Do we really need monster books?

[Henry]

Up until the Monster Manual 3, I would have agreed with Abstraction.

However, there's some reason that collection of monsters just "clicked" with me. Maybe it's the large amount of high level monsters in it (which is something that, even with the MM 3.5, is still unbalanced in that book). Instead it could be the unusual monsters (such as the Arcane Ooze or the Shadesteel Golem) in that book. For whatever reason, I couldn't see myself buying the MM2 or the Fiend Folio, because they didn't have but maybe five monsters each I'd ever use.

On the other hand, I could see myself buying Tome of Horrors (and I may yet, one day), because it fills those gaps that were left behind in the 2E3E transition.


As for "Monster, then scenario," or "scenario, then monster," I do both. Sometimes a whole scenario is born around a cool monster (MM3's astral stalker would be an adventure in itself!) Sometimes, I need something to fits a certain role (hmm, wizard's alchemy slough-sewers... what would be down there?) and that's where some of the weird beasties come in. Sure, I could (and do) modify existing monsters, but there's also that "what the " effect that players get when they see a critter they've never seen before.

But the crux of it is: I could modify monsters instead of paying someone for their ideas. I could have had the very same ideas; however, I DIDN'T and they DID, and so I bought their book.

 

[Desdichado]

A few people have said that visuals are key. Would you buy a product of just pictures, you supply your own stats? Is there already such a product? I would probably buy it. In fact, include a bunch of pictures for treasure while you're at it!

Well, for the four Wizards monster books, at least (not to mention the monster entries in other books like MotP, OA, etc.) you can download the pictures from their website. That's a better solution for me anyway; I don't have to try and cover up the text, or scan them in and manipulate the picture. And finding fantasy pictures of weirdo creatures isn't too hard in general, for that matter.

 

[Blue_Kryptonite]

I enjoy them partially just for the pure reading pleasure and inspiration. More monster books=more good reads, and for the ones I use, the pre-built stats are nice, since it means my players have a stat block to look at if they chose, instead of my just sort of mentally eyeball how long the fight is taking and how much fun the cinematics of it are for the group. We don't pay much attention to the rules overall... they're a flavour component.

 

[Zappo]

If you see monsters as stats - no, I don't need monster books. I can make up stats by myself, and they will be as good as those made by anyone else. Numbers are numbers.

OTOH, there's much more than stats to a good monster. A good monster has background, has fluff. A good monster has a reason to exist, a cool description, and some personality quirks. A good monster is a plot hook waiting to happen.

I can still make that by myself, but someone else may always think of something very cool that never crossed my mind. Or they may dress up better what I did think.

 

[Desdichado]

I can still make that by myself, but someone else may always think of something very cool that never crossed my mind. Or they may dress up better what I did think.

Yep, that's about it for me in a nutshell. I've come to accept the fact that I'm actually not terribly creative, and my own ideas --when I have them-- often aren't that thrilling. I'm much better and recombining and altering the dressing on someone else's ideas and making it appear different without actually being original to me. Because of that, monster books are both fascinating to me, and extremely useful.

 

[was]

Need?...no. Want?...yes I'm tired of the players knowing everything about every monster they encounter. You try to separate player from character knowledge, but sometimes it's difficult.

 

[demiurge1138]

Personally, I love monster books. They're what got me into D&D in the first place- interesting visuals combined with cool special abilities and the prospect of a wierd world in which these creatures live, all wrapped up in a hardcover shell for my reading enjoyment. Yes, I read monster books cover-to-cover. No shame in that.

As for the question, which came first, the monster or the adventure, I work both ways. Sometimes I think, "OK, I love Monster X, I have to put that into my game", sometimes I think, "OK, the players are going here, what sorts of monsters will they find?". I don't exclusively work from either perspective, and it doesn't sound like many others here do.

Demiurge out.

 

[barsoomcore]

I'm on the "I love monster books" bandwagon. My favourite RPG book, hands down, is the Monsternomicon from Privateer Press. What a fabulous book.

Curled up on a couch with a cup of hot chocolate and good monster book to browse through and daydream about -- that's my idea of a fine evening.

 

[Jürgen Hubert]

I used to buy pretty much every monster book I could get my hands on in the days of AD&D2E, but then I went into therapy, and now I've gotten over it.

Seriously, I don't think that new Monster Books add all that much to a campaign unless the book is directly tied to the setting you are using. Frankly, my players still aren't throughly familiar with most of the monsters in the MMI, so why not use those? And with slighly different weapons, feats, and cultural differences (in the case of sapient monsters), the same old monster can feel like a completely new critter.

And then there are templates - which can also drastically transform an existing monster into an entirely new creature. The party (at 3rd level) in my campaign were once hunting a wyrmling green dragon that hid in the tunnels below a castle. When they saw its three red eyes in each of its eye sockets and realized that this was a half-fiendish wyrmling green dragon, they completely freaked out!

Templates are a great way to create a huge variety of monsters with a certain theme. About the only monster book I would be truly interested in would be one filled with templates...

Apart from that, I say keep your MMII, MMIII, Fiend Folio and all the others! I don't need them.

 

[Darkness]

I love monster books.
Like Jürgen, I could use a lot more templates.

Story first, then I look for an appropriate monster. Usually. Sometimes the monster is first.