![]() ![]() A full-page main image is supplemented by sketches and notes illustrating different life stages and other peculiarities, as well as a human image for scale reference. It starts with a jokey-looking flowchart titled “Identifying Monsters of the Mythos” which is actually very useful indeed.įifty-three full colour spreads describe monsters in detail, including brief notes on their habitat, distribution, life and habits, and distinguishing features. ![]() There are Cthulhu Mythos monster books aplenty, but Petersen’s Field Guide stands out. Petersen’s Field Guide to Lovecraftian Horrors Today, no self-respecting monster book would be without these three features, and that makes the 3.5 Monster Manual something of a milestone.īuy it at DriveThruRPG. Page for page, it might even be the most valuable part of the book. Following their instructions, the DM can customize monsters and create new monsters, providing the sort of endless variety that will keep players on their toes.įinally, the list of monsters by challenge rating saves a lot of trouble when creating adventures. Second, the chapters at the back of the book – Improving Monsters, Making Monsters, and Monster Feats – make the book far more than just another collection of creatures. This makes it far easier to design encounters and run combats. This is for three main reasons:įirst, each monster description includes a ‘Combat’ section which covers the creature’s combat-related abilities and its preferred tactics. Still, the 3.5 edition is better in my opinion. The original Monster Manual from 1977 was a landmark product in many ways, and just about every monster supplement published since has been influenced by it. So here they are, in no particular order: Monster Manual 3.5 I’ll look forward to reading your views, and discussing what makes a monster book good, or great, or amazing. If that’s the case, let me know! The comments section is right there at the bottom of the page. Some of these are old – very old, but then so am I! – and there may very well be newer, even better books out there that I have not yet seen. In this post I will discuss some of my favorites, looking especially at what each one offers the reader beyond the basic description and stat block. I still love monsters, mythology and folklore, and monster books are still among my favorite types of tabletop roleplaying supplement. In the Games Workshop printing of the basic rulebook, I saw other names I recognized, and I was hooked right away. In my first D&D game, I played two thief characters, both of them killed by a minotaur. Ever since I saw Ray Harryhausen’s skeletons in Jason and the Argonauts on my parents’ black-and-white TV, I have been obsessed with monsters – especially those from myth and folklore. ![]()
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