D&D 5E Wandering Monsters: Through the Vast Gate

[Hussar]

I've always loved gibbering mouthers. Fun critters. This works. The Foulspawn? Meh, take them or leave them. Like KM, I've got nothing really invested in them.

 

[Klaus]

Hmm, maybe it's the half-farspawn I'm thinking of?

After doing some looking, I can't find my MM5, but some people online point out a remarkable resemblance to the ushemoi, as well; it could be them that I'm thinking of (a simple name change or rewrite or something).

Yes, the ushemoi are the predecessors of the farspawn.

The recent D&D comic (focusing on Fell's Five) did a cool job making the foulspawn creepy.

 

[I'm A Banana]

Interesting. The art for the foulspawn certainly resembles the art for the ushemoi: a skinless hulk, a wrinkly wizard-like critter, a dude in a cape with four hands that joint at the elbow...

Though gutting old fiction isn't out of character for 4e, the 3e ushemoi are not related to the Far Realm in the slightest, and have a completely different mechanical hook. Fiction-wise, the ushemoi are forest-dwelling mercenaries for other evil creatures. Mechanics-wise, they are sort of masochistic: they get stronger or faster when they get hurt (though the sorcerer-leaders get more arcane power as they cast more spells).

In retrospect, the ushemoi fit extremely comfortably in 4e's roles, so I wonder if this critter was one of those late-3e attempts to float ideas that would become a core part of 4e, like other elements of the MM5 (they certainly aren't the only ones there that fit roles nicely).

Interesting, though. About the only thing they share with the foulspawn is the art...