5E monster books

[Talakeal]

Quick question, which, if any, 5E books contain updates statistics for monsters from previous editions of the game?

The Monster Manual obviously, but 5E has a pretty anemic publishing schedule compared to earlier editions and doesn’t have sequential MMW2, MM3, etc.

Thanks!

[Unoriginal]

Quick question, which, if any, 5E books contain updates statistics for monsters from previous editions of the game?

The Monster Manual obviously, but 5E has a pretty anemic publishing schedule compared to earlier editions and doesn’t have sequential MMW2, MM3, etc.

Thanks!

Define: "updates statistics for monsters from previous editions"

The Volo's Guide to Monster and the Mordenkainen's Tome of Foes both adds a lot of monsters statblocks to the game, from previous editions as well as new ones.

Otherwise the adventure modules generally have some new monsters. Ghosts of Saltmarsh for example has quite a few water-themed monsters, many of them returning as the adventures in the book are adaptations of water-themed adventures from past editions.

[Talakeal]

Define: "updates statistics for monsters from previous editions"

Classic D&D monsters that exist in edition edition but aren’t A-list enough to make it into the monster manual. Stuff like aurumvorax, or gem dragons, or elemental wierds, or yugoloths, or xorns. Apologies if any of those are in the 5e MM, I am afb atm.

[Unoriginal]

Classic D&D monsters that exist in edition edition but aren’t A-list enough to make it into the monster manual. Stuff like aurumvorax, or gem dragons, or elemental wierds, or yugoloths, or xorns. Apologies if any of those are in the 5e MM, I am afb atm.

In that case definitively take a look at the Volo's and the Mordenkainen's.

[Talakeal]

In that case definitively take a look at the Volo's and the Mordenkainen's.

Ok, got them, thank you.

Any others I should be on the lookout for?

[MaxWilson]

Ok, got them, thank you.

Any others I should be on the lookout for?

Fifth Edition Foes (https://www.froggodgames.com/product/fifth-edition-foes/) from Frog God Games has adaptations from other D&D versions, and I quite like the flavor. Unlike WotC products they do the AD&D thing of discussing monster habitat, organization, diet, etc., which fits nicely into the kind of Gygaxian naturalist settings that I for one like to run. Some of the monsters in Fifth Edition Foes also got adapted separately later on in Mordenkainen's and Volo's (Korreds and two separate versions of Grues appear in Fifth Edition Foes, and then Volo's has a much beefier Korred and Mordenkainen's has Star Spawn Grues which aren't much like Zork Grues except for the name).

Fifth Edition Foes also appears to be on sale right now for half price. I just bought another 2 copies thanks to this thread. The web site is quite slow right now for some reason but it's a book well worth your time.

I have been less impressed with Kobold Press's Tomb of Beasts (I found lacking in old-school vibes and too similar to a WotC product, as well as having overtuned monsters that didn't seem to obey DMG CR formulas, which doesn't matter that much in play but still annoyed me), and with WotC's own Beasts of Jungle Rot (again, overpowered dinosaurs). However, you may like them.