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Monster Manual

Monster Manual

  • Downloads：9267
  • Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
  • Create Date：2021-08-13 07:53:53
  • Update Date：2025-09-06
  • Status：finish
  • Author：Mike Mearls
  • ISBN：0786965614
  • Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle
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Summary

A menagerie of deadly monsters for the world’s greatest roleplaying game
 
The Monster Manual presents a horde of classic Dungeons & Dragons creatures， including dragons， giants， mind flayers， and beholders–a monstrous feast for Dungeon Masters ready to challenge their players and populate their adventures。
 
The monsters contained herein are culled from the D&D game’s illustrious history， with easy-to-use game statistics and thrilling stories to feed your imagination。
 
The leader in providing contemporary fantasy entertainment， Dungeons & Dragons is the wellspring for the entire modern game industry， digital as well as analog。 This newest edition draws from every prior edition to create a universally compelling play experience， and exemplifies the true spirit of a game that holds captive the hearts and minds of millions of players worldwide。
 

• The second of three core rulebooks， this book details all manner of creatures that characters might encounter over the course of their adventures。 
• An essential resource for Dungeon Masters to use in populating any type of challenge they might contrive for their players。 
• Created as part of a massive public playtest involving more than 170，000 fans of the game。

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Reviews

Edward Trevaskis ，

Hahahahhaha yes

Luca Grifo-Hahn ，

A classic

Byron Hill ，

A huge amount of monsters of all types for you to throw at your players in D&D 5e。 Very good book for DM's， but little use to players and not necessary for dungeon masters either。 A huge amount of monsters of all types for you to throw at your players in D&D 5e。 Very good book for DM's， but little use to players and not necessary for dungeon masters either。 。。。more

Daniel Tol ，

Great inspiration for any GM and honestly the only book you need from 5e。The layout gives the Pathfinder Bestiary a run for its money and lets it bite the dust。The art does leave a bit to be desired though as it has a very photo like quality to it instead of something I want to insert into my Roll20 and show to my players。 Would have liked some more action poses and dangerous looking compositions。But the writing is great and the art gives you just enough to get you started to alter it into your Great inspiration for any GM and honestly the only book you need from 5e。The layout gives the Pathfinder Bestiary a run for its money and lets it bite the dust。The art does leave a bit to be desired though as it has a very photo like quality to it instead of something I want to insert into my Roll20 and show to my players。 Would have liked some more action poses and dangerous looking compositions。But the writing is great and the art gives you just enough to get you started to alter it into your own twisted creation。Highly recommended！ 。。。more

C。E。 G ，

Adding this because it was the only book I was able to pick up and read for the first few months of 2021。 I have now read this cover to cover， and there's a lot of fun stuff in it， though I'd love to see more ideas for legendary and lair actions。 I also did cringe my way reading through descriptions of a number of race-based monsters - like orcs and drow - that felt pretty essentialist/racist。 Adding this because it was the only book I was able to pick up and read for the first few months of 2021。 I have now read this cover to cover， and there's a lot of fun stuff in it， though I'd love to see more ideas for legendary and lair actions。 I also did cringe my way reading through descriptions of a number of race-based monsters - like orcs and drow - that felt pretty essentialist/racist。 。。。more

Kieran ，

This book is exactly what you would want from a book like this。 Filled with fantastic artwork， detailed stats， and interesting backstory， this book provides an overview of all monsters in D&D。 A perfect resource for a DM planning interesting adventures。

Redsteve ，

While I have to admit that I didn't focus on the stats/specific numbers in this book （I'm currently playing IN a 5e game and don't want to accidently soak up anything that might spoil it for me， but am reading to improve my world building skills for future endeavors。）， but I was favorably impressed by the 5e Monster Manual。 My previous experience has been with the AD&D Monster Manuals I-II， Fiend Folio， et al， and I found things much improved。 I liked the arrangement （grouping creatures into cat While I have to admit that I didn't focus on the stats/specific numbers in this book （I'm currently playing IN a 5e game and don't want to accidently soak up anything that might spoil it for me， but am reading to improve my world building skills for future endeavors。）， but I was favorably impressed by the 5e Monster Manual。 My previous experience has been with the AD&D Monster Manuals I-II， Fiend Folio， et al， and I found things much improved。 I liked the arrangement （grouping creatures into categories rather than just listing them in alphabetical order）， descriptions （diving much deeper into origins， motivations， and relationships with other species）， and plot ideas （variants， tactics， lairs， non-combat effects， and adventure suggestions）。 The authors did a decent job of eliminating many redundant or just plain ridiculous monsters from previous editions - although they did keep the Flumph， which， even with expanded explanation， is still a psionic cross between a jellyfish and a coffee table。 Generally liked the illustrations as well。 3。5 stars。 。。。more

Honesty ，

Honestly， the 5e Monster Manual seems a little lacking compared to previous editions。 Previous generations tended to have several monster volumes， while in 5e we get a whopping one volume。 While the art is definitely improved from older generations， it's not nearly as fun or quirky as the older editions。 Overall， it takes itself way too seriously， and overemphasizes traditional fantasy creatures and demons for my taste。 Okay， I know they aren't in the official Monster Manuals， but Duckbunnies an Honestly， the 5e Monster Manual seems a little lacking compared to previous editions。 Previous generations tended to have several monster volumes， while in 5e we get a whopping one volume。 While the art is definitely improved from older generations， it's not nearly as fun or quirky as the older editions。 Overall， it takes itself way too seriously， and overemphasizes traditional fantasy creatures and demons for my taste。 Okay， I know they aren't in the official Monster Manuals， but Duckbunnies and similar absurdities are more my taste， and my players tend to get more mileage out of the quirkier beasts。That being said， each gaming group is different。 If you're wanting to run a high fantasy game， this bestiary will be great for you。 If， however， you're wanting other types of fantasy or an outright absurdist romp， this isn't the edition for you。 。。。more

Kenneth Baert ，

Ready to kill my players！

Dannii Elle ，

This book collects together descriptions and illustrations of the various monsters that could potentially appear， during a D&D game。 It contained a mixture of well-known monsters and entirely new creature creations。This remained interesting， with the abundance of information it imparted， but the artwork is what ensured this a true joy to flip through。 Each beautifully adorned page was vivid in colour and unique in design， and I would return to this book for that aspect alone。 Also， like with all This book collects together descriptions and illustrations of the various monsters that could potentially appear， during a D&D game。 It contained a mixture of well-known monsters and entirely new creature creations。This remained interesting， with the abundance of information it imparted， but the artwork is what ensured this a true joy to flip through。 Each beautifully adorned page was vivid in colour and unique in design， and I would return to this book for that aspect alone。 Also， like with all the non-fiction guides that accompany this game， I worked through this book cover-to-cover but it is undoubtedly one I will go back and reread sections of， on many an occasion， as I am still very new to this world and could not absorb the wealth of information， in one reading。 。。。more

Martin Maenza ，

A solid gaming volume that covers the range of monsters from those you might throw against your starting players to those who have risen levels and need more epic challenges。 This is a must-have volume for any one planning to run a Dungeons and Dragons campaign。

Evie ，

this was a very quick and great read！！！ i’m so glad this was my first book i finished this year。 i know this book will get a lot of use :）

Kat ，

An absolute delight to page through。 The art is all gorgeous and very。。。 inspirational。 [Cackles in DM]

Nathan Wilder ，

Great monsters， would be haunted again。

Regan ，

I mean， it's a necessary tool， right？ LOL！ I mean， it's a necessary tool， right？ LOL！ 。。。more

Daniel Macgregor ，

Not much to review。 Provides good flavour text and stat information on a wide variety of monsters。 Not that useful for players but if you are a DM or have the extra money， always nice to have。

Ogre ，

This would have been so much better with a） better physical descriptions， such as dimensions for size and more pictures， and b） with lore for the creatures -- many of them have less than a single line of information on the creature beyond their basic stats。

Rob Moore ，

Great companion for any DM。 This book has an excellent blend of lore， stats， artwork， and guidance for DMs wanting to find new monsters to add to their campaigns。 Thoroughly enjoyable read that I couldn't recommend enough。 Great companion for any DM。 This book has an excellent blend of lore， stats， artwork， and guidance for DMs wanting to find new monsters to add to their campaigns。 Thoroughly enjoyable read that I couldn't recommend enough。 。。。more

Will Cooper ，

So many monsters！ And the art is really fun。

David Thomas ，

This isn't meant to be read like a book， but rather it's supposed to be used like an encyclopedia for a dungeon master to use in campaigns。 However， being a huge nerd， I read it cover to cover like a novel。 There's a lot of juicy lore in there， and every creature has gorgeous art accompanying it。 Great for its intended purpose， but just as good as reading material if that's your sort of thing。 This isn't meant to be read like a book， but rather it's supposed to be used like an encyclopedia for a dungeon master to use in campaigns。 However， being a huge nerd， I read it cover to cover like a novel。 There's a lot of juicy lore in there， and every creature has gorgeous art accompanying it。 Great for its intended purpose， but just as good as reading material if that's your sort of thing。 。。。more

Zak ，

Finally got around to reading every page。

Andrew Obrigewitsch ，

There’s a lot of great inspiration in this book for DMs。

Bryan Borgman ，

Excellent way to beat the COVID-19 pandemic blues。。。 online D&D with your buddies！

Conor Murphy ，

Occasional annoyingly problematic bit aside （classic fantasy and all its baggage amiright folks） this is an incredible resource full of imagination and wonder that’s a fun read and fun to have even if one *isnt* DMing a campaign。

Michael ，

Overall， a great resource for any player and Dungeon / Game Master who is looking for challenging content at any level。 I highly recommend that anyone getting into D&D， whether it be as a player or GM， pick this book up as it provides tons of resources for players when encountering creatures in dungeons or for DM's looking for quick and easy encounters to build for their players。 The only issue I have is the Challenge Rating system， which seems a bit off as far as what's acceptable as a challeng Overall， a great resource for any player and Dungeon / Game Master who is looking for challenging content at any level。 I highly recommend that anyone getting into D&D， whether it be as a player or GM， pick this book up as it provides tons of resources for players when encountering creatures in dungeons or for DM's looking for quick and easy encounters to build for their players。 The only issue I have is the Challenge Rating system， which seems a bit off as far as what's acceptable as a challenge for each level。 However， it's easily overcome with a handicap variance （+2 up to lv。 5， +3 for lv。 6 and above in my experience thusfar）。 。。。more

Chris ，

If you have a laptop or tablet at the table when playing， a digital copy of this （such as through D&D Beyond） can be a much handier version。 Bookmarking and flipping between many different pages of the book during an encounter can be a hassle。 Even more so if you have a druid without their wild shapes and summons pre-recorded。

Louis Norton ，

This 5th edition version of the Monster Manual is very complete， covering many classic monsters including the Fiend Folio monsters。 Overall well done， if you like the simplified 5th edition system。 I missed the Tarrasque having regeneration however！

Nathan ，

Yes， I'm reviewing the Monster Manual for D&D 5e， random I know。 But the level of detail in this thing is incredible！ Packed full of stat blocks and beautiful descriptions of so many different creatures， this thing reads more like a treasure trove of interesting lore。 It strikes me as what it would be like to read Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them （not the script， the book in the HP universe）。 The writers clearly took pleasure in creating the world， and the book is well put together。 It al Yes， I'm reviewing the Monster Manual for D&D 5e， random I know。 But the level of detail in this thing is incredible！ Packed full of stat blocks and beautiful descriptions of so many different creatures， this thing reads more like a treasure trove of interesting lore。 It strikes me as what it would be like to read Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them （not the script， the book in the HP universe）。 The writers clearly took pleasure in creating the world， and the book is well put together。 It also doesn't have any filler， and is over 300 pages of various monsters and their fascinating history and origin stories， as well as details on how to roll play each with motivations and personality traits。 Aces WotC， aces！ 。。。more

Isaac Timm ，

I love the NPC templates， and simplified stat blocks and the legendary monsters。 Not a fan of half the booking being about some type of demon or devil。 Less slobbering hell monsters， more legendary monsters。 I would have liked several sizes of elementals and more varied monsters then the demonic march down memory lane。 I wish they had released a Fiend Felio for all the demons and devils， so room would have been freed up in the Monsters Manual for more interesting monsters。

Brian Wilkerson ，

Disclaimer: I read the Monster Manual for 3。5 E but never played it so my basis for comparison is minor at best。A LOT of monsters in this manual， 315 pages of them plus a pair of appendixes for creatures and possible foes。 Thus there is variety available for a dungeon master to throw at their players。 Be it straight-up and uncomplicated brawlers such as hill giants， the cunning and numerous smaller creatures like kobolds and goblins， the paranoia caused by the classic mimic or spell-casting crea Disclaimer: I read the Monster Manual for 3。5 E but never played it so my basis for comparison is minor at best。A LOT of monsters in this manual， 315 pages of them plus a pair of appendixes for creatures and possible foes。 Thus there is variety available for a dungeon master to throw at their players。 Be it straight-up and uncomplicated brawlers such as hill giants， the cunning and numerous smaller creatures like kobolds and goblins， the paranoia caused by the classic mimic or spell-casting creatures like hags， this book has it all。Except for celestial creatures。 Demons， devils， dragons and giants all get large sections for their sub-species and society but the upper planes get less attention。 There are three varieties of angels listed and some others like the unicorn but those are all high Challenge Rating creatures; mid-game at the earliest， and there is little more lore for than other creatures。 I understand the reasoning for this， at least， I think I do。Players are encouraged to fight creatures that are generally evil or threatening。 These are feral monsters， devious demons， and rampaging orcs。 The number of situations where they would fight angels or unicorns is far more limited。 Including them as allies runs the risk of making the players irrelevant。 So why waste time on them？Being a guy who likes lore and world building， I find this disappointing。 Although， there is enough to homebrew something， and that can be fun too。That is also something fun with this book。 It's not something that I can get from other books， which tell a story。 This one gives the actors for such a story。 After a certain creature's entry， it is fun to imagine a small little scenario featuring them which makes use of the lore: their habits and diets and such。 Also， I like to consider some way to effectively use their stats and features against potential players。This is another book with gorgeous artwork。 Every monster gets their profile picture。 The celestials look majestic， the fiends look dangerous and some of the aberrations are just creepy， like the gibbering mouther。 This is great for the theater of the imagination。Trickster Eric Novels gives "Monster Manual for Dungeons and Dragons 5th Edition" an A+ 。。。more

Reference

google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=Monster Manual

hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=Monster Manual&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft

The British Library https://bll01.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/search?query=any,contains,Monster Manual&tab=LibraryCatalog&search_scope=Not_BL_Suppress&vid=44BL_INST:BLL01&lang=en&offset=0