D&D 5E Rename the Monster Manual

[doctorbadwolf]

I was going to ask if you were being serious, but you already answered that, so I have to take your suggestion at face value.
In the wise words of Mercurius:

No.

Mah God, people calling fallacy on the slippery slope arguments were wrong, weren't they?

Hardly. This isn’t even the first time I’ve heard this argument. The first time was when 4e was coming out.

There will always be, and has always been, wild notions thrown around during times of transition. If you take every post, tweet, or blog, just as seriously* as you take entire movements, trends, etc, the world is gonna look much more radical and wild than it is.

That all being said, I like this idea just because I think Monster Manual is a dumb name.

 

[Worrgrendel]

I think the irony here is it would be great if the book was called the Monster Manual but only all the different humanoid races are on the cover.

Here's a potential sample of the cover art for the new MM:

 

[Snarf Zagyg]

Monsters are just people, so how about the ....

People Publication

People,
People who eat people,
Are the luckiest people in the world

They're small-sized people, eating other people
And yet feeling a grown-up pride
Hide all the evil and alignment inside
Acting more like people than other people

Monsters, are just very special people
They're the luckiest people in the world
With one person (one monster)
One very special person (one very special monster)
A feeling deep in its stomach (in its stomach)
Bites you in half to make its hunger whole
No more hunger and thirst
First be a person who eats other people
People who eat people
Are the luckiest people in the world!

 

[R_J_K75]

Here's a potential sample of the cover art for the new MM:

View attachment 124069

Youre gonna have to photoshop in the bloody bludgeoned skull with the metal bar sticking out of his head though.

 

[Warpiglet-7]

Hey guys! I play this cool game!

“stone underground buildings and misunderstood lizards!“

wanna play?! There are no enemies here, just friends we have not met!

 

[Guang]

I'm okay with any name that tells me at a glance that this is the main book, or main series of books that contain descriptions and stats for creatures that adventurers might come across. If it needs to be changed, fine, I don't care, as long as the replacement name is just as clear. Monster Manual, Bestiary, Creature Catalogue, or something just as clear.

What I would like to see is PC ancestries included in the same way as any other creature - which might help solve the problem you mention from a different direction. I'd like to see an entry for each of human, elf, dwarf, halfling, etc., with description and stats as normally encountered. Maybe my PC just came up from the Underdark, or swam up from the depths of the sea - why shouldn't their monsters be included too? Great to provide a baseline for comparison too. (edit: I'm aware 4e did this. Would love to see other systems/editions also do the same)

 

[Olrox17]

Hardly. This isn’t even the first time I’ve heard this argument. The first time was when 4e was coming out.

There will always be, and has always been, wild notions thrown around during times of transition. If you take every post, tweet, or blog, just as seriously* as you take entire movements, trends, etc, the world is gonna look much more radical and wild than it is.

That all being said, I like this idea just because I think Monster Manual is a dumb name.

I think Doctorbadwolf is a dumb name, but you don't see me make a big deal about it!



(I'm joking!)

 

[Warpiglet-7]

This whole multithread discussion has reached the “jump the shark” level.

I know we could polish the game to a non offensive non problematic sheen if we really try. We can do it!

but do we want to play it? Really?

I am quite used to references to kidnapping murder, torture, theft, morning stars to the head, conquerors, heros, demons, usurpers.

do the people in these discussions clean all of this up? I just...never mind. I will just see where it ends up. Looking worse than the Satanic Panic But approaching from another angle.

my approach was to play 1st edition and ignore it. Here? Play fifth until some balance is restored. But stop here and be careful about new releases.

 

[Benjamin Olson]

"Manual" isn't really a good term for an alphabetized reference resource. It should be called the Enemy Encyclopedia.

 

[Krachek]

The book of balanced & consensual challenge!
or
Matterful being manual!
or
XP budget for dummies!