D&D 5E (2014) DM Confessions: What monsters do you overuse?

[Imaculata]

Yes indeed. Demons in my campaign are almost like cosmic horrors that are never meant to be fought by the players. That is why I rarely use them. I'm very careful to keep my players afraid of demons, and not overexpose them to them.

 

[77IM]

It's not exactly a specific monster, but I tend to overuse "NPC ally/patron who turns out to be a villain." It's gotten so bad my players form betting pools about which NPCs in the campaign are actually nefarious evil overlords in disguise. I tend to prefer monsters that allow for this trope (doppelganger, rakshasha, devil/demon/succubus/incubus, vampire, polymorphed dragon, really any evil thing of high enough level to have access to shapechanging magic).

 

[pdzoch]

I'm surprised nobody has mentioned devils. Intelligent, evil, organized, manipulative, otherworldly, terrifying and preying on the flaws of humans. Maybe it's because I was raised Catholic, but devils have a feeling of being a ... deeper evil, more diabolical than even Lovecraftian horrors because they represent the evil of our own minds, amplified. Like, other bad guys are evil, but devils are Evil With a Capital E. Nothing seems better suited to the pervasive, overarching sinister plot that slowly builds over the course of an entire campaign - you can work in low level bad guys like humanoid cultists, summoning devils to foreshadow and gradually increase the power level, all with the sense of having that overwhelming, unknowable evil waiting just outside the gates of reality to pour in and turn everyone's life into a nightmarish Hell. I've built two campaigns completely around devils, and they usually find a way into most of my stories.

I'm also a catholic (that's part of the reason I'm learning Latin), but I have to admit that my use of fiends is usually restricted to the Yugoloths and to the succubus/incubus. For me, the neutral evil fiends are the most evil variety, not really caring about law or chaos, but only about wickedness and power. Plus there's that whole thing about how you can control a Yugoloth if you know its true name, and that has a Solomon aspect to it that I find appealing. I also like how the Yugoloths are more prone to making Faustian bargains with mortals than Demons would be.

As a fellow catholic, I also do not use any of the demons and devils in the game. I was really disappointed in 4e over representation of the devils and demons on their Monster Manuals (Something I am sure they would not have done in the 80's -- just gives me flashbacks thinking about it). However, I understood WOTC take on the monsters as the ultimate evil for heroes to defeat. While I knew their value to many other game settings, moving them to the forefront in 4e seemed to miss out on the other iconic evil creatures in D&D. The Slaads for example, who are my stand-ins for demons/devils. Demons and devils tend to touch on a larger world that is moving afoot to destroy mankind, so their appearance suggests something far beyond normal hero capabilities -- perhaps my view of them is also influenced akin to Chethrok. However, their use in the game seemed fine in connection with a wizard gone bad or a spell gone wrong (for some reason, Robert Asprin's Myth Adventures comes to mind), but i feel other creatures work just as well -- golems, imps, the dreaded owlbear, any elemental creature or aberration.

 

[Cyan Wisp]

I quite enjoy, as a DM, a bit of (justified) monster zoo.

In 3.5e, I was guilty of way too many humanoid NPCs with class levels - it was kind of my way of road-testing classes when I wasn't a player.

Over the years, I've probably had one too many gnoll hunter/ranger/merc types. There is something so bestial and brutal about gnolls and their hyena pets. I probably overuse giant insects and arachnids, too. These days, playing Eberron, hobgoblins and dinosaurs feature heavily (not together). And damn it if I don't have too many bandits and cultists.

 

[VikingLegion]

I tend to utilize Yugoloths, mainly because I love how they play both sides of the Blood War (demons and devils) to their own advantage. Also, of the fiend types they seem to get the least press. Of course that probably suits them just fine, playing the role of innocent merchant/information broker, there's something so devious and sinister about how they operate. I ran a 6 year campaign with a 'loth as the BBEG that was steering the players the entire time into doing what he wanted. I had an NPC mentor warn the players in the first month of year 1 that Yugoloths are fiendishly (pun intended) clever, and even when you think you are opposing them, you are usually playing right into their hands.

Since Yugoloths have already been mentioned in this thread, I'll add two others I'm guilty of perhaps overusing. Actually I wouldn't say overusing, as I don't throw them around willy-nilly, but there's almost always an appearance in any campaign I run:

Inevitables, particularly Maruts (see my Avatar pic). There's something so badarse about a creature that will pursue you to the ends of the earth with unyielding effort and implacable patience - even crossing the ocean floor on foot for months just to get to the continent you're on. You will never escape it, you can only delay the confrontation. Add in thunder and lightning fists and the Marut is absolutely one of my favorites.

Revenants - after seeing the Crow it is almost mandatory I include one of these in a campaign. I like to run a subplot involving a wrongly killed man or woman going after an NPC that the heroes may need to keep alive for information purposes. This places them in an unenviable conundrum of having to fight off the revenant and protect an immoral pig, even though they know it's wrong and all they really want to do is throw their guy to the revenant and let him exact justice.

 

[VikingLegion]

Sorry, double post.

 

[Unwise]

It's ghosts for me. Every damn place has a ghost or two. They allow you to show plot points, bits of history and exposition in a really interesting way. The can also be approached as either combat or social challenges.

 

[THEMNGMNT]

I over use goblinoids, aberrations, and undead. Aberrations tend to be my BBEGs because they're so strange and monstrous. My affection for goblinoids comes from Dragonlance, probably. And undead are just too damn convenient.

I under use gnolls, yuan-ti, and dragons. I love them. But never seem to build a campaign around them.

I do not use demons, devils, or humans. They bore me.

 

[TarionzCousin]

Not xvarts.

 

[ExploderWizard]

Bugbears. Lots of bugbears. They are a great tough evil humanoid bad guy, and right at a challenge level that continues to be useful throughout a campaign appearing in small numbers at lower levels and larger numbers at higher levels. They make nice crunchy warriors, but can also be deceptively stealthy as assassins.