"We love playing RPGs because they offer an escape from the mundane. One of the biggest components of our enjoyment is getting the chance to encounter and interact with incredible creatures. Learning about what makes a creature tick--whether we're engaged in combat with it or negotiating a price for goods--stimulates our brains and keeps us interested in the game and the world we create through our story-telling."
-Alan Tucker, Incredible Creatures-
Crit Academy is joined by authro Alan Tucker to talk about his popular Incredible Creatures book. A monster book with over 130 monsters to use in your 5th Edition Dungeons & Dragons roleplaying game. Many even include a new conditional feature labeled "heroic".
The artwork contains inside is amazing. Alan took a very cool approach to this book. Artists were given the freedom to draw whatever they wanted, and then professional writers had to create statblocks for the monsters. Check it out here!
Monster Variant:
Blooddrip Spider
Origin Statblock: Vampire Spawn
Lost Features: Vampire Weaknesses, regeneration, claws
New Features:
Blindsight 20 feet.
Web Sense. While in contact with a web, the spider knows the exact location of any other creature in contact with the same web.
Web Walker. The spider ignores movement restrictions caused by webbing.
Claws. Melee Weapon Attack: +6 to hit, reach 10 ft., one target. Hit: 8 (2d4 +3) piercing damage. If the target is a creature, it is grappled (escape DC 14), until this grapple ends, the target is restrained and the spider can’t grapple another target.
Bite. Melee Weapon Attack: +6 to hit, reach 5 ft., one creature that is grappled by the spider, incapacitated, or restrained. Hit: + (1d6 + 3) piercing damage plus 7 (2d6) necrotic damage. The target’s hit point maximum is reduced by an amount equal to the necrotic damage taken, and the spider regains hit points equal to that amount. The reduction lasts until the target finishes a long rest. The target dies if this effect reduces its hit point maximum to 0.
Web (Recharge 5-6). Range: +6 to hit, range 30/60 ft., one creature. Hit: The target is restrained by webbing. As an action, the restrained target can make a DC 14 Strength check, bursting the webbing on a success. The webbing can also be attacked and destroyed (AC 12; hp 15; vulnerability to fire damage; immunity to bludgeoning, poison, and psychic damage).
Legendary Actions
The spider can take 2 legendary actions, choosing from the options below. Only one legendary action option can be used at a time and only at the end of another creature’s turn. The spider regains spent legendary actions at the start of its turn.
Reinforce Webbing. The spider rolls a creature restrained by a web action in more webbing, increasing the escape DC by 1, the web’s AC by 1, and its hit points by 5).
Web Escape. The spider extends a line of webbing up to 30 feet above itself and moves 15 feet up the line.
Web Recharge. The spider rolls to recharge its web.
Encounter:
The characters spot an adult brass dragon flying stoic circles over its domain. Adventurers who get the dragon’s attention might be able to bribe or bargain with it in exchange for knowledge or favor.
Nirvanilith doesn’t consider the party a threat unless they attack her directly. She is placid and curious and among one of the most talkative of her kin. She is slow to anger. Even in battle she is rarely cruel or vengeful. Frequently allowing her beaten enemies to retreat. In spite of this however, she is still conceited, proud and a bit touchy at times. A prominent head crest shaped like a plowshare distinguishes it as a brass dragon with a successful DC 15 Arcana/History check. Nirvanilith knows the following information, but will only share for what she considers an equivalent exchange. Some examples include; precious handcrafted works in materials such as bone, wood, stone or fabric (a character with the Guild Artisan Background knows exactly where to go to get high-quality handcrafted goods). Gold, gems and other precious coins and metals. Courtly gossip and treasonous affairs.
She is well informed of the positioning and behavior of two-legged grounders.
A foolish hydra has found its way to a new home in a cavern behind a waterfall just within her domain. She believes the beast will provide a good meal for some time, as their heads tend to regrow.
Nirvanilith used to have a regular visitor, a wizard named Liamel. He built a small home at the top of a towering mesa in her domain. There he retired and discussed two-legged grounder politics and showed her card tricks. If the characters locate and travel to this location. They can find a small wethered wizard’s tower containing the deck of illusions.
A merchant ship sank off a shore at the edge of her domain during a storm just before her last slumber. With a successful DC 15 Arcana/History/Nature check a character knows that a dragon can slumber for dozens if not hundreds of years.
Nirvanilith can provide general knowledge on recent changes in the environment and similar out-of-place oddities.
Any additional information the Game Master wishes to include.
Magic Item:
Syzel Mask (Incredible Creatures)
Wondrous item, rare
Any creature that puts on a mask bearing its likeness must make a DC 16 Charisma saving throw. A creature that fails the save behaves as if affected by the confusion spell and is charmed. The charmed creature must repeat the saving throw at the end of its next three turns, ending the effect on a success. After three failures the creature's soul is imprisoned in the mask and the confusion effect ends.
A creature whose soul is imprisoned behaves similarly to their normal self, but soon develops a compulsion to craft makes themselves and refuses to take the mask off. They no longer need to sleep and spend long rests making masks in any material. They do not gain levels of exhaustion, but can only recover up to half of their maximum hit points.
While wearing the mask, the creature is under the nondetection spell, has immunity to any other charm effect, and their Strength score is increased by 2.
Soul imprisonment lasts until the creature is freed by a remove curse spell or similar magic.
Dungeon Master Tip:
Location as a Fulcrum for Superior Design
While many adventures start with monsters, villains or some setting changing event, those are secondary to location. While the other tools aren’t bad, in fact, they can be great. The location ends up being the most critical aspect of the storytelling experience, as it’s the only true story element the designer can control. The story and actions taken are dictated by the players and their characters. Additionally the Dungeon Master runs all the monsters, villains, npcs etc. Often they customize these to fit their game and table. This means the part less likely to be altered is the critical details of a location.
When designing an adventure, or campaign, the location is something that is often a critical part of the narrative. Very few Dungeon Masters are going to use a map and desert setting for an underwater campaign. This is your chance to shine, not just by filling it with related monsters and lore. But to add unique features to that particular location. Continuing with the desert theme. Indiginous cannibals that must survive on remains of the dead to help keep their people alive. Or, common sandstorms that make getting lost, or combat difficult makes for an interesting narrative. For instance, the sandstorms might affect travel times or even better. The indiginous people have sleds with massive sails to ride the sandstorms from one location to another.
Whatever you choose, remember that the location you set your adventure or story in can be leveraged to ensure you have a superior designed story.
Player Tip: Don’t be a Dick
Generalities about genasi’s elemental manifestation are sometimes contradicted by the race’s changeable nature. In most regions where a genasi is born or lives, the dominant manifestation is the one most closely associated with the region's environment. For example a water genasi is likely to live near large bodies of water or a fire genasi near a volcano. Their elemental manifestation also shapes their skin tone as well as hair. Though, genasi don’t have actual hair. Instead it's a manifestation of their elemental bloodline. A fire genasi is likely to have red toned skin with red and orange hair that gives off a slight energy that makes their hair appear as fire.
Ambition and pride have long been a large part of genasi culture. Because of their unique nature, they are often treated as outcasts, not hated, but often unwelcome. This causes them to constantly seek recognition for their strength and skills. While they have no longstanding animosity toward any other races, nor do they have powerful allies. Oftentimes not even their own kind.
A few great characteristics of genasi: Free-spirited, headstrong, short-tempered and impulsive. It should be noted that their elemental manifestation can also have an impact on their personalities. For example, an earth genasi may be more withdrawn, and quiet. While a fire genasi is a bit hot-headed (pun intended) and impulsive.
Example Genasi Names: Emere, Sardis, Yuriel, Len-jes, Jerra, Mara-kai, Vanri.
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