Argyle King
Legend
3 out of 5 rating for D&D 5th Edition Monster Manual
The first time I picked up the Monster Manual, I was extremely happy. I was also very surprised because I had been pretty negative toward D&D 5th Edition prior to the core books starting to be released. Over time; while I still am glad I purchased the book, there are some things which have gotten under my skin.The lack of an index which lists creatures by CR is a little baffling. I understand that there are space constraints in a book, but I feel as though an extra page or two to list things by CR would have been extremely helpful; especially given that this is the first MM of the new edition, and will likely be a book which is used quite frequently.Speaking of CR, there are some things revealed about the system which seem odd. I haven't yet seen the DMG, so maybe that book will clear things up, but I still don't have a clear idea of what style of encounter design 5th Edition is going for. The CR/XP budget system is hard to gauge. I have a pretty good idea of what mentality I want there to be behind encounter design; after multiple readings, I'm slightly concerned about what kind of game 5th Edition is attempting to be. In that same vein, there are a few story choices combined with mechanics which go a different direction than what I was hoping for; those things are easy enough to change, but it's still noticeable.Maybe I missed it, but does the Half-Dragon template change the CR or XP value of the creature it is added to? That's a piece of information which seems relevant to the entry.The red shadow dragon artwork was pretty cool. A lot of the artwork is phenomenal, but something about that piece in particular seemed cool. Most of the entries have a good mix of crunch and fluff. There's enough to spark my imagination and tell me about the creature, but the entries also leave enough wiggle room for me to easily change things as I see fit. I also believe there is enough of a blank canvas left to provide opportunities for later books which delve deeper into the ecology of creatures.I'm not quite sure what else to say. I like a lot of the book. The artwork is fantastic. There is a good mix of creature types and styles. However, there are some small details which reveal a game I'm unsure of yet. It's very likely that my opinion of this book is influenced by outside factors; I openly admit that. I still suggest that someone interested in 5th Edition pick up the MM. Though I need to see what the rest of the system looks like once all three core books are released before I can provide a clearer opinion which isn't too driven by novelty or too saddled with reservations about the product line. I chose 3 stars because middle of the road is how I feel right now; I'm waiting to see which way the Monster Manual and the contents within turn once I have a fuller ability to test the contents and see how they function in actual play. It wasn't long ago that I was extremely excited about the 4th Edition MM only to find that the contents weren't that exciting in actual play. I'm optimistic, but cautious; my choice of rating reflects that.
The first time I picked up the Monster Manual, I was extremely happy. I was also very surprised because I had been pretty negative toward D&D 5th Edition prior to the core books starting to be released. Over time; while I still am glad I purchased the book, there are some things which have gotten under my skin.The lack of an index which lists creatures by CR is a little baffling. I understand that there are space constraints in a book, but I feel as though an extra page or two to list things by CR would have been extremely helpful; especially given that this is the first MM of the new edition, and will likely be a book which is used quite frequently.Speaking of CR, there are some things revealed about the system which seem odd. I haven't yet seen the DMG, so maybe that book will clear things up, but I still don't have a clear idea of what style of encounter design 5th Edition is going for. The CR/XP budget system is hard to gauge. I have a pretty good idea of what mentality I want there to be behind encounter design; after multiple readings, I'm slightly concerned about what kind of game 5th Edition is attempting to be. In that same vein, there are a few story choices combined with mechanics which go a different direction than what I was hoping for; those things are easy enough to change, but it's still noticeable.Maybe I missed it, but does the Half-Dragon template change the CR or XP value of the creature it is added to? That's a piece of information which seems relevant to the entry.The red shadow dragon artwork was pretty cool. A lot of the artwork is phenomenal, but something about that piece in particular seemed cool. Most of the entries have a good mix of crunch and fluff. There's enough to spark my imagination and tell me about the creature, but the entries also leave enough wiggle room for me to easily change things as I see fit. I also believe there is enough of a blank canvas left to provide opportunities for later books which delve deeper into the ecology of creatures.I'm not quite sure what else to say. I like a lot of the book. The artwork is fantastic. There is a good mix of creature types and styles. However, there are some small details which reveal a game I'm unsure of yet. It's very likely that my opinion of this book is influenced by outside factors; I openly admit that. I still suggest that someone interested in 5th Edition pick up the MM. Though I need to see what the rest of the system looks like once all three core books are released before I can provide a clearer opinion which isn't too driven by novelty or too saddled with reservations about the product line. I chose 3 stars because middle of the road is how I feel right now; I'm waiting to see which way the Monster Manual and the contents within turn once I have a fuller ability to test the contents and see how they function in actual play. It wasn't long ago that I was extremely excited about the 4th Edition MM only to find that the contents weren't that exciting in actual play. I'm optimistic, but cautious; my choice of rating reflects that.
