5E: Converting Monsters from White Dwarf Magazine for Fifth Edition

[ilgatto]

The smiley indicated I was joking.

Ah! Misinterpreted that. Mille excuses.

 

[Casimir Liber]

The question remains, do we put in Special Traits with Aggressive à la Monster Manual or in its own Bonus Actions section?

If the latter, shouldn't Aggressive logically be moved to the Bonus Actions section too?

My strong preference is both in Bonus Actions section

 

[Cleon]

Amiraspian cyclopes are one-eyed, man-eating creatures known for their violent raids on the settlements of humans and humanoids alike. They stand nine feet tall and resemble men in general shape, with powerful arms and clawed hands, and tan-colored, weathered skin with scattered clumps of straggly green-black hair. Their faces have a single massive eye, clear sea green in color and eerily human apart from its size. Below this eye sits a horrible, broad mouth crammed with fangs.

I prefer the first paragraph to be entirely about the monster's appearance, but there's no rule to that effect. Don't care for the "violent raids" bit as it's too close to what's in Foes of Humanity and would simplify/generalize it.

The final "Below this eye" sentence suggests its mouth is where its nose should be, and I don't much care for starting it with "Below" for arbitrary aesthetics reasons. It just looks incomplete to me, as if it were missing the start of the sentence.

"for" > "of"?

The expression "fondness of human flesh" would mean it's the human flesh that's fond of something.

If you really want "of" instead of "for" it'd need to be "innately fond of human flesh" or the like.

One's an adjective (fond), the other's a noun (fondness).

"to rot": why not the original scavengers bit?

Shrug. Just to mix it up. Don't want to simply copy the White Dwarf text. It's better to make it as much our own words as we can.

Also, the wording could be taken to meaning cyclopes deliberately seek out vultures and hyenas to throw dead half-orcs to, which didn't make much sense to me.

I preferred it naturally attractive carrion-eating scavengers due to its eating habits, and from there it made sense for them to hang around its lair where the leftovers are. Although I suppose they could follow after cyclopes waiting for them to drop food.

Would be liking to meat you halfway [;p] and have it says the cyclops leaves the half-orc corpse as carrion. The reader should be able to figure out how that connects to the "carrion-eaters" in the later paragraph.

Actually, might expand that section to include the possibility of scavengers trailing after a cyclops to feed of its grisly leftovers…

Cyclops caves are usually infested with carrion-eaters that feed off the remains of their prey.

Note: LOL man cave. But it’s not in the original.

Scavengers are, and where else would they be?

Cursed Births. Amiraspian cyclopes are always male, possibly due to genetic deficiencies. To propagate their kind, they keep any pregnant human women they capture alive until they have given birth. A child born of these women is handed over to the chieftain, who will then invoke a powerful, irreversible curse to transform the child/it into a cyclops. However, this curse does not always work and invoking it may also result in a cyclopean human, a human child with only one eye which is then cast out to fend for itself. Often, such children are then picked up by other cyclopean humans, who will raise it as one of their own. In other cases, the curse will simply fail to generate any effect, leaving the child unchanged and to be devoured like the other prisoners.

Would cut references to genetics, as it feels a bit to "scientific" for D&D.

I mused about taking a "choose your own abomination" approach and presenting various rumours about how cyclopes multiply (transforming newborns in cyclopes, sacrificing virgins to summon cyclopes from the Feywild, the original "rapey" way, procreating asexually, or maybe female cyclopes exist, etc. etc.) and leave it up to the DM to decide which, if any, are true.

Besides, how do people know cyclopes are actually male? They could just resemble male humanoids more than female ones, but be technically asexual or sexless and incapable of reproducing naturally, which is why they have to use the changeling method of multiplying?

But in the end, I think doing so would make the section too complicated, and it would be more prudent to keep the details brief and vague.

When you boil it down, we just need to mention that (a) the cyclops needs a captive pregnant human, (b) they always eat the mother after childbirth, and (c) the result can be a cyclops, a human, or a cyclopean human.

 

[Cleon]

My strong preference is both in Bonus Actions section

Will move Aggressive in the next update.

 

[Cleon]

Anyhow, here's a new version:

Amiraspian cyclopes are one-eyed man-eaters known for their savage attacks on humans and other humanoids. A cyclops stands around 9 feet tall and resembles a man in general shape, with powerful arms, clawed hands and a horrible mouth, broad and crammed with flesh-ripping fangs. Its single massive eye is clear sea green and eerily human apart from its size. The cyclops's weathered skin is tan in color, with scattered clumps of straggly green-black hair.
 Foes of Humankind. Amiraspian cyclopes are carnivores with an innate fondness for humanoid flesh. Their favorite food is halfling, followed by gnome, dwarf, elf, gnome and human, but they loathe the taste of orcflesh. Only a starving cyclops would eat an orc or half-orc, it would rather leave the corpse as carrion.
 Cyclopes are notorious for raiding undefended settlements, repeatedly attacking them whenever they feel hungry. Like many predators, a cyclops prefers weak victims (e.g. abducting unarmed villagers from hamlets or farmhouses) over hunting strong prey that might injure it (e.g. fighting warriors or adventurers).
 Cave Tyrants. These monsters can live off most types of terrain, including subterranean, and normally lair in caves. Amiraspian cyclopes often dominate bands of humanoid monsters (orcs, gnolls, goblins, et cetera) as their minions. The group is ruled by the strongest and fiercest cyclops (see Amiraspian Cyclops Chief for an example). A cyclops lair might also contain young cyclopes and captured humanoids. Often human, these living prisoners are held to be eaten. Unlucky captives suffer ghastly fates before being devoured.
 A cyclops may attract scavengers that feed on the gory remains of its prey. They are sometimes trailed by carrion-eaters such as buzzards or jackals, and their dwellings are usually infested with corpse-flies and similar vermin.
 Cursed Births. [the "problematic" bit] ???

 

[Cleon]

 Cursed Births. [the "problematic" bit] ???

Might as well bite the bullet!

 Cursed Births. While their chest and shoulders might resemble male humanoids and giants in form, these cyclopes are genderless creatures incapable of natural procreation. Instead, they keep pregnant human captives and curse their offspring to become or be replaced by a cyclops baby as it is born. This Amiraspian curse must be delivered during the delivery; pregnant humans who escape or are rescued from a cyclops den birth regular infants. The unholy curse requires the human mother be eaten when the baby is birthed and does not always work. Instead of a cyclops whelp, the newborn may be fully human (in which case it is eaten too), or the curse only partially succeeds and results in a one-eyed humanoid called an Amiraspian?]. Amiraspian humanoid infants grow to resemble a cyclopian human rather than a cyclops, and are cast out once the cyclopes realize they aren't their kind.

 

[ilgatto]

The final "Below this eye" sentence suggests its mouth is where its nose should be, and I don't much care for starting it with "Below" for arbitrary aesthetics reasons. It just looks incomplete to me, as if it were missing the start of the sentence.

Heh. I wasn't too happy with it either.

The expression "fondness of human flesh" would mean it's the human flesh that's fond of something.

If you really want "of" instead of "for" it'd need to be "innately fond of human flesh" or the like.

One's an adjective (fond), the other's a noun (fondness).

Didn't particularly want it one way or the other. I just thought it was a typo and I now stand corrected.

Shrug. Just to mix it up. Don't want to simply copy the White Dwarf text. It's better to make it as much our own words as we can.

Ah. I wasn't aware of the latter.

Also, the wording could be taken to meaning cyclopes deliberately seek out vultures and hyenas to throw dead half-orcs to, which didn't make much sense to me.

Hmm... I beg to differ but I guess in doesn't really matter in light of the "better avoiding as much of the original text as possible".

I preferred it naturally attractive carrion-eating scavengers due to its eating habits, and from there it made sense for them to hang around its lair where the leftovers are. Although I suppose they could follow after cyclopes waiting for them to drop food.

Fair enough. So suggesting that half-orcs are taken back to the lair before they are killed? I rather read the original as that the cyclopes simply killed them wherever they found them and left them there for scavengers.

Would be liking to meat you halfway [;p] and have it says the cyclops leaves the half-orc corpse as carrion. The reader should be able to figure out how that connects to the "carrion-eaters" in the later paragraph.

"Carrion" is fine to avoid misunderstandings you point out above.

Actually, might expand that section to include the possibility of scavengers trailing after a cyclops to feed of its grisly leftovers…



Scavengers are, and where else would they be?



Would cut references to genetics, as it feels a bit to "scientific" for D&D.

Agreed.

I mused about taking a "choose your own abomination" approach and presenting various rumours about how cyclopes multiply (transforming newborns in cyclopes, sacrificing virgins to summon cyclopes from the Feywild, the original "rapey" way, procreating asexually, or maybe female cyclopes exist, etc. etc.) and leave it up to the DM to decide which, if any, are true.

Besides, how do people know cyclopes are actually male? They could just resemble male humanoids more than female ones, but be technically asexual or sexless and incapable of reproducing naturally, which is why they have to use the changeling method of multiplying?

But in the end, I think doing so would make the section too complicated, and it would be more prudent to keep the details brief and vague.

When you boil it down, we just need to mention that (a) the cyclops needs a captive pregnant human, (b) they always eat the mother after childbirth, and (c) the result can be a cyclops, a human, or a cyclopean human.

Er... OK. I thought I'd nerfed it quite considerably already?

 

[ilgatto]

Anyhow, here's a new version:

Amiraspian cyclopes are one-eyed man-eaters known for their savage attacks on humans and other humanoids. A cyclops stands around 9 feet tall and resembles a man in general shape, with powerful arms, clawed hands and a horrible mouth, broad and crammed with flesh-ripping fangs. Its single massive eye is clear sea green and eerily human apart from its size. The cyclops's weathered skin is tan in color, with scattered clumps of straggly green-black hair.
 Foes of Humankind. Amiraspian cyclopes are carnivores with an innate fondness for humanoid flesh. Their favorite food is halfling, followed by gnome, dwarf, elf, gnome and human, but they loathe the taste of orcflesh.

Why is it "orcflesh"? Would it be "humanflesh" or "manflesh?"

Only a starving cyclops would eat an orc or half-orc, it would rather leave the corpse as carrion.
 Cyclopes are notorious for raiding undefended settlements, repeatedly attacking them whenever they feel hungry. Like many predators, a cyclops prefers weak victims (e.g. abducting unarmed villagers from hamlets or farmhouses) over hunting strong prey that might injure it (e.g. fighting warriors or adventurers).
 Cave Tyrants. These monsters can live off most types of terrain, including subterranean, and normally lair in caves. Amiraspian cyclopes often dominate bands of humanoid monsters (orcs, gnolls, goblins, et cetera) as their minions. The group is ruled by the strongest and fiercest cyclops (see Amiraspian Cyclops Chief for an example). A cyclops lair might also contain young cyclopes and captured humanoids. Often human, these living prisoners are held to be eaten. Unlucky captives suffer ghastly fates before being devoured.
 A cyclops may attract scavengers that feed on the gory remains of its prey.

Perhaps the "cyclops" in the final sentence should be plural?

Because:

They are sometimes trailed by carrion-eaters such as buzzards or jackals, and their dwellings are usually infested with corpse-flies and similar vermin.

 

[ilgatto]

Might as well bite the bullet!

 Cursed Births. While their chest and shoulders might resemble male humanoids and giants in form, these cyclopes are genderless creatures incapable of natural procreation. Instead, they keep pregnant human captives and curse their offspring to become or be replaced by a cyclops baby as it is born. This Amiraspian curse must be delivered during the delivery; pregnant humans who escape or are rescued from a cyclops den birth regular infants. The unholy curse requires the human mother be eaten when the baby is birthed and does not always work. Instead of a cyclops whelp, the newborn may be fully human (in which case it is eaten too), or the curse only partially succeeds and results in a one-eyed humanoid called an Amiraspian?]. Amiraspian humanoid infants grow to resemble a cyclopian human rather than a cyclops, and are cast out once the cyclopes realize they aren't their kind.

Hmm..., not at all in favor of the "genderless" thing, nor of the "pregnant human captives" to avoid mentioning women.

"a cyclops baby" > "a cyclops infant"?
"as it is born" > "after it is born" to avoid graphics?

"to become or be replaced by a cyclops baby as it is born" may suggest that there already is some cyclops offspring somewhere which is then put in place of the actual child born?

"The unholy curse requires the human mother be eaten when the baby is birthed" > "(...) after the infant is born"? Again, to avoid graphics?

Also, if we're going to leave things in the middle, shouldn't there be some sentence somewhere along the lines of "Little is known of the process but it is said that..."?

Like the final sentence, though, which seems to suggest that the cyclopean-human infants are not tossed out of the lair when the curse fails, for that solves them probably not surviving. Still like a link to the other cyclopean humans though, for I do see these griffon riders travel to the cyclops lair every once in a while to collect the cyclopean-human infants.

 

[Cleon]

Why is it "orcflesh"? Would it be "humanflesh" or "manflesh?"

To misquote the Jackson version of Lord of the Rings, because manflesh wasn't on the menu that day.

Perhaps the "cyclops" in the final sentence should be plural?

It was plural in the previous draft. Either I got bored and changed it, or swapped it to singular to see if you'd notice!

Hmm..., not at all in favor of the "genderless" thing,

Suspected you wouldn't. Although I could argue that White Dwarf #21 doesn't actually say they are all male, but that no female cyclopes exist. Admittedly if they're not male it's harder to explain how they reproduce via an "unholy union" with captive human females, but that doesn't prevent them being hermaphrodites or using some strange magical method. Indeed "strange magical method" is what we went for.

nor of the "pregnant human captives" to avoid mentioning women.

It wasn't to avoid mentioning women, but just to make it a bit less wordy. At one stage the sentence had "captive pregnant human women" and it just seemed too long.

"to become or be replaced by a cyclops baby as it is born" may suggest that there already is some cyclops offspring somewhere which is then put in place of the actual child born?

That was the idea. I was hinting at a "changeling theory" of how cyclopes come into existence.

Don't particularly like the wording, mostly 'cause it's a bit confusing. Will probably change it in the next draft!

"The unholy curse requires the human mother be eaten when the baby is birthed" > "(...) after the infant is born"? Again, to avoid graphics?

Hmm, I'd go for "once it is born" instead.

Also, if we're going to leave things in the middle, shouldn't there be some sentence somewhere along the lines of "Little is known of the process but it is said that..."?

Yeah, I started including a sentence like that in one draft but cut it out again. Maybe next time!

Like the final sentence, though, which seems to suggest that the cyclopean-human infants are not tossed out of the lair when the curse fails, for that solves them probably not surviving.

My idea was one ugly one-eyed baby looks much like another, so it's only once it's grown a bit that it's obvious which is a cyclops and which an amiraspian. The clincher would be that the amiraspian doesn't develop a hypno-eye, although not having the claws and fangs of a true cyclops is probably a bit of a giveaway too.

Anyhow, I feel another draft coming on…