D&D 5E (2014) FGG/Necromancer Games teases 5th Edition Foes

[Zaukrie]

It is not a wizard...it has spell casting ability. As a DM, I would easily know how to use it. I have no idea on the balance. But it is not confusing to me.

 

[Nellisir]

The aaztar-ghola was published in Monstrosities, for Swords & Wizardry, and they're recycling the art and text, with a few slight tweaks (pulling out the spells from the text and moving them to the stat block). There are stat block changes: hit dice have increased from 6 to 7, AC has dropped from 16 to 14, move has increased from a standard 30(12) to 40, and two longswords have become two scimitars. Otherwise the same (S&W monsters don't have ability scores, so those are new.)

Hit points look incomplete on this one "hp:40 (7d8+)"
And leaving CHA on its own line really bothers me.

Monstrosities had white space issues, which they mitigated by putting in adventure seeds. Those have been dropped here, which is unfortunate. It probably would've been complicated to do, since many of them refer to monsters that may or may not be in the Monster Manual (giant spiders, etc.) but I'm not a fan of white space.

 

[Agamon]

The lack of an XP value is disconcerting. If it's 1st edition feel, well 1st edition had XP stats with it's monsters.

I would have polished this up to publication level before posting it. But that's just me.

 

[sithramir]

Why does this thing have a 7th level spell slot? It's a 7HD monster with 40 hps? It's basically going to kill a character before being beaten with that? It just doesn't match? Makes me wonder about their idea of balance. That's the biggest issue I worry about from splat books is lack of balance. Take that out and the monster looks good or maybe give it a 4th level attack spell or something.

 

[Dahak]

The lack of an XP value is disconcerting. If it's 1st edition feel, well 1st edition had XP stats with it's monsters.

I would have polished this up to publication level before posting it. But that's just me.

The first edition Monster Manual actually didn't have an XP value for critters. You needed the later DMG for that (or use the outdated stats from Monsters &Treasures or blue-book Basic). There were XP values in FF and MM2 though, of course.

You're right about the lack of polish, though. Overall, this project seems questionable to me. More like an attempt for a quick cash in before any licensing system is put in place.

 

[Samurai]

Why does this thing have a 7th level spell slot? It's a 7HD monster with 40 hps? It's basically going to kill a character before being beaten with that? It just doesn't match? Makes me wonder about their idea of balance. That's the biggest issue I worry about from splat books is lack of balance. Take that out and the monster looks good or maybe give it a 4th level attack spell or something.

That was exactly my thought. He can use 1 Finger of Death, doing an average of 61.5 damage if it hits and turning the PC it kills into a zombie. After that, it looks to be a match for about 3rd to 5th level characters, with 40 HP, 14 AC, and 5 damage per hit. You don't just give a low level monster a single high level, deadly spell like that because it throws off the balance, making the creature unsuitable for low levels, but too weak to challenge higher levels after round 1.

 

[Charles Wright]

Steve Winter is still hammering out some of the details on some monsters, which is why there isn't a CR or xp on this particular creature yet.

 

[grimslade]

I like the monster. I like the art. There are some imperfections that are because we are so early in the release process. There are others that are constraints put on by the OGL vs 5E. It is a great snapshot of where they are right now for Kickstarter backers and fence sitters.
I love the fact that this critter is a deadly menace. Very 1E feel. He can only take out one PC though before he will get snuffed. Hopefully his ghoul waitstaff and prep chefs will be able to hold the PCs off.

 

[JeffB]

I decided against backing this because I figured there would be a strong "winging it" element and a little bit or a whole lot of re-tread of the multiple monster books FGG has done for S&W/PF and even Necromancer proper back into 3.x.

This preview makes me feel OK with that decision, as I find I rarely use more than 1/4 of the monsters in any supplemental bestiary (i.e, not the MM), regardless of edition. I would love to have the adventure book, but I am not willing to gamble the extra $ for the monster book. in order to get the former.

Had they waited until January or something, to get a good grasp on the finalized rules, I probably would feel differently.

 

[Jake Johnson]

I like the monster. I like the art. There are some imperfections that are because we are so early in the release process. There are others that are constraints put on by the OGL vs 5E. It is a great snapshot of where they are right now for Kickstarter backers and fence sitters.
I love the fact that this critter is a deadly menace. Very 1E feel. He can only take out one PC though before he will get snuffed. Hopefully his ghoul waitstaff and prep chefs will be able to hold the PCs off.

Yes, he will need the proper supporting monsters to make his entrepreneurial venture in fine dining a success. The more I think about it, the more inclined I am to write an adventure around this guy. If I do, I'll share it here.