What's the quintessential D&D monster?

[Rel]

Unless it's a strawberry gelatinous fiendish pie.

Then it's much too tasty to be taken seriously.

I have it on good authority that it's blueberry.

"What authority?" you may ask. I own an official "Orc and Pie" t-shirt and whenever my 2 year old sees it, she points and says, "Blueberry Pie!" How she can tell this from a black and white t-shirt is one of the mysteries of the universe. I'm guessing she has some sort of psychic-pie-powers.

Which is cool.

 

[Hypersmurf]

I'm guessing she has some sort of psychic-pie-powers.

-Hyp.

 

[hrafnagud]

The drow as they appear in D&D are pretty much a D&D creation straight up.

I fail to see how Drow can be the 'quintessential D&D monster' when the concept has been derived from legend. There are more original choices out there, many of which have been brought up in this thread.

 

[Epametheus]

Iconic of D&D? Only the Beholder seems to actually be unique.

Everything else from D&D -- including mind flayers and dragons being split into 10 to 20+ breeds -- has made its way into other games.

The orcs are weird because a 3E Orc has very, very little in common with a 1E Orc. They used to be pig-faced wimps, and now they're straight-up beefy. I don't think any other of the staple monters have actually been remodeled like that.

 

[Psiblade]

I will definitely go with the Death Knight. Mind Flayers and Aboleths run a close second thou! I can still remember my first death knight encounter!

-Psiblade

 

[BrooklynKnight]

It USED to be the Gelatinous Cube, but with the advent of d20, it's
now the Gelatinous Icosahedron.

thats what a d6 is called?

 

[johnsemlak]

I still fail to see how D&D drow are 'derived from legend'. As I understend the extent of the borrowing is the word drow and dark elf, nothing more.

There are no legends to my knowledge of subterranean-dwelling spiderworshipping drow who flight with hand crossbows and are ambidextrous, who are matriarchal, build giant underground cities, warred with surface elves ages past, and create adaminite weapons that are spoiled under sunlight

The drow as they appear in D&D appear to be pretty original to me, besides the fact that they are a dark side of Tolkien's elves.

Thus, I have no problem labeling them the quintessential D&D monster. As an enemy they have certainly helped shape my D&D experience significantly.

That said, beholders, liches, rust monsters, green slime, gelentious cubes, etc. are pretty cool too.

 

[johnsemlak]

double post strikes again

 

[KB9JMQ]

For me it is the Rust Monster and the "Jello Cube" as we called it.
With D20 and Meepo I would say Kobolds are the thing.

 

[Isida Kep'Tukari]

Gelatinous Cube, of course. What D&D dungeon crawl could be complete without at least one run-in with one of these fine creatures?

Beholder. You haven't actually played a mid-to-high-level D&D game unless you've had at least two party members get turned into stone/disintigrated/held or otherwise get toasted by an eye tyrant.

Flumph. Every party must contain a flumph. If you do not have a flumph, the apolocalypse will surely follow. Selfish git for not having a flumph...