First Monster Homebrew PEACH

[redmordred]

I made up this creature years ago on the fly for a campaign and figured now would be a good time to practice homebrewing new creatures by starting off with this. Please point out any errors I've made in making a creature, particularly what I've stitched together below.

PDF Link. (https://drive.google.com/file/d/1LqDB745nfKeiMjt-jd5yRMab2fZ8dMzF/view?usp=sharing)

It's inspired by sun bears and mythical salamanders.

[Composer99]

Let's look at the Sun Bear Cub first.

Armour Class: Seems low?

Hit Points: Small creatures use d6s for hit points, so if you still want to have an expected 13 hit points you'll need... 3d6+3 for its Hit Dice.

Ability Scores: Strength seems low?

Actions: It's hitting above its weight, as it were, in terms of damage. However, the attack bonuses don't add up. A creature with an expected CR of 1/2 has a proficiency bonus of +2, and this cub has neither a Strength nor Dexterity bonus.

Using the table on page 274 of the DMG for guidance, the challenge rating of 1/2 seems about right: it's defensively lighter and offensively heavier, so it about washes out. This critter is somewhat of a glass cannon. However, the XP total given doesn't seem right - CR 1/2 creatures give 100 XP per the table on page 275 of the DMG.

Now for the adult Sun Bear.

Armour Class: Seems low?

Hit Points: This seems like a small number for what is supposed to be a CR 10 creature.

Ability Scores: Probably fine.

Actions: The overall damage/round for this beast - based on average of three rounds of combat, in one of which it uses its breath weapon (hitting two targets per the assumptions), and in each of which one creature is affected by its Heated Body - is 57.

Also, the attack bonuses for its weapon attacks are out of whack, at least if it is supposed to have a CR of 10. Such creatures have a proficiency bonus of +4, so its attack bonuses should be +9. The DC for the breath weapon is probably not right, either - usually breath weapons are 8 + monster Constitution + monster proficiency bonus, so 15 would be more appropriate.

Overall, the adult sun bear seems to be below CR 10. By the DMG guidelines on page 274, its "offensive" CR is 6 to 7, and its "defensive" CR is 5. It seems to me that either its CR should be adjusted to match its stats, or it needs to be buffed up if it is to keep its CR of 10.

(If you do buff it up, the XP is a little bit off - DMG says it's 5,900; not sure where that extra 48 is coming from?)

[redmordred]

Thanks a lot for the in-depth input. I have adjusted them accordingly and have updated the link. I ended up buffing the adult to better match a CR10 and rebalanced the cub so it wasn't so much a glass cannon as it were.