Buying monsters

[Curelomosaurus]

I'm trying to cobble together a list of ways to purchase monsters. So far I have:

-Warbeast animals/vermin
-Mounts/guard creatures in A&EG
-Effigy template
-Undead/animated objects created by wizards
-Buying slaves from Neogi (LoM)
-Various golems can be bought/crafted
-Monsters that have prices as mounts in various MMs, as well as Races of Stone

What am I missing here?

[unseenmage]

Spells that create monsters could count as buying monsters. Animate Dead, Create Undead, Minor Servitor, Create Crawling Claw, and Awaken Sand.

Intelligent Magoc Items are Constructs.

Figurines of Wondrous Power become actual creatures when they change.

Randomly found Iron Flasks can have creatures in them.

Creatures with create spawn or minionmancy could count as buying more than one creature. Buying a Thrallherd or Vampire slave would be a far sight more productive than buying just a single minion.

[Curelomosaurus]

Spells that create monsters could count as buying monsters. Animate Dead, Create Undead, Minor Servitor, Create Crawling Claw, and Awaken Sand.


Where do Minor Servitor and Awaken Sand come from, and what kinds of creatures do they produce?

Also, if anyone knows of templates that make a creature become a vermin (for Warbeast), that would be helpful.

[unseenmage]

Where do Minor Servitor and Awaken Sand come from, and what kinds of creatures do they produce?

Also, if anyone knows of templates that make a creature become a vermin (for Warbeast), that would be helpful.

Minor Servitor is from Savage Species and was officially replaced with Awaken Construct in Spell Compendium.
I still use it though because it's really a 'create awakened animated object' spell.

Awaken Sand is from the Sandstorm book.

Both spells create free willed sentient constructs from existing material. The Constructs are friendly though.

[denthor]

I spawned an industry by accident. We had a monster game. My Hobgoblin cleric would eat kobold dishes.

The people outside Blackhearts fort would go and capture kobolds 10 gp each.

My kobold 2nd in command would buy the execess and slaughter any that showed magical ability. So we had a special menu.

[Curelomosaurus]

I spawned an industry by accident. We had a monster game. My Hobgoblin cleric would eat kobold dishes.

The people outside Blackhearts fort would go and capture kobolds 10 gp each.

My kobold 2nd in command would buy the execess and slaughter any that showed magical ability. So we had a special menu.

...quite the interesting cuisine choice, that. Just hope you don't accidentally anger any kobold paladins who happen to know Pazuzu... :smallwink:

[Zanos]

You could buy castings of planar binding and dragon ally, for temporary access to outsiders/elementals and dragons, respectively.

I like to turn those into undead, because free will is lame.

[MaxiDuRaritry]

Doesn't the BoVD give uses for the Appraise skill for slaves?

You could give any creature the animal type to give them the warbeast template (and thus give them a price for purchase). It's pretty wonky to make it permanent, though.

The aspect of the wolf spell (SC) gives the target the animal type. If you want it to have an effectively Permanent duration, find a plane (whether demi- or otherwise) that is timeless with respect to spell durations, find or plant an oak tree, and cast either hallow or unhallow on it with aspect of the wolf tied to it. Now cast acorn of far travel (http://archive.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/fw/20040710a) on one of the acorns from the tree, which is now Permanent due to the plane the tree is on. Now anyone who holds the acorn (or has it implanted within them, *hint hint*) will have the animal type until the acorn is dropped, dispelled, or destroyed. If the holder of the acorn is a shapeshifter, he or she can turn into other things, but they should still retain the type due to still being under the spell's effects, even if they're no longer in wolf form. Maybe?

There're other tricks you can do with such a tree, but that's going off on off-topic tangents.

[Vizzerdrix]

Arms and Equipment has a few for sale. And Comp. Scoundrel has rust monster larva.

[JeminiZero]

Night Caller whistle from Libris Mortis. Animate up to 2 Zombie followers.

Some argue that since the text says the zombies are tied to the whistler, rather than the whistle. Hence, each party member can take turns with the whistle, and have 2 zombie followers each.

[Curelomosaurus]

Doesn't the BoVD give uses for the Appraise skill for slaves?

You could give any creature the animal type to give them the warbeast template (and thus give them a price for purchase). It's pretty wonky to make it permanent, though.

The aspect of the wolf spell (SC) gives the target the animal type. If you want it to have an effectively Permanent duration, find a plane (whether demi- or otherwise) that is timeless with respect to spell durations, find or plant an oak tree, and cast either hallow or unhallow on it with aspect of the wolf tied to it. Now cast acorn of far travel (http://archive.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/fw/20040710a) on one of the acorns from the tree, which is now Permanent due to the plane the tree is on. Now anyone who holds the acorn (or has it implanted within them, *hint hint*) will have the animal type until the acorn is dropped, dispelled, or destroyed. If the holder of the acorn is a shapeshifter, he or she can turn into other things, but they should still retain the type due to still being under the spell's effects, even if they're no longer in wolf form. Maybe?

There're other tricks you can do with such a tree, but that's going off on off-topic tangents.

...I feel that using acorn of far travel cheese to get a pet troll is a wee bit of overkill. :smalltongue:

[Bullet06320]

Halaster's Fetch which is a calling version of the summon monster line, the critters become free willed after the duration expires

you could use this to negotiate long term services or just simple enslavement

[liquidformat]

Well monster manual has pricing for Giant Eagle, Giant Owl, Golems, Griffon, Hippogriff, Pegasus and maybe a few others. Planar Binding as said before does create a contract to hire minions, There are quite a few Sanctified spells that allow you to contract different creatures by sacrificing ability scores.