Has anyone statted a mimic?

[cangrejoide]

I need a mimic, anyone has made a write up?

 

[Palladion]

Thought about this before...

Using the black dragon (MM 75) as an example of a solo lurker, the mimic needs somewhere to ambush attack from and retreat to (cloud of darkness in the case of the black dragon). It requires high movement to get away and probably terrain advantage to keep it reasonably away and in cover against attackers. Try a few of the illusion powers for the wizard (Dragon #364 68) to create false or attacking walls or terrain.

(I do not have anything more specific with me at the moment, sorry.)

 

[Khime]

Given how the mimic traditionally functions, it might be better written up as a hazard than a creature.

 

[Alabast]

I agree with Khime. Mimics were never really used as combat encounters, they were just stupid monsters-traps meant to do some hit point damage to PCs whose players were silly enough to have not read the MM from front to back. If you want to use a shape-shifting monster that tricks the PCs, use a doppelganger instead. If you want an tempting-looking treasure chest to be more dangerous than it looks, just trap it.

Mimics are relics of an old age when DMs were encouraged to inflict cheap damage on the PCs once in a while, just to... I dunno, keep them on their toes, I guess. I have no idea from what bowel of gaming philosophy hell that little nugget comes from. If I remember proplerly, 1st edition D&D not only had monsters disguised as treasure chests, but it also had monsters that disguised themselves as walls, floors,ceilings, and stalagtites.

 

[Khime]

Mimics are relics of an old age when DMs were encouraged to inflict cheap damage on the PCs once in a while, just to... I dunno, keep them on their toes, I guess. I have no idea from what bowel of gaming philosophy hell that little nugget comes from. If I remember proplerly, 1st edition D&D not only had monsters disguised as treasure chests, but it also had monsters that disguised themselves as walls, floors,ceilings, and stalagtites.

Interesting that you should mention that, as in response to this thread I just got done reading a historical perspective on these types of monsters (mimics, piercers, ropers, trappers, etc).

http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/alumni/20060927a

I do feel that, as a whole, mimics fall into the whole 'gotcha' category that also included the ear seeker, and in 4E all of these are probably better couched as hazards.

 

[renau1g]

I know that I once used a mimic against the PC's and from then on they would always shoot a few arrows at the chest.... just in case. It always dragged things out and I regret ever doing it, because as you said it was cheap damage. I guess it was reflective of everything in a dungeon being a hazard to your health?

 

[Alabast]

I seem to remember a Dark-Sun monster that takes the cake for arbitrary DM sadism. It was some kind of scarab beetle, that, upon winning initiative, immediately attempts to burrow under the skin of a PC's arm, then make their way to the brain, instantly killing the PC. I think the PC received a save vs. death, and if they failed the only way to prevent death was to lop off their own arm, and await a future regeneration spell. Also, I believe it had a %90 chance to go undetected, or something like that.

Can anyone confirm this?