So, what monsters should be Elite and Solos?

[interwyrm]

On the subject of dinosaurs... things like Ankylosaurus or Stegosaurus would be possible solos - a tail sweep attack to deal with multiple opponents.

 

[Rechan]

I hope owlbears are at least unique, assuming they're not pack animals.

Owlbear was mentioned int he original Monster podcast with Wyatt and Mearls. It's a level 8 Elite Brute, IIRC.

 

[balard]

I think T-rex and other Huge Baddies are easy made solos. Look at the T-rex for example:
His bite deals a LOT of damage, stun, and he grabs you. Than he can follow up biting you again or throw you at another enemy, dealing damage to both and leaving both prone. He can deal damage while he walk over you, and have a tail slap like the dragon.

It would be a classic t-rex fight, the PCs running across the battlefield trying to no get too near, while he is furiously thrashing the battlefield.

 

[Victoly]

I could see a T-Rex or a grizzly bear being solo encounters. However, given the focus on trying to make the D&D world a more fantastic place (as per the Worlds and Monsters preview) I'm not sure how many normal animals will be left in the monster manual. Okay, so dinosaurs aren't "normal", but their real-world association makes them fill a similar niche.

I don't see golems as solo opponents, though. Possibly elites, but I think it's equally possible for them to be brutes or soldiers. After all, golems are traditionally created by spellcasters to act as servants or guardians, so I think it's likely that you'll see encounters like a wizard with a pair of golem servants, or an elite golem and a small group of gargoyles guarding a tomb.

 

[Doug McCrae]

The vast majority of monsters could be elites or solos. They're monsters, they're supposed to be dangerous. Even a kobold, provided it's an unusually tough and/or skilled one.

Small real world animals, like cats and dogs, couldn't be*, I can't think of anything else.

Solo monsters are easier for the DM, but seem to be fairly rare in 4e. I think I'll be converting a few to solo when I get sick of keeping track of the conditions on 5 different monsters.


*I was a player in a 2e group which was menaced by a lone porcupine. We gave it a wide berth AKA bravely ran away.

 

[habaal]

Skimming through MM2, I spotted a cool solo:
Spell Weaver- this guy has 6 hands and can cast several spells per turn, and uses several magic items at once (might be evoking a ritual while attacking two- three PC's with spells, etc.)

Other ideas: Ragewind (also MM2, undead hurricane that carries lots of weapons it spins around), Nagas ('cous they're cool), Oozez (can engulf, might be able to split acouple of times before it dies).

Evening,
HaBaal.

 

[Staffan]

The vast majority of monsters could be elites or solos. They're monsters, they're supposed to be dangerous. Even a kobold, provided it's an unusually tough and/or skilled one.

They could, but that would go against the group-vs-group thing 4e is going for. Most encounters are supposed to be a group of PCs against a group of monsters, with each group supporting one another and covering for one another's weaknesses. Just like the fighter in the PC party is there to keep the monsters from getting to the squishy wizard and to let the rogue flank and do sneak attack damage, the mind flayer has thralls to run interference.

A very important thing to remember is the whole "economy of actions" thing. 5 PCs get five sets of actions per round. In order for a monster to take up multiple monster "slots", it shouldn't just be big and tough (that's more a matter of its level), it should also be able to multitask. I think most elite opponents we've seen have had the ability to do multiple attacks, for example.

And if you look at the dragon from D&DXP, it had:
* Double attack (two claw attacks)
* Tail slash (immediate reaction, when a melee attack misses the dragon)
* Breath weapon (AoE attack, recharge)
* Bloodied Breath (when first bloodied, it gets an instant use of its breath weapon)
* Frightful presence (AoE stun followed by -2 to hit (save ends))
* +5 to saves (to keep it from being incapacitated by debuffs for long) and 2 action points (to get additional actions at critical points) - pretty sure those two are standard for solos.

What it did not have was super-high damage (a mere 1d4+3 per claw, or d6+3 plus ongoing 5 acid for the bite).

 

[Rechan]

What it did not have was super-high damage (a mere 1d4+3 per claw, or d6+3 plus ongoing 5 acid for the bite).

I believe this is because it was a lurker. Lurkers are the weakest (Outside of what, controllers?).

 

[Staffan]

Sure, but it's still (I reckon) pretty standard for a lurker-type. The difference is that it can do it twice, plus the tail slap, each round. Or use its breath weapon (AoE) every two or three rounds.

 

[Incenjucar]

I think it's safe to say the Kraken will be a solo monster.

The main thing is that solos need to be downgradable to elites and normal monsters so we can have liches riding dragonback.