Building the Bestiary #4: Undead

Undead are a staple of most fantasy role-playing games, so GMs of this genres are going to need some undead miniatures eventually. Even in a low-level game, the players can expect to meet weak undead like skeletons and zombies very early in their careers. Fortunately, the LEGO Group has released a good variety of these monsters over the years, and other kinds of D&D or Pathfinder undead can easily be built or approximated with other minifigures and parts.

Skeletons and Ghosts

The most readily available LEGO undead are skeletons and ghosts, which first appeared in Castle sets and have been featured in various forms in many other themes since then. Some version of these two monsters are almost always in production in one theme or another.

Skeletons, and droids as quadruped skeletons

Skeletons: Basic skeletons can be found in many Castle and Pirate sets, and occasionally in other themes, such as Pirates of the Caribbean. (Even Star Wars and Lord of the Rings sets have included skeletons, in the Rancor Pit and Mines of Moria, respectively.) The Ninjago theme introduced several skeleton characters with individual looks and personalities. More recently, the Minecraft theme offers its own variety of block-headed skeletons, and Minifigures Series 14; Monsters! included a normal guy in a skeleton costume.

Some sets have included skeletal horses, in both white and black, and the LEGO Cuusoo Research Institute included a brick-built dinosaur skeleton. The Ninjago LEGO game included skeleton microfigures, perfect for smaller reanimated corpses such as kobolds or goblins.

The skeleton of a dog, wolf, or similar-sized quadruped is easy to make: take a Star Wars soldier-droid, remove its weapon and backpack, and bend it down onto all fours (see the photo).

Peeves (Harry Potter) and classic ghost (Castle)

Ghost: The original "white sheet"-type ghost minifigure first appeared in the Castle theme, Modified versions of this classic form appeared in the Monster Fighters and LEGO Movie themes. New types of ghosts have appeared in Harry Potter (Peeves the poltergeist), Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit (Army of the Dead and the Witch-King), Spongebob Squarepants (The Flying Dutchman), Ninjago (spirit warriors and tiny demonic ghosts), and Ghostbusters (Slimer and related ghosts). The Spectre and Banshee in Minifigures Series 14 use the transparent ectoplasmic lower body piece that first appeared in Ninjago. Dementors (Harry Potter) aren't technically ghosts, but can serve as such.

Example of a custom-built ghost

If you lack any of these ghostly characters, a skeleton head on a white body works well (as will other white heads such as Asajj Ventriss or the Minifigures geisha and mime). For the ghosts of creatures that are not Medium humanoids, build the model in a uniform white, light gray, or transparent colors to show that it's incorporeal.

Mummies, Vampires, and Zombies

The other types of undead that have appeared in LEGO form include mummies, vampires, and zombies.

Mummy: The first LEGO mummies appeared in the Adventurers and LEGO Studios sets. The Pharaoh's Quest theme included a variety of mummies--even winged ones! More recently, Monster Fighters and Minifigures Series 3 and 14 have each included a mummy. Mummy microfigures appeared in the LEGO Games Ramses Pyramid and Ramses Return.

Snape and  vampire

Vampire: Vampires have appeared in LEGO Studios, Monster Fighters (along with a Vampire Bride), and Minifigures Series 2. Monster Fighters also included humanoid Vampire Bats, reissued with a color change for Minifigures Series 8. The LEGO Heroica game Ilrion features a vampire microfigure and a brick-built vampire bat. The Spider Lady from Minifigures Series 14 is obviously a vampire as well, and pasty, black-clad Professor Snape (Harry Potter) makes a decent vampire as well.

Zombie: The first LEGO zombie appeared in Minifigures Series 1, followed soon after by some zombie crewmen in the Pirates of the Caribbean theme. The Monster Fighters theme offered additional zombies, and more recently, Minifigures Series 14; Monsters! included three new zombies (pirate, businessman, and cheerleader). There is also an alien Geonosian Zombie in the Star Wars theme,

Zombie crewmen (Pirates of the Caribbean)

If you don't own any LEGO zombies, look for minifigure body parts printed with torn clothing, cuts and bruises, and dirt and blood stains. The various Frankenstein's Monsters (Monster Fighters and Minifigures) would make good zombies, though you may wish to remove the brow/hair piece to denote that they are zombies, not flesh golems.

Other Undead

Fantasy RPGs include many more kinds of undead that haven't appeared in LEGO form. I will give a few suggestions here for how to build figures for them, but I'm limiting the list to those found in the D&D Monster Manual and first Pathfinder Bestiary.

Incorporeal Undead: Most incorporeal undead, such as spectres, can use the same suggestions above for ghosts. (See also the brick-built apparitions in the photo at the top of this column.)

For shadows, allips, and wraiths, you'll need a darker minifigure. A Ringwraith is an ideal choice here, but any all-black minifigure (preferably with little or no printing) will do nicely, as will a Dementor.

Custom-built devourer

Devourer: These undead are Large, so use the techniques discussed in the Giants installment of this series to modify a minifigure or build a new model. For the soul trapped in the monster's chest cavity, try to find a tile with a face or body on it, and attach it to the devourer with a SNOT ("studs not on top") brick. (The tile shown in the photo here is a specimen from an old Space set.) If you can build a microfigure into the creature's torso, that might be even creepier!

Ghoul: The best matches that I've found for ghouls are zombies and Gollum. The latter captures the ghoul's emaciated, hunched, predatory look quite well!

Lich: Minifigures such as the Witch-King (Hobbit) or Emperor Palpatine (Star Wars) can be used as-is for a lich. Lacking those, use a skeleton, zombie, or mummy, but give it sorcerer's robes, Pharaoh's regalia, or other suitably arcane and sinister gear to make it obvious that this is a much more dangerous foe.

Mohrg (modified skeleton)

Mohrg: Start with a skeleton minifigure. Use one of the L-shaped collars used to attach bricks to the back of a minifigure to attach a tendril or tentacle representing the monster's tongue attack, as shown in the photo. Alternately, attach the appendage to the stud on top of the skull, or to one of the hands.

Wight: A wight is similar to a zombie or mummy in that it's a corporeal husk of a body. Either of those monsters will do, but I prefer black minifigures with scary heads, such as Darth Maul (Star Wars), Lord Garmadon or the Stone Army (Ninjago). Garmadon has the added benefit of being bony without being a skeleton.

I may tackle additional undead monsters in future columns, but that's all for this installment. I hope these suggestions inspire your designs for your own games!

Advanced Bestiary: Clockwork Formian

Formian society is built around the orderly preservation and expansion of the hive and its queen. (See Bestiary 4 108.) The uncanny coordination possible through the hive mind makes each formian appear to be like a single cog in an immense and highly complex machine.

Clockwork formians take this impression to the next level: they are not bred for the welfare of the hive, but are literally built for it. Being clockworks (see the clockwork template, Advanced Bestiary 55), these creatures lack the full intelligence and initiative of normal formians. This simply makes them more rigidly adhere to the race's obsession with order.

The hive's queen is essentially a living computer and factory. Her underlings build the metal exoskeletons for each new formian, while she produces and installs the magical mechanisms that animate these shells under her control.

Clockwork formians are quite rare on the Material Plane, but are rumored to have originated on a strongly lawful-aligned Outer Plane composed entirely of massive machinery. (If the GM decides that they are native to such a plane, then add the extraplanar subtype when they encountered elsewhere.)

Stat blocks for clockwork formian workers, warriors, and taskmasters appear below.


CLOCKWORK FORMIAN WORKER (CR 1)

XP 400
LN Small construct (clockwork)
Init +6 (+10 with hive mind); Senses blindsense 30 ft., darkvision 60 ft., low-light vision, hive mind; Perception -1 (+3 with hive mind)

Defense
AC 17, touch 16, flat-footed 12 (+2 Dex, +3 dodge, +1 natural, +1 size)
hp 15 (1d10+10)
Fort +0, Ref +4, Will -1
Defensive Abilities ; DR 5/adamantine; Immune construct traits; Resist acid 10, cold 10, fire 10, sonic 10
Weaknesses metal body, vulnerability to electricity

Offense
Speed 40 ft., burrow 10 ft.
Melee bite +4 (1d6+3)

Statistics
Str 17, Dex 14, Con --, Int 4, Wis 8, Cha 3
Base Atk +1; CMB +3; CMD 15 (19 vs. trip)
Feats Dodge[B], Improved Initiative[B], Lightning Reflexes[B], Skill Focus (Profession [miner])
Skills Craft (clockwork) +2, Disable Device +7, Perception -1 (+3 with hive mind), Profession (miner) +5, Stealth +1
Languages Common, telepathy 60 ft.
SQ able assistant, created mind, creator bond (hive queen), difficult to create, formian traits, peerless bearer, swift reactions, winding

Ecology

Environment warm or temperate land or underground

Organization solitary, work crew (6-12 plus 1 taskmaster), band (3-15 plus 5-8 warriors and 1 taskmaster)

Treasure incidental (occasionally a 10-50 gp gem embedded into a worker's carapace)

Special Abilities
Able Assistant (Ex) When a formian worker succeeds at an aid another check or attack roll that aids another hive mate within its telepathy range, it grants a +4 bonus to the skill check, on the attack roll, or to AC instead of the normal +4.
Created Mind (Ex) A clockwork formian only accepts commands from its creator (the hive's queen) or designated surrogate (a higher-ranked formian within the hive mind). It can act independent of any commands that are given to it. If it wishes to directly disobey a command, the clockwork needs to make a successful Will save (DC 20). On a failed save, the clockwork follows the command to the best of its ability as if under a command spell. If a command would destroy the clockwork formian or otherwise cause it harm, it gets a second Will save (DC 15) immediately after the first.
Once a clockwork formian's creator dies or frees it, the clockwork becomes an independent creature. A free clockwork no longer follows any other creature's command unless magically compelled. A clockwork typically continues to perform the last tasks it was command to complete; however, it may still act independently outside its last commands.
Creator Bond (Ex) A clockwork formian can instinctively detect the location of its creator (the hive's queen) within 100 ft., regardless of magical and natural barriers. Within this range, the clockwork gains a +10 circumstance bonus vs. Bluff and Disguise checks, and any other effect made to impersonate the clockwork's creator. [Note that the formians' hive mind usually makes this quality superfluous.]
Difficult to Create (Ex) See the clockwork subtype.
Peerless Bearer (Ex) Workers have a +5 racial bonus to Strength when calculating the effects of encumbrance.
Swift Reactions (Ex) See the clockwork subtype.
Winding (Ex) See the clockwork subtype.

CLOCKWORK FORMIAN WARRIOR (CR 4)

XP 1,200
LN Medium construct (clockwork)
Init +9 (+13 with hive mind); Senses blindsense 30 ft., darkvision 60 ft., low-light vision, hive mind; Perception +3 (+7 with hive mind)

Defense
AC 24, touch 18, flat-footed 16 (+5 Dex, +3 dodge, +6 natural)
hp 42 (4d10+20)
Fort +1, Ref +8, Will +0
DR 5/adamantine; Immune construct traits; Resist acid 10, cold 10, fire 10, sonic 10
Weaknesses metal body, vulnerability to electricity

Offense
Speed 40 ft.
Melee sting +8 (1d4+4 plus poison), 2 claws +8 (1d4+4 plus grab)
Ranged javelin +9 (1d6+4 plus poison)
Special Attacks deadly grasp, poison
Statistics

Str 18, Dex 21, Con --, Int 5, Wis 8, Cha 6
Base Atk +4; CMB +8 (+12 grapple); CMD 23 (27 vs. trip)
Feats Dodge[B], Improved Initiative[B], Lightning Reflexes[B], Skill Focus (Acrobatics), Step Up
Skills Acrobatics +12 (+16 jumping), Craft (clockwork) +2, Disable Device +10, Perception +3 (+7 with hive mind), Stealth +4
Languages Common, telepathy 60 ft.
SQ coordinate, created mind, creator bond (hive queen), difficult to create, formian traits, swift reactions, winding

Ecology

Environment warm or temperate land or underground

Organization solitary, pair, band (3-15 plus 5-8 warriors and 1 taskmaster), or patrol (3-12)

Treasure incidental (6 javelins, other treasure)

Special Abilities
Coordinate (Su) Once a formian warrior has acted in combat, all allied formians within the hive mind are no longer considered flat-footed. When a formian warrior attacks a creature in melee, allied formians gain a +2 insight bonus on melee attack rolls against that creature until the start of the warrior's next turn.
Created Mind (Ex) See the Clockwork Formian Worker (above).
Creator Bond (Ex) See the Clockwork Formian Worker (above).
Deadly Grasp (Ex) When a formian warrior has a foe grappled, it deals sting damage when it succeeds at a grapple check to damage its opponent.
Difficult to Create (Ex) See the clockwork subtype.
Poison (Ex) Javelin or sting--injury; Fort DC 12; frequency 1/round for 6 rounds; effect 1d2 Dex; cure 1 save.
Swift Reactions (Ex) See the clockwork subtype.
Winding (Ex) See the clockwork subtype.

CLOCKWORK FORMIAN TASKMASTER (CR 8)

XP 4,800
LN Medium construct (clockwork)
Init +8 (+12 with hive mind); Senses blindsense 30 ft., darkvision 60 ft., low-light vision, hive mind; Perception +7 (+11 with hive mind)

Defense
AC 30, touch 17, flat-footed 23 (+4 Dex, +3 dodge, +13 natural)
hp 75 (10d10+20)
Fort +3, Ref +9, Will +5
DR 10/adamantine; Immune construct traits; Resist acid 10, cold 10, fire 10, sonic 10
Weaknesses metal body, vulnerability to electricity

Offense
Speed 40 ft.
Melee sting +15 (1d4+5 plus poison), 2 claws +15 (1d4+5)
Ranged dart +14/+9 (1d4+5)
Special Attacks poison
Spell-Like Abilities (CL 10th; concentration +11)
3/day--detect thoughts (DC 13), sending (to the hive queen only)
Bard Spells Known (CL 7th; concentration +8)
3rd (1)--confusion (DC 15), good hope
2nd (3)--heroism, invisibility, sound burst (DC 13), suggestion (DC 14)
1st (5)--charm person (DC 13), comprehend languages, cure light wounds, hideous laughter (DC 13), silent image (DC 12)
0 (at will)--dancing lights, daze (DC 12), detect magic, mending, messages, prestidigitation

Statistics
Str 21, Dex 18, Con --, Int 7, Wis 14, Cha 13
Base Atk +10; CMB +15; CMD 29 (33 vs. trip)
Feats Combat Casting, Dodge[B], Improved Initiative[B], Lightning Reflexes[B], Point Blank Shot, Quick Draw, Rapid Shot, Spell Focus (enchantment)
Skills Bluff +6, Climb +9, Craft (clockwork) +6, Diplomacy +6, Disable Device +10, Perception +7 (+11 with hive mind), Sense Motive +7, Stealth -1
Languages Common, telepathy 60 ft.
SQ created mind, creator bond (hive queen), difficult to create, formian traits, mental motivator, swift reactions, winding

Ecology

Environment warm or temperate land or underground

Organization solitary, work crew (1 plus 6-12 workers), band (1 plus 3-15 workers and 5-8 warriors), embassy (2-6)

Treasure incidental (10 darts, other treasure)

Special Abilities
Created Mind (Ex) See the Clockwork Formian Worker (above).
Creator Bond (Ex) See the Clockwork Formian Worker (above).
Difficult to Create (Ex) See the clockwork subtype.
Mental Motivator (Su) A formian taskmaster can inspire competence or inspire courage as a 7th-level bard (typically 17 rounds/day). The taskmaster's performance is purely mental and and only affects formians from its own hive mind within range.
Poison (Ex) Sting--injury; Fort DC 15; frequency 1/round for 6 rounds; effect 1d4 Dex; cure 2 consecutive saves.
Swift Reactions (Ex) See the clockwork subtype.
Winding (Ex) See the clockwork subtype.

Building the Bestiary #3: Giants

Minifigure scale is suitable for Small and Medium humanoids, but larger creatures such as giants require other solutions. But before I talk about how to acquire or build the models themselves, I want to discuss how to denote size categories when working with LEGO bricks.

Size Categories

If you play D&D or Pathfinder, creatures larger than Medium size take up more than one 5-foot square on the battle map. In most cases, you will want to put your model on an appropriately-sized base in order to clearly mark what space it occupies. A round base is often preferable to a square one, so that you can easily turn the model without any corners sticking out into other squares. (However, given the nature of LEGO bricks, squares and rectangles are much easier to find!)

Girallon (modified Yeti minifigure)

Studs are spaced three to an inch, so a Small or Medium creature takes up a 3x3-stud space, Large creatures 6x6, Huge 9x9, Gargantuan 12x12, and Colossal 18x18 (or more). You don't need to match those dimensions exactly; just make sure you don't exceed them, and that you center your model in its space on the map. I use 2x2 or 2x3 plates as bases for Small and Medium creatures, as both those sizes are plentiful and fit inside a 1" square. I prefer a 6x6 round plate or radar dish for Large creatures, but a 4x4 or 4x6 plate also serves well. I typically use 8x8 square plates (or four 4x4 quarter-circles) for Huge creatures, and 10x10 octagonal plates for Gargantuan ones. For a Colossal creature, you will need a 16x16 or larger base, which you can build out of smaller plates if necessary.

I find it useful to have a few extra Large and Huge bases handy during play so that I can place them under miniatures that don't already have a standard-sized base. For example, I own a number of plastic animal toys that I use for creatures of which I don't own LEGO versions, so I'll put the toy on top of a LEGO plate to show its proper size category. Also, if a creature changes size during an encounter, I can put its miniature on a different sized base to show that.

Giant troll (Castle)

Big Figures

Over the years, a number of oversized characters have been produced for various LEGO themes. The more-or-less humanoid characters of this type include:

• Adventurers: Jun-Chi (a lion-dog spirit), Tygurah (a tiger deity), Yeti.
• Castle: Giant Troll.
• Harry Potter: Hagrid (near minifigure scale), Troll.
• Legends of Chima: Mungus (Mammoth Tribe).
• The Lord of the Rings/The Hobbit: Cave Troll, Goblin King.
• Ninjago: Dogshank (giant pirate).
• Power Miners: Eruptor, Geolix, Tremorex (three rock monsters).
• Rock Raiders: Rock Monster.
• Star Wars: Rancor, Wampa.
• Superheroes: Darkseid, Gorilla Grodd, Hulk, Green Goblin, Thanos. 
• Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Dogpound, Leatherhead.

Using one of these "Big Figures" gives you a well-defined large character, but they are usually only available as part of larger sets, and those sets tend to only be available through retail for a year or two at most. Many of these figures are available through websites such as Bricklink, where you can expect to pay anywhere from $5-$10 for a smaller, more common character, up to $35+ for a Rancor. Another drawback of these figures is that they have few parts for their size, and few free studs, so are hard to customize. Also, most of them are very specific licensed characters, which may be distracting if you want to use them to represent other monsters. For example, my pair of Harry Potter trolls see frequent use as ogres and giants, but my Hulk is a little too, well, Hulk-ish for that.

A related option is using Duplo figures for giants. These characters are a good scale for depicting Large humanoids, but are rather more silly-looking than scary. Also, unless you buy them individually through a reseller, you will end up with several oversized bricks as well. Duplo bricks are fully compatible with regular LEGO bricks (being exactly twice their dimensions) but they aren't nearly as useful for small-scale models. 

Ogre (modified minifigure)

Modified Minifigures

If Big Figures are out of your price range or don't cover the monster you need, then you'll need to build your own model. The easiest way of doing this is to modify a minifigure to make it a little bigger, then put it on a base appropriate to its size category. 

Some of the collectible Minifigures, such as the Minotaur, Cyclops, and Frankenstein's Monster, already represent creatures that would be larger than human-scale in D&D or Pathfinder. You can simply put these minifigures on a larger base to indicate their true size. (The 3x4 plate that comes with each one will serve well enough for this.)

You can also make a minifigure taller by standing it on two 1x1 bricks, and taller yet by inserting a 1x2 brick between the torso and legs (as was done for the ogre shown here). These changes leave the arms rather short in proportion to the rest of the body, but a larger weapon can help offset that.

Building from Scratch

The other option is to build a custom model yourself. The photo below shows two Large giant models, one very simple and the other more advanced, with a minifigure for scale. The one on the left is just a stack of bricks with an antenna for a weapon. (If you lack cylinders and slope bricks, simply replace them with standard bricks.) The result is rather crude, but conveys the creature's size and general humanoid shape.

The giant on the right is more detailed, with a few articulated joints allowing it to be posed. The next photo shows the subassemblies better. The right leg uses a slope brick to extend forward, as if taking a step. The shoulders are 1x1 bricks with a stud on one side. (You can also use "headlight" bricks, but you'll need to stick 1x1 plates over the recessed side-studs in order to attach the arms.) A 1x2 jumper plate provides a centered stud for attaching the head. 

Each arm is a hinged plate, with 1x1 and 1x2 plates giving extra thickness. The hands are 1x1 plates with side-clips, allowing the giant to hold minifigure accessories. The head is a stack of 1x2 and 2x2 plates, with two 1x1 round plates for eyes. You could also use a 2x2 cylinder brick for the head (like the simpler giant above) or a minifigure head.

Experiment with different colors and pieces to change this base model into the kind of giant you need: brown and tan bricks for ogres and hill giants, green for trolls, gray for stone giants, white and blue for frost giants, red for fire giants, etc., with contrasting colors for clothing and armor. Bricks with side-studs can be used to attach additional plates and tiles for hair, beards, or armor, or simply to add bulk to the torso.

Other Large Humanoids

And finally, these various methods for providing giant miniatures can also be used for other large monsters with a generally humanoid shape: golems, minotaurs, devourers, genies, dire apes, and many celestials and fiends. Future columns will show examples of some of these creatures.

Building the Bestiary #2: Underwater Races

In the first installment of "Building the Bestiary," I covered the most common humanoid races. This time, I'll tackle several underwater races. Over the past several years. I've run three campaigns set in Green Ronin's Freeport: The City of Adventure, so I've needed a large number of aquatic creatures during that time.

Undines or aquatic elves

Aquatic Elves are the most human-looking of the various undersea races. They tend to have bluish skin and blue or green hair. Blue-skinned minifigures are rare, and include Aayla Secura and Cad Bane (Star Wars), male and female genies (Minifigures Series 6 and 12), and Nebula (Guardians of the Galaxy). Blue and green hair are even harder to find, being pretty much limited to the short-lived Exo-Force theme and some of the new LEGO Elves minidolls. If you lack such unusual parts, build them as any other elf (see "Building the Bestiary" #1), but choose clothing and weapons appropriate to the water.

Most Undines (Pathfinder) and Water Genasi (D&D) largely resemble aquatic elves, so can be built in the same way.

Merfolk

Mermaids first appeared in the classic Pirates theme, but have also appeared in Harry Potter, Pirates of the Caribbean, Disney Princesses, the Minifigures theme, and one fairy tale-themed minifigure collection. Mermen can be built using the same fish-tails, preferably with a muscular bare chest (as with the Ocean King). If you lack the fish-tail, you can build one out of bricks; the photo here shows two possibilities, but an even simpler tail can be built with a 2x3 brick with a smaller brick or two for the fin. (Remember that merfolk are Medium creatures, so you'll need to make them fit them within a 1" square, or 3x3 studs.)

For a Cecaelia (Pathfinder Bestiary 3 or True20 Freeport: The Lost Island), replace the fish tail with the tentacled bottom piece from a Squid Warrior (Atlantis) or Alien Commander (Alien Conquest). (The Disney Minifigures series, due out in May, will include Ursula, who will make an excellent cecaelia.) Or, if you don't mind the body being grossly oversized for a Medium figure, attach a minfigure torso to the studs on the top of an octopus's head.

Sahuagin and four-armed mutant

The Swamp Creature (Monster Fighters) makes an ideal Sahaugin, with the Barracuda, Manta, and Shark Warriors (Atlantis) coming a close second. For more recent (and thus easier to acquire) minfigures, try the Shark Suit Guy (Minifigures Series 15), various Serpentine (Ninjago), or Greedo or other Rhodians (Star Wars). To make a four-armed mutant sahuagin, you'll either need an older minifigure torso that lacks the "X"-like structure in the center, or one of the special torso-extending pieces that adds a second set of arms (like Ninjago's Lord Garmadon or Nadakhan). For the former, a breastplate or other accessory is useful for covering the upper torso's printing, as in the photo. (Side note: This same method can be used to build other many-armed creatures, such as girallons or mariliths.)

Other fish-like races, such as Locathah and Kuo-Toa, can also be built in the same way as sahuagin. Gungans and the Alien Conquest aliens also make good locathah or kuo-toa.

Sea hag and merrow

For a Merrow or Scrag, simply put a fishy head onto a giant's body, such as the Alien Conquest head on the Harry Potter troll shown here. (I'll be devoting a future "Building the Bestiary" column to giants.)

For a Sea Hag or Greenhag, use a witch (preferably a green-skinned one), or the head and torso of a Medusa (Minifigures Series 10). In my Freeport game, I built a sea hag using the Alien Avenger's head (Minifigures Series 9) and a robed statue torso (see photo).

That covers the major underwater humanoid races. Future columns will cover other types of aquatic creatures.

Pathfinder Bestiary: Lodestone Slime

Over at The Piazza, Angel Tarragon recently posted a link to this Bearded Science Guy video, with the quip, "Imagine the horror on your players' faces when you beset a magnetic slime against the party!" I took that as a challenge to design a monster based on this experiment.

Lodestone Slime

This grayish black, amorphous blob's quivering flesh has a damp, metallic sheen. 

LODESTONE SLIME (CR 6)

XP 2,400
N Medium ooze (earth)
Init -5; Senses blindsight 60 ft., scent metals; Perception -5
Aura magnetism (20 ft.)

Defense
AC 14, touch 4, flat-footed 14 (-5 Dex, +10 natural, -1 size)
hp 76 (8d8+40)
Fort +7, Ref -3, Will -3
Defensive Abilities ooze traits; DR 5/magic; Immune blindness, fire, mind-affecting effects
Weaknesses ferrous

Offense
Speed 20 ft., burrow 10 ft.; metal walk
Melee slam +9 (1d8+6 plus 1d6 acid)
Space 10 ft.; Reach 5 ft.
Special Attacks acid
Statistics

Str 18, Dex 1, Con 20, Int —, Wis 1, Cha 1
Base Atk +6; CMB +11 (+13 magnetism); CMD 16 (26 vs. bull rush with metal walk, can't be tripped)
SQ no breath, ooze traits
Ecology

Environment any underground

Organization solitary

Treasure none

Special Abilities

Acid (Ex) A lodestone slime secretes a digestive acid that dissolves organic material and metal quickly, but does not affect stone. Each time a creature suffers damage from a lodestone slime's acid, its clothing and armor take the same amount of damage from the acid. A DC 19 Reflex save prevents damage to clothing and armor. A metal or wooden weapon that strikes a lodestone slime takes 1d6 acid damage unless the weapon's wielder succeeds on a DC 19 Reflex save. If a lodestone slime remains in contact with a wooden or metal object for 1 full round, it inflicts 10 points of acid damage (no save) to the object. The save DCs are Constitution-based.

Ferrous (Ex) A lodestone slime's body is largely composed of iron. It is affected by rust attacks, such as those of a rust monster or a rusting grasp spell.

Magnetic Grab (Ex) A lodestone slime's body exerts a powerful magnetic force, holding fast any metal creatures or items that strike it. A metal weapon that strikes a lodestone slime is stuck fast unless the wielder succeeds on a DC 18 Reflex save. A successful DC 18 Strength check is needed pry off a stuck weapon. The save DC is Strength-based.

Magnetism (Ex) Any metal object or creature that is brought within 20 ft. of a lodestone slime is pulled towards the ooze by an invisible force similar to a constant telekinesis effect. Magnetism affects any Large or smaller metal item or creature when it first enters the aura, and again on the ooze's turn each round. Unattended and unsecured objects are automatically pulled 5 feet closer to the ooze if Large or Medium, 10 feet if Small or Tiny, or 20 feet if Diminutive or smaller.

     For metal creatures, or metal objects held or worn by a creature, resolve the magnetism attack as a combat maneuver. The lodestone slime's Combat Maneuver Bonus for this effect is +13, which includes a +2 racial modifier. On a successful combat maneuver, the metal creature or the metal object's bearer is pulled toward the ooze as above. If the combat maneuver is successful against a held item (such as a metal weapon), treat the result as a successful disarm unless the wielder makes a successful DC 18 Strength check. On a successful check, the creature retains hold of the item, but is pulled toward the ooze (at a speed determined by the bearer's size rather than the object's size, unless the object is larger). The Strength check DC is Strength-based.

     Against unattended but secured objects (such as a chain fastened to a wall), make a combat maneuver check against the item's break DC. On a success, the object breaks or is otherwise pulled loose, and moves toward the lodestone slime as above.

Metal Walk (Ex) Due to its magnetic nature, a lodestone slime can cling to and move at its base speed across metal surfaces, even those that are perfectly smooth or inverted. When using metal walk, the ooze gains a +10 circumstance bonus to its Combat Maneuver Defense against bull rush, awesome blows, and other attacks and effects that attempt to physically move it from its location.

Scent Metals (Ex) This ability functions much the same as the scent ability, except that the range is 90 feet and the lodestone slime can only use it to sense metal objects (including creatures wearing or carrying metal items).

A lodestone slime's viscous body is heavily infused with ferrous minerals that emit a powerful magnetic field. Its bizarre metabolism requires it to consume copious amounts of both metal (in order to maintain its magnetic powers) and flesh (in order to heal and maintain its mobility). A lodestone slime completely deprived of all nourishment will eventually decay into a brittle mass of inert slag.

Rust monsters can scent the metallic body of a lodestone slime at twice their normal range, and will be irresistibly drawn to attack and devour these oozes. Gorging on the slime's rusted remains may have unusual effects on the rust monsters or their offspring, manifesting as the advanced or giant template, or some more bizarre mutation.

Design Notes

I borrowed pieces from several existing monsters in order to devise the lodestone slime's various abilities:

• Scent metal is taken from the rust monster. 
• Like the iron golem, the lodestone slime is a ferrous creature, so is affected by rust attacks.
• Metal walk is modeled after the black pudding's suction ability.
• The acid attack is based on the gray ooze (which is Large, has 6 HD, and affects flesh and metal).
• Magnetic grab is modeled after the mimic's adhesive ability.
• The idea for using combat maneuvers for the magnetism aura came from the telekinesis spell, which seemed to be the closest analogy in the Core Rulebook spell list.

And finally, this creature has not yet been playtested at all, so I'd appreciate any feedback that you may have about the build.

D&D 5E with the Kids, Part 2

A few weeks ago, I posted about the start of my run of "Lost Mine of Phandelver" for my kids, a friend, and his kids. After some delays, we had our second session this past weekend.

(Obligatory spoiler warning for "Lost Mine of Phandelver")

Last time, the party had taken out some goblin sentries, but then withdrew to rest and heal. They returned to face two replacement guards, but took them down before any further alarm was raised.

This session started with them entering the cave that served as the goblins' hideout. Just inside the entrance was a chamber with two chained wolves, who the party treated with wary respect. The barbarian, who had been raised by wolves, couldn't bear to see these two in chains, so enlisted the cleric's help to calm the hostile animals, then feed and release them. The wolves were uncertain at first what to make of their freedom, but after a moment, left the cave to prowl around the woods outside.

Searching the wolf pen revealed a narrow chimney up to another chamber. The bard climbed up to investigate, and noticed a smoldering fire pit in the room. He moved forward to tie a rope to a nearby stalagmite, but was attacked by a wolf. The barbarian rushed up the wall to protect the bard, who retreated back down the chimney--but slipped and fell, knocking himself unconscious. The cleric promptly healed him, then suggested that the party rush up the main passage to join the fight from the other side, rather than risking their necks on a difficult climb.

The wolf's bugbear master bellowed orders to unseen minions in the next room, then hurled javelins at the intruder. The wolf's attacks were more effective than the bugbear, and only the barbarian's rage kept her standing for very long.

The rest of the party reached a room that was the source of the stream flowing down one side of the main tunnel: a waterfall entered a large chamber, where stone walls collected water in large pools. Here, three goblins were working to knock out one wall, in order to flood the entrance. The cleric and wizard took them out quickly, while the bard dodged past the fight to find the room that he had fallen from before. The wolf had just mauled the barbarian, rendering her unconscious, so the bard used his healing word spell to cure her from afar. The rogue rushed into that room and killed the wolf. The bugbear cursed at the loss of its pet, but missed the rogue with its morningstar. When it started to take damage from the heroes converging on the room, it fled to the chimney--but then repeated the bard's accident and knocked itself unconscious. The barbarian climbed down to make sure it was dead by beheading it.

Meanwhile, the wizard, seeing his companions handling the fighting quite well without him, explored the tunnel beyond a bridge to the far side of the stream. He stopped when he heard the sounds of goblins speaking in a room ahead, and reported back to the party.

The party took a short rest in the bugbear's room, while the cleric stood guard at the choke point at the bridge. As a dwarf, he easily understood the goblin's water trap, and proposed turning it on the goblins if they entered the main passage below. However, after some scouting by the bard, that plan was abandoned as too dangerous for the party. (Due to the steep slope of the most direct access to the remaining goblins, down near the wolf pen, they could not safely lure them out that way.)

The rogue scouted out the barracks room, then attempted to sneak attack the nearest goblin, but missed. The two nearest goblins closed with her, while three others started shooting at her, but noen could hit her. The other PCs moved into the room to start attacking goblins. The goblin leader, who was on a higher ledge in the back of the room, moved to a bound prisoner kept there, and pulled him toward the edge. However, before he could threaten to kill the prisoner, the dragonborn barbarian breathed acid on him, and the wizard cast sleep on the surviving goblins. With two goblins down and the leader wounded, the wizard's good roll with his spell was just barely enough to knock out the rest. The party then dispatched their sleeping foes, and freed the prisoner. (One goblin woke after being hit too weakly to kill it outright. It fled, but was chased down by the cleric and rogue.)

The captive turned out to be Sildar Hallwinter, the warrior who was escorting the party's employer, Gundren Rockseeker. He and the dwarf had been ambushed on the road to Phandalin, and brought here. Someone known only as the Black Spider had ordered the goblins to bring the dwarf to him, and Sildar knew no more about Gundren's whereabouts. He explained the reason behind the Rockseeker brothers' expedition: to find and reopen Wave Echo Cave, a famous mine and site of magical power, the location of which had been lost when orcs overran it centuries ago.

The party will rest here and heal, then escort Sildar (and Gundren's supply wagon) to Phandalin. This is the end of Part One of "Lost Mine," and the party has reached 2nd level, so we took care of that before wrapping the session.

Level advancement in much less complicated in 5th Edition than it was in 3rd or 4th. For most of the party, they added a class feature or two, rolled hit points, and were finished. Two players--the barbarian and the wizard--were very unlucky and rolled 1's for hp, which prompted the bard's player (who went last) to choose average hp instead of rolling! The bard and wizard also had to choose new spells known, and the wizard chose the School of Conjuration as his arcane tradition. (The cleric already chose a domain at 1st level, and the bard, barbarian, and rogue have to wait until 3rd level to select their archetypes.)

This session demonstrated the odd blend of fragility and resiliency that low-level characters have in this edition--they can be reduced to 0 hp very easily, but then have the buffer of making death saving throws before they actually die. Two PCs were reduced to 0 hp this session, but only one was down long enough to have to make any death saves (and succeeded on that one). I forgot the rule about massive damage instantly killing characters (if leftover damage exceeds maximum hp), which might have been bad news for the bard, who had just 1 hp when he fell down the chimney. I'll need to point out that rule to them for future reference, because there are some monsters later in this adventure who can dish out enough damage to threaten that kind of swift death, even after the party gains a few levels.

Building the Bestiary #1: Humanoids

This column will be the first in an irregular series of articles in which I will give examples of how I've approached building LEGO models of various creatures for use as RPG miniatures. My earlier article, "How to Cheat (at Building) a Dragon," could be considered part of this series as well. You will probably also want to check out the following older posts, which review various products for the usefulness of their minifigures:

• Studded Plate: LEGO Minifigures as RPG Miniatures: The Lord of the Rings theme.
• Return of the Ring: The second wave of LOTR sets.
• It's an Even Smaller World: Microfigures: LEGO Games, focusing on Heroica.
• LEGO Minifigures Series 14: Monsters!
• LEGO Minifigures Series 15

For this first installment, we'll start simple, with humanoids. A wide variety of humanoid species can be created by equiping basic minifigures with various accessories. The collectible Minifigures series are a great source for nonhuman characters and parts, as are several other LEGO themes: Castle/Kingdom, Star Wars, Legends of Chima, Lord of the Rings, The Hobbit. and others.

The pregenerated PCs from Death in Freeport (L-R):
Malevir (half-elf) sorcerer, Rollo (gnome fighter), Alaina (human rogue), Thorgrim (dwarf cleric).

First, let's look at the classic player character races, from the D&D Player's Handbook and Pathfinder Core Rulebook.

Dwarves: The Castle and LOTR/Hobbit themes have included a number of fine dwarf minifigures. Lacking those parts, a dwarf can be easily built by adding a beard to a minifigure and replacing the legs with shorter legs--the dwarf/child short leg pieces, a pair of 1x1 bricks or cylinders, or a 1x2 bamboo brick.

Elves: There was a single medieval fantasy elf (Minifigures Series 3) released before the LOTR theme, and a Holiday Elf produced since then (Series 11). The new LEGO Elves theme provides minidoll elves, whose pointy-eared hair pieces can also be worn by minifigures. Apart from those characters, I have used Castle forestmen for elves, and other figures with green and brown garments are useful, too. Ethnic faces such as those from Old West tribemen or the original Ninja theme are good for giving your elves an exotic look. (I used the latter for the half-elf Malevir, pictured above.)

Gnomes: Gnomes can be built much like dwarves or halflings. Pathfinder gnomes may have unusually-colored hair and skin, so if you have appropriate parts, use them to help distinguish your gnomes from the other short races.

Half-Elves: Decide which parent the half-elf favors, and build accordingly.

Half-Orcs: Some years before the LOTR orcs and Hobbit goblins were released, the Castle/Kingdoms line included some sets with "trolls," which were basically green-faced orcs with tusk-like fangs. Other green-skinned minifigures (such as Green Goblin and the Wicked Witch) may prove useful, as will various near-human Star Wars aliens. For less bestial half-orcs, look for savage-looking characters such as the uglier Castle bandits, and Darth Vader's scarred, gray face.

Halflings: Use hobbit minifigures, or put shorter legs on human bodies (see Dwarves, above). D&D and Pathfinder halfling men tend to have pronounced sideburns, so look for faces to match. If you want your halflings to look like true half-pints, try using Heroica microfigures--but note that those characters can't be customized easily.

Kodath (half-orc) samurai and wu jen, from True20 Freeport: The Lost Island.

A couple of subraces deserve comment because of their distinctive appearances:

Drow (dark elves) have black skin and white hair, though brown skin and light gray or tan hair would work just as well. Marvel's Storm is an ideal choice here--she even has the white eyes seen in many drow portraits. A small number of other brown heads are available, scattered across a few different themes. Darth Maul and Ninjago's Lord Garmadon and Stone Army provide black heads; their bizarre markings might be appropriate for certain individual drow. Finally, the Spider Lady's outfit (Minifigures Series 14) makes perfect vestments for a priestess of Lolth.

(I'll address aquatic elves in a future column, when I talk about underwater races.)

Svirfneblin (deep gnomes) have gray skin and hair (though males are bald). Peeves (Harry Potter), Darth Vader, the gargoyle (Minifigures Series 14), and some statues have gray heads. Alternately, use the plain gray "statue" microfigures that appear in some LOTR and Heroica sets, or the Golems from Caverns of Nathuz.

Now we'll look at the most common savage humanoid races from the D&D Monster Manual and Pathfinder Bestiary.

Orcs: See Half-Orcs, above.

Goblinoids (bugbears, goblins, hobgoblins): Use green-skinned orc/goblin/troll minifigures for goblins (see Half-Orcs, above), but with shorter legs. Other varieties of goblins have appeared in the Harry Potter theme and Minifigures Series 13; Dobby and Yoda also make serviceable goblins. Alternately, use Heroica goblin microfigures (from Draida Bay and Castle Fortaan). One advantage of these smaller figures is that when you need a wolf-rider, the microfigure can be snapped onto the back-stud of a LEGO dog.

D&D hobgoblins have orange or red-orange skin, so use orange-, red-, and tan-skinned goblin/orc minifigures (or the red-skinned villains in the new Nexo Knights series). In Pathfinder and some D&D worlds, hobgoblins are members of the "green races," just like goblins and orcs. In that case, you'll need to differentiate them in some other way, such as the Asian-influenced arms and armor they were depicted using in 1st Edition.

Bugbears are larger (though still Medium), and hairier, so use Wookiees (or Ewoks given normal-length legs), Yeti or Squarefoot (from Series 11 and 14), or the human-headed type of Wolfmen.  If you have any Harry Potter sets, a Hagrid figure with a more monstrous head works well to convey a bugbear's relative size to smaller goblinoids.

For a serpent person, add a
clip-plate for a forked tongue. 

Reptilian Humanoids (kobolds, lizardfolk, troglodytes): A variety of reptile-headed minifigures have been released in the past--Greedo, Lizard Suit Guy (Series 5), the Serpentine of Ninjago, and the Crocodile tribe of Legends of Chima--any of which would be suitable for lizardfolk or troglodytes. Kobolds can be created by giving those same creatures shorter legs.

If you have no suitable heads, try a 1x2 brick with a hole in the center. Stick the neck post into one half of the brick, and place 1x2 round tiles in the holes for eyes. This makes a simple, forward-thrust animal head.

Gnolls: For the hyena-headed gnolls, use werewolves (Series 14, Monster Fighters, or the much older LEGO Studios theme), Anubis warriors (Pharoah's Quest), or Wolf Tribe characters (Legends of Chima).

[This article was edited 3/17/2016 to add LEGO Elves. Thanks to Donald Eric Kesler for reminding me of that theme!]