Why, that's a Beelion!

The final comments are in from last week's "Weekly What the Heck". The result is the beelion, a sort of miniature manticore.

I'd like to thank greywulf and benpop (with special thanks to benpop for the name) for their ideas, all of which have been mashed together to create:

Beelion

A beelion looks like a combination of a bee and a lobster, with a vaguely human face. Its innocent face lures enemies into range of its deadly bite.

Level 1 Elite Skirmisher

Beelion

XP 200

Medium natural magical beast (mount)

Initiative +5 Senses Perception +1
HP 62; Bloodied 31
AC 17; Fortitude 16, Reflex 16, Will 13
Saving Throws +2
Speed 6, fly 8
Action Points 1

mBite (standard; at-will)

+6 vs. AC; 2d6 + 1 damage.

MBee's Frenzy (standard; at-will)

The beelion makes two bite attacks.

CAlluring Gaze (minor 1/round; at-will) * Gaze, Psychic

Close blast 3; targets enemies; +2 vs. Will; the target is pulled 1 square and dazed until the end of the beelion’s next turn.

CLion's Frenzy (standard; recharge 6)

Close burst 1; targets enemies; +6 vs. AC; 2d6 + 1 damage.

MGuided Frenzy (while mounted by a friendly rider of 1st level or higher; at-will) * Mount

A beelion with a rider may shift 2 squares between bite attacks when using bee's frenzy.

Alignment Evil Languages Common
Str 13 (+1) Dex 16 (+3) Wis 13 (+1)
Con 15 (+2) Int 6 (-2) Cha 8 (-1)

Beelion Tactics

A beelion prefers to begin a fight in the air, choosing a landing spot that gives it a positional advantage. It tries to stay in a flanking position with its allies while surrounding itself with enemies to target with its lion's frenzy.

Beelion Lore

A character knows the following information with a successful Nature check.
DC 15: Beelions are small but evil predators that are often allied with small humanoids.

Encounter Groups

Beelions are almost always encountered serving as mounts for small humanoids such as kobolds and goblins. Kobold skirmishers especially like to take advantage of the beelion's alluring gaze.

Level 1 Encounter (XP 500)
* 1 beelion (level 1 elite skirmisher)
* 3 kobold skirmishers (level 1 skirmisher)

It probably counts as a triumph that I could actually turn the comment "I don't know what it is but I want one" into a power (alluring gaze).

Weekly What the Heck

Welcome to the thirty-second installment of my regular feature here at the Near TPK. With continuing apologies to one of my favorite blogs, the Daily WTF, I present... The Weekly What The Heck.

Each Saturday at 10 AM Central Time I'll post one of Jen's drawings of some kind of whacked-out creature, and ask my readers: "What the heck IS that?"

I hope my readers will approach the challenge in the spirit of "Yes, and ..." - building on previous responses so everyone's ideas can be used in the final writeup. Comments are now closed on last week's entry, and I hope to have the final writeup posted tonight. Comments will be accepted on this week's entry until I post next week's entry.

So... What the heck is that? What should it do? Why does it have fins and a nose?

Charles G. Wilbur (the "Proprietor") does not claim ownership of information, data, text, comments, graphics, messages or other materials ("Content") you submit or make available for inclusion on The Art of the Near TPK (the "Service"). However, with respect to Content you submit or make available for inclusion on the Service, including without limitation comments you post to the Service, you grant the Proprietor world-wide, perpetual, irrevocable, royalty free, non-exclusive, fully sub-licensable license(s) to use, distribute, reproduce, modify, adapt, publish, translate, publicly perform and publicly display such Content (in whole or in part) and to incorporate such Content into other works in any format or medium now known or later developed.

Why, that's a Nutrition Bulb!

The final comments are in from last week's "Weekly What the Heck". The result is the nutrition bulb, a small plant that uproots itself and starts sprinting randomly until it bumps into something.

I'd like to thank Ripper and ChaoticBlackSheep (with special thanks to both for names) for their ideas, all of which have been mashed together to create:

Nutrition Bulb

It is said that these rare bulbs only appear to those who are kind hearted and in dire need ... of nutrition.

Level 3 Minion

Nutrition Bulb

XP 37

Small natural animate (blind, plant)

Initiative +4 Senses see hungersense
HP 1; a missed attack never damages a minion.
AC 17; Fortitude 15, Reflex 16, Will 15
Speed 8

MEnthusiastic Trip (standard; at-will)

+5 vs. Reflex; the target is knocked prone.

Delicious And Nutritious * Healing

Any attacker who reduces a nutrition bulb to 0 hit points with a melee attack may regain 3 hit points. If the attack is a critical hit the attacker may instead regain 5 hit points and make a saving throw.

Hungersense

The nutrition bulb always knows which creature in the area has the fewest hit points remaining (as a percentage of their maximum) and will run toward that creature.

Alignment Unaligned Languages -
Str 12 (+2) Dex 17 (+4) Wis 14 (+3)
Con 14 (+3) Int 1 (-4) Cha 12 (+2)

Nutrition Bulb Tactics

Nutrition bulbs sprint around seemingly randomly, but they are actually always running toward the creature that is most wounded.

Level 4 Minion

Spore Bulb

XP 43

Small natural animate (blind, plant)

Initiative +6 Senses see hungersense
HP 1; a missed attack never damages a minion.
AC 18; Fortitude 16, Reflex 17, Will 16
Speed 8

MEnthusiastic Trip (standard; at-will)

+6 vs. Reflex; the target is knocked prone.

MUgh, That Tastes Terrible! (when reduced to 0 hit points) * Disease

+7 vs. Fortitude; the target takes ongoing 2 damage (save ends) and contracts seed-spore phage (see below).

Hungersense

The spore bulb always knows which creature in the area has the fewest hit points remaining (as a percentage of their maximum) and will run toward that creature.

Alignment Unaligned Languages -
Str 13 (+3) Dex 18 (+6) Wis 15 (+4)
Con 15 (+4) Int 1 (-3) Cha 14 (+3)

Spore Bulb Tactics

Spore bulbs use the same tactics as nutrition bulbs.

Nutrition Bulb Lore

A character knows the following information with a successful Nature check.
DC 10: The nutrition bulb is a mobile plant that can quickly restore vitality if killed and eaten.
DC 22: Those unfamiliar with nature and wilderness lore may have a hard time distinguishing between the nutrition bulb and the deadly spore bulb, a similar looking plant that spawns by releasing seed-spores into the body of any unsuspecting creature that has ingested it.

Endurance stable DC 17, improve DC 22

Level 4 Disease

Seed-Spore Phage

The target
is cured.

<

Initial Effect: Seed-
spores are released
into the target.

< >

The target
regains only half
the normal number
of hit points from
healing effects.

>

The target dies.

It's handy that I picked up the Monster Manual 2 yesterday. The bullywug croaker's nature's release provided inspiration for delicious and nutritious.

I think I'll be avoiding doing any more diseases. The formatting on that was a pain and I'm not terribly happy with how it came out anyway.

Weekly What the Heck

Welcome to the thirty-first installment of my regular feature here at the Near TPK. With continuing apologies to one of my favorite blogs, the Daily WTF, I present... The Weekly What The Heck.

Each Saturday at 10 AM Central Time I'll post one of Jen's drawings of some kind of whacked-out creature, and ask my readers: "What the heck IS that?"

I hope my readers will approach the challenge in the spirit of "Yes, and ..." - building on previous responses so everyone's ideas can be used in the final writeup. Comments are now closed on last week's entry, and I hope to have the final writeup posted tonight. Comments will be accepted on this week's entry until I post next week's entry.

So... What the heck is that? What should it do? What's up with the finny tail?

Charles G. Wilbur (the "Proprietor") does not claim ownership of information, data, text, comments, graphics, messages or other materials ("Content") you submit or make available for inclusion on The Art of the Near TPK (the "Service"). However, with respect to Content you submit or make available for inclusion on the Service, including without limitation comments you post to the Service, you grant the Proprietor world-wide, perpetual, irrevocable, royalty free, non-exclusive, fully sub-licensable license(s) to use, distribute, reproduce, modify, adapt, publish, translate, publicly perform and publicly display such Content (in whole or in part) and to incorporate such Content into other works in any format or medium now known or later developed.

Sapient Sloth Repeat - Testing the DM Tools Monster Format

This is a rerun of Saturday night's post to see what the monster cards from http://tools.dungeonmastering.com/ look like embedded into a Weekly What the Heck. Comments are welcome.

The final comments are in from last week's "Weekly What the Heck". The result is the sapient sloth, a small race of bipedal sloths which scratch out a living on the sides of high mountains surrounded by jungles.

I'd like to thank dicemonkey and benpop (with special thanks to benpop for the name) for their ideas, all of which have been mashed together to create:

Sapient Sloth

An upstanding sapient sloth acts with deference, deliberation, and seeks not to draw attention to their self. All bets are off when a clear danger presents itself to their community.

Level 3 Minion Sapient Sloth Commoner Small natural humanoid XP 37 Initiative +2 Senses Perception +4 HP 1; a missed attack never damages a minion. AC 17; Fortitude 15, Reflex 14, Will 16 Speed 4 Pitchfork (standard; at-will) • Weapon +7 vs. AC; 4 damage Rapid Frenzy (standard; at-will) • Weapon The sapient sloth commoner moves up to 8 squares and makes two basic melee attacks. Align. Unaligned Lang. Common Str 14 (+3) Dex 12 (+2) Wis 17 (+4) Con 14 (+3) Int 12 (+2) Cha 14 (+3) Equipment pitchfork Tactics Sapient sloth commoners try to surprise foes with a sudden burst of fast movement, trying to get in a good position to aid their allies. They are rarely inclined to fight to the death. Created with DungeonMastering.com's DM Tools

• • Level 4 Skirmisher
  • Student of the Path
  • Small natural humanoid
  • XP 175
  • Initiative +6
  • Senses Perception +6
  • HP 55; Bloodied 27
  • AC 18; Fortitude 15, Reflex 15, Will 17
  • Speed 4
  • Claw (standard; at-will)
  • +9 vs. AC; 1d10 + 3 damage.
  • Rapid Frenzy (standard; at-will)
  • The student of the Path moves up to 8 squares and makes two basic melee attacks.
  • Dazing Strike (standard; encounter)
  • +8 vs. AC; 1d8 + 4 damage, the target is dazed until the end of the student of the Path’s next turn, and the student of the Path shifts 1 square.
  • Walk the Middle Path (move; recharge 5 6)
  • The student of the Path shifts up to 6 squares.
  • Combat Advantage
  • The student of the Path deals an extra 1d6 damage on melee attacks against any target it has combat advantage against.
  • Align. Unaligned
  • Lang. Common
  • Skills Insight +11, Stealth +9
  • Str 15 (+4)
  • Dex 15 (+4)
  • Wis 18 (+6)
  • Con 15 (+4)
  • Int 13 (+3)
  • Cha 14 (+4)
  • Equipment ---
  • Tactics Students of the Path use the same tactics as sapient sloths.
  • Created with DungeonMastering.com's DM Tools

Sapient Sloth Lore

A character knows the following information with a successful Nature check.
DC 15: It is of a small race of sapient, bipedal sloths which scratch out a living on the sides of high mountains surrounded by jungles. Their culture straddles a transition between a lowland tribal tradition fraught with spirits at every corner, and a simple, stoic devotion to moderation and the Middle Path of Life.
DC 20: There is little difference between the lay and monastic ways of life, with the chief differences lying in the segregation of the sexes and a more pronounced focus on spiritual (and bodily) excellence in the latter.

Encounter Groups

Sapient sloths are peaceful unless their communities are threatened, in which case they attack fiercely en masse.

Level 5 Encounter (XP 1,000)
* 4 students of the Path (level 4 skirmisher)
* 8 sapient sloth commoners (level 3 minion)

So, any thoughts on the DM tools format above vs. the format I've used up 'til now? Better, worse, indifferent?

Full disclosure (added May 26th): I just became an "affiliate" over at http://tools.dungeonmastering.com/, so in theory if anyone follows the links from here over there and then buys a premium account I get a kickback. We'll see how that goes...

Art of the Near TPK: Now Illustrated by Award-Winning Fantasy Artist

...and i didn't even have to get a new illustrator.

I'm pleased and proud to announce that my wife Jennifer (ChaoticBlackSheep) was awarded an honorable mention in Fight On!'s recent Erol Otus Art Challenge.

Hopefully the fame and fortune won't go to her head too much.

Why, that's a Sapient Sloth!

The final comments are in from last week's "Weekly What the Heck". The result is the sapient sloth, a small race of bipedal sloths which scratch out a living on the sides of high mountains surrounded by jungles.

I'd like to thank dicemonkey and benpop (with special thanks to benpop for the name) for their ideas, all of which have been mashed together to create:

Sapient Sloth

An upstanding sapient sloth acts with deference, deliberation, and seeks not to draw attention to their self. All bets are off when a clear danger presents itself to their community.

Level 3 Minion

Sapient Sloth Commoner

XP 37

Small natural humanoid

Initiative +2 Senses Perception +4
HP 1; a missed attack never damages a minion.
AC 17; Fortitude 15, Reflex 14, Will 16
Speed 4

mPitchfork (standard; at-will) * Weapon

+7 vs. AC; 4 damage.

MRapid Frenzy (standard; at-will) * Weapon

The sapient sloth commoner moves up to 8 squares and makes two basic melee attacks.

Alignment Unaligned Languages Common
Str 14 (+3) Dex 12 (+2) Wis 17 (+4)
Con 14 (+3) Int 12 (+2) Cha 14 (+3)

Sapient Sloth Tactics

Sapient sloth commoners try to surprise foes with a sudden burst of fast movement, trying to get in a good position to aid their allies. They are rarely inclined to fight to the death.

Level 4 Skirmisher

Student of the Path

XP 175

Small natural humanoid

Initiative +6 Senses Perception +6
HP 55; Bloodied 27
AC 18; Fortitude 15, Reflex 15, Will 17
Speed 4

mClaw (standard; at-will)

+9 vs. AC; 1d10 + 3 damage.

MRapid Frenzy (standard; at-will)

The student of the Path moves up to 8 squares and makes two basic melee attacks.

MDazing Strike (standard; encounter)

+8 vs. AC; 1d8 + 4 damage, the target is dazed until the end of the student of the Path’s next turn, and the student of the Path shifts 1 square.

Walk the Middle Path (move; recharge 5 6)

The student of the Path shifts up to 6 squares.

Combat Advantage

The student of the Path deals an extra 1d6 damage on melee attacks against any target it has combat advantage against.

Alignment Unaligned Languages Common
Skills Insight +11, Stealth +9
Str 15 (+4) Dex 15 (+4) Wis 18 (+6)
Con 15 (+4) Int 13 (+3) Cha 14 (+4)

Student of the Path Tactics

Students of the Path use the same tactics as sapient sloths.

Sapient Sloth Lore

A character knows the following information with a successful Nature check.
DC 15: It is of a small race of sapient, bipedal sloths which scratch out a living on the sides of high mountains surrounded by jungles. Their culture straddles a transition between a lowland tribal tradition fraught with spirits at every corner, and a simple, stoic devotion to moderation and the Middle Path of Life.
DC 20: There is little difference between the lay and monastic ways of life, with the chief differences lying in the segregation of the sexes and a more pronounced focus on spiritual (and bodily) excellence in the latter.

Encounter Groups

Sapient sloths are peaceful unless their communities are threatened, in which case they attack fiercely en masse.

Level 5 Encounter (XP 1,000)
* 4 students of the Path (level 4 skirmisher)
* 8 sapient sloth commoners (level 3 minion)

I hope benpop feels his "bad luck to the stranger who predicts a hapless commoner but gets a student of the Path" is realized here.

Weekly What the Heck

Welcome to the thirtieth (wow, the big 3-0) installment of my regular feature here at the Near TPK. With continuing apologies to one of my favorite blogs, the Daily WTF, I present... The Weekly What The Heck.

Each Saturday at 10 AM Central Time I'll post one of Jen's drawings of some kind of whacked-out creature, and ask my readers: "What the heck IS that?"

I hope my readers will approach the challenge in the spirit of "Yes, and ..." - building on previous responses so everyone's ideas can be used in the final writeup. Comments are now closed on last week's entry, and I hope to have the final writeup posted tonight. Comments will be accepted on this week's entry until I post next week's entry.

So... What the heck is that? What should it do? Does it do... anything?

Charles G. Wilbur (the "Proprietor") does not claim ownership of information, data, text, comments, graphics, messages or other materials ("Content") you submit or make available for inclusion on The Art of the Near TPK (the "Service"). However, with respect to Content you submit or make available for inclusion on the Service, including without limitation comments you post to the Service, you grant the Proprietor world-wide, perpetual, irrevocable, royalty free, non-exclusive, fully sub-licensable license(s) to use, distribute, reproduce, modify, adapt, publish, translate, publicly perform and publicly display such Content (in whole or in part) and to incorporate such Content into other works in any format or medium now known or later developed.

WWTH Format Migration?

Yax over at Dungeon Mastering recently unveiled a new addition to the 4e DM Tools part of the site: A public monster database. I was immediately tempted to migrate all the Weekly What the Heck monsters over there for a few reasons:

• • Level 4 Lurker
  • Pyrosphynx Cub
  • Small fey magical beast
  • XP 175
  • Initiative +9
  • Senses Perception +3; low-light vision
  • HP 45; Bloodied 22
  • AC 19; Fortitude 16, Reflex 17, Will 16
  • Speed 6
  • Claw (standard; at-will)
  • +7 vs. AC; 1d6 + 4 damage
  • Undeniable Cuteness (immediate interrupt, when the pyrosphynx cub is targeted by a melee attack; at-will)
  • +8 vs. Will against the attacker; the attacker must target a different creature or end its attack.
  • Shattering Cry (standard; recharge 6) • Thunder
  • Close burst 2; +5 vs. Fortitude; 2d6 + 4 thunder damage, and the target is dazed until the end of the pyrosphynx cub's next turn.
  • Forest Camouflage
  • If a pyrosphynx cub is in forest terrain when it makes an initiative check at the start of an encounter, it can make a Stealth check to escape notice.
  • Align. Unaligned
  • Lang. Elven
  • Skills Stealth +10
  • Str 11 (+2)
  • Dex 16 (+5)
  • Wis 12 (+3)
  • Con 15 (+4)
  • Int 8 (+1)
  • Cha 15 (+4)
  • Equipment---
  • TacticsA pyrosphynx cub uses its shattering cry as often as possible, trusting in its forest camouflage and undeniable cuteness to keep enemies from attacking it effectively.
  • Created with DungeonMastering.com's DM Tools

1. Get them all in a truly uniform format with the pretty symbols for melee, ranged, etc.
2. Make it easier for my readers to save/print cards for these monsters (with free registration over at the tools site).
3. Maybe draw some new readers by embedding a "source" link on the card somewhere (an idea I just came up with and haven't thought through yet).
   

I also had some concerns, which are in my comment at the announcement post and have to do with their site administration (I've already received a direct email from Yax allaying some of my fears). I was going to list some other concerns but as I typed them up I felt they were just silly.

I already entered the first WWTH monster I ever did over there (see right) and I'm pretty pleased with the look of the result. What do you guys think of this format compared to the hand-crafted html I currently have?

Why, that's a Laughing Lambchop Lizard ... of Lightning!

Edit: Do not use this monster as written or it will quite probably wipe out your party. Updated/nerfed stats have been posted.

The final comments are in from last week's "Weekly What the Heck". The result is the Laughing Lambchop Lizard ... of Lightning, a magical cross between shocker lizard stock and Cheshire cat.

I'd like to thank Ripper and Scott (with special thanks to Ripper for the name) for their ideas, all of which have been mashed together to create:

Laughing Lambchop Lizard

A mad wizard's experiment crossing lizard stock and Cheshire cat, the Laughing Lambchop Lizard ... of Lightning possesses the ability to fade away, leaving nothing but a grin. With a hearty laugh, it sends an electrical charge through its hairs causing them to stand on end and scaring the shit out of its adversary.

Level 1 Lurker

Laughing Lambchop Lizard

XP 100

Small natural magical beast

Initiative +7 Senses Perception +1
HP 25; Bloodied 12
AC 15; Fortitude 12, Reflex 14, Will 12
Resist 10 lightning
Speed 7, climb 5

mBite (standard; at-will)

+6 vs. AC; 1d10 damage.

MStunning Shock (move; at-will) * Lightning

+4 vs. Reflex; the target is dazed.

CLethal Shock (standard; recharge 6) * Lightning

Close burst 5; laughing lambchop lizards are immune; +2 (+1 for each other laughing lambchop lizard in the burst) vs. Reflex; 2d8 damage (+2d8 for each other laughing lambchop lizard in the burst).

Annoy the Weak

The laughing lambchop lizard possesses the cat's abnormal talent for finding out who, in a group, will be most annoyed by its presence and targeting that person. The DM should feel free to use all available knowledge of the party members' weaknesses and defense numbers to decide who will be most vulnerable to its attacks, and attack that PC.

Cheshire Fade (immediate reaction, when the laughing lambchop lizard takes damage; encounter)

The laughing lambchop lizard disappears except for its grin, shifts 4 squares and turns invisible until it attacks or until the end of its next turn.

Alignment Unaligned Languages Common
Skills Stealth +8
Str 10 (+0) Dex 16 (+3) Wis 13 (+1)
Con 13 (+1) Int 7 (-2) Cha 12 (+1)

Laughing Lambchop Lizard Tactics

A laughing lambchop lizard will seek out enemies with low Reflex defenses and exploit their vulnerability to stunning shock and lethal shock.

Level 2 Artillery

Laughing Lambchop Lizard ... of Lightning

XP 125

Small natural magical beast

Initiative +4 Senses Perception +3
HP 32; Bloodied 16
AC 14; Fortitude 14, Reflex 15, Will 14
Resist 10 lightning
Speed 7, climb 5

mBite (standard; at-will)

+9 vs. AC; 1d10 damage.

MStunning Shock (move; at-will) * Lightning

+6 vs. Reflex; the target is dazed.

RDirected Shock (standard; at-will) * Lightning

Ranged 10; +8 vs. Fortitude; 2d6 + 3 lightning damage.

CLethal Shock (standard; recharge 6) * Lightning

Close burst 5; laughing lambchop lizards are immune; +4 (+1 for each other laughing lambchop lizard in the burst) vs. Reflex; 2d8 damage (+2d8 for each other laughing lambchop lizard in the burst).

Annoy the Weak

The laughing lambchop lizard possesses the cat's abnormal talent for finding out who, in a group, will be most annoyed by its presence and targeting that person. The DM should feel free to use all available knowledge of the party members' weaknesses and defense numbers to decide who will be most vulnerable to its attacks, and attack that PC.

Cheshire Fade (immediate reaction, when the laughing lambchop lizard takes damage; encounter)

The laughing lambchop lizard disappears except for its grin, shifts 4 squares and turns invisible until it attacks or until the end of its next turn.

Alignment Unaligned Languages Common
Skills Stealth +8
Str 10 (+1) Dex 17 (+4) Wis 14 (+3)
Con 14 (+3) Int 7 (-1) Cha 12 (+2)

Laughing Lambchop Lizard ... of Lightning Tactics

A laughing lambchop lizard ... of lightning will target enemies with low Fortitude defenses with directed shock. If forced into close combat it uses the same tactics as a laughing lambchop lizard.

Laughing Lambchop Lizard Lore

A character knows the following information with a successful Nature check.
DC 15: A magical cross between shocker lizard stock and Cheshire cat, the laughing lambchop lizard possesses the ability to fade away, leaving nothing but a grin. It also possesses the cat's abnormal talent for finding out who, in a group, will be most annoyed by its presence and targeting that person.

Encounter Groups

Laughing lambchop lizards are often found in prides led by a smaller number of laughing lambchop lizards ... of lightning.
Level 2 Encounter (XP 650)
* 2 laughing lambchop lizards ... of lightning (level 2 artillery)
* 4 laughing lambchop lizards (level 1 lurker)

Tune in Monday for an announcement and a question about the format and the future of the Weekly What the Heck...

Weekly What the Heck

Welcome to the twenty-ninth installment of my regular feature here at the Near TPK. With continuing apologies to one of my favorite blogs, the Daily WTF, I present... The Weekly What The Heck.

Each Saturday at 10 AM Central Time I'll post one of Jen's drawings of some kind of whacked-out creature, and ask my readers: "What the heck IS that?"

I hope my readers will approach the challenge in the spirit of "Yes, and ..." - building on previous responses so everyone's ideas can be used in the final writeup. Comments are now closed on last week's entry, and I hope to have the final writeup posted tonight. Comments will be accepted on this week's entry until I post next week's entry.

So... What the heck is that? What should it do? Why does it look so sad, or is it just pensive?

Charles G. Wilbur (the "Proprietor") does not claim ownership of information, data, text, comments, graphics, messages or other materials ("Content") you submit or make available for inclusion on The Art of the Near TPK (the "Service"). However, with respect to Content you submit or make available for inclusion on the Service, including without limitation comments you post to the Service, you grant the Proprietor world-wide, perpetual, irrevocable, royalty free, non-exclusive, fully sub-licensable license(s) to use, distribute, reproduce, modify, adapt, publish, translate, publicly perform and publicly display such Content (in whole or in part) and to incorporate such Content into other works in any format or medium now known or later developed.

The Weekly What the Heck: An Overview

I've wanted to do a post with some stats on the Weekly What the Heck for a while. This seems like a good opportunity for two reasons:

1. I'm out of monster drawings and my artist/wife has been out of town all week.
2. There were zero comments on last week's What the Heck. All I can say is... what the heck? There were tons of comments on last week's monster, the fearsome emo monkey, but no love for the poor smiley lizard thing.
   

So, on to the random stats. One thing I've wanted to know is the level/role breakdown of all the monsters (like page 284 of the Monster Manual*). My copy of that table looks like this:

Laughing Lambchop Lizard	Level 1 Lurker
Eye Mite Midge	Level 1 Minion
Saeggan Genesis	Level 1 Soldier
Laughing Lambchop Lizard ... of Lightning	Level 2 Artillery
Emo Monkey	Level 2 Controller
Saber-Tooth Lycotaur	Level 2 Controller
Ridgeback Loper	Level 2 Skirmisher
Archaic Gastropod	Level 2 Soldier
Trimandibular Praying Mantelope	Level 3 Brute
Saeggan Dreamcaster	Level 3 Controller
Scorpire Vampion	Level 3 Controller
Scorpire Scuttler	Level 3 Lurker
Xenomoeba Larva	Level 4 Brute
Goth Emo Monkey	Level 4 Controller
Pyrosphynx Cub	Level 4 Lurker
Undead Chicken	Level 4 Skirmisher
Turkatrice	Level 5 Brute
Wallowing Merhog	Level 5 Elite Brute
Wraithpunzel	Level 5 Lurker
Dire Orcish Knucklewalker	Level 6 Brute
Emo Ghoul	Level 6 Brute
Ridgeback War Machine	Level 6 Brute
Orcish Knucklewalker Swarm	Level 6 Skirmisher
Merdragoblinborn Ecclesiastic	Level 6 Soldier
Necrotic Xenomoeba	Level 7 Elite Brute
Ravenous Pelicgizard	Level 7 Brute
Monkicore	Level 7 Controller
Scorpire Viscount	Level 7 Lurker (L)
Jamuzavdu (Speed Demon)	Level 7 Skirmisher
Pyrosphynx Sun Lion	Level 8 Brute
Merdragoblinborn Follower	Level 8 Minion
Were Saber-Tooth Lycotaur	Level 8 Skirmisher
Fireblooded Monkicore	Level 9 Artillery
Merdragoblinborn Schoolmaster	Level 9 Controller (L)
Snake Mahjicocl Soloist	Level 9 Controller
Christmas Treant Shrub	Level 9 Lurker
Cycloptic Elephantaur Gawker	Level 10 Artillery
Treefling Leafwielder	Level 10 Artillery
Conflagrating Pelicgizard	Level 10 Controller
Aquatic Wraithpunzel	Level 10 Lurker
Shellsong Siren	Level 10 Lurker
Green Toothnip	Level 11 Lurker
Cycloptic Elephantaur Trumpeter	Level 12 Controller
Piscean Tempest	Level 12 Skirmisher
Quizacoatl Contestant	Level 12 Skirmisher
Merhog Steed	Level 12 Soldier
Christmas Treant Bush	Level 13 Controller
Firebred Pyrosphynx	Level 14 Artillery
Chanavan Serpent	Level 14 Solo Brute
Piscean Evolutionary	Level 14 Controller
Snake Mahjicocl Principal	Level 14 Skirmisher
Demodracosauralisk	Level 15 Elite Artillery
Hemi-Demodracosauralisk	Level 15 Artillery
Abolderithicus Starme	Level 15 Controller
Quizacoatl Host	Level 15 Controller
Treefling Leafmaster	Level 15 Controller
Eye Mite Berserker	Level 16 Brute
Frieghboranean Slimemaster	Level 16 Controller
Frieghboranean Tempest	Level 16 Elite Skirmisher
Squiglet Caretaker	Level 16 Soldier
Ripe Toothnip	Level 17 Soldier
Kruthiguid	Level 18 Elite Brute
Eye Mite Mindraper	Level 18 Controller
Abolderithicus Staryu	Level 18 Minion
Abolderithicus Wistar	Level 19 Artillery
Triclops Manipulator	Level 20 Soldier
Aspect of the Ultimate Dungeon Master	Level 26 Elite Controller
Ultimate Dungeon Master	Level 35 Solo Brute

Maybe I should have done this sooner. Level 15 in the MM is kinda thin on controllers compared to levels 13 and 14, but I don't know that making three new ones was warranted. Also, I have no idea why there are so many level 6 brutes.

I'd also like to list all the contributors and how many times each has contributed. My WWTH Hall of Fame, as it were.

Name	Comments
Ripper	15
ReverendMike	12
Scott	11
greywulf	9
Gomez	8
Jeff	7
wyattsalazar	7
benpop	3
jermwar	3
ChaoticBlackSheep	2
DoctorCheckmate	2
mthomas768	2
RPGIke	2
AlexSchroeder	1
Ameron	1
Anonymous	1
Bartoneus	1
BenPop	1
DawnRaven	1
dicemonkey	1
Donny_the_Dm	1
FatAlibert	1
icosahedron	1
JeffRients	1
Jerm	1
joeskythedungeonbrawler	1
Ravyn	1
rcarbol	1
Rekres	1
TheRecursionKing	1
thievescant	1
Viriatha	1
Will	1
Wyatt	1

Wow, the What the Heck just broke the 100-comment mark with the emo monkey entry. The total is now 102. Thanks to everyone in that list for keeping it alive.

Last Updated May 10, 2009

* Frighteningly, after all these months of picking level and role to fill gaps in the table on page 284, I have the page number memorized.