kyrin
Commander
3171 Posts
    
 | | 02/20/2006 8:50 AM |
| Well, the title says it all. And I don't means giants or polymorphed dragons or stuff like that. Nor do I mean the traditional PC races in the Player's handbook. I mean the "monster" races. Which one do you like to throw at your players, and why?
My old favorite was gnolls. They're just such filthy bastards. They aren't simian, and so feel NO kinship with "monkey men" like humans, orcs, and goblins. Since they are hyena-men, I give them disgusting habits and sick senses of humor. I also love their alliance with ghouls, my favorite undead. Plus I just think they have a cool look.
My new favorite, however, is Githyanki. I used to think they were just another "filler race," just hobgoblins on the astral plane. But I've grown to like their backstory, and have expanded on it. The cool things are Legion:
* They hunt down people who steal their weapons, because they don't think others are worthy to wield them.
* They are avowed atheists, and so have a totally alien worldview. They are a threat to orc and elf alike.
* They build their cities on the bodies of dead gods on the astral plane. The epitome of cool.
* They hate the Mind Flayers to exclusion of all else, and may work with / manipulate PCs into killing Mind Flayers.
* They are ruled by a Lich Queen. Neat-o!
* They have a mysterious alliance with red dragons.
* They can appear and disappear at the most inconvenient of times.
* With the "Incursion" scenario, the coolest of wrinkles makes itself manifest: they are willing to conquer entire worlds to keep them out of the hands of the Mind Flayers. Or at least that's their justification...
So, break it down for me! Who's your favorite? Why are they cool? How do you make it even cooler?
(Note: Anyone who says "Dark Elves" starts off in a hole, and better talk fast. Also, this thread is programmed to deliver a barely non-lethal electric shock to anyone who mentions Drizzt. *OUCH!*)
JIM
aka kyrin | |
My Have/Want List <-|-|->My Trades and References 1 <-|-|->My Trades and References 2
Pronounce "Drow" like "crow"! Viva la Revolution! We Shall Overcome!
Vindicated Champion of the Stirge! Vindicated Champion of the Githyanki Knight on Red Dragon!!
Vindicated Champion of the Androsphinx! | |
|
Janos M.
Underboss
1015 Posts
Hamburg / GErmany
| | 02/20/2006 10:37 AM |
| | In the following campaign I'll throw my Players a lot of Xeph, Elan Maenad, Mind Flayer and Gith in the way. | |
My Haves and wants:
http://www.maxminis.com/hw_list.asp?user=Janos_M.
Champion of Elan Psions
Proud Owner of the "Aura of cursed dice" | |
|
nyjastul69
Commander
2731 Posts
Rhode Island
| | 02/20/2006 10:44 AM |
| | I'm partial to Gnolls. Good low level beastie that can be used in large numbers. | |
| |
|
thedip
Sergeant
737 Posts
| | 02/20/2006 11:00 AM |
| I like Lizardfolk. Cold calculating and just plain mean.
Cheers
Thedip | |
Have/Want List | References | Email Me
Pending: None
Failed Trades: Thayil(he has received) | |
|
Pale Rider
Underboss
1023 Posts
London, Ontario, Canada
| | 02/20/2006 11:58 AM |
| | from the Scarred Lands setting Asaathi - I just got their race book (Secrets of the Asaathi) and am blown away by the depth they gave these snakemen. The authors state in the foreward that they wanted more than 'guys in snake suits' and boy did they deliver! | |
Completed Trades: Crescent Hawk, Vimes, demagogue, vidman, Eric is God, Strachan Fireblade, FungiMuncher, Dudeeehm, Shasack, gausse, kyrin, nyjastul69
Champion of the Remorhaz | |
|
nycfarmkid
Underboss
1210 Posts
Wadsworth, OH
| |
Monsoon28
Underboss
2313 Posts
Toronto
| | 02/20/2006 12:53 PM |
| quote:
Originally posted by kyrin
My old favorite was gnolls. They're just such filthy bastards. They aren't simian, and so feel NO kinship with "monkey men" like humans, orcs, and goblins. Since they are hyena-men, I give them disgusting habits and sick senses of humor. I also love their alliance with ghouls, my favorite undead. Plus I just think they have a cool look.
I agree my favourite humanoid race tied with Minotaurs! | |
"I was sittin' here eatin' my muffin, drinkin' my coffee, replayin' the incident in my head, when I had what alcoholics refer to as a moment of clarity." - Jules Winnfield
Sales/Trades Bad (1): Ironfist Boulderbender
Trades/Sales completed (8.): Danthl, Dafrca, Garyaxe, qillan_dvra, realmaster, Vandal_Savage, cavedweller, unearthed arcana.
Champion of Gem Dragons, VINDICATED Squire of Duergar Commander, Knight of the Astral Stalker.
| |
|
jacksonm
Warlord
5560 Posts
River City
| | 02/20/2006 1:38 PM |
| I'll go with Goblins myself. The whole Goblinoid family really.
Goblins have a great deal of range as to what you can do with them. You can start them out weak and incompotent to give the PC's some relatively easy chalenges as a campaign starts.
As things go on throw in a hobgoblin leader and they get a little more organized, not so prone to flee at the first sign of trouble.
They can be played from comic relief up to organized swarming threat.
Plus it can make for good fun after the PC's grow acustomed to routing the pathetic goblins and then suddenly meeting an eliete goblin force. [}:)] | | | |
|
The Great
Choco Monster
Ghendar
Warlord
13069 Posts
Mud Lick, Kentucky
| | 02/20/2006 2:53 PM |
| | Trolls. Definitely trolls. Going way back to the 1st Edition, these things were just about as nasty as you could imagine. The whole regeneration thing is tough. Hack them into as many pieces as you want and they still come back. Truly horrid. I still, to this day, remember the dread I felt just at the thought of one of my PC's facing a troll. | |
WotC - making me wish more and more every day for a return to the TSR days. :(
I fought the snark and the snark won. I'm baaaaaaaaaaack!
Some of my favorite Maxminis quotes
I actually love to be swallowed. - Posted By gss_000 on 09/04/2007 2:32 PM
Could somebody explain Snatch to me? I understand the basics, but not how to enter/use it. - Posted by orcmonk220
G's the man. - Posted By greyhaze on 11/11/2008 8:58 AM
I dont mind butting heads every once in a while. It makes thing interesting. Thats why I'd be heartbroken if Ghendar ever left - Posted By Count Dooku on 04/03/2006 11:58 AM
| |
|
Most Edumacated
zenthrus
Warlord
5132 Posts
SLC, UT
| | 02/20/2006 5:29 PM |
| | Trolls and troglodytes are my favorite humanoid monsters for creating dread in players. | |
Knight Warlord a.k.a. Commander (#32) in only 6 months. Where's my pie?
Champion of Dwarven Thunderlashers
Knight of the Large Dire Chicken
Have/Want List
Trade References | |
|
Bert the Troll
Commander
3964 Posts
Adelaide
| | 02/20/2006 5:44 PM |
| For a long time Drow. As a DM you can use them as sneaky tactical foes for the players, as end bosses for low levels and using masses to fight against at higher levels.
Very easy to match power ration vs players. And I like a monster race that will take advantage of spying for weaknesses, exploiting character flaws etc.
I`ll add to avoid the deep dark hole, that I was using drow way before the ranger-dude.
Rakasha would be great but too powerful for a low level threat.
The Orc/Goblin horde is a time earned classic, and what I will be using in my next realm.
| |
"Mutton yesterday, mutton today, and blimey, if it don't look like mutton again tomorrer." Bert the Troll - The Hobbit
Semi-Secret sig business: "In the age of the internet attaching a famous name to your personal opinion to give more weight to it is a very valid strategy." - Benjamin Franklin
Champion of Epic Lolth, Orcus, & Demogorgon and bring us Asmodeus! | |
|
Fun Guy from Yuggoth
Cthulhufnord
Warlord
11113 Posts
Umass Amherst Baby!
| | 02/20/2006 6:16 PM |
| | Lizard Folk/Serpent Men - I've always been a big fan of Robert E Howard's body of of literature. My Lizardmen have always been worshipers of Unspeakable Pre-human Horrors... | |
Pathetic Earthlings. Hurling your bodies out into the void - without the slightest inkling of who or what is out here. If you had known anything about the true nature of the universe - anything at all - you would have hidden from it in terror. | |
|
madda
Sergeant
714 Posts
| |
CarrionCrawler
Underboss
1760 Posts
| | 02/20/2006 7:17 PM |
| | Actually, I have quite a few. But if I had to choose I'd pick Changeling. | |
Vindicated Night Below Champion of the Digestor!!! Knight of the OozesIcons called shot: Angry MobThe stink of rotten meat surrounds this multilegged creature with a segmented, 10-foot long body. Eight writhing tentacles protrude from its head, growing directly from below its clacking mandibles and tooth-filled maw. | |
|
ickthegreat
Warrior
291 Posts
| | 02/20/2006 7:36 PM |
| | my favorite both as a player and a DM is the Drow | |
trades pending: (0)
everything is perfectly going out of control
| |
|
Luisjoey
Underboss
1704 Posts
Caracas Venezuela
| | 02/20/2006 9:20 PM |
| My favorite are Hobgblins, second by Gnolls and i like Orcs a lot.
I Want to try them as PC one day. | |
Knight of the Quori
Champion of King Kaius III of Karrnath
 Purple Knight of Venezuela
Venezuelan Site For D&D minis Calabozo Criollo Venezuela
Venezuelan Site for SW minis VeneMinis.com | |
|
TruNutral88
Sergeant
522 Posts
| | 02/20/2006 9:28 PM |
| | I love mind flayers, just because i enjoy their mastermindedness (is that a word?) and how they think of most people as servants (except for teh elder brain). AND they're LE [:D] | |
Champion of Bruenor Battlehammer | |
|
Can of the Cave Beer
Commander
2838 Posts
| | 02/21/2006 12:47 AM |
| Well, I admit a fondness for Drow but they are overdone. They have their place, but I prefer to keep them more to the shadows--less out in the open. Duergar are great fun--and hardly anyone uses them! But they have other things on their collective minds, and they are less the foil of the PCs and more an obstacle to everyone!
Right now, if I ever get my campaign up and running, it'll probably be Hobgoblins and Gnolls. The Hobgoblins kind of fell in by default, and the Gnolls just seem like sooo much fun (especially with a BBEG named Yiffang, the Bloody Skull). The Hobgoblins don't have quite that much flavor just yet (BBEG is named Goran Steedrender), but they're a little more refined--more like the dark reflection of Humans.
Gnolls are just nasty and make no apologies about it (or anything else). And they're mostly crazy, too. | |
Champion of the Werewolf Lord, Knight of Anything Duergar, and Squire of Things Gnollish
List reset with the start of previews for each new set...got Chainmail®? | |
|
Jefftyjeffjeff
Warrior
214 Posts
| | 02/21/2006 2:58 AM |
| I like hobgoblins. They're evil and militaristic, a frightening combination. In addition to being smart and cunning on an individual level, they're organized enough to be a nation-level danger, so they can serve as personal foes or a massed threat.
In addition, you have hobgoblin-lite (goblin) and hobgoblin-heavy (bugbear). These biological "ranks" in goblinoid culture make them look diferent than just evil, furry humans.
I had a faded hobgoblin empire as a major player in my campaign well before Eberron. As a major political entity, you can't dismiss or indiscriminately kill hobgoblins walking around in your major trade city. But you sure don't have to like them.
I also like lizardfolk, because of their hardcore survival ethic. They're neutral, so they'd really rather just be left alone. But if an individual or society is threatened, they have no moral or ethical qualms about doing any hideous thing to survive. They're not pro-murder the way orcs are. It's just that they're not against it.
Among other things, I like it because it provides another way to deal with lizardfolk. If a clever group of PCs can arrange for lizardfolk to get what they want peaceably, they're fine with that too. This can avert a larger crisis... or lead to a subtler one. [}:)] | |
Jeff Quick, Philadelphia
22 Successful Trades: benimoto, bonepinhamer, bradu, Changeling, dnd3eplayer, drowdude, Drift, Gausse, Ghendar, Ihawk, ikill4adollar, Khaibit_ema_Neteru, Lance H, marjorie, MeepoTheMighty, mulkhoran, Puggins, Ryngard, vrecknidj, wuzzard, xbrendanx, Zenako (x2)
Pending Trades: | |
|
maijstral
Underboss
2105 Posts
| | 02/21/2006 4:41 AM |
| My old favorite were the yuan-ti. An evil reptilain race that had member that could easily pass for human, and those were the lowest caste members. You could always insert a yuan-ti cult into any game as the main villians or just manipulators getting to do there dirty work for them.
My new favorite,since Eberron, are the changlings for much the same reason. Now you can't quite be sure of anyone. Is the person your dealing with human? can you trust them? is this the same person as last week, he seems a little 'off'. I recently ran an adventure with a changling who had infiltrated a small town by replacing the sheriff the PC's found themselves thwarted at ever turn and framed for crimes. Reliable eye witnesses swearing that individual PC's were guilty of differing crimes, prisoners commiting suicide in the jail cells before they could be interrogated, the sheriff even managed to whip up a mob against the PC's at one point and after they proved there innocence managed to get back on there good side as a diffrent NPC.
The Githyanki have always been a good race for me as well, but harder to work into a lower level campaign. I like to use them when the PC's start plane hopping. And the Drow make good underdark villians if you need a villianous race and not just a few monsters to fight. If I ever run an Eberron adventure in Xen'drik I would definitely include the Eberron version of Drow. | | | |
|
Darastrix Maekrix
dariustad
Warlord
6322 Posts
| | 02/21/2006 5:19 AM |
| | Toss up between the Lizardfolk and Yuan-Ti. Given my choices for preferred races [)], I need some slightly (and outright) tougher beasties for them to fight. Sure, I use the other humanoids, but these two races have always been a lot of fun to torment others with. [}:)] | |
Trade & talk in real time on IRC! SERVER: irc.psionics.net CHANNEL: #maxminis SOFTWARE: PC | PC (free) | MAC
Champion of ALL Dragons and the Dragon Shaman
][ My Trade Shoppe ][ Vindicated Champion of Aspects of Draconic Deities
| |
|
Gast
Skirmisher
25 Posts
| | 02/21/2006 6:26 AM |
| | Orcs and goblins are my favorites. Just try to remember how many orcs and goblins have you killed in your DnD life. I use them a lot in my sessions. i like illithids too. | |
| |
|
Elucidus
Skirmisher
30 Posts
| | 02/22/2006 9:57 AM |
| | Kobolds and Githzerai. Something about a little kobold psion riding on an orc that he has dominated is just too much to resist. Also the Githzerai and their floating monasteries in the planes is just cool. And they don't eat their most powerful like the Githyanki Lich-Queen. I see them as calm and cool int he face of danger and even overwhelming odds, as a monk they are supreme. | |
Everyday I think people can't get any stupider, and every day I am proven horribly wrong! | |
|
yack
Commander
3320 Posts
Gatineau Canada
| | 02/22/2006 11:48 AM |
| | I would have too go with Goblins with orcs a quick second. | |
Champion of the Peryton
Vindicated Champion : Pit Fiend, Devourer
DW: Duergar Priest
RPG Only!!!! The Drumming Drunkn' DM | |
|
Sir Bozak The Damned
Commander
2854 Posts
Québec
| | 02/22/2006 1:15 PM |
| | Anything reptilian ( Draconians, Lizardmen, Troglodytes And Yuan-Ti ) and as upper level encounters, Minotaurs. I always loved those guys. So put me in for Draconians, as they are the most organized and diverse in those I mentionned. | |
Please donate BLOOD at http://www.monstersgame.co.uk/ac=vid&vid=11018554
Champion Of Kaz the Minotaur Knight of ALL Draconians. Squire Of ALL Constructs
The number ONE fanatic Of Dread Guards ! I own 66 !!! And the GMR1 !!!
119 completed trades so far...NB called shot: Medusa | |
|
Knight of the
Round Table
Thenameless
Warlord
12481 Posts
The Fortress of Solitude
| | 02/25/2006 4:33 PM |
| | Orcs. They don't have the complexity of many of the other races mentioned above, but they are many and they are brutal. And, like anything else, if you want to make them more interesting just level them up a bit (or a lot if you'd like). Long live the Orc Horde! | |
Over 270 successful online DDM trades. | |
|
PhibbyRizo
Warrior
207 Posts
Good Ol' Minnesota
| | 02/25/2006 11:21 PM |
| I say Yuan-ti. I have been using them off and on since 2e and particularily thought the Histachii were a very cool aspect of them.
Players hacked through dozens of them....only to learn they were once innocent humans. | |
High Priest of the Mercury Dragon (Prayers all all I have...)
Champion of Genasi
Unhallowed Called Shot: Ghoul (Vindicated! Gravetouched Ghoul)
Night Below Called Shot: Cave Runner
Icon Called Shot: Hellfire Engine | |
|
Hadaragath
Skirmisher
3 Posts
| | 03/01/2006 7:09 AM |
| Hmmm my favourite races are trolls, illithids, drow and for sure frost giants.
As you see i cannot write just one race [:p] | |
| |
|
Hero of Skirmish
doubtofbuddha
Commander
3371 Posts
| | 03/01/2006 11:34 AM |
| | Humans. I mix all the other ones up too much to have a favorite... | |
I am not gone. | |
|
orcdoubleax
Sergeant
694 Posts
| | 03/01/2006 12:09 PM |
| Bugbears
I have always love these bigger badder goblinoids. | |
Yes I am Gelatinous.
www.gelatinousdudes.com
| |
|
LargeMarmot
Sergeant
463 Posts
| | 03/03/2006 1:36 AM |
| | I too love Kobolds. They're easy to use, funny, and versitile. | |
Champion of the Tohr-Kreen.
WotDQ Called Shot: Fang Dragon. | |
|
notserious
Sneak
117 Posts
| | 03/03/2006 8:46 AM |
| I've been largely beat to the punch . . .But I look for two principal components in my bad guys - I love the cinematics of hordes, and I like my BBEG to evoke an emotional reaction. For the first requirement, that becomes a level dependant thing - with low level characters a horde of anything other than kobolds or goblins is just asking for TPK. I had decided there were too many monsters in my world so I eliminated all goblinoids (I think next world I'll go the other way and eliminate major races anaologous to goblinoids - i.e., eliminate kobolds since I have goblins, eliminate orcs for hobgoblins, and toss the gnolls for bugbears) - this left kobolds as the swarming ankle-biters. I know they aren't usually brave enough to swarm, but it makes for neat encounters - night-time ambushes where they outnumber 3 to 1 or better, or they eventually are cornered after the PC's have worked their way through traps and dire weasel and the poor little blighters swarm out of desperation.
For the emotional effect, I like a little horror flavour - sometimes the overwhelmingness of big nasties (ogres at low level, dragons at any time) but I do find that shapechanger types and reptillians have got something going for them. With my Yuan Ti BBEG, I've grown really fond of the ophidians for my (admittedly smaller) horde monster, but the thought of morphing into a servile snake-beast adds a certain desperation to fighting a foe my characters would not normally worry about. And troglodytes have a certain foulness about them (physical and spiritual) that can make players uncomfortable. | |
| |
|
Prince o the Raven Banner
Sergeant
606 Posts
| | 03/03/2006 2:50 PM |
| Hobgoblins;
*The original Monster Manual had a picture where the Hobgoblin was dressed like a samurai (way before OA) that image stuck.
*Ever since I've used Hobgobs as a highly organized, honor driven, complex society with great achievements in beuracracy, war, architecture and art.
*There is a built in caste system. Hobs up top, gobs as the peons and bugbears as the lazy ner'do wells who cause the bulk of the societys trouble.
*The Hob, as an organized and militaristic creature poses a viable threat in a campaign. With a regular army and political agenda they are a more viable component in my worlds than isolationist cultures like the elves or dwarves.
*They make the best mercenaries.
*While evil, they are not motivated by simple cruelty or covetousness. In fact killing slaves would be considered a waste of resources and war an impediment to trade (in some cases).
*I've always played my Hobs straight but sly. If one gives his word, it's absolute, take it to the bank. Just be sure you checked the nuances of what he actually said.
*This has worked for so long that my players lobbied (succesfully) for the Goblin races to become PC races. It's now the only way to get Samurai as a class and one of the few ways I permit Kensai.
All that said I also like the Gith races and have a 3rd subrace when high levels kick in for the campaign. Also I make liberal use of Nagas. | |
Two trades completed!! (Krush,Hides From Hurricanes)
Champion of the Aaracokra
Herald Of Snig Goblin King | |
|
taliesin
Underboss
1113 Posts
| | 03/03/2006 8:07 PM |
| I must be a sadistic DM, but I tend to like using the monsters that I get emotional responses from my pc's over.
Trolls- ever since the first rend for massive damage resulting in negative hp, the appearance of a troll has always been taken seriously. It's very fun to hear "Not a troll! I hate trolls!" from my players.
Vrocks- 3 stunning screeches to buy time followed by a dance of ruin means my players try very hard to finish off one vrock quickly, even if it means ignoring more immediate threats.
Drowned- from MM3, quickly climbed onto my list as the first undead with the right amount of hp to justify it's CR. A fairly straightforward undead beater with an interesting aura that is more dangerous looking than it really is, the threat of failing a con check and drowning in the middle of the fight still makes my players very nervous. | |
Champion of the Entire Monster Manual 1!
(Click link to see current progress!)
Uncommon Painting Competition 2 Winner | |
|
Gast
Skirmisher
25 Posts
| | 03/04/2006 8:19 AM |
| [quote]Originally posted by Hadaragath
Hmmm my favourite races are trolls, illithids, drow and for sure frost giants.
As you see i cannot write just one race [:p]
Hadaragath you wrote 4 races that are not very similar to each other. There must be one favorite anyway. | |
| |
|
Knight of the
Round Table
Thenameless
Warlord
12481 Posts
The Fortress of Solitude
| | 03/04/2006 11:36 PM |
| quote:
Originally posted by Prince o the Raven Banner
Hobgoblins;
*The original Monster Manual had a picture where the Hobgoblin was dressed like a samurai (way before OA) that image stuck.
*Ever since I've used Hobgobs as a highly organized, honor driven, complex society with great achievements in beuracracy, war, architecture and art.
*There is a built in caste system. Hobs up top, gobs as the peons and bugbears as the lazy ner'do wells who cause the bulk of the societys trouble.
*The Hob, as an organized and militaristic creature poses a viable threat in a campaign. With a regular army and political agenda they are a more viable component in my worlds than isolationist cultures like the elves or dwarves.
*They make the best mercenaries.
*While evil, they are not motivated by simple cruelty or covetousness. In fact killing slaves would be considered a waste of resources and war an impediment to trade (in some cases).
*I've always played my Hobs straight but sly. If one gives his word, it's absolute, take it to the bank. Just be sure you checked the nuances of what he actually said.
*This has worked for so long that my players lobbied (succesfully) for the Goblin races to become PC races. It's now the only way to get Samurai as a class and one of the few ways I permit Kensai.
All that said I also like the Gith races and have a 3rd subrace when high levels kick in for the campaign. Also I make liberal use of Nagas.
Well, since you put it so eloquently, I have been swayed somewhat from my simple and brutal orcs. Didn't know they were practically as complex as a human society. | |
Over 270 successful online DDM trades. | |
|
Prince o the Raven Banner
Sergeant
606 Posts
| | 03/05/2006 4:46 AM |
| Umm, thanks Nameless.
Actually the first time I really delved into what was an evil society, I used Hobgoblins. In that game we were young players, about 14 or 15 originally. Up until that point bad guys were monsters in a dungeon. From that point on our game changed into something more mature. We were able to isolate what was often wrong in the real world with a RPG, it was strange at first. After, I soon found that alignment was less a confinement to my players and more a statement of how that character viewed the world. This was the first time alignment really worked as a viable dynamic in my games. The realization that Evil wasn't just a really mean guy made a real difference.
I should point out that when I made the Goblin races available to the players, they did not choose to play straight evil characters. Rather they chose conflicted personalities who attempted to thrive in a society dead set on keeping them in their place. Its odd how often we found real world examples that supported the world in which we played, especially as we got older. It kind of pointed out a definative point in the reality of an "Evil" society, it is indiference that allows it to survive.
I personally believe that many of the original antagonists of the game have been shafted in the roles they should have played, by glitzy "New Hotness" monsters that really produce less bang for the buck. A creature is not truly advanced until it interacts with other creatures. It is in this interaction in which it can be truly evaluated, both as an individule and as a species.
I digress, I'm getting way off topic here. | |
Two trades completed!! (Krush,Hides From Hurricanes)
Champion of the Aaracokra
Herald Of Snig Goblin King | |
|
Knight of the
Round Table
Thenameless
Warlord
12481 Posts
The Fortress of Solitude
| | 03/05/2006 4:15 PM |
| quote:
Originally posted by Prince o the Raven Banner
I digress, I'm getting way off topic here.
No, no, no. This is beautiful stuff man, and very well put. Your point about an evil society being able to exist answers a lot of people's questions about how people like Stalin, Pol Pot, and Hitler were able to stay in power to commit their atrocities. Indifference, and a fear of opposing the powers-that-be would be two big reasons.
As far as new monster and villains overshadowing the old, it's unavoidable because of the business aspect of things. | |
Over 270 successful online DDM trades. | |
|
Kunimatyu
Sergeant
725 Posts
| | 03/05/2006 5:55 PM |
| quote:
Originally posted by Prince o the Raven Banner
Hobgoblins;
*The original Monster Manual had a picture where the Hobgoblin was dressed like a samurai (way before OA) that image stuck.
*Ever since I've used Hobgobs as a highly organized, honor driven, complex society with great achievements in beuracracy, war, architecture and art.
*There is a built in caste system. Hobs up top, gobs as the peons and bugbears as the lazy ner'do wells who cause the bulk of the societys trouble.
*The Hob, as an organized and militaristic creature poses a viable threat in a campaign. With a regular army and political agenda they are a more viable component in my worlds than isolationist cultures like the elves or dwarves.
*They make the best mercenaries.
*While evil, they are not motivated by simple cruelty or covetousness. In fact killing slaves would be considered a waste of resources and war an impediment to trade (in some cases).
*I've always played my Hobs straight but sly. If one gives his word, it's absolute, take it to the bank. Just be sure you checked the nuances of what he actually said.
*This has worked for so long that my players lobbied (succesfully) for the Goblin races to become PC races. It's now the only way to get Samurai as a class and one of the few ways I permit Kensai.
All that said I also like the Gith races and have a 3rd subrace when high levels kick in for the campaign. Also I make liberal use of Nagas.
Have you looked at Eberron's hobgoblins before? The (now fallen) Dhakanni Empire sounds like exactly this. | |
Champion of the Aboleth, Prophet of Denizens. BW Called Shot: Babau, UH Called Shot: Aspect of Vecna | |
|
MightyEinherjar
Sergeant
387 Posts
| | 03/07/2006 1:09 AM |
| I've always loved orcs and such, especially their society, but I think I love Giant-Kin the most. Not the true giants, mainly the Ogres and Trolls, as well as the medium followers of Vaprak. I've always like ogres when they actually are part of the plot, instead of the folks raiding a caravan or something. People tend to take a big man seriously when they're being choked against the wall, and even more so when they're several feet off the ground looking into the eyes of an ogre with an underbite.
Trolls...well, trolls are the best. They're good enough that one troll can cause mayhem to a group of low levels, and a bunch of them still cause an equal threat to higher levels.
Kobolds have always been funny. They finally gather the courage to attack a sleeping party, only to find the man they were about to wake up was 3x their size. It's always a moral booster for players when the screams of bloodlust from kobolds attacking a camp turn to yelps and screams for their lives, fleeing from the enraged party. I recall a barbarian player grabbing a fleeing kobold's leg and using him as a projectile into other, causing more terror in the kobold ranks.
Oh, and as for hordes, always been partial to gibberlings... | |
Champion of the Aspect of Tempus | |
|