Dungeons & Dragonshas been around for a few decades now. It has five editions (plus variations in between), lots of books with regular and expanded content, and way too many monsters to count. We have liches, vampires, mimics, goblins, mind flayers, and many others - and who can forget the dragons, of course?
However, since the game has that many monsters, it’s normal for some to be forgotten about. Perhaps their design isn’t appealing, or their environment is so specific that they rarely come up, and people simply forget they’re an option to begin with. Still, D&D is more than dragons, despite the name, and you can spice up your games significantly with these often overlooked monsters.
10Real Animals
They’re Not Here Just For Wild Shape
This might sound like a weird suggestion at first - we’re all used to seeing rats, spiders, cats, or wolves (regular or dire) in our campaigns. However, most DMs tend to either keep these as small creatures fora druid to Wild Shape intoor use giant/dire versions of animals to fight against.
When was the last time you saw an elephant in a D&D game? Or a whale? Or dinosaurs (outside Tomb of Annihilation)? We want to focus so much on the magical side of D&D, with fantastical animals, that we often forget about the fantastical creatures that exist (or used to exist) in our world - and many of them have official stat blocks.
9Yugoloths
The Third Evil Group
Between the lawful devils and the chaotic demons, there is the yugoloth. They’re not an individual monster, but rathera whole category of fiends. These evil creatures are known for their extreme greed, and always do what’s in their best interest.
If you want to make a very fiend-centric campaign, adding the third type of evil would be very interesting, especially since they can even be potential allies - as long as they see benefit in such an alliance, of course. An enemy with a changeable morality linked to material gain can add a unique new element to your encounters.
8Bodaks
Orcus' Favorites
If you want the demon lord Orcus to play a big role in your story, using a bodak is an interesting choice. They are powerful undead, with the power to frighten people who look at them. They are also particularly punishing against those with poor constitution numbers, due to their saving throws.
Their lore is very intriguing, too. They are people who gave up every ounce of who they were to become the perfect servants of the lord of undeath. However, they retain some human mannerisms, giving you unique roleplaying opportunities, especially if the players meet the character before and after becoming a bodak.
7Slaadi
Available In Many Colors
Slaadi make appearances in official campaigns here and there, but overall, you don’t see them often. They’re one of those funny cases where the average player knows the creature itself, but few have actually fought one themselves.
A slaadi can be pretty terrifying because of its resistance, damage, spells, and, more importantly, curses where they can turn defeated foes into other slaadi. They can also infect you, making you turn after a few days if you don’t cleanse yourself in time. The lingering nature of the threat adds a different dynamic to fights.
6Oblexes
An Amalgam Of Memories
An oblex is a terrifying ooze witha tragic past, perfect for complex stories. They absorb people’s memories, feeding on them, and these memories then become a chaotic blend within the monster, creating a complex mix of personalities.
Oblexes can even create replicas of people they absorbed (albeit with some imperfections) to lure victims into a trap. This means you can use this monster to generate specific emotions, such as perfect moments of sadness evoked by beloved, dead NPCs.
5Scarecrows
Crows Not Included
Scary monsters aren’t just zombies and skeletons. Scarecrows are relatively simple monsters with a powerful ability to frighten others, and depending on which ability you use, this fear can also paralyze the victim.
The scarecrow is a low-level monster, so you’d have to use them early on or buff them for higher levels of play. They are especially fun early on as their mechanics make for an interesting fight to level those weak player characters up, something rare in low-level monsters.
4Sorrowsworns
In Many Shapes And CRs
If your players are taking a trip to Shadowfell (or its monsters are taking a trip out of it), you may want to use the sorrowsworn. They’re manifestations of the suffering one feels when in Shadowfell.
They have five variations: the wretched, the lost, the lonely, the hungry, and the angry. Each is stronger than the previous one, and because their challenge ratings differ, you can use variations of these monsters throughout the campaign at different stages. You could make a single, evolving creature, too, should you choose.
3Star Spawns
Elder Evils' Pawns
If you want another type of creature that comes in varied forms and levels, allow us to introduce you to the star spawns. These creatures were made by none other than the Elder Evils, and they work as their heralds, messengers, or whatever they need from these minions.
The weakest one here has a CR of 1/4 while the strongest one reaches 21, so you can make them last for a long time in your story - fighting the return of the Elder Evils could be its whole campaign, and these could be the enemies your party regularly faces.
2Azers
Flame On!
Elementals are sometimes overlooked. Maybe because they’re neutral or that they’re creatures you wouldn’t easily run into. Regardless, they’re fun monsters to use in a campaign, and our top recommendations here are the Azer Sentinel and the Azer Pyromancer.
They’re both immune to fire and can hurt people simply by being near them. The pyromancer also has access to spells, since it’s the stronger creature here. Don’t make them too common if your spellcasters rely too much on fire damage, though; that’d be quite the indirect nerf on their character.
1Darklings
The Cursed Lineage
Darklings are the offspring of a traitorous fey who betrayed the Summer Queen and was cursed for it. With a CR of 1/2 and a CR two variation, these little guys mainly work as minions for a low-level story in the Feywild or somewhere else that is fey-oriented.
They won’t offer much more than being able to start a story with something that isn’t a goblin or a kobold, but their attack comes with two damage types, making it quite deadly, and they burst into light when they die, possibly blinding nearby creatures.
