“When I bestride him, I soar, I am a hawk: he trots the air; the earth sings when he touches it; the basest horn of his hoof is more musical than the pipe of Hermes.” ― William Shakespeare, Henry V Fantasy novels love a good cavalry charge, or a hero who fights alongside a wolf, […]
Old Hat Monsters: Animal Companions, Familiars, and Mounts Read More »
A good gaming session has a few of the same elements as some traditional wedding receptions. Both are a gathering of friends in a festive atmosphere, likely with food at some point. As with one wedding tradition I could name, each session could feature “something old” and “something new.” Those familiar with my series here at
Old Hat Monsters: Signature Weapons Read More »
Last week, I had a survey that would pay off with this week’s article. Responses were consistent on wanting a CR 7–10 encounter, but there ended up being a tie between kobolds and bugbears for this week’s star! House rule: When there’s a tie between kobolds and something else, kobolds win. I can perhaps be
Old Hat Monsters: Survey Says Read More »
“Every man is a quotation from all his ancestors.” —Ralph Waldo Emerson In many tribal societies, the chieftain leads the social hierarchy (along with sometimes a council of elders), the hero leads war parties, and the shaman serves as spiritual leader. The tribal shaman is sometimes the only member of a tribe with magic, and
Old Hat Monsters: Tribal Shaman Read More »
“My lands are where my dead lie buried.”—Crazy Horse Tribal cultures sometimes have a different leader in war then when in peace. The tribal chieftain template I discussed last week was for a chieftain who mostly leads primarily by speaking. The tribal hero, or war chief if you prefer, leads by action. You can represent
Old Hat Monsters: Tribal Hero Template Read More »
“The sight of it made the earth seem unearthly. They were accustomed to look upon the shackled form of a conquered monster, but there—there you could look at a thing monstrous, beautiful, and free.” —Joseph Conrad, Heart of Darkness. My first Old Hat Monster article was about breathing new life into the classic monster races
Old Hat Monsters: Tribal Chieftain Template Read More »
We’ve civilized, mutated, and mashed our classic monsters into a fantasy paradox; they’re familiar yet new. On the horizon I have at least three more monster templates ahead that may well breathe new life into your old favorites, but I must confess that sometimes the best way to surprise your players isn’t to change the monster
Old Hat Monsters: The Encounter Read More »
Try to remember for a moment a more innocent time in your life. Back then, the thought of vampires and werewolves lurking in the dark might have sent a chill down your spine. These days, though, when people discuss shows such as The Walking Dead or Being Human, it’s not with the same sense of
Old Hat Monsters: Mashed Read More »
Last time, we went over a quick system for mutating your monsters so that they can provide a more unknown challenge for your player characters to face. Let’s take a look at a few examples, starting with the humble goblin. Goblins For starters, goblins are not CR 1. To get there, they need 2 player
Old Hat Monsters: Mutated (Part 2) Read More »
A good GM is one part entertainer and one part engineer. And, like a magician, you are only as good as your last trick. Players are like a savvy audience at a magic show—you aren’t going to wow them with the standard magic act. All too often, it seems like they’ve seen behind the curtain.
Old Hat Monsters: Mutated (Part 1) Read More »
“Orcs again—yawn. Wake me up when it’s my turn.” We’ve all been there. No matter what level your players’ current characters are at, your players have seen it all. Like a perpetual arms race, you can frantically try to find new monsters to throw at their CR or make up new ones, but the fact
Old Hat Monsters: Reborn Read More »
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