How do I create minions?

[Dave Turner]

I've been unable to find any rules in the MM or DMG that tell me how to build a minion. I found rules that let me build strikers, brutes, and the rest, but nothing on that page (or any other page I looked at) had similar, by-the-numbers rules for statting up a minion.

Am I blind? Where should I look?

 

[Grazzt]

I've been unable to find any rules in the MM or DMG that tell me how to build a minion. I found rules that let me build strikers, brutes, and the rest, but nothing on that page (or any other page I looked at) had similar, by-the-numbers rules for statting up a minion.

Am I blind? Where should I look?

There aren't really any rules given to build minions. Basically, just take your monster, give it 1 hp with the "a missed attack never damages a minion" note, drop a couple of its extra powers, and you're done. Check out the various minions in the MM and use 'em as guidelines.

 

[neoweasel]

There aren't really any rules given to build minions. Basically, just take your monster, give it 1 hp with the "a missed attack never damages a minion" note, drop a couple of its extra powers, and you're done. Check out the various minions in the MM and use 'em as guidelines.

You also need to make it's attacks do a constant amount of damage. I *think* that the correct method is to take the average damage of an attack and round down, but I'm not really sure (and I haven't really looked at the minions to make sure).

 

[TimeOut]

And most minions have slightly raised defenses, compared to normal mobs if I remember correctly.

 

[Grazzt]

You also need to make it's attacks do a constant amount of damage. I *think* that the correct method is to take the average damage of an attack and round down, but I'm not really sure (and I haven't really looked at the minions to make sure).

Oops. Yep. Thanks neo-. Forgot about the fixed damage part.

 

[GruTheWanderer]

You also need to make it's attacks do a constant amount of damage. I *think* that the correct method is to take the average damage of an attack and round down, but I'm not really sure (and I haven't really looked at the minions to make sure).

Actually, I'm pretty sure it's the minimum amount of damage a comparable monster would do, based on looking at several low and high level minions and the Damage per Attack table under Creating Monsters. Which is appropriate, given that the minions as a group often get more attacks than a regular monster of their level.

I don't believe their defenses are supposed to be higher or lower than regular monsters of their level, but I haven't done any specific analysis of that.