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<blockquote data-quote="Tav_Behemoth" data-source="post: 1558393" data-attributes="member: 18017"><p>I think that having a range of monster types representing all CRs is a good thing. (Mind you, this is not the same as saying that the Phantom Fungus is a good monster... <img src="data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7" class="smilie smilie--sprite smilie--sprite2" alt=";)" title="Wink ;)" loading="lazy" data-shortname=";)" /> )</p><p></p><p>As a DM, I like customizing a monster until it screams "No more pain, Master!" as much as anyone. But there's times when the party does something I just never expected, and that's when having a critter I can use off the shelf is crucial. Since higher level parties have many more abilities to surprise me with, it's more important to have well-designed base creatures on hand for higher CRs than for the lower range.</p><p></p><p>CR is a useful index even if one particular group of 12th-level characters is more or less powerful in a certain situation than the CR estimate expects. As the DM, I'll have gotten a handle on this translation factor already, and if I have both a CR 10 and a CR 14 undead to choose from I can quickly be prepared whether I'm running an atheistic party or one that's heavy on divine power.</p><p></p><p>As a designer, I find it a challenge to my creativity to look at gaps in the existing array of monster types. By definition, this demands that I come up with a kind of creature that no one has done before! Trying to think about what a huge CR 10 fey would be like, for example, is often a good source of inspiration for me. </p><p></p><p>One of the first things we did when we started work on the Masters and Minions series was to do a gap analysis on the SRD monsters, looking at type, subtype, alignment, etc. The good news is that there's lots of under-explored combinations, enough to keep designers busy for quite some time! I'll post a link to the chart we made as soon as it goes up on our site; email <a href="mailto:nat@behemoth3.com">nat@behemoth3.com</a> if you're impatient (and have Filemaker <img src="data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7" class="smilie smilie--sprite smilie--sprite1" alt=":)" title="Smile :)" loading="lazy" data-shortname=":)" /> )</p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p>Is your Excel file publicly available? I've been working on a mega-index of monsters, building on <a href="http://www.systemreferencedocuments.org/index.htm?35misc/35srdtables.htm" target="_blank">Seeker95</a>'s, and I'd love to know of any others that are out there.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Tav_Behemoth, post: 1558393, member: 18017"] I think that having a range of monster types representing all CRs is a good thing. (Mind you, this is not the same as saying that the Phantom Fungus is a good monster... ;) ) As a DM, I like customizing a monster until it screams "No more pain, Master!" as much as anyone. But there's times when the party does something I just never expected, and that's when having a critter I can use off the shelf is crucial. Since higher level parties have many more abilities to surprise me with, it's more important to have well-designed base creatures on hand for higher CRs than for the lower range. CR is a useful index even if one particular group of 12th-level characters is more or less powerful in a certain situation than the CR estimate expects. As the DM, I'll have gotten a handle on this translation factor already, and if I have both a CR 10 and a CR 14 undead to choose from I can quickly be prepared whether I'm running an atheistic party or one that's heavy on divine power. As a designer, I find it a challenge to my creativity to look at gaps in the existing array of monster types. By definition, this demands that I come up with a kind of creature that no one has done before! Trying to think about what a huge CR 10 fey would be like, for example, is often a good source of inspiration for me. One of the first things we did when we started work on the Masters and Minions series was to do a gap analysis on the SRD monsters, looking at type, subtype, alignment, etc. The good news is that there's lots of under-explored combinations, enough to keep designers busy for quite some time! I'll post a link to the chart we made as soon as it goes up on our site; email [email]nat@behemoth3.com[/email] if you're impatient (and have Filemaker :) ) Is your Excel file publicly available? I've been working on a mega-index of monsters, building on [URL=http://www.systemreferencedocuments.org/index.htm?35misc/35srdtables.htm]Seeker95[/URL]'s, and I'd love to know of any others that are out there. [/QUOTE]
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