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The Monster Manual is the third core rulebook for D&D (Dungeons & Dragons). This book contains monsters enough to challenge your D&D for years to come. This book weighs in at 320 full color pages and retails for $29.95.
The book starts off with a credits page then the table of contents. It's a simple book with only seven chapters, the largest of which, chapter one, covers monsters, listing them from A to Z, taking up over two hundred and fifty pages. Before the monster listings though, there is a section on reading the entries.
This is a vital section for the new comer, providing a breakdown of what all of those numbers mean. What is type and subtype? How is Armor Class broken down? How does the grapple bonus differ from it's total bonus to attack. These statistical information data sets are broken down clearly so that a reader can find out what it means.
While monsters are listed in alphabetical order, they're grouped together for ease of reference. For example, you wouldn't find the Pit Fiend under P, but undead D because it's a Devil. Monsters have all of the combat abilities laid out in a easy to read format and break down the important statistics for ease of use.
Just as important as the statistics are the background information sets and combat information. The combat information provides all of the details to go with the combat data. For example, a Solar, an angel (formerly celestial), has the special attacks of spell like abilities. What exactly does that mean? Looking under combat, you'll find a list of spells and the DC (difficulty class) to overcome them.
The grouping of monsters, like demons, devils, and giants, doesn't extend all the way through to its logical conclusion as undead aren't grouped and outsiders aren't grouped. Utility would've been improved for the newcomer quite a bit and made a good standard for others to follow.
So what types of monsters are listed? The broad groups include angels, demons, devils, giants, and each of those groups has specifics. For example, giants has hill, stone, fire, storm and frost. Many of the classic monsters from other game systems and legend may not be what you'd expect in Dungeons & Dragons. For example, the trolls here don't match their Norse counterparts but are large brutish creatures that regenerate damage.
Other classics though, like the orc, ogre, skeleton, hag, and zombie are covered just fine. Those fairly unique to the D&D setting include the mind flayers, humanoids with octopus like heads the feed on brains or beholders, large floating orbs of massive size with numerous stalks ending in eyes atop their head.
This mix provides a good balance of creatures for GMs (Game Masters) to utilize against players regardless of where they travel. Are they on the planes? Bust out the elmentals. Are they in the forest? Unleash the treants, plant like monsters resembling trees that owe more than a nod to the Ents from the Lord of the Rings.
After the monster listings, normal animals are listed in chapter two. These are useful for those druids and rangers who have animal companions or those GMs who have to minimize the magical aspect of their campaign. Unlike the previous section, full utilization of grouping isn't made as bears aren't listed under a master title of bear with the stats laid out in an easy to compare format, but have separate entries. Those looking for monstrous vermin can go to chapter three. Here, you'll find giant ants and other monstrous versions of your favorite 50's horror movies like giant wasps and spiders.
Those GMs who want more detail on how to improve the monsters will want to carefully read Chapter Four, improving monsters. Ideas range from adding class levels, increasing hit dice and using templates. Each one of these has a benefit but each one requires some extensive reworking. For example, adding class levels means basically making a character out of the monster which means adding skills, feats, and special abilities as appropriate. Increasing hit dice cascades many statistics including strength, dexterity, constitution, natural armor class, base attack bonus and damage. Adding templates can do much the same thing.
The end result is a monster that will surprise and delight you're players as they think they can guesstimate a monsters abilities and powers only to be surprised every time. The Monster Manual used these methods when making the more powerful versions of the monsters within the book like the troll and the troll ranger.
Chapter Five is for those who aren't satisfied with making monsters customized but want to make their own monsters. It provides the information on how to determine the monsters type, what effects the type has on saving throws, hit dice, size and CR (challenge rating), as well as average stats and abilities for monsters of various sizes.
Chapter Six provides the rules for the monstrous feats, special abilities that monsters can take to augment their innate abilities. A single new skill,Control Shape, is included for those creatures that are shapechangers.
Chapter Seven is a glossary and provides a quick breakdown of terms to those new to the game or those looking for specific information.
The book ends with a monsters ranked by challenge rating. This listing is from the lowest to the highest in alphabetical order. Dragons however, are separated and put into their own tables.
So what are the main differences between this book and the previous edition?
Well, to start off, the previous edition only had Core Rulebook III on the cover, not Core Rulebook III, v.3.5. Now why Wizards would put v3.5 instead of revision I don't know because know when I look at the old edition, I wonder why it didn't have v3.0 or simply v.3 on the cover as there is no indication that it was 3rd edition. I believe that's a marketing error on Wizards part that's going to cause some confusion.
Not all art is new. Some of the art didn't need to be changed and some of it that did isn't going to make people happy. Having said that, if every page were changed with the best art in the industry, there would still be nay sayers and haters so WoTC probably did the right thing.
Monster Manual is still piss poor in terms of layout and making the book readable. Very much the same book in terms of layout and style. When listing monsters by CR, where is the page #? Not there. A minor issue but utility is the key in making a book more useful than a competitors book.
Full utilization of racial traits not made. The aranea, a humanoid shapechanger who can become a spider, has a level adjustment of +4 but no racial stats listed. Combat tactics are practically non-existent.
Templates aren't in a separate section but in the main body of the text. This isn't necessarily a bad thing but if you want to quickly reference a template, it becomes more time consuming, especially if you just want to flip through the templates as opposed to looking up half-dragon.
For the MM, Feats and one skill are at the back of the book. Some are simple like Improved Natural Armor where you get a +1 bonus to AC while others like Empower Spell Like Ability will quickly even the meta-magic odds.
Some creatures, instead of a level adjustment, have a note like Improved Familiar (quasit/imp) or cohort (mephits). This is a great tool but once again, Wizards fails to take advantage of this by making a table or listing with all of the Improved Familiars or cohorts.
Lot of specialty creatures, usually a more powerful version of the monsters in question. Take the Nessian Warhound, one of the devil prince's own hell hounds or the harpy archer, a 7th level harpy fighter. Are all of these creatures original and inspiring? Not particularly as they're usually just the core monster with levels but it saves the reader time.
Lot of beasts from Manual of the Planes updated here like the Inevitable and the Gith races. This makes me happy because its less work for me to update those particular monsters.
Tons of examples for the templates. Skeleton has human warrior, wolf, owlbear, ettin, and others. This works out well as it makes the GMs job easier and covers all of the original types when the monster previously wasn't a template but had many variants like skeletons and zombies.
Racial Traits (I consider racial traits only valid if they have stat modifiers and may have missed some): Azer, bugbears, centaurs, doppelgangers, dwarves, elf, gargoyles, janni, hill giants, stone giants, githyanki, githzerai, gnolls, gnomes, goblins, grimlock, halfling, hobgoblin, kobold,s kuo-toa, lizard folk, mind flayers, minotaurs, ogre, ogre magi, orc, rakshasas, satyrs, troglodyte, and Yuan Ti Purebloods. That's a whole another sourcebook on races if you ask me. Plenty of material here for even the most jaded player to start min-max.
Tactics: Balor, Pit Fiend, Mind Flayer, Titan. I must've missed some but there weren't many listings which is a shame since this was one of the selling points.
The Monster Manual is one of the core rulebooks for a reason and that reason is now more compelling than merely being a collection of monsters, unlike the previous version. The new chapters on improving monsters, making monsters and the clearly laid out section on monster skills and feats, makes the book easier to use in customizing and creating your own monsters. Making a proper challenge rating is still a little bit of guesswork, but that was true in previous editions as well.
If you're new to Dungeons & Dragons as a GM or as a player want access to more racial options, then the Monster Manual is for you.
