The biggest issue at the moment is that I have done Monstrous Mondays for so long there are at least five OSR systems I have used, not to mention original monsters I created for other systems. I can use those monsters, but just like the OSR ones I need to convert everything to a single system.
For a while, I was working on the notion that I should do this as an "Advanced" era book. Trouble is I really don't see a lot of Advanced era books for sale on DriveThru. It is pretty much dominated by Labyrinth Lord and Swords & Wizardry. I want to make the book I want, but if I want to pay for art it also needs to be a book people will buy.
Advanced Labyrinth Lord seems like the best compromise, but even then it is missing a couple things I want. Well. That is where Monstrous Mondays come back in!
I think I'll use this space to workshop a few monster stat blocks that work with what I want.
In particular, I want to have something similar to what I was doing in the early 80s; the free mixing of "Basic" and "Advanced" eras.
Something that plays like this.
I could start with a standard Labyrinth Lord stat block, add-in ability scores or ability score adjustments like Blueholme does. Maybe include some of the OGC elements I like best from Adventures Dark and Deep Bestiary and OSRIC.
To be honest, I have not quite made up my mind just yet.
But let's try something out.
Here is a good test. I'll convert a Ghosts of Albion creature to this new format. A good choice is one that was inspired by a 1st creature that was in turn inspired by the mythical fairy creature.
So here is my Monstrous Monday version of the Cù Sìth.
Cù Sìth
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| Cu Sith by NyssaShaw |
Frequency: Very Rare
No. Enc.: 1 (1), Pack 1d4 (1d6+1)
Alignment: Lawful (Chaotic Good)
Movement: 150' (50') [15"], Run 210' (70') [21"]
Armor Class: 7 [12]
Hit Dice: 4d8+4 (22 hp)
Attacks: 1 (bite)
Damage: 1d6+5
Special: Blink, Detect Magic, Hide (5 in 6), takes 2x damage from cold iron
Size: Large
Save: Monster 4
Morale: 12
Treasure Hoard Class: Nil
XP: (working on this, see below)
The Celts were well known for their love of dogs. But the Cù Sìth (“coo shee”) or “Fairy Hound” has a special place in Celtic lore. Often described as a large hound that is either all green or all white with red ears. They have been alternately seen as bad omens, horrible stealers of children, or a fierce and loyal protector, the Cù Sìth features in many tales.
Tales feature the Cù Sìth as a spectral hound, one that forebodes doom like the Barghest, though those hounds are more often black in color and their malevolence is more universal than that of the Cù Sìth. Also, the Cù Sìth is more commonly associated with the Faerie and sometimes valiant, but tragic, warriors and the Barghest is more closely associated with witchcraft.
The Cù Sìth can be found most often near or around fairy mounds. A good sign that a mound is, in fact, a faerie mound is the proximity of a Cù Sìth to it.
Cù Sìth can also interbreed with other dogs which will typically produce one Cù Sìth per liter; sometimes more, sometimes less. Odd are the ways of the faerie folk.
Cù Sìth pups are rarely if ever tamed. If one wishes to remain with a non-faerie then it is of their own choosing.
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OK. Let's talk through this stat block.
Creature Type: Faerie Animal
I am going to include a creature type. This will be a short-hand for a few things. Faerie in this case means can speak elven and sylvan, takes double damage from iron and *maybe* need silver or magic weapons to hit.
Frequency: Very Rare
I like frequency. One of my favorite Advance era stats that we don't see in Basic era.
No. Enc.: 1 (1), Pack 1d4 (1d6+1)
Fairly self-explanatory.
Alignment: Lawful (Chaotic Good)
I want to include the Good-Evil axis along with the Law-Chaos one. Both will be listed.
Movement: 150' (50') [15"], Run 210' (70') [21"]
Movement is listed for Basic era Turns and (Rounds) and [Advanced era]. Special moves will be spelled out. So no //# /# to confuse anyone.
Armor Class: 7 [12]
Armor Class is listed with both Descending and [Ascending] types.
Hit Dice: 4d8+4 (22 hp)
For HD I am going to include the die type, any extra hp and hp (the average of the die type).
Attacks: 1 (bite)
Damage: 1d6+5
Attacks and Damage are split up. Though I could easily put these on one line.
Special: Blink, Detect Magic, Hide (5 in 6), takes 2x damage from cold iron
Special attacks, moves, and defenses are here. This is vaguely Basic era, but also from other games I have used.
Size: Large
I like including size here. Also, I am considering using size to change HD type as it does in newer games.
| Size | HD Type | Space | Examples |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tiny | d4 | 2½ by 2 ½ ft. | Imp, sprite |
| Small | d6 | 5 by 5 ft. | Giant rat, goblin |
| Medium | d8 | 5 by 5 ft. | Orc, werewolf |
| Large | d10 | 10 by 10 ft. | Hippogriff, ogre |
| Huge | d12 | 15 by 15 ft. | Fire giant, treant |
| Gargantuan | d20 | 20 by 20 ft. or larger | Kraken, purple worm |
Save: Monster 4
Most often monsters save as monsters, but sometimes a class might be used for special cases.
Morale: 12
I really enjoy Basic era style morale.
Treasure Hoard Class: Nil
XP:
These two are trickier since they rely a lot more on the game they are emulating AND the specific rules. For the book I might create my own Treasure Type but I am also considering just going with the LL Horde Class and repeating the table in an appendix.
XP will really vary from system to system. I have a Google Sheet that calculates for different games based on HD, special abilities, and the like.
Here is the output for the Cù Sìth for various games.
Not at all the same is it.
I might forgo putting in XP and letting Game Masters calculate it themselves based on their game of choice. Mind you there might even be some error in my sheet above. I built it years ago and have added to it but I have not back-checked my math in a while.
How often do you all use the XP line?
So I have ways to go just yet.
