All the really great monsters, in the D&D game and in literature, have one thing in common—you can sum up what they’re all about in just a few words. That’s the first and most essential item in any monster recipe—a solid and fairly simple statement of what the monster is all about.
Before you begin assigning statistics and other particulars, take some time to think about the basic nature, or concept, of your monster.
Think about the following when working on your concept:
After you have an idea of what your monster is about, you’ll have a much easier time making your creature’s type, ability scores, feats, skills, and special powers fit your concept. It’s okay to model your new monster on a creature that’s already in the game—you’ll have less work to do, and your monster will be easier to use. You’ll find that a short menu of special abilities tightly wedded to your concept makes the best monster, and it makes the monster much easier to use.
Once you have your monster’s concept figured out, it’s time to pick a creature type that fits the concept. Use the following information to determine the most appropriate type for your monster (perhaps refining your concept as you go).
Aberration: An aberration has a bizarre anatomy, strange abilities, an alien mindset, or any combination of the three. This type works best for creatures that are just plain weird. Aberrations have average combat ability and hit points, but generally poor saving throws.
If you want your aberration to be a tough customer in combat, you’ll need to give it some sort of special attack ability. For example, a carrion crawler has eight paralyzing tentacle attacks, while an umber hulk has a gaze that causes confusion.
Animal: An animal is a living, nonhuman creature, usually a vertebrate with no magical abilities and no innate capacity for language or culture. Animals have average combat ability, average hit points, and average saving throws.
If your creature ever lived on Earth, and it’s not an insect of some kind, it’s probably an animal.
Construct: A construct is an animated object or artificially constructed creature. Constructs have average combat ability and hit points, and very poor saving throws, but they have immunity to many attack forms.
Use this type for any creature that was built or made rather than born or hatched.
Dragon: A dragon is a reptilelike creature, usually winged, with magical or unusual abilities. This type is exceptionally powerful, combining good combat ability, hit points, and saving throws.
Use the dragon type for variations on the basic dragon design (a flying reptile with supernatural abilities). If your creature is essentially just a flying reptile (such as a pterodactyl), the animal or magical beast type may be more suitable.
Elemental: An elemental is a being composed of one of the four classical elements: air, earth, fire, or water. Elementals have average combat ability and hit points and poor saving throws, but have immunity to some forms of attack.
Use the elemental type for a creature from the elemental planes that is more element than creature. If your creature is a native of the elemental planes but more like a living creature than the incarnation of an element, you should probably use the outsider type.
Fey: A fey is a creature with supernatural abilities and connections to nature or to some other force or place. Fey are usually human-shaped. Fey have poor combat ability and hit points and average saving throws. If you want to create a tough fey, you will need to assign formidable physical ability scores and special attacks or defenses to make the creature survivable.
Fey creatures include fairies and many sylvan creatures. They could also include evil creatures such as the sidhe and unseelie fairies.
Giant: A giant is a humanoid-shaped creature of great strength, usually of at least Large size. Giants have average combat ability and hit points, and poor saving throws, but their size and physical ability scores usually make them very dangerous combatants.
If your creature is humanoid-shaped and at least as big as an ogre, it’s probably a giant, especially if it doesn’t have a lot of special abilities.
Humanoid: A humanoid usually has two arms, two legs, and one head, or a humanlike torso, arms, and a head. Humanoids have few or no supernatural or extraordinary abilities, but most can speak and usually have well-developed societies. They usually are Small or Medium. Every humanoid creature also has a subtype, such as elf, goblinoid, or reptilian.
Humanoids with 1 Hit Die exchange the features of their humanoid Hit Die for the class features of a PC or NPC class. Humanoids of this sort are presented as 1st-level warriors, which means that they have average combat ability and poor saving throws.
Humanoids with more than 1 Hit Die (for example, gnolls and bugbears) are the only humanoids who make use of the features of the humanoid type. Humanoids have average combat ability and hit points, but poor saving throws.
Magical Beast: A magical beast is similar to an animal but can have an Intelligence score higher than 2. Magical beasts usually have supernatural or extraordinary abilities, but sometimes are merely bizarre in appearance or habits. Magical beasts have good combat ability and hit points, and average saving throws.
If your creature resembles an animal but is intelligent or has supernatural or spell-like abilities, it’s probably a magical beast. You can also use this type for animallike creatures that combine the features of two or more animals, or are similar to animals but just tougher.
Monstrous Humanoid: Monstrous humanoids are similar to humanoids, but with monstrous or animalistic features. They often have magical abilities as well. Monstrous humanoids have good combat ability and average hit points and saving throws.
Use this type for just about anything that combines elements of human and animal or monster anatomy, unless it is weird enough to qualify as an aberration. Monstrous humanoids might also include otherwise humanoid creatures with odd vulnerabilities or abilities you wouldn’t normally find in a humanoid.
Ooze: An ooze is an amorphous or mutable creature, usually mindless. Oozes have average combat ability, good hit points, and very poor saving throws, but they have immunity to many forms of attack.
If your creature has a bizarre physiology that takes the form of a mindless, amorphous blob, it’s an ooze. Otherwise, it’s probably an aberration.
Outsider: An outsider is at least partially composed of the essence (but not necessarily the material) of some plane other than the Material Plane. Some creatures start out as some other type and become outsiders when they attain a higher (or lower) state of spiritual existence. Outsiders have good combat ability, average hit points, and good saving throws.
If your creature comes from another plane and it’s not an elemental, it’s an outsider.
Plant: This type comprises vegetable creatures. Note that regular plants, such as one finds growing in gardens and fields, lack Wisdom and Charisma scores and thus are not creatures, but objects, even though they are alive. Plant creatures have average combat ability and hit points and poor saving throws, but have immunity to many forms of attack.
Undead: Undead are once-living creatures animated by spiritual or supernatural forces. Undead have poor combat ability, average hit points, and poor saving throws, but have immunity to many forms of attack. If you want to create an undead creature with formidable combat abilities, you will need to give it high Strength or Dexterity, or provide it with dangerous special attacks and defenses.
If it’s dead, but still kicking, it’s undead (although it could be a construct if it’s just a collection of parts animated through an arcane process). If the creature has energy drain or ability drain capability, it is more likely undead than a construct.
Vermin: This type includes insects, arachnids, other arthropods, worms, and similar invertebrates. Vermin have average combat ability and hit points and poor saving throws, but are often mindless and therefore have immunity to mind-affecting effects (charms, compulsions, phantasms, patterns, and morale effects).
Use this type for giant bugs and other mindless invertebrates. If your creature has an Intelligence score and you’ve considered the vermin type, it’s probably a magical beast or an aberration instead.
Before you get too far into designing your monster, you should decide about how tough a monster you’re trying to build by picking a target CR. Challenge rating measures the level of characters the monster will be best suited to oppose. As you assign the monster’s Hit Dice, Armor Class, attack bonus, special attacks, save DCs, and other characteristics, you will want to keep your target CR in mind.
For example, if you want to create a monster to challenge a party of 2nd-level characters, you probably don’t want to create a monster with an Armor Class of 25. A strong and capable 2nd-level fighter might have an attack bonus of +6 or so, which means that the best character in the party will hit your monster only on a natural 19 or 20. The clerics, rogues, and other characters in the party will only hit on a natural 20.
If you are interested in creating your own monsters for a particular game or campaign, you have an advantage: You know exactly what characters your monsters will face. You can examine your players’ character sheets and check the attack bonus, Armor Class, and saving throws of the characters you expect your monster to fight. If you don’t want to tailor your monster to a particular group of characters, you can use the NPC tables in Chapter 4 of the Dungeon Master’s Guide to see how characters of a level equal to your target CR can handle different monster attacks and defenses.
As you proceed through the steps of creating your monster, use your target CR to guide your decisions about what value to assign. Your final monster design may or may not match the target CR, but you will be much less likely to create a monster that never misses or can’t be hit.
All the other elements of the monster recipe serve to put your concept into words and numbers so you can use the monster in play. The steps below are not presented in the same order as a monster entry, because some items that appear late in a monster entry (for example, the monster’s ability scores) affect decisions you might make about items that precede them.
A creature’s type defines what the creature is like and what it can do in the much the same way as a character’s class defines the character’s abilities. A creature’s type determines the size of its Hit Dice and how magic affects the creature; for example, the hold animal spell affects only creatures of the animal type.
Type, along with size, helps determine the monster’s ability scores and damage values. Consider your concept for the monster, and choose the type that best matches that concept. Full descriptions of each type’s features and traits appear in Chapter 7: Glossary.
A creature’s size affects its combat abilities in numerous ways. In general, the bigger the creature, the nastier it is. When assigning a size to your monster, think about your monster concept. Does the creature need to be really strong and tough? Does it have a voracious appetite? If so, it should be big. Is the creature sneaky, agile, and easy to overlook? If so, it should be smaller.
It’s important to remember that a creature’s total volume is what determines its size. If a creature is significantly denser or less dense than a regular animal, then its weight is a poor indicator of size. For example, the ghost of a human weighs nothing but is size Medium.
A creature’s size should influence its ability scores and its number of Hit Dice. The Creature Size, Ability Scores, and Damage table shows suggested ability scores, Hit Dice, and natural weapon damage for monsters of various sizes. These are guidelines, not hard-and-fast requirements. Many creatures in this book do not adhere to the guidelines on the table.
The column headers on Creature Size, Ability Scores, and Damage table are defined below.
Minimum CR: This column gives the minimum target CR you should assign to a creature of this size. This reflects the size-based suggestions for number of HD, Strength, and damage capability. For example, if you are creating a Gargantuan creature, you should plan on a final CR of 6 or higher.
Str, Dex, Con: These numbers are typical values for a creature of the indicated size. The creature’s type influences which end of the given range a monster falls into; for example, since giants are often at the high end of the Strength range for their size, a Large giant’s Strength score should be closer to 27 than 18.
Ability score guidelines for some creature types are given below.
Elemental: Air and fire elementals often have high Dexterity scores for their size; earth and water elementals often have high Constitution scores.
Fey: Fey often have high Dexterity scores for their size.
Giant: Giants often have high Strength and Constitution scores for their size.
Magical Beast: Magical beasts often have high Dexterity scores for their size.
Ooze: Oozes often have low Dexterity and high Constitution scores for their size.
Outsider: Outsiders may be supernaturally quick and agile, despite their size. Outsiders have the Dexterity range of a creature three sizes smaller than their actual size.
Plant: Plants often have low Dexterity and high Constitution scores for their size.
Undead: Undead often have high Strength and Dexterity scores for their size.
Minimum HD: Creatures of size Small or larger should be assigned a certain number of Hit Dice as a minimum to reflect their mass. A Gargantuan creature with 2 Hit Dice would be larger than an elephant, but would have the hit points of a wolf.
Maximum HD: Creatures of size Tiny or smaller shouldn’t have a very large number of Hit Dice, simply because they don’t have the necessary body mass to have the sort of innate toughness that a large number of racial Hit Dice would suggest. If you want to create very small creatures with lots of Hit Dice, you might be better off to keep the creature’s racial Hit Dice low and assign it some number of character class levels instead.
Slam or Tentacle: The suggested damage value for any blunt attack the creature might have (punches, constriction, slaps, and the like).
Bite: The suggested damage value for any attack the creature delivers with its mouth or teeth.
Claw or Sting: The suggested damage value for any attack the creature makes by scratching, tearing, raking, or poking with an appendage.
Gore or Tail: The suggested damage value for any attack the creature makes with horns, antlers, or a head butt. A tail slap or tail whip falls in this category, too.
| Size | Minimum CR | Str | Dex | Con | Minimum HD | Maximum HD | Slam or Tentacle | Bite | Claw or Sting | Gore or Tail |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fine | — | 1 | 16-27 | 2-11 | — | 2 | — | 1 | — | — |
| Diminutive | — | 1 | 14-25 | 4-13 | — | 4 | 1 | 1d2 | 1 | 1 |
| Tiny | — | 2-5 | 12-23 | 4-15 | — | 6 | 1 | 1d3 | 1d2 | 1d2 |
| Small | — | 4-11 | 10-21 | 6-17 | ½ | — | 1d3 | 1d4 | 1d3 | 1d4 |
| Medium | — | 8-19 | 8-19 | 8-19 | 1 | — | 1d4 | 1d6 | 1d4 | 1d6 |
| Large | 2 | 18-27 | 6-17 | 10-23 | 2 | — | 1d6 | 1d8 | 1d6 | 1d8 |
| Huge | 4 | 24-33 | 4-15 | 12-27 | 4 | — | 1d8 | 2d6 | 1d8 | 2d6 |
| Gargantuan | 6 | 30-41 | 4-13 | 14-31 | 12 | — | 2d6 | 2d8 | 2d6 | 2d8 |
| Colossal | 10 | 36-49 | 2-11 | 18-39 | 24 | — | 2d8 | 4d6 | 2d8 | 4d6 |
A monster associated with an element, form of energy, or the like also gets a parenthetical subtype. Applying a subtype can indicate a subgroup within a larger type, such as undead (incorporeal). Some subtypes link creatures that share characteristics, such as humanoid (goblinoid). Other subtypes categorize members of different types that share common characteristics For example, white dragons and frost giants belong to the dragon and giant types, respectively, but they are also of the cold subtype.
Some common subtypes that affect a creature’s abilities are briefly described below. Each boldfaced heading links to further details.
Air: The creature (usually an elemental or outsider) possesses an innate bond to the Elemental Plane of Air.
Angel: The creature belongs to one of the angel races and shares common characteristics with other angels.
Aquatic: The creature breathes water, not air.
Archon: The creature belongs to one of the archon races and shares common characteristics with other archons.
Augmented: The creature’s type has been changed by a template.
Baatezu: The creature is a devil that belongs to the baatezu race and shares common characteristics with other baatezu.
Chaotic: The creature (usually an outsider) possesses an innate bond to the chaotic-aligned Outer Planes, which determines how it is affected by certain spells.
Cold: The creature has immunity to cold, but is vulnerable to fire attacks.
Earth: The creature (usually an elemental or outsider) possesses an innate bond to the Elemental Plane of Earth.
Eladrin: The creature is a celestial that belongs to the eladrin race and shares common characteristics with other eladrins.
Evil: The creature (usually an outsider) possesses an innate bond to the evil-aligned Outer Planes, which determines how it is affected by certain spells.
Extraplanar: The creature (usually an elemental or outsider) is not native to the Material Plane, which determines how it is affected by spells that banish or dismiss extraplanar creatures.
Fire: The creature has immunity to fire, but is vulnerable to cold attacks.
Goblinoid: The creature belongs to one of the goblin races.
Good: The creature (usually an outsider) possesses an innate bond to the good-aligned Outer Planes, which determines how it is affected by certain spells.
Guardinal: The creature is a celestial that belongs to the guardinal race and shares common characteristics with other guardinals.
Incorporeal: The creature is completely intangible on the Material Plane and can pass through solid objects.
Lawful: The creature (usually an outsider) possesses an innate bond to the lawful-aligned Outer Planes, which determines how it is affected by certain spells.
Native: Despite its outsider type, the creature is actually a native of the Material Plane.
Reptilian: The creature is a humanoid with reptilelike characteristics.
Shapechanger: The creature possesses an innate ability to change shape or assume an alternate form.
Swarm: The creature is actually a swarm of hundreds or thousands of very small creatures.
Tanar’ri: The creature is a demon that belongs to the tanar’ri race and shares common characteristics with other tanar’ri.
Water: The creature (usually an elemental or outsider) possesses an innate bond to the Elemental Plane of Water.
This entry in a statistics block provides the number and size (number of sides) of Hit Dice and any bonus hit points. The size of the dice is derived from the creature’s type. The number of bonus hit points is a function of the creature’s Hit Dice and Constitution score.
A parenthetical listing of the creature’s average hit points follows the Hit Dice listing. To calculate a creature’s average hit points, take the average value of each Hit Die, apply the creature’s Constitution modifier (a creature always has at least 1 hit point per Hit Die), multiply by the number of Hit Dice, and round down.
| Die Size | Average | |
|---|---|---|
| 1d4 | 2.5 | |
| 1d6 | 3.5 | |
| 1d8 | 4.5 | |
| 1d10 | 5.5 | |
| 1d12 | 6.5 |
Hit Dice and Target CR: In general, a creature’s Hit Dice should be equal to or greater than the target CR you’ve set for the creature, but not more than three times the target CR. For example, if you are designing a CR 5 monster, you should probably assign at least 5 Hit Dice, but not more than 15 Hit Dice. If your monster has too few Hit Dice for its Challenge Rating, it won’t have staying power comparable to other monsters of that CR. If your monster has too many Hit Dice, not only will it have more hit points than a creature of that CR should have, but it will also have a better attack bonus and saving throws than expected, because those numbers are determined by the creature’s Hit Dice.
Obviously, many monsters break this rule, usually by falling 1 or 2 Hit Dice short of their CR. That’s okay, provided that the monster has special attacks or qualities that make it a suitable challenge at its CR.
In this entry, a creature’s ability scores are presented in this order: Str, Dex, Con, Int, Wis, Cha.
Assigning Abilities: Physical abilities (Strength, Dexterity, and Constitution) are largely a function of a creature’s type and size, as shown on the Creature Size, Ability Scores, and Damage table. In general, the bigger a creature gets, the higher its Strength and Constitution scores and the lower its Dexterity. Exceptions abound.
The remaining abilities (Intelligence, Wisdom, and Charisma) are seldom related to size. You’ll need to assign values to these abilities to match your concept.
Intelligence: Reflects how well the creature learns and reasons. In most cases, it affects how many skills and feats the creature has. A creature needs an Intelligence score of at least 3 to speak a language; anything lower makes the creature no smarter than a typical animal. An Intelligence score of 4 to 7 represents a limited ability to reason and a certain low cunning. An Intelligence score of 8 or 9 approaches the typical human range. A score of 10 or 11 covers the human norm. A score of 12 to 19 reflects above-average to genius-level Intelligence. A score of 20 or higher represents superhuman intellect.
Wisdom: Reflects the creature’s level of perception and strength of will. A creature can have a very low Intelligence score and still be very wise. A Wisdom score of 3 or lower indicates a creature that is barely sentient. A score of 4 to 6 represents Wisdom equivalent to that of an unusually foolhardy or unperceptive human. A score of 16 to 18 reflects acute senses and unusual guile. A score of 20 or higher represents superhuman perceptiveness.
Charisma: Reflects the creature’s sense of self and ability to influence other creatures for good or for ill (a particularly scary creature often has a high Charisma score). A creature can have a very low Intelligence score and still be very charismatic. A Charisma score of 3 or lower indicates a creature that is barely sentient. A score of 4 to 6 represents Charisma equivalent to that of a strikingly sullen, crass, or retiring human. A score of 16 to 18 reflects an unusually strong presence and force of personality. A score of 20 or higher represents superhuman Charisma.
Nonabilities: Some creatures lack one or more ability scores. In most cases, a nonability is an advantage for the creature. Note that all creatures must have both a Wisdom score and a Charisma score. Anything that lacks Wisdom or Charisma is an object, not a creature (though it may be alive, such as a tree or a sponge).
This entry gives the creature’s modifier to initiative rolls. The bonus is most commonly derived from the creature’s Dexterity modifier and the Improved Initiative feat (if the creature has it).
This entry gives the creature’s base land speed in feet per move action. All speeds must be evenly divisible by 5 feet. Most creatures have base land speeds of between 20 and 40 feet. Larger creatures and quadrupeds tend to be faster, and predators or creatures noted for their fast movement could have a speed of up to 60 to 80 feet. Compare the speeds of monsters similar to your monster concept to pick a suitable value. See the Typical Speed table for some guidelines and suggestions.
If the creature has other modes of movement, list all that apply after the base land speed in alphabetical order. If the creature wears armor that reduces its speed, it’s helpful to give its reduced movement rate in a parenthetical note following the base land speed.
| Type | Slow | Normal | Fast | Example Creature |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tiny or Small biped | 15 ft. | 20 ft. | 30 ft. | Halfling (20 ft.) |
| Medium biped | 20 ft. | 30 ft. | 40 ft. | Human (30 ft.) |
| Large or Huge biped | 30 ft. | 40 ft. | 50 ft. | Ogre (40 ft.) |
| Tiny quadruped | 15 ft. | 20 ft. | 30 ft. | Cat (30 ft.) |
| Small quadruped | 30 ft. | 40 ft. | 50 ft. | Dog (40 ft.) |
| Medium quadruped | 30 ft. | 40 ft. | 50 ft. | Wolf (50 ft.) |
| Large or Huge quadruped | 30 ft. | 50 ft. | 60 ft. | Unicorn (60 ft.) |
| Tiny or Small flier | 40 ft. | 50 ft. | 60 ft. | Raven (40 ft.) |
| Medium flier | 40 ft. | 60 ft. | 90 ft. | Gargoyle (60 ft.) |
| Large or Huge flier | 60 ft. | 80 ft. | 120 ft. | Griffon (80 ft.) |
| Swimmer | 40 ft. | 60 ft. | 80 ft. | Water naga (50 ft.) |
All creatures start with a base Armor Class of 10, which is modified by the creature’s size, Dexterity, armor (including natural armor), and shield. Some creatures, such as incorporeal monsters, may also have a deflection bonus to their Armor Class.
Consider the creature’s anatomy and overall toughness when you choose an Armor Class for your monster. The table below shows some typical values for natural armor.
Touch Armor Class: To figure your monster’s Armor Class against touch attacks, add only its size modifier, Dexterity modifier, and deflection bonus (if any) to its base AC of 10.
Flat-Footed Armor Class: To figure your monster’s Armor Class when it is caught flat-footed, include all the normal elements except the creature’s Dexterity bonus.
Don’t forget to include the creature’s size modifier in your final Armor Class calculation. If the creature wears armor, its natural armor bonus stacks with the bonus provided by its armor. For example, a centaur is a Large creature with a Dexterity score of 14 (+2 bonus to AC) and +2 natural armor. If the centaur carries a heavy shield and wears a chain shirt, its Armor Class is 19 (–1 size, +2 Dex, +2 natural, +2 heavy shield, +4 chain shirt).
Armor Class and Target CR: Too high an Armor Class may make your monster unbeatable at the Challenge Rating you’re aiming for. Too low, and the monster won’t be a challenge at all. A good rule of thumb is to arrange the components of a creature’s AC to arrive at a total Armor Class equal to 13 + target CR. For example, if you’d like your monster to be about CR 8, you should aim for AC 21. Naturally, you can choose to make a monster somewhat more soft-skinned if it has other defenses (damage reduction, for example), or you might choose to make your monster an unusually tough target for its CR by giving it “extra” armor.
| Type | Bonus | Example Creature |
|---|---|---|
| Normal skin | +0 | Human |
| Thick skin or fur | +1 to +3 | Baboon (+1) Black bear (+2) Shark (+3) |
| Tough hide | +4 to +7 | Crocodile (+4) Polar bear (+5) Boar (+6) Rhinoceros (+7) |
| Scales | +5 to +10 or more | Dragon (varies) |
| Exoskeleton | +2 to +11 or more | Giant bee (+2) Chuul (+10) Remorhaz (+11) |
| Shell or carapace | +10 to +12 or more | Juvenile tojanida (+10) Bulette (+12) |
| Very tough hide | +8 to +15 or more | Otyugh (+8) Kraken (+14) Ravid (+15) |
Decide what attack forms the creature uses in melee and ranged combat and determine the monster’s attack bonus with each attack. The attacks you might decide to give a creature include:
Attack Bonus: A creature’s attack bonus consists of the following components: base attack bonus (as determined by the creature’s type and Hit Dice), size modifier, and Strength modifier for melee attacks or Dexterity modifier for ranged attacks. You may select feats or equipment for the monster that alter the creature’s attack bonus with a particular weapon; for example, if you give the monster a +2 longsword, you will increase its attack bonus with that weapon by 2 points. Similarly, Weapon Focus or Weapon Finesse might alter the creature’s attack bonus.
The Attack entry in a statistics block gives the attack and damage bonus for each of the monster’s attacks, if the monster decides to use a standard action to make a single attack. You do not need to account for secondary weapons or multiple attacks with the same weapon when you describe the monster’s individual attack options here—any weapon the monster uses to make a single attack as a standard action gets the monster’s full attack bonus and damage bonus for Strength.
Damage: Assign damage values to each of the creature’s natural attacks. The base damage value depends on the creature’s size and the type of attack, as shown on Table 5–1.
Particularly tough or weak creatures might have higher or lower damage values. In general, you can vary the power of a monster’s attacks by moving up or down one or two lines on the table. For example, a Medium monster’s bite usually has a damage value of 1d6, but it could be as little as 1d3 or as much as 2d6. Use the 1d3 value for a creature with a very small or weak mouth, or the 2d6 value to represent a creature with large or very powerful mouth.
Natural Weapons: A creature’s attack gets the creature’s full damage bonus from Strength, or 1½ times the Strength bonus if it is the creature’s sole natural weapon.
If any of the creature’s attacks also have some special effect other than damage (poison, disease, energy drain, paralyzation, and so forth), note it after the attack’s hit point damage—for example, sting (1d6 plus poison).
Critical Hits: Unless you decide otherwise, a creature’s natural attack threatens a critical hit on a roll of natural 20 and deals double damage if a critical hit is confirmed. Very few monsters have better than normal threat ranges or critical multipliers with their natural weapons.
Weapon-Using Creatures: Creatures that use weapons follow all the rules that characters do; two-handed weapons gain 1½ times the creature’s Strength bonus on damage rolls.
Attack Bonus and Target CR: Much like Armor Class, a monster’s attack bonus may make it unplayable at the Challenge Rating you intend. A monster without a high enough attack bonus poses no threat to the PCs, and a monster with too high an attack bonus never misses.
As a guideline, arrange the components of a monster’s attack bonus so that its attack bonus with its primary weapon is equal to (target CR × 1.5) + 2. For example, if you are building a CR 5 monster, an appropriate attack bonus would be (5 × 1.5) + 2, or 9.5, which comes out to an attack bonus of +9 or +10. This guideline works best for monsters with few special attacks; if you expect your monster will rely on special attacks rather than pure melee ability, a better guideline would be an attack bonus equal to (target CR × 1.5) – 1. A CR 5 monster of this sort would have an attack bonus of +6 or +7.
Manipulating your monster’s attack bonus to fit the CR you have in mind is not quite as easy as manipulating Armor Class. You can change the creature’s Hit Dice, since base attack bonus is derived from Hit Dice, but doing this will change several other characteristics. The best way to fine-tune your monster at this step is to change its Strength score (or Dexterity, for ranged attacks), but watch out for creating ability scores that seem unusually low or high for a creature of the given size and type.
In this step, you’ll determine the monster’s attack routine when it uses a full-round action to make a full attack. This is based on the individual attacks the monster has available to it (see Attack, above), but you need to account for the difference between primary and secondary attacks.
Natural Weapons: In general, a creature attacks once with each natural weapon it has. For most monsters, that will be two claws and a bite (or the other way around). Decide which of the monster’s natural weapons is its primary weapon. A monster many have two or more primary weapons if it has two or more of the same natural attack—for example, a treant attacks with two slams, one for each limb, and both are primary natural weapons.
Primary weapons use a creature’s full attack bonus, no matter how many primary weapons it has. The monster applies its full Strength bonus on damage rolls with its primary natural weapons, or 1½ times its Strength bonus if the monster has only one primary natural weapon (for example, a wolf’s bite).
All other natural weapons are secondary attacks. Reduce the creature’s attack bonus by 5 for all such attacks, no matter how many there are. Creatures with the Multiattack feat take only a –2 penalty on secondary attacks. A monster applies half its Strength bonus on damage rolls with its secondary natural weapons.
Manufactured Weapons: Creatures that use weapons follow all the rules characters that do, including multiple attacks with the same weapon and penalties for using two weapons at once.
Natural and Manufactured Weapons: If a creature has both a manufactured weapon and natural weapons, it usually uses its manufactured weapon as its primary attack (and receives multiple attacks with that weapon, if its base attack bonus is +6 or higher), and uses its natural weapons as secondary attacks (–5 penalty on attack rolls, and ½ Strength bonus on damage rolls). While a humanoid fighting with two weapons takes a –2 penalty (or worse) on its primary attack, a monster fighting with a handheld weapon and a natural weapon at the same times does not take this penalty—the natural weapon is a secondary attack, and that’s all.
Decide what special attacks (if any) your monster has. A special attack is anything the creature uses offensively to harm or hinder another creature. Common special attacks include:
Each of these special attacks are either hyperlinked to its entry in Types, Subtypes, and Special Abilities; where an entry there does not exist, it is linked creature in the Creature Codex that has that ability.
A number of monsters possess unusual special attacks that are less common (for example, the mind flayer’s mind blast and extract attacks). In general, one or two special attacks for any monster is enough—monsters usually don’t get the chance to use more than a couple of special abilities in the course of a single encounter, so creating a number of special attacks simply makes the monster more difficult to use in play.
Each special attack should include the type of saving throw the attack allows (if any) and the DC of the save. The saving throw type depends on the nature of the attack, as follows:
The formula for save DCs is: 10 + ½ the creature’s Hit Dice + relevant ability score modifier. The relevant ability score depends on the type of attack, as follows:
Strength: Any application of force, crushing, binding, or constriction. Example: trample.
Dexterity: Movement, movement restrictions, hitting with a missile, entanglement. Example: entangle.
Constitution: Almost anything that comes from the creature’s body, such as poison or breath weapons. Examples: breath weapon, poison.
Intelligence: Usually not used to determine save DCs for monsters’ special attacks. Possible uses: illusion effects.
Wisdom: Usually not used to determine save DCs for monsters’ special attacks. Possible uses: Mental or perception effects (except charms and compulsions; see Charisma).
Charisma: Use Charisma for anything pitting the creature’s will against an opponent: gaze attacks, charms, compulsions, or energy drain. The creature’s Charisma modifier affects the save DC for any spell-like abilities it has (no matter what form they take).
Also use Charisma for any DC that normally would be based on an ability score the creature does not have. For example, undead creatures have no Constitution score, so any poison attacks they have would use Charisma to determine the save DC.
A special quality is any ability a creature can use to protect itself. The Special Qualities entry also is the catch-all for anything the creature might do or have that does not logically belong somewhere else. Common special qualities include:
Most of these special qualities are hyperlinked to its entry in Types, Subtypes, and Special Abilities.
A number of monsters have less common special qualities that are not listed here. As with special attacks, limit the number of special qualities you give a monster, because you’ll have an easier time running the monster in play.
Too much spell resistance or damage reduction can make a monster virtually unbeatable at the Challenge Rating you’re aiming for. Too little, and the monster might as well not have any at all, since any character will have the caster level or magic weaponry necessary to penetrate the creature’s defense.
Spell Resistance: If you choose to give your monster this ability, you’ll probably want to set the resistance number equal to the creature’s CR + 11. This means that a character of a level equal to the creature’s will have a 50% chance to overcome the monster’s spell resistance (barring the Spell Penetration feat). For example, a 12th-level character has a 50% chance to overcome spell resistance 23, so 23 is a good spell resistance number for a CR 12 creature.
You may need to adjust a creature’s spell resistance number after you finally settle on a CR for the creature.
If you want a highly magic-resistant creature, set the monster’s spell resistance higher than CR + 11. For lesser resistance, set the spell resistance lower. For each point of difference, you’ll change the chance of successfully overcoming spell resistance by 5%. For example, a 12th-level caster has a 45% chance to overcome spell resistance 24, and no chance to overcome spell resistance 33.
Damage Reduction: Assigning a damage reduction value can be tricky. Setting the value too high can make a creature virtually immune to physical attacks, On the other hand, most player characters carry some magic weapons, so setting the value too low can result in an ineffective ability.
| Target CR | Recommended Damage Reduction |
|---|---|
| 0–2 | None |
| 3–5 | 5 |
| 6–13 | 10 |
| 14–20 | 15 |
Remember, even if player characters can hurt the monster, lesser creatures in the game world often cannot hurt the creature, nor can the player character’s cohorts or any creatures they summon.
Determine the creature’s saving throw bonuses. The creature’s base saving throw bonuses depend on its type and Hit Dice. Include all adjustments that apply to each save, provided they apply all the time (such as ability score modifiers and racial bonuses). Conditional saving throw bonuses should be noted in the creature’s Special Qualities entry and explained in the creature’s description.
Saving Throws and Target CR: In general, a creature’s good saving throw bonus should be around (target CR × 1.5), while its poor saving throws should be roughly equal to its target CR. For example, if you are designing a CR 6 monster, a good save bonus of +9 and a poor save bonus of +6 should give the monster a decent chance to save against the player characters’ attacks without making their attacks ineffectual.
The easiest way to manipulate a creature’s save bonuses is to assign a feat that increases a save bonus (for example, Iron Will). If you don’t want to give the monster the feat, but you still want to increase the save bonus, then you need to adjust the ability score from which the save bonus is derived.
Assign whatever skills you think the creature ought to have. The number of skill points a creature has depends on its type, Hit Dice, and Intelligence; see the Skill Points by Monster Type table. Assume that any skill you choose for the creature is a class skill, and each rank costs 1 skill point. The maximum rank for any skill is the creature’s Hit Dice + 3. A creature with less than 1 Hit Die is treated as having 1 Hit Die for the purpose of determining skill points and maximum skill rank.
| Type | Skill Points |
|---|---|
| Aberration | (2 + Int modifier, minimum 1) × (HD+3) |
| Animal | (2 + Int modifier, minimum 1) × (HD+3) |
| Construct1 | (2 + Int modifier, minimum 1) × (HD+3) |
| Dragon | (6 + Int modifier, minimum 1) × (HD+3) |
| Elemental | (2 + Int modifier, minimum 1) × (HD+3) |
| Fey | (6 + Int modifier, minimum 1) × (HD+3) |
| Giant | (2 + Int modifier, minimum 1) × (HD+3) |
| Humanoid2 | (2 + Int modifier, minimum 1) × (HD+3) |
| Magical beast | (2 + Int modifier, minimum 1) × (HD+3) |
| Monstrous humanoid | (2 + Int modifier, minimum 1) × (HD+3) |
| Ooze1 | (2 + Int modifier, minimum 1) × (HD+3) |
| Outsider | (8 + Int modifier, minimum 1) × (HD+3) |
| Plant1 | (2 + Int modifier, minimum 1) × (HD+3) |
| Undead1 | (4 + Int modifier, minimum 1) × (HD+3) |
| Vermin1 | (2 + Int modifier, minimum 1) × (HD+3) |
| |
It is important to consider your concept when assigning skills. Creatures that live by hunting need Hide, Spot, and Listen, and probably Move Silently. Creatures that use spells or spell-like abilities need Concentration and probably Spellcraft. Creatures that do not have a climb or swim speed may benefit from Climb or Swim. Skills such as Balance and Escape Artist can be useful for almost any creature.
A creature’s final skill modifier consists of: skill ranks + ability modifier + size modifier (for Hide) + movement mode modifier (for Climb, Jump, or Swim) + racial bonuses (if any) + synergy bonuses (if any) + armor check modifier (if any). You may decide to purchase feats that change the creature’s skill modifiers, too.
Conditional Bonuses: If the creature has conditional ability adjustments, do not apply them in the Skills entry. Instead, mark the skill modifier with an asterisk and note the conditional modifier in the creature’s description.
Racial Skill Bonuses: Often a creature will need a better skill modifier than its abilities and skill points allow. In such cases, it’s a good idea to assign it a racial bonus (which is effective all the time), or a specific circumstance bonus. For example, most big cats get bonuses on Hide and Move Silently checks, and even larger conditional bonuses on Hide and Move Silently checks when they’re in the right terrain. They’d have a hard time surviving as predators without them.
Instead of fretting about each skill point, an easy way to assign skills to a monster is to simply buy a number of skills, all at the creature’s maximum ranks. The number of individual skills a creature can choose this way is equal to its Intelligence modifier plus the base number of skill points a creature of its type receives per HD. For example, undead have skill points equal to (4 + Int modifier) at each HD, so an undead creature with an Intelligence score of 15 (Int modifier +2) could simply select six skills at maximum rank.
All monsters have a number of feats equal to 1 + (1 per 3 HD). Monsters must meet the prerequisites for feats, just as characters must. If your creature concept begs for a feat for which the creature does not qualify, consider altering the creature so that it qualifies for the feat, or assign the feat as a bonus feat. (It is acceptable for a creature to have a bonus feat for which it does not meet the prerequisites.)
Assign feats with your creature concept in mind, just as you did for skills. For example, spellcasting creatures can benefit from Combat Casting. Creatures that depend on their senses to locate prey or alert them to danger can benefit from Alertness. Creatures that attack from ambush can use Improved Initiative. Any creature can benefit from the feats that improve saving throws (Great Fortitude, Lightning Reflexes, and Iron Will).
Weak creatures can often benefit from Weapon Finesse, which allows a creature to use its Dexterity bonus on melee attacks (very useful for Small, Tiny, and Diminutive creatures). Likewise, very big or strong creatures benefit from Power Attack, which allows them to convert points from their attack bonus into extra damage.
This entry describes how much space the creature takes up on the battle grid and needs to fight effectively, as well as how close it has to be to an opponent to threaten that opponent.
A creature’s Space/Reach entry depends on its size, as shown on the Creature Sizes table. A creature’s space is always a square area, no matter what the creature’s shape or anatomy is like. For example, an ogre and a horse have the same space figure (10 feet), because they’re both Large creatures.
Tall creatures (bipeds, usually) have a longer reach than long creatures. For example, a horse has a reach of 5 feet, but an ogre has a reach of 10 feet because it is taller.
Some creatures have exceptional reach due to a particular weapon choice or a quirk of anatomy. It’s all right to assign a special reach figure that applies to a particular attack (such as the roper’s strands).
Consider where the creature lives and choose a preferred climate (warm, temperate, or cold) and terrain (plains, hills, forest, marsh, mountains, or desert). Your monster is not restricted to that combination of climate and terrain, but it’s the setting the monster is most likely to be encountered in.
Creatures that have no place in the natural environment (particularly constructs and undead) usually have an entry of “Any”. Extraplanar outsiders should be assigned a plane of origin.
Most creatures will have no treasure (None) or standard treasure. Very intelligent creatures might have double or triple treasure. Some creatures may collect only certain types of treasure. Keep this in mind when comparing it to whatever treasure generation method you are using.
What alignment does your monster have? Choose lawful, neutral, or chaotic, followed by good, neutral, or evil. All alignments have a qualifier: always, usually, or often. See Alignment for details.
This entry provides a measure of how tough the creature can get if you decide to increase its Hit Dice. In general, a creature should be able to have up to three times its original Hit Dice (that is, a 3 HD creature should be able to advance up to 9 HD).
Most creatures will get larger if you add a lot of Hit Dice, so you should pick a break point at which the creature’s size changes. For example, the Advancement entry for a Large plant creature with 3 Hit Dice might read: 4–5 HD (Large); 6–9 HD (Huge). See Table 5–1 for guidelines on size and Hit Dice.
Some monster types don’t have obvious break points between size categories. In these cases, you probably want to set the break point between sizes at ½ the maximum Hit Dice to be added. For example, a Large aberration with 4 HD could advance to 12 HD. Since you’re adding up to 8 Hit Dice, the creature’s Advancement entry might read: 5–8 HD (Large); 9–12 (Huge).
This shows what level of party for which the creature would make a good encounter of moderate difficulty. A party of four fresh characters (full hit points, full spells, and an assortment of equipment appropriate to their levels) should be able to win the encounter with some damage, but no casualties, given reasonable luck. This victory should consume no more than 20% of the party resources (hit points, spells, and consumable magic items).
Assigning an appropriate Challenge Rating can be difficult. The two basic tools for determining CR are comparing and playtesting.
The simplest and quickest way to estimate your monster’s Challenge Rating is to compare it to similar monsters in an appropriate CR range. Begin with the target CR you used in constructing your monster. Use the list of Monsters by Challenge Rating (see page 318) to compile a list of monsters whose CRs match your monster’s CR, plus or minus 1. For example, if your target CR is 7, you should closely examine monsters of CR 6, 7, and 8.
To narrow your list, look for monsters with similar types or similar methods (bruisers, spell-like ability users, special attack users, and so on). Once you’ve reduced your list of comparable monsters to a manageable number, see how your monster compares to the others, using the following checklist:
If your monster is clearly superior to most of the comparable monsters, your target CR is probably too low. Try adjusting the CR up by 1 or 2, then find a new list of monsters that should be comparable at the new CR and see how your monster stacks up. If your monster is clearly not as tough as most of the comparable monsters, reduce your CR by 1 or 2 and find a new list of comparable monsters to check your monster against.
The best way to set a monster’s CR is to see how it handles in play. This can be time-consuming, but it probably gives you the best information about how challenging your monster is.
To playtest a monster’s CR, use the following procedure:
If your proposed CR is appropriate, the PCs should be able to win the encounter with some damage, given reasonable luck. This victory should consume no more than 20% of the party resources (hit points, spells, and consumable magic items). In the case of high CR monsters (say, 11 or more), an occasional PC death is not out of line with the monster’s CR, since parties of that level can usually bring dead characters back to life pretty easily.
If your monster seems too dangerous, try the encounter again with a single monster; this lets you see how the monster looks as a solitary combatant whose CR is equal to the party’s level. If the party handles the monster with no trouble, try increasing the number of monsters to three or four (which would effectively lower the monster’s CR by 1 or 2). You may need to adjust the party’s level and try the monster again at its new CR.
A quick and dirty way to double-check your CR assignment is to compare your monster’s Hit Dice against its CR. Depending on their function, monsters need a high number of Hit Dice for their CR, a low amount of Hit Dice for their CR, or an average amount.
Evaluate your monster and decide what its basic function is: battler, ambusher, magic user, special attack user, or multiple threat.
Battler: The monster uses sheer combat skill to threaten the party and has few special abilities. Examples: dire animal (any), giant (any), gray render, minotaur, shambling mound, worg. A battler’s CR should be from 1/3 its HD to 2/3 its HD.
Ambusher: The monster depends on stealth or surprise attacks to threaten the party. Examples: assassin vine, choker, derro, mimic, phase spider, roper. An ambusher’s CR should be from 1/2 its HD to its HD.
Magic User: The monster’s best attacks are its spells or spelllike abilities. Examples: aboleth, lamia, lillend, mind flayer, nymph. A magic user’s CR should be from about its HD to its HD +2, provided the spells it can employ would be appropriate for a spellcasting character whose level is about the same as the monster’s Hit Dice. (If they’re less than expected, your monster is probably better described as an ambusher or battler.)
Special Attack User: The monster is dangerous because of a special attack it can employ. Examples: basilisk, dragon (any), harpy, medusa, wraith, vampire. A special attack user’s CR should be from 2/3 its HD to its HD.
Multiple Threat: The monster combines two or more of the previous functions. For example, many demons and devils combine battler and magic user functions, while a mind flayer combines magic user and special attack user functions. Dragons with significant spellcasting ability frequently combine battler, magic user, and special attack user functions. A multiple threat’s CR should be from about 3/4 its HD to its HD +2.