D&D 5E Observations on the Monsters in the Starter Set.

[mach1.9pants]

Yeah that and the good poisons in Book of Exalted Deeds (? I think).

 

[Ruin Explorer]

Yeah that and the good poisons in Book of Exalted Deeds (? I think).

Good poisons... I... what next, "Good weapons"? "Evil armour"? Talk about misunderstanding your own game!

 

[sidonunspa]

I want vampire spawn as well. I have an idea for a city where they consider vampires as more of an annoying outbreak than a monster - something the police are constantly on guard against. And CR 5 is a bit high for that.

vampires an "out brake?" almost a waste of an iconic monster.... the best thing you can do is add a vampire "template" to common human threats (commoners are CR 1/3) and keep Vampires real threats...

 

[Cybit]

Yeah, I really disliked that. From some of the livestreams, it seems like the new warlock has an ability to suck out a soul and grant himself temporary hit points. That bothers me too. For one, if it really is consuming the soul, then anyone who dies to this shouldn't be able to be brought back by raise dead. That's a pretty powerful ability for a 1st-2nd level character to be packing.

I am 99% sure that was intended to be flavor text, not the actual ability.

 

[Dausuul]

I am 99% sure that was intended to be flavor text, not the actual ability.

In a game where DM judgement is an expected part of the rules framework, "flavor text" is not disposable fluff. It's highly relevant to the mechanics. (This is why I have the sig I do.) "Flavor text" explains how the mechanics connect to the fiction, and the fiction is the basis for DM judgement.

If an ability says you're noshing on a creature's soul, then you're noshing on its soul. The logical corollary is that the ability blocks resurrection. It doesn't spell it out because how often are the PCs trying to resurrect the orcs they just killed?

 

[Cybit]

In a game where DM judgement is an expected part of the rules framework, "flavor text" is not disposable fluff. It's highly relevant to the mechanics. (This is why I have the sig I do.) "Flavor text" explains how the mechanics connect to the fiction, and the fiction is the basis for DM judgement.

If an ability says you're noshing on a creature's soul, then you're noshing on its soul. The logical corollary is that the ability blocks resurrection. It doesn't spell it out because how often are the PCs trying to resurrect the orcs they just killed?

EDIT: Sorry, meant to say that I think they are just using the Warlock ability from 4E that gave temp HP on a kill; I do not think they would give anyone the ability to steal souls at level 1. This might be one of those cases where we are reading too much into things because we do not have info.

 

[Xodis]

They do? I don't recall seeing anything about zombies spreading disease in their rules. Even if zombies can carry disease, I don't see why skeletons would. They're just bones. Plenty of people use bones as tools, decorations, etc. and don't get plagues from them, as far as I know.

Completely stripped clean bones would not carry disease, IF they were completely stripped clean of all flesh and were cleaned before the rotting flesh stains the bones. Is not in their rules but it is a fact of reality, something that generally gets passed over, except when hordes of undead are spreading disease which happens to be rather easy.

 

[Kobold Stew]

To be fair, humans also tend to carry disease, and are far more effective at spreading it because of their insidious ability to pass through cities unnoticed.

A skeleton is almost antiseptic by comparison.

 

[Agamon]

If an ability says you're noshing on a creature's soul, then you're noshing on its soul.

I assume you mean this to be your opinion and not something factual? Because between this and your sig, it doesn't really read that way. For me, if changing the fluff does nothing to the mechanics of an effect, then change away. The rules say that Magic Missile is glowing darts of blue force. If a player wants it to be bolts of red force, or a bow shooting a bunch of force arrows, or flying flaming skulls, or butterflies that detonate on impact, that's fine. They do 1d4+1 force damage, but go ahead and be creative.

But to your specific point, first, I doubt the ability states that the it makes the soul irretrievable. If it doesn't, then this is just jumping to conclusions rather than RAW, which is counter to your argument. And if the ability says it steals the foe's lifeforce, why must one assume that it completely rips the entire soul away, especially for such small payout? Perhaps it only leeches the lifeforce without annihilating it. Everything makes sense again.

 

[Xodis]

To be fair, humans also tend to carry disease, and are far more effective at spreading it because of their insidious ability to pass through cities unnoticed.

A skeleton is almost antiseptic by comparison.

This is true in reality, mainly because we dont have to worry about skeletons walking around like we do in D&D lol. Dont forget with fleshy skeletons walking around you increase the rat population as for them its a Heroes feast spell Sadly we know how effective they can be at plagues.