Greatest. Monster Book. Ever.

[Harlock]

This sounds like an interesting book, but the Steampunk elements worry me a tad. I run a fairly traditional D&D fantasy setting. I also want to run a Scarred Lands campaign very soon and maybe exclusively for a time. How well will Monsternomicon work for someone like me? Thanks for the input folks.

 

[Carnifex]

This sounds like an interesting book, but the Steampunk elements worry me a tad. I run a fairly traditional D&D fantasy setting. I also want to run a Scarred Lands campaign very soon and maybe exclusively for a time. How well will Monsternomicon work for someone like me? Thanks for the input folks.

It'll run fine, as there are not too many staempunk ebasties in the book. There's the steel lich, deathjack, pistol wraith, and those nasty beasties that are the first entry in the book, some sort of automata. That's about it, IIRC.

So there's loads of monsters still that you should easily be able to find use for in a normal campaign

 

[barsoomcore]

A couple of responses to various queries:

Yeah, frankly, the thing that gets me most about Monsternomicon is its cool factor (Ai! He used the word again!). These creatures are original, innovative and practically every single one you look at and just say to yourself, "Cool." I do, anyway.

I know that's wildly subjective but there you are.

There are a couple of great features here that I wish more monster books would feature:

1. Size comparison charts -- for each creature there is a small silhouette image alongside a scale image of a human. Gives you a great idea of how big these things are.
2. Legends and Lore -- easy-peasy answers to Knowledge checks, Bardic Knowledge, divinations, or Gather Information checks.
3. Hooks -- down on ideas for tomorrow's game? Grab the Monsternomicon and leaf around. You'll find dozens of ideas to build quick adventures around.
4. Cool variants on existing creature types -- Trolls become a whole new thing. Likewise goblins, minor undead and all that jazz.

It's a book in which fit and finish and attention to detail stand out. It doesn't make you feel like a sucker for having bought it. It makes you want to show it to everyone you know. And I so far have found it massively useful.

Will it fit into a non-steampunk setting? Well, here's a couple of numbers. Of the 95 creatures in the book, 14 might be considered "steam-punky". Of those, 7 or 8 are just constructs and could reasonably be found in any sort of campaign where golems and their like are found. Only 6 or 7 are really "steam-punk".

There's all kinds of value in here for any campaign.

 

[Dinkeldog]

A couple of responses to various queries:

Yeah, frankly, the thing that gets me most about Monsternomicon is its cool factor (Ai! He used the word again!). These creatures are original, innovative and practically every single one you look at and just say to yourself, "Cool." I do, anyway.

I know that's wildly subjective but there you are.

There are a couple of great features here that I wish more monster books would feature:

1. Size comparison charts -- for each creature there is a small silhouette image alongside a scale image of a human. Gives you a great idea of how big these things are.
2. Legends and Lore -- easy-peasy answers to Knowledge checks, Bardic Knowledge, divinations, or Gather Information checks.
3. Hooks -- down on ideas for tomorrow's game? Grab the Monsternomicon and leaf around. You'll find dozens of ideas to build quick adventures around.
4. Cool variants on existing creature types -- Trolls become a whole new thing. Likewise goblins, minor undead and all that jazz.

It's a book in which fit and finish and attention to detail stand out. It doesn't make you feel like a sucker for having bought it. It makes you want to show it to everyone you know. And I so far have found it massively useful.

*snip*

There's all kinds of value in here for any campaign.

I've got it and will probably never use anything out of it. So far Tome of Horrors is the only non-WotC creature book that I've gotten any use from.

Of your list above, I like the size comparison and the variants. The lore and hooks were useless to me, and seemed to do nothing but fill space. Unfortunately on the scale of fluff running from twinkie filling to chocolate mousse, it seemed more twinkie.

I appreciate the number of people that really like the book, and I got it from their recommendation. I tend to run a different type of campaign, I guess--the amount of goth-ish stuff doesn't do much for me.

YMMV.

 

[Fenes 2]

I don't run monsters much, so the 3 monster books I own - MM1, MooF, MM2 - are more than enough for me. Now detailed NPCs without too much magic, that is another thing...

 

[Carnifex]

I've got it and will probably never use anything out of it. So far Tome of Horrors is the only non-WotC creature book that I've gotten any use from.

Of your list above, I like the size comparison and the variants. The lore and hooks were useless to me, and seemed to do nothing but fill space. Unfortunately on the scale of fluff running from twinkie filling to chocolate mousse, it seemed more twinkie.

I appreciate the number of people that really like the book, and I got it from their recommendation. I tend to run a different type of campaign, I guess--the amount of goth-ish stuff doesn't do much for me.

YMMV.

You see, I don't think it's particularly gothic at all. There's some sinister stuff, from nasty grymkin to evil infernals, but to be honest it's generally not even what I'd call 'goth-ish'. It's a pretty long distance from 'cool', swish vampires and their ilk, anyway.

As for the fluff, I'd say that the quality is very good, and that it is highly informative in helping the reader understand the creature better and gain ideas and inspiration.

 

[green slime]

AAARRRGGGGHHHHHH!

I hate the Monsternomicon!

I have yet to see it darken these distant shores.

I have been chasing it for MONTHS!

And now you guys start a thread about how cool it is?

Begone! Foul beasts, depart this world!!

 

[blackshirt5]

My three favorite monsters from this book are the Mechanithrall, the Iron Lich, and the Pistol Wraith(who could actually be changed into an archer, they even make mention of archery in the Pistol Wraith background). Maybe not appropriate for every campaign, but a great one for my campaign.

Actually, on a related note, does anybody know what books have stats for guns from the Iron Kingdoms setting?

 

[Desdichado]

I've got it and will probably never use anything out of it. So far Tome of Horrors is the only non-WotC creature book that I've gotten any use from.

Of your list above, I like the size comparison and the variants. The lore and hooks were useless to me, and seemed to do nothing but fill space. Unfortunately on the scale of fluff running from twinkie filling to chocolate mousse, it seemed more twinkie.

I appreciate the number of people that really like the book, and I got it from their recommendation. I tend to run a different type of campaign, I guess--the amount of goth-ish stuff doesn't do much for me.

YMMV.

I wouldn't call it necessarily gothic, but it certainly is a question of style. See, I wouldn't use much of anything from Tome of Horrors, with the exception of a few of the fiends, probably. That book didn't really have much going for it except nostalgia, IMO. And even then, most of the creatures converted should've stayed forgotten anyway. I do like Scott's new creatures, though. And like I said, the various fiend sections are really good. Oh, and the other animals.

 

[Felon]

So, with gun-toting wraiths, it makes me wonder how applicable these steampunk critters would be for a d20 Modern campaign? Can they be ported over from steampunk to Urban Arcana's technopunk setting?