ABILITY SCORES
Everycreature hassix abilityscores (Strength, Dexterity,
Constitution, Intelligence, Wisdom, andCharisma) and
corresponding modifiers. Formoreinformation on ability
scores andhowthey'reusedin play,see the rulebook.SAVING THROWS
TheSaving Throws entryis reserved for creatures that
are particularly adept at resisting certain kinds of effects.SKILLS
TheSkills entryis reserved for creatures thatare
proficient in oneor moreskills.Forexample, a creature
thatis veryperceptive andstealthy mighthavehigher-
than-normal bonuses to Wisdom (Perception) and
Dexterity (Stealth) checks.
Skillsin a monster's statblockare shown withthe total
modifier-the monster's abilitymodifier plusits proficiency
bonus. If a monster's statblocksays"Stealth +6,"rolla
d20andadd6 when the monster makes an abilitycheck
using Stealth.ARMOR, WEAPON, AND TOOL PROFICIENCIES
Assume thata creature is proficient withits armor, weapons,
and tools. If youswap out a creature's armor andweapons,
youmust decide whether the creature is proficient withits new
equipment. Seethe rulebook for whathappens when youuse
these items without proficiency.VULNERABILITIES, RESISTANCES,
AND IMMUNITIES
Some creatures havevulnerability, resistance, or
immunity to certain typesof damage. Additionally, some
creatures are immune to certain conditions andother
gameeffects.These immunities are alsonotedhere.SENSES
TheSenses entrynotesa creature's passiveWisdom
(Perception) score, as wellas anyspecial senses the
creature mighthave,suchas the following senses.
Bliudsight,A creature withblindsight canperceive its
surroundings without havingto relyon sight,within a
specific radius.
Darkvision. A creature withdarkvision cansee in the
darkwithin a specificradius. Thecreature cansee in dim
lightwithin the radius as if it werebrightlight,andin
darkness as if it were dimlight.Thecreature can'tdiscern
colorin darkness, onlyshades of gray.
Truesight. A creature withtruesight cansee in normal
andmagical darkness, see invisiblecreatures andobjects,
automatically detectvisualillusions andsucceed on saving
throws against them,andperceive the original formof a
shapechanger or a creature thatis transformed by magic.
Furthermore, the creature cansee intothe Ethereal Plane.LANGUAGESThelanguages thata creature canspeak are listedin
alphabetical order.Sometimes a creature canunderstand
a language but not speak it, andthisis notedin its entry.
CHALLENGE
An appropriately equipped andwell-rested partyof four
adventurers should be ableto defeata creature thathas
a challenge ratingequal to theirlevelwithout suffering
anycasualties.
Monsters thatare significantly weaker than 1st-level
characters havechallenge ratings lowerthan 1.EXPERIENCE POINTS (Xp)
Thenumber of experience pointsa creature is worth
is based on its Challenge. Typically,XP is awarded for
defeating the monster.TRAITS
Traitsare special characteristics of the creature thatare
likelyto be relevant in a combat encounter.ACTIONS
Whena creature takes its action,it canchoose from
the options in the "Actions"section of its statblock.The
rulebookdescribes other actions available to all creatures.MELEE AND RANGED ATTACKS
Themostcommon actions thata creature willtakein
combat are meleeandranged attacks. These canbe spell
attacks or weapon attacks, where the "weapon" mightbe a
manufactured itemor a natural weapon, such as a claw.
Hit. Any damage or othereffectsthatoccuras a result of
an attack hitting a targetare described here. As the DM,
youhavethe optionof taking average damage or rolling
the damage; for thisreason, boththe average damage and
the die expression are presented. Forexample, a monster
mightdeal4 (ld8)slashing damage withits longsword.
Thatnotation means youcanhavethe monster deal 4
damage or youcanroll1d8to determine the damage.REACTIONS
If a creature cando something unusual withits reaction,
thatinformation is contained here. Mostcreatures do
not havespecial reactions, in which casethissection is
absent. Reactions are explained in the rulebook.LIMITED USAGE
Somespecial abilities-whether theyare traits, actions,
or reactions-have restrictions on the number of times
theycanbe used.
X/Day.Thenotation "X/Day"means a special ability
canbe useda certain number of times andthata monster
must finisha longrestto regainexpended uses. For
example, "l/Day" means a special abilitycanbe used once
andthatthe monster mustfinisha longrestto useit again.
RechargeX-YOThenotation "Recharge X-Y"means a
monster canusea special abilityonceandthatthe ability
thenhasa random chance of recharging during each
subsequent round of combat.At the start of eachof the
monster's turns, rolla d6. If the rollis oneof the numbers
in the recharge notation, the monster regains the useof
the special ability.Theabilityalsorecharges when the
monster finishes a shortor longrest.
Forexample, "Recharge 6" means a monster canuse
the special abilityonce.Then, at the start of the monster's
turn, it regains the useof thatabilityif it rollsa 6 on a d6.55
APPENDIX B: MONSTERS