I know monsters are “any living (or unread) thing that stands in the characters’ way”, and that they are intended to be “ammunition of the danger you’re presenting”, but can there be examples of monsters that are the exception to this? “Non-evil” monsters so to speak (yes I know monsters don’t have alignments)? Or do they cease to be monsters (and are just creatures) if they aren’t there to support thinking dangerous?
I know monsters are “any living (or unread) thing that stands in the characters’ way”, and that they are intended to…
I know monsters are “any living (or unread) thing that stands in the characters’ way”, and that they are intended to…
Kosher or not, I’ve done it in the past.
sniff sniff I smell NPC.
“… stands in the characters’ way” covers a lot of ground.
anything you put in the game (places, things, people, magic swords, peasants, dogs, laser-firing orbital arcanotechnical drones, etc) is there to fulfill your agendas via your principles as GM.
if they have stats or don’t have stats and how you wield them, as the GM, is up to you.
ummm, so … yes?
Adam Koebel , sounds good.
Especially the laser-firing orbital arcanotech drones part. 🙂
Thanks!
Monsters as NPCs is the best thing ever and the main reason I’m interested in playing to find out.
I want to see what monster a PC will sympathize with and make friends with.
And then go on wacky buddy cop style adventures.
One way to make monsters more “real” to players is to give them custom moves. Instead of just “cast a spell on a PC” as a monster move, create a move like “When Stitchwing casts a spell on you, roll + Con…” and go from there. It’ll make the NPCs infinitely more memorable.
Giving monsters custom moves can show how scary they are, too. For example, for a monster with total imperviousness to magic? “When you cast a spell on Dracophorix Magnificus, don’t.” That’s a valid, if intense, move.
Oh man I’m so excited that Stitchwing got to be an example.
Giving “monsters” a negotiation-oriented, helpful, or sympathetic move or instinct could give your prep some flexibility. A bridge troll might have a move like ‘demand payment’ or a forest spirit might have a move like ‘delay them with depressing tales’, for example. This way you’ve got some notes about their behaviors as they relate to the characters but they’re also stat’d out in case things go pear shaped.