Header Art: Monster Manual (2014) by Wizards of the Coast

The world is full of murderous monsters only stopped from killing sprees that empty a city by a brave band of murderhobo adventurers who might have a heart of gold… that they stole from a gold dragon when they raided its home and killed the poor creature. But maybe, that’s the wrong way to think about monsters. Maybe, they are open to talking and subverting the normal adventuring quests that players are used to.

The following monsters are often the point of many quests, but why can’t they be quest givers? Perhaps they can be a bit less monstrous than we were first led to believe.

Manticore

**Princes of the Apocalypse**, 2015 WotC

True to their creature type, monstrosity, these monsters love to feast upon any prey they can find be it humanoid, humanoid, or maybe some humanoid. They often have to fight off wyverns, perytons, and griffons for territory, often by using the tail spikes on the tip of their tail that they can launch at high speeds. They are often considered dumb and cruel brutes, and typically have a lawful evil alignment - meaning they aren’t going to be making friends with most people they come across.

For more information on the Manticore, check out our Deep Dive!

Where They Are Found

Manticores are often found in mountains, the plains, deserts, sparse forests, and anywhere else they can fly about and search for prey from on high, though they prefer warmer climates. They are going to avoid thick forests and jungles, mostly because it will be too difficult for their wide wingspan to negotiate and they’d be forced to walk on the ground… like the prey they love so much. You might even stumble upon them in a high-up cave, though it isn’t on purpose for them. They don’t want to meet in a cave as it limits their ability to fly and gain an advantage against their prey.

What They Might Want

Manticores are guided by their stomachs and, while they might appear untrustworthy, will make deals and uphold their end of the deal. Though, they are going to do so with as little effort as possible for the greatest reward. They have little use for pretty things and prefer bribes made up of meat, preferably still warm and bleeding and in great quantities, with promises of future more meat in the future.

Manticores are known to work for evil masters, and they’ll comply so long as they are well fed. With that said, they are more than happy to ask adventurers what deal they might get if they switch sides.
Manticores hate wyverns, perytons, and other flying predators, but those are threats that they can deal with, even if they have to work together. What they can’t deal with are young and older dragons who take up residence in their location. They may be willing to guide adventuring parties to those dragons, and by extension, the dragon’s treasure hoard.
There is a hunter in the nearby village that keeps stealing the manticore’s kills. The manticore has tried to kill the hunter on numerous occasions, but the hunter just sneaks off and doesn’t even fight the manticore! Needless to say, the manticore wants revenge and has come up with a great idea - it will hire adventurers to go into the village and capture the hunter. They will then bring the hunter to the manticore and it will get to eat the hunter. The only issue is, it isn’t sure what a good reward is for this… maybe the adventurers would like some useless crap it found on a merchant it ate yesterday.

Roleplaying Tips

Manticores are not quick-witted or smart, instead, they resort to recycling insults and words that it has heard from others. A few may try to show off their intelligence by repeating words it has heard before, even if those words don’t mean what it thinks they mean. It will not like being corrected when it does this.

They also snarl a lot, as they still have quite a bit of beast within them. Whenever they are frustrated, which is going to happen if they are talking to adventurers, they will include snide insults about land-walkers. It may even gloat about its impressive wings and powerful body, describing in detail the various creatures it has slain and eaten, even humanoids it has devoured in the past because it doesn’t see anything wrong with that.

Names

Manticores often name themselves after great enemies they have defeated, their favorite meal, or something they think is terrifying. They may screech out their name as they go in for the kill - or inform the creature that they are killing, who exactly is sending them to hell.

Common Names: Mankiller, Drakeslayer, Spikelord, Jaggedspike, Fleshchomper, Rabbitslayer (as an insult to a lowly manticore), Cloudslaughter, Flying Death

**Waterdeep: Dungeon of the Mad Mage**, 2018 WotC

Medusa

**Mythic Odysseys of Theros**, 2020 WotC

These blue-skinned women have snakes for hair and their very look can turn creatures to stone. Whether they were cursed this way, or this is some weird adaptations they gained eons back, they often seek things of great beauty to surround themselves with. Unfortunately, they often let such things rot and crumble away as they fall into pits of despair at their lots in life.

For more information on the Medusa, check out our Deep Dive!

Where They Are Found

Medusa can be found anywhere settlements are, though they are several miles away from them. They like to stay within close proximity of settlements because they crave socialization but every time they attempt it, their curse works against them. Eventually, they cease their attempts and grow bitter at the world, believing it is the world that is at fault.

What They Might Want

Medusae are tempted by anything pretty, though they dislike anything that reflects their true appearance to them. Mirrors are hated above all, while portraits and paintings are adored as there is no hint of reflection on their surface. They often seek out constructs and elementals, as they are some of the few creatures that can’t be petrified. While they could consort with the undead, they are unlikely to due to how hideous they are.

A medusa wishes to go to a massive ball in the kingdom, though she lacks an invitation, a dress, and a way to avoid her curse from turning the kingdom against her. In exchange, she can offer anyone who helps her jewels, treasure, or even secrets to the Inner Planes.
Tired of being surrounded by a crumbling ruin, a medusa is looking to bring beauty back into her life. The medusa is willing to pay well any adventurer that can bring back great pieces of artwork, and she will pay in silver, gold, and any reflective pieces of treasure she has. She can even trade with arcane secrets and magic items she may have acquired from… previous visitors.
There is a book that a medusa is interested in, one that would allow her to create more constructs to add to her collection. Of course, not just any book will do, as she wants only the prettiest of servants to serve her every desire, like those made of gems and granite from far-flung planes.

Roleplaying Tips

A medusa has two ways of treating the world. Some still believe in surrounding themselves with beauty and decorations, trying to focus on purity and beauty. Others have given into misery and dismay at their situation, allowing their homes to crumble. Those who still focus on beauty, speak with a greater gravitas like a queen addressing her subjects. Those who have fallen into dismay may be hoarse from not having spoken in a very long time, even forgetting their manners and talking to themselves constantly. Neither one are willing to break pacts and deals they make, for fear that their curse might grow worse if they were to break a promise.

Names

Medusa names are normal female names, though some may choose to take on a more ‘mystique’ name that harkens to earlier civilizations.

Common Names: Althea, Andromeda, Electra, Klotho, Eudora, Phoebe, Callisto

**Moldvay Basic Box Set**, 1981 TSR Inc.

Naga

These large serpent creatures have cunning and magic in spades, capable of blasting their enemies apart with bolts of lightning or killing with deadly poisons. There are a variety of naga, with the most common being the spirit naga, guardian naga, bone naga, and until recently, water naga. There are a few good naga and even neutral ones, but most strive to spread pain and suffering.

For more information on the Naga, check out our Deep Dive!

Where They Are Found

Naga are most often found in distant realms where they guard ancient sites of importance. Guardian naga do so to protect treasure and information for future generations, while naga like the spirit naga seek to only increase their power and ability. Ruins often have naga who have claimed them, though they can also be found in the subterranean tunnels of the Dark Below, far below the surface. They typically seek to set up a lair but will travel out from it in search of food, magic items, and knowledge.

**Guardian Naga - Monster Manual**, 2014 WotC

What They Might Want

While there are many types of naga, they often have similar interests and desires. Every naga, except maybe bone naga, have an interest in accumulating magic items that they can use, to help augment their impressive powers. Due to their form, this limits them to rings, bracers, headbands, and other items that a serpent could wear. They also seek spell scrolls to increase their magical options, as they are limited in what spells they can cast due to having no hands to provide material or somatic components. They are obsessed with researching existing spells and finding ways of casting them with just vocal components, but such magical research is expensive and they require vast amounts of gold to help them gather expensive materials or to pay others to work on the spells.

**Bone Naga - Monster Manual**, 2014 WotC

A spirit naga has been wronged by a drow mage it had made a deal with. It had paid the drow a handsome sum, but the mage refused to create a spell that the spirit naga wanted. The naga would normally handle this itself, but perhaps the adventurers would be willing to risk their lives in exchange for a few magic items that the naga has that it can’t use, like wands or staves.
Protector of ruins and lost knowledge, a guardian naga is looking for help in tracking down a thief who stole a valuable item from its lair. It can’t leave it’s location, for fear of someone else coming along and stealing everything while the lair is undefended, but perhaps the party would be willing to track down the thief and return the ancient tome they stole. In exchange, the guardian naga would be happy to teach a spellcaster how to cast a few spells it knows without material or somatic components, then the spellcaster could cast those spells even if their hands were tied.
A group of yuan-ti are trying to take over a naga’s home deep in the jungle, where ruins of an ancient civilization still stand. The yuan-ti are hoping to find lost knowledge of their serpent gods and demons, perhaps in a bid to bring them to the mortal world or to strengthen their kind against the humanoids. To that end, they have kidnapped several naga and turned them into bone naga, which now attack and attempt to destroy their previous naga allies. If the party can defeat the yuan-ti leaders, and destroy the bone naga, they would be well rewarded.

Roleplaying Tips

Naga are as varied as their species, with some trustworthy and others capricious. They often lace their words with promises, trying to charm other creatures into trusting them and agreeing to their deals. Many naga, except perhaps the guardian naga, have no problem lying and twisting the truth, saying whatever they have to to ensure that they get what they want.

Names

Naga have ancient names, even ones that were born only a few decades ago. Due to how ancient their culture is, their names often seem archaic.

Common Names: Terentius, Plinius, Muiredach, Iulianus, Muadnat, Lykourgos, Aemilia

**Dark Naga**, **Guardian Naga**, **Primordial Naga**, **Bone Naga - Monster Manual**, 2008 WotC

Otyugh

While their stench is a smell to be held, and one that keeps most people far from them, otyughs are one of the few monsters that aren’t seeking to destroy the world, end civilization, or even kill living creatures. They are simply looking for the most delightful sources of rubbish and filth to feast on, though they aren’t above feasting on any rats that scurry around their filth heaps. They are an odd sight, with eyes on a large tentacle and their body is mostly just a large mouth set upon three legs.

For more information on the Otyugh, check out our Deep Dive!

Where They Are Found

Otyughs are found where ever filth accumulates, often in great rubbish heaps. Some cities will even have otyughs below their city, in sewers and natural caverns that form, bringing all of their refuse and offal for the otyughs to devour. The otyughs are more than happy to get rid of such crap in exchange for having a safe place to stay and not having to worry about where their next meal might come from. Other otyughs can be found within the Dark Below, the subterranean tunnels that criss-cross the world beneath the surface, serving evil overlords or wandering through the tunnels in search of their next meal.

What They Might Want

Otyughs are simple creatures who are just looking for where their next meal might be. They aren’t picky about what they consume and their only requirement is that there is a lot to eat, for they are always hungry. Any deal they make is one based on them doing as little as possible while gaining as much food as possible. They are more than happy to eat half an adventurer’s body weight in food and rations, instead of just eating the adventurer, if it means they don’t have to do any work to get their food.

Someone has kicked the otyughs out from their home beneath the city, and now the otyughs are rampaging through the town… sort of. They’ve turned over several cabbage and apple carts and are currently eating as many meat pies from a nearby bakery as they can fit in their mouths. They have left everyone else alone, but it’s only a matter of time before they run out of food. Someone needs to get the otyughs back to their homes, and soon so that they can stop eating all of the carrots and onions in the food stalls.
While the otyugh is supposed to be protecting a monster’s home, it can’t help but smell such delightful trail rations that the adventuring party is carrying on them. If they’d be willing to trade, access to the monster’s home in exchange for all of their rations, the otyugh would be more than happy to agree… also, if they do happen to kill the monster, could they bring back its body for it to feast on? It already has a deal with the monster that if they die, it’ll bring their bodies to it so they don’t have to worry about that.
The village keeps throwing things at the otyugh, mostly inedible things like rocks. It is hoping to talk to reasonable people who don’t attack otyughs for no reason. It can’t help but notice that the village has a delightful compost bin that is overflowing with pig droppings, rotting cabbages, moldy cheese, and even wine that has turned to vinegar. It really, really, really wants to try that delectable arrangement of flavors, but every time it gets within 100 yards of the village, everyone comes out screaming and throwing stuff at it. Maybe a traveling group of adventurers will have a better time, or else it’ll have to try something else to get that irresistible treat, like maybe throwing rocks back at the villagers.

Roleplaying Tips

Otyughs don’t like to communicate with people by showing their appearance. Instead, it remains buried within its pile of offal and trash and uses its telepathy to inquire with outsiders. It uses simple words and is slow to express complex ideas. It has little care for things outside of what is edible but is delighted by anyone who also enjoys interesting flavors, even offering some of its own special treats to them.

Names

The language of otyugh is often compared to the sounds of belching, squelching mud, and great lip smacks. Otyugh names are typically short and take a bit of practice to get right and used to.

Common Names: Glyub, Matyh, Okien, Bletyn, Dytaon, Nyniwa, Tiwld, Deflog, Xytsos

Xorn

These elementals are an odd sight to behold with three arms, three eyes, three legs, and a single gaping maw on the top of their body. Most adventurers would describe this creature as a threat to society and be casting spells and swinging swords before it ever gets a chance to ask for gold, jewels, and rare metal art pieces. The xorn only feeds on precious metal and gems, which is quite prolific on its home plane of the Plane of Earth, not so much in comparison to the Material Plane where they sometimes end up.

For more information on the Xorn, check out our Deep Dive!

Where They Are Found

Xorn are found throughout the Plane of Earth, but also in subterranean locales within the Dark Below, the world far below the surface. They can travel through the earth as if they were fish in water, allowing them to hide within the rocks for safety, though they must still breathe air, leaving them vulnerable when they wish to sleep.

What They Might Want

They typically keep to themselves, seeking out sustenance in the form of rare metals, like scrumptious gold coins, and delicious gems. Unfortunately, they require a lot of food to keep them going and, when they end up on a plane lacking in resources, it can get pretty dangerous for the xorn who might just starve to death. Xorn’s are looking for food, as well as information as to how they might get back to the Plane of Earth or where a huge hoard of treasure might be located, like in a dragon’s hoard.

So hungry, the xorn keeps repeating to the adventurers in front of it. Unfortunately, it seems that none of them speak terran and they think it is threatening them. The xorn attempts to use its claws to point at their coin purses and then its mouth. If only these adventurers could speak to it, the xorn could try and set up trade between them and it. Perhaps if they were lost, it could offer directions to the nearest settlement in the Dark Below.
A xorn approaches the party with a deal. There just happens to be a massive hoard of treasure in a nearby cave structure, unfortunately, the kobolds and their dragon god refuse to share any. Maybe if the party could help the xorn, it would split the treasure with them - it gets all of the rare jewels and half of the coins, and they can have everything else. Maybe creatures of the Material Plane subsist on paintings and statues?
This xorn is lost and afraid it won’t ever return to its home on the Plane of Earth. If the party could help it locate a portal to the plane, it’d be happy to help them in any way that it can, perhaps it can take them to the dao capital on the Plane of Earth, the Great Dismal Delve?

Roleplaying Tips

Xorns are alien creatures to the Material Plane and thus have different ideas of social etiquettes and ideas. It believes that stubborn and unmoving, like stone, are high qualities in a creature, while those who are chaotic and quickly change their mind are negatives. They are slow to come to fast decisions. While many might assume xorn are dumb, they aren’t. They just like to think things through completely before coming to any conclusion. When they make deals with others, they might break stones to show their agreement or offer the person they are making a deal with a tasty gem to show their trustworthiness, expecting the same in return from the other’s supply of gems. It’ll find it weird that creatures like to wear food hanging from their necks and ears but may attempt to fit in by finding humanoid food and wearing it as decoration as well.

Names

Xorn largely speak only terran, though a rare few have learned additional languages. Terran is a rough language for non-elementals to speak, largely because it turns throats hoarse and it sounds like you are gargling with rocks. Typical xorn names are long and often unpronounceable to outsiders, though they are willing to take on short nicknames that others can pronounce.

Common Names: Rhosebxaneorn, Hoprtpieninsip, Waeigmatnilidus, Lywdicukiusuk, Twhiegodstoanulwo, Aedgoelrdaeadg, Isfianutaran, Hegrakiuleigaos, Searlenucuios

These aren’t the only monsters who may wish to talk more than they wish to feast upon the flesh and bones of adventurers. Winter wolves, grell, hags, ghosts, banshees, merfolk, satyr, vampires, troglodytes, and so many more all have quests for adventurers brave enough to not destroy them outright, but to listen and talk.

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May 24 5 Horrific Monsters That Just Want to Talk

Header Art: Monster Manual (2014) by Wizards of the Coast

Manticore

Where They Are Found

What They Might Want

Roleplaying Tips

Names

Medusa

Where They Are Found

What They Might Want

Roleplaying Tips

Names

Naga

Where They Are Found

What They Might Want

Roleplaying Tips

Names

Otyugh

Where They Are Found

What They Might Want

Roleplaying Tips

Names

Xorn

Where They Are Found

What They Might Want

Roleplaying Tips

Names

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May 31 Liches for Other Classes

May 17 Action Points - Homebrew

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