A catoblepas' head resembled that of a warthog and sat atop an elongated neck that seemed ill-suited for actual support. Though the catoblepas eats mostly plants, it requires a monthly serving of meat. Welcome to a history of certain doom and most probable woe! Appropriately enough the illustration depicts precisely what happened the one time I had a party actually face a Catoblepas. THE HARDCOVER VERSION OF FIRE ON THE VELVET HORIZON??? The catoblepas also appeared in the article “Ecology of the Catoblepas” in Dragon #73. Nice! Thanks for sharing your insights on this. BUGBEAR, BRAIN MOLE, BEETLE (GIANT) UPDATED! Either way, this Catoblepas I'm down with. Sep 10, 2014 - Catoblepas (from the 1st Edition Monster Manual). There were howls of anger from the other players as massive holes were burned into their chests. figure... Citadel's RT7 line of Mercenaries from 1987 represent a long-dead vision of Then laughed out loud when I could point out that it has actually been published in every edition and that I hadn't changed a single thing and even worked in the lore about it. This iteration of the monster has beefed up versions of the harbingers attacks, and a new attack called withering gaze. Its most terrifying features are its large bloodshot eyes, from which emanate a deadly ray. In a Forgotten Realms product from the 1990s, Marco Volo described "death cheese" made from the milk of catoblepas dwelling in the Vast Swamp at Cormyr's border. Dungeons & Dragons creatures from folklore and mythology, http://web.archive.org/20050219020638/www.geocities.com/rgfdfaq/sources.html, https://annex.fandom.com/wiki/Catoblepas_(Dungeons_%26_Dragons)?oldid=367826, Elliott, Chris, and Richard Edwards. In a sense, the catoblepas appeared in one of the worlds earliest monster manuals. Fourth edition is my favorite version of the catoblepas. The second attack is the death glare it is most well known for. The catoblepas can also stun its victims like in previous editions after a tail swipe, but there is a save to avoid the stunning effect. The base chance of being stunned is lowered by 5% for every level above first, or for each additional Hit Die in the case of monsters and animals. you, and for once they have nothing to do with wolf riders! Our monk dove off a waterfall to get to it. Press question mark to learn the rest of the keyboard shortcuts. Bam sudden fort saves as it moos.
"the characters look like run-of-the-mill types"Yeah, that's what made DAT's work so brilliant, and why I too "worship at the Altar of Tramp.". The gaze of the catoblepas emanates a deathray, with a 60 yard range. Most modern fantasy illustrating focuses on the characters, not the monsters they are battling. Monster Manual (TSR, 1977). The death glare works just like it had in previous editions, though one added detail was that multiple catoblepas will work together to herd targets where they can easily gaze upon them. I would also put forth that the artist perhaps wanted to draw attention to the crown of the creature - it's deadly gaze - by facing it away from the observer and toward the lickspittle adventurnauts. The monster was reprinted in Monster Manual II (2002) the same year as the Dragon article. It first appeared under the name "Catoblepas" in 1976, in the TSR-published magazine The Strategic Review, issue #7 and continued to appear in various editions of the game rules with evolving attributes. The catoblepas doesn’t mean any harm to the town but will defend its offspring to the death. It was freaking rad. The Catoblepas' neck is long and thin, and perched atop it is a big head uglier than that of a wart hog. If more than one catoblepas is attacking, the monsters will cooperate with one another, attempting to herd their targets into a crossfire. When the catoblepas is threatened or on the hunt, however, it is happy to go after humanoid targets. When it has eaten enough plants for the month and saved up enough energy, it ventures out to find prey. The second piece of lore was that catoblepas are vegetarians except for once a month during the full moon, when they leave their homes in search of meat to supplement their diet. As a result, males of the species stay away from females. The monster was reprinted in Monster Manual II (2002) the same year as the Dragon article. Catoblepas simply pair off and bear a single child, which reaches maturity after 9 years. The head of the catoblepas is perched upon a long, weak neck, and would be much like that of a warthog except that the catoblepas is uglier.
More often than not it is surrounded by a tall stand of reeds or other marsh plants. It is at this time that the catoblepas is most likely to be encountered by adventurers. The monster lives to about 175 years of age and generally steers clear of humans, preferring to eat plants and fish. The Moria Reclamation Project is a narrative wargame campaign set in a wacky Monty Python-esque version of the Mines Of Moria. Managed to make headway with the When it has won a fight, it feasts on the corpses. Looks like you're using new Reddit on an old browser. Warhammer 40K. An immature catoblepas will have half the Hit Dice of an adult.
Moawr Blud ». Tramp and the other old-school artists got it right, whether it was portraying the adventurers involved in absurd and humorous situations, losing battles, or partaking in mundane adventuring activities. Combat: In combat, the catoblepas relies on two forms of attack.
Even though I'm a *Battletech *fan, I'm not gonna use "The Petit Tarrasque and Other Monsters." I get tired of the heroes and the inevitable outcome illustrations that are so common.
Despite its awkward shape, the catoblepas moves fast to strike at enemies with its heavy tail. The creature's head like that of a warthog with bloodshot eyes. Mechanically, the catoblepas has two attacks. The catoblepas has no special interest in wealth, and the listed treasure type is the result of victorious encounters with intruders. The monster is so close to the creature the Romans wrote about that it feels appropriate to use the name they used. Being a semi-intelligent creature, it treats opposing parties with respect, can learn from past mistakes and mishaps, is cunning and sly, and attacks only out of hunger or when threatened. "We came, we killed, we collected our EXP.". Anyone struck by the tail suffers 1-6 points of damage and has a base 75% chance of being stunned for 1-10 melee rounds. It is described as a buffalo bodied creature with a long neck and stumpy legs. bought a dozen or so. ride back to June 1986 with White Dwarf 78. Unfortunately I May just anyone inquire as to the possibility of purchasing one of your creatures? Mechanically the monster has changed even less, only trading a stun from early editions for a poisoning stench. That type of rumor will get most players interested. The target must make a DC 16 Constitution saving throw, taking 36 (8d8) necrotic damage on a failed save, or half as much damage on a successful one.If the saving throw fails by 5 or more, the target instead takes 64 necrotic damage. Gygax, Gary.
great post.I wish we had more concern for these kind of issues in our current crop of art. Some days you get the bear, some days the bear gets you. Ral Partha AD&D 11-422 Catoblepas According to AD&D 1e Monster Manual: "This nightmare creature is loathsome beyond description and has no redeeming features. As a rule, it will not attack unless it is hunting or feels that its mate or offspring is threatened.