I need your help - to decide on a "basic" monster list

[Conaill]

Gee, Nifft... I think your numbering may be just a little bit off!

You numbered them 1-16, but I count at least 41 different critters there. More if you're going to have multiple elemental and/or dragon sizes.

Of course, Morpheus also list "Animals (Apes, Bears, etc.)" as a single entry - I believe that's already about 60 individual critters, not counting dire versions. Ditto with "Giant Vermin (Rats, Spiders, etc.)" - that's about 30 critters.


Trust me, it gets a *lot* harder if you try to narrow it down to just 25 individual monsters. Would you rather throw out black bears or ghouls? The grey ooze or the giant bee? The ankheg or the harpy? If you had to narrow it down to just 3 animals and 2 abberrations, which ones would you consider essential?

 

[Cheerful Coffin]

I prefer to use monsters rarely ever used, those you listed are done to death.. These are some of my favorites..

Low level: Allips, Assasin vines, Carrion Crawler, and Cockatrice.

Mid level: Atachs, Belker, Bullette, and Digester.

High level: Behirs, Bodak, and Destrachan.

 

[Nifft]

Well, here's the question: do you want to nerf the heck out of Rangers, Druids, and Clerics, Sorcs & Wizs who like to Summon?

If not: you need a variety of animals.


Do you want to hurt Rangers?

If not: you need a variety of foes of each type.


Do you want to hurt Clerics?

If not: you need a variety of undead.


Do you want to inspire wonder and dread?

If so: you need a bunch of *unique* monsters. Critters that won't be seen often.



Can I write your setting? If so, I can give you rich color with a limited monster palette. If not, I've got to pick critters that fill every niche, and let the GM who actually crafts the setting pick which niches exist.

So, tell me what your setting is, and I can give you a cross-section of critters that will fit.

Alternately -- and this could become MORE work for a GM, but better practice for high-level stuff too -- I could write a set of "generic" critters, like Aberrations, Dragons, Undead, Vermin and Fiends. That would be technically *one* critter each, but with an unlimited number of "builds".


So, what's the setting that these critters must fill in?

-- N