TOOLS AND GUIDES TO BUILD, CUSTOMIZE, AND RUN

FANTASTIC MONSTERS IN YOUR 5E FANTASY GAMES

TEOS ABADÍA • SCOTT FITZGERALD GRAY • MICHAEL E. SHEA
by Teos Abadía, Scott Fitzgerald Gray, and Michael E. Shea

Design by Michael E. Shea, Teos Abadía, and Scott Fitzgerald Gray

Mechanical Development by Teos Abadía and Michael E. Shea
Editing by Scott Fitzgerald Gray
Cover art by Jack Kaiser
Interior Art by Allie Briggs, Nikki Dawes,
Víctor Manuel Leza Moreno, Matt Morrow,
Jackie Musto, Brian Patterson
Logo and Page design by Rich Lescouflair
Layout by Scott Fitzgerald Gray

Thanks to Our Kickstarter backers

for supporting this project!

Visit slyflourish.com for DM guides and articles

Copyright © 2023 by Teos Abadía, Scott Fitzgerald Gray, and Michael E. Shea

This work includes material taken from the System Reference Document 5.1 (“SRD 5.1”) by
Wizards of the Coast LLC and available at https://dnd.wizards.com/resources/systems-reference-document.
The SRD 5.1 is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License
available at https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/legalcode.
 TABLE OF CONTENTS
MONSTER DISCUSSION AND • Monster Combinations
PHILOSOPHY
• The Relative Weakness of High-CR
• Balancing Mechanics and Story Monsters
• Building the Story to Fit the Monster • Running Minions and Hordes
• Choosing Monsters Based on the Story • Running Monsters for New Game Masters
• Decolonizing Monster Design • Running Spellcasting Monsters
• Defining Challenge • Understanding the Action Economy
• The History of Challenge • Using NPC Stat Blocks
• Monsters and the Tiers of Play
MONSTER TOOLKITS
• On Encounters Per Day • Building a Quick Monster
• On Morale and Running Away • Building Legendary Monsters
• Reading the Monster Stat Block • Building Spellcasting Monsters
• Romancing Monsters • Building and Running Boss Monsters
• Running Easy Monsters • Creating Lair Actions
• Understanding 5e Monster Design • Dice Rolling Options
• What is Challenge Rating? • General-Use Stat Blocks
• What Makes a Great Monster Great? • Monster Powers
• Where Do the Best Monster Ideas Come • Monster Roles
From?
• Monster Type Templates
MONSTER TIPS AND TRICKS
• Monsters by Adventure Location
• Lazy Tricks for Running Monsters

• Bosses and Minions BUILDING ENCOUNTERS

• Assessing Published Encounters
• Evolving Monsters
• Building Challenging High-Level Encounters
• The Layers of Reskinning Monsters
• Building Engaging Environments
• Lightning-Rod Monsters
• The Combat Encounter Checklist
• Modifying Monsters Before and During
Combat • Exit Strategies

• Monster Abilities and Theater of the Mind • The Lazy Encounter Benchmark

2
INTRODUCTION
Thousands of years before anyone ever rolled a twenty- ABOUT THIS BOOK
sided die, monsters fueled people’s imaginations and Created by Teos Abadía, Scott Fitzgerald Gray, and Mike
filled us with tales of high adventure. Nearly every culture Shea (see “About the Authors” on page ##), this book
known to humanity has its own stories of creatures isn’t a typical collection of foes. There are already many
fantastic and horrifying, and of the heroes who face them. wonderful books of predesigned monsters GMs can use in
We love monsters. We love them because they exist fifth edition fantasy roleplaying games. Instead, this book
outside of our world and yet feel real to us. We love how gives you the tools to build your own foes and modify foes
strange they can be. We love the sense of danger that from other sources. Forge of Foes works alongside your
arises when we talk about them. We love how they live in other books of monsters, but it also works well on its own
our imaginations. to help you make the monsters you need for your games.
And when monsters come to life in our imaginations, Though part of the Lazy DM series, this book stands on
we love to face and defeat them. We battle dragons and its own. Forge of Foes focuses exclusively on monsters—
demons and undead—and conquer them in tales we’ll how to make them, how to modify them, and how to run
remember all our lives. them. Although the concepts presented here work hand-
Within the Forge of Foes, we build these monsters. in-hand with those found in Return of the Lazy Dungeon
Here in the forge, we’ll modify creatures, giving them Master, The Lazy DM’s Workbook, and The Lazy DM’s
new attacks and strange new abilities. We’ll harden their Companion, you don’t need those books to get value out
scales and sharpen their claws. We’ll create entirely new of this one.
creatures from our endless collective imagination, then Like the other books from the Lazy DM series, this
watch them crawl into the stories of high adventure we book aims to help you more easily run great games. You’re
share with our friends. busy. You have friends coming to your table tonight. You
We’ll also talk about monsters, including how to run have monsters you need to throw into your game right
boss monsters, how to run hordes of monsters, and how now. Forge of Foes can help you build or modify those
to choose the right monsters for our adventures and for monsters quickly and easily, with all the details, tactics,
the fun of our gaming group. and flavor you desire.
Let us delve into deep caves, beneath rotted and
forgotten crypts, and into unholy temple chambers sweet WHO IS THIS BOOK FOR?
with the iron scent of blood to see what monsters lie
This book assumes you’re familiar with the core rules of
within.
the fifth edition of the world’s most popular roleplaying
WHAT IS A FOE? game. You don’t need significant experience running 5e
games to make use of this book, but the more experience
Within the context of this book, a foe is any physically you have, the more value you’ll get out of it.
hostile creature. It might be an inanimate statue guarding This book isn’t a substitute for reading the fifth edition
an undiscovered tomb. It might be a knight challenging core books, however. Take the time to read and absorb the
the characters to a duel. It might be cultists seeking material found in those books to make the most use out
victims for a terrible ritual. It might be the dragon of the of this book and improve your games.
frozen mountains, newly awakened and now seeking the
treasures acquired by neighboring miners. HOW TO USE THIS BOOK
Not all foes are monsters, however, and we need to
This book can serve you in three ways.
take care throwing around that label lest we apply it to
First, you can use Forge of Foes to quickly build
those undeserving of the title. Many beings and creatures
monsters from scratch, and to make those monsters as
commonly labeled as “monsters” can ultimately be dealt
simple or as complex as you want. Starting with baseline
with through negotiation, even as many normal-looking
statistics, you can add on templates and features to fill out
NPCs might be secret—or not-so-secret—monsters in
a monster’s mechanics as you desire, and as best fits the
their own lives. The cultists cited above might not be
story of the monster.
monsters at all in their own minds, but only a secluded
Second, you can use the statistics, templates, and
sect pushed to usher in a new age of enlightenment.
features in this book to modify existing monsters. Doing
That awakened dragon might be driven to violence by
so can provide you with endless variants of monsters from
suffering—and might ask the characters to help solve their
products you already own.
woes.
Third, you can absorb the advice and discussions in this
This book often uses the words “foe,” “creature,”
book to think differently about how you prepare and run
and “monster” synonymously. But it does so with the
monsters in your own games.
understanding that there might be many ways to deal with
So whether you run monsters straight from your
these foes outside of straight-up combat, and that some
favorite monster book, customize published monsters
apparent monsters might be anything but.
yourself, or build monsters from scratch, Forge of Foes has
you covered. 3
 BUILDING A QUICK MONSTER
Sometimes you need a monster right now but you don’t or subtract hit points within the suggested range based
have the right one handy. Maybe the creature you’re on the monster’s in-world features or physiology, or the
imagining doesn’t exist in any given book of published pacing you want to maintain during a battle.
monsters, or you simply don’t have the time to look it up. Proficient Ability Bonus. This column gives the
Maybe you’re in the middle of your game and want some expected bonus for abilities with which the monster is
quick statistics for a creature you didn’t think you’d need. proficient, adding the monster’s ability score modifier and
For all these problems, this section offers solutions. proficiency bonus together. This number can be used as
The core tool for building a quick monster for a 5e game an attack bonus, or as a bonus for proficient saving throws
is the Monster Statistics by Challenge Rating table, which and ability checks. (Ability-based modifiers without
offers you a set of statistics that can be used to build and proficiency are fixed values between −2 and +4, based on
run a quick monster of any challenge rating (CR). You the monster’s story.)
then have two paths for customizing a monster built from Damage per Round. This column contains the total
these baseline statistics—with flavor and description expected damage that a monster can deal in a round.
during the game, or with a refinement of the creature’s Higher-CR monsters typically split this total damage
mechanics. among a number of attacks instead of doing one big
It’s worth your time to review and understand how this attack that either deals a tremendous amount of damage
table works before you start using it in your game. Read or misses completely. If a single effect targets two or more
the column descriptions. Understand the relationship characters, such as a fiery breath weapon, the damage for
between a monster’s challenge rating and equivalent that effect should be half of the indicated number.
character level. Once you’ve internalized how this table Number of Attacks. This column notes the number of
works, you can use it in seconds to build a monster and attacks a monster of a particular challenge rating typically
throw that foe into your game. makes per round. The damage per round from the
This table works hand-in-hand with this book’s options previous column is divided among these multiple attacks
for building encounters, including the encounter-building in the following column.
tables on page ## and the encounter-building guidelines Damage per Attack. This column shows the baseline
on page ##. It also works alongside further customization amount of damage a monster deals per attack when using
options such as monster type templates (page ##) and the default number of attacks in the previous column. It
monster powers (page ##), to make your chosen creature includes both average damage and a dice equation.
more tactically interesting or to better fit the story and Example Monsters. This column offers example
flavor they have in the game. monsters for each challenge rating. This can help you
gauge where your monster fits among existing 5e
COLUMN DESCRIPTIONS monsters.
The table includes the following columns, which will
become more familiar to you as you build your monsters. BUILDING A MONSTER
Monster CR. The challenge ratings presented in the With the Monster Statistics by Challenge Rating table at
CR column are the baseline measure to determine the hand, you can use the following quick steps to build a
relative difficulty of a monster in combat. You’ll almost custom monster from scratch. The first four steps alone
always reference this column first when building a quick let you easily create a monster ready to run in your game.
monster. The optional steps that follow then let you fill out the
Equivalent Character Level. This column describes monster’s details and custom mechanics as desired.
the roughly equivalent level of a single character facing
a single monster of this challenge rating in a hard
STEP 1: DETERMINE CHALLENGE
encounter. This gives you a quick way to determine how
RATING
difficult this monster will be when facing characters of a Begin by determining the challenge rating for your quick
particular level. monster based on that creature’s fiction in the world.
As you can see from the table, matching character level When considering the challenge rating of a custom
to challenge rating isn’t a simple mathematical process. monster, you might compare them to existing creatures
There are a number of character levels missing from the on the table, so that if the in-world power of your monster
table where certain challenge ratings represent a large compares well to a skeleton, the monster might have a
jump in how tough a monster is. challenge rating of 1/4. If they’re more like a fire giant,
AC/DC. This column indicates the typical Armor Class they might have a challenge rating of 9. Look at the list of
of a monster of the indicated challenge rating. It also example monsters and ask yourself which monster makes
describes the typical Difficulty Class if this monster uses a the best comparison to yours. Then assign your creature
DC for any of their attacks or other features. that monster’s challenge rating.
Hit Points. This column offers the baseline hit points
of a monster of a given challenge rating. Feel free to add
4
 ALTERNATIVELY, WHAT CHALLENGE +0 for these nonproficient abilities. You can always change
RATING DO YOU NEED? this during the game if a higher or lower number makes
You might also want to choose a challenge rating based on sense.
the level of the characters, using the Equivalent Character YOU’RE READY TO GO
Level column of the table. If you want an encounter with
At this point, you have enough information on hand
four monsters who are roughly equal in power to four
to run your monster in a game, with little else needed.
characters, this column lets you figure out those monsters’
However, you can also continue with a few more quick
statistics. It also helps you build NPCs intended to match
steps to further customize your monster, making them
a particular character level, such as a knight, a wizard, or
more distinct.
a rogue.
OPTIONAL STEP: CONSIDER
STEP 2: WRITE DOWN THE
ARMOR CLASS
BASELINE STATISTICS
Though the Monster Statistics by Challenge Rating
Once you’ve determined a challenge rating for your
table offers a value for Armor Class that increases with
monster, write down their statistics. You might jot them
challenge rating, you can modify a monster’s Armor Class
on an index card, in a text editor on your computer,
further based on their story. A big beefy titan set up as a
or wherever you keep notes for your adventures and
CR 16 monster might still be easy to hit—maybe with an
campaigns. You might end up customizing those statistics,
Armor Class of 14.
though, so be ready to change them.
It’s easiest to think of Armor Class on a 10 to 20 scale,
STEP 3: DETERMINE PROFICIENT with 10 being the equivalent of an unarmored opponent
ABILITIES with no Dexterity bonus, and 20 being an opponent
Next, determine which abilities—Strength, Dexterity, wearing plate armor with a shield. (Armor Class can go
Constitution, Intelligence, Wisdom, or Charisma—a above 20 or below 10, though.)
monster is proficient in, using the Proficient Ability
Bonus column on the table. This sets up the bonus a
monster has when using any ability with which they’re
proficient, and is largely based on the monster’s story. A
big, beefy monster might be proficient in skills or saving
throws involving Strength and Constitution. A smart
mastermind monster might be proficient
in Wisdom- and Intelligence-based skills
and saving throws. A fast monster might
be proficient in Dexterity (Acrobatics)
checks and Dexterity saving throws, while
an otherworldly monster might be proficient in
Charisma-based skills and saves.
The bonus indicated in the table is what the
monster uses for saving throws and ability checks
with those proficient abilities. Just remember
that the number on the table already includes a
monster’s proficiency bonus in addition to their
ability score modifier.
STEP 4: DETERMINE
REMAINING ABILITIES
Next, you can determine the modifier
(either a penalty or a bonus) that a
monster uses for their nonproficient
abilities. This is for all the ability checks
and saving throws a monster isn’t great at, and
can be determined by asking yourself how
VÍCTOR MANUEL LEZA MORENO

strong a monster feels in those abilities.

The bonus can range anywhere from −2
to +4, and is independent of a monster’s
challenge rating. Even a high-challenge monster
might have a lousy Dexterity saving throw.
When in doubt, or to speed things up, use a modifier of
5
 MONSTER STATISTICS BY CHALLENGE RATING
Equivalent Proficient
Character AC/ Ability Damage Number Damage Per
CR Level DC Hit Points Bonus Per Round of Attacks Attack Example 5e Monsters
0 <1 10 3 (2–4) +2 2 1 2 (1d4) Commoner, rat, spider
1/8 <1 11 9 (7–11) +3 3 1 3 (1d4 + 1) Bandit, cultist, giant rat
1/4 1 11 13 (10–16) +3 5 1 5 (1d6 + 2) Acolyte, skeleton, wolf
1/2 2 12 22 (17–28) +4 10 1 10 (2d6 + 3) Black bear, scout, shadow
1 3 12 33 (25–41) +5 12 2 6 (1d8 + 2) Dire wolf, specter, spy
2 5 13 45 (34–56) +5 17 2 9 (2d6 + 2) Ghast, ogre, priest
3 7 13 65 (49–81) +5 23 2 12 (2d8 + 3) Knight, mummy, werewolf
4 9 14 85 (64–106) +6 29 2 15 (3d8 + 2) Ettin, ghost
5 10 15 95 (71–119) +7 35 3 12 (3d6 + 2) Elemental, gladiator, vampire spawn
6 11 15 112 (84–140) +7 41 3 14 (3d6 + 4) Mage, medusa, wyvern
7 12 15 127 (95–159) +7 47 3 16 (3d8 + 3) Stone giant, young black dragon
8 13 15 136 (102–170) +7 53 3 18 (3d10 + 2) Assassin, frost giant
9 15 16 145 (109–181) +8 59 3 22 (3d12 + 3) Bone devil, fire giant, young blue dragon
10 16 17 155 (116–194) +9 65 4 16 (3d8 + 3) Stone golem, young red dragon
11 17 17 165 (124–206) +9 71 4 18 (3d10 + 2) Djinni, efreeti, horned devil
12 18 17 175 (131–219) +9 77 4 19 (3d10 + 3) Archmage, erinyes
13 19 18 184 (138–230) +10 83 4 21 (4d8 + 3) Adult white dragon, storm giant, vampire
14 20 19 196 (147–245) +11 89 4 22 (4d10) Adult black dragon, ice devil
15 > 20 19 210 (158–263) +11 95 5 19 (3d10 + 3) Adult green dragon, mummy lord, purple
worm
16 > 20 19 229 (172–286) +11 101 5 22 (3d12 + 3) Adult blue dragon, iron golem, marilith
17 > 20 20 246 (185–308) +12 107 5 21 (4d8 + 3) Adult red dragon
18 > 20 21 266 (200–333) +13 113 5 23 (4d10 + 1) Demilich
19 > 20 21 285 (214–356) +13 119 5 24 (4d10 + 2) Balor
20 > 20 21 300 (225–375) +13 132 5 26 (4d12) Ancient white dragon, pit fiend
21 > 20 22 325 (244–406) +14 150 5 30 (4d12 + 4) Ancient black dragon, lich, solar
22 > 20 23 350 (263–438) +15 168 5 34 (4d12 + 8) Ancient green dragon
23 > 20 23 375 (281–469) +15 186 5 37 (6d10 + 4) Ancient blue dragon, kraken
24 > 20 23 400 (300–500) +15 204 5 41 (6d10 + 8) Ancient red dragon
25 > 20 24 430 (323–538) +16 222 5 44 (6d10 + 11)
26 > 20 25 460 (345–575) +17 240 5 48 (6d10 + 15)
27 > 20 25 490 (368–613) +17 258 5 52 (6d10 + 19)
28 > 20 25 540 (405–675) +17 276 5 55 (6d10 + 22)
29 > 20 26 600 (450–750) +18 294 5 59 (6d10 + 26)
30 > 20 27 666 (500–833) +19 312 5 62 (6d10 + 29) Tarrasque

Keep in mind that missing an opponent isn’t much than indicated on the table, if that makes sense for the
fun for a player. Lower-AC opponents, even those with monster’s story. (As noted above, for attacks that target
more hit points, are often more fun to fight than high-AC two or more opponents, use half the indicated damage.)
opponents with fewer hit points.
OPTIONAL STEP: FURTHER MODIFY
OPTIONAL STEP: CUSTOMIZE STATISTICS
ATTACKS Depending on the story of your monster, you can make
The table includes a recommended number of attacks for general adjustments to their baseline statistics however
a monster, an attack bonus, and the amount of damage you see fit. For example, you might lower a monster’s
those attacks should deal. If desired, tailor this damage to hit points and increase the damage they deal to create
fit the monster’s story. Choose a creature’s damage type, a dangerous foe who drops out of the fight quickly.
such as fire for a flaming greatsword attack or necrotic for However, always consider whether such changes make
a death blast. You can also mix up multiple damage types, a combat encounter more fun to play. It might make
so that a CR 10 hell knight might have a longsword attack sense to create a monster with high hit points and a
dealing both slashing and fire damage. higher Armor Class who deals less damage, thinking
To further customize a monster, you can divide up their that those two things balance out. But fighting such a
6 total damage per round into a different number of attacks monster can easily become a slog. Likewise, a monster
 with significantly fewer hit points that deals high damage This reaction is a fun way to surprise your players.
might end up being inadvertently deadly if too many Describe how the tentacles emerge from the foe’s limb or
characters roll low on attacks, or could feel pointless if the body to grasp a character. You can roll for the number of
monster is killed too quickly. tentacles or choose a number that reflects the creature’s
desired challenge rating.
OPTIONAL STEP: ADD QUICK TYPES
AND FEATURES Dominating Gaze (Action, Recharge 4–6). If this creature has
the multiattack action, Dominating Gaze can take the place of
The “Common Monster Type Templates” section includes one of the attacks used in that action. This creature chooses
a number of monster types you can apply when creating a target they can see within 60 feet of them. The target must
a quick monster. Each monster type includes the most succeed on a Charisma saving throw (DC = 12 + 1/2 CR) or
important features of that type, whether corporeal be forced to immediately make their most effective weapon
undead, elemental, fiend, and so forth. That section also attack or at-will spell or magical attack against a target chosen
includes a handful of the most popular powers you might by this creature.
add onto a monster, with features, traits, and attacks This action communicates the foe’s otherworldly nature.
greatly expanded upon in “Monster Powers” on page ##. The momentary domination could come in the form of
mind control, changing what the target sees, or confusing
USING THE TABLE WITH them. Describing horrid whispers of the beauty of the
PUBLISHED MONSTERS stars waking to devour the world is optional.
While the Monster Statistics by Challenge Rating table is BEAST
intended to build monsters from scratch, it can easily be Beasts might have low ability scores if they are mundane
used as a reference to better understand how a published creatures, with their strongest scores in either Strength
monster might act in combat. If a published CR 4 monster or Dexterity. They might also have medium to high
has 30 hit points but deals 35 damage per round, you Constitution or Wisdom to represent hardiness and
can see from the table that their hit points are low but cunning. Beasts typically have darkvision with a 60-foot
their damage is high compared to the creature’s baseline range, and they don’t speak a language. Beasts often
challenge rating. Such a monster hits hard for their have the ability to climb, swim, or fly, and they might be
challenge rating, but goes down fast when hit themself. proficient in the Athletics, Perception, or Survival skills.
You can customize a quick-build beast using one of the
COMMON MONSTER TYPE powers below, or a power from the “Monstrosity” section.
TEMPLATES Hit and Run (Action). As part of this action, this creature first
This section offers a sampling of monster type templates takes one of their other actions. After that action completes,
whose traits you can apply to your quick-build monster, this creature can move 30 feet without provoking opportunity
new powers tied specific monster types (including actions, attacks. If the creature ends their movement behind cover
bonus actions, reactions, and additional traits), and advice or in an obscured area, they can make a Dexterity (Stealth)
check to hide.
on how to use those powers. Some templates use the
challenge rating of the creature you’re creating to calculate This action allows a beast to act as a predator, attacking
saving throw DCs, damage, and other variables. You can and repositioning themself for maximum effect.
find a greater selection of monster type templates and
guidance for using them in “Monster Powers” on page ##.
ABERRATION
Aberrations generally have high Intelligence, Wisdom,
and Charisma scores, as well as darkvision with either a
60- or 120-foot range. An aberration speaks a language
such as Deep Speech or communicates telepathically.
Senses darkvision 120 ft.
Languages Deep Speech, telepathy 120 ft.
You can further represent an aberration’s nature by
giving them any of the following powers.
Grasping Tentacles (Reaction). When this creature hits with an
attack, they sprout a tentacle that grasps the target. In addition
to the attack’s normal effects, the target is grappled (escape
DC = 11 + 1/2 CR) and restrained. Until the grapple ends, this
creature can’t use the grappling tentacle against another
BRIAN PATTERSON

target. This creature can sprout 1d4 tentacles.

7
 Empowered by Carnage (Reaction). When this creature hits Armor Plating (Trait). This creature has a +2 bonus to Armor
another creature with a melee attack and the damage from the Class. Each time the creature’s hit points are reduced by one-
attack reduces the target below half its hit points or to 0 hit quarter of their maximum value, this bonus decreases by 1, to a
points, this creature can immediately move up to their speed maximum penalty to Armor Class of −2.
and repeat the melee attack against another target.
The high Armor Class of a construct might feel initially
This reaction captures the ferocious nature of the beast, frustrating, but as you describe the pieces of armor plating
motivated by seeing prey take a grievous wound or meet being torn off, players will sense the tide turning. When
their end. the bonus to Armor Class becomes a penalty, describe
how the rents in the armor allow characters access to the
CELESTIAL
construct’s inner workings, speeding up the foe’s demise!
As divine beings of the Outer Planes, celestials have
high ability scores. Charisma is often especially high to Sentinel (Trait). This creature can make opportunity attacks
without using a reaction.
represent a celestial’s leadership qualities, eloquence,
and beauty. Celestials often have resistance to radiant This simple feature really shines when you describe the
damage, and they might also have resistance to damage construct’s sharp eyes zeroing in on the characters, or
from nonmagical attacks and immunity to the charmed, how the construct swivels part of their body to make an
exhaustion, and frightened conditions. The mightiest opportunity attack.
celestials possess truesight with a range of 120 feet, DRAGON
speak and understand all languages, and communicate
telepathically. Draconic creatures have high Strength, Dexterity, and
Constitution scores, as well as high Charisma scores. A
Damage Resistances radiant; bludgeoning, piercing, and dragon has immunity to any damage type used for their
slashing from nonmagical attacks
breath weapon, has blindsight and darkvision, and speaks
Condition Immunities charmed, exhaustion, frightened
Senses darkvision 120 ft.
Draconic. They often have proficiency in Perception, and
Languages all, telepathy 120 ft. in one or more other skills reflecting their interests or
nature.
You can also select one or both of the powers below to
further enhance a creature’s celestial nature. Damage Immunities damage type associated with the
dragon’s breath weapon
Winged (Trait). This creature has a flying speed equal to their Senses blindsight 60 ft., darkvision 120 ft.
best other speed, and can hover. Languages Common, Draconic
Glorious celestial wings might be shaped of feathers, A true dragon or a closely related draconic creature
ice, or radiant energy. You can increase the flying speed if has a breath weapon that is fearsome to behold. You can
you wish the celestial to have more mobility. adjust the area of effect or damage depending on how
Mirrored Judgment (Reaction). When this creature is the powerful your draconic creature is meant to be.
sole target of an attack or spell, they can choose
another valid target to also be targeted by the
attack or spell.
A celestial might change their face or armor
to become reflective like a mirror, so that an
attacking creature can contemplate their actions.
CONSTRUCT
A construct’s strongest ability scores are
usually Strength and Constitution,
though a construct built for agility might
also have a high Dexterity. Constructs typically
also have either blindsight or darkvision, and a selection
of damage immunities and condition immunities to
reflect their nonliving nature. They usually can’t speak,
but might understand one or more languages.
Damage Immunities poison, psychic
Condition Immunities blinded, charmed, deafened,
exhaustion, frightened, paralyzed, petrified, poisoned
Senses blindsight 60 ft. (blind beyond this radius) or
darkvision 60 ft.
Languages understands certain languages but can’t speak
You can further enhance a construct with one of the
following features.
8
 Dragon’s Breath (Action, Recharge 5–6). This creature of fire? Are they wielding weapons that they ignite with
breathes to deal poison, cold, or fire damage in a 30-foot cone, fire?
or breathes to deal acid or lightning damage in a 60-foot line
that is 5 feet wide. Each creature in the area of the exhalation Elemental Aura (Trait). This creature radiates an aura of
must make a Dexterity saving throw against a line or a elemental energy of the type they are associated with. Any
Constitution saving throw against a cone (DC = 12 + 1/2 CR), creature who moves within 10 feet of this creature for the first
taking 4 × CR damage of the appropriate type on a failed save, time on a turn or starts their turn there takes 5 damage of
or half as much damage on a successful one. the selected energy type (10 damage if this creature is CR 12
or higher).
You might also wish to provide a dragon or draconic
creature with an additional power to reflect their nature. Does your elemental monster radiate extreme cold? Do
sparks fly from them, or does a cloud of stones encircle
Dragon’s Gaze (Bonus Action, Recharge 6). One creature them? An elemental aura communicates a creature’s
within 60 feet of the dragon must make a Wisdom saving throw
nature clearly, and presents a tactical challenge for melee-
(DC = 13 + 1/2 CR) or become frightened of the dragon. While
frightened in this way, each time the target takes damage, they focused characters. For an alternative approach, have this
take extra damage equal to 1/2 CR. The target can repeat the trait activate only when the creature drops below half
saving throw at the end of each of their turns, ending the effect their hit points, as their elemental essence leaks out of
on themself on a success. their body.
Dragon’s Gaze puts the pressure on a character, and FEY
goes well with threats a dragon makes as they promise
that the heroes are about to meet their doom. Fey creatures can vary greatly in their traits and actions,
but often have high Charisma and Dexterity scores and
Draconic Retaliation (Trait). When this creature is reduced to moderate-to-high Wisdom scores. Fey usually speak
half their hit points or fewer, they can immediately use either
Sylvan or Elvish in addition to Common, and many speak
their breath weapon or their Multiattack action. If the creature
is incapacitated or otherwise unable to use this trait, they can giant. Most fey have darkvision, and proficiency in the
use it when they are next able to. Deception, Perception, or Persuasion skills.
This trait showcases a dragon’s fury and might just Senses darkvision 60 ft.
as the characters appear to gain the upper hand. For Languages Common, Elvish, Sylvan
a particularly fearsome foe—or particularly strong A fey creature can be further enhanced with one of the
characters—you can use this trait again when the dragon following features.
is reduced to one quarter of their hit points or fewer. Teleporting Step (Bonus Action). This creature teleports a
ELEMENTAL number of feet up to their walking speed to an unoccupied
space they can see.
Elementals generally have strong physical ability scores.
This option makes a fey creature a master of mobility,
They have resistance to damage of the type they are
which you can richly describe in a number of ways. Does
associated with (acid, bludgeoning, cold, fire, lightning,
the creature summon, then step through portals? Vanish
or thunder), and might have immunity to that damage
into shadow? Move from one plant to another? Transform
if wholly created from elemental energy. An elemental
into wind and appear in another location?
usually has immunity to poison damage and certain
conditions, depending on their nature. They have Beguiling Aura (Trait). An enemy of this creature who moves
darkvision and speak the language associated with their within 25 feet of them for the first time on a turn or starts
element. their turn there must succeed on a Wisdom saving throw (DC
10 + 1/2 CR) or be charmed by this creature until the end of
Damage Resistances damage type the creature is associated their turn.
with, if appropriate; bludgeoning, piercing, and slashing from
Representing the enigmatic and compelling nature of
nonmagical attacks
Damage Immunities damage type the creature is associated many fey, this aura can force a character to change their
with, if appropriate; poison tactics during their turn. It’s especially effective on a foe
Condition Immunities exhaustion, grappled, paralyzed, you wish to protect, making it harder for melee characters
petrified, poisoned, prone, restrained, unconscious to engage that foe, and incentivizing those characters to
Senses darkvision 60 ft. pick other targets first. You can vary the nature of the
An elemental can be further enhanced with one of the charm effect, whether the fey is adorned in the finest
following features. clothing, can change their appearance to look like a
friend, or weaves ancient words to beguile their enemies.
Elemental Attacks (Trait). This creature’s weapons or limbs are
infused with energy of the type they are associated with (acid, FIEND
bludgeoning, cold, fire, lightning, or thunder), dealing that
damage type instead of their normal type. Ability scores for fiends favor their physical
characteristics, though many also have moderate or
This is a basic feature to communicate the nature of an
BRIAN PATTERSON

higher Charisma scores. Devils hoping to entice mortals

elemental monster. Reinforce this through roleplaying,
describing the foe’s form and appearance. Are they a being
9
 into deals also often have proficiency in the Deception specifically humanoid features. Instead, you can select
skill. Fiends typically have resistance to nonmagical from the powers found in the “Common Monster Powers”
attacks, and might have one or more elemental section below, choosing those that enable your specific
resistances. Demons speak Abyssal, while devils speak concept.
Infernal. Both usually have telepathy up to 120 feet.
MONSTROSITY
Damage Resistances elemental resistances; bludgeoning,
Monstrosities often have high Constitution and either
piercing, and slashing from nonmagical attacks
Damage Immunities poison a high Strength or Dexterity. Their Intelligence and
Condition Immunities poisoned Charisma are often low. Many monstrosities lack a
Senses darkvision 120 ft. language, and might have skill proficiency in Athletics,
Languages Abyssal or Infernal, telepathy 120 ft. Perception, or Stealth. A burrow, climb, or swim speed
In addition, you can add any of the following features to might be appropriate.
enhance the fiendish capabilities of a foe. The following powers can be used to show off a
truly monstrous monstrosity. For monstrosities such
Empowered by Death (Trait). When a creature within 30 feet
as centaurs and doppelgangers who are decidedly less
of this creature dies, this creature regains CR × 2 hit points.
monstrous in their appearance and outlook, you can use
What makes this feature interesting is that the foe’s the powers in the “Common Monster Powers” instead.
allies dying also triggers it. Give this trait to a fiendish
boss so that they can gain hit points as their minions die. Devour Ally (Bonus Action). This creature swallows an
adjacent allied creature smaller than themself. This creature
They might even kill one off just for fun.
regains CR × 3 hit points and the devoured ally is reduced to 0
Relish Your Failure (Trait). When a creature within 50 feet hit points.
of this creature fails a saving throw, this creature gains 1/2 CR This power works well for a massive monstrosity paired
temporary hit points. If this creature already has temporary
with smaller, weaker creatures that it can slay at will—or
hit points, they instead regain 1/2 CR hit points, up to their hit
point maximum. even swallow whole. This forces the characters to choose
between focusing on the larger foe or killing off the
The fiend calls out any character’s failure, mocking
weaker ones to prevent the boss from healing.
them and drawing strength from their demise. This trait
works best when your foes have actions or spells requiring Lingering Wound (Reaction, Recharge 6). When this creature
saving throws. hits a target with an attack and deals damage, the target takes
a lingering wound. At the start of each of their turns, a target
GIANT with a lingering wound takes the same damage dealt by the
original attack. The target can attempt a DC 10 Constitution
Giants have Strength and Constitution scores as saving throw at the end of each of their turns, ending the effect
formidable as their size, but their Dexterity scores are on a success. A successful DC 10 Wisdom (Medicine) check
typically lower. Some giants only speak Giant, while made as an action by the target or a creature within 5 feet of
others might speak Common, Goblin, or other languages. them also ends the target’s lingering wound.
Forceful Blow (Reaction, Recharge 4–6). When this creature Wounding strike can be described as blood loss from
hits a target with a weapon attack, roll 1d4 + 1. The target is jagged fangs or claws, and can heighten a monstrosity’s
pushed 5 times that many feet away from this creature. terrible nature.
You can alter the size of the die to reflect the type of
OOZE
giant, or assign a fixed value for the distance if you feel
that would work better. Sending characters flying is Oozes almost always have low mental ability scores, and
rewarding. Try not to enjoy it too much. often have either low Strength or Dexterity scores based
on their nature. Oozes might be proficient in the Stealth
Shove Allies (Action). This creature can shove any adjacent skill if they sneak up on opponents, or have transparent
allied creatures that are smaller in size than this creature. Each
bodies or forms that blend into their environment. Oozes
shoved ally moves up to 15 feet away from the foe, and can
make a melee weapon attack if they end that movement and typically lack a language, and rely on blindsense to sense
have a creature within their reach. creatures in close proximity. They often have immunity to
multiple conditions.
Roleplay the giant as they shove smaller creatures
around them, forcing them to fight for their lives. Players Condition Immunities blinded, charmed, deafened,
might enjoy the tactical nature of this approach, since exhaustion, frightened, prone
defeating enough of the giant’s smaller allies makes this Senses blindsight 60 ft. (blind beyond this radius)
trait less effective. Many oozes have the ability to slip through small
openings, which can be represented by the following trait.
HUMANOID
Malleable Form (Trait). This creature has advantage on checks
Ability scores for humanoids can reflect both their role to begin or escape a grapple, and can move through a space as
and their species. The wide variety of humanoid types and if they were two sizes smaller than their size without squeezing.
the range of standard NPC stat blocks that can represent
You can alter the malleable trait to reflect just how small
humanoids makes it difficult to create templates for
10 a space an ooze creature can move through, with some
oozes able to move through a space as small as 1 inch UNDEAD
wide without squeezing. Undead creatures typically have immunity to poison
Additionally, you can choose any of the following damage and the poisoned condition, and they do not
powers to represent a creature’s ooze nature. need to eat or breathe. Some undead have immunity to
Oozing Passage (Trait). This creature can move their normal the charmed and exhaustion conditions, and skeletal
speed through the space of other creatures of their size or undead might have vulnerability to bludgeoning
smaller without provoking opportunity attacks. When they do damage. Although some intelligent undead can speak,
so, each creature whose space this creature moves through many undead lack the ability to speak even if they can
must succeed on a Strength saving throw (DC 10 + 1/2 CR) or
understand language.
be restrained until the end of their next turn.
It can be fun to describe the moment when an ooze Damage Immunities poison
Condition Immunities exhaustion, poisoned
passes over and around a character. This can be a strong
Senses darkvision 60 ft.
feature if the ooze moves through several characters, so Languages understands all languages they knew in life but
you might alter tactics as needed to reflect the desired can’t speak
challenge rating. You can also remove the restrained effect
You can also add any of the following powers to an
to simply provide an interesting form of mobility.
undead creature.
Elongating Limbs (Trait). This creature can increase the length
Undead Resilience (Trait). If damage reduces this creature to
of their limbs or other appendages at will, increasing their
0 hit points, they must make a Constitution saving throw with
reach by 5 feet. A creature moving out of this creature’s reach
a DC of 2 + the damage taken, unless the damage is radiant
or within their reach provokes an opportunity attack.
or from a critical hit. On a success, this creature drops to 1 hit
This trait is the surprise that keeps surprising. A point instead.
monster can lengthen a limb to attack a foe, then use Add this trait to undead creatures that can withstand
it later for a reaction attack. Describe the way the limb blows that would kill a living creature. Describe a
elongates in as grotesque a way as desired. successful save as the undead creature getting back up
PLANT or refusing to fall, despite missing body parts or other
terrible wounds.
Plant creatures have extremely low mental attributes
and low Dexterity scores. Many are stationary, or might Stench of Death (Trait). Any creature who starts their turn
have a slow walking speed of anywhere from 5 to 20 feet. within 10 feet of this creature must succeed on a Constitution
saving throw (DC 10 + 1/2 CR) or become poisoned until the
Some plant creatures have darkvision, while others have
start of their next turn. On a successful saving throw, the
blindsight out to a range of 30 or 60 feet. Some have creature is immune to this creature’s stench for 24 hours.
resistance to bludgeoning and piercing damage, some
have resistance to cold, fire, or poison damage, and some You can alter the effect’s radius based on the … uh,
have immunity to conditions such as blinded, deafened, flavor you wish to impart.
exhaustion, and prone. A few plants have vulnerability to
fire.
COMMON MONSTER POWERS
You can add any of the following powers to a creature This section offers a selection of common monster powers
with a plant-like nature. you can apply to any quick-build monster to give them
a stronger mechanical flavor, make them more tactically
Poison Thorns (Bonus Action, Recharge 5–6). The next time interesting, or reinforce their behavior in the story of your
this creature hits a target with an attack and deals damage, the
game.
attack deals extra poison damage equal to half the damage
originally dealt, and the target gains the poisoned condition Damaging Aura (Trait). Any creature who moves within 10
until the end of their next turn. feet of this creature or who starts their turn there takes CR
You can describe the thorns growing along the plant damage of a type appropriate for this creature.
creature’s appendages when they take this bonus action. Reskin this aura to meet your needs based on the
Those thorns might be a bold color such as bright red or damage type. A fire elemental can radiate an aura of fire,
blue, and could drip poison. while an undead might radiate necrotic damage. You can
also describe this effect as a magical aura dealing force
Grasping Roots (Trait). When a creature attempts to leave a
space within 5 feet of this creature, the moving creature must damage, a holy aura dealing radiant damage, or even have
succeed on a Strength saving throw (DC 12 + 1/2 CR) or be a many-armed creature wielding swords to create an aura
restrained until the start of their next turn. of slashing damage.
You can surprise players with this power, which reveals Damaging Weapon (Trait). This creature’s melee weapon
itself as a network of roots surrounding the plant, hidden attacks deal an extra CR damage of a type appropriate for
beneath the soil or spreading along the cracks of a stone the creature.
floor. When a character attempts to move away from or As with Damaging Aura, this trait can be customized
around the plant, the roots emerge and try to hold them for many types of creatures by choosing a thematic
fast. damage type. A warrior might wield a greatsword that
deals extra fire or lightning damage as a boon bestowed 11
 by their god. A mini-boss undead could deal necrotic or This power works well for clever foes, especially those
cold damage to represent their innate supernatural power. who are experts in the use of the weapons they wield.
Defender (Reaction). When an ally adjacent to this creature is Quick Recovery (Trait). At the start of this creature’s turn, they
targeted by an attack or spell, this creature can make themself can attempt a saving throw against any effect on them that can
the intended target of the attack. be ended by a successful saving throw.
This is an excellent feature for minions who can This power can protect vulnerable combatants and
intercept damage intended for a boss, or for a high-hit- bosses from being shut down by spells. It can represent
point monster who can act as a defender of other more magical mastery, divine favor, luck, or a specific quality
strategically important monsters. of the creature. As a variant, using this trait could require
Delights in Suffering (Trait). When attacking a target whose
the foe to take damage equal to 2 × CR if the new saving
current hit points are below half their hit point maximum, this throw is successful, representing the exertion made to
creature has advantage on attack rolls and deals an extra CR overcome the effect.
damage when they hit.
Refuse to Surrender (Trait). When this creature’s current hit
This trait makes a monster extremely dangerous in a points are below half their hit point maximum, the creature
tough fight, and encourages the characters to use healing deals CR extra damage with each of their attacks.
resources. This trait works best when used on a single important
Frenzy (Trait). At the start of their turn, this creature can gain foe, and when you describe the monster’s refusal to
advantage on all melee weapon attack rolls made during this surrender despite their many wounds. This lets the
turn, but attack rolls against them have advantage until the players know they can focus fire to finish the creature off,
start of their next turn. minimizing their damage potential.
In addition to providing a combat boost for a foe, this Reposition (Bonus Action, 1/Day). Each ally within 60 feet
trait can help accelerate a fight that’s gone on long enough, of this creature who can see and hear them can immediately
by letting the characters hit the last remaining foes more move their speed without provoking opportunity attacks.
often. Place this trait on a boss monster to allow their minions
Goes Down Fighting (Reaction). When this creature is reduced to quickly reposition, especially when it’s useful for those
to 0 hit points, they can immediately make one melee or minions to move through characters ready to attack.
ranged weapon attack before they fall unconscious.
Sneaky (Trait). This creature has advantage on Dexterity
Your monsters can get one last attack in when they have (Stealth) checks.
this trait. Foes fighting in obscured areas or behind cover can
Lethal (Trait). This creature has a +CR bonus to damage rolls, benefit from this trait, which can represent natural
and scores a critical hit on an unmodified attack roll of 18–20. camouflage or well-practiced skill.
This simple trait is a default you can use to increase the Spell Fuel (Reaction). When a target this creature can see
damage dealt by any monster. (including themself) either succeeds or fails on a saving throw
against a spell or other magical effect, this creature can expend
Mark the Target (Trait, Recharge 3–6). When this creature hits
a spell slot to force the target to reroll the saving throw.
a target with a ranged attack, allies of this creature who can
see the target have advantage on attack rolls against the target Appropriate for a powerful spellcaster, this power
until the start of this creature’s next turn. represents mastery over magical forces in its ability to
Let a monster apply pressure to a specific target with enhance or weaken a spell’s effect.
this power, especially if that target is wounded or in a Telekinetic Grasp (Action). This creature chooses one creature
vulnerable position. Make the foe’s action obvious, so that they can see within 100 feet of them weighing less than 400
the players know to react to it and can help the targeted pounds. The target must succeed on a Strength saving throw
character survive the ensuing focused fire. (DC 11 + 1/2 CR) or be pulled up to 80 feet directly toward
this creature.
Not Dead Yet (Trait, 1/day). When this creature is reduced to
0 hit points, they drop prone and are indistinguishable from When characters like to hang back from the action,
a dead creature. At the start of their next turn, this creature this power can draw them right into the heart of combat.
stands up without using any movement and has hit points It can represent psionic ability, a spell, or mastery over
equal to 2 × CR. They can then take their turn normally. wind and air. You can also adjust the power to be a
This trait can represent a clever combatant playing teleportation effect if that fits a monster’s concept.
dead, a warrior with incredible resolve, or a creature such Vanish (Bonus Action). This creature can use the Disengage
as an undead or an ooze that refuses to die. action, then can hide if they have cover.
Parry and Riposte (Reaction, Recharge 6). This creature adds Creatures accustomed to fighting from cover gain a
+3 to their Armor Class against one melee attack that would formidable edge with this power. Consider pairing Vanish
hit them. If the attack misses, this creature can immediately with the Sneaky trait (above) to create an unstoppable
make a weapon attack against the creature making the
ambusher.
parried attack.

12
RESKINNING MONSTERS
Of all the tools Gamemasters have at their disposal, a number of monster stat blocks built specifically for
few are as powerful as reskinning monster stat blocks. reskinning as well.)
Reskinning a monster’s stat block lets us take the time, To use the table, look down the CR column to find the
energy, and money invested in professionally designed baseline challenge rating of the monster you need. The
monster statistics and turn them into just about any Example Monster column for that challenge rating lists a
monster imaginable, quickly and easily. This brings few easily reskinned monster stat blocks. The Reskinned
incredible value to every book of monsters a GM owns. Role column then shows you what monster role this stat
To reskin a monster, select an existing stat block and block can most easily be reskinned into, broken out by tier
describe it as a completely different monster in the story of play and the monster’s role in combat (see below).
and lore of the game. For example, the stat block of an The tiers of play break down into the following tiers and
ogre might be described as a powerful humanoid warrior levels:
or the thick-necked bodyguard of a local guildmaster. 1st Level: Though standard 5e includes 1st level in tier 1,
At its simplest, reskinning takes little more effort than 1st-level characters are delicate enough that they really
finding a stat block and describing it as something else. belong in their own tier of play.
There are layers to reskinning, however, some of which Tier 1: 2nd through 4th level
go deeper than a simple surface-level description change. Tier 2: 5th through 10th level
This section explores those layers and the benefits that Tier 3: 11th through 16th level
each provides. Tier 4: 17th through 20th level
The monster roles that these stat blocks can easily
CHOOSING RESKINNABLE reskin into are defined as follows:
STAT BLOCKS Artillery: Ranged combatants who often attack with
As powerful as reskinning is, the process always starts spells, and who typically have lower hit points, Armor
with a GM finding the right stat block to reskin. An ogre Class, or both.
stat block might be perfect for any tough and powerful Brutes: Monsters with high hit points and relatively low
humanoid, but it won’t work as well for a tentacled horror Armor Class, and which hit hard.
bursting out of the darkness. However, a giant octopus Soldiers: Creatures with high Armor Class and other
stat block does the trick for that horror nicely. defenses, and which deal moderate damage.
Simpler stat blocks—those of humanoids, NPCs, Strikers: Low-defense creatures which often deal high
animals, and giants—often work well when reskinning damage, and which have superior mobility.
secondary monsters or groups of monsters. For example, (“Monster Roles” on page ## has more information on
the fire giant stat block easily becomes a powerful tomb- breaking down monsters by role.)
guardian knight. When looking to build a custom boss
monster, though, think about reskinning the stat blocks CR Example Monster Reskinned Role
of more powerful and complicated creatures—including 1/8 Bandit 1st-level strikers
legendary creatures. An adult red dragon stat block is a 1/4 Goblin, skeleton Tier 1 strikers
great stand-in for a powerful fire-based sorcerer boss who 1/2 Black bear, orc, thug Tier 1 brutes
slashes with fiery blades (reskinned claws and bite) and 1 Animated armor, brown bear, Tier 1 soldiers, brutes, and
huge blasts of pyro-energy (the dragon’s breath weapon). spy strikers
Reading your favorite monster books offers 2 Bandit captain, cult fanatic, ogre Tier 1 soldiers, artillery,
tremendous dividends for your games. Not only does and brutes
it help you identify which stat blocks will work best for 3 Knight, minotaur, veteran Tier 2 soldiers
reskinning, but it also fills your imagination with the lore 5 Gladiator; air, earth, fire, or water Tier 2 brutes
of numerous monsters, giving you a sense of how they elemental; shambling mound
might fit into or help you build your adventures. 6 Mage Tier 2 artillery
7 Giant ape, stone giant Tier 3 brutes
COMMON RESKINNABLE 8 Frost giant Tier 3 brutes
MONSTERS 9 Fire giant Tier 3 soldiers
The table below presents a list of common reskinnable 10 Stone golem Tier 3 controllers
monsters for standard non-boss creatures at several 11 Horned devil Tier 3 strikers
challenge ratings. The stat blocks of these creatures focus 12 Archmage Tier 3 artillery
on simple mechanics, with the intention that you’ll reskin 13 Storm giant Tier 4 strikers
their descriptions with the flavor of the monster you 16 Iron golem Tier 4 soldiers
create. (“General-Use Stat Blocks” on page ## contains

13
 You need not limit yourself to the stat blocks above, new magical features, ensure these are features your new
of course. These simply work well as straightforward monster needs and can actually use.
creatures easy to reskin, suitable when you need several Monsters are often limited by the numbers of actions
monsters or minions to support a more powerful boss. they can take, so that magic used as a standard action
might simply replace the thematic actions that define a
MODIFYING FEATURES creature. As an example, spiritual weapon is a good spell
Often, you don’t need to make any other changes to reskin to give an assassin reskinned as a priest, because it’s only
a stat block into a new monster. Sometimes, though, you’ll a bonus action to cast. As such, it won’t interfere with
want to add more details, whether you do it before or the assassin’s ability to make shortsword attacks fueled
during the game. Powerful tomb guardians (reskinned fire by their signature Sneak Attack and Assassinate traits.
giants) clearly have the undead type. But unless they’re (“Understanding the Action Economy” on page ## has
hit with poison attacks or abilities such as Turn Undead, more information on this topic.)
you can worry about adding the features associated with The table below sets out a list of spells that work well as
undead creatures as needed. add-ons to any monster, organized by level and indicating
You might start off by writing down those features on whether the spell is focused on dealing damage, on
an index card, on a sticky note, or in whatever digital defense, or on control. When needed, use a spell attack
tool you use to take notes. The “Common Monster Type bonus of 4 + 1/2 CR for the monster using the spell, and a
Templates” section of “Building a Quick Monster” on page spell save DC of 10 + 1/2 CR.
## breaks down features and traits for undead and many
other monster types. Additionally, the more experienced Spell Level Spell Type Action
you become, the easier it gets to improvise these sorts of 1 Burning hands Damage Action
features on the fly. 1 Guiding bolt Damage Action
If you’re changing saving throws, adjusting attacks or 1 Hellish rebuke Damage Reaction
abilities, or changing the scope of magical effects in a stat 1 Inflict wounds Damage Action
block, you might want to write those changes down as 1 Shield Defense Reaction
well. You’re only taking these notes for yourself, though, 1 Sleep Control Action
so they don’t have to be pretty. You’re the only one who 2 Acid arrow Damage Action
needs to understand these shortcuts. 2 Darkness Control Action
2 Invisibility Defense Action
ADDING FEATURES 2 Misty step Defense Bonus action
Instead of—or in addition to—modifying the features 2 Scorching ray Damage Action
of your reskinned monster, you can add new features to 2 Shatter Damage Action
an existing stat block to give a creature new mechanical 2 Spiritual weapon Damage Bonus action
flavor over and above the baseline reskinned monster. 2 Web Control Action
For example, you might add some fire damage onto a
3 Counterspell Control Reaction
reskinned veteran’s longsword attack, or give a fire giant
3 Dispel magic Control Action
reskinned into an undead guardian an aura that deals
3 Fireball Damage Action
necrotic damage to creatures who hit the guardian with
3 Lightning bolt Damage Action
melee attacks.
3 Spirit guardians Damage Action
(“Building a Quick Monster” on page ## collects dozens
of cool and interesting features you can add to your 4 Blight Damage Action
monster of choice.) 4 Fire shield Damage Action
4 Greater invisibility Defense Action
ADD SPELL EFFECTS 5 Cone of cold Damage Action

AND MAGIC 6 Chain lighting Damage Action

6 Circle of death Damage Action
Adding spell effects and other magical abilities to
6 Disintegrate Damage Action
reskinned monsters is a fantastic way to customize them,
6 Harm Damage Action
granting access to hundreds of predesigned thematic sets
7 Finger of death Damage Action
of mechanics that can be easily applied to your monsters.
You can change up any creature by giving them one You might consider changing the type of action
or more uses of a particular spell. The reskinned giant required to activate spells normally cast as a standard
octopus playing the part of an otherworldly horror as action. Letting a creature activate such a spell as a bonus
described earlier will be much more thematic if they can action, or as one of several attacks they can make with
cast darkness or black tentacles. However, when adding

14
 their Multiattack action, helps them use these
abilities without reducing what else they can do.
Just be careful that doing so doesn’t increase
a creature’s damage output significantly.
(“Building Spellcasting Monsters” on page ##
has more information on this topic.)

MASHING UP MULTIPLE
MONSTERS
One further level of reskinning involves
mashing together two monster stat blocks. You
can think of this process as something like
using one monster stat block as a template for
another.
This process works best when using the
more complicated stat block as a baseline,
and modifying it with traits from another
simpler stat block. For example, if you want
a fire giant death knight, use the death knight
stat block first (the more complicated of the
two) and add fire giant features like Huge size
and immunity to fire damage. If you’re feeling
nasty, you might also bump the damage the
death knight deals with their longsword attack
from 9 slashing damage to the fire giant’s 28
damage.
Knowing that the fire giant is
significantly bigger means that the fire giant
death knight probably has more hit points
than the baseline death knight. But instead of
doing a lot of math to calculate new hit points
with a d12 Hit Die instead of a d8, just increase the
attacks with the dragon’s breath weapon, describe how the
death knight hit points by 50 percent. Always remember
sorcerer’s body erupts with burning veins, and how she
that you’re building a one-off monster, not a creature you
unleashes a blast of fire hotter than any natural source as
plan to publish. Rough changes save you time better spent
she extends her hands toward the characters.
elsewhere in your preparation.
How we narrate our monsters is critical to helping the
DESCRIBING RESKINNED players think past those monsters’ game mechanics. As
such, it’s particularly crucial when we reskin one monster
MONSTERS to incorporate the mechanics of another.
The key to making a reskinned monster work is how you
describe your new creature in the game. You’ll want to
lean heavily on your narrative, focusing your descriptions
on the parts of the monster you’ve reskinned most
directly. Describe the aura of necrotic horror surrounding
the undead fire giant. Add the details of the tattoos the
thick-necked bodyguard of the guildmaster wears. Lean
in heavily on the description to make a new monster
come alive.
Do the same thing with your narration of the reskinned
creature’s attacks. If an adult-red-dragon-turned-sorcerer
JACKIE MUSTO

15
 CHOOSING MONSTERS
BASED ON THE STORY
Rather than building combat encounters based on the for fifth edition fantasy games offer excellent summaries
level of the characters and the difficulty of the intended of each of their creatures, including lore, environment,
challenge, consider choosing monsters for your adventure behaviors, and allies. When considering monsters to add
based on the story and the situation in the world around to your adventure, start first with your favorite book of
the encounter. monsters.
This idea isn’t always easy to understand, and it departs Many monster books and Gamemaster guides include
from a common approach toward preparation for fantasy lists of monsters by ecology, often sorted by challenge
RPGs—building adventures as a set of encapsulated and rating. These lists show what monsters typically reside
predefined scenes or encounters, with a bit of exploration, in which environments, including forests, deserts, ruins,
some roleplaying, and (usually) a lot of combat. cities, and more. The challenge ratings in such lists are
As an alternative, write down a list of the monsters useful guides, but don’t be afraid to include weaker
who might be encountered in a larger area depending on monsters to let higher-powered characters show off
the situation taking place during the game. The seventh their skills. Likewise, you might choose a monster who’s
step of preparation from chapter 9 of Return of the Lazy technically too powerful for the characters, but you can
DM describes how to abstract lists of monsters from the give them a chance to see the creature from afar so they
scenes and situations in which they might appear during don’t simply wander in and get killed.
an adventure. This lets GMs “cook at the table,” dropping (“Monsters by Adventure Location” on page ## features
in monsters who fit both the scene and the situation—and lists of monsters keyed to specific locations. “Bosses
which make for the most fun in the moment as the GM and Minions” on page ## offers suggestions on which
improvises encounters based on what happens during the monsters might serve other more powerful creatures, all
story and the game. keyed to environment.)

UNDERSTANDING THE STORY REALISM AND FUN

Which monsters make sense given a particular story, When considering what monsters might inhabit the
situation, and location isn’t always clear. We must first locations of our adventures and in what numbers,
understand the story of our adventure, which we can do consider the issue from two angles. What makes sense
by asking the following questions: in relation to the fiction and location of the world? And
• Where does it take place? what best entertains your players? Instead of balancing
• Who would inhabit this location? both ideas at the same time, though, consider focusing
• What types of allies, followers, or symbiotic on realism first. What makes sense for the fiction of the
relationships exist alongside these primary inhabitants? game?
• In what numbers do these inhabitants typically gather? If the characters delve into the ruins of an ancient crypt,
• Do they wander alone? Do they travel in pairs or all sorts of undead come to mind, including skeletons,
groups? specters, wights, wraiths, ghosts, mummies, vampires, and
As an example, red dragons are usually solitary liches. But many other types of foes might also work in
creatures as regards living among other dragons—but such a location, including cultists, necromancers, grave-
they could certainly have allies. Some might have fire robbing bandits, or black puddings feasting on the flesh of
elementals who serve them unerringly, or hordes of the dead.
kobold worshippers to do their daily menial work. They Any such creatures can easily feel realistic given the
might have sworn knights or priests who serve them location. So when preparing a game set in a crypt, list the
on far-reaching quests, or who protect the dragon as various undead and other monsters who might show up
bodyguards and advisors. A particularly powerful red in an encounter. Then when running the game, choose the
dragon spellcaster might summon and bind a demon to type and number of monsters that feel like the best fit for
their service—a demon eager for a chance to break their the fun and pacing of the game.
bonds. Since the inhabitants of a location can move around,
you can decide what quantities and combinations of
UNDERSTANDING THE monsters might reside in or travel through any given
area moment by moment. Did the party just finish a big
MONSTERS battle with hard monsters? Maybe it’s time for a couple of
It always helps to have a deeper understanding of the weaklings to wander through. Have the characters been
lore behind monsters, whatever its original source. You having an easy time so far? Maybe they stumble into a
might seek out this lore from old folktales and stories group of heavy hitters. Either scenario still makes sense
from thousands of years ago. You might take monsters given the larger story and situation, but you can choose
from popular fiction. The many monster books available
16
the scenario offering the right beat and the right element type of monster. These abstractions might include a skull,
of pacing for the game. a grim-looking humanoid, a wolf, a slime, a dragon, or
Such variability helps tremendously in pacing a game. any other general representation of creatures in the game.
You don’t ever have to throw your hands up and run Numerous examples of generic tokens can be found
an encounter as is just because it’s written that way. By online, which can be purchased or constructed at very low
choosing the number and types of monsters, you can cost. Some virtual tabletops even include generic monster
easily tweak encounters toward what brings the right tokens built in. For others, you might have to import the
pacing and feeling to the overall game. tokens into your VTT, but having a set of generic tokens
on hand means never having to worry about having the
WHAT ABOUT ENCOUNTER exact right token at the exact right time.
BALANCE? ORGANIZE FOR EASY RETRIEVAL
If we’re choosing monsters strictly by what makes sense When you organize your tokens or miniatures, either in-
for the scene, location, and situation, then improvising the person or online, spend the time to organize them so you
number and combination of monsters during play, how can easily find the ones you need when you need them.
do we ensure encounters are balanced? There’s one simple Find the right categories that make it easier to dig out the
answer: right ones. Keep your most-used tokens or miniatures
We don’t. close at hand, and let your least-used tokens or miniatures
Other sections of this book discuss multiple ways to fall to the bottom of your organizational system.
build and benchmark groups of monsters to challenge
characters. But a story-focused approach toward FIND A FAST METHOD FOR
encounters means not worrying about encounter balance. ONLINE TOKENS
Instead, you can focus only on being aware of when an A number of online tools let you build a token from any
encounter might become inadvertently deadly (see “The image quickly and easily. Some virtual tabletops have
Lazy Encounter Benchmark” on page ##). built-in token making software. Find these tools and
practice using them to quickly build tokens from the
CHOOSING TOKENS AND many monster images made available for purchase or free
MINIATURES download online. Get good and fast at this process, and
Whether you play in person or online, this free-flowing you’ll be able to build any monster token you need even in
way of choosing monsters might challenge you if you the middle of your game.
make extensive use of tokens or miniatures. However, CRAFT GENERIC TOKENS FOR
there are a few easy ways to make sure you can still use IN-PERSON PLAY
those tools even while running flexible story-based
encounters. For playing in person, you can build a set of generic
tokens with a little bit of crafting. Start by printing out
SELECT A SUBSET OF TOKENS black-and-white silhouettes of monsters, skeletons,
OR MINIATURES knights, and other images. Search for royalty-free game
If you know you’re going to be running an adventure in icons online. Pick the ones you like and print them out
a crypt and you have an idea of the types and numbers at just under 1 inch in size. Then punch them out with a
of monsters who dwell there, you can sift through your 1-inch hole punch. Use 1-inch magnets for the base of the
collection and set aside the tokens or miniatures you token and 1-inch clear epoxy stickers for the top. You can
might need. This can be a little time consuming, and you put together a couple of dozen such tokens for under $20.
might not use every mini you pull out. But having them
all on hand means you can pick what you need when you BUILD SITUATIONS AND SEE
need it. WHAT HAPPENS
For online play, you don’t have to worry about the By abstracting monsters from encounters and choosing
number of tokens—just the style. You can keep a separate monsters who fit the scenes, story, locations, and
folder with the tokens you think you might need given the situations in your adventures, you give yourself the
scenario, then copy and paste as many of those tokens as freedom to let those adventures follow whatever
you need. directions they might take in the game. Keep these
USE GENERIC TOKENS tools and guidelines in mind to help you facilitate the
adventure—moving where the action takes you, and freely
A set of generic tokens is a fantastic lazy tool for online adjusting the pace to fit the fun of the table.
or in-person play. A generic token is either a physical or
digital token with an abstract representation of various
types of monsters, rather than specific art for only one

17
 BUILDING THE STORY
TO FIT THE MONSTER
In many cases, we can choose monsters to fit the story ESTABLISHING CREDIBILITY
of our adventures (as discussed at “Choosing Monsters When choosing monsters first and then selecting
Based on the Story” on page XX). Story matters the most the story, you want to find a story that establishes
in the long run, so it typically makes sense to start with verisimilitude. For some monsters, minor explanations
a larger premise and stock our adventures with monsters can suffice. Players and their characters will likely believe
who reinforce that story. But there are times when it’s that brigands have hired a bugbear from a nearby forest.
even more fun to do the reverse. We start with monsters Minor details such as the bugbear wearing a too-tight
who excite us, then we build the story to fit them. uniform can reinforce this already plausible story.
Even the goblins and the water elemental can work,
MONSTERS FIRST if at the start of the encounter, the goblins are arguing
While paging through any of the many monster books over who should use a magic item. When they see the
available for 5e games, you come across an amazing characters, one of the goblins takes the item and uses it…
monster. Filled with excitement, you wish that creature to cause the water elemental to appear!
could appear in your campaign. Or maybe a player
mentions a type of monster during a game session, saying, FISH OUT OF WATER
“I’ve never fought one of those before!” Or you might There are times when it can be fun to use monsters who
have long had an idea for a fun encounter with different don’t fit the situation, or monsters who shouldn’t be
types of unusual creatures, but those creatures don’t fit the working together. Strange combinations can be surprising
current locations in the campaign. and intriguing, as long as you take some care to make the
In these and other similar situations, it makes sense to fish-out-of-water scenario plausible.
think about the monsters first and then build a story to When a monster is a figurative fish out of water, you’ll
validate their presence. need to work a bit harder to establish verisimilitude. In
this case, you want to explain how the monster came to
VERISIMILITUDE be in its present environment, and make that a key part
Players have more fun when they can immerse themselves of the encounter. Start by asking yourself the following
in a world that makes sense. They know that every aspect questions:
of the game’s setting is imaginary, but they can suspend • Where did this creature come from, and how could it
that disbelief when it makes sense to do so. As such, it’s have ended up here?
important to make monsters and their presence in the • What would it take for this creature to be comfortable
game make sense. in this location?
Start by asking yourself whether a particular • In what ways is the creature changing or impacting the
monster fits the environment and setting. A monster’s location? In what ways is the location impacting the
lore often includes rich information on the types of creature?
environments they favor, as well as the role they play • What would this foe need or want to allow them to
in such environments. So as fantastic as creatures like remain in this location? How could someone else keep
water elementals are, they make the most sense when the creature here?
they’re encountered near a lake or other body of water. If • How do the answers to the previous questions impact
you place a water elemental in the middle of a dungeon the current story and the other creatures in this
corridor with no explanation for why they came to be location?
there, the players will likely find that jarring, making them • What can the characters notice or learn that explains
less likely to enjoy the session. the story of this monster?
You also want to take care when combining different
types of monsters, to make sure it makes sense for LORE AND STAT BLOCKS
them to work together. GMs should select monsters for A monster’s stat block tells us a lot about them, as
encounters the way a chef selects ingredients: choose a discussed in “Reading the Monster Stat Block” on page
few skirmishers, add a beefy monster to take some hits, ##. Likewise, the lore that accompanies a stat block can
and done! But even though a squad of goblins fighting provide ideas useful for thinking through a monster’s
with a water elemental might be tactically sound, that nature and what their story might be.
combination will inevitably be jarring in the game. As an example, wolves fight in packs, and they hunt
prey. Their desire for prey could force them into a village.
Maybe the first thing the characters see at night is a bush

18
 moving. When they investigate, a deer bounds out
from shelter. Moments later, the wolves that hunt the
deer show up.
Kobolds have a reputation for liking traps, so you
can showcase their traps up front to foreshadow their
presence in a location. You might also leave related clues
in the form of notes written in Draconic. You can then
set up a fun encounter where kobolds are trying to create
or repair a big trap, with the final encounter reinforcing
the earlier discoveries and providing confirmation
for players who guessed what unseen foes they were
facing.
Novels and movies can also provide narrative
ideas that can be combined with monster lore to
set up plausible scenarios for a fish-out-of-water
creature. A construct or undead could have
escaped from their creator, creating a scenario
that works with the expectation that players
are familiar with the story of Frankenstein.
Depending on how much you borrow from the
novel, the players and characters might end up
asking who is the true monster and villain in the
story.

EXAMPLE STORIES
Like our larger campaign story, the story we create for
our monsters is just a starting point. The real narrative is
the one created by the intersection of the characters and
that initial tale. A great monster story is therefore one that
helps the characters engage with the scene as fully as they
can, creating a fun adventure that the players will want to visible to a character who carefully peers over the edge, or
talk about for years to come. could be noticed during battle.
This section presents several types of stories that can Oops, We Hired Swamp Creatures! A group of
explain the presence of a monster you want to use in an lizardfolk working as laborers in a village have been
unusual environment or location. Use any of these setups hidden away by the merchant who hired them, and have
and the example stories that come with them as is, or use flooded the basement of the merchant’s home trying
them as starting points that you can alter as needed to fit to make themselves comfortable. When the characters
your own game. discover them, it’s clear that the lizardfolk are being
taken advantage of, and pointing this out could turn the
SUMMONED, HIRED, OR CAPTURED laborers against their employer.
A creature who doesn’t fit their environment could have Spider Pet. Goblins feed giant spiders in a side tunnel
been deliberately brought to that environment. Magic or near their lair, and the arachnids no longer attack
other threats might bind the creature, or they might serve creatures providing food. In an adjacent cavern, the
willingly in exchange for something. goblins raise pigs, and are trying to drag one out of a cage
Bound Air Demon. An evil sorcerer binds an air to feed the spider when the characters happen by.
demon, convincing the fiend to stay by constructing
an area that has tall ceilings, many ledges, and is filled
SURPRISING PLAYERS
with smoke. The demon can speak of this as they attack,
explaining why they deign to serve a mere humanoid. Scott notes that intentionally using a fish-out-of-water scenario
Water Guardian. A water creature could be bound to can sometimes work better than making use of monsters who
a fountain, cistern, or moat. The characters might meet are the perfect fit. Players expect goblins in the goblin tunnels,
an NPC carrying buckets of water, with the scars along and might be less engaged when they see still more goblins
their arms a sign of the dangers of reaching into the water. in a larger cave. However, add another creature who doesn’t
Runes of binding are hidden under the water’s surface, seem to belong, and the players become intrigued. They’ll still
want to know why the monster is in a strange location, or why
MATT MORROW

two seemingly incompatible creatures are working together,

but those questions now tie to the encounter rather than
undermining it.
19
 A STORY WITHIN A STORY
BREAK AWAY FROM STEREOTYPES
We can make the presence of a monster believable by
Mike notes that the act of building a story around an out-of-
telling that creature’s story and explaining how that
place monster pushes us away from stereotypical situations.
telling fits into our larger story. Though discovering an
The very act of having to explain the weird occurrence of a
explanation for a monster’s presence after the monster has
creature’s existence forces a GM to come up with a creative
been encountered sometimes works, providing at least a
explanation that they might never otherwise have come up
partial explanation up front can make the actual moment
with. Truly memorable encounters can arise from this process.
of meeting the monster feel more plausible.
Inventor Lost Control. To make use of some awesome
MINI-BIOME
clockwork monsters within a larger dungeon, you
A broader location might contain a small area where an can place a door barred from the inside with a “Keep
out-of-place monster fits in, even when the rest of the Closed” warning sign. The door leads to a mini-lair for
location is not a typical lair. Magic can always be used a gnome inventor. The first of three rooms holds her
to explain a mini-biome, though this might feel forced notes, indicating that her clockwork creations have gone
or trite. A more natural reason for a mini-biome usually out of control. The second and third rooms contain the
works best. aggressive creatures, and the third room also has the
Localized Swamp. Lizardfolk and their pet giant frog bound inventor. If freed, she can help turn the tide of
dwell in a cavern where an underground river has eroded battle.
the rock, creating swamp-like conditions. Long Cold Winter. You can establish that it’s been an
Brackish Waters. A sea creature is attacking settlements unusually harsh winter in town, and that the townsfolk
along a freshwater river. A village elder tells the characters are afraid. This sets the players and characters up nicely
that during heavy rains, the sea floods the estuary and the for a yeti attack, which seems entirely plausible.
waters turn brackish, explaining how a marine predator They Have Eyepatches and Say Yar. To make use of
has found a new home. some great bandit-type stat blocks while the characters
There Must Be a Volcano. A biome can sometimes are in a port town, simply reskin them as pirates. For extra
be foreshadowed. Setting up the appearance of a fire fun, place wanted posters for the pirate captain that the
elemental and magma mephits in a dungeon can be characters can find before the encounter.
accomplished by first creating a chamber where crude They Scuttled Off That Way. A remorhaz is a fun
drawings of volcanoes and fire creatures cover the walls. monstrosity, but doesn’t quite fit a dungeon milieu. So set
When the characters later come across a river of magma, up a scene where the characters can overhear two ogres by
the presence of fire creatures makes sense. a fire in a cave, talking about how a rock broke open and
ON A MISSION something nasty came out. Investigating the fire pit shows
that some of the rocks around it appear to have cracked
Intelligent monsters might intentionally travel to an
open like eggs. Later, the characters can encounter a
unfamiliar location, becoming explorers just like the
young remorhaz—perhaps chewing on the remains of
characters. The reason for the monsters being there can be
another dungeon denizen they surprised.
just as interesting as the monsters themselves.
Give Us the Artifact! A band of drow seek a rumored
artifact or lost lore. Their mission is vital, so they might
negotiate with the characters to gain what they seek—or
fight the characters if their mission is opposed.
What Dug This Hole? A burrowing creature has broken
into a dungeon or city basement, seeking or escaping
something. The broken wall or floor explains how the
creature came to trade its former environment for a new
one.

20
 BUILDING ENGAGING
ENCOUNTERS
An engaging encounter is one that makes the players take
notice. They lean forward in their seats. They talk to each
other excitedly. They come up with plans, interact with
scene elements, and stay focused as the scene develops.
But how do we achieve this?
This section looks at the types of elements in an
encounter that can serve as sources for engagement. It
then discusses the types of engagement we can tie to those
elements, evoking in the players a desire to take action.

WHAT DOESN’T ENGAGE?

Many aspects of a fantasy roleplaying game are fun but
not necessarily engaging. This is especially true of the
many repetitive elements of the game. A spellcaster
attacks with their cantrip. A rogue hides. The dwarf
fighter attacks with her axe. Players can do these things,
have fun, and be disconnected from play at the same time.
A player might roll their dice, then go back to their phone.
Similarly, an encounter element can fail to engage. A
trap fires an arrow, but the players smartly conclude that it
isn’t a priority and agree to ignore it for a time. That’s fine
if the role of the trap was solely to add a bit more damage.
But it’s lackluster if the trap was supposed to engage the
players. Likewise, a GM might imagine an encounter with
a pack of gnolls as fearsome, but can clearly see that the
players aren’t on the edge of their seats. Monster concepts,
and even monsters with fun stat blocks, are sometimes
not enough engagement on their own.

ENCOUNTER ELEMENTS ACTIONABLE FEATURES

PROVIDING ENGAGEMENT Encounter features that can be manipulated catch the eye
of players and characters alike. The more the interaction
To create an encounter to which the characters can fully
feels rewarding, necessary, or interesting, the greater the
respond, it’s good to break the encounter down initially
engagement.
into its component parts. Think about which elements
A rewarding feature is one that provides a benefit in
can fit your encounter concept—but be aware that you
combat. A statue might look obviously unstable as it
don’t want to overwhelm the encounter with too many
looms over a foe—inviting the characters to topple it onto
engaging elements. Rather, look for the specific elements
that foe. An enemy spellcaster lobs spells from a raised
that match the feel of the encounter best.
platform, but a block-and-tackle can allow a character to
ENCOUNTER PREMISE reach the top of the platform. Archers fire on the party
The premise of an encounter dictates from the start how from an unreachable position, but furnishings can be
significant it is for the players. An encounter with goblins turned on their sides to provide cover. The clearer the
might or might not be engaging. An encounter with the payoff of a feature, the more likely the engagement.
goblins who attacked the caravan from a previous scene? Necessary features are ones that the characters
Much more engaging. immediately understand they must make use of during
an encounter. For example, planks next to a ravine must
FOES be turned into a bridge to get to the other side to reach
Certain monsters and types of monsters can provide enemies. Magical pillars must be interacted with to bring
engagement in their own right. They might have down a force field protecting a spellcaster. A vial of liquid
surprising features, story importance, interesting labeled “Sleep Potion” appears near a huge monstrosity
roleplaying potential, or other compelling aspects. that appears impervious to spells and weapons.
Interesting features are those that are as much fun
NIKKI DAWES

for the players to figure out as for the characters—or

sometimes even more so. If an angry beast is held in
21
 a cage and the key is in the lock, it isn’t clear whether element can be tied. A long-lost journal, information
letting the beast loose will help the party—but it sure is about a missing sibling, or a clue to the location of
interesting! A lever on a wall bears a sign saying: “Pull a treasure they once lost can all engage individual
when in danger.” An unlabeled potion sits on a table characters.
halfway between the foes and the characters, and the foes The characters might also have goals as a group.
appear intent on seizing it first. Needing to earn the trust of a city’s rulers might be
necessary to gain permission to build a keep in the area.
LOCATION AND TERRAIN So if the characters happen upon a spy who just murdered
The location of an encounter can easily drive engagement. one of those rulers, the stakes are that much more
A battle across a ravine filled with molten lava tends to engaging.
wake the players up. A choice between using a swaying
rope bridge to cross a ravine or take a longer but safer AN ADVANTAGE OR OPPORTUNITY
path around it forces a decision. Encounters can provide clear boons the characters can
utilize or turn to their advantage. A barrel of lamp oil
BENEFITS AND TREASURE is discovered, one room away from an enormous troll.
The presence of an obvious benefit engages players. To A chandelier has a rope tied to it, ready for someone to
reach the golden chest, the foes must first be defeated. swing across the area. A cavern features only sleeping
A noble shouts a promise of a reward if the characters foes, who will stay that way if the characters can cross the
save them from an imminent threat. A foe fights with debris-strewn floor without making noise.
a glowing sword that promises unusual power to the
character who claims it. THE UNEXPECTED
An encounter can grab everyone’s attention when an
TYPES OF ENGAGEMENT encounter element is surprising or unusual—especially
As you consider sources of engagement for your the encounter premise. Approaching a guardroom, the
encounters, also consider what types of engagement those characters hear goblin and human guards having a heated
encounter elements can provide. argument that threatens a fight. In response, the players
can discuss how to use the conflict to their advantage
STORY RELEVANCE as they try to sneak past—or to goad the two sides into
Story relevance ties one or more encounter elements to fighting each other.
the arc of the adventure or the campaign. This relevance Surprises can also be revealed during an encounter.
is often tied to the encounter premise, but it can link to A young kraken might molt, shedding their skin and
other encounter elements as well. During a battle with becoming larger and more capable as you add several new
ruffians in a city, a character notes a foe’s tattoo—a symbol features to their stat block. Or an earthquake might strike
associated with the secretive cult the party has been trying underground, threatening to throw all the characters into
to find. Suddenly, the foe has story relevance. Similarly, a lava-filled ravine. In a dungeon, a foe pulls a lever and
a battle on the edge of a ravine filled with molten lava a wall begins to drop, closing off access to the treasure
can take on story relevance when a character spots an in 2 rounds unless the characters can reach it or stop the
important item they need sitting perilously close to the wall’s descent. Foes can also provide surprises by revealing
edge of the ravine. information as they fight. What does the paladin do when
Story relevance can be an important add-on to random an assassin says she’s tired of serving evil and offers to
encounters, even beyond what such encounters can tell follow them?
the characters and players about the world. Players pay
attention when a random encounter features a direct MYSTERIOUS OR INTRIGUING
connection to the villain they’ve been chasing, a clue they A mysterious encounter element is a promise that
need to obtain, or an NPC they care about who is in peril. something will be revealed during the encounter, often
in exchange for interaction and engagement. When a
PERSONAL OR GROUP GOALS skeleton on the ground has an arm stretched toward one
An encounter has greater engagement when it ties to goals of three levers sticking out of the wall, the characters and
the players and their characters care about. A specific players can discuss what this means. They can seek out
player might have a backstory to which an encounter clues to tell them more, and hopefully learn enough to
make the exercise feel rewarding.
When facing creatures made of shadow, interacting
START STRONG with a glowing source of light in the center of the room is
Especially for experienced players with a wide knowledge of likely to interest the characters. Likewise, when fighting
what standard monsters can do, Scott likes to have monsters an invisible foe in a chamber full of looking glasses and
who play against type or immediately show off unusual traits spectacles, the characters should be quick to suspect that
or abilities. This strong start can dial up the engagement in a
hurry.
22
 of goblins wear shirts saying “Unbeatable Goblin Fight
FORESHADOWING VILLAINS Club.” Such provocations demand responses from the
Mike likes to let characters hear tales of particular villains ahead characters, and make a scene more memorable.
of time. The characters might encounter a captive, who tells of
the fearsome gnoll captain Argvon the Black Foot. When the HOW MUCH IS TOO MUCH?
characters later encounter a fearsome gnoll with one black An encounter with no engagement can be boring.
foot, they excitedly anticipate a challenge! An encounter with too much engagement can be
overwhelming. When thinking about encounter elements
interacting with those objects might let them discover a that can create engagement, try to think through the
way to reveal that foe. perspective of the players when their characters first
TOO GOOD TO BE TRUE enter the encounter. How much information is presented
initially? How much additional information is presented
Characters and players can have fun interacting with
as the encounter progresses? Is needing to process
a situation that feels like an obvious setup. The players
that information likely to help the characters during
might second-guess themselves and trigger the setup
the encounter? Or will it cause the players to become
anyway, or they might find clever ways to turn the
disengaged because they can’t keep track of everything
situation against others. For example, a dungeon doorway
going on around the party?
leads into an open-air garden, the warm sun visible
As a rule of thumb, select no more than two or three
overhead. That can’t be possible, and the characters know
types of engagement for an encounter, and apply them
it. Or an enemy on the far side of a room might flip a lever
sparingly. One goblin warlord issuing a challenge
that activates a trap. Another lever near the characters has
can create a memorable scene. But that scene loses
an inscription on the wall above it that reads, “Turn Off
engagement if the characters are already trying to
Trap”—but the characters might suspect that pulling that
swing on a chandelier, disarm a trap, and save a beloved
second lever will only make the trap worse.
NPC. Similarly, if every goblin in the war band issues a
IMPENDING DOOM challenge to different characters, the engagement becomes
An obvious problem that gets worse over time creates repetitive and harder to track. Less is more!
pressure and begs for action. An hourglass secured to a Engagement can also be overwhelming for you as a
wall rotates, the sand slowly running out—but what must GM. When GMs have to track too many variables, it can
the characters do in response? A shadowy form pushes become harder to also look after all the other parts of
against a membrane, threatening to break through at any the game, including roleplaying the foes, remembering
moment. A gang of kobolds are assembling a huge trap character backstory, and running monsters tactically.
or weapon, and will be able to use it against the heroes in Using whatever level of engagement you’re able to run
just a few rounds. Such clear signs of impending doom most effectively will help make that engagement fun for
provide a clarion call to action. you too.
As you create encounters and try out different methods
FORESHADOWING for increasing engagement, also keep an eye on what
When the characters have heard of a particular monster works for your group. Some players like a simpler game,
or dungeon feature ahead of time, finally reaching that while others will embrace complexity and enjoy trying
foreshadowed element makes a big impression. A torn to track all the things they can do in an encounter. Over
journal in a dungeon corridor might record the account time, you can modify your approach to find the best
of other adventurers who barely survived “the deadly common-ground fit between your preferred style and that
scythe room.” Several rooms later, the characters find of your players.
a chamber filled with swinging scythes, making that
encounter feel more engaging and less random because of
the earlier warning.
PROVOCATION OR CHALLENGE
A villain appears in court and whispers a challenge,
daring the characters to strike them down. An ogre
bellows that no foe has ever forced her to yield. A band

23
 BUILDING ENGAGING
ENVIRONMENTS
Engaging environments are ones in which the terrain, to divide their tactics, with some going after the kobold
features, layout, and other elements excite players archers. Likewise, spreading all ten kobolds around the
and characters alike. In this section, we take a look room, perhaps in groups of two, forces the characters to
at the locations we choose for our battles, and the split up. This could leave them open for a surprise the
art of encouraging the characters to interact with the kobolds have planned, such as getting ready to use nets or
environment. standing on the far side of concealed pit traps.
For all these options, needing to decide what to do
REINFORCING STORY can engage the players, encouraging them to develop
When designing an encounter, consider the natural strategies and communicate with each other.
habitat of the foes in that encounter. The right
MOVEMENT
environment can reinforce the theme of the encounter
and enhance the story by creating a more realistic and An excellent skill to develop as a GM is understanding
engrossing setting. how an encounter drives, facilitates, or impedes
For example, in an encounter with several giant apes, movement. Consider an encounter with interesting
it’s almost mandatory for the encounter area to include features, but in which the monsters quickly run up to the
trees and vines from which the apes can swing down and characters and the fight ends up centered on the doorway
attack. Such an environment provides engagement as the into the area. To avoid this, consider the width of the
characters deal with the apes’ ability to climb out of reach entrance and the distances between the door, the foes, and
and move from branch to branch. the engaging aspects of the environment.
Even if an expected or ideal environment isn’t available, Moving foes back from the entrance allows characters
you can play off the baseline concept. Giant apes in a to get fully inside an encounter area. In many cases, it can
canyon could climb rocky pillars and navigate narrow be advantageous to start an encounter without obvious
rock ledges, providing the same advantages and attack foes, making it more likely that the characters will enter
options outside of a forest environment, and helping the the area—after which combat can begin. Gargoyles might
story resonate with and engage the players. wait until characters start to explore the interior of an old
However, when selecting an environment, make temple before revealing themselves. A group of gnolls can
sure that what fits the story doesn’t hinder the fun. An enter a great hall from another door once the characters
encounter with giant frogs in pools or a swamp makes reach the center of that area.
great sense. But if the pools are so deep that the characters Once an encounter is underway, provide incentives to
can’t easily approach the frogs, the encounter could entice characters to move. An engaging environment can
become frustrating. Adding giant lily pads increases help, but think through all the lines of travel that exist in
engagement and reduces frustration, while still presenting an area. Are there bottlenecks where fights will impede
the thematically appropriate challenge. movement? Are there enough ways to reach key areas of
the encounter? How many 30-foot moves are required
TACTICAL ENGAGEMENT to reach those key areas? You don’t necessarily want
An environment that provides a tactical advantage almost to remove all elements that impede the characters, but
always creates engagement. This can be true regardless of providing ways to speed up travel or bypass bottlenecks
whether the environment favors the foes, the characters, can encourage movement.
or both. When providing a tactical advantage, think Forced movement can also provide good engagement.
of the benefit and how it might be countered, as with A monster who can use telekinesis, grasping tentacles, or
the examples below. (You can find additional ideas for some other means of dragging characters closer to desired
engagement in “Building Engaging Encounters” on page locations (including closer to themself) ensures that the
##.) characters will interact with the environment, whether as

FORMATION
STACK THE DECK
What the characters see when an encounter starts informs
Scott notes that GMs can easily entice players to take a
how they approach the encounter. If ten kobolds are in
particular course of action by giving their characters a tangible
the center of a room, the characters might opt to initially
benefit if they do so. Characters might not be inclined to take
engage with area spells and effects. Melee characters
the time to navigate stairs to reach a boss monster—unless the
lacking those options will rush forward, engaging the
stairs also provide half cover against attacks from the boss’s
closest foes.
minions, creating an environmental benefit that makes that
But if five of the kobolds are in the center of the room
route a more attractive option.
and five are farther back using bows, the tactics change.
Area spells are still useful, but the characters might want
24
 to reach their foes. But there are also times when placing
UNREALISTIC SIZES ARE OKAY foes out of reach works well, as doing so can let ranged
Scott points out that the goals of facilitating roles and enabling and spellcasting heroes shine.
movement often require larger encounter areas than would If melee characters are expected to try to reach the
be found in real life—and that this is fine. A 30-by-30-foot high ground, set up ways for them to do so in 1 round,
chamber is large in our world, but might work perfectly with and don’t create a scenario where they spend most of the
the backstory of a fantastic location to allow for monsters and combat running from foe to foe. Even risky ways to move,
characters to interact properly. such as making an ability check to ascend to a warehouse
Similarly, Teos points out that a 5-foot-wide corridor works balcony using a pulley, work better than spending
just fine for real people walking, but can be too narrow for successive rounds on movement.
the combat-focused reality of the game. This is because Both elevation and cover are excellent ways to boost
moving through a space containing an ally requires twice the survivability. Because spellcasting foes often have fewer
movement. As such, a 5-foot corridor can hinder any attempts hit points and can be easily pinned down in open terrain,
for characters or monsters to reposition or move tactically, and allowing spellcasting foes to begin combat hidden behind
should generally not be used anywhere that combat might cover causes characters to focus on other targets initially.
take place. Once the spellcaster takes their actions, the heroes can
change tactics to respond to the newly revealed threat.
a result of forced movement or of trying to stay out of the And whereas needing to spend 2 rounds to reach a
reach of a creature who can move them. goblin is usually frustrating, spending 2 rounds to reach a
FACILITATE ROLES dangerous spellcaster might be a worthwhile option for a
melee hero.
Even though monsters in 5e games don’t have defined
Cover is also a boon to any foes or characters who
roles (controller, striker, and so forth), you can always
benefit from stealth. A rogue always appreciates
think about the effect a monster’s stats have on the role
environments allowing them to hide, just as foes who
it plays in combat, then use the environment to facilitate
work best as lurkers or skirmishers can benefit from cover
that role.
and being able to fall back to hard-to-reach places.
A monster with high hit points or Armor Class
should go to the front, drawing the heroes’ attention and ENGAGING ELEMENTS
soaking up the damage that would otherwise reach more
Specific elements in the environment can help engage the
important monsters. A chokepoint forces heroes to work
players during an encounter, especially when the source of
through these combat-focused foes first. Monsters who
engagement gives the characters an edge. When designing
deal high damage, especially those with high mobility, can
encounters, look for opportunities to add dynamic
engage key heroes in the middle or rear party ranks and
elements that fit the location and reward interaction.
then move away to safety.
The environment facilitates this approach to monster DAMAGING OR HINDERING TERRAIN
roles when it provides ways for monsters to reach their In a forest frequented by fey creatures, the vegetation
intended targets. Likewise, monsters who hide should might grab at characters, slowing or restraining them.
be given cover so they can maximize their potential for A fight atop a volcano might feature pools of glowing
ambush. And monsters who can boost allies or attack at magma that damage any creature moving through them.
a distance should be given enough space to do so while When selecting such terrain, consider where to place
maneuvering to stay away from the characters. it in an encounter. Think through the likely routes
(For a look at how to more formally apply monster creatures will take during combat, and how to create or
roles to your game, see “Monster Roles” on page ##. break up obvious movement patterns to generate options
“Reskinning Monsters” on page ## also makes use of or force particular behavior. Pools of lava might force
monster roles.) melee characters to spend time reaching foes, or might
ELEVATION AND COVER encourage them to focus on high-AC foes in front of
them, helping to protect vulnerable foes farther away.
Even easily defeated foes such as kobolds and goblins
When hindering or damaging terrain is obvious, the
become harder to take on if some of them are placed on
players can freely discuss options when the encounter
higher ground and behind cover. Similarly, providing
begins. Terrain can also be revealed during play when
characters with the benefits of elevation or cover can
it impacts a creature, though it’s often more effective to
allow them to take on stronger foes or additional waves of
hint at the terrain’s unusual nature and encourage ability
weak foes.
checks that can reveal its effects. “The vegetation is
When adding elevation, consider how one or both sides
moving, as if blown about by a wind you can’t sense” can
can use it, and how creatures can reach elevated areas.
inspire a player to ask if they can learn more, followed
Stairs or other means of access that are difficult terrain
by an Intelligence (Nature) or Wisdom (Survival) check
might require several rounds of movement. Many players
to determine the terrain’s effects. If the check fails, the
would rather have their characters stay below and make
inefficient ranged attacks than spend 2 or more rounds 25
 creature can drink to gain a benefit, a fact the characters
LEVEL MATTERS learn while observing their foes.
Damaging and hindering terrain can be exciting, but Scott Providing an obvious element meant to boost foes can
notes that they often have a disproportionate impact on also be interesting if the characters are allowed to prevent
lower-level characters, who often lack ways to mitigate its use. If kobold brigands begin an encounter near a siege
hindering terrain or come up short on the hit points needed weapon but their ammunition is some distance away, the
to weather continued damage. At the same time, high- characters have the ability to prevent the kobolds from
level characters might see such terrain as little more than a loading the weapon.
resource tax, requiring a couple of relatively low-level spells
or readily available class features to deal with. As such, setting DEFENSES
up engaging terrain at lower or higher levels often requires Encounter elements offering a defensive benefit can
additional work to maintain the story and the challenge. likewise provide solid engagement. If heroes are attacked
by ranged weapons, they might be in trouble if they have
character must decide whether to risk crossing the area to no cover. But a nearby clockwork fan has a large crank
learn what it does the hard way. that can be turned to create a wind that blows away
To create damaging terrain, you can use magic of a incoming arrows, and forces the foes to approach with
level the characters or their foes might use as inspiration, melee weapons.
including spells such as spike growth, entangle, grease, or Defenses can be interesting when they have a limited
sleet storm. You can also use the guidelines in the 5e core duration or a means to disable them. An arcane shield
books for creating traps, using the tables to determine might protect an enemy spellcaster until special runes can
how much damage terrain might deal. be removed from four pillars in the area. The fell undead
in a ruined temple regenerate all damage until a corrupted
FACILITATING OR DENYING
relic is restored by bathing it in holy water. The trick is
MOVEMENT
to provide ways the characters can discover this. If the
Swinging from a chandelier is great fun, and is more relic or the runes pulse with magical energy whenever
likely to become part of a scene when you point out the a foe would have taken damage, that can provide a clear
chandelier and the rope attached to it in an encounter indication to the heroes of what kind of power is in play.
area. Characters are more likely to cut a rope bridge the Mundane defenses can work just as well for creating
monsters are using when you describe how old the bridge engagement. A ritual is being conducted behind a closed
looks and how its ropes are fraying. door that the characters must get through, but monsters
Likewise, adding elements that make movement stand in the way. A pack of undead is on the move, but
easier increases the dynamic nature of the encounter the adventurers can loosen and drop a rusted portcullis
environment. Bridges, ropes, teleporters, slides, and to slow the horde’s approach. If ranged combatants stand
ramps can all add interest and engagement, helping on the other side of a ravine, the characters might topple
facilitate the use of the entire encounter area. a tree or move wooden planks to create a bridge. And
Such environmental elements can also change the tide if a red dragon breathes fire from above, the characters
of an encounter. The foes might start with the advantage can hide in one of two ruined homes—but each time the
of higher ground, but heroes who can pile up a number dragon breathes, that home will burn, preventing it from
of convenient crates can reach those foes. Or an area being used as cover a second time.
could feature ladders or even a trampoline the heroes can
utilize. When foes are attacking from a hayloft, a barrel
of torches can allow characters to turn the tables, lighting CHARACTERS ACT DEFENSIVELY
the loft on fire and forcing the creatures above to descend. Mike notes that players often have their characters act
defensively by default. As a result, giving the characters
ATTACKS AND POWER-UPS more defenses can cause play to become less dynamic if
An encounter environment can include elements that those defenses provide an incentive to hunker down in
provide or boost offensive capabilities. A siege weapon one place. To counter this, consider ways for additional
might add a potent way for characters to damage a giant, defenses to eventually break down, as with a monster tearing
or provide the means to tear down cover. In a bar fight, through cover or a magic circle in the process of fading out.
broken bottles can serve as improvised weapons, and Alternatively, create reasons why the characters can use the
alcohol spilled on the bar’s surface might be lit on fire. defenses only periodically.
Such elements can be even more fun when they initially Scott likewise points out that providing defensive-minded
favor foes but can eventually be used by the characters. characters with alternative—as opposed to additional—ways
Spellcasting foes might benefit from an arcane circle to defend themselves can help with this problem, especially
boosting their spells, until the heroes drive them back if those additional means of defense require or encourage
and make use of the circle’s magic themselves. A table movement.
in an alchemist’s laboratory might hold potions that any

26
FIFTEEN ENGAGING CONTROLLED MOVEMENT
ENVIRONMENTS In a dwarven fortress, a central chamber set with levers
Presented below are fifteen examples of environments allows foes to open and close different sections of narrow
containing elements meant to engage your players and corridors, enabling dwarf guards to attack the characters
their characters. You can use any of these examples as-is, and then retreat. Once the heroes reach the central
or as inspiration for creating your own environments. chamber, they can take control and dictate the conditions
of the battle.
SLIP AND SLIDE
FIRE BRIGADE
Frost-covered terrain features ramps shaped of ice, letting
foes or heroes quickly move across a battlefield that would During a battle in a burning building, in addition to
otherwise be difficult terrain. their normal actions, each creature can attempt to either
prevent the fire from approaching them or cause it to
ALCHEMY LAB spread toward their foes.
In an alchemist’s laboratory, any missed attack causes STAY DRY
bottles to break and spill, creating a range of short-term
hazards. While the characters fight in a sewer canal, it suddenly
begins to fill with water. Ramps and other devices can be
VERTICAL ACCESS climbed to keep the fight going.
Within a wizard’s tower, each level contains a narrow MARKETPLACE BRAWL
circular ledge beneath open ceiling along the inside wall,
creating a space from which the other levels can be seen. A marketplace erupts in an exciting battle. Errant blows
Teleportation alcoves on each ledge allow the fight to span might knock over stacks of crates to hinder the characters
several levels at the same time. or their foes, sacks of flour might split open to create
obscuring and flammable clouds, or angry merchants
SHIFTING FLOOR could enter the fray to demand that the characters pay for
A construction site features automated clockwork cranes damaged goods.
that move sections of the floor during a battle, and which PIT PUSH
suddenly bring different areas of the encounter together
or move them apart. The characters understand that they Multiple pits are set into the floors of a chamber where
can learn to manipulate the cranes, giving them control the walls shoot inward each round, potentially knocking
over the battlefield. creatures into a pit. It’s possible for the characters to
determine which walls will move next, and how far, so as
STEP LIGHTLY to find a safe place to fight.
While exploring a swamp, the characters quickly discover KING OF THE HILL
that what seems to be solid ground is actually a sleeping
tentacle beast. Missing with an attack or moving without A battle takes place along the outside of a pyramid, with
care causes the beast to strike. those atop the pyramid gaining a bonus to attack and
damage rolls, whether from magic or from the cheers of
CRYPT SHORTCUTS a crowd below. The uneven top of the pyramid has space
A battle unfolds in an abandoned crypt filled with secret for only four creatures, and creatures on the top can be
passages. The passages allow rapid maneuvering from one pushed off with successful blows, leading to constant
side of the fight to the other, but a few of them contain change at the top.
undead that dislike being disturbed. The presence of GEYSER RIDES
undead is random, and either side might trigger their
appearance. Geysers erupt in a cavern at unpredictable intervals,
sending creatures flying upward and spraying them with
DOWN TO EARTH scalding water. However, riding a geyser also allows
Enemies start the fight atop a wooden platform, letting creatures to reach the mushrooms growing on the cavern
them attack with ranged weapons from cover. However, ceiling, which provide magical benefits.
the heroes can cut the supports, causing their foes to take
falling damage as they crash down to the characters’ level.
WHITE WATER
A battle takes place on rafts heading down a river. Each
round brings a new threat from the environment, such
as low branches forcing all creatures to duck or take
damage, or fast-moving rapids requiring an ability check
to navigate.
27
 BUILDING SPELLCASTING
MONSTERS
Magic is a cornerstone of most fantasy RPG campaigns,
and nothing helps bring the magic of a world to life
better than having foes pound the characters with spells
and other magical attacks during combat. Many of the
game’s creatures already pack a magical punch, but adding
spellcasting to foes who don’t already have it can be great
fun. However, the baseline power of spellcasting means
that doing so requires some planning.
A creature’s general level of challenge for a party can
be assessed in many different ways. But when adding
spellcasting to existing stat blocks, the mechanics to focus
on are damage per round, followed by what conditions
can be imposed by a spell. After you’ve chosen magic for a
spellcasting creature, the “Running Spellcasting Monsters”
section on page ## has great advice for working with that
magic.

SPELL DAMAGE
Alongside hit points, damage output per round is the
most significant factor in determining the relative
challenge of combat-focused creatures. (This can be seen
in many NPC stat blocks, where spellcasters slinging
high-damage evocation magic can have a higher challenge
rating than diviners or enchanters, even when casting at single-target spell that deals the same damage as all of
the same level.) When building a spellcasting foe from a high-damage creature’s weapon attacks can skew a
an existing stat block, start by assessing the foe’s damage monster’s effective challenge by making them more likely
output (perhaps with reference to the Monster Statistics to drop a character with one attack.
by Challenge Rating table in the “Building a Quick SAVE VS. ATTACK
Monster” section on page ##). Then think about how to
A key component to calculating creature challenge ratings
best rework that output in spell form.
is that attacks, spells, and special features are always
DAMAGE AND TARGETING assumed to deal full average damage. A monster’s attacks
Every combat-focused creature deals a certain amount of are always assumed to hit, and the characters are always
damage per round with their best attacks—often the sum assumed to fail their saving throws against a monster’s
total of all attacks in the Multiattack action. When adding spells and special features. But one area where you want to
spellcasting to a creature, you want to focus on that total keep an eye on this is spells that deal half as much damage
damage-per-round number, choosing spells that deal on a successful saving throw. Replacing a creature’s
roughly that same amount of damage to all their targets. weapon attacks with spells that deal partial damage on a
For example, a doppelganger’s Multiattack lets them deal failed save is akin to deciding that those weapon attacks
an average of 14 damage with their Bite and Claw attacks, deal partial damage on a miss. So be careful that dealing
so giving them spellcasting that deals 14 damage makes default damage round after round doesn’t make a creature
a nice surprise for the characters and doesn’t change the a bit too sweet in combat.
doppelganger’s threat level. AREA EFFECTS
If a creature has only one primary attack per round or
For spells that deal damage in an area, assumptions need
deals relatively low damage with Multiattack, a single-
to be made about how many targets those area-affect
target spell is a great fit. But if a creature’s damage-per-
spells will hit. A good general guideline is to assume that
round output is high and is spread out across multiple
most areas of effect will target two creatures on average.
attacks, look for a spell that allows multiple targets or
Extra-large areas such as the 60-foot radius of a freezing
deals damage to creatures in an area. A CR 2 gargoyle
sphere or sunburst spell will target three creatures.
dealing a relatively low 10 damage per round is equally
fine with an area spell or a single-target spell dealing 10 CHOOSING DAMAGE-DEALING
damage. But a CR 2 centaur hits harder with 20 damage SPELLS
JACKIE MUSTO

per round, so is better with an area-effect spell dealing For characters, the damage output of spells can sometimes
that much damage in total to all its targets. Using a be a complex curve, tying into caster level and the level of
28
the spell slot used to cast. When building spellcasting foes conditions can mess with characters, these four stand
for combat, you can usually focus on baseline damage—5 alone. Each can take a character completely out of a fight,
(1d10 damage) for eldritch blast or firebolt; 10 (3d6) for shifting the overall balance of an encounter for a number
burning hands; 7 (2d6) for each scorching ray; 28 (8d6) for of rounds—or even for the entire battle.
fireball or lightning bolt; and so on. Conditions and Duration. When assessing any spell
That said, when trying to pick a spell appropriate to that imposes a condition, consider the different feel of
a creature’s normal damage output, don’t forget that spells that do so for 1 round or that allow a repeated
adjusting that damage is just as easy as adding the spell saving throw to end the condition, as compared to spells
in the first place. Want to build an inferno ettin who casts whose imposed conditions have a long duration and
fireball? Look at the ettin’s normal damage output of 28 no repeated save. Long-duration conditions with no
points, then make sure their fireball spell deals about 14 automatic opportunity to end them can be vexing for
damage (4d6 or 3d8) to each of its two expected targets. players if they cause characters to sit out multiple turns.
Even low-level spells such as charm person or sleep can
SPELL CONDITIONS feel very different when it’s the characters using them
In most cases, conditions in combat make the creatures to turn the tide against a mob of foes, and when it’s a
dishing them out more effective in a fight, by reducing single spellcasting monster using them to make multiple
the effectiveness of the characters while those conditions characters sit on the sidelines during a fight.
hinder them. Adding spells that impose conditions to
CONDITIONS AS REVERSE BENEFITS
existing stat blocks is thus a slightly less straightforward
process than swapping weapon damage for magical The way combat changes across a broad range of character
damage. levels makes it impossible to come up with any hard-and-
The effectiveness of a particular condition can vary fast rule for how much damage a particular condition is
drastically depending on what type of character it’s equivalent to in a fight. So instead, think about conditions
imposed on, and on how enemies might take advantage of imposed by spells as granting benefits to the enemy side
the condition’s effects. A fighter who’s been poisoned takes akin to turning the dials on a creature before combat.
a big hit in combat as disadvantage penalizes their attack For example, conditions that impose penalties on
rolls, even as their wizard ally casting spells that require characters’ attack rolls decrease their chances of hitting
saving throws can all but ignore the condition. Likewise, foes. So giving a creature a spell that imposes the
sleep is a 1st-level spell, and so might seem an easy option frightened or poisoned condition is effectively the same
to add to any relatively low-CR creature. But a foe who as dialing up the Armor Class of the foes in an encounter.
casts sleep in order to run away from the characters Conditions that limit characters’ actions have the same
is a very different threat than one who does so to let general effect on the action economy in a fight as giving
their melee-focused allies run in and start auto-critting the enemy side additional actions, so think of spells that
unconscious foes. impose the charmed or stunned condition as equivalent
to adding extra attacks to the enemy side.
CONDITIONS AS THREAT At the high end of the condition hierarchy, being able to
When looking at spells that impose conditions, think render characters incapacitated in any way can be thought
about those conditions as a kind of sliding scale of threat, of as akin to having more foes on the enemy side, working
from least to most significant. For the purpose of this with the idea that a character taken out of the fight for
approach, ignore grappled as a condition of its own, a round is the same as a character spending that round
focusing instead on the restrained condition that being fighting an additional “virtual foe.”
grappled typically imposes. Also ignore exhaustion, which
is a special-case condition that should generally not be CHECK SPELLCASTING ABILITY
imposed during combat. As a final step in building spellcasting creatures, have a
Charmed, Deafened, Poisoned, and Prone. These three look at a stat block’s spellcasting ability scores. The math
weakest conditions are the easiest ones to make use of for underlying a creature’s relative challenge in combat makes
spellcasting monsters. Each has the ability to take a fight the assumption that a creature is using one of their best
in an unexpected direction by hindering characters, but abilities for their go-to attacks. So if you add spellcasting
none is powerful enough to upend a battle on its own to a creature whose Intelligence, Wisdom, or Charisma
because none can take a character completely out of the are all low compared to the Strength or Dexterity fueling
fight. their weapon attacks, bump up one of those mental
Blinded, Frightened, and Restrained. These conditions abilities so the creature’s spell save DC and spell attack
are a stronger threat, representing a greater ability to modifier aren’t lagging behind their other attacks.
hinder characters in combat. All can limit the actions Alternatively, you can easily create a house rule stating
or movement of characters, even as they also penalize that creatures known more for brawn than brains who
combat rolls. channel spell magic innately can use Constitution as their
Incapacitated, Paralyzed, Petrified, Stunned, and spellcasting ability.
Unconscious. At the apex of the hierarchy of how badly
29