There are many different ways of going
about creating new monsters for players to encounter. We can, of
course, create monsters from scratch. This method has the benefit of
allowing the creation of brand new, completely original monsters.
Sometimes, however, what we want instead is to create a slightly
different monster than what is currently in the monster manual. The
difference can't be too minor in this case (wow, one extra charisma.
I'm so scared), but have the potential to completely change the way
the monster works. Today I hope to discuss how to do so by linking
monsters to the terrain.
Why Bother?
Over the course of
mythology and D&D, there have been many monsters that are bound
to certain terrain. Obvious examples are water monsters such as a
kraken (though a kraken that can walk onto shore gives me an
idea...). Typically there are many stories of undead ghosts in
particular being linked to a certain building, area, date, time of
day or object. By closely relating a monster to some kind of terrain
or other factor (items can be used as well), it allows and creates a
bunch of new ways to approach the monster. Usually at least one of
these ways allows the total avoidance of the monster if the players
are clever enough to figure it out. Personally, I consider this a
plus since I don't want every encounter between monsters and players
ending in fighting to the death and I have been lucky enough to have
a group that feels the same way.
There are a few
logistical reasons as well. If we already have a bunch of monsters,
we can easily create more variants of a monster by creating a link to
the terrain. It can be as simple as applying a template to link a
monster to the terrain. However, I would suggest a little more care
to be taken to make it a truly unique experience for the players. It
is still less work to do it this way than to make a creature from
scratch and the creatures that result are already balanced by the
monster manual.
Example: Smoke Spirits
When you have to
kill something, killing it with fire is usually a good way to go.
However, like any kind of killing, you run the risk of having your
enemies come back for round 2 as an undead husk out for revenge. It's
just something that happens as an adventurer (though it may happen
more often with the some Dungeon Masters). In this way, fire is no
different.
When a creature or
person is killed by fire, it is possible for the spirit of the being
to remain and seek revenge on the living. In some cases, they may
also seek the possession of a new body to regain what they have lost.
These beings, however, are firmly trapped in the smoke close to the
place where they died. Usually, a fire spontaneously starts and the
creatures attack from the smoke that is created. To protect
themselves, adventurers need only to avoid the smoke (any spell that
moves the air, such as thunderwave, can also move the smoke away and
even put out the fire that caused the smoke).
The source of the
smoke (the fire) can also return after the creatures in the smoke
have been slain, bringing back the creatures that lurk in the smoke.
In such a case the being is usually a more powerful spirit and
blessing the grounds or another event may be required to permanently
stop this phenomenon.
Easy Examples: Shadow
(simply restrict to the smoke in the area)
Variant 1: Add
1d6 damage from choking on the smoke on a hit.
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