D&D 5E 5e Updates: Monstrous Compendium

[dave2008]

Hey Dave2008. Are you planning on making traits for demigods? It seems strange to not have any traits for them when you have traits for other types of divinities.

I wasn't planning on it because I considered things of demigod level to be so varied to be without a clear definition. However, I could create a baseline, and then you only need to modify the parts that are different for a particular demigod. Give me about 30 min. and I will post it.

I am considering doing some big updates to Rajara using your rules as a baseline, but as she is only a demipower (at most) it is a little hard to do without proper rules.

Sounds good, just give me a shout if I need to update my link.

 

[Matrix Sorcica]

I have added Annam, the giant god pantheon head. It is till a WIP, but I wanted to go ahead and post it. This was originally designed by ??? and I edited and updated to my new staged mythic idea.

The concept is that each rank of deity gets an additional stage of mythic traits. So a lesser god is a mythic monster. an intermediate god is stage 2 mythic monster (the mythic trait activates twice) and a greater god like Annam is a stage 3 mythic monster (mythic trait activates 3x). Let me know what you think

So you decided not to cap the gods at CR30? Now with mythic Amman is more powerful than most of your previous god designs. Are you planning to increase the power level from the already very very high level it already was? I'm not sure I agree that's what the point of mythic traits are about. Imo is about being able to actually face these things.

In the greater god traits, their attacks are +5 weapons. What's the point/relevance of that? Shouldn't it be 'artifact-level' or 'legendary-level' like the damage immunity/resistance?

Also, when Amman uses his maul, is it "only" a +3 weapon then?

 

[dave2008]

As a side note, I would be very very careful with the limited magic immunity trait for your deities, there is a very good reason as to why Rajara only has it up to 3rd level (and I have been considering removing it altogether). It is an extremely problematic trait that essentially locks anyone who has casting ability but is not a full caster out of most of their abilities, and even full casters usually only can get one or two spells that affect the creature before they half to resort to using a crossbow.

I understand that wizards of the coasts themselves has used it on some high-end monsters (aka Tiamat), but having actually played extremely high level 5e has given me an understanding of how problematic it can be. Nothing is worse than simply saying "no", and both limited magic immunity and legendary resistance as written do exactly this (incidentally this is why I have changed legendary resistance on her to simply grant advantage on all saving throws, it is a much easier rule that does not rely on a weirdly specific number of uses per day and still gives a defense increase without simply saying "no" to the players).

As written your deities already have high enough saving throws to succeed on anything the players can throw at them on a 2. Having limited magic immunity on top of that feels like overkill.

I agree with you to some extent, and I may revise the levels down (originally they were all one level lower). However, anything I post above lesser god level (and to some extent lesser god level monsters) are not intended for general play. They are yo be used with above level 20 play: either epic boons and/or a 3PP that takes PCs above level 20. So, casters at these levels will have access to more high level spells and above 9th level spells.

I am also considering replacing Legendary resistance. Right now I only give it to deities, everything else gets a different mechanic to deal with conditions and effects (see the "unstoppable" trait some of the monsters have. These are "working" documents, so I will make changes over time.

EDIT: I have replaced legendary resistance with unstoppable and reduce the effectiveness of limited magic immunity to start at 5th lvl for lesser gods and max at 7th level for greater gods.

 

[dave2008]

So you decided not to cap the gods at CR30? Now with mythic Amman is more powerful than most of your previous god designs. Are you planning to increase the power level from the already very very high level it already was? I'm not sure I agree that's what the point of mythic traits are about. Imo is about being able to actually face these things.

I'm trying it out to see how it works. I have gotten rid of epic bonuses and reduced the damage by ability score numbers, so things are less drastic than before. The AC, to hit, attack, and damage numbers should all be less than in the epic updates. The big difference is the big jump in HP allowed by the mythic stages. From my perspective this makes them more usable with existing 3PP lvl 20+ epic content. The are still able to be damaged and hit, but they can last much longer. So, if you have a party of 6 lvl 30 PCs i think you could actually have an interesting fight with a solo greater god, I don't think that would be possible, or at least not as interesting, with my old rules. We will see.

One reason I have chosen this format is that it is easy to edit and keep it up to date without having to mess with Word and PDFs.

In the greater god traits, their attacks are +5 weapons. What's the point/relevance of that? Shouldn't it be 'artifact-level' or 'legendary-level' like the damage immunity/resistance?

It says legendary magic items when I look at it. Maybe you say it in progress before I was finished?

Also, when Amman uses his maul, is it "only" a +3 weapon then?

It is listed as an artifact, the point of saying it is +3 is so you can understand the math behind the to hit number (which I forgot to calculate). Might need to rethink that as I don't like natural weapons getting the shaft.

 

[dave2008]

Dracoturtle by akreon

Dragon Turtle, Adult
Gargantuan dragon, neutral

Armor Class 20 (Natural Armor)
Hit Points 341 (22d10 + 110; bloodied 170)
Speed 20 ft., swim 50 ft.

STR	DEX	CON	INT	WIS	CHA
25 (+7)	10 (+0)	20 (+5)	10 (+0)	12 (+1)	12 (+)1

Saving Throws Str +13, Dex +6, Con +11, Wis +7
Damage Resistances fire
Condition Immunities prone
Senses darkvision 120 ft., passive perception 11
Languages Aquan, Draconic
Challenge 17 (18,000 XP) Proficiency Bonus +6

Amphibious. The dragon turtle can breathe air and water.

Aquatic Senses. If the dragon turtle is submerged, it has advantage on Wisdom (Perception) checks versus submerged targets.

Ram. If the dragon turtle moves at least 30 feet straight toward a target and then hits it with a bite attack on the same turn, the damage type becomes bludgeoning, it cannot grapple the target, and the target takes an extra 22 (4d10) bludgeoning damage.

Siege Monster. The dragon deals double damage to objects and structures.

Unstoppable (3/Short Rest). At any time, requiring no action, the dragon turtle can take 30 hit points of damage and immediately end one condition or effect it is suffering. After taking the damage, the dragon cannot take reactions until the start of its next turn.

ACTIONS
Multiattack. The dragon turtle makes two bite attacks. It can make one claw or tail attack in place of a bite attack.

Bite. Melee Weapon Attack: +13 to hit, reach 15 ft., one target. Hit: 35 (4d12 + 7) piercing damage and the target must succeed on a DC 20 Strength saving throw or be grappled. If the target is Medium or smaller it is also restrained while it is grappled.

Claw. Melee Weapon Attack: +13 to hit, reach 10 ft., one target. Hit: 21 (4d6 + 7) slashing damage.

Tail. Melee Weapon Attack: +13 to hit, reach 15 ft., one target. Hit: 26 (4d10 + 7) bludgeoning damage. If the target is a creature, it must succeed on a DC 20 Strength saving throw or be pushed up to 10 feet away from the dragon turtle and knocked prone.

Steam Breath (Recharge 5–6). The dragon turtle exhales scalding steam in a 60-foot cone. Each creature in that area must make a DC 18 Constitution saving throw, taking 52 (15d6) fire damage on a failed save, or half as much damage on a successful one. Being underwater doesn't grant resistance against this damage.

BONUS ACTIONS
Titanic Prey. The dragon turtle can make a claw attack against Large or larger target.

REACTIONS
Chomp. If a creature ends its turn grappled by the dragon turtle, the dragon turtle makes a bit attack targeting the creature.

 

[dave2008]

Hey Dave2008. Are you planning on making traits for demigods? It seems strange to not have any traits for them when you have traits for other types of divinities.

I am considering doing some big updates to Rajara using your rules as a baseline, but as she is only a demipower (at most) it is a little hard to do without proper rules.

I have added Demigod Traits. Let me know what you think. I am willing to adjust as needed.

 

[Matrix Sorcica]

It says legendary magic items when I look at it. Maybe you say it in progress before I was finished?

Must be it.

Okay, we'll see how it pans out. I still feel it's way more powerful than your previous designs.

 

[dave2008]

Must be it.

Okay, we'll see how it pans out. I still feel it's way more powerful than your previous designs.

Overall yes (my twisted mind prefers that), but the revised numbers keep it closer to the base BA, which I like. If you look at Annam, his total HP are much higher, but his to hit bonus, AC, and DPR are lower than my old CR 39 greater gods:

Annam (CR 39)
AC: 25
Total HP: 4,230
To hit: +25
DPR: 400+/-

Bane (epic update CR 39)
AC: 30/34 (w/ shield)
Total HP: 1,440
to hit: +28
DPR: 700+/-

EDIT: now that I see it, Annam is basically an auto-hit a CR 39 monster. I may want to reduce his HP and increase his AC to compensate

 

[Matrix Sorcica]

Well, you "only" had to defeat Bane once.

 

[dave2008]

Well, you "only" had to defeat Bane once.

I never said it was apples to apples