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View Full Version : your favourite monster - and why



xPANCAKEx
2008-11-25, 01:30 PM
so many threads yammer on about "this spell is brilliant" or "that class is underpowered"

but lets be honest - DnD wouldn't be the game it is without a series of monsters to whack. So whats your favourite monster - and why?

lisiecki
2008-11-25, 01:32 PM
so many threads yammer on about "this spell is brilliant" or "that class is underpowered"

but lets be honest - DnD wouldn't be the game it is without a series of monsters to whack. So whats your favourite monster - and why?

bulette's
they may be the best thing ever

JMobius
2008-11-25, 01:33 PM
Probably the Caller in the Darkness.

As far as why... I prefer the more supernatural sort of undead to the body horror types, and I think one would make for a fantastic encounter in a dark misty forest.

Stupendous_Man
2008-11-25, 01:34 PM
Gnomes, of course.

Tempest Fennac
2008-11-25, 01:36 PM
I tend to think Gnolls are cute because I like hyenas, so I'd say those along with Dire Wolves. (Lupins and Phanatons aren't really monsters, are they?)

overduegalaxy
2008-11-25, 01:37 PM
Kobolds will always hold a special place in my heart. The first adventure I ever played, all PCs were kobolds. It was fantastic.

Although I am fond of modrons, too, just because they're so damn cool.

And, of course, gnomes.

Texas Jedi
2008-11-25, 01:43 PM
I like the displacer beast. The 2E one not the horridly drawn 3E one. They have all of the grace of a tiger or leopard (which I like) with the nastiness of the tentacles.

I liked them so much I never had any of the PC's fight them. They were the reserved monsters which I thought were to cool for just a random encounter roll.

I also never had any of the parties I DM'ed fight a dragon because if I couldn't do it right I wouldn't do it at all.

I also like any of the Chromatic, Metallic, and Song dragons. I created whole scenes in my head where some hapless PC goes into a Red Great Wyrm's lair. I just know that PC wouldn't be coming out alive so I never tried any of them.

Death Knights as well hold a special place in my heart. I have always been drawn to the fallen hero type of character. I guess I just romantacize them so I always think of them like Darth Vader in that they can be brought back from the dark side if given a chance.

monty
2008-11-25, 04:19 PM
Kobolds will always hold a special place in my heart. The first adventure I ever played, all PCs were kobolds. It was fantastic.

Although I am fond of modrons, too, just because they're so damn cool.

And, of course, gnomes.

Kobolds aren't monsters, though.

Agreed about gnomes. I like the sound they make when you crush them.

Gao
2008-11-25, 04:21 PM
Nightwalkers. Enjoy your destroyed weapons.

NEO|Phyte
2008-11-25, 04:41 PM
I'm a fan of the barghest. Everyone loves goblin/wolf things that get stronger by EATING SOULS. Plus, if they play their cards right, the adventurers coming to get them might be expecting a lycanthrope, which leads to lulz when they notice their (likely nonmagical) silver weapons aren't working, and EXTRA lulz if it gets a chance to use its Feed ability.
"What do you mean it ATE the cleric?!"

Fax Celestis
2008-11-25, 04:43 PM
I like Rukanyr for a variety of reasons, not the least of which is having the players go, "Just what on earth is that?"

ken-do-nim
2008-11-25, 04:51 PM
Behir. Should I rake you or swallow you or both? Then the fact that it can swallow and bite someone else in the same round thanks to cleave is just icing on the cake.

Draken
2008-11-25, 04:55 PM
I quite like Aboleths. Such interesting creatures they are, with a nice story behind them, cool non-mechanical powers (questions? Who needs to ask questions? *eats guy and learns all he knows*).

And if you think of the Aboleths as the boss from the Submarine temple in Zelda: Twilight Princess (the thing is actually quite similar) it gets all the cooler.

http://www.freewebs.com/hyrule-twilight/TP_cg_Morpheel.jpeg

hamishspence
2008-11-25, 04:58 PM
Obyriths- very Cthulhu-esque without needing a SAN mechanic. You look at them and go a little mad.

Dagon looks a little like that boss- more fishlike though.

Hal
2008-11-25, 04:59 PM
I love goblins. They're a great generic evil force, but you can still weave complicated plots with them if you need to. You can make simple enemies who die by the dozens against PCs, or you can make them strong, clever, formidable foes.

StoryKeeper
2008-11-25, 04:59 PM
Goblins and kobolds. I love the swarmy little guys that I can throw at players to die in droves (thus making the players feel they are doing well) and come up with all kinds of cool traps.

Pie Guy
2008-11-25, 05:00 PM
Gelatinous cubes. Gotta love being attacked by snack food.

Fostire
2008-11-25, 05:11 PM
My favorites:
-Gelatinous Cube
-Mindflayer
-Mimic

Maerok
2008-11-25, 05:12 PM
Slaad!!!

You don't need a reason to like them. Reason is for squares.

Also: Lich/Demilich. Not once have I actually managed to play a Lich or Dry Lich yet. Suel Liches are cool too.

OverdrivePrime
2008-11-25, 05:13 PM
Giants. There's nothing I enjoy fighting more than giants. The fun of making your tumble check, rocking your jump check, hitting a 15' tall monstrosity in the face with four feet of steel, and then riding the crashing hulk down to the ground is just such a rush. I just wish giants weren't hunted to extinction so that my friends and I could go out and fight them up north or something. Man, I bet a giant hunting license would be pretty costly. Luckily, they're easy to track. :smalleek:

KKL
2008-11-25, 05:14 PM
I like beholders.

Inyssius Tor
2008-11-25, 05:14 PM
Out of the 4e MM, I really love the Blackspawn Gloomweb--the fluff and crunch just synergise very nicely--and the Deathjump Spider, because it's so, I don't know, cinematic.

Blackfang108
2008-11-25, 05:19 PM
Everything that has its own chapter in Lords of Madness.

Except maybe the Neogi.

They don't really seem all that abberant to me.

Vexxation
2008-11-25, 05:21 PM
I love the Daelkyr and all their creations. Especially Dolgrims. I like the idea of a Dolgrim bickering with himself.

SoD
2008-11-25, 05:31 PM
Beholders. They're just so damn brilliant! And very touchy about their appearances...that one comment...oh well, TPK's can be fun sometimes. My guy is still a statue we come across occasionally.

mostlyharmful
2008-11-25, 05:38 PM
Gnomes and Kobolds, Kobolds and Gnomes..... swapping between playable and killable and huggable.:smallbiggrin: I love the small guy with a sneaky streak and a vicious streak all beautifully mingled together in trapunatory goodness:smallbiggrin:

bosssmiley
2008-11-25, 05:42 PM
.
.

Darkmantles

How can you not love headmongling cavesquids? :smallbiggrin:

mostlyharmful
2008-11-25, 05:43 PM
[B]
How can you not love headmongling cavesquids? :smallbiggrin:

I can manage just fine thank you, facehugging should be left to the bedroom or certain Soho nightclubs....

Jølly
2008-11-25, 05:44 PM
Tough choice...

I love all kinds of undead. Not really sure if that's the answer you're looking for though. Goblins are a close second just because they make me smile when I make them whether for cannon fodder or for that "why is this goblin a challenge!?!" variety. Then there are lycanthropes particularly werewolves...nothing like finding out that the meager farmer and his family who let you stay in the barn for the night really was just looking for dinner. :smallbiggrin:

It gets even better when you combine them. Werewolf goblins, zombie and skeleton goblins, goblin ghouls, vampire goblins... I think I need to get all my books out of my closet.

hamishspence
2008-11-25, 05:44 PM
it seems generally weird, unusual, and tentacley monsters seem to be a favorite here.

evil-frosty
2008-11-25, 05:45 PM
vampires... u can make the party life hell

and using drow becuz they get bonuses to everything and they scare the party (usually)

mostlyharmful
2008-11-25, 05:48 PM
Tough choice...

I love all kinds of undead.
It gets even better when you combine them. Werewolf goblins, zombie and skeleton goblins, goblin ghouls, vampire goblins... I think I need to get all my books out of my closet.

Oooooh yeah, surprising templates, great fun.... giving ones that give immunity to some things that the base creature is vulnerable to makes for yucks against an optimized party... especially funny on Dragons with decent tactics... Mwah ha ha!:smalltongue:

The Glyphstone
2008-11-25, 05:49 PM
Beholders all the way. The first and only 3rd party supplement I ever bought was Goodman Games' Complete Guide to Beholders, and it was worth every penny.

Doomsy
2008-11-25, 05:51 PM
Tsochar. Because nothing says loving like infesting the wizard with tentacle monsters that wear him like a suit and not telling the other party members.

RagnaroksChosen
2008-11-25, 06:02 PM
BugBears Rule

woodenbandman
2008-11-25, 06:02 PM
Agreed on the Slaad.

My favorites are Slaad and Neraphs, Dire Animals (because I'm a druid), and Gelatinous cubes. I hate the **** out of dragons, though. They just feel so tired and unoriginal.

Fostire
2008-11-25, 06:04 PM
Everything that has its own chapter in Lords of Madness.

Except maybe the Neogi.

They don't really seem all that aberrant to me.

I agree, aberrations are awesome.

potatocubed
2008-11-25, 06:20 PM
Lizardfolk. I don't really know why, I just like swamp-dwelling reptilians. (I think I may have dated one, once...)

Out on the Planes, I've always loved rilmani. Their appalling illustration in 3.x made me a sad potato.

Got a soft spot for shadar-kai, too.

Callos_DeTerran
2008-11-25, 07:18 PM
Yrthaks. Flying crocodiles that shoot SOUND for the win!

Otherwise the Kaorti's various creations always make me feel all warm and fuzzy inside.

Stormageddon
2008-11-25, 07:46 PM
I love Dragons.

Ixahinon
2008-11-25, 07:52 PM
Any aberration...the misunderstood race of the world. "Ewww..it's ugly..kill it"

7th lvl scrub
2008-11-25, 08:03 PM
Personally I'm a fan of making my parties fight undead, why you may ask? Because undead are never very good at STAYING dead.:smallamused:
Of course I prefer fighting mindflayers or the like because I normally tend to play the meatshield in the party, and therefore have low-intelligence, which keeps me from being a primary target.

I've always wanted to play a barbarian with at least a +1 bonus to intelligence though...

Drammel
2008-11-26, 01:03 AM
Specifically? Mephistopheles. Blame Neverwinter Nights: Hordes of the Underdark, I never stopped loving that game. Any monster can beat you into a pulp and do it with cunning and excessive brutality, big red can do all that and do it with panache. Asmodeus may have the brains and wits, but Mephistopheles definitely has a flair for the dramatic. Just ask Baron Molikroth.

As for a type of monster I have to go with Grells. They're just all manner of hilarious for DMs and players alike.

Hadrian_Emrys
2008-11-26, 01:39 AM
Those things from the Mortis book that are essentially a pile of animated organs? Yeah, those make my day. DMing that fight was a peak moment of happiness. Just so creepy...

RTGoodman
2008-11-26, 03:03 AM
Well, I do have a great fondness for Kobolds, but my favorite non-PC-type monster is definitely the Boneclaw (http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/ex/20040905a&page=2) (3.x MMIII; 4E MM). I just think the concept of a tall undead with fingerclaws constantly growing and shrinking and that can attack PCs with said claws from like 15 feet away is AWESOME. I mean, just LOOK at him -


http://www.wizards.com/dnd/images/ex_boneclaw.jpg

I was SUPER-excited when I found out they'd be in 4E's first MM.

starwoof
2008-11-26, 04:24 AM
Yugoloths are my favorite brand of monster, I think.:smallbiggrin: Its hard for me to pick a favorite! I like monsters so much!

Sometimes I sleep with my monster manual 3 like a teddy bear. I use that thing more than the mm1.

Zen Master
2008-11-26, 05:05 AM
Many of my most beloved monsters have already been mentioned - goblins, kobolds, gnolls. However, there are plenty to pick from. How about the minotaur? Bit two-dimensional, true - but rightly feared.

The githyanki are another favourite of mine. There is hardly a world in my campaigns that is free of at least a small outpost - the primary goal of the githyanki may be the conquest of all of astral space, but supplies for that war can come from anywhere, and also, there's no harm in planning ahead.

Another monster I have great love for is the centaur. Unsurpassed mobility, great archers and chargers. Of course, in my campaigns, centaurs are highly feral, territorial and temperamental.

newbDM
2008-11-26, 05:26 AM
Kobolds. I have yet to find any race that fits my personality better. I love the little buggers.



After that, I'd say drow, since...well, I like dominant women......

...don't judge me please. http://forums.gleemax.com/images/smilies/nonono.gif

Celeres
2008-11-26, 06:28 AM
hafta say the T-rex is by far the best monster in the MM.

i think it's cause my friends still complain about having to fight it, and the game was over 2 months ago.

Kaiyanwang
2008-11-26, 06:50 AM
Devils. I built a campaign around their fell from heavens (different fluff from FCII, anyway)

I play them like an multi-planar mafia :smallbiggrin:

Dragor
2008-11-26, 09:05 AM
Worm That Walks. Very creepy and very cool.

RTGoodman
2008-11-26, 11:23 AM
hafta say the T-rex is by far the best monster in the MM.

i think it's cause my friends still complain about having to fight it, and the game was over 2 months ago.

Heh, we still complain about ALMOST having to fight a T-Rex in a game, and that was almost two YEARS ago. Of course, we were level 2 at the time and the DM apparently didn't know anything about the CR system at the time, so... yeah.

AslanCross
2008-11-26, 04:11 PM
Favorite Boss Monsters: Dragons. Can't beat them for attack options. Also, I throw scintillating scales at all those shivering touch proponents.
Favorite Grunts: Hobgoblins. I prefer them over orcs any time. They're easily reflavored to match your choice of fascist/militaristic culture. Skullcrusher Ogres are good too.
Favorite Army "Freak:" Bluespawn Godslayer. ("Dude, why is that blue dragon carrying a giant lightning-wreathed sword?")
Creepiest Aberrations: Illithids, and I guess Tsochar. Body-snatching is creepy.
Favorite Artillery: Giants. I'm especially partial toward Fire Giants. Again I favor militaristic enemies, and Fire Giants would be pretty terrifying siege weapons.
Favorite construct: Nimblewright. Come on. NINJA ROBOTS! (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4fr3YZ0jCOc)
Favorite aquatic creature: Kraken. Giant tentacle monsters from the depths is scary enough. Giant genius tentacle monsters from the depths is even scarier.
Favorite Undead: Boneclaw. Now that is a dangerous undead monster. Without using negative levels. (Seriously, aren't negative levels more trouble than they're fun? And they're totally not fun.)
Favorite Plant: Night Twist. The others are just natural predators. The Night Twist is freakishly scary. (It makes you want it so bad you waste away! And then when you die, a new one grows over your grave!)

Monster Manual III is gold.

Eorran
2008-11-26, 04:30 PM
I'll throw a vote in for Bulette as well. I terrified a party of 14th levels (in 2e) with a single double-size, double-HP Bulette.
Chimeras are lots of fun against lower-level parties.
Storm Giants are freakin' awesome. For over-the-top awesome, Storm Giants on a cloud castle using Call Lightning and Lightning Bolt for orbital bombardment.

RTGoodman
2008-11-26, 06:06 PM
Monster Manual III is gold.

Indeed.

Speaking of awesome, I thought I'd give an honorable mention to the monster with my favorite art. No, not the Roving Mauler (http://www.wizards.com/dnd/images/ToMagic_Gallery/96075.jpg) - the Mockery Bug (from MM5):


http://www.wizards.com/dnd/images/MM5_Gallery/106319.jpg