Megan Maricle shares the deadliest catch for dungeon delvers everywhere! Read the transcript and get more from the show: https://scintilla.studio/monster-sharkbowl-ooze/ Get stat blocks, bonus content, and other monstrous perks: www.patreon.com/scintillastudio Join the conversation: www.twitter.com/SparkOtter Meet my guests: https://koboldpress.com…

An alien shark feeding off the living islands of an alien world, the wave lurcher is a partner in the search for life. Read the transcript and get more from the show: https://scintilla.studio/monster-wave-lurcher/ Get stat blocks, bonus content, and other monstrous perks: www.patreon.com/scintillastudio Join the conversation: www.twitter.com/SparkO…

The dodo is a funny-looking bird with a funny-sounding name that never knew what hit it. There isn't a more fitting icon of extinction. Back the Kickstarter: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/magehandpress/book-of-extinction Download a dodo: https://magehandpress.com/2023/03/the-dodo.html Join the conversation: https://www.instagram.com/sparkott…

OGL 1.1 risks killing the thriving ecosystem of valuable third-party content for Dungeons & Dragons. Don't wait: tell Wizards of the Coast they're making a mistake, and tell your favorite third-party creators it's worth staying in the fight. Transcript of the episode: Legal analysis of OGL 1.1: https://medium.com/@MyLawyerFriend/lets-take-a-minute-…

O'l Chap Ettercap is a monster whose story grew in the telling, from meaningless Download Ol' Chap Ettercap in every form a tabletop needs: https://scintilla.studio/monster-ettercap-critical-crafting/ Get stat blocks, bonus content, and other monstrous perks: www.patreon.com/scintillastudio Join the conversation: www.twitter.com/SparkOtter Meet my …

Mörk Borg, the doom metal TTRPG by Free League, gets an adventure with seven deadly sins chained in an off-shore prison boat where nothing is as it seems. Read the transcript and get more from the show: https://scintilla.studio/monster-mork-borg-dolja/ Get stat blocks, bonus content, and other monstrous perks: www.patreon.com/scintillastudio Join t…

Many monsters are combinations of animals, like the owlbear - but which owl, and which bear? Atlas Animalia by Metal Weave Games shows a terrifying biodiversity of monsters, including the shoebill cockatrice. Read the transcript and get more from the show: https://scintilla.studio/monster-atlas-animalia/ Get stat blocks, bonus content, and other mo…

Wythe Marschall, creator of Stillfleet, shares a monster born in the frozen ammonia crystals of Yuggoth at the far reaches of our solar system 100 billion years in the future. Don't wait, get it now! https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/wythe/the-stillfleet-core-rulebook Get stat blocks, bonus content, and other monstrous perks: www.patreon.com/sci…

The size of a black bear, this Ice Age giant didn't build dams, but it guarded the water with a fearsome call just the same. Meet the world's most complete fossil giant beaver with Heather Lerner, the ancient DNA expert who brought her to life! Get three extinct animals raised to life as monsters in D&D: https://www.scintilla.studio/extinction Epis…

The mukad are insect-like aberrations following the orders of a slumbering god of destruction as they lurk in the walls. Read the transcript and get more from the show: https://scintilla.studio/monster-mukad-grim-hollow-ghostfire-games/ Get stat blocks, bonus content, and other monstrous perks: www.patreon.com/scintillastudio Join the conversation:…

Get three extinct animals raised to life as monsters in D&D: https://www.scintilla.studio/extinction Episode transcript: https://scintilla.studio/monster-extinction-aurochs-nazis-orcs/ Guides: Steve Sullivan, director of the Hefner Museum of Natural History at Miami University in Ohio Jessica Marcrum, Uncaged Author and producer of the Threeflings …

A team of scientists encounter the Frog of Holding, a giant monstrosity with an extradimensional space for its young! Get three extinct animals raised to life as monsters in D&D: https://www.scintilla.studio/extinction Partial transcript: https://scintilla.studio/monster-extinction-frog-of-holding/ Guides: Sheryl, The Roving Naturalist: https://twi…

The cave bear is more than just a monster variant on MM 334. It's the source of piles of dragon bones in caves all over Europe, and fulcrum where archaeology turned from fantasy to science. Get three extinct animals raised to life as monsters in D&D: https://www.scintilla.studio/extinction Get stat blocks, bonus content, and other monstrous perks: …

How does it square with your heroes when the bad guys treat their animals better than the good guys? What if your villain pets the dog? Read the transcript and get more from the show: https://scintilla.studio/monster-war-spider-mcdm/ Get stat blocks, bonus content, and other monstrous perks: www.patreon.com/scintillastudio Join the conversation: ww…

Journeys Through the Radiant Citadel's creator was inspired by the solarpunk and hopepunk movements, but what even are those? Read the transcript and get more from the show: https://scintilla.studio/monster-solarpunk-journeysthroughtheradiantcitadel Get stat blocks, bonus content, and other monstrous perks: www.patreon.com/scintillastudio Join the …

Get three extinct animals raised to life as monsters in D&D: https://www.scintilla.studio/extinction Episode transcript: https://scintilla.studio/monster-extinction-florida-fairy-shrimp Guides: Tierra Curry, Senior Scientist at the Center for Biological Diversity https://twitter.com/TierraMussel Did you like this stat block? Let me know on Twitter:…

The best game-breaking exploits in D&D. This week: the false hydra, the most terrifying homebrew monster ever made; and the Kung Fu Kraken, an ancient titan of the deep somehow less effective than a straw dummy. Read the transcript and get more from the show: https://scintilla.studio/monster-false-hydra-kung-fu-kraken/ Get stat blocks, bonus conten…

D&D players have spent almost 50 years breaking the game. This week: the arrowhead of total destruction, nuclear warhead powered by extradimensional spaces; and the wireless troll, communication via regeneration. Read the transcript and get more from the show: https://scintilla.studio/monster-arrow-of-destruction-wireless-troll/ Get stat blocks, bo…

D&D players have spent almost 50 years breaking the game, creating exploits that became monsters in their own right. This week: the peasant rail gun, an army of hirelings with a light-speed projectile; and the quantum ogre, the monster who is everywhere until it is observed. Read the transcript and get more from the show: https://scintilla.studio/m…

Read the transcript and get more from the show: https://scintilla.studio/monster-luthic-uncaged-godesses/ Get stat blocks, bonus content, and other monstrous perks: www.patreon.com/scintillastudio Join the conversation: www.twitter.com/SparkOtter Meet my guests: Jessica Marcrum: https://twitter.com/angrynerdgirl David Markiwsky: https://twitter.com…

Declared extinct less than three months ago, the ivory-billed woodpecker is the holy grail of birders all over the U.S. Get three extinct animals raised to life as monsters in D&D: https://store.magehandpress.com/products/book-of-extinction-preview Get the Questing Bird stat block by joining the Mage Hand Press Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/mfov…

The thylacine of Tasmania becomes the ghost tiger of the Feywild: a tragic figure as enchanting as it is terrifying. Get three extinct animals raised to life as monsters in D&D: https://store.magehandpress.com/products/book-of-extinction-preview Episode transcript: https://scintilla.studio/monster-extinction-thylacine/ Guides: Steve Sullivan, Direc…

The great auk is a powerful bird with a bone-chilling extinction story. It's getting a second life as a D&D monster. Get the great auk and two other extinct animals for your D&D campaign: https://store.magehandpress.com/products/book-of-extinction-preview Episode transcript: https://scintilla.studio/monster-extinction-great-auk/ Guides: Kieran Suck…

Passenger pigeons were once the most numerous bird on the planet, a swarm of Tiny beasts covering the sky. Get three extinct animals raised to life as monsters in D&D: https://store.magehandpress.com/products/book-of-extinction-preview Episode transcript: https://scintilla.studio/monster-extinction-passenger-pigeon/ Guides: Steve Sullivan, Director…

Extinct animals get a second life in D&D. It's only fair, since the biodiversity of our natural world is responsible for fantasy storytelling. Get three extinct animals raised to life as monsters in Dungeons & Dragons: https://store.magehandpress.com/products/book-of-extinction-preview Episode transcript: https://scintilla.studio/monster-extinction…

Body-snatching jungle aliens called the Kelledros roam the prehistoric, stone-punk of Planegea, a new setting for D&D 5th Edition by Atlas Games and designer Dave Somerville. Learn how identity and mystery shape the nature of horror in your D&D game. Read the transcript and get more from the show: https://scintilla.studio/monster-planegea-atlas-gam…

Amy Vorpahl is the voice of Fizban, multiverse-spanning god of dragons, in Fizban's Treasury of Dragons. We discuss this character's view of the world, how to write for D&D, and whether Fizban is fun to hang out with. Spoiler alert: he is. Read the transcript and get more from the show: https://scintilla.studio/monster-fizbans-treasury-of-dragons-w…

Amy Vorpahl couldn't resist adding a cute little Pokémon to her Candlekeep Mystery. Here's more about the skitterwidgets, what Pat Rothfuss could gain from a little more magic, and how to stay motivated while writing. Read the transcript and get more from the show: https://scintilla.studio/monster-amy-vorpahl-candlekeep-mystery Get stat blocks, bon…

Fun City is the best Shadowrun actual play podcast on the Internet, and its two GMs, Mike Rugnetta and Taylor Moore, crafted a beautiful, dimension-spanning arc with the most thought-provoking villain this show has featured yet. Making a Monster: GM Edition asks actual play podcasters how they use the monsters in their games. Read the transcript an…

Chosen Ones is a visual-novel style D&D podcast on YouTube with an all-artist and LGBT+ cast. DM Cassiroll and I discuss playing too much D&D, too little combat, and the window between heroism and villainy. Making a Monster: GM Edition asks actual play podcasters how they use the monsters in their games. Read the transcript and get more from the sh…

The First Watch is a cinematic actual play podcast making the most of genre-based storytelling. DM Andrew Coons and I discuss the seven types of conflict in literature and how heroes make the courageous, if stupid, choice. Making a Monster: GM Edition asks actual play podcasters how they use the monsters in their games. Read the transcript and get …

The Last Tapestry is a tech-noir, Eberron-inspired actual play D&D podcast. DM Dan Locke and I discuss "monster monsters" and the definition of villainy. Making a Monster: GM Edition asks actual play podcasters how they use the monsters in their games. Read the transcript and get more from the show: https://scintilla.studio/monster-the-last-tapestr…

Nikki Yager makes D&D podcasts. Like, a lot of D&D podcasts. Like a lot. Her favorite villains are the ones who think they're the hero. We talk about heroism and villainy on a dimmer, and the many, many times gamers seem to end up at Denny's. Making a Monster: GM Edition asks actual play podcasters how they use the monsters in their games. Read the…

Avatar Legends brings the world of Avatar: The Last Airbender to your tabletop as an RPG. The game has a balanced take on what it means to be a villain and a monster. Join designers James Mendez Hodes and Sharang Biswas and discover how the Apocalypse World engine becomes a faithful representation of the show. Read the transcript and get more from …

Roll20's exclusive sci-fi RPG Burn Bryte asks you to jump in to a galaxy where an adorable teleporting mischief fox could just walk right into your ship. It's also a game where hope wins. Learn more about Burn Bryte and get 3 monsters from My Dad's Monster Manual on the episode page here: https://scintilla.studio/monster-blipp-burn-bryte Get stat b…

Roll Play Lead uses Dungeons & Dragons to teach social skills to teens in Colorado. Kids and teens use monsters to explore the obstacles in their own lives. You can support Roll Play Lead Directly, use Jamie's adventures in your home game, or check out her TEDx Talk at the links here: https://scintilla.studio/monster-roll-play-lead-social-skills-dn…

Leading unsuspecting adventurers to the Feywild with a gentlemanly hand, the tamlin combines the Scottish folk tale with the literary trope of the white rabbit for a planes-hopping, swashbuckling good time. To read the transcript and find out what a "gish" is visit the show's website: https://scintilla.studio/monster-tamlin-feywilds-white-rabbit Ge…

As one of D&D's very few Celestial monsters, Varadrel is an agent of divine justice best compared to the personified disasters of Japanese kaiju. To read the transcript, check out "Titans of Faerun", or see the full-color, "be not afraid" illustration of Varadrel, visit the show's website: https://scintilla.studio/varadrel-the-kaiju-angel/ Get stat…

The shattered kalashtar asks questions about dealing with trauma, and lets other players participate in the answers. It expands D&D's Eberron campaign setting with a psychic dystopia reminiscent of Neuromancer and Brave New World. Download the stat block and read the full transcript here: https://scintilla.studio/monster-shattered-kalashtar-eberron…

Andrew Grondin wrote a tabletop game that combines European fairy tales and Lovecraftian existential horror. Inside that Venn diagram is a surprisingly encouraging message about power and who has it. Read the transcript and get more from the show: https://scintilla.studio/shakespeare-lovecraft-combine-delirium Get stat blocks, bonus content, and ot…

Nils Hintze is the lead writer of Vaesen, a Nordic horror role-playing game by Free League Publishing. In this game, fairies and other monsters manifest the anxieties of a rapidly-urbanizing 19th century Sweden. Read the full transcript here: https://scintilla.studio/free-leagues-vaesen Read the transcript and get more from the show: https://scinti…

The true and actual* origins of D&D's displacer beast with A. E. Van Vogt, author of science fiction short story Black Destroyer. *This episode was released April 1st. Celebrity voices were impersonated, even mine. Get stat blocks, bonus content, and other monstrous perks: www.patreon.com/scintillastudio Join the conversation: www.twitter.com/Spark…

Keith Ammann, author of Monsters Know What They're Doing, shows us how to decode a monster's game mechanics to discover its intended use. We also get into how culture makes monsters, both in game and out. Read the transcript and get more from the show: https://scintilla.studio/monster-keith-ammann/ Get stat blocks, bonus content, and other monstrou…

The Cherokee myth of the Raven Wizard is retold in Connor Alexander's Coyote and Crow, a tabletop role-playing game set in an alternate future of the Americas where colonization never occurred. Full transcript: https://scintilla.studio/monster-coyote-and-crow-raven-wizard/ Get stat blocks, bonus content, and other monstrous perks: www.patreon.com/s…

From the Bard College of Silence by Kai Linder comes Vo the Voice Snatcher, an aberration capable of stealing the voice from your throat and adding it to its own. It's a kind of creepy that stays with you long after the fight is over. Get stat blocks, bonus content, and other monstrous perks: www.patreon.com/scintillastudio Join the conversation: w…

Dvati is a race option for D&D to play 2 characters at once. An extra-long bonus episode 20 years in the making, bringing together the original Dvati designer, the 5th edition homebrewer, and maybe the only person to ever play Dvati twins in a long-running campaign. Read the full transcript here: https://scintilla.studio/monster-dvati-race-dnd/ Get…

"They're capricious little scrap robots, and I love them." The Wizmos from Dark Matter (a sci-fi D&D conversion by Mage Hand Press) are just doing the best they can, and it isn't very good. Get one-page-RPG Wizmo Havoc here: https://scintilla.studio/wizmos-dark-matter-mage-hand-press/ ‎ Support the show and get even more cool stuff: https://www.pat…

What if the Kraken is too big to release? Niels RPG Toons uses cartoon-style fantasy art to tell vibrant, expressive stories, including one about a tentacle monster so big it's an ecosystem unto itself. Get monster stats, lore, and papercraft miniatures for monsters from the Stars and Sea campaign bundle at https://www.patreon.com/posts/free-downlo…

The Melusine is one of the oldest mermaid legends in the world with so many tails in our modern cultural heritage that you've probably seen her even if you didn't know her name - much like the work of a good spymaster. Chris Hopper is a freelance writer for Realmwarp Media and student of Arthurian lore who updated the melusine for the Cities of Myt…

What happens when the monsters level up too? Matthew Whitby, host of the Dungeon Master's Guild House, shares a goblin with power enough to be more than a level 1 punching bag. Get the full transcript and see the art of Grikk the Many here: https://scintilla.studio/monster-boss-goblin-matthew-whitby Get stat blocks, bonus content, and other monstro…