You should pick a size that fits well with the creature's intended role in the game and Challenge Rating. A creature's size sets a baseline for its physical ability scores and its natural weapon damage (as noted in the Natural Attacks description in the Universal Monster Rules). Most creatures range in size from Small to Huge, but other sizes are not uncommon. Now that you have the creature's average statistics, it's time to pick its size. This is because they have higher or lower average Hit Points to balance out their armor class or resistances. While many of the monsters are close to these values, some are not. Table: Creature Hit Dice lists the average number of Hit Dice for each creature type, depending on its CR. Hit Dice determine a wide variety of other statistics, including the creature's feats, skills, Hit Points, attack bonuses, and special ability DCs.Ī creature's total number of Hit Dice depends on a number of factors, but the two most important are its CR and its type. The next step in creating a monster is to determine the approximate number of Hit Dice it has. Poor Save: This is the average saving throw bonus for a creature of this CR if the saving throw is one of the creature's poor saving throws. Good Save: This is the average saving throw bonus for a creature of this CR if the saving throw is one of the creature's good saving throws. Generally, a DC should not be lower than this number. Secondary Ability DC: This is the average DC for spells and special abilities for a creature that does not rely on such attacks in combat. If an ability is particularly powerful, it might have a lower DC to compensate. Primary Ability DC: This is the average difficulty class (DC) for any spells, spell-like abilities, and special abilities (such as breath weapons) possessed by a creature of this CR that relies on such attacks in combat. To determine a creature's average damage, add the average value for all of the damage dice rolled (as determined by Table: Average Die Results) to the damage modifier for each attack.Ī creature that relies on melee or ranged weapons in combat should have average damage within the range of high and low damage.Ī creature with higher than normal attack bonuses will often deal lower damage, while a creature with lower than normal attack bonuses will often deal higher damage. This includes most creatures that rely on spells and spell-like abilities in combat.Īverage Damage: This is the average amount of damage dealt by a creature of this CR if all of its attacks are successful. Low Attack: This is the average total attack bonus for a creature of this CR that does not rely upon melee or ranged attacks to deal damage. For example, treat the average of 1d4 as 2, and the average of 2d4 as 5. When referring to Table: Monster Statistics by CR, keep the following points in mind. Most monsters excel in one of these areas, usually in the amount of damage dealt, but lag in one or two other areas to help balance them out. You will notice that many of the existing monsters do not follow these guidelines exactly. Once you have a creature's type and CR determined, use Table: Monster Statistics by CR to determine its approximate statistics by CR. Once you have these basic pieces of information, you should find a number of similar monsters of the same type and roughly the same CR for comparison purposes. Generally, this involves picking the monster's CR, type, physical appearance, and manner of fighting. The first step in creating a new monster is to define its concept and role in the game. The following guidelines are provided to assist in monster creation and to help balance a creation for its CR. Other monsters have significantly higher average damage, but have a lower attack bonus.
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Some monsters, for example, have significantly more hit points or a higher AC than the average for their CR, but make up for this advantage by being weak in other areas. While most monsters follow a general pattern of their overall power and abilities as related to their Challenge Rating (CR), there are many exceptions. Creating a monster is part science and part art.