Hi! I'm currently working on a pyramid dungeon for my campaign and I'd like to find some interesting thematic monsters. While the dungeon will likely have plenty of mummies, swarms and probably a sphynx I'd like to build it out past the standard fare. I'm sure there is a lot to pull from in this genre, but it's kind of hard to find monsters just searching random keywords like "tomb" or "pharaoh."
The dungeon is designed to take multiple visits, and is about 5th level difficulty, but the intent is to create parts of the dungeon the players would have to come back to, so higher level monsters are also fine, though not the focus. The pyramid is also sun themed if that helps expand what monsters to suggest. Things that pull from persian, mesopotamian, middle eastern, african and indian mythologies are also acceptable, and even southern american creatures could be really great. Anything that is especially out of the box, and interesting flavor or mechanically unique is especially appreciated.
Even better would be an explanation on how you DMs find and choose monsters for dungeons. Typically I just search by CR or Terrain type but that can end up being very time consuming as well as tab consuming. Is there a way to work smarter rather than harder?
Non-humanoid mummies. Constructs.
Even better would be an explanation on how you DMs find and choose monsters for dungeons. Typically I just search by CR or Terrain type but that can end up being very time consuming as well as tab consuming. Is there a way to work smarter rather than harder?
Smarter and faster? Ha, no probably not. However, I tend to work by visual inspiration. When I need to flesh out a dungeon, I will often grab all six bestiaries off the shelf and just flip through them, looking for pictures that "feel right" for what I'm building.
I find that stimulates my creativity more than a list of names on the SRD.
Still, probably not helpful in this situation.
Hm. Well, what about a genie and/or div? Those fit the area aesthetic culturally and would avoid leaning too heavily on undead (the go-to for a tomb).
Of course, undead are a go-to for a reason. Some Skeletal Champs could fill out a CR 5 encounter fairly easily, either on their own or as backup to a more standard Mummy. You could also mix two of your ideas above and use the Mummified template to make a mummified sphinx.
If you want to get away from undead, what about a Blood Pudding (CR 5 ooze) stored in a canopic jar? Or a gibbering mouther? (also CR 5).
Assuming this takes place in a desert, the outer areas could be guarded by a Saguaroi (CR 5 cactus monster).
Since you're using greek myth as partial inspiration, Harpies could also make good guardians of non-sealed areas. Or, if there aren't any of those, undead harpies could be deeper within.
The same goes for a Manticore (CR 5).
You mentioned swarms, but what about giant bugs? Instead of a ton of scarabs, one giant one (CR 6)?
And, lest we forget, constructs. Golems make wonderful tomb guardians, as do other constructs. The Wood Golem is CR 6, Flagstone Golem is CR 7. The Mummy Golem is CR 6 (never heard of that one before, but hey, might work well for your game).
Of course, you don't have to be limited to golems. Animated objects, caryatid columns, and other non-golem constructs could work just as well.
... that's all I can think of at the moment. Hope that helped!
There's always the cursed item the Scarab of Death:
Scarab of Death
Aura strong abjuration; CL 19th
Slot neck; Weight —
DESCRIPTION
If this small scarab brooch is held for more than 1 round or carried in a living creature’s possessions for 1 minute, it changes into a horrible burrowing beetle-like creature. The thing tears through any leather or cloth, burrows into flesh, and reaches the victim’s heart in 1 round, causing death. A DC 25 Reflex save allows the wearer to tear the scarab away before it burrows out of sight, but he still takes 3d6 points of damage. The beetle then returns to its scarab form. Placing the scarab in a container of wood, ceramic, bone, ivory, or metal prevents it from coming to life and allows for long-term storage of the item.
This might be higher than you're comfortable with considering you're working with an APL of 5 as far as PCs are concerned, but here's a drake that does something like Lady-J suggested:
There's also the Dread Mummy Template you can add to an existing creature, such as a magic using humanoid:
Sphinxes are fairly powerful for a APL 5 Dungeon. Maybe a hot-shot Young Gynosphinx with a riddle? At CR 7, it means the PCs should survive a fight, but it would be resource intensive to skip the riddle and jump to the killing.
Suggestions for Riddles:
“There are four brothers. The first runs and never wearies. The second eats and is never full. The third drinks and is always thirsty. The fourth sings a song that is never good.” (Water, fire, earth, and wind.)--d20pfsrd
"I measure the time in my multitudes, I bury the kings with my armies, I lay waste to great cities of stone with my passing." (Sand)
"I summon laughter and tears, my voice quiets and rouses. With me, the dead are ushered to their graves, but I beguile the beloved to their lover." (A Song)
---
Additional Monster Encounters
- A minor tributary of the river Styx flows beneath the Pyramid: it's waters hold no great power accept to slow a creatures' metabolism and aging over years of submersion. In those murky waters awaits an ancient crocodile of immense proportions, placed there when the pyramid was first built (use stats of Saltwater Crocodile, CR 5)
- Within the tomb is a garden, fed by an underground aquifer and lit with magical runes, there is a variety of plants, including two ebony trees. Each tree is home to a dryad, who work to tend their garden. They attempt to persuade the PCs to aid them in transporting their trees to their home forest by way of charm person, suggestion, persuasion, and if all else fails, taking a hostage. If pressed into combat, they fight to the death in hopes of winning their freedom. They are generally unimpressed by any insistence that the PCs are incapable of helping them, though they might be assuaged if they can be convinced the PCs will return to rescue them.
- A gang of Dust Mephits has taken up residence in one of the sandier halls. The mischievous quartet harasses anything that passes by with taunts and hurled stones from their perches atop the tall statues on either side, and if attacked or threatened, attempt to teach the trespassers a lesson. They flee if any of them are reduced to less than half health, only to return an hour later. However, once driven off the first time, they cease their attacks, and instead sulk and accuse the PCs of being unable to take a joke.
- Cracks in the sunken foundation of the tomb has allowed a basilisk to wander into the lower treasure rooms of the mummified king. 30% of the time, it's out hunting for rats and vermin to eat, but it spends most of it's time lounging in it's newfound layer, nestled between chests. A handful of half-eaten "statues" of rats and scorpions nearby serve as a warning to the astute PC.
- One particularly large gemstone in a chamber near the king's burial place is protected by a curse. The PCs can hear faint growling and sounds of movement when they enter the room, and any attempt to pry it from it's place causes the the immediate area to be plunged into darkness (as the spell) blurry forms to spring out of disguised hidden "kennels." The shades, appearing to be giant jackals, attack en masse, targeting those closest to the gem first. (Five wolves with the shadow creature template.) Fleeing the room won't save the PCs necessarily, though the doors around the area are solid enough that the shadows won't be able to pursue if they can seal the room behind them. The shadow jackals are extraplanar: thus they don't require food or sleep once released.
If you're OK with ability drain, Shadows make for creepy enemies in low-lit corridors and chambers; play up the deep shadows in the corners and how they seem to undulate (a trick of the light or a dangerous undead stirring?)
I just ran a 5th level, 5E homebrew dungeon pyramid-themed AND monkey-themed dungeon.
It began outside, with a bunch of guardian girralons.
Then there is a well leading from the top of the pyramid down into the dungeon. There was cenote at the bottom with a kraken spawn (missing a few tentacles). (There is also a re-occurring theme where one particular PC falls down holes into pools of water filled with tentacle-lashing beasts....)
Then there was a heavy stone door that needs to be lifted that leads into a chamber with tall pillars and spear-chucking white apes.
Then it lead into a long hallway with green slime on the walls, and ledges above filled with monkey-ghouls that only "sickened" instead of paralyzed--and used poison darts and blowguns. There were some bronze doors along the upper ledges covered in yellow mold. The long hallway had a nearly undetectable grade ramping up, and a trap in front of the side door out, which summoned a bunch of giant spheres, and the walls capping the ends of the hallway are portals that let the spheres reach terminal velocity.
Then there was an intersection.
One lead to a bunch of side chambers, with unanimated mummies filling niches. Some were missing body parts. Another side chamber had a wannabe mummy cleric/necromancer/alchemist type in its lab.
The main chamber lead to a chamber with DEMOGORGON!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Except it was "just" a two-headed flesh golem made out of monkey, ape, and kraken parts. "Demogorgon" was in a pit, and the paths around the pit were trapped with thunderwave glyphs that pushed the PCs into the pit, which had a floor covered in poisoned caltrops the Demo-golem was immune to--but the PCs weren't! Also, since it had 2 heads, it rolled initiative twice and went twice per round.
There was a pit trap that lead to a crushing wall trap with a monkey see, monkey do solution the PCs totally bypassed. There was another room with a giant tree topped with golden bananas that "suggested" you climb to steal them, and the Climb DC increases with height, making it deadly if you're good, but not great, at climbing....
There was another hallway with flying monkey-like gargoyles leering down at the PCs. But just regular gargoyles, not monstrous ones. (I'm trying to make my PCs super paranoid about gargoyles, then super jaded about gargoyles, so I can super ambush them with gargoyles when they're around 20th level!)
For the final chamber, it was triangular room with 2 mini-ziggurats and 1 just small ziggurat in it, plus a bunch of lit incense urns. Each mini-pyramid had a Monkey Queen Mummy Druid 3-ish and the small pyramid had the Monkey King Mummy Druid 6-ish. It was one of those rare encounters where my overly complex dungeon geography worked to my advantage. The mummies made good use of cover and battlefield control spell (5th Edition druids have lots of spells that pull, push, and restrain enemies!). The incense gave levels of exhaustion, ending in sleep instead of death.
It was fun!
Instead of having a real sphinx, make a zombie sphinx or clockwork sphinx or golem sphinx. You can also "fake" mummies by using zombies wrapped in rags or something.
EDIT:
Replace all my monkey shenanigans with gnolls! Jackal-like gnolls! They even have a legacy relationship with ghouls and other hungry undead and demonic types. You can have a Gnoll Queen with a bunch of Gnoll Princes of Death, since hyenas are matriarchal and polyandrous and stuff.
Oh, that's good stuff right there.
Once you have settled on the dungeon's theme, picking monsters should be easy. Who built the pyramid? What was its purpose? How old is it/what is its history? Who had access? How much technological/magical know-how and resources went into its creation? What makes the place special? Which creatures would be drawn to such a place?
You can toy with the players' expectations by giving a classic monster an interesting and unusual twist. A child mummy is creepier than a regular mummy, for example.
Connections between different creatures can help to create a dungeon ecology (symbiosis, intruders, scavengers, etc.). Maybe the pyramid is based on a dualistic religion (sun and darkness, day and night). There could be two factions of creatures trapped in an eternal struggle. To make it less cliché, add a third party of newcomers that upset the balance of power.
From a mechanical viewpoint, creatures with abilities that have great synergy can make for challenging encounters (for example a creature that heals from fire damage and a creature with a breath weapon that deals fire damage).
Also, make sure to use different creature types that play to the strengths and weaknesses of different PCs (the ranger should benefit from their favored enemy occasionally, but not every encounter, etc.).
For constructs, terracotta soldiers and graven guardians are really nice, and easily customizable to a chosen theme.
You can find them in the Bestiary III.
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cat mummies!!!!
What are you trying to do? Kill commoners? ;-)
cat mummies!!!!
What are you trying to do? Kill commoners? ;-)
Someone's gotta do it. Might as well use cat mummies.
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Check out the Southlands Bestiary!!!
It's FILLED with awesome monsters from the very thematic slant you are looking for :)
From Endzeitgeist's 5-star review:
"The book has a huge selling point: The artwork is absolutely fantastic. Original and truly evocative, full-color art for every creature and they ... eclipse even most 1st party bestiaries. Some of the art is so beautiful, it makes you immediately want to use the creature it represents - and this holds true for just about all of them. Look at the cover: This is the level of awesomeness you get throughout the whole book"
"I very much recommend you get this gorgeous tome - this is a glorious bestiary and well worth 5 stars + seal of approval as well as nomination as a candidate for my Top Ten of 2015."
Death Worm.
Sand worms are the classic.
Death Worm.
Sand worms are the classic.
They're 5th level. Maybe the dungeon can be in the remains of a giant sand worm?