Favourite humanoid monster

[Maryring]

Making fun challenges for your party to face, and facing interesting monsters is also fun. But what is the most fun to play with? Clever mental games against Rakshasa? Beating brutish bugbears into submission? Creating or preventing a Gnollish slave trade? What challenges do you prefer building up as a DM, and which do you prefer tearing down as a player? I am curious, and demand my curiousity be satisfied. Because I'm demanding like that.

[hawkingbird]

I like the mind game type quests, both as a player and as a DM. So in that regard probably a Rakshasa, or an intelligent Illithid. I love riddles but I try not to use them too much in dungeons. Maybe dungeons which aren't straight forward. However, I think variety is more important because it's all well and good to say that you love cake, but when you have cake all the time you get sick of it.

So... my perfect dungeon would combine a puzzle or two, with a bit of H&S. Maybe have an Illithid controlling a group of hobgoblins or bugbears or orcs or anything which everyone enjoys breaking.

[AslanCross]

I like goblinoids. They're varied enough to fill different roles and yet still cohesive as a single 'species'.

[Darklord Xavez]

As a player, I LOVE playing Thri-Kreen, because they are able to use a 2d6/2d6 double slashing weapon as if they had TWF, and can use two if they take Multiweapon Fighting! 8d6+4x strength modifier damage/round FTW! Not to mention their psionics.

The race I like to defeat the most (again as a player) is probably either elves or goblinoids. Elves need to have their snooty racist butts taken down a notch, and I like killing goblinoids because the large variety of them is much more interesting than the "ooh, more orcs!" that happens in some campaigns. I don't like fighting giants that much because there isn't much room for strategy and planning.
My two cents,
Xavez

[evil-frosty]

I prefer using goblins as a DM. And as a player I don't really care as much as long as we get exp. and loot and it was fun I am happy.

On the giants you don't need strategy yes(depending on the type) but you need to plan your buffs and when your going to attack. I learned from going through the Against the Giants Mods that Gygax wrote. Fighting the whole stronghold of giants on accident is hard, but a lot of fun especially when you throw in a drow wizard and a Matron Mother and then summoning an elder elemental, lots of fun.

[Edwin]

This is less true for 3.5e since even an unprepared party could quite easily steamroll one, but I've always loved the Ogre Mage.

If the DM plays them smart, as he probably should, they're just very cool opponents, in that they can play it subtle, and are formidable threats in themselves, too. Especially if you can convince your players that the Ogre Mages disguise is their real persona.

Hard to kill, with a bunch of powerful abilities and spells at their disposal, they are by far my absolute favorite monster.

[nyarlathotep]

Goblins if they come in a group of three they naturally form a Stooge act.

[Kaiyanwang]

I like the idea of the "Giant King". I explain:

Giants are often, even if not always, brutish and simple. I like the idea of a cunning, smart, high-rolled mental stats giant king that has great ideas about the future of his tribe and start to organize raids, pacts with dragons and fiends, until becomes a military and political force.

I like do this with Frost Giants mainly, maybe inspired by Gerti.

BTW, Ogre Mage is very good, too, to fill this role.

[mabriss lethe]

The MINDFLAYERS OF THOON!

There's a wide variety of fun and destruction to be had. They're a good antagonist with lots of different options.

[Morty]

Definetly goblinoids, although I'm not sure if they count, as I like them as a player race.

[Piedmon_Sama]

Ghouls. They're technically humanoids. And I like having zombie hordes that are actually scary.

[nedz]

As a DM: Kobalds.
I do like to ring the changes, but Kobalds at 1st, Kobalds at Epic.
Its no so much the traps, it the fact that they are kind of pathetic and yet so very tricksy.

[Greenish]

As a DM: Kobalds.
I do like to ring the changes, but Kobalds at 1st, Kobalds at Epic.
Its no so much the traps, it the fact that they are kind of pathetic and yet so very tricksy.

*weeps*

[Stevielash]

Ive always had a thing for gnolls, ever since my half orc rogue tried to grapple one in my first ever game. Since then grappling gnolls has been a running joke, to the point that I devised he gnoll pit trap.

[Volthawk]

*weeps*

I feel your pain.

As a DM: Kobalds.
I do like to ring the changes, but Kobalds at 1st, Kobalds at Epic.
Its no so much the traps, it the fact that they are kind of pathetic and yet so very tricksy.

No!

As a DM: Kobolds.
I do like to ring the changes, but Kobolds at 1st, Kobolds at Epic.
Its no so much the traps, it the fact that they are kind of pathetic and yet so very tricksy.

There. Better.

[Drakevarg]

To play as: Gnolls. I usually refluff them as lupine, and my avatar should fill in the rest of the explaination.

To fight: Minotaurs. I tend to play fighters with ridiculously huge STR, so it's fun to show off by wrestling a minotaur into submission.

To DM: Illithids. I think of them as being to DnD as Slade is to Teen Titans; the second they show up, all comedy withers and dies and doesn't dare come back until they leave.

[Accersitus]

I would have to say I agree with the Doctor Who writers.

The Doctor: I gave them the wrong warning. I should have told them to run, as fast as they can. Run and hide, because the monsters are coming - the human race.

The Master: The human race. Greatest monsters of them all.

Humans have the potential to be more monstrous than the most alien monsters out there.

[Drascin]

Banshrae, MMV. Because there's nothing more fun than sadistic Skull Kid expys that love nothing more than to trap the forest around you, take advantage of that sad little Spot score of yours as they harry you with blowdarts, and screw you in the ear through your Will Save!

[Nidogg]

As a player, Dusk giants. Being a (rules ignorant-stunning-fist-flurryevery round monk) They are a chalange and fun to try and kill (aka) Dodge the claw, dodge the claw DODGE THE CLAW!

[arguskos]

Humans are the true monsters.

[Darklord Xavez]

As a DM: Kobalds.
I do like to ring the changes, but Kobalds at 1st, Kobalds at Epic.
Its no so much the traps, it the fact that they are kind of pathetic and yet so very tricksy.

Yup. You never know when you will fall into a kobold-made pit of RABID VERMIN and then the kobolds run out from hiding and drop POISONED ARROWS and HOT OIL on you while hitting you with POISONED JAVELINS and then YOU ALL DIE!

Gotta love those kobolds.
-Xavez

[Togo]

I'm having a lot of fun with etherguants at the moment. They have a very good 'alien' feel to them.

I'm also fond of drow.

In general I prefer monsters that are dangerous to monsters that are tough, so I like humanoids that are low on AC and hp, and high on threat.

[Zaq]

I just had a mental image of a bunch of evil Illumian cabals called "The Bad Words." Each one is named after a different curse word. "Well, we've just intercepted a message from the Goddammit group about what the Bitches are up to..."

[Greenish]

I just had a mental image of a bunch of evil Illumian cabals called "The Bad Words." Each one is named after a different curse word. "Well, we've just intercepted a message from the Goddammit group about what the Bitches are up to..."

As an owner of a dog named "Goddamnit" (loose translation) I object to the evil characterization.

[Darklord Xavez]

I'm having a lot of fun with etherguants at the moment. They have a very good 'alien' feel to them.

YES.
-Xavez

[Thurbane]

I like Hobgoblins, and Lizard Men. Hobbos are great, militaristic types, and Lizardfolk are noble savages.