From Silly to Vile

[the Jester]

Soo... if a monster book had a range of monsters from silly (several types of squirrel-based monsters) to vile (I can't really say in detail for fear of offending Gramma), would that entice you to buy it more or would you be less inclined towards it? Assume that the monsters are cool and useful.

 

[alsih2o]

more inclined, i want books that can handle everyhting i may choose to play, and i go from silly to vile in one campaign, much less 2

 

[EricNoah]

Honestly, "silly" doesn't appeal to me in gaming products. Especially if I have to pay for it.

 

[guedo79]

I'd be more likely to use it. I'd rather have more options in a Monsters Manual even if I don't use them all.

 

[Psion]

Soo... if a monster book had a range of monsters from silly (several types of squirrel-based monsters) to vile (I can't really say in detail for fear of offending Gramma), would that entice you to buy it more or would you be less inclined towards it?

Less inclined.

Assume that the monsters are cool and useful.

IME, "silly" monsters are not cool and useful, despite efforts to the contrary. IME, players always fixate on the one silly situation and making the game farcical, beyond just being a lot of effort to make a joke, usually has repurcussions in the mood of the game unless you wanted a farcical mood for the overall game in the first place... and I don't.

 

[ejja_1]

silly to vile

If the monsters were usefull then sure, even the silly ones.
A friend of mine likes to occasionally run games of that nature where everything is silly, to the point of were it really isnt a game any longer but more of a tension breaker.
It's good every once and awhile to not take the game so seriously, and to kick back and have fun with a disposable character. In fact some players even find it more of a challenge to try and gear a character towards this kind of play.

 

[the Jester]

Like for example, a megalosquirrel that has improved grab; on a hold it can stuff you in its cheeks, where you're pinned and start suffocating, and if there's enough stuff in there with you you might even take some grinding damage.

Funny- but definitely useful, dangerous, and full of plot potential ("the giant squirrel stole our horse!")

 

[Sniktch]

That's not silly; that sounds pretty dangerous to me! When you said silly it put me in the mind of Creature Catalogs, etc. from April Dragon magazines, with stuff like Killer Sheep, paper dragons, pink dragons, Hareweres, etc.

A megalo-cheek-stuffing-squirrel sounds pretty cool to me. I like monsters of all kinds, but the truly 'silly' ones would turn me away from a product. However, I think I have a different idea of silly than most - for instance, when SpellJammer was released I liked Giant Space Hamsters and Giff.

As an aside - hiya Jester, long time no speak How are ya? Are you going to GenCon Indy this year? And did you enjoy your April 20th holiday yesterday?

 

[haiiro]

Overall, probably less inclined.

I don't mind the occasional silly monster out of context (giant space hamsters, for example) -- and it certainly won't stop me from buying something -- but I'd probably mind more than a few. Since I'm not too likely to use a silly monster, I'd rather there not be very many in a given book.

 

[Bendris Noulg]

Assuming most are non-silly (which is not to say that most are Vile), I would likely purchase it.

The more silliness, the less likely I'd feel an inclination to do so.