yeah. Those are stupid. They sound like they could all be handled in a sidebar.
"Regional variants" or something.

SITB
2010-07-06, 07:28 AM
Regarding the Mercury/Magma/Crystal Oozes, maybe they fill elemental niches? I mean if you go to the Quasi-Para-Elemental plane of Crystal/Magama/Wahtever they would probably fit right in (http://www.mimir.net/essays/planarphysics.html).

Eldan
2010-07-06, 07:34 AM
Sure. But from Rappy's discussion, they don't seem all that different from each other, meaning they really wouldn't all need separate entries.

I mean, imagine if you opened a PHB and got a page for every variant of elf. Not culture and fluff for different elves, no, just the full statistics for level one high elf, grey elf, wood elf, half-elf, sun elf, moon elf, star elf, fire elf and water elf.

Rappy
2010-07-06, 07:57 AM
To me, the puddings (and the oozes, for that matter) probably should have been variant lists like elven subspecies, as Eldan said. Then again, it was their choice, not mine.

I certainly wouldn't have picked up the Anguillian* before, say, the oliphant. But sadly, they didn't, and the anguillian eventually made it into Stormwrack, thus blocking it from the Open Game world. But I digress...

*For those unfamiliar with it or its history before 3rd Edition, the anguillians are deep-sea lamprey-people that originated in Monstrous Arcana: the Sea Devils, a book focusing on the sahuagin and their relations. The Sea Devils was one of three books under the Monstrous Arcana title, the other two being the mind flayer-focused Illithiad and the beholder-focused I, Tyrant.

BobVosh
2010-07-09, 12:41 AM
To me, the puddings (and the oozes, for that matter) probably should have been variant lists like elven subspecies, as Eldan said. Then again, it was their choice, not mine.

This is still because they have as much flavor (despite being a pudding) as a rock.

Rappy
2010-07-09, 01:46 AM
Hey now, at least rocks gave us the galeb duhr. :smallamused:

-------------------------

Pyrolisk
This fearsome fowl is a conflagrational colubrid-cockerel combination...or, to put it more simply, it's a variant cockatrice whose gaze can set you on fire. This cockatrice variant trades off one hit die (making it slightly weaker as far as physical combat goes) for 2 extra points of Intelligence and some pyrotechnical capabilities, and its petrification for conflagration, so while it does have the added interest factor and rudimentary intelligence, it is another creature that would probably have done better as a variant text entry.

Worthy of note is that the original pyrolisk was stated to be the "mortal enemy of the phoenix" (presumably this isn't mentioned due to there being no phoenix stats in the Tome of Horrors) and had a save-or-die conflagration power, while in this case it's merely save-or-take-4d8-fire damage. The Tome of Horrors, skipping out a chance on a save-or-die? What madness is this?!



Quasi-Elemental, Lightning
These CR 3, 6, and 9 (for Small, Medium-size, and Large ones respectively) Elementals are, as their name suggest, forged of lightning and come from the Quasi-Elemental Plane of Lightning. Swift and agile, the lightning quasis are shocking to the touch and can form globes of electricity that hover around their body like zappy little sentinels. Strangely enough, these elementals are weak to water-based attacks.



Quickling
These Chaotic Evil fey are the hybrids of a brownie and an elf. See? This is what you get when you don't listen to the people preaching the evils of elves. :smalltongue:

They are invisible when standing still, blurred when moving, proficient in poison, and cast those standard "tricksy fey" SLAs we all know and "love", milking all of their Challenge Rating of 3 for what it's worth. There's also...wait...hold up...


Because of their rapid metabolism, quicklings reach adulthood by the age of 2, middle age at 5, old age at 12, and venerable at age 15.
That's just...kind of stupid. We're injecting an attempt at logic into the game for fey, of all things? The faeries? The charmed folk? The creatures you'd most likely expect to have slow aging besides the dragons and outsiders? Really?

Sliver
2010-07-09, 03:47 AM
Could you add this in the first post?

Al-Mi'raj; Amphisbaena; Angel, Monadic Deva; Angel, Movanic Deva (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=8050156&postcount=8)

Animal Lord; Ant Lion; Apparition (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=8056082&postcount=9)

Archer Bush; Ascemoid; Astral Shark; Atomie; Aurumvorax; Axe Beak; Babbler; Banderlog (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=8058359&postcount=19)

Baric; Barrow Wight; Basidirond; Basilisk, Greater; Doombat & Mobat; Beetles: Giant Boring, Giant Death Watch, Giant Rhinoceros & Giant Slicer (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=8063288&postcount=31)

Belabra; Bhuta; Blindheim; Blood Hawk; Bloody Bones; Boalisk (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=8067219&postcount=39)

Bog Beast; Bog Mummy; Boggart; Bone Cobbler; Bonesnapper; Bonesucker (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=8069417&postcount=40)

Brownie; Buckawn; Bunyip; Carbuncle; Carrion Moth; Caryatid Column (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=8081027&postcount=41)

Catewaul; Cave Cricket; Cave Fisher; Cave Moray; Cerberus; Chrystone; Clam, Giant (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=8110613&postcount=47)

Clockworks: Brain Gear, Drone, Overseer, Parasite, Scout, Swarm, Titan, Warrior (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=8125147&postcount=59)

Clubnek; Cobra Flower; Coffer Corpse; Cooshee; Crab, Monstrous; Crabman; Crayfish, Monstrous (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=8209950&postcount=60)

Crystalline Horror; Crypt Thing; Daemons: Cacodaemon, Charon, Charonodaemon, Darghodaemon, Hydrodaemon, the Oinodaemon & Piscodaemon (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=8212437&postcount=64)

Dakon; Dark Creeper & Dark Stalker; Darnoc; Death Dog; Death Worm; Decapus; (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=8232594&postcount=69)

Demiurge; Demonands: Shaggy, Slime & Tarry (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=8251872&postcount=70)

Diger; Dire Corby; Disenchanter; Dracolisk (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=8258816&postcount=80)

Dragons: Cloud, Faerie & Mist; Dragon Horse (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=8301907&postcount=81)

Dragonfish; Dragonfly, Giant; Dragonnel; Drake (Fire, Ice and Salt) (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=8332400&postcount=84)

Draug; Drelb; Dust Digger; Eblis; Eel, Giant Moray; Elementals: Psionic & Time; Elemental Dragon; Executioner's Hood (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=8339757&postcount=88)

Eye Killer; Eye of the Deep; False Spider; Fen Witch; Fire Lizard; Fire Nymph (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=8346788&postcount=90)

Fire Snake; Firefiend; Flail Snail; Flind; Floating Eye; Flumph (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=8361349&postcount=91)

Fly, Giant; Fogwarden; Forester's Bane; Forlarren; Frog, Monstrous; Froghemoth (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=8382449&postcount=100)

Frost Man; Gambado; Gargoyle (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=8384800&postcount=111)

Ghoul-Stirge; Giants: Sand & Wood; Gloomwing (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=8391706&postcount=117)

Golems: Blood, Ice, Stone Guardian, Tallow & Wood; Corbel (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=8403602&postcount=118)

Gorgimera; Gorgon, Trie; Gorrila-Bear; Grippli; Groaning Spirit (Banshee) (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=8408821&postcount=128)

Gryph; Guardian Daemon; Hungman Tree; Haunt; Hellmoth; Hippocampus (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=8421928&postcount=140)

Hoar Fox; Huecuva; Inphidian, Common; Iron Cobra; Jack-o'-Lantern (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=8434589&postcount=143)

Jaculi; Jellyfish, Monstrous; Jupiter Bloodsucker; Kamadan; Kampfult; Kech (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=8448318&postcount=147)

Kelp Devil; Kelpie; Khargra (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=8473433&postcount=155)

Killmoulis; Korred (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=8528072&postcount=157)

Land Lamprey; Lava Child (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=8550688&postcount=167)

Leech, Giant; Leprechaun; Livestone; Lurker Above (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=8573294&postcount=174)

Magnesium Spirit; Mandragora; Mantari (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=8609995&postcount=190)

Marble Snake; Medusa, Greater (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=8661213&postcount=196)

Mongrelman (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=8684611&postcount=203)

Moon Dog; Muckdweller; Mudman; Mummy of the Deep (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=8725816&postcount=209)

Mustard Jelly; Necrophidius (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=8752991&postcount=212)

Nereid; Nilbog (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=8763099&postcount=222)

Obsidian Minotaur; Ogre, Half-; Ogrillion (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=8777544&postcount=229)

Oliphant; Oozes: Crystal, Magma, Mercury & Undead (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=8814589&postcount=233)

Ooze, Vampiric; Orog (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=8829319&postcount=235)

Pech; Phantom Stalker; Phycomid (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=8844859&postcount=236)

Poltergeist; Protector; Puddings: Brown, Dun & White (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=8859184&postcount=240)

Pyrolisk; Quesi-Elemental, Lightning; Quickling (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=8883087&postcount=248)

Wow, that took a while.

Rappy
2010-07-09, 04:38 AM
Can and have, Sliver. That's a lifesaver, and I'm kind of disappointed I didn't think of it earlier and save you some time.