Community Monster Class Hall of Fame: The Project Reborn!!

[Crafty Cultist]

Community Monster Class
Hall of Fame
The Community Monster Class Hall of Fame is a project directed towards recognizing and encouraging the creating of quality alternatives to D&D 3.5 Monsters As Races rules. The premise of the project is that any monster should be playable without having to pay Racial Hit Dice (RHD) or Level Adjustment (LA). Monster-races become monster-classes, behaving as base or prestige classes and races. Here we will display which monster-classes that have been nominated and ...

Gallery Terminology
Monster-class: A base class or prestige class designed to replicate the Level Adjustment and Racial Hit Dice of playing a monster.

Submit: A submission is simply the act of letting the Community Monster Class project know that one has built and finished a monster class that they would like to have reviewed, nominated, and voted on for the gallery.

Nominate: A nomination is the act of naming a monster-class that the nominator believes to be of high enough quality to be placed in the gallery. This nomination need not be a Submitted monster class, but it certainly can be. Nominating requires a critique (see below).

Critique: A detailed response to a monster class (see below). Do not post critiques in the Gallery thread, post critiques in the thread of the monster class you are critiquing.

Nomination Process
A homebrewer can submit a complete class to receive nominations or critique by posting a link to it in this thread.

In order to make a nomination monster class, a playgrounder must make a critique of one of the monster-classes that have been submitted or nominated. Only one nomination can be made per critique, and the nomination must be made within two weeks of making the critique. A playgrounder may not nominate for their own monster class.

After three nominations, a class will be added to the hall of fame list. At six nominations, it will enter the silver category. At nine nominations, the monster class will be gold.

In order to help get the project rolling again, the critique requirement has been temporarily removed. However, each playgrounder may only make one nomination per 24 hours. Get Nominating!

Critique Guidelines
A proper critique should mention multiple aspects of the class, not just a single ability, few spelling errors, or the likability of the class. An addendum should be made to give a brief overview on the class, with a score ranging from one to five in each of the following categories.

Originality: How unique is the class. Is it interchangeable with another similar monster class, or has the creator gone the extra mile to make it feel unique and different?

Balance: How balanced is the monster class? What tier would it fall under, and is this problematic? Is it viable for play at both low & high levels?

Flavor: How well has the creator adhered to the flavor and spirit of the original monster? Do the abilities fit? If the creator went the extra mile to insert quality fluff and the like, it could be noted here.

Elegance: How well does the entry itself come together? Is it readable? Is the spelling and grammar solid? Does the post itself look attractive? Is there a neat picture that helps sell the monster class?

Playability: How playable is it? Does it look fun? Does it look as though it'd be fun to have another player at the table playing it? Or to have a player using the material while you DM? Do any abilities bog down play with lots of dice rolls or require constant looking up in the rules? Are its abilities active, or are they passive? Are any abilities so ill defined or vague that arguments could arise? Do any abilities risk harming the group or being used to make the game less fun for others?

These ratings aren't necessary, but they help with the reviewing process, and are recommended.

Lastly, if you like an ability or mechanic, don't hesitate to say so! Positive feedback helps encourage the thread!

Please comment on the main thread if you have made significant changes to your class. This helps attract more critique and/or nominations and lets us keep track of the "last edited" date of your classes

Monster Class Guidelines
The guide Monster Class Guidelines are just that, guidelines. You need not follow them, but following them will increase your monster-class's likelihood of being nominated.

Proofread: Read over your finished work for errors. Use spell-check... Look over grammar. Are their confusing sentences, or minor punctuation errors?

Be prepared to revise: Monsters that are submitted have to go through a critique and review process to ensure the gallery is displaying quality work. You may considered revising your monster based on the critiques it has received.

Be creative: Make your own abilities, make active abilities. Nobody wants to play a monster that just full attacks all the time, even if it does have a bunch of stat bonuses and DR and the like. Make sure the player gets to make meaningful decisions during combat, rather than the same thing over and over again. If the base monster doesn't have enough abilities or active abilities, make your own. The monster class does not need have the exact same abilities as the original monster.

Scale: Scale by HD, not Monster-class specific levels. What this means is that if a monster has a breath weapon, rather than tying the damage to level, tie it to HD. 1d6 damage per HD is the standard for a true dragon. Thus, one who takes 5 levels in a dragon and 15 levels in another class will still have a decent breath weapon at level 20. Duration, DCs, and range should also all scale by HD. A common DC amongst monster class abilities is 10+1/2 HD + relevant ability bonus.

Slow ability bonuses: Heaping a bunch of ability bonuses on a monster class makes for unbalanced, or on occasion boring monster classes. Common ability bonuses scale slowly throughout the monster class. It is not necessary for a monster class to provide the exact amount of racial ability bonuses the Monster entry normally would.

Make it accessible: Does your monster class require access to non-OGL books? Can a player use your monster class with access to the Srd? Is it based on your own house rules? If other playgrounders do not have access to information on your class they will be less likely to critique or nominate it.

Make a Changelog: Keep a note of the changes made each time you edit your class. This makes it easier for people using older versions to adjust and for critiquers to know how much you have already changed.

FAQ
Q) What monsters am I allowed to submit as monster class?
A) Any. We do not restrict what types of monster classes are submitted. New homebrewers are encouraged to pick low-CR monsters (3-8), and not to attempt to tackle epic tier (20+ level) classes from the outset. Homebrew monsters may be submitted as monster classes, but we request a link to the monster the class is based on. If the monster class has no such basis, it may still be submitted, but you may consider a healthy amount of flavor text and mentioning about the background of the monster to aid in the critiquing and nomination of the monster class.

Q)When a monster class increases in size does its strength increase and its dexterity decrease? If so, by how much?
A) Size increases, or decreases, do not normally alter ability scores in this project, if the monster class mentions otherwise, follow the guidelines it presents.

Q) What's the Caster Level for the Spell-like abilities (SLA)?
A) Unless otherwise specified, the Caster Level for any SLA is equal to the character's total HD.

Q) What’s the Save DC for this ability?
A) Unless otherwise specified the Save DC is (10+ 1/2 HD + Charisma Modifier).

Q) What's with this scaling by HD?
A) Some have questioned the reasoning and balance behind scaling abilities by HD. The reason for this is simple: multiclassing. We believe that all abilities gained by all monsters, even level 1 monsters, should be viable and balanced at all levels. However, most monster classes simply don't go to level 20, so we're believe it's best to make abilities stay relevant by scaling by HD as opposed to level.

Q) Who can nominate?
A) Anyone! More specifically anyone who has made a single critique in the past two weeks on a submitted or nominated monster class.

Q) How many nominations can I make?
A) As many as you like! More specifically you may make one nomination per critique you have submitted within the last 2 weeks. The only limitation is you!

Q) Why do I have to make a critique in order to nominate?
A) Primarily to aid in the quality of the gallery submissions. This process encourages discussion and feedback, and most everyone wants feedback for their creations!

Q) Where should I post my monster class?
A) Please create your monster class in your own thread. In order to reduce clutter, the Mods have asked that only one such thread be made per homebrewer.

Happy Homebrewing!

[Crafty Cultist]

Guidelines for class creation

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Spellcheck, format check:
Read over your finished work for errors. Ideally, you want to run it through a spellchecker (either built into your browser or copy/pasted into a word document), but if you've got a good eye for errors, that can be omitted. Additionally, do follow the Guide to Writing Monster Classes, below.

Be prepared to revise:
Monsters that are submitted have to go through a review process to ensure we're putting quality work out there. Yes, we are perfectionists. For this reason, the council members will go over monsters and suggest changes.

Make your own abilities, make active abilities:
Nobody wants to play a monster that just full attacks all the time, even if it does have a bunch of stat bonuses and DR and the like. Make sure the player gets to make meaningful decisions during combat, rather than the same thing over and over again. If the base monster doesn't have enough abilities or active abilities, make your own. It does not and should not have the exact same abilities as the original monster.

Scale!
Scale by HD, not levels. What this means is that if a monster has a breath weapon, rather than tying its damage to level, tie it to HD: 1d6 damage per HD is the standard for a true dragon. Thus, one who takes 5 levels in a dragon and 15 levels in another class will still have a decent breath weapon at level 20. Duration, DCs, and range should also all scale by HD.

[Crafty Cultist]

Hall of Fame

Gold Classes
Base Classes

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{table=head]Monster|Creator|Source|Votes|Nominators|Last Edited
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Prestige Classes

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{table=head]Monster|Creator|Source|Votes|Nominators|Last Edited
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Silver Classes
Base Classes

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{table=head]Monster|Creator|Source|Votes|Nominators|Last Edited
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Prestige Classes

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{table=head]Monster|Creator|Source|Votes|Nominators|Last Edited
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Nominated Classes
Base Classes

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{table=head]Monster|Creator|Source|Votes|Nominators|Last Edited
Dragon, Silver|Kyuubi|Monster Manual|2|Aurethius, Stycotl|31/5/2011
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Prestige Classes

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{table=head]Monster|Creator|Source|Votes|Nominators|Last Edited
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[Crafty Cultist]

Classes in Progress
{table=head]Monster|Creator|Source|Votes|Nominators|Last Edited
Brain in a Jar|Draken|Libris Mortis|||9/6/2011
Eldarin, Coure|Benly|Book of Exalted Deeds|||9/6/2011
Eldarin, Firre|Benly|Book of Exalted Deeds|||9/6/2011
Frostwind Virago|Hyudra|Monster Manual V|||26/6/2011
Anaxim|Draken|Epic Level Handbook|||26/6/2011
Succubus|Soft Serve|Monster Manual|||11/09/2011
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Classes from the old thread: awaiting nominations!

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Note: compiling of this list is still underway. The complete list can be found here.
{table=head]Monster|Creator|Source|Votes|Nominators
Abishai|Gorgondantess|||
Aboleth|Oslecamo|Monster Manual||
Archaierai|Gorgondantess|Monster Manual||
Air Elemental|AustontheGreat1|Monster Manual||[/table]

[Mystic Muse]

I am hereby submitting The Silver Dragon

[Draken]

Submiting the Brain in a Jar.

[Benly]

I'm an idiot and didn't read the opening rules post right! Awesome.

Hey, while I'm at it, I've got two monster classes of my own: the Coure Eladrin and the Firre Eladrin.

[Mystic Muse]

My thoughts on the brain in a jar:

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Skill list: No Craft or Profession. On the one hand, they are weirdos. On the other hand, this means no Craft (Alchemy) or Profession (Torturer) which both seem appropriate to the Brain In A Jar. I'd probably add Decipher Script, too, to go with Appraise for the "ancient knowledge" sort.

Brain In A Jar Body: You use "Finally" twice (armor and glove slots).

Mind Thrust: Should probably explicitly state that it isn't mind-affecting, given that all the fluff seems like it should be. How does it even work on mindless creatures?

Other than that, it seems fine - I liked the original BIAJ monster class, so there's not a whole lot wrong from my perspective.

Hey, while I'm at it, I've got two monster classes of my own: the Coure Eladrin and the Firre Eladrin.

Critiques should go in the thread itself. I'm pretty sure only nominations and submissions are supposed to go here.

Although I'm not too sure about whether the nominations go here, or in the thread for the monster.

[Benly]

Oh, sorry. Missed that in the opening rules post thing.

Well, there are my monster classes anyway.

[Trenchfoot]

Nominating The Silver Dragon by Kyuubi.

Critique post here.

[Crafty Cultist]

Nominating The Silver Dragon by Kyuubi.

Critique post here.

Aurethius, could you please incluse your rating in the critique? Following the layout makes the process a little simpler.

[Crafty Cultist]

In order to help get the project rolling again, the critique requirement has been temporarily removed. However, each playgrounder may only make one nomination per 24 hours. Get Nominating!

[Stycotl]

supporting:
kyuubi's silver dragon
addendum:

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pretty true to the source flavor, but with some better abilities suited to its supposed goals than a generic SRD silver dragon.
originality: 3; balance: 4; flavor: 3; elegance: 3; playability: 5

nominating:
hyudra's frostwind virago class
addendum:

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super flavorful; i love this class a lot.
originality: 5; balance: 4; flavor: 5; elegance: 5; playability: 4

and since i did a critique today anyway, here is my critique of frogdragon's arcanaloth.

[Draken]

Submission!

Bask ye upon the one, the only...

Anaxim.

[Delivery Ninja]

Nominating Soft Serve's Silver Dragon.

Critique here. Originality 4, Balance 4, Flavor 5, Elegance 4, Playability 5. I liked it quite a bit, though I will admit that I tend to not be very harsh at all in my critiques.

[Mystic Muse]

Nominating Hyudra's Ogre mage. Critique here. here.

Also, the Silver Dragon has 3 nominations now which I somehow totally missed. Time for me to put something else up.

[Crafty Cultist]

Congrats to soft serve on the first class to be nominated!

[Trobby]

Going to go ahead and nominate this class, with the addendum that at a relatively early level, the Succubus should get the ability to glide, since wings are an integral part of the class.

Otherwise a very good class.