Homebrewing vs. Reskinning
Monsters are probably my favorite part of the game. Sometimes, we have a unique idea for a fun monster. There’s no existing statblock for it. Do we homebrew a new stat block or resort to reskinning monsters with existing statblocks?
Homebrewing monsters can be exciting for both us as the DM and players. Sometimes it is worthwhile to dig deep into mechanics and numbers and create an entirely new monster stat block. But it is also a lot of work. It can be tricky to get the power level right, without the monster falling flat of expectations or overwhelming the characters. Our homebrewed monster abilities might create powerful rules interactions we weren’t aware of until they played out at the table. In addition, more often than not, we don’t need an entirely new stat block to represent our unique creature idea.
A simpler method is reskinning an existing monster stat block. Here’s my general process for reskinning a monster stat block:
- Pick a statblock. Flip through the pages of my current favorite monster book until I find some artwork, a monster name, or a statblock that roughly fits the idea of the monster we want to put into our game.
- Change type. Change the type of the statblock to the appropriate one we want to portray.
- Change statistics. Adjust HP, AC, and number of attacks, as appropriate for the monster we want to create. We don’t worry about its ability scores until they come into play.
The multi-purpose ogre
As an exercise, let’s come up with a list of ten ways to use the stat block of an ogre for anything from a super-human soldier to a terrifying astral aberration.
| Name/Description | Reskinned Ogre Statblock |
|---|---|
| Super-human Soldier | change creature type to humanoid (human) |
| Subterranean Rockworm | change creature type to monstrosity; give it a burrow speed of 30 ft.; tremorsense of 30 ft.; re-flavor Greatclub attack to Bite and Javelin to Stalactite Missile |
| Baby Roc | change creature type to monstrosity; give it a flying speed of 30 ft. and a +7 to perception with advantage on sight-based perception; re-flavor Greatclub attack to Talon and drop the Javelin attack |
| Automated Security Ballista | change creature type to construct; reduce its speed to 10 ft.; drop the Greatclub attack, re-flavor the Javelin attack as a Bolt and give it a range of 120/480 ft. |
| Dragonborn Pyromancer | change creature type to humanoid; switch Strength and Charisma scores; give it fire resistance, change the damage type of all attacks to fire; re-flavor Greatclub to Fiery Touch, and Javelin to Fire Bolt, increasing the range to 120 ft.; let it cast a 3rd level fireball that recharges on a roll of 6 |
| Goblin Squad | change creature type to Large swarm of Medium goblins; bump its AC slightly; give it the Swarm trait of any swarm monster, and give it the Nimble Escape ability of the goblin |
| Carnivorous Plant | change creature type to plant; give it the False Appearance trait of the treant; vulnerability to fire, and a speed of 10 ft.; re-flavor Greatclub to Consume which grapples the target on a hit and deals acid damage to a grappled target each round; re-flavor Javelin to Poison Seed and change the damage of both attacks to piercing and poison |
| Necro-Warrior | change creature type to undead; give it resistance to necrotic, and non-magical bludgeoning, piercing and slashing damage, and immunity to poison, as well as immunity to poisoned and exhaustion; add some necrotic damage to both attacks, and have the Greatclub attack reduce the target’s maximum HP by the amount of necrotic damage if the target fails a Constitution saving throw |
| Arctic Bloodhound | change creature type to monstrosity; increase its speed to 50 ft., give it resistance to cold damage, bump its AC; re-flavor Greatclub to Cold Bite, and Javelin to Ice Shard, let both attacks deal some extra cold damage; let it teleport next to a wounded creature as a bonus action |
| Astral Dreamsnatcher | change creature type to aberration; give it resistance to psychic damage, re-flavor Greatclub to Devour Nightmares, which deals psychic damage and frightens on a hit; re-flavor Javelin to Dazing Lure which deals psychic damage and forces a target to approach the Dreamsnatcher using its reaction |
Reskinning Monsters: A powerful DM tool
Reskinning monsters is one of the most powerful technique we can acquire as a dungeon master. With a small repertoire of our favorite statblocks, we can run hundreds of different creatures. Change the type and name, tweak a few mechanics, and most importantly: describe the “new” monster to your players. They won’t notice a thing…
