MM2 Excerpt: Pod Demon

[chaotix42]

Monster Manual 2 Excerpts: Pod Demon

OK, this is a great monster!

It has low HP for an elite, but it is constantly creating minions with its various abilities, sometimes for free! It can also swap places with one of its minions at-will, so if threatened, can create one in a safe spot & switch so it can blast with impunity! Nifty.

It can also, as a minor action, blow up one of its spawn and do auto-damage to everyone adjacent. Toss in a few burst/blast powers and I think we have a pretty robust & unique monster here!

Also, does anyone like the fact that minions are getting roles now? I find it interesting, at least.

 

[Kaodi]

Darn. And I was just thinking of an an enemy that could generate minions that were copies of themself and switch between them at will... Not quite as icky as this one, though, hehehe, and would be a solo.

Picture is good too. This monster could have traction, I think, though the name is kind of blah...

 

[Mustrum_Ridcully]

Also, does anyone like the fact that minions are getting roles now? I find it interesting, at least.

I like that, too.

I always had the impression that the Minions were always "minimized" versions of regular monsters that would have a role.

 

[Elric]

The podspawn's attack does 12 damage a hit. That's a serious upgrade from level 15 MM minions, which tend to do 7-8 damage.

The Adamantine Dragon previewed did significantly more damage (and had lower HP and defenses) than the similar level Red Dragon solo from the MM (also a Soldier). The increased damage could be a trend.

 

[mach1.9pants]

That looks like great fun to DM, Can't wait for the players to get to 15!

 

[Mentat55]

I noticed that, like the Adamantine Dragon, the Prince of Frost (in the Court of Stars article) is also x4 hp (instead of x5 for paragon and epic tier solos).

And the pod demon, interestingly, is 1.5x hp, instead of x2. Is this a trend, or a few isolated tweaks for specific monsters? After all, the pod demon does spawn minions, and 4 podspawn are considered part of its XP budget.

I really like the MM2 monsters they've previewed so far -- the adamantine dragon seemed so much nastier than the chromatics, the maw of Acamar was just too cool, and this demon looks creepy and has interesting game mechanics to back it up.

 

[wedgeski]

That is an awesome creature, with a magnificent illustration. That one goes on the list. My players should fear the list, yet they are oblivious to its existence.

Fear the list.

 

[Nebulous]

Yes, another very cool monster. The designers seem to have a much better grasp of the system now and are really churning out some good stuff.

 

[Nymrohd]

Like the rules hate the name. Pod creatures? Isn't that better fitted to cheesy horror flicks?

 

[avin]

Its face looks silly. Body is ok, but why Wotc is pushing demons with faces not frightening? A game safe for kids? Meh...