So Much Art From the 2025 Monster Manual

Here's some preview art from the 2025 Monster Manual, courtesy of Wizards of the Coast's "Everything You Need to Know Video" on the new book.

A classic Faceless Stalker:

A demon of some kind:

Arch-Hags:

Some kobolds:

A Nalfeshnee, perhaps?

A revenant:

Blue dracolich:

Death Knight:

Death tyrant:

Chimera:

Githyanki (with the central warrior recreating a classic pose):

A mummy lord:

A marrow:

A balrog balor:

Mimics:

While I'm tempted to say a tressym, this actually might be a new sphinx design:

Bone fiend:

Sladd:

Rust monster:

Platinum(?) dragon:

Bronze dragon:

Hezrou, perhaps?

Fire giant, not Karlach:

Cloud giants:

Zombies:

Red dragon:

Hags (including a male hag):

Dryads (including a male dryad):

Horned devil:

Incubus and succubus:

Vampires:

Vampire:

Colossus:

Spirit naga:

Copper dragon:

White dragon:

Blue dragon:

Gold dragon:

Black dragon:

 

[dave2008]

I like the cover of Tasha's

This one? I think that is pretty good too, but it seems to fit right in with most of the art in the 2024 DMG and MM (from the previews at least). It seems to be over the same general style as much of the art. I haven't looked at the PDB as much so will not comment on that.

Wait, is it just the mood of the art and not the style that you like/dislike. Like you want everything dark, edgy, and in the shadows? That is not a style, but a theme. Just want to clarify what you are looking for.

 

[Chaltab]

Okay but why did they have to make Tasha that attractive.

 

[Sacrosanct]

Let's just all agree that Tyler Jacobson's art is up there with the best: Easley, Elmore, Otis, Caldway, Parkinson, et. al. AFAIC, he is the face of 5e art.

 

[Sacrosanct]

Okay but why did they have to make Tasha that attractive.

Because most of the time Iggwilv took the form of an extremely beautiful woman.

 

[Horwath]

This one?

yup.

I think that is pretty good too, but it seems to fit right in with most of the art in the 2024 DMG and MM (from the previews at least). It seems to be over the same general style as much of the art. I haven't looked at the PDB as much so will not comment on that.

Wait, is it just the mood of the art and not the style that you like/dislike. Like you want everything dark, edgy, and in the shadows? That is not a style, but a theme. Just want to clarify what you are looking for.

the more realistic art looks the better, for me at least.

if it can be added in dark/gothic theme, all the better.

I would save colorful them for fey.
maybe with slight green tint to it.

 

[dave2008]

yup.

the more realistic art looks the better, for me at least.

if it can be added in dark/gothic theme, all the better.

I would save colorful them for fey.
maybe with slight green tint to it.

So you want your particular tastes and no others? I mean they definitely have art that matches your stated tastes. I guess I have never seen someone be some narrow in the idea of what art they like. And I want to stress "you like" here. The art you don't like is not bad, it is just not what you like.

I think I know where you are coming from; however, it is a narrow viewpoint I just can't share or even justify for the huge audience WotC is making products for.

 

[Whizbang Dustyboots]

My only hope is that we ditch the gendered "andro" and "gyno" sphinxes, and just have male and female sphinxes.

I strongly concur. Another shout out to The Monster Overhaul for making its sphinxes cool and mythic while dumping needless cruft like single-gendered species. (Which works if, say, Ursula K. LeGuin was writing a science fiction novel about them, but which is just pointless duplication/splitting of stat blocks in D&D.)

 

[Sacrosanct]

I strongly concur. Another shout out to The Monster Overhaul for making its sphinxes cool and mythic while dumping needless cruft like single-gendered species. (Which works if, say, Ursula K. LeGuin was writing a science fiction novel about them, but which is just pointless duplication/splitting of stat blocks in D&D.)

As an aside, I didn't find out until recently that Ursula K. LeGuin lived about a mile or so away from me and I never knew. Man, I wished I did when she was still alive.

 

[EzekielRaiden]

While many of these are good, the gold dragon makes it so painfully clear how stumpy and underwhelming the new wings look. I get what they were trying to do with it. It just doesn't look good. It looks silly and weak, not like the literal most impressive subspecies of dragon.

 

[mamba]

the more realistic art looks the better, for me at least.

for you, sure, but I cannot agree with that or we mean different things by realistic

Frazetta and Ken Kelly do not look all that realistic, but I do like them. Beksinski is further from realistic and I like him too…