Your favorite LA +1

[Drowbane]

Mineral Warrior, aka "Stony" from Underdark. Gives a few stat boosts, Burrowing, and DR 8/Adamantine. Yea, perhaps a bit OP for LA +1.

 

[3d6]

Bariaur from Manual of the Planes/Planar Handbook is pretty good.

 

[Thanee]

Some interesting stuff there, much of that I had not seen before (don't really browse the monster books much ). Thanks!

The Draconic Creature sounds pretty good (and I don't really see how it is too strong... surely not Feral- or even Mineral Warrior-strong ). Seems quite in line with Catfolk, for example.

Bye
Thanee

 

[kyuss]

Personally, I go for the half ogre from savage species. +6 str +2 con (slight negative penalties to dex, int and cha), large size, dark vision and natural armor. If your going for a heavy armor, fighter type or two handed fighter I'd say that the half ogre is perfect. I feel that the half ogre also makes a nice fighting cleric type too.

thats my 2 cents

 

[Talic]

I too am a big fan of the Goliaths. I like their bonuses and I like their style.

 

[moritheil]

Goliath may be better with their racial feats and sub levels, but absent that, Half-Giant is the way to go. You can build a decent war cleric with Powerful Build and access to Psionic feats.

 

[Iku Rex]

Personally, I go for the half ogre from savage species. +6 str +2 con (slight negative penalties to dex, int and cha), large size, dark vision and natural armor. If your going for a heavy armor, fighter type or two handed fighter I'd say that the half ogre is perfect. I feel that the half ogre also makes a nice fighting cleric type too.

(Half-Ogre is LA +2 in the more recent Races of Destiny book.)

 

[Klaus]

Reading this thread convinces me more and more that the hobgoblins should be LA +0. +2 Dex, +2 Con, Darkvision and a bonus to Move Silently just doesn't cut it as LA +1...

 

[Iku Rex]

Reading this thread convinces me more and more that the hobgoblins should be LA +0. +2 Dex, +2 Con, Darkvision and a bonus to Move Silently just doesn't cut it as LA +1...

They were in 3.0 (+0, that is). It didn't break anything. IMO they're slightly overpowered at LA +0, like dwarves, but they make a crappy LA +1.

 

[gabrion]

Two of the best +1 LA templates have already been named - Feral and Mineral Warrior. They are absolutely underpriced for what they get. One more that's great for casters (at least sorcerers) is the White Dragonspawn from the Dragonlance campaign setting. +7 natural armor, fly speed, a breath weapon, +2 bonus to dex and con, and +1 level of sorcerer spellcasting, darkvision, and some other stuff I can't remember at the moment make them a heck of a grab at only +1 LA.

Half-Fey from the Fiend Folio is also pretty nice, but it's a +2 LA. Feytouched from that book may be worth the +1 LA it has, depending on what you're looking for.

Chaos Gnomes from RoS are probably worth the +1 LA, though they work best for casters and it's usually a bad idea to have LA with casters (the exception being the white dragonspawn mentioned above). Whisper gnomes from that book are worth a +1 LA, but they actually don't have one at all!

Necropolitans (Libris Mortis) don't have a LA, but you lose a character level when becoming one. If done early in one's career, this is a super cheap cost to become an undead.

For creatures that have a low LA but also some racial HD, I like some of the following (I know the OP said no racial HD, but they're worth keeping in mind anyway):

• Marrulurk (Sandstorm): +2 Str, +6 Dex, +4 Con, +6 Wis, +4 Cha, Point Bland and Rapid Shot as bonus racial feats, death attack, +2d6 sneak attack, and some other goodies for 3 HD and +1 LA...sign me up!
• Sylph (MM II): 3 Outsider HD and +5 LA, but they cast spells as a 7th Level Sorcerers, plus they get all kinds of good stat boosts and at will improved invisibility. Plus, for every HD they gain, they gain a level of sorcerer spellcasting, which with a strict reading of the rules means they can advance in a class like rogue and still improved their casting!
• Varoot Nerra (Fiend Folio): 1 HD and +3 LA, but they have good ability adjustments and reflective spell resistance is absolutely OMG.

There are others that have higher ECLs like ethergaunts, sharn, skullcrusher ogres, etc., but I doubt you're interested in those.