D&D (2024) Monster Manual 2025 Stat Block Compilation

This thread contains a compilation of the Monster Manual 2025 stat blocks which have been previewed publicly so far.

 

[AlViking]

My opinion is that the game part of D&D is fundamentally a resource management game, which nickel and dime treasure tracking is a huge part of. To each their own, of course, but for me it is important that enemy gear actually exists within the fictional world and can be interacted with by the players if they so desire. I do like the solution you’ve suggested here of the spear working as listed in the stat block but being sufficiently different from a spear to require separate proficiency. And the sticky trait of the shield and net could be from Kuo-Toa mucous as I suggested earlier, so it dries out and becomes just a normal shield/net after some amount of time; maybe a day or an hour or something. Or maybe the players can get exactly one use out of its sticky feature and then the sticky substance is expended.

Makes sense. I still don't see much of an issue because a GM can always add reasonable equipment based on enemies encountered I don't usually require a detailed list.

 

[Chaltab]

I kind of made a mistake once where I let an artificer loot a Longbow of Black Ice from an enemy and he ended up being one of the party's heavy hitters. Usually my PCs don't loot enemy weapons because they're vastly inferior to their own gear but that time I slipped up.

 

[dave2008]

Minor gripes being the order of the day...
The Minotaur Skeleton description describes them using great axes. Statbock just gives them a slam. I think this was the case with the 2014 ed also. But just irks me irrationally.

FYI, there is no axe in the art. We know the dragon stat block shown at the same time was not final, so the skeletons may not have been final too.

PS - The did say all the entries shown at the time were not final and were subject to change.

 

[I'm A Banana]

I don't care why the AC is what it is. It has almost no bearing on play, and is more clutter.

It has a lot of bearing on play.

It plays into the description of the creature in a major way. It's also relevant for looting, as has been described.

Play is more than just the raw numbers.

 

[Zaukrie]

It has a lot of bearing on play.

It plays into the description of the creature in a major way. It's also relevant for looting, as has been described.

Play is more than just the raw numbers.

Except I can describe it any way I want, regardless of the numbers. I can make it have armor if I want, or a shield or not. Ymmv, of course. The numbers are all abstractions to enable that part of play.

 

[Reynard]

Non lootable gear gives strong video game vibes.

I wonder how i would handle it if a PC decided they wanted to take a "sticky net" from the kua-toa. I think I would let them have the net but tell them the "stickiness" had to do with some glands and emissions... That should solve it.

 

[Levistus's_Leviathan]

Non lootable gear gives strong video game vibes.

Same. This was one of my main complaints with Baldur’s Gate 3 when I first played it. A ton of NPCs had gear (weapons, armor, clothing) that you couldn’t loot when you killed them. In my campaigns I always let my players loot anything the monsters have, including body parts (to be used for trophies, potions, magic item ingredients, etc). If they want to take the Kuo Toa’s sticky shield they can. They just won’t be able to use it how a Kuo Toa does and it will be worth a small fraction of what a normal shield is.

Skyrim is a different video game where it actually does let you take anything the enemies are carrying. You just have to watch your carry weight, and a lot of items aren’t worth taking.

 

[Shardstone]

When it comes to looting enemies, I use the rules in the attachment, which I wrote for an upcoming project I'm soon to release. My players have loved them in the two long-term playtest campaigns I have, as well as in my one-shots. And they have built in mechanics that make you run-through or conserve weapons in a Zelda-esque fashion, which was my big inspiration.

 

[UngeheuerLich]

Except I can describe it any way I want, regardless of the numbers. I can make it have armor if I want, or a shield or not. Ymmv, of course. The numbers are all abstractions to enable that part of play.

I hate that. I hated that in 4e. It removes sense from the game.
How should players gauge the difficulty if youbjust make it up?

 

[Zaukrie]

I hate that. I hated that in 4e. It removes sense from the game.
How should players gauge the difficulty if youbjust make it up?

Everything is made up.