Giants: How big should they be in an a Fantasy RPG?

[Tonguez]

Also is it me or does anyone else think that giants are drawn too thin/narow and should be protrayed as being broader overall (sort of like the frost giant pick)

 

[Kunimatyu]

There's a template in Advanced Bestiary called Jotunblood, for the Huge effect you're describing.

 

[Sejs]

Also is it me or does anyone else think that giants are drawn too thin/narow and should be protrayed as being broader overall (sort of like the frost giant pick)

Depends on which half of my brain you ask. One half says "Giants! Yeah! Big in every way!". The other half says "Thin kinda makes sense. Keeping something that big really well-fed would be tough, let alone a whole group of 'em."

 

[Graf]

But you have to advance them by class.

Absolutley.
If I found you were violating any of the sacred rules(tm) I would call for you to be taken away personally.

 

[Li Shenron]

The bigger the scarier! I've never thought about increasing the MM giants' size, but why not trying that sometimes? There are of course Huge and Gargantuan giants already, but there's really little reason why Frost & Fire should be smaller than Storm & Cloud an not viceversa.

There are however some difficulties in using too-large monsters, because you have to accomodate their environment, at least if you want it to make most sense as possible.

Indeed I agree that the best would have been to have advancement by HD/size. IMO when writing the MM the designers had in mind that each monster should be suggested for either advancement (HD or class level) but not both. So they might have automatically thought that if they had written a HD advancement it would have meant "you shouldn't apply class levels to this". Class levels is still the most appropriate advancement for Giants, but really they could be advanced in both ways.

 

[Matafuego]

I would like to see racial paragon classes allowing the lesser giants to BECOME huge, however (or to acquire Powerful Build)

Actually that is a GREAT idea.
I like my giants as they are in the MM and I'm even allowing some of them to become PCs (after the culmination of certain campaign points where there is already a Fire Giant Wizard PC).
I think they are big (and bigger) enough but some paragon growing in size would be great.

We had dragons, undeads, aberrations...
When is the Book of Giants coming out?
Giantcraft? Was that the name in the FR?

Lucas

 

[Hussar]

The real problem with huge giants is just that - they're huge. You need such immense spaces to use them in. A huge base is 3x3. That means if you have an encounter with 4 giants, you need a bloody immense room to do it in. Makes mapping a real pain.

Besides, 15 feet tall is big.

 

[Quasqueton]

Looking at that image in the OP, how does the human deal a the lethal (killing) blow to the Huge giant? He can't hit above the giant's thigh.

This concept has always been a mental stumbling block for me.

Quasqueton

 

[D'karr]

Looking at that image in the OP, how does the human deal a the lethal (killing) blow to the Huge giant? He can't hit above the giant's thigh.

This concept has always been a mental stumbling block for me.

Quasqueton

When the Big, Tall Giant leans down to beat the puny human, the human stabs him in the groin. Worst pain there is... LOL

 

[Dog Moon]

Looking at that image in the OP, how does the human deal a the lethal (killing) blow to the Huge giant? He can't hit above the giant's thigh.

This concept has always been a mental stumbling block for me.

Quasqueton

That's kind of the problem I always had, but I figure if nothing else, just chop off their legs at the knees or ankles and then when they can't move except at a crawl and they're lying down on the ground, finish it off.