D&D MONSTER RANKINGS - ELEMENTALS
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- Опубликовано: 16 июн 2024
- Primordial forces surge from the Elemental Planes!
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You know, I gotta say, whenever you talk about this game, you're really *_"In your element."_*
Sir, here is the door, that pun was terrible. Now kindly see yourself out.
Your breath taking
@@TheTrueFeleas Hate to break it to you, bud, but last time I checked, the doors in your society aren't hexagon-shaped.
@@ethanotoroculus1060 Haha touche!
That joke was on fire!
You overlooked something about the Genasi: According to the Elemental Evil Player's Companion, Genasi can be formed through magical experimentation with the Elemental magics, gone wrong. So you can just be a Wizard who was practicing an improved Conjure Elemental spell, and then you accidentally, blast yourself in the face with pure energy from the Plane of Air, becoming an Air Genasi.
So you’re saying that Genasi backstory can be as dumb as strapping a lightning rod on your back during thunderstorm?
@@justnoob8141 If it were a magical storm, yeah!
@@Tinkatube alright, that settled then, Ben Frankilin is now Genasi
@@justnoob8141 He has a turkey familiar and wears Bifocals of Improved Perception.
@@Bob-lr2xp 😅😅😅 I fucking love that!!!
Imprisonment. It's a ninth level Spell. That's how players put genies in bottles.
As a dm I had to check the statistics (I have a different system for trapping genies) it could work but would take some finagling. The spell doesnt specify you can choose a different vessel for containment aside from the options the spells lays out, gem, antimagic sphere, chains, etc. But a creative player could sway me to modify the way the spell works with a little prep work and luck
@@AmigoRoberto Gem dust in a lamp maybe.
@@AmigoRoberto minimums containment is genie in a bottle put them in a gem with a release condition “if you grant me wishes”
Actually it is a rite...
Just use an iron flask. Just as affective but may not grant the same affect you desire.
The Elder Elementals
The fearsome Leviathan
The magnificent Phoenix
The dreadful Tempest
And finally, Derp Turtle
Do not underestimate derp turtles, I watched my derp turtle in Ark 1v1 a T-rex long ago.
the turtle is trying his best
@@catman9222 I had one and rode it while destroying a tek base with my giant bombs. But my mighty turtle was left alone to fend for itself, because a random pterodactyl pulled up. It was able to kill a few of their large Dino’s. It took me about two years on that server to get the turtle to that level(no cap). I was able to reclaim my turtle, because my tribe member’s decided that me dying was the best time to attack. A few days later the admin shut down the server. My poor glamorwok.
Fun house rule gargoyles have an aura causing undead to struggle to get get close to them, take less damage from undead, and deal more damage to them
Gargoyles should have that anyway
@@MegaPokefan97 Why?
In the real world. They be holy boys
@@pepsicrusader535 y a a s
@Soviet who Cuts Which is ironic because in recent times Vampire castles in pop culture are often shown with gargoyles as part of the gothic/Victorian decor
"...Well, gargoyles were originally created to scare and ward off evil spirits... so I suppose they accomplish what they were intended for..."
*scrawls in notes* Esper; Evil, possibility is likely.
I really thought you were going to say that Gargoyles should be Constructs, rather than Elementals. I've never considered them being Monstrosities or Fiends.
Yeah constructs would probably be more fitting
Agreed 100%. Gargoyles are weird in how they're presented considering all their nuances and quirks
Cast a ritual on a place for enough time, day after day, and the stones remember and the magic holds forever. When the weave heals and the morter has washed away, the stones loose their consentration on the spell but remember the goal of the spell. Gargoyles deffend as the spells that made them did, but the details of how excapes their young grasp. Their nature depends on the set of spells. Their silent still fixation is their origin story. Is it a myth or is it their true story?
I thought a gargoyle was a living breathing race of monsters not something a person constructed
@@dragonballtalk8527 Have you seen the first Gargoyle? Have you seen one born? Are there other types?
Long ago, the four nations lived together in harmony...
But everything changed when the fire nation attacked
Particle gaming Then the Earth elementals stomped them
@@charlottewalnut3118 derp turtle to the rescue
I’ve always interpreted the “hold their breath” rule to be based off them getting the chance to take a breath. A sudden surprise choking/drowning would be just the number of turns equal to Con Mod
I'm actually homebrewing a Warlock Patron pact of the Genie. Its still a work in progress. But the general idea is a subversion of The Genie serves me, and is now I serve the Genie.
Noble Genie Otherwordly Patron in Xanathar's Lost Notes to Everything Else
Genies are huge slavers, so it does make sense.
Cool, maybe it could be called the pact of the Djinn?
The Genie rubbed your "lamp" didn't it?
@@Indigo_404 djinn are only genies of elemental air. There are 3 other genies for the 3 other elements.
"Genasi can make it in most animes"
Insert Berserk
Queazy Snail Level 20 fire genasi Barbarian
Yushiro Shihoin guts, is easily level 20. And constantly gets his ass kicked.
Weren't all fantasy creatures made real in the Overlaying?
Itachi Uchiha he doesn’t have healing and works poorly with his party
abyssal113 Yup
Now I wanna see an elder elemental fighting a tarrasque.
Probably not gonna survive the encounter but it would look cool until I get crush by a flying reptile.
Actually, I bet an elder tempest would wreck a tarrasque (by base 5e stats) because the tempest has a 120 fly speed and mile long attack and the tarraqsue has zero ranged attacks and only a speed of 40 ft.
@@yeahminecraft1627 it only has a walking speed of what? Are you for real?
@@jan-timolobner in 5e, yep speed of 40 and no special speeds
Gargoyles are construct in my books they are guardians of temple or magical building created by powerful mage
Good call! I don't know why I didn't think of that
But many constructs are just trapped elemental spirits
@@thezerowulf507 true but it's about classification if we take every construct whit a elemental spirit in it as elemental, the category will simply not exist and any way gargoyles a clearly MADE not BORN or CREATED that the line that I personally use.
im down for that but i like them to shift from stone to blood and flesh form cause that is so much cooler IMO
Personally, my favorite elementals are the ones specially made for a setting, like 2e ravenloft's Grave, Pyre, Blood, and Mist. They still represent the 4 basic elements, but with a simple twist to make them fit into their surroundings better.
Fun fact, in pathfinder you can actually cook and eat invisible stalker "flesh", it's apparently like fluffy cloud cotton candy
When you were listing all those 4th edition mixed elementals, all I could think of was:
The Sash-Ringing, the Trash-Singing, Mash-Flinging, th-th-the Flash-Springing, Ringing, the Cr-Crash-Dinging, daa.
THE HASH-SLINGING SLASHER!
Ah Elementals the purest form of "Nature is pissed!" also with those genies what did I say before about humanity's greatest power in fantasy? Genasi are further proof.
I would’ve thought that Gargoyles would be constructs
I once decided to hunt the flail snail while wearing my scale mail. I was lucky that I did not fail but that didn’t keep me from turning pale, I heard a ghostly wail and decided to bail. I am glad I escaped, even if it did hail.
Elementals in general are among my favorite enemies, the regular box elementals are also my favorite among them
Are you speaking of the classic four man band of air, earth, fire, and water, or is there a special type of elemental based of boxes?
If the former, i'd like to see a homebrew of the ladder
@@defensivekobra3873 Yes i meant the regular 4 dudes. Now i need some time for myself cause i have to homebrew some box shaped elementals lol
The word Myrmidon always reminds me of Fire Emblem
Guy! Joshua!
Go mia
Rutger, Edward and Karel
For the air Genie, I feel like doing a lore explanation for why they would be in lamps. While the other 3 are bound to them as a sort of punishment, air Genies purposefully enslave themselves so they may understand and respect their servants better. Prehaps even as a trial to become a genie leader/noble.
Makes a lot of sense when you think about it
No one:
If there was a firenewt bard he could spit fire 2 different ways.
"Invisible Stalkers are conjured through rare magic rituals"
I wasn't aware that casting conjure elemental at 6th lvl was particularly rare
I mean it depends on the campaign and DM, but at least as written once you're around the 10th level your party are exceptional individuals in the eyes of the world and you've becoming people that shape the fate of the entire world and fight some of the most power monsters.
I look forward to, one day, seeing tiers for things like weapons or magical items
Would indeed be interesting.
Gnome- earth
Undyne- water
Salamander- fire
Slyph- air
I see the inspiration for the elemental spirits in black clover my man Tabata made such a great story.
Man I love when I see an Esper video in my sub feed it get sot back for an hour and imagine all the encounters I can run. Thanks my guy!
I've been getting into the monsters of D&D a lot more, since I started watching your videos, all very good videos, very clear, and very easy to understand. thank you for the content, and please keep making more!
A bard is most pleased to have given inspiration
50:31 Who would like a fantasy harem anime whose harem is entirely made up of Genasi girls?
Though, of course, the fire one would be the tsundere. Because fire is apparently the tsundere's element of choice.
"Taming the fire" tsundere
"Melting the ice queen" kuudere
Pick your female love interest, you can choose both but you got make one appear before the other
I honestly wouldn't be surprised if this popped up next season.
And I'd totally watch it.
@@pohatunuva3771 Me too.
WakaWaka WakaWaka plow the fields farmer girl
Wind was the tsundere in Captain Planet though. ;)
Now, all we need is the Fey list. Oh sweet christ.
@Herald of dissonance Don't forget the one d-c tier blink dog.
I'm really glad you came out with this video I've been trying to build a campaign around element in this video has helped me very much so I thank you for that
Thank you! I've been waiting for this one and I was not disappointed! And thanks for telling me about the mixed elementals.
21:28 THANK YOU for this!! I've been looking for this for so long, as I had just some vague image in my memory to the point I started wondering whether or not it was but a dream. Another benefit of subscribing. Exquisite content
Oh it does have a wonderful dreamlike quality to it. Enjoy, Storyteller was an excellent show!
I'm really happy you gave a nod to the "normal elementals" and the mephits. This might be my favorite video of yours.
My day is saved, thanks as always. Ótimo trabalho!
Valeu!
I have to say, I enjoy these vids on a nostalgic level. I love seeing the art from past editions, especially 1st ed.
1:00
Gnome Undyne Sylph and Salamander
I remember my first time seeing those 4 together too... wasn't secret of mana tho horahora
D I S G U S T I N G
@@benbaker6221 I don't get it
Believe me you probably don't wanna know
@@benbaker6221 *SHAKING YOUR SHOULDERS EXTREMELY VIOLENTY* TELL ME!
@@jonalynmisalang9447 So you want some coil do you?
Awesome! I am planning a campaign in the Zakhara/Al-Quadim setting, this video came out perfectly timed :D
Keep up the good work, you are one of the best D&D creators out there in my opinion!
You can actually bind a genie to a bottle as a player, it requires the level 9 spell imprisonment. If you want to bind it to your service you can use the spell planar binding to make it serve you. If you want to go the extra mile, you can use them both and force it to function like a classical genie for a year and a day.
0:01 ohhh...now I get where that line from “I’ll make a man out of you” cane from
I could see a cult of Sahuagin summoning Leviathan.
1:00:00 I like your style as it makes for others to add theirs to it with little to no effort. Well done, Sir Bard.
21:30 I loved this show! And that was the best episode. I used to tell those stories in my best John Hurt voice on campouts. Stone Soup was also a favorite
wow a whole hour! nice work Esper also Elementals and golems are my two favorite creatures.
Planar Binding, with a true name, some gifts, and a nat 20 might get you a wish granting genie. Great video! Love your stuff
Another great video. Esper is the GOAT
Dinosaurs at some point maybe?
Zombie dinosaurs
Heck yeah
i love your videos,they are very useful for my campaigns and worlds
"... come across a SECOND of these bulls...."
Those 2 bulls used to face each other in front of the Kansas Coliseum , years ago. I still wish they were there they look really cool that way.
Had a Galeb Dhur as an NPC in a campaign I ran ages ago; little guy had an unfathomable sense of humor that did not align up with meat-brain thinking, and when something they did or said randomly struck he and his brethren as funny, a contagious (to them only) laugh spread through the stones. To other people, it was just a low rumble and vibrating rocks, but in galeb dhur terms, it was rolling on the floor laughing hysterically, and could take hours to pass. In short , it was my GM fiat of 'okay, enough information gleaned from the wise rocks for today';
Elementals?! Are Fey next Esper?
Also, what happened to not including player races in monster ranking videos?
Genasi were first monsters, and were added as playable races in Elemental Evil
I am highly considering fey, though goblins will probably come next ;)
I'm surprised the Firenewts managed to jump up in ranking since their appearance in the beastfolk video. But i'm glad they did. i'd always found them pretty interesting and wished they'd be fleshed out some more.
And I agree with your opinion on the gargoyles being odd picks for the elementals. I'd always viewed them more like constructs. And I was really disappointed with the elder elementals. Especially the phoenix. The older edition phoenix was so much more interesting.
Awesome list, keep em' coming.
As a fellow wichita local I wanted to say hi esper, and my your games be forever fruitful and full of whimsical delight.
Another great video, one particular idea I got for possible encounters for a campaign would be the flail snail, but with some "homebrew tweaks" such as maybe bumping up the CR a bit, because such low level characters dont need that much gold so quickly, and bumping up its speed to maybe 20 feet simply because of how big it is. And maybe instead of just sheilds maybe have the shell be crafted into armor and instead of a 33% chance of the force blast or magic reflect failing, instead having it be a 50% chance that it would be one or the other.
44:15 I mean…being infuriated and miserable because someone murdered your pet is hardly what I’d call a “Tantrum”. If someone killed, say, my dog, even if it was attacking them, I’d feel that too. Pets are straight-up the best friends someone can ask for.
i think gargoyles being chaotic works. they aren't bound by hyrachy or other similar manors for controlling populations. all they want to do it eat. this doesn't need to have any relation to how they achieve that goal. saying that a chaotic being can't lay a trap and wait for long times is probably just limiting your own options.
Another great and interesting video from you! Would you consider ranking the oozes at some point? I would appreciate that dearly. Keep up the great work
"Before you drink from a fountain or pool, toss a copper coin into it. It’s a small price to pay for your life [In regards to Water Weirds]." X the Mystic.
Just starting to DM Princes of Apocalypse next month, this was very welcome,
8:30
You'e undervaluing the drown option. A creature can hold it's breath for a number of minutes, yes, but are you really capable of holding your breath if you don't see this permanently invisible monster coming? No. You skip the "minutes until drowning" and go straight to suffocating, AKA "rounds before dropped to zero HP." And keep in mind: someone who drops to zero HP while suffocating CANNOT REGAIN HP **OR BE STABILIZED.**
Even if you crit succeed, which would usually put you at 1 HP, you're still dying!
Even if you get all 3 death saves, YOU'RE STILL DYING!
Until someone manages to pull you out of the water, which is unlikely if you don't have a swim speed, you CANNOT BE RETURNED TO LIFE. This is what makes Gelatinous Cubes so scary!
Yeah, you don't get to take a deep breath of air before an arm of water engulfs your head and pulls you into the depths. Same as some one coming up from behind you with a razor wire and stats strangling you to death.
@@TRJenizen Or before you walk into the space of a near-invisible square-shaped blob.
Or just use the strangle rules for this kinda attack
"if you don't see this permanently invisible monster coming? No. You skip the "minutes until drowning" and go straight to suffocating"
Where is this written?
About the breath holding thing, I consider it like this:
- If you had the time to fill your lungs and hold your breath, you're gonna last the 30s / 1min / more thing
- If you were caught unprepared (mostly in the middle of a combat etc.), then you're immediately suffocating and going to last a number of turns equal to your con modifier (if I remember correctly, anyway, I might allow one extra turn for the reactive breath-in right before being submerged)
Way to use a flail snail(s) in a dungeon without kneecapping them:
Hide them behind trap doors. Your unobservant rogue/oblivious Barb/preoccupied fighter steps on a floor tile, triggering the opening of several hidden doors in the walls around them. Behind the doors is/are your flail snail(s), which can easily move into reach in the limited space of a hallway or a trapped room where the door has closed.
After all, it's hard to run away if there's no room to run
They are kept by people for their fairly wealthy loot.
I’ve used a Xorn to pounce on the artificer’s mechanical familiar before. Turning around to see their helper bot halfway on the mouth of a Xorn was a fun experience.
I've been watching you for some time now, and i must say you have peaked my interest little bard. I, Gaia, the Half Giant of Fire, will lend you my twin blades on your mission.
Great vid esper. I recently created a home brew magic item for specificly blood hunters. It's a long story and alot of lore. Long story short the item will be able to summon elementals after alot of blood sacrifices from the hunter. Starts off with the hunter trying to recreate this legendary item. So it gets more powerful over time. I'll let you know how overpowered this is. Lol keep up the great vids.
The frost salamander seems so unlike the salamanders you're familiar with, because they were originally BECMI D&D monsters from the Known World / Mystara setting. Both flame and frost salamanders were non-sentient brutes in their original depictions, without any language, civilization, or history of their own. The illustration you show at 11:33 gives a good sense of how primitive they were, as well as how viciously and instinctively they hate each other.
BECMI D&D treated elementals and their native planes rather differently. Essentially, each such plane had its own solar systems and habitable worlds, with all kinds of terrain, except everything would be made out of solid, liquid or gaseous versions of the appropriate element. Standard air/earth/fire/water elementals were simply "people" there, and both kinds of salamander were monsters lurking in the wild, same as any owlbear or giant lizard on the Material.
At one point I designed a dungeon created by a tainted shard of Imix created as he fought some demon (I was focused on fire elementals at the time so I didn't bother learning about demon lore). I had a lot of fun designing traps around elemental creatures whether they were underlings of my tainted Burning Emperor or other elemental creatures enslaved or captured to be put to use unknowingly/unwillingly, specifically the flail snails were locked in a chamber that once activated destroyed their heads turning the room into a death trap of screaming snails. That's the only time I've ever used flail snails.
This is why when a player is in combat and has to deal with holding its breath the rule I use is: They can hold their breath for a number of Rounds equal to 1+CON Mod, before they fall unconscious and cannot regain hit points until removed from the water and a successful medical check. Or other magic effect that makes sense to remove the water from their lunges.
I actually made a gargoyle variant for my homebrew world of DnD. Though rather than being elementals, I have them as constructs made to guard castles and prisons. In addition to the ability to hide as statues, I made it so when they were “killed” it would cause them to revert to stone and freeze in place which could begin to restrict the players movements as more of them were defeated, making squares on the grid unusable without a strength check to move them out of the way. They also had spell resistance and anti-magic claws that had a chance to dispel magic on a hit (like Dispel Magic with no automatic success on low level spells).
I was actually *almost* early to an Esper video. As opposed to 3 months later. lol
Fucking same
I wish i was.
You’re great. I hope one of these company’s hire you as a write or lead producer. You got the stuff plus the grounding knowledge in actually mythological history. Can’t get more comprehensive than that.
Many thanks, Dawson! Let's see, I have suspected for years that WotC secretly reads my thoughts to steal ideas ;P
@@esperthebard No doubt. You could even go another route and be a voice actor. I have a friend who does work for Funimation as often as he can.
When feeling a little lack luster by the drowing rules in 5e myself I usually refer back to pathfinder where you can hold your breath for double your con SCORE in turns in combat, but taking actions burns through this twice as quick.
For a regular person slowly swimming along that's around 2 minutes (Con 10 x 2 = 20 rounds. with a move action every turn), some someone fighting or trying to break open a trap, it's 1 minute (Con 10 = 10 rounds of full active turns).
When I drown characters I use the rules of choking instead. You live for a number of rounds equal to your con modifier minimum of one then death.
Remember, a round is six seconds. And breathing, like talking, is an action that can be taken at any point. Meaning that if a character sees something coming to drown them in any way, they would have time to hold their breath. The only time when its reasonable to count as choking is when the character is suprised, or something is physically squeezing their neck.
@@thoelle5607 i disagree. Choking rules are fine.
Honestly wanna see more of the para-elemental planes such as the plane of Ice or Ooze. I’ve been working on creating an Ooze/Mud Genie myself called the Wahali who share some similarities with Marisa and Dao
Apparently Guybrush Threepwood's only skill isn't that unrealistic.
The esoteric description of these rituals I believe is to give dm’s ways to develop their world and find their own ways to build upon why the creatures exist.
Ooooh another monster ranking..! and of elementals.... elementals are dooooope!
Alright, Esper, I have a video suggestion for you. A tear ranking, like you do for the monsters, but with all the enchanted gear from the DMs guide. (or at least all the really popular ones)
Herald of dissonance Eh, that kinda sounds dull tbh.
I'm really late to this but something fun I've noticed is some similarities between the Flail Snail and a being called "The Glus" from the Deltora quest series. The Glus resembles a gigantic blue snail with a large mouth full of needle-like teeth, and it lives in a giant cave system called "The Maze of the Beast"(you get one guess as to what the beast is, also the title of the book Glus shows up in, I believe the 5th or 6th book in the series but don't quote me on that) but even more interesting is not only is the Glus similar with the hardening slime (it shoots it out of its mouth in a more web-like fashion and the walls of its cave are absolutely covered in the stuff nearly trapping the main hero's when they stop to take a rest) but the Glus is also blind relying on sound and movement in the water(detected by tiny hairs on its skin) to find it's prey, and when push comes to shove it will prioritize fixing holes in its lair(its lair is underground bordered by the sea) over catching prey.
Anyway I would like to make the statement to any Dungeon master who wants some interesting ideas for monsters and scenarios where your player's stabbing their way out isn't an option I would recommend the Deltora quest series (all 3 of them, Quest for Deltora, Deltora the Shadowlands, and Dragons of Deltora) Some other memorable ones include: a bird cursed to be in the form of a man guarding a bridge who gives riddles to the party and kills them if they answer wrongly, a gigantic poisonous frog who rules a bunch of gnomes and kills them if they question it, a cruel and sadistic man who makes offers to people in need of help and then asks for far more back then they can pay in a really short amount of time and then enslaves them with magic when they can't pay him back(he also had a cursed ship at one point but that one kind of needs to be read in the context of the story to understand), a young woman who makes a deal and gains large magical powers but can't woo the guy she's in love with (he liked her sister) so she traps him in a tower(this one I would recommend trying to work into a game as it flips the "save the damsel" trope on its head) and a couple of others who are just, way too complicated to explain here
Azers are just Torbjörn from Overwatch and Invisible Stalkers are just the monsters from The Bird Box.
Hey Esper! Have you ever considered making a monster ranking/critique video of homebrew monsters that viewers could send you? I think it would be truly AWESOME if you did so. Love your work, have a great day :)
it would suck for anyone put in D/F-tier and drive those people away sooo he probably wouldn't do that
I would like to mention as I am sure that another already has, that genasi are sometimes spontaneously created when spellcasters meddle with pure elemental energies, such as a wizard being twisted by mishap into, say, an air genasi.
Similarly, Genasi can be born randomly to demi-human parents such as humans, elves, or sometimes dwarves, who live too near to a manifest zone, where an elemental plane overlaps the material plane, though I'm not sure if that is true for all world settings. In Eberron, for example, the Demon Wastes are full of plane-touched; tribes of genasi and tieflings are not an uncommon sight. While some can trace their lineage back to an outsider, such as a djinn or rakshasa, they are sometimes simply born different.
With the Gargoyles, I like to imagine that spellcasters - Wizards, elemental cultists, etc. - carve stone into various forms, and then use magic to bind an elemental spirit of earth into the shell. The different forms lending themselves to different functions. Gargoyles are good multi-purpose servants, able to fly and take punishment, and to sit on structures and wait for patiently for intruders or those the Master has need of killing.
Another idea for an elemental monster in this vein is what I call the Rolling Stone. A spherical rock, carved decoratively so it can blend in with masonry, or left unadorned so it can hide in wilderness environments. They roll around, using tremorsense to find and bowl over foes. I see these as being low CR mobs, meant to be summoned by the handful with spells like Conjure Minor Elementals (when they haven't been prepared in advance), but I also considered a higher CR variant. A creature called the Assassin Stone, that is bigger and stronger, and has bonuses to track specific targets. Even casting Hunter's Mark, so it can keep following an opponent, no matter where they run. (Yes, this IS a Jojo reference).
Returning to the matter of rocks being inhabited by elemental spirits, it's worth considering that not all such creatures might have been deliberate creations. Stonework that is done near a portal to the plane of elemental earth could come alive as stray spirits settle into them. Or alternatively, a sufficiently excellent bit of stonecraft could attract the attention of earth spirits, who find something appealing to a masterwork of such caliber. Such things might be found in the tombs of ancient and renowned masons or sculptors, whose gargoyles or statues or base reliefs might be fine enough to gain a Galatean life of their own. Elemental creatures who continue to protect their maker long after his bones become dust and his name is forgotten.
8:16 if you use it right it is very viable. Almost killed a third level rogue snd third level cleric with just one of these things trying to drown it. Works especially well if the target is wearing heavy armor. The key word is tries to drown. I personaly rule this as they begin to drown, because it is mentioned in the attack and nit the creature description. So they can survive 1+con mod turns
Id assume most monsters are C teir because Wizards of the Coast wants enough lore and mechanics to build a base while leaving enough area for customization to fit your setting
Holy shit, this was an hour long? I just instaclicked because it was Esper and put it on in the background while doing chores. Only now, after finishing it, did I realize how long it is. Wow
1 view, 2 likes. Hell yea ^^
Jenna wins initiative!
I would say with the holding your breath rule. that a water elemental attempting to drown a target, can expand actions to buffet the target with concussive hits of water . causing them to need to make check to keep hold of their breath, or breath out an taking in water if they fail, but even if they succeed it might reduce the time they can hold their breath for.
I actually have been working on the idea of the phoenix, an then expanding it into a archetype. So you could say a pheonix is a fire elemental given a bird form an represents rebirth. You could then create a earth elemental using a scarab for example that represents decay or undeath maybe. This than could be expanded further into different area an types.
I'm running a game now that has heavy focus on the elemental planes. Genasi are common in the communities, most have some genie blood in them. Playing off the half humanoid, half genie part, there's a wide assortment. One of my players in an Aarakrokra air genasi. Cloudy white feathers that turn to clouds in some areas. For encounters I've also made many variations of the elementals. From simple tier 1 to 5 for difficulty changes, to some that have taken on forms on wildlife. Adding unique characteristics to beasts. Wolves infused with fire. Dripping saliva like molten metal. Similar to hellhound in a way. Cats that can vanish into thin air. Move silently. Like displacer beasts, but resemble mountain lions.
In the lore of my world, these types of creatures need a constant flow of energy to survive, or keep physical form. In the material plane they cannot exist in these forms, unless brought by other means; such has a conjuring spell. Due to elementals natures they are also captured, and imprisoned to run things in the cities. The heat from fire elementals is used for forges, water are used to move things through cities, from ships to sewage. An obedient earth elemental is great for mining, and air elementals used for simple flying machines. Most of the "lesser" elementals have little sentience. Their goal is to absorb more energy to grow. Eventually they will gain an identity, that ranges from the beasts, to even enjoying the work they're assigned.
my character are often hopeless do-gooders who when they meet a genie enslaved to a lamp use it to wish them free. Often enough it is worth it : while they don't forgets the humiliations of bad masters they do also remember debts just as much, and wish granting genies are actually noble genies (as it a genie with a noble title and lands), with a lot of power to throw around, magical or otherwise. At bare minimum they are rich beyond imagination and can rescue you in a tough spot via plane shifting you to their palaces
This video gave me the idea of a campaign that's like the story from Pokemon Ruby and Sapphire, with 2 teams of cultists trying to raise their respective earth and water elementals.
If you want to know where they came up with the elementals creatures, and geni types. Look into Elric of melnibone series. He frequently summon elementals, and even Djinn.
Another idea I had for an elemental monster: the Crystal Sentry.
A floating, diamond-shaped crystal that hovers around and redirects light in offensive and defensive ways. The know Dancing Lights, have a ranged spell attack that deals radiant damage (a "laser"), and can cast Color Spray at will. Crystal Sentries work best in groups, where some sentries work to blind opponents while others pick them off one by one. That they can fly allows them to potentially remain high above attackers, and to duck behind odd cover (like stalactites).
I see these guys being highly useful for many groups, but especially as a different sort of tool used by cultists of elemental earth. Maybe stationed in a crystal garden they've created or acquired, so intruders don't even realize the threat until it's too late.
A variant on the "elemental earth cultist" idea is to have the Crystal Sentries serve a sect of that cult that follows a Medusa. As a consequence, the cultists have all willingly blinded themselves, so as to get more in touch with their other senses and to the lightless underground. They may employ a number of other blind creatures, like Grimlocks. The Crystal Sentries serve as guards over a chokepoint, using Color Spray on any creature who approaches. If the creatures don't react, obviously they were cultists and should be let through. If the Color Spray visibly affects the creatures, the Crystal Sentries attack. The Medusa cult leader might not have blinded themself, but they know about the Crystal Sentries and know to keep their eyes shut if they ever need to go through that part of the lair.
While watching the part about the Galeb Dhur, I was inspired to another elemental idea: the Speaking Stone.
A stationary, that cannot move or interact physically, but is possessed of speech and a mind. A mind that has seen enough, or had enough time to contemplate deep mysteries, as to develop magical power. I'd probably create three different varieties of Speaking Stone: Speaking Stone Wind Singer (Bardic magic), Speaking Stone Deep Thinker (Druidic magic), and Speaking Stone Lore Keeper (Wizardry).
Their advanced age and magic keeps them safe from most pedestrian dangers, as does the isolated locations they often come into self awareness in. Still, while they can remain content alone for millennia, they enjoy the company of thinking beings. Speaking Stones are sages, collecting stories or having considered deep matters, and so sapient creatures have reason to seek their wisdom. Some people may even desire to move the Speaking Stone closer to civilization, so they can benefit from the stone's understanding in a more convenient fashion. Speaking Stones of a Druidic bent may oppose this plan, as it takes them away from their beloved nature. But any Speaking Stone may be of the thinking that they could gain much from the arrangement, as a chance to be around talkative company.
If nothing else, the Speaking Stone thinks on a longer time frame, and knows that any arrangement like that is unlikely to last too long. Even great civilizations can die in the span of "mere" centuries. So if the Speaking Stone comes to begrudge the company and noise, they know it's liable to be a temporary arrangement.
A quick note: when a creature engulfs another and can begin drowning them, it's been clarified that a character can't hold their breath - the water is being forced into their lungs.
Check out the Planescape Monstrous Compendium 3 and Planescape Inner Planes, These two AD&D books get deeper into the elemental lore and what you can expect to see in the elemental planes, It talks about Imix and his son Zaman Rul and how they fought each other for dominion over the Plane of Fire, tells of Good Aligned Elemental Lords as well as the Evil ones, It makes it seem more like the elemental alignment depends upon the elemental Lord they follow, meaning it is possible to find a Good Aligned Fire Elemental but its extremely rare, because Zaman Rul lost the war against his farther Imix, Im just bringing this up because I feel like you might be interested in these second addition rule books
Thanks for the vid sir.👍🏼👍🏼
An Azer would be a fun warlock patron. Like there has to be a king or supervisor over them to manage projects. And they might want the warlock to create or provide rare metals.
Wow, an hour long? Sir you have given us quite a treat today! (Or a couple days ago because I'm late)
Oh by the way I have found a home brew supplement for lots of elemental things,including subclasses,spells,monsters,player races and even weaknesses by being in different environments or taking specific types of damage
Some things can even have a weakness following the “the larger they are,the harder they fall.”
Where they can literally take damage from face planting on the ground because they are literal WALKING MOUNTAINS
It has a lot of high cr hybrid elementals
Like an elemental embodiment of drought able to swell in heat and cause nearby things to dry out