D&D Ideas — Minecraft Monsters

July 31, 2023

Dungeons & Dragons/ Editorial/ Free Nerdy Things/ Game Master Tips

Welcome once again to the weekly newsletter. This week’s topic is Minecraft Monsters, which we discussed in our weekly live chat. We hangout every Sunday evening at 8 p.m. EST on Nerdarchy to talk about D&D, RPGs, gaming, life and whatever nerdy stuff comes up.

A gelatinous cube traps heroes and then uses mirror images of itself to terrorize and confuse in Out of the Box Encounters. There must be a way out! Check it out here.

Delving Dave’s Dungeon

Minecraft is an excellent source of inspiration for Dungeons & Dragons games. The game’s procedurally generated world, its unique creatures, and its emphasis on exploration and creativity can all be easily adapted to a D&D campaign.

In fact, Wizards of the Coast has already released official D&D content based on Minecraft. The Minecraft D&D crossover on D&D Beyond includes stat blocks for five Minecraft creatures: the Blaze, Creeper, Ender Dragon, Enderman, and Wolf of the Overworld. These creatures can be used as-is in your D&D games, or you can reskin them to create your own unique monsters.

You can also take inspiration from Minecraft’s settings and themes. For example, you could run a campaign set in the Overworld, the Nether, or the End. Or, you could create your own unique world based on Minecraft.

The possibilities are endless when it comes to using Minecraft as inspiration for your D&D games. So get creative and have fun!

Here are some additional tips for running a Minecraft-themed D&D campaign:

Use Minecraft’s unique creatures and items as inspiration for your own monsters and magic items.
Make sure to include plenty of opportunities for exploration and creativity.
Be flexible and be prepared to improvise.
Have fun!

You can also use this free content without running a Minecraft-themed D&D campaign.

Try:

Use these stat blocks reskinned for your own monsters.
Cherry-pick features for creating your own D&D monsters.
Insert the monsters as is into your games as is.
Use Minecraft realms as other planes of existence for your players to explore.

Consider signing up for your own free D&D Beyond account to get access to Monstrous Compendium Vol 3: Minecraft Creatures.

Product Spotlight

Wizard’s Wake

Welcome to the Gylathacean Isles!

Adventurers earn a vacation to this tropical locale and find fun in the sun. It’s not long before they learn about Wizard’s Wake, an ancient shipwreck tied to a magical disaster. No true 5E fantasy vacation is complete without an excursion into danger to discover arcane secrets and treasure.

Wizard’s Wake includes a map and details about the Gylathacean Isles along with the colorful folk who make their home on the sea, plus a one shot adventure to discover the mysteries within the wreckage of an ancient ship.

New Monsters including the Prismatic Octopus, perfect for a tropical familiar
New Playable Races: reptilian ambryl and otaraa sealfolk
New Druidic Circle: Circle of Salt
New Divine Domain: Travel Domain
5 New Magic Items

Check out Wizard’s Wake here.

From Ted’s Head

I have to say that I do not have a lot of experience with Minecraft. I have not played any version of the game. If you talked to my kids and nephews you could get a lot more information. But the creatures stat blocks on D&D Beyond there are all kinds of great things to take away from.

For starters, you get 5 free stat blocks as long as you have a free account. Blaze is an elemental creature that is a challenge 5. Creeper is a monstrosity that is a challenge ½. The Ender dragon is a new Dragon type and is a challenge 19. Enderman is an aberration of a challenge 6. Wolf of the Underworld is basically a regular wolf. It is a beast and a challenge ¼.

The package here has 5 creatures, each a different type. There are 2 entry-level monsters that can be used early and scale up the numbers as the players gain levels. Two mid-level monsters of 5 and 6 mean they can be used as boss monsters are early levels and then used in numbers, again as players gain more levels. Eventually, players could face an Ender Dragon as a final boss.

But you might ask where to use these creatures. Some time ago, I took my players into Block World. It was a lot of fun to challenge not only myself but the players as well in a world in which curves do not exist. The NPCs of the world found the players alien and yet fascinating. I have used new dimensions and planes of existence to take my players to new worlds. Why not have a stab at the Beard Dimension rife with hair and hairy creatures? We have 3 supplements on the website that deal with the beard dimension: Beardomancy, Bad Hair Day, and Hairable Ideas. Any ideas for odd and interesting places to go should always be considered in your games.

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