catsclaw227
First Post
JoeTheLawyer,
I've often done what you are describing in all editions of D&D from 3.x going back to AD&D when I started DMing.
I would look at the encounter area, why the monsters were there, and if I wanted to make the Skeleons scary, they would be.
No need to look up some power or ability, just add the ability, make an educated guess to the damage and effect, and there you go. I was never really a fan of the 3.x paradigm of "everything needs to be balanced for both monsters and PCs". Maybe that's good, maybe that's bad. Who knows, but it has worked, for me, for a long time.
I have often told my players, when starting a campaign, that monsters aren't always what they seem. And what appears to be a simple skeleton, may not be that.
If, when your guesswork has made a creature too powerful or not powerful enough, increase or decrease the damage/effect in mid-combat. Who cares, really?
But..... I almost always give these tweaked monsters some kind of identifying mark. They have a brass strip nailed to their chestbone, or there's a bluish sheen to their claws, etc. something that could give away their special ability.
At least this way the players won't feel cheated like you are showing them regular skelly's but instead they are the Walking Dead of Gar Grimnar.
I've often done what you are describing in all editions of D&D from 3.x going back to AD&D when I started DMing.
I would look at the encounter area, why the monsters were there, and if I wanted to make the Skeleons scary, they would be.
No need to look up some power or ability, just add the ability, make an educated guess to the damage and effect, and there you go. I was never really a fan of the 3.x paradigm of "everything needs to be balanced for both monsters and PCs". Maybe that's good, maybe that's bad. Who knows, but it has worked, for me, for a long time.
I have often told my players, when starting a campaign, that monsters aren't always what they seem. And what appears to be a simple skeleton, may not be that.
If, when your guesswork has made a creature too powerful or not powerful enough, increase or decrease the damage/effect in mid-combat. Who cares, really?
But..... I almost always give these tweaked monsters some kind of identifying mark. They have a brass strip nailed to their chestbone, or there's a bluish sheen to their claws, etc. something that could give away their special ability.
At least this way the players won't feel cheated like you are showing them regular skelly's but instead they are the Walking Dead of Gar Grimnar.
