Let’s continue with our Vicious Variants to get more use out of the monsters provided in the Starter Set.
Giant Spider, Wicked
As terrifying as they are, most giant spiders are simply animals: merciless predators indeed, but motivated only by hunger and other base responses. The Wicked Giant Spider is different — it is an intelligent, malevolent being, motivated by greed, hatred for all things that walk on fewer than eight legs, and, yes, hunger — an insatiable thirst not merely for blood, but also the fear that consumes the victim as it is devoured paralyzed but alive.
Game Rules: Wicked Giant Spiders are highly intelligent and have the following ability scores: Int 14 (+2), Wis 12 (+1) and Cha 10 (+0). They are telepathic and can communicate with any creature within 100 feet, regardless of language, and have blindsight to 60 feet. Wicked Giant Spiders do not produce webs and lose the Web Sense and Web abilities. It does have a special ability called Fascination (Rechard 5-6): As an action, the Wicked Giant Spider may use its telepathic ability to fascinate any living, sentient creature within range. The victim must make an Intelligence saving throw versus DC 12 or be paralyzed. Maintaining the fascination requires concentration by the Wicked Giant Spider. Wicked Giant Spiders are invariably evil and tend to also be chaotic.
Goblin, Winged
No one is sure where Winged Goblins came from. One theory posits that they were created by a witch who sought evil and highly mobile minions. Others believe they are a mutant offshoot of true goblins, exposed to some arcane energy that spawned a handful of Winged Goblins that bred true. In any case, Winged Goblins inhabit similar terrain as their earthbound cousins, from underground caverns to jagged badlands to dark forests. Winged goblins rarely interact with “normal” goblins, and when they do it is usually in conflict. Very rarely, a goblin tribe will have a Winged Goblin chief or shaman.
Game Rules: Winged Goblins are exactly like other goblins, including their Nimble Escape ability, save for two differences: first, they are able to fly at a speed of 30 feet, and second their wings prohibit the use of armor (AC 13 instead of 15). Winged Goblins rely heavily on ranged weapons, for obvious reasons, and may also use an action to make a diving attack with a melee weapon, which, if successful, does an additional d6 of damage. Note that due to the force of their collision, the goblin takes half of the total damage from the attack. For this reason, some refer to Winged Goblins as Suicide Goblins.
Grick, Arboreal
The grotesque monster known as the grick has a tree dwelling cousin that makes remote, dark forests as dangerous as any winding cavern.
Game Rules: Arboreal Gricks have Forest Camouflage — granting advantage on Dexterity (Stealth) checks in forests — instead of Stone Camouflage. In all other ways they are exactly like other gricks.
Hobgoblin, Bogeyman
Most hobgoblins live in the highly militaristic clans of their kind and enforce a (not undeserved) stereotype as a disciplined, mighty goblinoid warrior. But not all hobgoblins are made for living in that rigid caste system, and while most of these are culled early on, a few escape hobgoblin society and live alone in the dark places of the world, away from their kin and on the fringes of civilized lands. Unfortunately, their disdain for organized society that caused their exile in the first place did not tame their wicked hearts, and these hermit hobgoblins, in their depredations, become the stuff of tales meant to terrify children into behaving. They become Bogeymen.
Game Rules: Bogeyman Hobgoblins reject their militaristic call. They do not posses the Martial Advantage ability, have an AC of 12 (leather armor) and carry only a short sword (+3 to hit, 1d6+1 damage). However, they have mastered skulking and sneaking (Stealth +6 and Perception +4/14) and are capable of making a sneak attack as a rogue (+1d6). They have a black magic in them and can cast Charm Person (save DC 12; recharge 5-6), which they often use to draw innocents away from their homes before slaying and eating them. Bogeyman Hobgoblins are Chaotic Evil.
Nothic, Blinding One
Not all secrets of the multiverse come from dark sources, but even the righteous truth is far beyond the mortal mind to comprehend.. Just as the common nothic was once a wizard who peered too deeply into the unknown abyss, a Blinding One Nothic was once a divine, good spellcaster that sought forbidden truth in the heavens. Having flown too close to the sun, the Blinding One was consumed by the radiant truth and turned into a overflowing vessel of divine power.
Game Rules: Blinding One Nothics are similar to their arcane cousins in most respects. They have an Int of 10 and a Wis of 13 (+1) and Religion +3 instead of the Arcana skill. Instead of the Rotting Gaze ability they have a Blinding Gaze: if a single target within 30 feet fails a DC 12 Wisdom save, the victim take 1d8 radiant damage and is blinded for one round. A Blinding One Nothic retains the Weird Insight ability but the knowledge gained by the Nothic is always a secret the victim has told no one, which the Nothic immediately exposes in mad whispers. Blinding One Nothics are chaotic neutral — they were once good but have been driven completely mad.
Ochre Jelly, Goblin Jar
Not a monster specifically, these are small clay jars filled with Ochre Jelly and used as grenade like weapons by goblins. The clay jar is bound with rope which leaves a short “tail” by which goblins swing and throw the jar (+4 to hit, range 10/30 feet). When the jar lands, regardless of whether it hits, it shatters, releasing a Tiny sized Ochre Jelly. Tiny Ochre Jellies have 5 hp and do only 1d6 damage on a successful attack. They have advantage against any enemy hit by the jar from which they were released. Ochre Jellies from jars that did not hit are released and immediately move toward the nearest jelly in order to merge with it. If 4 Tiny Jellies merge, they form a small jelly (10 hp). If two small jellies merge, they form a medium jelly (pseudopod does 16d+1 plus acid and 20 hit point) and if 2 medium jellies merge they form a large jelly (per page 60 LMoP). The DM should increase the XP award of the goblin encounter by one full CR level..
Ogre, Hagborn
Normal ogres are a race of marauding giants. They are a true breeding race (though one shudders to imagine the coupling) with their own culture, such that it is. Hagborn Ogres are not ogres at all, nor are they giants, but they are often mistaken for true ogres due to their size, malevolence and stupidity — each of which rivals or exceeds that of the true ogre. As their name implies, Hagborn Ogres are the spawn of hags, a race of monstrous humanoid witches of terrible cruelty and wicked cunning. When a hag uses deceit or magic to trick a noble soul into wedding her, a Hagborn Ogre is always conceived on the wedding night (before the hag reveals herself and the father is either murdered and devoured or is able to escape). A year later, on the anniversary of the deed, the Hagborn Ogre is born. Hagborn Ogres have the same coal black eyes and dark green skin of their mothers and are always massive in size and musculature. They retain some semblance of their father, often facial features or the color and texture of their hair (unkempt as it often is). Hagborn Ogres are unflinchingly devoted to their horrible mothers.
Game Rules: Being of more magical stock, Hagborn Ogres are slightly less dim than normal Ogres (Int 6 and Wis 10). Their parentage also gives them greater Strength (21) and they have 10 HD (hp 80). Most Hagborn Ogres wear chainmail armor (AC 16) and wield giant greatswords (+8 to hit, 4d6+5 damage) and javelins. While fighting in defense of his hag mother, a Hagborn Ogre has advantage against the character or creature that last attacked her. If she is killed, he falls into a raging despair, fighting at disadvantage until he is killed or all enemies are destroyed. It is extremely rare but not unknown for an orphaned Hagborn Ogre to seek out his father, either for vengeance or in an attempt to join his family.
I.E. 