12 new monster images revealed from Mordenkainen’s Tome of Foes!

I am no good at posting pictures, so you have to go to https://www.sageadvice.eu/2018/05/09/new-monsters-images-revealed-from-mordenkainens-tome-of-foes/.

Pictures include:

Giff
Eidolon (assumed no caption)
wintery Eladrin
Eladrin design shot
I have no idea, but ugly
The scariest looking Abashai I have ever seen--looks like it deserves a high CR
Abashai group shot
I have no idea, but ugly
Marut--Not your Dad's Marut, but seriously after looking at this, why would you want your Dad's Marut?
Marut design
Something big and scary (maybe a death giant?)
Another Giff
female Drow (matriarch?)

The last is definitely the Drow Matron Mother, they showed that art during the one-on-one battles on Twitch.

 

[Olgar Shiverstone]

There's a place for silly, strange, and awkward in D&D. I always felt that Spelljammer turned it up to 11, to its detriment.

For the Giff, it's like the designers said:

"What's the most ridiculous anthropomorphic race we haven't tried yet?"

"Weasels!"

"Already have kenku for the rogue angle. Try again."

"Platypuses!"

"Too hard to pronounce. Next!"

"Hippos!"

"Not bad ... what's their angle?"

"Napoleonic naval officers with a gun fetish!"

"Name?"

"And we'll call them Giff, 'cause it sounds like Gith which are cool."

"Wait ... hard G or soft G?"

"Doesn't matter!"

"Love it, go with it! Now, how do we make Dark Sun halflings different ..."

 

[silentdante]

holy , i want to play a bipedal hippo PC!!!! the giff look awesome, are they an old D&D thing i just dont remember?

EDIT: ah read the thread and lots of info on them, thanks everyone. i have a feeling this is going to be a great book.

 

[Kobold Avenger]

"Platypuses!"

"Too hard to pronounce. Next!"

I feel if there's another Platypus like creatures that has flesh unlike the Thought Eater (a Skeletal Platypus with psionics that isn't undead) then they should probably have the habit of casually using a certain word that begins with "C" that is considered really offensive in North America, merely impolite in the UK and used in Australia to describe just about anyone.

 

[dungeonguru]

It's possible to run horrific and serious Spelljammer campaigns - I have done so myself, and some of the last supplements produced for the setting leaned more in that direction. But to me Spelljammer overall emphansizes the sense of wonder and amazement and possibility of D&D, without the kind of jaded cynicism that led to stuff like Planescape and Dark Sun. Planescape itself is more or less a 90s style gritty reboot of Spelljammer anyway, in a sense.

Spelljammer was always easy to steer into macabre and horrific. The neogi and illithid are literally the most Cthulhu themed monsters that had awesome lore added to them with Spelljammer. It was always easy to spin tales about elder gods wandering the phlogiston between the spheres with both races as their agents.

I disagree with planescape being a gritty reboot though. There was too much tongue in cheek written in randomly (as though the whole series had been infiltrated by a Xaositect editor, berk). The best thing about Planescape was the artwork of Tony DiTerlizzi but most of the 2e Planescape boxes were very much worth the investment.

 

[Henry]

My Giff! They’re bringing back my Giff! YYYEEESSS!

No one talk smack about my Blunderbuss-wielding, hippo-looking 19th century British army officers! I love those guys!

I am SO running a 5th edition Spelljammer convention game next year with Giff and Hadozee PCs now...

 

[DaishoChikara]

Hmm, that statue is very familiar... I hope it doesn't bear a grudge! ;-)

 

[Demetrios1453]

Hmm, that statue is very familiar... I hope it doesn't bear a grudge! ;-)

Well, it's been 40 years since those adventurers were seen taking out its eye gem, and now suddenly it's mobile and looking displeased. I don't think the news will be good here...

 

[Schmoe]

I absolutely love that image of the Nightwalker. So cool.

Giff are fun, but they always remind me of the Umpani from Wizardry 7, which I believe were first. One are hippos, the others are rhinos, but otherwise pretty much the same.

 

[Connorsrpg]

Got to say, not really digging new look for maruts or rutterkin and don't care for giff. But that is cool. Does not mean I don't want the book or that it sucks. I have previous pics for the first 2 to go on and I can go on ignoring the Spelljammer stuff as I always have.

I dig some of the other pics - especially the abishai! They could come in very handy for one of my current campaigns.

 

[Xavian Starsider]

a certain word that begins with "C" that is considered really offensive in North America, merely impolite in the UK and used in Australia to describe just about anyone.

Colonials?

Just kidding. I know the word you are hinting at and wish I didn't. D&D has no need of it.