Balancing Monster Descriptions with World Knowledge in 5E D&D

August 2, 2021

Dungeons & Dragons/ Game Master Tips/ Monsters

There is a strange tradition in Dungeons & Dragons of withholding monster identities from players and their characters. This often takes the form of a somewhat tedious cat and mouse game of selective description that seems to serve no other purpose than to gaslight the players. While I recognize this is generally intended to instill a sense of in-world wonder and mystery I also have to wonder if it is really all that necessary or even realistic.

Before you stands a…

D&D is ostensibly based on the model of a medieval world in which the monsters of myth, legend, and fiction actually exist. The people of those worlds live and interact with, war against and generally fear those monsters. So if this is the case why would any adventurer need to stumble through some a one-sided 20 questions description of every monster they encounter?

“Heroic fantasy is the baseline assumed by the D&D rules. The Player’s Handbook describes this baseline: a multitude of humanoid races coexist with humans in fantastic worlds. Adventurers bring magical powers to bear against the monstrous threats they face. These characters typically come from ordinary backgrounds, but something impels them into an adventuring life. The adventurers are the “heroes” of the campaign, but they might not be truly heroic, instead pursuing this life for selfish reasons. Technology and society are based on medieval norms, though the culture isn’t necessarily European. Campaigns often revolve around delving into ancient dungeons in search of treasure or in an effort to destroy monsters or villains.” — from the fifth edition D&D Dungeon Master’s Guide chapter 1: A World of Your Own

This is not to say there aren’t D&D monsters worthy of a descriptive encounter or where such description is not needed or proper but there are a good number of monsters people would know from their day to day lives. Other creatures would be known through stories, song, family histories, teachings and other methods of conveyed knowledge. It is for this reason I feel the creators of the game really did a great disservice to players and the 5E D&D Monster Manual by removing the Frequency (and the number appearing for that matter) entries from the monster listings.

The Frequency mechanic of older editions is a wonderful tool for determining how cagey you need to be with your monster descriptions. It is fair to say anything listed as common is something the average citizen of your setting encounters on a frequent basis in their lives and can simply be named, saving any description you put into the encounter for describing the individual encounter. Of course uncommon monsters would also likely be able to be named outright as they are still encountered frequently enough, but not so much so. It is when you get to the rare and very rare monsters when Dungeon Masters should feel the need to describe the monsters rather than just name them, but even then some monsters are legendary and would be recognizable to any who saw them. A red dragon is going to be pretty obvious as it is likely on countless shields, flags, heraldic devices and probably the sign for the local inn.

Even when using the frequency mechanic a DM can still choose show rather than tell when the party encounters a new monster. This is especially true when they are travelling a good distance away from their home territory or when they are encountering truly mysterious and unusual monsters. Even when encountering common monsters the DM can still play it close to the cuff. Would a party of beginning adventurers be able to tell the difference between an ogre and a hill giant? Perhaps locally, as in Tolkien’s world, terms like orc and goblin are interchangeable. Just like in real world folklore and legends, monsters often blur together or are even treated as individuals. When the party encounters fey creatures will they be able to distinguish between a sprite, a pixie a brownie and a leprechaun?

In the end there is room in 5E D&D for both descriptive monster identification and explicitly stated identification. Character lore skills, background and even races can all be used as a guide for determining who knows what or filling in the blanks of any description provided by the DM. [NERDITOR’S NOTE: If all else fails a DM might consider letting the players fight dirty!]

*Featured image — Trolls are a staple of fantasy RPGs and classic mythology found in many cultures. [“Forest Troll” by Justin and Annie Stegg Gerard]