Well-designed monsters help you roleplay dynamically, offering richer stories. (Part 5)

We aren't all method actors, but even the most jaded munchkin gamer enjoys it when a monster or villainous NPC acts in character (preferably while being converted to XP and treasure). Multi-dimensional characters are more interesting than cardboard cutouts, and well-designed monsters include all that information for when you want it, without forcing you to read it when you don't.

A well-designed monster, with the tactics, abilities, and important-but-uninteresting math bits at your fingertips, lets you focus on bringing that monster to life and maintaining flow; a key to keeping your players interested and viscerally involved in their battles. This will result not only in better, richer stories for the PCs to tell in-game as they expound on their exploits, but also in more stories that your players will bring up for years afterwards away from the table.

You're probably seeing a trend here, but we at U20 believe that planning is important for encounters, and a big part of encounter planning is knowing your monster well. As I've brought up in the blog a few times before, I think 4e lacks a lot of the detail that lets you really get to know your critters, which makes it harder for a DM to roleplay them dynamically. Earlier editions were better, but regardless of the numbers on your core books, it pays to spend a few minutes considering a monster's physical and emotional traits. This leads organically into how they sound, giving them a voice you can emulate, which leads you to act a certain way. Your players will probably react to that, and suddenly you've got a richer game.

You might be surprised what just a few minutes will do for you.