DDM Preview 6 Cyclops

[Fifth Element]

What I fins most interestign in the Cyclops beingin the MM is there might be an indicator towards a trend here- more monsters from classcial fiction/lore that nonD&Ders can identify.

This is something I would definitely support, both for my own personal preferences, and for the reason you mention - making the game more identifiable to new players.

 

[Klaus]

Oh, it's worse than that. EACH of those Attacks of Opportunity is 10 bites!

Eh?

The hydra can make one AoO per head, and no more than one per opportunity.

 

[Fifth Element]

Eh?

The hydra can make one AoO per head, and no more than one per opportunity.

Does the FAQ say anything on this? The SRD is unclear:

A hydra’s Combat Reflexes feat allows it to use all its heads for attacks of opportunity.

Does this mean it can use all of its heads on each AoO? Or does it just mean it effectively gets a maximum number of AoO's each round equal to its number of heads?

I prefer the latter, since an AoO is defined as a single melee attack. So the hydra at least has a special rules wrt the effect of Combat Reflexes.

 

[Fifth Element]

An attack of opportunity is a single melee attack; no matter how many weapons or natural weapons the creature making the attack has available.

So the hydra cannot attack with all 10 heads on an AoO. It can, however, make a buttload of AoO's in a round, if a buttload of AoO's are provoked.

 

[Wolfspider]

So the hydra cannot attack with all 10 heads on an AoO. It can, however, make a buttload of AoO's in a round, if a buttload of AoO's are provoked.

Hmmm.

I went and looked at the ten-headed Hydra's stats here:

http://www.d20srd.org/srd/monsters/hydra.htm

Under Attack (not Full Attack) it lists "10 bites +14 melee (1d10+5)"

I click on the link for Attack and it says this:

"This line shows the single attack the creature makes with an attack action. In most cases, this is also the attack the creature uses when making an attack of opportunity as well."
http://www.d20srd.org/srd/monsters/intro.htm#attack

Now "10 bites" is the single attack that the hydra makes. It can make "10 bites" whether it moves or not; this is an attack action. Also, apparently, it can make "10 bites" whenever it makes an Attack of Opportunity. Now, the hydra might be an exception to this rule, but I'm not aware of this. Perhaps the Hydra has been specifically discussued in a FAQ or errata document.

By the way, I think that this rule, if it's accurate, is crazy. I have heard it quoted in many places, though, and read many arguments about how dangerous the Hydra is.

 

[tensen]

http://www.calacademy.org/exhibits/skulls/diversity.html , scroll down

I've seen some occasional news articles on "cyclops skulls" pop up from time to time, usually from third world countries, and they get corrected a few days later.

I was just at a mythology exhibit in a New York museum and they used the old elephant skull display to show what some people might have mistaken as cyclops skulls. But then again I've been to other museums where I recognized various objects misidentified... they don't pay museum staff enough to hire true experts anymore.

 

[Desdichado]

Those little things to either side of the painted eye really do look like eyes, though.

He looks like he has two eyes and a really big swollen zit right between his eyes.

Besides, WotC is trailing badly behind Privateer Press in terms of cyclops design.

 

[Fifth Element]

"This line shows the single attack the creature makes with an attack action. In most cases, this is also the attack the creature uses when making an attack of opportunity as well."
http://www.d20srd.org/srd/monsters/intro.htm#attack

Now "10 bites" is the single attack that the hydra makes. It can make "10 bites" whether it moves or not; this is an attack action. Also, apparently, it can make "10 bites" whenever it makes an Attack of Opportunity. Now, the hydra might be an exception to this rule, but I'm not aware of this. Perhaps the Hydra has been specifically discussued in a FAQ or errata document.

By the way, I think that this rule, if it's accurate, is crazy. I have heard it quoted in many places, though, and read many arguments about how dangerous the Hydra is.

Yikes, you're right. I hadn't looked at what the "attack" line means. It does appear that all heads can attack on a single AoO. I don't see anything in the FAQ specifically discussing hydras.

Which, as you say, is crazy.

 

[Jhaelen]

I don't like the mini.

I do like the cyclops being in MM1.

I also think the idea of a cyclops entering a blind rage after losing its eye (i.e. after becoming bloodied) is a very neat one!

 

[gothmaugCC]

I miss my sword of sharpness