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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Cadfan" data-source="post: 4240262" data-attributes="member: 40961">My usual random thoughts:1. The Needlefang Drake Swarm looks... really freaking dangerous for a level 2 monster.  I mean, seriously.  It does a LOT of damage per round, especially if the PCs are near to each other, it has a LOT of hit points, and its highly resistant to the most common attacks available to level 2 PCs.  I like the monster, but it doesn't seem like a regular level 2 monster.  I mean, seriously.  Swarm moves adjacent to a PC (move action), knocks the PC over (minor action), attacks for 2d10+4 damage (standard action), then lets the PC have a turn and attacks again for 2d10+4 damage.  Seriously?  I know that not every attack will likely be successful, but, seriously?2. This could change depending on party composition or the availability of purchasable gear.  Supposing that flaming oil is an area attack, I could see a party of PCs tearing through a swarm in a single round.  Same with a party with several dragonborn PCs.  But using only the pregens, this swarm would be a really rough fight, perhaps more appropriate for an Elite monster.3. I hope there's advice in the DMG for how to describe fights with swarms.  In a normal fight, you beat up the monster and it dies.  With a swarm, you beat up the swarm until enough of its constituent members have died and it retreats or no longer meaningfully threatens you.4. These swarms have really high Reflex defenses.  Which... is probably the defense you attack if you use an area attack.5. Swarms don't need default immunity to mind effecting attacks, because not all swarms make sense as immune to mind effecting attacks.  Why shouldn't all the little hungry lizards fall asleep to a sleep spell?6. Interesting that, with swarms, location is abstract.  The swarm occupies a single space, in the sense that you have to attack that space to hurt it.  But the swarms constituent members occupy a 3x3 space, and bite you if you enter that larger area.  So basically you have to wade into the swarm if you want to hurt it.  I like this.  This is one place that the "get it off!  get it off!" feel is really accentuated.  They should have pointed this out more clearly.  Having to wade into a swarm to hurt it rather than standing next to it and swinging at it is a big improvement, to me, over 3e.7. If you want a bigger swarm, use multiple swarms.  Simple, elegant, effectively models the "as you beat them up they get smaller" aspect of a swarm.  In such a case I'd possibly rule that the auras don't stack.  I don't know, depends on balance issues.</blockquote>

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