JoeGKushner
Adventurer
Monster Manual IV
Developed by Stephen Schubert, Mike Mearls, Matthew Sernett, Jesse Decker, Andrew Finch
Published by Wizards of the Coast
www.wziards.com/dnd
ISBN 10: 0-7869-3920-6
224 full color pages
$34.95
Before I start my review, let me tell you what I think a Monster Manual is. It’s a book meant to fill one use. Bringing new monsters to the game. Well, maybe two uses as the Tome of Horrors brought numerous old monsters to the new edition but you get my point. Any other consideration that takes up space should be considered a different type of book like the 3.0 Enemies and Allies book.
In that vein, the Monster Manual IV fails. Too much material that takes away from the unique yet simple nature of a monster manual.
However, that failure is good for new game masters.
First off, the book is using the new format for monster blocks. Now I’ve heard freelancer employees of WoTC declare that the stat blocks are ‘perhaps a bit too hard’ so I’ll save the stat block editing for John Cooper but given WoTC recent track record, I’m not expecting a full change around. If anything, the new stat blocks, while easier to read, seem more convoluted in terms of how you’d figure certain things out such as type of hit dice when a creature has class levels and ‘monstrous’ levels. Like I said, I’ll like JC worry about that.
In addition to the new format, it includes a lot more information. Details on strategies and tactics, ecology, typical treasure, and notes on using the monsters in Eberron and Faerun (Forgotten Realms), show up. To some, those details are bloat. In the Monster Manual, you might’ve had two monsters to a page while here, something like the Corrupture, a huge ooze, takes up two pages on it’s own.
So good thing number one. It’s easier to read and allows the GM to have a great knowledge base on how and where to use these monsters.
Next up, they’ve included monsters with class levels. This is a net wash for me. It doesn’t belong in a book outside of that core book where the monster was first introduced but many game masters are time pressed and don’t necessarily have the time do stat up the races themselves.
Having said that, some of these builds are using classes well outside of the core book such as an ogre scout (a standard class from Complete Adventurer), or the Ogre Tempest (PrC from Complete Adventurer). So we’ve already established that WoTC is willing to go beyond the core book for the monsters with class levels.
Looking at the Githyanki, it notes, “the relentlessly militaristic, psionics-using githyanki…” Note that right there in the text in this book it talks about them being psionic using.
Let’s see… soldier (fighter 3), gish (fighter 2/evoker 5), captain (fighter 7/blackguard 2)… nope, no psionics using githyanki here I’m afraid.
Another problem I have with the classed up monsters is that they include details on the ecology and society of them in this book while still refereeing the reader to the Monster Manual for other details. These aren’t new monsters and shouldn’t need these extraneous details for game play as they’ve been in the game since it started.
So good thing number two, if you’re a time pressed GM and you’re looking for some monstrous humanoids with classes and levels like ogres, orcs, and of course drow, you’ll get some use out of this book right away.
Next up are the monsters from the miniature game that have made their way to the book. This includes things like Wrackspawn, bloodhulk, justice archon, wizened elder, and dwarf ancestor.
If you’re coming to the game from the miniature, this is going to be a nice touch and if you’ve never played the miniature game, might be inspiration to check out what’s going on with it. My only complaint here is that it’s odd that WoTC is making monster entries for new monsters when we’re still missing dozens of monsters from the original Monster Manual but the two things aren’t really related so I’ll leave off that though.
Fourth up in terms of good things that don’t belong in a monster manual are maps. I love maps. I have geomorphs from Goodman Games. I have the two map books from Green Ronin. I have numerous Dark Furies map products. They’re great. This book includes things like the Deephollows, mapped and numbered locations that serve as sample lairs. Just sprinkle monsters in and knock yourself out.
The materials I don’t like don’t necessarily make this a bad book. They just make it a bad Monster Manual.
Other areas are going to be of personal taste. For example, I liked the Spawn of Tiamat in minor doses in Red Hand of Doom. However, in the Year of the Dragon, I expect to see a lot of Dragons in a Monster Manual style book, not a ton of lower powered Spawn of Tiamat for that rare player whose picked the dragonborn from Races of the Dragon to fight. The whole section reads like a “what can we cross with a dragon to fill out the CR ranks for players” as opposed to “man, that’s interesting!” and some of the names are right out of the comic books like the ‘CR 10 Bluespawn Godslayer. Yeah, he’s going to be killing a lot of gods let me tell you at CR 10.
Another annoying thing is the reproduction of an illustration if Tiamat by Wayne Reynolds. It’s a fantastic picture, but as I’ve noted in other reviews, WoTC should have an art budget that allows them to use new art in their products and leave out the previously used art for say, an art book. Especially as this particular illustration is of Tiamat and not her spawn.
One of my favorite monsters from this book, the Concordant Killer, a cross between a celestial and demonic entity, looks and reads suspiciously like the Forlorn from Bastion’s old book Minions but hey coincidences happen. Or I could talk about how the Tomb Spider here that can animate the corpses of those it slays reminds me of the Corpsespinner from Tome of Horrors II but like I said, coincidence eh?
Not a lot of the monsters jumped out at me, unlike the error ridden Monster Manual III. Some of my favorites tend to be on the higher end of things like the Avatars of Elemental Evil. I seem to enjoy things with nods to the older editions. Heck, reading about where the air servants of Elemental Evil alone gave me enough ideas to run a mini-campaign where the players have to fight through an air caslte with cloud giants, harpies and renegade djinn!
Many of the other monsters though didn’t do it for me. Too many plant and insect style monsters here. Not enough of the ‘standards’. Not enough dragons, giants, devils, and golems. Sure, we have the low powered Fang Golem and the odd Craa’ghoran, a stone giant gone wrong, but in the Year of the Dragon, to not have a single true dragon in the Monster Manual? Just seems off to me. If nothing else, with the statting up of individual monsters as classed humanoids, you figure we’d see some dragons given some write ups with lairs.
In terms of things I did like about the book, I’d start with the art. Among those listed are some of my favorites like Wayne England, Steve Prescott, Wayne Reynolds, Ron Spencer and Sam Wood. Ron Spencer’s illustrations on the various humanoid races are especially nice.
The layout is easier to read. The expanded information is great for new game masters. The maps and lairs, long familiar to those reading the various other WoTC books, have been incorporated and follow the logical extension of putting them in those books in the first place.
In comparission to WoTC other books, the price is also very competitive. Many WoTC books fall into the 160 page category for $29.95. This book has over an additional sixty pages for only another five dollars.
In short, if you’re a new Game Master, the book is aimed squarely at you. If you’re a time pressed Game Master, the book is aimed squarely at you. If you’re an old seasoned pro who doesn’t mind writing your own material and using your own maps, this book probably isn’t for you.
Developed by Stephen Schubert, Mike Mearls, Matthew Sernett, Jesse Decker, Andrew Finch
Published by Wizards of the Coast
www.wziards.com/dnd
ISBN 10: 0-7869-3920-6
224 full color pages
$34.95
Before I start my review, let me tell you what I think a Monster Manual is. It’s a book meant to fill one use. Bringing new monsters to the game. Well, maybe two uses as the Tome of Horrors brought numerous old monsters to the new edition but you get my point. Any other consideration that takes up space should be considered a different type of book like the 3.0 Enemies and Allies book.
In that vein, the Monster Manual IV fails. Too much material that takes away from the unique yet simple nature of a monster manual.
However, that failure is good for new game masters.
First off, the book is using the new format for monster blocks. Now I’ve heard freelancer employees of WoTC declare that the stat blocks are ‘perhaps a bit too hard’ so I’ll save the stat block editing for John Cooper but given WoTC recent track record, I’m not expecting a full change around. If anything, the new stat blocks, while easier to read, seem more convoluted in terms of how you’d figure certain things out such as type of hit dice when a creature has class levels and ‘monstrous’ levels. Like I said, I’ll like JC worry about that.
In addition to the new format, it includes a lot more information. Details on strategies and tactics, ecology, typical treasure, and notes on using the monsters in Eberron and Faerun (Forgotten Realms), show up. To some, those details are bloat. In the Monster Manual, you might’ve had two monsters to a page while here, something like the Corrupture, a huge ooze, takes up two pages on it’s own.
So good thing number one. It’s easier to read and allows the GM to have a great knowledge base on how and where to use these monsters.
Next up, they’ve included monsters with class levels. This is a net wash for me. It doesn’t belong in a book outside of that core book where the monster was first introduced but many game masters are time pressed and don’t necessarily have the time do stat up the races themselves.
Having said that, some of these builds are using classes well outside of the core book such as an ogre scout (a standard class from Complete Adventurer), or the Ogre Tempest (PrC from Complete Adventurer). So we’ve already established that WoTC is willing to go beyond the core book for the monsters with class levels.
Looking at the Githyanki, it notes, “the relentlessly militaristic, psionics-using githyanki…” Note that right there in the text in this book it talks about them being psionic using.
Let’s see… soldier (fighter 3), gish (fighter 2/evoker 5), captain (fighter 7/blackguard 2)… nope, no psionics using githyanki here I’m afraid.
Another problem I have with the classed up monsters is that they include details on the ecology and society of them in this book while still refereeing the reader to the Monster Manual for other details. These aren’t new monsters and shouldn’t need these extraneous details for game play as they’ve been in the game since it started.
So good thing number two, if you’re a time pressed GM and you’re looking for some monstrous humanoids with classes and levels like ogres, orcs, and of course drow, you’ll get some use out of this book right away.
Next up are the monsters from the miniature game that have made their way to the book. This includes things like Wrackspawn, bloodhulk, justice archon, wizened elder, and dwarf ancestor.
If you’re coming to the game from the miniature, this is going to be a nice touch and if you’ve never played the miniature game, might be inspiration to check out what’s going on with it. My only complaint here is that it’s odd that WoTC is making monster entries for new monsters when we’re still missing dozens of monsters from the original Monster Manual but the two things aren’t really related so I’ll leave off that though.
Fourth up in terms of good things that don’t belong in a monster manual are maps. I love maps. I have geomorphs from Goodman Games. I have the two map books from Green Ronin. I have numerous Dark Furies map products. They’re great. This book includes things like the Deephollows, mapped and numbered locations that serve as sample lairs. Just sprinkle monsters in and knock yourself out.
The materials I don’t like don’t necessarily make this a bad book. They just make it a bad Monster Manual.
Other areas are going to be of personal taste. For example, I liked the Spawn of Tiamat in minor doses in Red Hand of Doom. However, in the Year of the Dragon, I expect to see a lot of Dragons in a Monster Manual style book, not a ton of lower powered Spawn of Tiamat for that rare player whose picked the dragonborn from Races of the Dragon to fight. The whole section reads like a “what can we cross with a dragon to fill out the CR ranks for players” as opposed to “man, that’s interesting!” and some of the names are right out of the comic books like the ‘CR 10 Bluespawn Godslayer. Yeah, he’s going to be killing a lot of gods let me tell you at CR 10.
Another annoying thing is the reproduction of an illustration if Tiamat by Wayne Reynolds. It’s a fantastic picture, but as I’ve noted in other reviews, WoTC should have an art budget that allows them to use new art in their products and leave out the previously used art for say, an art book. Especially as this particular illustration is of Tiamat and not her spawn.
One of my favorite monsters from this book, the Concordant Killer, a cross between a celestial and demonic entity, looks and reads suspiciously like the Forlorn from Bastion’s old book Minions but hey coincidences happen. Or I could talk about how the Tomb Spider here that can animate the corpses of those it slays reminds me of the Corpsespinner from Tome of Horrors II but like I said, coincidence eh?
Not a lot of the monsters jumped out at me, unlike the error ridden Monster Manual III. Some of my favorites tend to be on the higher end of things like the Avatars of Elemental Evil. I seem to enjoy things with nods to the older editions. Heck, reading about where the air servants of Elemental Evil alone gave me enough ideas to run a mini-campaign where the players have to fight through an air caslte with cloud giants, harpies and renegade djinn!
Many of the other monsters though didn’t do it for me. Too many plant and insect style monsters here. Not enough of the ‘standards’. Not enough dragons, giants, devils, and golems. Sure, we have the low powered Fang Golem and the odd Craa’ghoran, a stone giant gone wrong, but in the Year of the Dragon, to not have a single true dragon in the Monster Manual? Just seems off to me. If nothing else, with the statting up of individual monsters as classed humanoids, you figure we’d see some dragons given some write ups with lairs.
In terms of things I did like about the book, I’d start with the art. Among those listed are some of my favorites like Wayne England, Steve Prescott, Wayne Reynolds, Ron Spencer and Sam Wood. Ron Spencer’s illustrations on the various humanoid races are especially nice.
The layout is easier to read. The expanded information is great for new game masters. The maps and lairs, long familiar to those reading the various other WoTC books, have been incorporated and follow the logical extension of putting them in those books in the first place.
In comparission to WoTC other books, the price is also very competitive. Many WoTC books fall into the 160 page category for $29.95. This book has over an additional sixty pages for only another five dollars.
In short, if you’re a new Game Master, the book is aimed squarely at you. If you’re a time pressed Game Master, the book is aimed squarely at you. If you’re an old seasoned pro who doesn’t mind writing your own material and using your own maps, this book probably isn’t for you.
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