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Message: <blockquote data-quote="satori01" data-source="post: 2890782" data-attributes="member: 7859">Hordes of the Abyss uses the new WOTC stat block, and I have to say I find the implementation of the new stat block to be a bit bush league.Dungeon has used the stat block for a long time now, and while I think it is fine as a combat ready stat sheet, I do not like the implementation we have seen in WOTC books like Complete Psionic.  Hordes of the Abyss is better than Complete Psionic, but imho crucial information is left out for a general monster entry.My First quibble:  Hit points and total number of Hit Dice are listed, but not the HD die type and not the CON bonus to Hit Points.  Thus an entry might read: 110 (10Hit Dice).  Frankly I do not use average Hit Points for my monsters, and having how many Hit Points are added from CON, from class levels, from the Construct Bonus etc are useful to me in being able to adjust Hit Points from the average roll.  I also find it easier to apply CON Adjusting effects (like Infestation of Maggots), when you have the baseline of CON based bonus Hit Points in front of you.Moreover, I think not showing the HD Die type is a barrier to entry for new DMs.  I might know that all Outsiders have d8 Hit Dice, but what about a new DM?  Spell it out for us WOTC, the ink savings can not be that much, and frankly, you need to show your work, I dont mind a stat block being off here of there, but no Q.E.D. for you!Next:The amount of Power Attack auto calculated into a creatures attack routine is not listed.  Thus while normally we would have an entry like this : * Power Attack for 5 points is already included in Stat Block   We Instead get this:* Power Attack is already included in Stat BlockThat is abysmal in my opinion,(yuck, yuck, yuck)!  The whole point of Power Attack is the number you apply is variable.  Yes, I'm sure many DMs never adjust the Power Attack modifier of a creature when Power Attack is prefigured into the Stat Block, but I am just as sure that many DMs do!  Again how much ink savings does WOTC garner, compared to the frustration of having to reverse engineer how much Power Attack the creature is taking?  Poor Customer Service, One would think switching to a new Stat Block format would entail less math for the DM, not more.Here is the worse part.  By forcing me to do the math on my own  it only made it abundantly clear how inaccurate the Stat Blocks are.  Now let me make this clear, I am not a Stat Block Nazi, with a game as complex as 3.5 D&D, errors are bound to creep in.  The 3.5 Monster Manual, has the math work shown for Hit Points and Power Attack.  I know I can grab the book on the fly, mid game, and use a monster from it (say like a Summoned Demon),  and the creature will be effective, and from a casual inspection 100 % correct.  The ease of use of the 3.5 Monster Manual, means I do not have to dig too deeply under the hood.Not so with Hordes of the Abyss.  First off, by not having the Power Attack amount listed, using these Demons on the fly is a bit harder, and lets face it, one of the salient aspects of Tanari is being able to summon other Demons, on the fly use is pretty important. While reading, I found myself considering, in the case of reprint Demons, of just using the original stats presented from the original books.  In most cases, the issue is converting 3.0 Damage Reduction to 3.5 Damage reduction, which is real simple to do.  Secondly the errors are bad, real bad in some cases.  I stopped reading at Baphomet. I had a Louis Black meltdown moment when I realized that despite the Stat Block listing Baphomet as using Power Attack; Power Attack was not added into his damage, as well as the +2 from his magic weapon.  I also noticed a problem with the Goristo as well.Again this is from a cursory, and incomplete glance, I expect to find more errors as I get further into the more complex Stat Blocks of the Demon Lords.Perhaps I am overreacting, but I just find it a slap in the face to not have a crucial, and easily provided piece of information neglected, for what I can assume be fractions of a cent worth of ink per book.The D&D community has grown to expect a listed Grapple Bonus, I think the amount of Pre Factored Power Attack and Hit Dice type is on par in importance.I also find the Stat Block Errors and new Stat Block ommisions particuliarly galling in light that Hordes of the Abyss largely seems to be mainly Repackage, Revise, Reprint.  Hell, the introduction cops to that right off the bat.  I own Book of Vile Darkness, I have a subscription to Dragon Magazine, I have stats for a lot of these monsters right now, before Hordes of the Abyss.If I am paying twice for the same monster, the same feat, and the same general descriptions I had before, I damn well expect accuracy and progress in terms of ease of use!Methinks preordering WOTC books Amazon sight unseen, is over for me,  certainly this will be true for Monster Manual 4!</blockquote>

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