RPG Superstar 2008 Top 32
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I received my copy of Dungeon #136 and finally got to read it on my day off for Memorial Day. Afetr reading "The Coming Storm" i decided to adcapt the Kamadan from that artocle to my own campaign world of the Dying Sun, a Frostfell game.
Long story short, I couldn't get the numbers to work out. The kamadan's BAB is one higher than it should be, the AC is one better, and it has more skill points than it should. I just can't get the number to fit. Has anyone else noticed this?
Here is the stat block i created...
kamadan, large magical beast; CR 7; HD 7d10+28 (67 hp); Init +3; Spd 40'; AC 18 (-1 size, +3 Dex, +6 natural), touch 12, flat-footed 15; BAB/Grapple +7/+16; Atk bite +12 melee (1d8+5) and 6 bites +10 melee (1d4+2 plus poison); Full Atk Bite +12 melee (1d8+5) and 6 bites +10 melee (1d4+2 plus poison) and 2 claws +10 melee (1d6+2); Space/Reach 10'/5'; SA Breath Weapon, snakebite, poison; SQ All-around vision; AL always neutral; SV Fort +9, Ref +8, Will
+3; Str 20, Dex 17, Con 18, Int 5, Wis 12, Cha 8.
Skills & Feats: Hide +6*, List +3, Move Silently +7, Search +4, Spot +7; Alertness, Multiattack, Stealthy.
All-Around Vision (Ex): A kamadan's multiple snake heads have especially keen vision, and grant the creature a +4 racial bonus on Spot and Search checks. Opponents gain no flanking bonuses when attacking a kamadan.
Breath Weapon (Su): A kamadan's breath weapon attack appears as a 30-foot cone of freezing white cloud of mist. However, instead of doing cold damage, it has the effect of placing its targets asleep for 1d6+4 rounds. The kamadan's breath weapon allows a Fortitude save (DC 17) to negate. The save DC is based on the kamadan's Constitution. A kamadan can breath once every 1d4 rounds, but never more that 5 (1 + Constitution modifier) per day.
Poison (Ex): The kamadan's snake bites are poisonous, forcing a Fortitude DC 17 save or initial damage being 1d2 Strength. The poison's secondary damage is 1d6 Strength damage. The save DC is Contitution based.
Snakebite (Ex): Each of the kamadan's six snake heads possesses a separate brain. This allows the kamadan to make attacks with its snake head as a free action (allowing the snake heads to attack even if the attack is not a full attack option).
Skills: A kamadan has a +4 racial bonus on Hide and Move Silently checks. In areas of heavy undergrowth, the Hide bonus increases to +8.
Did i miss something?
just at a glance you forgot the size modifier to attacks, it's bite should be at +11 (BAB +7, str +5, -1 size), and it's secondary attacks at +9.
Creative Director
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Oops... there is indeed a typo in the kamadan's stat block, but it's not as grim as it looks. Basically, it has 8 Hit Dice, not 7. Change it's HD to 8 and presto; all of its stats work fine.
I'll mention something about this in issue #137, though, just so the rest of the kamadan fans out there won't be left out.
BTW, I love the illo for the kamadan. First depiction of the beast I've seen that didn't make it look dorky. I may actually use them in my games now...
I'm REALLY for bringing back monsters from previous editions that have not been updated yet for 3.5.
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Creative Director
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I'm REALLY for bringing back monsters from previous editions that have not been updated yet for 3.5.
Excellent! 'Cause so am I. You can expect to see more mosters from previous editions popping up with relative frequency in Dungeon... although only the cool ones. Like the kamadan. Or the flumph.
There won't be any gorbels or dire corbys on my watch.
I'm REALLY for bringing back monsters from previous editions that have not been updated yet for 3.5.
Excellent! 'Cause so am I. You can expect to see more mosters from previous editions popping up with relative frequency in Dungeon... although only the cool ones. Like the kamadan. Or the flumph.
There won't be any gorbels or dire corbys on my watch.
]
The dire corby is still a perfectly good monster! In fact, with the new kenku, they work even better! Dire corbies, in my game, are the brutish cast-offs of kenku society, cursed further by Pazuzu with an unholy rage.But yeah, gorbels suck. As do carbuncles, protein polymorphs, stunjellies and bunyips. Not that there's a good monster to be made out of bunyip lore... but that wasn't it.
Excellent! 'Cause so am I. You can expect to see more mosters from previous editions popping up with relative frequency in Dungeon... although only the cool ones. Like the kamadan. Or the flumph.
There won't be any gorbels or dire corbys on my watch.
:::begins making notes toward an adventure featuring Tiraphegs:::
I'm REALLY for bringing back monsters from previous editions that have not been updated yet for 3.5.
Excellent! 'Cause so am I. You can expect to see more mosters from previous editions popping up with relative frequency in Dungeon... although only the cool ones. Like the kamadan. Or the flumph.
There won't be any gorbels or dire corbys on my watch.
]
The dire corby is still a perfectly good monster! In fact, with the new kenku, they work even better! Dire corbies, in my game, are the brutish cast-offs of kenku society, cursed further by Pazuzu with an unholy rage.But yeah, gorbels suck. As do carbuncles, protein polymorphs, stunjellies and bunyips. Not that there's a good monster to be made out of bunyip lore... but that wasn't it.
Yeah, what's wrong with dire corbies? Sure, they were all but decimated in a war against giant bats, but the bats had uzis! (I have this on good authority from a shady flumph I met in a tavern one night). As for the rest of those monsters, what's wrong with the stunjelly or carbuncle? I know one sounds like a substitute for mace and the other shares its name with an unpleasant bodily growth, but apart from that what's the problem?
I got my latest issue of Dungeon a couple of days ago and was flipping through just to see what was what when suddenly:
"Whoa. Kamadan.
Cooooooool."
And I just happen to have a place to use it. Well done, guys!
-The Gneech
I'm REALLY for bringing back monsters from previous editions that have not been updated yet for 3.5.
Excellent! 'Cause so am I. You can expect to see more mosters from previous editions popping up with relative frequency in Dungeon... although only the cool ones. Like the kamadan. Or the flumph.
There won't be any gorbels or dire corbys on my watch.
Flail snail?
Pretty please?
-The Gneech ;)
Over on ENWorld, Echohawk has been compiling lists of unconverted monsters from previous editions. The latest estimates are in the 2,000-3,000 range!
Yeah, bring back the classics! I'd much rather see the return of the dire corby and gorbel than any more skullcrusher ogres, forestkith goblins, or other barely-different versions of existing creatures.
BTW, for those who don't know, James created quite a few classics back in the day, including the ulitharid. :)
*Prays that James didn't create the skullcrusher ogre, forestkith goblin, or war troll*
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Creative Director
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*Prays that James didn't create the skullcrusher ogre, forestkith goblin, or war troll*
Never fear... none of those were my creations.
Dire Corby: This is a lame monster because he's a bird man who runs around flaping his arms and screaming "DOOM! DOOM!" Pass. Especially when kenku can do everything a dire corby can do, but better and with more style and without looking like a chump.
Flail Snail: Not high on my list, but done well with good art I think it MIGHT be salvagable... maybe...
As for other monsters, I agree that there's a lot of bad monsters in the 1st edition Fiend Folio, but there's a lot in there that's great as well. Some of them are even awesome enough to build an entire 12-part adventure path out of!
When I mention updating old monsters, I mean monsters from the entirity of D&D that predates 3rd edition. Which includes Planescape and Ravenloft and the other 2nd edition campaign settings.
Dire Corby: This is a lame monster because he's a bird man who runs around flaping his arms and screaming "DOOM! DOOM!" Pass. Especially when kenku can do everything a dire corby can do, but better and with more style and without looking like a chump.
OK, even I'll admit the "DOOM! DOOM!" thing is pretty lame. Maybe my fondness for them stems from the fact that I got one roll away from a TPK with pack of them a few years back.
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RPG Superstar 2008 Top 32
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Oops... there is indeed a typo in the kamadan's stat block, but it's not as grim as it looks. Basically, it has 8 Hit Dice, not 7. Change it's HD to 8 and presto; all of its stats work fine.
I'll mention something about this in issue #137, though, just so the rest of the kamadan fans out there won't be left out.
Thanks very much James!!!
As for FF monsters that donm't make the cut, I have to admit that the flumph has to be the most.... useless monster there ever was, is, or will be. :) But that is just me.
Ones that i did like were the iron cobra, necrophidius, achaierai, the coffer corpse, caterwaul, the dark creeper, the dune stalker, the firedrake, the gibberling, the grimlok, the ice lizard, the hellcat, the mephits, the quaggoth, the sheet phantom and ghoul, and probably a few more.
Not all the monsters were bad -- a lot were poorly conceived, but they were fun. I still remember the look on my friend's face when his sword stuck to the adherer!!
Now here's a few more monsters that could be done from the old Fiend Folio, some of which are great and some of which are awful (I might even write a few submissions featuring them):
Adherer
Al'mi'raj
Babbler
Coffer Corpse
Denzelian (the delver's poor cousin)
The Elemental Princes of Evil (why the hell have these guys not already been updated?)
Enveloper (the marshmellow man)
Eyekiller
Forlarren (right next to the flumph)
Galltrit (or dung imp)
Gambado (yippee!)
Garbugs (flying chuuls?)
Gorilla bear (now that is lame)
Gryph
Imporph (gray-green lumpy cylinder)
Khargra
Lamia Noble (very cool picture)
Lava children
Magnesium spirit
Mite (might not)
Nilbog (now there's a monster)
Nonafel (pretty cool actually)
Osquip :)
Pernicorn
Phantom stalker
Qullan (chaos personified)
Screaming devilkin (cutest monster in the book)
Shocker (extremely)
Skeleton warrior (classic undead)
Slaad, Ssendam and Ygorl (why have these ultra-cool monsters never been given statistics by WotC or Paizo!?)
Synad
Tentamort
Terithran
Thork (what a dork)
Tiger Fly (look like a character from a 30's cartoon)
Spirit Troll (now there's some wierd cross-breeding. And some of you think templates were strange)
Tween
Umpleby
Urchin
Vodyanoi (another great monster)
Volt (better than the shocker)
Witherstench
There you have it. My list for some of the best and worst monsters from that book that haven't already been mentioned.
The Elemental Princes of Evil (why the hell have these guys not already been updated?) Imix appears in the 3.0 adventure Return to the Temple of Elemental Evil if I am not misstaken.
Osquip :) Races of Faerun
Vodyanoi (another great monster) yippee an umberhulk that can breath water... besides they gave a different 3e monster the same name in a Dragon Magazine article, one based more closly on the eastern european folklore that the name is derived from IIRC.
The Elemental Princes of Evil (why the hell have these guys not already been updated?) Imix appears in the 3.0 adventure Return to the Temple of Elemental Evil if I am not misstaken.
Osquip :) Races of Faerun
Vodyanoi (another great monster) yippee an umberhulk that can breath water... besides they gave a different 3e monster the same name in a Dragon Magazine article, one based more closly on the eastern european folklore that the name is derived from IIRC.
Yeah, I know that Imix appeared near the end of that module along with a half-fire elemental medusa, but that Imix was nothing more than a glorified elder fire elemental (no offense to Monte Cook, of course)
The osquip appears in RoF? That I didn't know.
I'm well aware of the vodyanoi in the Frostburn accessory, and that one has its own charm. I also know that you could just use the amphibious creature template from Stormwrack or some other book to make an aquatic umber hulk, but it just ain't the same. Actually, its probably the picture of it that I'm more in love with.
I'm REALLY for bringing back monsters from previous editions that have not been updated yet for 3.5.
Excellent! 'Cause so am I. You can expect to see more mosters from previous editions popping up with relative frequency in Dungeon... although only the cool ones. Like the kamadan. Or the flumph.
There won't be any gorbels or dire corbys on my watch.
]
The dire corby is still a perfectly good monster! In fact, with the new kenku, they work even better! Dire corbies, in my game, are the brutish cast-offs of kenku society, cursed further by Pazuzu with an unholy rage.But yeah, gorbels suck. As do carbuncles, protein polymorphs, stunjellies and bunyips. Not that there's a good monster to be made out of bunyip lore... but that wasn't it.
Buddy, I made great use of Stunjellies in some lower-level 1st ed. games I ran back in the day, and think they'd make a great 3.5 threat, too.
Never used a gorbel. Never want to.
=========================
That'd be a great challenge. Use a set of the worst-ever monsters (as voted on by Dungeon staff or posters on this board) in a great adventure.
The amphibious umber hulk vodyanoi actually appears in 3E in one of the most obscure places...the Forgotten Realms DM Screen insert, "Encounters in Faerûn". It essentially says to give an umber hulk a swim speed and blindsight instead of burrow and tremorsense.
The amphibious umber hulk vodyanoi actually appears in 3E in one of the most obscure places...the Forgotten Realms DM Screen insert, "Encounters in Faerûn". It essentially says to give an umber hulk a swim speed and blindsight instead of burrow and tremorsense.
I think it shows up in Stormwrack too, but I don't have the source handy to doublecheck.
--Eric
*Prays that James didn't create the skullcrusher ogre, forestkith goblin, or war troll*
Now wait just a second. What's wrong with the Forestkith Goblin? I think they could be pretty good, used well. And Skullcrusher Ogre? What's wrong with him?
War Troll? Okay, that one I agree with (and he's a good reason NOT to let your Druids grow up to be Masters of Many Forms...)
Back on topic (?), I personally LOVE seeing these stats for old monsters in Dungeon. It's like... Getting a page out of a MM Annual every month. Sometimes more. I love it, really. Keep up the good work, people.
I too like the conversions of older monsters, especially from 1e FF. Is there any chance that the editors could drop the names of some converted creatures that will be appearing in the next couple of issues?
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Creative Director
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I too like the conversions of older monsters, especially from 1e FF. Is there any chance that the editors could drop the names of some converted creatures that will be appearing in the next couple of issues?
There are at least two in the works for issue #139, but it's way too early still to drop any hints there. Well... aside from the fact that neither of these two are conversions from the 1st edition Fiend Folio this time.
Now wait just a second. What's wrong with the Forestkith Goblin? I think they could be pretty good, used well. And Skullcrusher Ogre? What's wrong with him?
Because the former is just a goblin with a few extra abilities tacked on, and the latter is just a slightly-modified advanced ogre. And neither really has the flavor to make up for the fact that they are just mechanically different core creatures. I'd rather have those pages devoted to more inspired creatures, like the draknor, entrope, spanner, kranentua, sheens, utukku, and so on.
There are at least two in the works for issue #139, but it's way too early still to drop any hints there. Well... aside from the fact that neither of these two are conversions from the 1st edition Fiend Folio this time.
They'd be something from Isle of Dread I bet.
There are at least two in the works for issue #139, but it's way too early still to drop any hints there. Well... aside from the fact that neither of these two are conversions from the 1st edition Fiend Folio this time.
They'd be something from Isle of Dread I bet.
I don't think Savage Tide will be quite on the Isle of Dread yet - more likely they're from the Maure Castle installment, which has previously given us such previously unconverted delights as the slow shadow, nabassu, and Kerzit.
Just because Dr Jacobs hates them:
Dire Corby (CR 1)
NE Medium Monstrous Humanoid
Init +1; Senses Darkvision 60 ft., low-light vision; Listen +3, Spot +3
Languages Common
AC 14, touch 11, flat-footed 13
hp 11 (2 HD); ferocity
Immune fear
Fort +1, Ref +4, Will +3
Spd 30 ft.
Melee 2 claws +5 (1d6+3)
Base Atk +2; Grp +5
Atk Options leap attack
Abilities Str 16, Dex 15, Con 13, Int 6, Wis 12, Cha 8
Feats Blind-Fight, Run (B)
Skills Balance +6, Climb +7, Hide +3, Jump +7, Listen +3, Spot +3
Leap Attack (Ex): A dire corby begins combat by combining a jump with a charge against an opponent. If it covers at least 10 feet of horizontal distance with its jump, and ends its jump in a square from which it threatens a target, it can attack with both claws at a +5 bonus for 1d6+5 points of damage each.
This attack follows all the normal rules for using the Jump skill and for making a charge, except that the dire corby ignores rough terrain in any square it jumps over.
Ferocity (Ex): A dire corby is such a tenacious combatant that it continues to fight without penalty even while disabled or dying.
Immunity to Fear (Ex): Dire corbies are immune to all fear effects, and to any spells, powers, or effects involving a morale penalty.
Skills: Dire corbies receive a +4 racial bonus on Balance and Climb checks due to their clawed limbs. They also receive a +4 racial bonus to Jump checks. A dire corby can always take 10 on Balance, Climb, and Jump checks, even when conditions would normally prevent it.
Doom . . . doom!
Grrrr... it's not bad enough that Kyle drew one for Dungeon #150... now they're HERE!
Yeah, but read the post. I've re-engineered them a bit. Sorry, I got hooked on them after reading Manley Wade Wellman's classic The Old Gods Waken, in which the evil druids summon some critters that just struck me as half-fiend dire corbies...
Just because Dr Jacobs hates them:
Dire Corby (CR 1)
NE Medium Monstrous Humanoid
Init +1; Senses Darkvision 60 ft., low-light vision; Listen +3, Spot +3
Languages CommonAC 14, touch 11, flat-footed 13
hp 11 (2 HD); ferocity
Immune fear
Fort +1, Ref +4, Will +3Spd 30 ft.
Melee 2 claws +5 (1d6+3)
Base Atk +2; Grp +5
Atk Options leap attackAbilities Str 16, Dex 15, Con 13, Int 6, Wis 12, Cha 8
Feats Blind-Fight, Run (B)
Skills Balance +6, Climb +7, Hide +3, Jump +7, Listen +3, Spot +3Leap Attack (Ex): A dire corby begins combat by combining a jump with a charge against an opponent. If it covers at least 10 feet of horizontal distance with its jump, and ends its jump in a square from which it threatens a target, it can attack with both claws at a +5 bonus for 1d6+5 points of damage each.
This attack follows all the normal rules for using the Jump skill and for making a charge, except that the dire corby ignores rough terrain in any square it jumps over.Ferocity (Ex): A dire corby is such a tenacious combatant that it continues to fight without penalty even while disabled or dying.
Immunity to Fear (Ex): Dire corbies are immune to all fear effects, and to any spells, powers, or effects involving a morale penalty.
Skills: Dire corbies receive a +4 racial bonus on Balance and Climb checks due to their clawed limbs. They also receive a +4 racial bonus to Jump checks. A dire corby can always take 10 on Balance, Climb, and Jump checks, even when conditions would normally prevent it.
Yay! The Dire Corby is BACK, baby.
Should've been a "Wandering Monster."Much better than that silly ol' Froghemoth.
Yay! The Dire Corby is BACK, baby.
Should've been a "Wandering Monster." Much better than that silly ol' Froghemoth.
Hey, man, don't mess with the froghemoth. The one in "Champion's Belt" ate the whole party!