What Does Kaiju Mean to You?

[unseenmage]

What official (WotC product plus web, and magazine) colossal critters have that quintessential kaiju vibe?

Which colossal size creatures would you make a rubber suit of and pro wrestle as?

And how should a colossal creature be used in a real game to make them more kaiju than monster of the week?

[Troacctid]

Giant monster that stomps around wreaking destruction on a city until the Powerpuff Girls fly in and save the day. The most iconic is the tarrasque. Other examples include Dalmosh, the garngrath, and devastation vermin.

The key to a kaiju rather than a random colossal monster is that a kaiju is a threat to a town or city and must be stopped to avert large-scale destruction. A colossal dragon sitting on a pile of treasure in its lair would not qualify in my eyes. A colossal dragon burninating a city, on the other hand, would—although flying doesn't really have the same aesthetic factor as stomping, so it's not the best example of the trope.

[EisenKreutzer]

To me, a Kaiju is enormous, a city level threat, nigh unstoppable and looks like a giant, monstrous version of an animal. That last part may just be personal preference.

[NNescio]

Tarrasque, what else?

Main way to make it challenging anyway is to make it a kaijuu-esque encounter (threatening a settlement that the heroes have to defend). Instead of the fight happening in the boonies with the party free to kite it to death/unconsciousness.

Plus, well, there's even an alien planet filled with (fractal!) tarrasques. Fits very well with the overall kaijuu vibe.

[Buufreak]

Probably most things that have the titanic template applied.

Definite Clifford the big red dog.

[Gallowglass]

"Kaiju"

"Gesundheit"

[stack]

Paizo made a kaiju subtype for such creatures.

[Bronk]

What official (WotC product plus web, and magazine) colossal critters have that quintessential kaiju vibe?

Big, slow, uncommunicative beasts and monsters. Also anything with the Kaiju template from Dragon 289.


Which colossal size creatures would you make a rubber suit of and pro wrestle as?

Ehhhhh... maybe one of those Kaiju destructo rooms or whatever they're called instead?


And how should a colossal creature be used in a real game to make them more kaiju than monster of the week?

I'd say that Kaiju plots should A: start with a lot of scary portents that B: lead to the characters trying to prevent its awakening, but if it does, it's pretty much unstoppable, so much so that C: the PCs are in damage control and evacuation mode for a while. Finally, when they've done all they can, they can go on quests to deal with it... and since it's a kaiju, that means either they find another Kaiju to fight it, or become ones themselves (because DnD).

[NNescio]

(...)

I'd say that Kaiju plots should A: start with a lot of scary portents that B: lead to the characters trying to prevent its awakening, but if it does, it's pretty much unstoppable, so much so that C: the PCs are in damage control and evacuation mode for a while. Finally, when they've done all they can, they can go on quests to deal with it... and since it's a kaiju, that means either they find another Kaiju to fight it, or become ones themselves (because DnD).

"Magic wand, make my monster me GROW!"

—Giant Form, Wu Jen 7.

For vicariously reliving your childhood Ultraman (and other Tokusatsu) fantasies.

[Bronk]

"Magic wand, make my monster me GROW!"

—Giant Form, Wu Jen 7.

For vicariously reliving your childhood Ultraman (and other Tokusatsu) fantasies.

Nice! (Somatic components become monster sign language... and shrieking!)

[Psyren]

Paizo made a kaiju subtype for such creatures.

This. The rules for them are:


Kaiju Subtype

These Colossal creatures inhabit the most desolate places of a world. They are often associated with elemental subtypes, and while they are only barely smarter than the typical beast, many feature personality traits that allow for rudimentary alliances or rivalries with other kaiju. Regardless, all kaiju have great capacity for devastation. A kaiju has the following traits (unless otherwise noted in a creature’s entry):


A kaiju’s natural attacks count as epic and magic for the purpose of overcoming damage reduction.
Damage reduction 20/epic.
Darkvision 600 feet.
Fast healing 30.
Ferocity (Ex): Kaiju have the ferocity universal monster ability.
Hurl Foe (Ex): When a kaiju damages a Huge or smaller foe with one of its natural attacks, it can try to hurl the foe as part of that attack by attempting a combat maneuver check. On a successful check, the foe is knocked back 10 feet in a direction of the kaiju’s choice and falls prone. The distance the foe is hurled increases by 10 feet for every 5 points by which the kaiju’s check exceeds the foe’s CMD. If an obstacle stops the hurled creature before it travels the whole distance, the hurled foe and the obstacle struck each take 1d6 points of damage per 10 feet of distance remaining and the foe is knocked prone in the space adjacent to the obstacle.
Immunity to ability damage, ability drain, death effects, disease, energy drain, and fear.
Massive (Ex): Because kaiju are so massive, uneven ground and other terrain features that form difficult terrain generally pose no significant hindrance to a kaiju’s movement, though settlements or areas of forest are considered difficult terrain to a kaiju. A Huge or smaller creature can move through any square occupied by a kaiju, and vice versa. A kaiju can make attacks of opportunity only against foes that are Huge or larger and can be flanked only by Huge or larger foes. A kaiju gains a bonus for being on higher ground only if its entire space is on higher ground than that of its target. It’s possible for a Huge or smaller creature to climb a kaiju—this generally requires a successful DC 30 check, and unlike the normal rules about kaiju and attacks of opportunity, a Small or larger creature that climbs on a kaiju’s body provokes an attack of opportunity from the monster.
Recovery (Ex): Whenever a kaiju fails a saving throw against any mind-affecting, paralysis, petrification, polymorph, or immobilizing effect (including binding and temporal stasis, but not including imprisonment), it can attempt a new saving throw at the end of its turn to remove the effect. Doing so does not requires an action. A kaiju can attempt a new save to end the effect as often as it wishes, but can attempt to remove only one such effect per round. Once per year, if a kaiju takes an amount of damage that would normally kill it by reducing its hit points to a negative amount equal to its Constitution score, the damage instead heals the kaiju of twice the amount of damage—but this healing leaves the kaiju disoriented and demoralized. At this point, the creature becomes nauseated and seeks only to return to its lair. Any amount of damage dealt to it by an external source before it reaches its lair, though, immediately negates the nauseated effect and allows the kaiju to end its retreat and attack.
Resistance 30 to acid, cold, electricity, fire, negative energy, and sonic.


Mogaru (https://www.d20pfsrd.com/bestiary/monster-listings/magical-beasts/kaiju/kaiju-mogaru/) appears to be the Godzilla analogue.

[Saintheart]

Paizo made a kaiju subtype for such creatures.

So did Dragon Magazine.

Issue 289, page 66.

[Psyren]

So did Dragon Magazine.

Issue 289, page 66.

You, uh, do know who made Dragon Magazine right? :smalltongue:

[Troacctid]

You, uh, do know who made Dragon Magazine right? :smalltongue:
#289 predates Paizo's run!

[Psyren]

#289 predates Paizo's run!

But not James Jacobs' :smallbiggrin:

[Lucas Yew]

The d20 Tarrasque might be too small and "spongy" to be called an actual "kaiju". Do mind, that the original 1954 Godzilla ("Gojira"), the smallest official incarnation, was 50 meters in height alone, and no-selled contemporary military artillery with its hide alone...

[unseenmage]

The Elder Evils and their signs but on a smaller scale could work too. Affecting only a single city or country.

[rel]

Run the monster as a dungeon.
You don't kill Godzilla by shaving its toe claws with your magic sword until it falls over.
You clamber over the monster fighting off its parasites and weathering the splash damage from its rampage and bring it down by attacking weak points and placing plot device weapons

[unseenmage]

Run the monster as a dungeon.
You don't kill Godzilla by shaving its toe claws with your magic sword until it falls over.
You clamber over the monster fighting off its parasites and weathering the splash damage from its rampage and bring it down by attacking weak points and placing plot device weapons
IIRC there is an adventure where the PCs inside the advancing enemy mega Golem.

[gooddragon1]

"Kaiju"

"Gesundheit"

Should homebrew a kaiju named Gesundheit. Give it a sneeze attack breath weapon. Slow effect and acid damage that ignores resistance and half of immunity. Maybe some sonic effects too.