Sell me a Monster Book

[John Crichton]

I've read through reviews and done a few searches on these boards to find myself a monster book for my current campaign. However, I'd like a little input before I buy.

A little background: I am running a campaign in the Forgotten Realms (Silver Marches). The characters just hit 2nd level and the XP progression is a tad slower than the standard DMG rewards. I own the 3.5 Monster Manual and Monster Manual 2. I also have access to the FR Monster book. But I want more. I'm more concerned about critters that I can use to spice up these lower level fights but I want them to work within the framework of the FR. I'd say there will be a healthy mix of natural and city dwellings that the character will be in as well as the occassional dungeon. The characters will most likely be venturing into the High Forest and the Trollmoors eventually.

The Mosternomicon looks like it has stuff that is a bit too mechanical so unless convinced otherwise, that may not be the best fit. The other books I have been considering are:

- Tome of Horrors
- Creature Collection (Revised)
- Creature Collection 2
- Fiend Folio

Are there any I am missing and what would you get? I'll probably end up getting more than one eventually, but I want to buy just one for now and then the next at a later time (a few months). I am torn!

I'd say the breakdown of encounters will go something like this:

Wilderness - 60%
Urban - 30%
Dungeon - 10%

Gracias.

 

[Mystery Man]

the Fiend Folio would be your best bet IMO. It has some very FR flavor monsters in there, especially at higher levels.

Personally I crossed off anything having to do with S&S a long time ago, but that's personal preference.

 

[Aeolius]

I'd recommend Fiend Folio. In FF, you get your share of templates, including half-illithid, half-troll, and half-fey, as well as the yellow musk zombie and swordwraith. You get some nifty oddities with grafts and symbionts as well as prestige classes for fiends. A selection of undead includes the huecuva (now a template), crypt thing, and ulgurstasta. Aquatic beaties, my personal favorite, include the sea drake, aquatic oozes, aquatic demons, kelpies, and selkies.

Working within the framework of CR: 2, there are encounters such as swarms of wasps or cranium rats, death dogs, jackalweres, and the necrophidius. Bumping things up to CR: 3 allows for the use of dark creepers, spiggans, skeroloths, or bloodthorns.

My only complaint with the 3e Fiend Folio is the blatant omission of the flumph.

 

[Psion]

I would say the FF is not your best bet, given your criteria. Indeed, I would say it is your worst bet. Its major theme is other planear creatures.

Of the other three, it's a tough call. But honestly, I don't think you can go wrong if you go with any of the three. They all have a strong selection of outdoor creatures.

I think I would lean away slightly from the CC revised. Though it has lots of neat wilderness stuff, some of it isn't too appropriate for the location you are in, like ape races and cold races. Still, the hags would be cool to run in the trollmoors, and there are other neat wilderness creatures and challenges.

CCII is very good for what you are planning on doing, with some neat wildeness challenges like carnivorous trees and swamp tyrants, and some creatures that would be neat for urban adventures like vermin hosts, touch corrupters, and the bloodless template. That said, I think it is a little more dungeony than CCI.

Finally there is the Tome of Horrors. It's sheer size should give it an advantage, and the feel is probably be a bit closer to FR. It has a broad selection of creatures, including many ravening beasts, fey creatures, and hazardous plants that work great for wilderness encounters, including a bunch of variant trolls for the trollmoors. Probably the clear winner for both dungeons and wilderness stuff, I don't think it has quite as many urban options as the CCII

 

[Erratic K]

I'll be a dissenter, like Psion:

While I love the Fiend Folio because it is well made, has nice art and many quality creatures, it also has a higher average level than the MM I and concentrates on many planar creatures (which may or may not be okay with your campaign).

I'm not sure which one I'd choose. I was a little disapointed with the original CC- the art wasn't up my alley, and there were balance problems and some lack of conforming to the D20 rules. These judgements may not be entirely fair of the currently available products, I haven't seen the revised CC. Because of the weaknesses, I did not by CC2. I purchased Tome of Horrors. I did like browsing through the Tome of Horrors. I haven't used it in game yet, but it does have some good monsters and feels of higher quality than the original CC to me.

Of thoseI guess I'll have to go with: Fiend Folio or Tome of Horrors. I'd go to a shop where I could look at both and compare.

Here is what I would really suggest:

Lords of Darkness (has some cool organizations and tons of NPC stats). I use it like a realms flavored version of the NPC tables of the DMG. I guess for wilderness it would be a little more limited (malarites appear though).

I would look at (because I don't have them): Silver Marches, Unapproachable East and Underdark. The reviews say Unapproachable East has monsters (about 10-15), but I don't own any of these to comment.

-E

 

[John Crichton]

Ah, I probably should have mentioned that I do have Silver Marches, Lords of Darkness & Underdark. There are some good critters in there but some are just waaaaay too tough for the low level, 3 member party.

Psion - Thanks for popping in and breaking it down like that for me. Seems like you have a pretty good knowledge of the area I'm running in and that certainly helps with the suggestion.

The Tome of Horrors looks like the leader at the moment. Is the FF more of a purchase for when the group gets ~10th Level?

I should probably also mention that I'm a player in a Scarred Lands campaign and do like some of the stuff the DM has been throwing at us from the CC1. However, our party is average 10th level so most of the beasties are just too much right now.

I guess I'm also looking for the book with the best 'concept' monsters if y'all know what I mean. I like to have a plot reason for something oddball being around. If the book itself can help with idea seeds, all the better.

Thanks to all so far. Also, feel feel to pimp and ideas out there for critters or resources in general. I think just about anything that's not native to either the deep sea or desert could work. I would usually throw a bunch of undead at the party right about now, but they have very little healing and no cleric or paladin so I can't bombard them as much as I would like to.

Thanks to all who have responded so far.

 

[demiurge1138]

Once the party hits 10th level +, the Fiend Folio would be your best bet. The monsters are planar-flavored, but there's still plenty of usable material in there for a Prime-only Realms game. For a lower level game, the Tome of Horrors is a great book, and Creature Collection II has some good swamp and forest monsters, but both of them would require some work to convert into 3.5. If I might offer an opinion you haven't mentioned, the Penumbra Fantasy Bestiary is packed with very flavorful, mostly lower-level creatures. Only problem is the cost...

Demiurge out.

 

[Nightfall]

John,

While I am a fan of S&SS stuff, and I do love the CC books, I do think Tome of Horrors is FAR more appropriate to your campaign. Fiend Folio is probably better for when they do get into higher levels. There are some monsters they could fight, but most of it is probably better off using that like around 8th-10th level for the most part. Also if you don't already, get MM2. That will help you out as well. Draconomicon is always helpful as Wyrms in the North do play a large role there. CC Revised, I'd use for the Hag Templates mostly, along with a few strange wilderness monsters. But realistically, Tome of Horrors overall is my vote.

 

[Tarrasque Wrangler]

First of all, if you're running a game in the Silver Marches, BUY SILVER MARCHES FIRST. It is a very good setting book, although I would have paid extra for a hardcover version. I've been a little spoiled by Underdark and Unapproachable East in that respect. But Silver Marches is loaded with adventure seeds, some good monsters, some of the better PrCs I've seen lately, and other good stuff.

If you've got cash left over after that, pick up FF. It may not be as useful out of the box for you with such a low-level party, but it's a much better book in the long run than the other three (yeah, I own all of 'em). A lot of people loved the Tome of Horrors; I just found it a nightmare to slog through. It's main strength and weakness is the sheer number of creatures in it. For every good one (and there were some very cool ones) there were probably ten cheesy monsters that will never be used in my game.

 

[John Crichton]

Once the party hits 10th level +, the Fiend Folio would be your best bet. The monsters are planar-flavored, but there's still plenty of usable material in there for a Prime-only Realms game. For a lower level game, the Tome of Horrors is a great book, and Creature Collection II has some good swamp and forest monsters, but both of them would require some work to convert into 3.5.

I thought CC2 was 3.5? Doh.

If I might offer an opinion you haven't mentioned, the Penumbra Fantasy Bestiary is packed with very flavorful, mostly lower-level creatures. Only problem is the cost...

Oooo, that does look nice. Cost isn't really that much of a problem if the book is good. I'll add that to the potentials. Anyone have it? Are the critters easy to convert to 3.5?