How the Monsters Have Changed in the 2025 Monster Manual: Azer

Wondering how the monsters have changed in the new 2025 Monster Manual? We're comparing statblocks between the 2014 and 2025 Monster Manual to see exactly how the various monsters have been rebalanced. Today, we're looking at the Azer.

While the Azer have a lengthy lore entry in the 2014 Monster Manual, that has largely been removed in favor of a single sentence that specifies that they live in the multiverse's "mightiest infernos." Interestingly, the azer are now described as being "living bronze folk" as opposed to creatures made of fire with metallic skin.

There are now two Azer statblocks in the 2025 Monster Manual. The Azer Pyromancer is a CR 6 spellcasting creature with access to Fireball and Fiendish Rebuke, while the Azer Sentinel is the equivalent to the 2014 Azer statblock.

In terms of stats, the Azer Sentinel remains unchanged from its 2014 equivalent. AC, HP, saving throws, and ability scores are all unchanged. The Azer Sentinel's Heated Body ability is now a Flame Aura and affects all creatures within 5 feet (of the Azer's choosing) by dealing 5 points (1d10) of Fire damage at the end of the Azer's turn. The Warhammer attack is now a Burning Hammer attack and always deals the same amount of damage (1d10+3 bludgeoning + 1d6 fire damage) as opposed to having variable damage based on whether its using one or two hands to hold the warhammer.

Full statblocks are below:

2025 Monster Manual

2014 Monster Manual

 

[Zaukrie]

I hate all the extra words for emanations so much.

 

[Erich the Fuzzy]

It's not the single point of damage.

It's being CR 18 and having pack tactic.

It's CR is so low that you can have a lot of them in your XP budget even at low level
And with Pack Tactics, they won't miss.

They are a bad turn with good tactic. Too much a push lead to a TPK in Tier 1.

Yet this wasn't a problem for 2014? This is the re-do of the Tribal Warrior, which was also CR 1/8 and had the 2-hand spear option for 5 damage instead of 4 yet also with Pack Tactics. The only change is the Warrior Infantry has 1 better AC (13 vs. 12) but 2 fewer hp (9 instead of 11) due to a weaker CON (which also means a weaker CON save). On the 2014 CR chart (can't use 2024 because there isn't one) there is no difference between 4 and 5 avg DPR.

In general, the 2024 monsters are a little stronger than 2014 versions, although admittedly not so much with the NPCs.

Are you suggesting the Tribal Warrior has deliberately been nerfed because it turned out to be too powerful in mobs? Because otherwise I think it's just a casualty of the simplification directive being applied too simplistically.

 

[Black Dougal]

Apparently Azer are also big Motorhead fans.

 

[Minigiant]

Yet this wasn't a problem for 2014? This is the re-do of the Tribal Warrior, which was also CR 1/8 and had the 2-hand spear option for 5 damage instead of 4 yet also with Pack Tactics. The only change is the Warrior Infantry has 1 better AC (13 vs. 12) but 2 fewer hp (9 instead of 11) due to a weaker CON (which also means a weaker CON save). On the 2014 CR chart (can't use 2024 because there isn't one) there is no difference between 4 and 5 avg DPR.

In general, the 2024 monsters are a little stronger than 2014 versions, although admittedly not so much with the NPCs.

Are you suggesting the Tribal Warrior has deliberately been nerfed because it turned out to be too powerful in mobs? Because otherwise I think it's just a casualty of the simplification directive being applied too simplistically.

It's the removal of the multiple creature penalty at to XP that changes it.

And 2024 you can have so much more low CR monsters in your encounter and not incur a penalty.

 

[Erich the Fuzzy]

It's the removal of the multiple creature penalty at to XP that changes it.

And 2024 you can have so much more low CR monsters in your encounter and not incur a penalty.

So if that was the reason, which, if any, other low CR creatures have been nerfed in a similar way? Many of the other (non-humanoid) small monsters also seem to have gotten tougher, not weaker. Including the Merfolk, Monodrone, and Twig Blight, all of whom now do MORE damage than their 2014 version, yet remain CR 1/8. If the concern were that the new encounter-building calculation made 1/8 creatures too powerful for their XP cost, then wouldn't there be a systematic weaking of all of them, rather than just the Warrior? Or at least not giving many of them even MORE damage?

 

[Minigiant]

So if that was the reason, which, if any, other low CR creatures have been nerfed in a similar way? Many of the other (non-humanoid) small monsters also seem to have gotten tougher, not weaker. Including the Merfolk, Monodrone, and Twig Blight, all of whom now do MORE damage than their 2014 version, yet remain CR 1/8. If the concern were that the new encounter-building calculation made 1/8 creatures too powerful for their XP cost, then wouldn't there be a systematic weaking of all of them, rather than just the Warrior? Or at least not giving many of them even MORE damage?

Pack tactics is my guess.

You can run a lot more more very accurate CR 1/8 warriors without hurting the XP budget. You can drown PCs in low CR monsters now and only their low accuracy and HP prevent the TPK.

Except in they always attack with advantage.

 

[Erich the Fuzzy]

Pack tactics is my guess.

You can run a lot more more very accurate CR 1/8 warriors without hurting the XP budget. You can drown PCs in low CR monsters now and only their low accuracy and HP prevent the TPK.

Except in they always attack with advantage.

Again, though, if that were the case (weaking a CR 1/8 with pack tactics because they are now cheaper in encounter budget) then why did the CR 1/8 Kobold (now Kobold Warrior) get STRONGER instead of weaker? Their AC and HP both increased by 2. If the logic is that a CR 1/8 with pack tactics needs to be weaker, then that logic would apply equally to both monsters.