Large, mantis-like insect men that burrow through the earth, lying in wait until the telltale vibrations of a passing creature cause them to burst onto the surface, seizing their prey with jaws that can cut a tree in half. A hippogryph raised from birth in captivity will make for an excellent flying mount. Hippogryph (CR 1)Ī hybrid between an eagle and a horse, Hiipgryphs have magical origins but were created so long ago that they’ve more or less integrated into the natural order - although this means they are the favored prey of dragons, wyverns and griffons. In D&D, harpies can also sing a siren song that lures hapless travelers to their deaths.

These creatures hunt in packs, carrying away livestock, children, and even full-grown adventurers if they’re hard pressed. Harpy (CR 1)Įvil, flying women from Greek mythology, harpies blend the body, legs, and wings of a vulture with the torso, arms, and head of a female human. Rust Monster (CR 1/2)įorget dragons, vampires, and poisonous snakes, rusk monsters are the scariest monsters in D&D, mostly because anything metal they touch instantly starts to corrode and decay, including any metal weapons that hit it. Now imagine the chicken has a bunch of knives taped to it, and if it stabs you, you turn to stone and die. The cockatrice’s party trick is its ability to turn flesh to stone.Ĭockatrices wouldn’t be such a huge problem for adventurers if they didn’t basically have the same response to everything as an irate chicken: fly at it pecking, squawking, and flapping its wings like crazy. A Miscellany of Monstrosities by CRĪ classic medieval monster resembling a nightmarish hybrid of lizard, bird, and bat. In fact, the only one I can think of is that, given half a chance, any monstrosity will probably have a very good try at ruining your day. So yeah, there are very few characteristics that describe all monstrosities (hybridization is probably the most common trait, although it’s not always present). While many of the creatures in this list are essentially instinctual predators, there are some that are highly intelligent, like the Spirit Naga and the Doppelganger (which is also a playable race).

Many medieval and ancient monsters, including the Cockatrice, Basilisk, Centaur, Hippogryph, Harpy, Manticore, Chimera, and Medusa are considered monstrosities.īut so are some uniquely D&D creatures, the invention of which is credited directly to Gygax and Arnseon, like the Displacer Beast, the Umber Hulk, and the Mimic.Īlso, we can’t use intelligence as a way to spot a monstrosity. Of course, many creatures that took the form of impossible hybrids between existing animals are drawn from our own real-world mythologies. Other monstrosities are hellish (one might say chimeric) combinations of multiple existing animals, like the Minotaur, the Drider, and the iconic Owlbear, suggesting that they were created as some kind of magical mishap or perhaps as a cruel joke by a thoughtless god. Though not beasts, some monstrosities seem to be more naturally occurring than others, like the Carrion Crawler, the Bullette, the Purple Worm, and even the Kraken, which all tread close to the line between monster and big, nasty animal. Other than that, there’s actually relatively little that connects the creatures in this classification. Monstrosities are a category of creature in Dungeon & Dragons 5e that are monsters in the purest sense of the word - they are unnatural, dangerous, and usually hostile.

Chimera dnd