Has anyone created encounters using creatures from Tome Of Beasts? If so, what were your impressions of the creatures you used and the other creatures within? Is it a worthwhile addition to one's collection of material?
I basically hold Kobold Press material to be the top tier of 3rd party products for 5e. The Tome of Beasts 1 & 2 as well as the Creature Codex are massive tomes loaded with creatures and I have pulled dozens of them into my games when I want to spice things up or just mine for inspiration.
I basically hold Kobold Press material to be the top tier of 3rd party products for 5e. The Tome of Beasts 1 & 2 as well as the Creature Codex are massive tomes loaded with creatures and I have pulled dozens of them into my games when I want to spice things up or just mine for inspiration.
Any issues or concerns that you have tripped across I should be aware of?
I have been eyeing the 1st TOB and like what I see.
As above, I also rate the Kobolds’ output to be solid. Both Tomes of Beasts, and the Creature Codex are good content if a little tied into the Midgard setting in some of the lore, but that’s easy enough to edit as appropriate. Deep Magic is a bit more of a mixed bag, as spells are a little more variable in use and effect at different tables.
Also worth a look for third party content is what Green Ronin have put out - not so much in terms of extra creatures yet as the Book of Fiends isn’t out yet (I backed the crowdfunding for it so have an early access preproduction PDF; not absolutely sure when the final version drops), but Book of the Righteous, the reworked Freeport, and Lost Citadel are all worthwhile reads.
I have the tome of beasts as well as the creature codex (also a kobold press) and from what I've used, They're kinda hit or miss with their balance.
Positives:
1. Very unique creatures. A lot of the creatures have abilities that are completely different from everything in WotC materials
2. Variety of existing creatures. The dragons, I think, are my favorite! These books add a lot of unique spins and forms of creatures we already had which can increase encounter variety.
Negatives:
1. Unprecedented abilities. Many creatures have abilities that either add or subtract flat numbers which, while was common in earlier editions, is almost non-existent in 5e and usually replaced with advantage/disadvantage. These abilities can add complexity to the game forcing players/DM to keep track of +'s and -'s (This one may only be a negative because my personal table switched from pathfinder because we got tired of dealing with this exact thing lol)
2. Balancing issues. I know the CR system isn't perfect, but with WotC materials, i can usually tell how hard a fight's gonna be by using the CR of the monsters. As a DM I don't use any kind of calculations or EXP budget to plan encounters, I just go with gut and usually it works out well (combat is challenging, players go down, but with good plays, they usually come out ok). With Creature codex monsters however, CR really is meaningless. You REALLY have to look at the creature beforehand to make sure it's the right challenge you're looking for.
I don't have the book in front of me but 2 come to mind (now keep in mind I don't remember if these are from creature codex or Tome of Beasts but they're very similar books). The Tusked Skyfish I believe is its name and the Pillar of the lost magocracy (something like that)
The skyfish is CR 4 and it has an ability that any creature below it when it hovers over them takes 3d6 lightning (1/2 on dex save) and doesn't give a limit to how many times it can do it. It has a fly speed of 20 so it could just go back and forth over a PC doing 6d6 with just its movement. On top of this it has multi attack with one attack doing 2d8+3 and the other doing 6d6+3 (+ grappled and restrained)
The pillar one is the opposite (still CR4). I used it SEVERAL times (Even using up to 4 of them at once) and every time i found it extremely underwhelming. it has a variable effect instead of attacks which function similar to a beholder eyebeam. However the effects last "1d4 rounds" which means the field will have 2 rounds of difficult terrain, 1 round of damaging effect 3 rounds of yadda yadda yadda. It was a nightmare to keep track of and since it can't move, my players just set a good ol' Wall of Fire around it and watched it crumble. the thing only had 2 damaging abilities and they were relatively weak.
This makes me sound like I dislike the books but I promise I don't! I just seem to have a 50-50 average on whether or not the creature works or doesn't with it. I've stopped using it as much because each time I do it feels kinda like a mystery bag of "will it be good?! who knooooows?!?!"
I have the tome of beasts as well as the creature codex (also a kobold press) and from what I've used, They're kinda hit or miss with their balance.
Positives:
1. Very unique creatures. A lot of the creatures have abilities that are completely different from everything in WotC materials
2. Variety of existing creatures. The dragons, I think, are my favorite! These books add a lot of unique spins and forms of creatures we already had which can increase encounter variety.
Negatives:
1. Unprecedented abilities. Many creatures have abilities that either add or subtract flat numbers which, while was common in earlier editions, is almost non-existent in 5e and usually replaced with advantage/disadvantage. These abilities can add complexity to the game forcing players/DM to keep track of +'s and -'s (This one may only be a negative because my personal table switched from pathfinder because we got tired of dealing with this exact thing lol)
2. Balancing issues. I know the CR system isn't perfect, but with WotC materials, i can usually tell how hard a fight's gonna be by using the CR of the monsters. As a DM I don't use any kind of calculations or EXP budget to plan encounters, I just go with gut and usually it works out well (combat is challenging, players go down, but with good plays, they usually come out ok). With Creature codex monsters however, CR really is meaningless. You REALLY have to look at the creature beforehand to make sure it's the right challenge you're looking for.
I don't have the book in front of me but 2 come to mind (now keep in mind I don't remember if these are from creature codex or Tome of Beasts but they're very similar books). The Tusked Skyfish I believe is its name and the Pillar of the lost magocracy (something like that)
The skyfish is CR 4 and it has an ability that any creature below it when it hovers over them takes 3d6 lightning (1/2 on dex save) and doesn't give a limit to how many times it can do it. It has a fly speed of 20 so it could just go back and forth over a PC doing 6d6 with just its movement. On top of this it has multi attack with one attack doing 2d8+3 and the other doing 6d6+3 (+ grappled and restrained)
The pillar one is the opposite (still CR4). I used it SEVERAL times (Even using up to 4 of them at once) and every time i found it extremely underwhelming. it has a variable effect instead of attacks which function similar to a beholder eyebeam. However the effects last "1d4 rounds" which means the field will have 2 rounds of difficult terrain, 1 round of damaging effect 3 rounds of yadda yadda yadda. It was a nightmare to keep track of and since it can't move, my players just set a good ol' Wall of Fire around it and watched it crumble. the thing only had 2 damaging abilities and they were relatively weak.
This makes me sound like I dislike the books but I promise I don't! I just seem to have a 50-50 average on whether or not the creature works or doesn't with it. I've stopped using it as much because each time I do it feels kinda like a mystery bag of "will it be good?! who knooooows?!?!"
They do have some REALLY cool ones though!!
I get your gist... optimistically cautious as one could say.
And if you look on AMAZON these books have high ratings as well.
I will start adding Kobold Press to my collection!
I have both tomes and the creature codex and as LeBattery said, there are some issues but for what they are, each is 400 pages of unique monsters and while there is a balance issue, there's nothing stopping you from changing things, would recommend 100%
When looking at potential creatures to use, I would pay close attention to their abilities. A significant amount of monsters have save DC's calculated incorrectly/inconsistent with how they are calculated in official supplements. There may also be typos with numbers (for example, I have seen a creature with a passive perception that says one thing, but their perception bonus says otherwise).
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Has anyone created encounters using creatures from Tome Of Beasts? If so, what were your impressions of the creatures you used and the other creatures within? Is it a worthwhile addition to one's collection of material?
I basically hold Kobold Press material to be the top tier of 3rd party products for 5e. The Tome of Beasts 1 & 2 as well as the Creature Codex are massive tomes loaded with creatures and I have pulled dozens of them into my games when I want to spice things up or just mine for inspiration.
"Not all those who wander are lost"
Any issues or concerns that you have tripped across I should be aware of?
I have been eyeing the 1st TOB and like what I see.
As above, I also rate the Kobolds’ output to be solid. Both Tomes of Beasts, and the Creature Codex are good content if a little tied into the Midgard setting in some of the lore, but that’s easy enough to edit as appropriate. Deep Magic is a bit more of a mixed bag, as spells are a little more variable in use and effect at different tables.
Also worth a look for third party content is what Green Ronin have put out - not so much in terms of extra creatures yet as the Book of Fiends isn’t out yet (I backed the crowdfunding for it so have an early access preproduction PDF; not absolutely sure when the final version drops), but Book of the Righteous, the reworked Freeport, and Lost Citadel are all worthwhile reads.
I have the tome of beasts as well as the creature codex (also a kobold press) and from what I've used, They're kinda hit or miss with their balance.
Positives:
1. Very unique creatures. A lot of the creatures have abilities that are completely different from everything in WotC materials
2. Variety of existing creatures. The dragons, I think, are my favorite! These books add a lot of unique spins and forms of creatures we already had which can increase encounter variety.
Negatives:
1. Unprecedented abilities. Many creatures have abilities that either add or subtract flat numbers which, while was common in earlier editions, is almost non-existent in 5e and usually replaced with advantage/disadvantage. These abilities can add complexity to the game forcing players/DM to keep track of +'s and -'s (This one may only be a negative because my personal table switched from pathfinder because we got tired of dealing with this exact thing lol)
2. Balancing issues. I know the CR system isn't perfect, but with WotC materials, i can usually tell how hard a fight's gonna be by using the CR of the monsters. As a DM I don't use any kind of calculations or EXP budget to plan encounters, I just go with gut and usually it works out well (combat is challenging, players go down, but with good plays, they usually come out ok). With Creature codex monsters however, CR really is meaningless. You REALLY have to look at the creature beforehand to make sure it's the right challenge you're looking for.
I don't have the book in front of me but 2 come to mind (now keep in mind I don't remember if these are from creature codex or Tome of Beasts but they're very similar books). The Tusked Skyfish I believe is its name and the Pillar of the lost magocracy (something like that)
The skyfish is CR 4 and it has an ability that any creature below it when it hovers over them takes 3d6 lightning (1/2 on dex save) and doesn't give a limit to how many times it can do it. It has a fly speed of 20 so it could just go back and forth over a PC doing 6d6 with just its movement. On top of this it has multi attack with one attack doing 2d8+3 and the other doing 6d6+3 (+ grappled and restrained)
The pillar one is the opposite (still CR4). I used it SEVERAL times (Even using up to 4 of them at once) and every time i found it extremely underwhelming. it has a variable effect instead of attacks which function similar to a beholder eyebeam. However the effects last "1d4 rounds" which means the field will have 2 rounds of difficult terrain, 1 round of damaging effect 3 rounds of yadda yadda yadda. It was a nightmare to keep track of and since it can't move, my players just set a good ol' Wall of Fire around it and watched it crumble. the thing only had 2 damaging abilities and they were relatively weak.
This makes me sound like I dislike the books but I promise I don't! I just seem to have a 50-50 average on whether or not the creature works or doesn't with it. I've stopped using it as much because each time I do it feels kinda like a mystery bag of "will it be good?! who knooooows?!?!"
They do have some REALLY cool ones though!!
I get your gist... optimistically cautious as one could say.
And if you look on AMAZON these books have high ratings as well.
I will start adding Kobold Press to my collection!
Grumblesmurf, I will take a look at Green Ronin as well, thank you.
I have both tomes and the creature codex and as LeBattery said, there are some issues but for what they are, each is 400 pages of unique monsters and while there is a balance issue, there's nothing stopping you from changing things, would recommend 100%
When looking at potential creatures to use, I would pay close attention to their abilities. A significant amount of monsters have save DC's calculated incorrectly/inconsistent with how they are calculated in official supplements. There may also be typos with numbers (for example, I have seen a creature with a passive perception that says one thing, but their perception bonus says otherwise).