SRD 1E Monster Rules ¶

Monsters ¶

You can use the monsters included in the 13th Age Archmage Engine, or you can make your own.

Monster Rules ¶

Stats & Characteristics ¶

Most monster attacks generally deal a specific amount of damage (instead of rolling for damage) and don’t add on the escalation die. Only exceptional monsters get to add the escalation die to their attacks.

Monsters may have particular abilities or powers that are triggered when the attack roll is greater than a certain threshold. The default trigger happens at a 16+ monster d20 attack roll, though unpredictable monsters may have effects trigger on other rolls.

Mooks ¶

Mooks are weaker monsters that can be cut down in large numbers in a single turn. Damage is not tracked against single mooks, but against the entire mob of mooks you’re facing. If you roll damage against a mook and it is greater than the single mook’s hit points, then another mook takes the remainder. In this way, damage can cascade to multiple mooks, and a player can kill multiple in one turn, even if they’re not all directly within your attack range.

A mook’s hit point value is one-fifth that of a regular monster.

Mooks move and attack individually. Mooks deal a fixed damage when they hit, and double damage when they roll a natural 20.

Mooks can be split up into multiple mobs with different initiative numbers and hit point pools for each.

Large & Huge Monsters ¶

Large monsters generally have twice the hit points and deal roughly double the damage of a normal-sized monster. They also count as two monsters when you build a battle.

Huge monsters have triple the hit points, deal triple damage, and count as three normal-sized monsters when you’re putting together a battle.

Regular-sized monsters may also have the same stats as large and huge monsters, in which case they are labeled as double-strength and triple-strength monsters, respectively.

Dire Animals ¶

Dire animals are bigger (large-sized) versions of normal animals. Dire animals usually have at least one dire feature, determined randomly using the table below.

Abilities ¶

Monsters may have special abilities for use in battle.

Burrowing ¶

Burrowing is a special rule for monsters that allows somewhat restricted movement underground. Unless otherwise specified, monsters generally do not leave functional tunnels behind them when burrowing.

A burrowing creature on the surface may attempt to burrow underground by using a standard action. Burrowing is successful if a saving throw beats the required save for the type of ground.

After successfully burrowing, a creature may move underground, faster or slower depending on the hardness of the ground, out of sight of other creatures, hidden and safe from attacks.

For breaking through to the surface, the sequence is as follows: a move action from deeper under the ground to come close to the surface, close enough that people see there’s something coming, followed by a quick action to break through, and then by a standard action attack.

Death Attacks and Last-Gasp Saves ¶

Some deadly monsters have a special attack called a death attack that can kill (petrify, paralyze, liquefy, immolate) in a single attack. Such attacks offer the player a last-gasp save.

A player that is affected by a death attack has a limited amount of last-gasp saves to try to throw off the condition of the death attack. On the first turn a player is affected, the player may make a single action (standard, move, or quick), after which they must roll a hard save (16+). If successful, the player shrugs off the death attack condition and can act normally on their next turn. If unsuccessful, their turn ends and the player may not take any other actions on future turns except for further last-gasp saves. Each successive last-gasp save is a hard save (16+). A successful save means that the player can act normally on the next round, unless the player rolls a natural 20 for their last-gasp save, which means that the player can take their turn normally in the current round.

Once a player fails four last-gasp saves while fighting off the death attack, the death attack effect succeeds, and the player is adversely affected as the attack indicates.

An ally may assist a player affected by a death attack. The ally must use a standard action to help the player shake off the attack. This gives the player a free last-gasp save that may be rolled immediately. (A failure doesn’t count against the four allowed saves.) In addition, the assisted save becomes normal difficulty (11+) instead of hard.

Fear ¶

Some monsters may have an aura of fear that makes them more difficult to be attacked.

A character engaged with such a monster must have a certain amount of hit points (according to the level of the monster with the fear aura) or be dazed (-4 attack) and gain no benefit from the escalation die.

Should the character’s hp increase past the fear threshold or the character disengage from the monster, they lose the dazed effect and regain the escalation die benefits.

Group Abilities ¶

A few monsters have limited abilities that can be used a certain number of times in a battle for the group. Any monster within that group may use the ability, but then the number of available uses is decremented for the entire group. It does not matter which monster uses the ability.

Mooks cannot have group abilities.

Leveling Up ¶

Use these guidelines to raise an existing monster by one or more levels.

1. Raise its attack bonuses and defenses by 1 per added level.
2. For damage, hp, and related special abilities (like healing), multiply the monster’s stats accordingly:

Monster List ¶

This list is sorted by level, then role, then monster name.

Monster Key ¶

Size/Strength and Level ¶

These are the key stats that determine how tough a battle will be using the creature. Sizes are regular, large, and huge. Regular-sized monster can have double-strength (2x) and triple-strength (3x). Regular-sized and regular-strength monsters are labeled as normal.

Role ¶

Monsters with different roles still use the same stats.

Archers ¶

Archers are ranged attackers who use weapons rather than spells.

Blockers ¶

Blockers have abilities that help them protect their allies.

Casters ¶

Casters are magician-types who need space to cast their spells properly. They’re capable of anything.

Leaders ¶

Leaders have abilities that help other monster allies fight better.

Mooks ¶

Mooks are minor monsters that are good cannon fodder. (See Mooks.)

Spoilers ¶

Spoilers mess the PCs up with attacks that inflict harmful effects instead of or in addition to hit point damage.

Troops ¶

Troops are the default monster type that aim to hurt PCs via hit point damage.

Wreckers ¶

Wreckers really bring the pain. Enemy groups containing only wreckers will be very dangerous to the PCs.

Type ¶

Some spells and magic items care about monster type. A ranger with a favored enemy type definitely cares about it.

Types include aberration, beast, construct, demon, dragon, giant, humanoid, ooze, and undead.

Initiative, AC, PD, MD, HP ¶

See Combat Stats.

Attack ¶

The default attack is a melee attack against one target that requires a standard action to use. If an attack can target more than one creature, that information follows the attack value.

When a monster makes an opportunity attack, it must use a melee attack. If that attack action normally includes multiple attacks, it can make only one attack roll.

The abbreviation R: indicates that an attack is a ranged attack instead of a melee attack. The default ranged attack assumes a single nearby target, but some can hit far away targets as well, which is noted in the targeting information or extra effect trigger.

The abbreviation C: refers to close-quarters attacks that can be used without triggering opportunity attacks from engaged enemies like ranged attacks do. Each close-quarters attack will note its targets.

Some attacks can only be used when the natural roll triggers it. These attacks have a [Special trigger] indicator at the start of the attack line. Other triggers allow a monster to use a normal standard action attack as a free action.

Extra Effect Trigger ¶

Many monster abilities trigger randomly based on the monster’s attack roll. Not all attacks have triggers. Most extra effect triggers are natural even or odd attack rolls or other specific die rolls, but a few are more unusual.

Specials ¶

These are other attacks and special abilities like fear or movement abilities like flight. Not all monsters have them.

Some monsters have nastier special abilities that increase a monster’s options and help keep monsters interesting throughout the campaign. Use them as options whenever you like.

Monster Creation ¶

Initiative ¶

Establish a monster’s initiative bonus by adding its level to a modifier between –1 and +9.

Attack Bonus ¶

Add or subtract 1 to adjust how accurate a monster is.

Strike Damage ¶

Orient yourself around the average damage for a monster’s attack at any given level. When it comes to large (or double-strength) or huge (or triple-strength) monsters, you don’t have to put all their damage into one strike. Split damage up into smaller attacks or use conditional follow-up attacks.

HP & AC ¶

Use the defense numbers as the top-end rather than the baseline unless you want the difficulty to scale up.

Better Defense/Lesser Defense ¶

Make either PD or MD better than the other, in general.

Fear Threshold ¶

If the monster has a fear ability, it’s the number of hit points where creatures are dazed (–4 attack) while engaged with the monster and can’t use the escalation die. It’s based on level, so that higher-level monsters are more fearsome.

Stat Adjustments ¶

Ad hoc adjustments work fine when limited to adjustments of 1 or 2 points. If you raise a couple scores, drop a couple others.

• Scrapper: Sharp but thin: attacks +1 to +3, hp –10% to –30%
• Offensive: Soft but strong: defenses –1 to –3, attacks +1 to +3
• Oaf: Tough but clumsy: AC +1 to +3, attacks –1 to –3
• Defensive: Tough but weak: AC +1 to +3, hp –10% to –30%
• Lunk: Big and squishy: hp +15% to +40%, defenses –1 to –3
• Brittle: Tough but thin: +1 to +3 AC, hp –10% to –30%

If you want to add a full level to a monster…

• …and you only want to boost its attack: Give the monster a +6 attack boost.
• …and you only want to boost AC: Give the monster a +6 AC boost.
• …and you only want to increase the monster’s hit points: Double the monster’s hit points.
• …and you only want to increase the damage the monster deals: Add a second attack or ongoing damage.
• …and you only want to increase every stat: Add +1 to attack, +1 to all defenses, multiply its damage output by 1.25, and multiply its hit points by 1.25.

Powers to Avoid ¶

Avoid defensive powers that make it harder for the monsters to be killed unless there’s an offense to unlock the defense.

Baseline Stats for Normal Monsters ¶

Baseline Stats for Mooks ¶

Baseline Stats for Large or Double-Strength Monsters ¶

Baseline Stats for Huge or Triple-Strength Monsters ¶