Monster Roles in an Encounter
Header Art: Volo’s Guide to Monsters by Wizards of the Coast
Flipping through the Monster Manual (2014), you could be forgiven for finding a monster you thought was cool and then sending it against your players, only to watch it get torn to absolute shreds. The CR math all said it would be a moderate fight, so you expected the party to win… but you were hoping they would think the monster was slightly imposing and not just wipe it out without even trying.
It can be difficult and frustrating to spend time gathering up what you think will be a great fight, only to watch as each monster is quickly dealt with - or the opposite can happen. You gather up what you thought were some easy monsters to give your party an easy win, only to watch them running for their lives, leaving the wizard to be that monster’s dinner.
Or perhaps you are trying to create a new monster to throw against your players, but you are finding it difficult to figure out its statistics. You want it to be able to deal with a few hits, but how many hit points should it have? What type of AC would be appropriate? Should your monster get spells? If so, what is the maximum level spell you could give it?
One important aspect of monster design sadly doesn’t get mentioned much in 5th edition, and that is the discussion of monster roles. Many monsters can leave you scratching your head about how they are supposed to operate in the field, requiring you to carefully theory craft some combats and encounters in your head, or look up online how others have done such things. There is even a well known website devoted to monster strategy and the best way you can use them known as The Monsters Know What They’re Doing.
Today, we aren’t focusing on an individual creature’s strategy, but rather their place in an encounter. We want to focus on a monster’s role and how to spot them in the Monster Manual, but also how to create your very own. To help provide demonstrations for this post, I’ve gone ahead and built several different versions of CR 2 Kobolds to show off each role a monster could have.
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Monster Roles
At this point, you might be asking two questions.
Monster Manual, 2014 Wizard of the Coast
Why so many kobolds?
What are monster roles and why are they important?
I refuse to answer the first question, because it is rather obvious. Kobolds are the best.
As for the second question, monster roles define where and how a monster should be used in an encounter. A monster loaded down with hit points and raw physical ability isn’t going to be very useful in the back of the room while the squishy wizards tries to tank even a single hit from a veteran party of murderhobos. For the terms I’m using for monster roles, I’m going into Dungeons & Dragons distant past - all the way to 2008 with 4th edition where it introduced the following roles: Artillery, Brute, Controller, Leader, Lurker, Skirmisher, and Soldier… and I’m adding in Spellcaster as a role as they operate much differently than they did in 4th edition.
Each of these titles simply provide suggestions to how you should operate the monster and gives you an idea as to what their strengths and weaknesses are at a glance. Sadly, such titles were removed in this edition and it can make new and old Game Masters alike scratch their head as they try to determine what the statistics for a brute, boss, minion, and more should be.
Page 274 of the Monster Manual, 2014 Wizards of the Coast
Note: I am going to be referencing a chart in the Dungeon Master’s Guide (2014) frequently. It is found on page 274 and I recommend reading through that section to help with any monster creation you might have. I’ve added the chart here for easy reference, but I’ll point out a few things real quick about it. These are generic suggestions for a creature and it doesn’t take into account special or persistent abilities, so some things will require some finagling to get it just right. In addition, while the chart is largely handy, it is not the end all be all. I pay the most attention to damage per level and pay the least attention to hit points per level as the hit points on that chart are double and sometimes triple what ACTUAL creatures in the Monster Manual will have.
Artillery
Our first monster role is the artillery, though they can just as easily be called ranged combatants. These creatures typically have Dexterity as their main statistic and stick to the back of any fight, either peppering their enemies with a lot of small damage in a round or using a single ranged attack to deal a strong attack. They have weak defenses, meaning that if you can just get up to them, they’ll quickly fall down under an onslaught of blows.
If you check out my Kobold Artillery, you can see that while they have a dagger, they are going to deal less damage with it than their shortbow. They have low HP for their CR, since many creatures in this CR range are going to have HP in the mid 30s. They only deal an average of 6 damage per hit with their shortbow, for a total of 12 damage each round, far lower than the 15-20 points of damage our chart says that they should be dealing. This damage is increased as they have a special ability called Volley that allows them to do a burst of damage in an area of effect.
A lot of spellcasters will fall into this role, and that type of hybrid monster role is something we will talk about at the end of this post.
To create an artillery role monster, you can follow these suggestions. Low Hit Points, low to moderate Armor Class, their best statistic is Dexterity or a mental ability that they use to fuel their ranged attacks, they should be on the low side of damage for their CR or have a single ranged attack that deals a high amount of damage.
Brute
Big and powerful, brutes are known for their ability to hang on in a fight and take a lot of damage. While they aren’t the best at dealing damage, they can keep all your squishy monsters in the back alive long enough for them to get a chance to use all their cool abilities. These creatures typically have Constitution as their main statistic with Strength a close second. While you might think a brute should have a high Armor Class, to go along with their high hit points, that is the opposite of what we want in a monster. We don’t want players to be frustrated fighting something that seemingly has no weaknesses, instead we want to give them something they can wail on and be terrified of how it is still alive and in the fight.
If you check out the Kobold Brute, we can see they have very low AC for their CR and their to hit is awful. On the flip side though, they have a lot of hit points and are on the high end of their CR. In fact, they are even larger than a typical kobold, as they are medium instead of small. In addition to that, if they do happen to connect an attack against a creature, they pack a wallop and will knock a creature down in just a few hits with their brute special ability. To go along with the fact that they are powerful creatures meant for taking hits, they get a special reaction where they can take damage for their allies, ensuring that the squishy kobolds around them stay up long enough - hopefully their is a cleric nearby… but not for them.
To create a brute, follow these suggestions. The monster should have low AC and high Hit Points. They either have low to hit on their attacks with high damage, or average attack and damage. If you give them unique abilities, it should be focused on taking damage and either absorbing it for their allies or giving them a way to reduce oncoming damage. They are typically a size category larger than their allies, that way their sheer presence is enough to grab the player’s attentions and focus on them.
Note: Since brutes are typically of larger size than other creatures, there is an unofficial-official rule. For each size category above medium, a creature deals an additional die of damage. This means a medium creature with a shortsword deals 1d6, but a large one deals 2d6, huge 3d6, and gargantuan 4d6. This isn’t always the case, but more often than not will turn out to be true.
Controller
My favorite way to play wizards and pretty much anything I can get my grubby hands on if I’m ever a player, the controller is a master of positioning on the battlefield. They can inflict damage that lasts for turns, provide debuffs to their enemies and buffs to their allies. They can be built like other creatures and many spellcasters can specialize in this field BUT THEY SHOULD NEVER BE BY THEMSELVES. A controller might have some good damage they can deal, that is not their focus and they will quickly be overwhelmed. They need brutes and soldiers to protect them while they dance around the front line, annoying and frustrating their enemies while their allies take all the damage for them.
Looking over the Kobold Controller I created, we can see that they have moderate hit points for their CR, decent AC, and their damage is on the lower end of the spectrum. On the flip side, they have a special ability to shove creatures away from them and can even impose debuffs on those who get to close to them by throwing around traps. They are going to rely on other creatures to help them take down enemies, but they can provide the all important role of debuffing and positioning. If there is a nearby ledge in your encounter area, they can work to push a creature off of it with their shove ability, or they can try and impose disadvantage on a creature’s ability to resist being grappled by an ally. Their strengths are not in being the strongest, fastest, or the healthiest; but rather in being nuisances who can turn a good position into a bad one or a sure hit into a miss.
Volo’s Guide to Monsters, 2016 Wizard of the Coast
To create a controller, give them average to slightly below average Hit Points, Armor Class, and abilities for their CR. Their damage should be on the low side based on the chart, but they should make up for it by giving them damage that lasts for several rounds, like bleeding or setting creatures on fire, or by imposing debuffs that last for a round or more. It’s OK if a controller goes a round of combat without doing damage as their goal isn’t to maim, but to annoy and help boost their allies. Try to avoid effects like Stunned or Paralyzed as that makes it so that the player can’t play the game, which just ends their fun in the game until they can make it back into the game.
Leader
While a monster has the role of ‘leader’ that doesn’t mean that they are the leader of their clan or get to call all the shots. Instead, a leader provides help to their allies and deals minimally with their enemies. They rarely deal a lot of damage, but instead provide boons to their companions and can help a creature optimize their damage and attack rolls to great effects. They are similar to controllers in that they provide buffs, but they rarely have any abilities that provide debuffs or repositioning to their enemies. They are focused almost entirely on their team and can be found often in the center of their front line or just behind it depending on what weapons and attacks you give them.
If we look at the Kobold Leader, I let a bit of its cowardice shine through its statblock while still providing a few ways to buff their allies. Instead of dealing lots of damage, as they deal an average of 12 damage instead of the 15-20 for CR 2 creatures, they can instead give orders to their allies. They can tell them to attack, to move around the battlefield, or bolster them with temporary hit points. In addition, they get a reaction where they can throw their own party in front of blows, while that might seem counter to what a leader would normally do, it felt appropriate for a kobold to be willing to sacrifice one of their own. In addition, it also provides reposition! If the leader finds themselves to far outside the front line, they can quickly move the front line in front of them, making them safer and their tank in the right place to take damage and use those hit points.
To create a leader, give them average Hit Points and Armor Class with higher mental abilities than their physical abilities. Their damage for each round should be low, or even below that if they have way to have their allies attack for them, and they should have a way to get their allies to them quickly if they are suddenly pulled to a spot on the battlefield they don’t want to be. You could also give them a few spellcasting abilities, which would turn them into a hybrid role, but make sure they have a few different ways that they can help their allies with buffs. If you aren’t sure how to do that, you can always give them something like Bardic Inspiration to give to their allies.
Lurker
You probably know these creatures best by the name of edgelord, but that doesn’t mean that they are all clothed in black leather with dark pasts. Lurkers like to sit at the edge of a battle and wait for the perfect moment to strike where they can deal a large amount of damage. They most often rely on the brutes and soldiers to take the main focus of their enemies while they slowly make their way to the more vulnerable back side of the opposing forces where the defenses are going to be way easier to get through. They often have a means of being invisible, or at least hard to notice, and may spend the first round of a combat to get into the perfect position before they attack. When they do make themselves known, they often have a way to quickly get themselves out of trouble, either by hiding or some other means of avoiding damage.
Looking over our Kobold Lurker, we can see that they have moderate Hit Points and Armor Class, with a low to high damage depending on circumstances. The lurker needs to be set up correctly in order to get the best out of their abilities, or else their damage will suffer and they will quickly be taken down in a battle. If everything goes great for them though, they can turn their rather subpar damage into something really high that will leave most characters screaming for their front line to come save them from the dangerous assassin intent on their deaths.
To create a lurker, prioritize their Dexterity and give them moderate Hit Points and Armor Class. They should have very low damage starting out, but have a way where they can achieve high to extreme damage that they can focus on obtaining. This could be sneak attack, like the lurker above, or might be a special ability where they deal extra damage to certain types of monsters or while a creature is in shadows or something other circumstance. The extreme damage shouldn’t be as easy to get as just hitting a creature, but rather requires them to use their allies, the environment, or their skills to achieve. In addition, they should have a way to avoid taking damage, like turning a hit into a miss or resisting the damage in some way, like turning ethereal or teleporting away after being attacked once.
Skirmisher
Get in and get out as fast as you can, that is the motto of every skirmisher who avoids staying in one place as much as possible. If they get pinned down in a specific area, that is the end for them as they don’t have the defensive abilities to outlast concentrated attacks against them. They often shoot out from the front line, circling around tough brutes and soldiers, and heading straight for vulnerable creatures like spellcasters and ranged combatants. Once they get out there, they won’t stick around for long before they scurry back to their allies where they can be safe from attacks and taking damage. They are going to prioritize speed and Dexterity, and will often have a higher movement speed than a typical creature of their type, or have some other movement like a climb, fly, or swim speed.
Our Kobold Skirmisher deals low damage, but they are fast and accurate. They can typically guarantee a hit with an high attack roll, but their damage won’t be as high as they are focused on dealing lots of little attacks here and there instead of one big monster attack. This skirmisher is focused on killing via a hundred paper cuts and quickly getting out of danger before they can be killed.
To create a skirmisher, give them low Hit Points, moderate Armor Class, and high accuracy. They should have a faster movement rate than a normal creature, or a special way of moving like flying or climbing. In addition, they should have some sort of ability that allows them to move quickly in and out combat, hopefully without taking damage and with ways to avoid attacks of opportunity as often as possible so they don’t quickly die by moving. If they do incur attacks of opportunity, they could have a special ability that increases their AC against them or can make a skill check in order to reduce or remove any damage they might get.
Soldier
Strong, defensive, and powerful. The Soldier is a perfect role for many monsters who want to try and live for more than a few rounds and not suffer a lot of damage. Soldiers are similar to brutes, in that they can last for a while in a combat, but they accomplish that by having moderate Hit Points and having a high Armor Class - the opposite of the brute. A soldier also typically has a high attack modifier, meaning they are quite accurate with their attacks, but their damage is going to be just average for their CR, so that while they are dangerous, they won’t just kill someone in a few hits like a brute. They are focused on protecting and guarding other creatures, typically leaders and the artillery in the back line, and should have ways to keep others from simply walking past them like a gruesome ability tied to attacks of opportunity or simply blocking a creature’s movement.
Looking at our soldier, we can see that they have average hit points for a CR 2 creature and their damage is average at only about 17 per round, just in the middle of the 15-20 point range for CR 2. Their biggest feature is that they have a shield that can be used to knock creatures down or stop them from being able to simply move around them, making it so it is far harder to flank them than it would be to flank a brute or other creature. While our kobold values Dexterity over their Strength, soldiers can also focus on Strength and pick up medium or heavy armor to protect them.
Volo’s Guide to Monsters, 2016 Wizard of the Coast
Creating a soldier is pretty straightforward. They should have a high Armor Class, average Hit Points, a high attack roll with low to moderate damage, and a way to keep creatures from simply just bypassing them for the backline. They are only useful so far as they can make themselves the target of attacks and so having unique ways to draw aggro is going to be an important part of their abilities. They are protectors and their allies should feel safe while they are near them, not feel like they will be killed because their bodyguard can’t keep them safe.
Spellcaster
Our final role are the spellcasters, though this is a less clear cut role than others. A spellcaster has a wide array of abilities that they can focus on, like blasting creatures from afar like artillery or buffing their allies like a leader or repositioning their enemies like a controller. They are separated into their own role simply because their are a few things to keep in mind when creating them that is different from other roles. They should have low Hit Points and Armor Class, they should stick to the back lines, but they typically have shorter ranges than the artillery. They are going to prioritize their mental statistics instead of their physical ones, and may even rely on skills to help fuel their special abilities.
Our Kobold Spellcaster has a measly dagger, but they aren’t going to be using that unless things have gone very badly for them. Instead, they will focus on using their spells to damage their opponents, trying to keep a precise balance of ‘not-to-close’ with the front line so they can blast the tanks and soldiers with a burning hands or lob a shatter at their enemies backline, which is going to require them to get closer than they may like. If they are feeling defensive, they can throw down a fog cloud or mirror image, and if things get really bad for them, they can reach cast shocking grasp and then run away as fast as possible.
Volo’s Guide to Monsters, 2016 Wizard of the Coast
To create a spellcaster, make your physical abilities your lowest priority. Typically spellcasters will have very low AC with low Hit Points as well. They should have very few physical attacks, if any, and will heavily rely on their magic to keep them safe. You can either give them spells as if they were part of a class or give them innate spells that they can cast up to three times a day. To determine what appropriate spell levels the spellcaster should have, go off of their CR. A creature can typically cast spell as if they were of a spellcaster level equal to 1.5 times their CR (rounded down), meaning that a CR 6 spellcaster will cast spells like a 9th-level spellcaster, CR 2 as a 3rd-level, CR 12 as 18th-level, CR 7 as a 10th-level, and so on. When deciding on spells, caution should be taken with the highest level spells that they can cast, though any of their lower level spell slots can be easily filled with any spell of that level without too much worry. The highest level spell slots though can be quite potent and may even hit above the creature’s CR simply because spells were built (mechanically) around killing monsters that have a lot of hit points - they weren’t built to be used primarily on player characters who typically have lower hit points for higher damage output.
Hybrid Roles
Now that we understand the basics for monster roles, we can start giving monsters multiple roles to fill within an encounter. This type of hybrid doesn’t have to be equal between the two roles you are looking to combine, an artillery with a controller can just have a minor controlling ability while focusing on its ranged abilities.
Though, there are a few combos you should avoid. A brute and a soldier would just make for a slog of a fight as it would have a high Armor Class and high Hit Points with a high attack modifier and high damage. There is no give and take in this scenario as every monster should be weak in some areas and strong in others. Another one to avoid would be lurker and brute as then they can’t fulfill the benefits of their role, which is to take damage for their allies and act in the front line.
If you combine a spellcaster with another role, this should decrease how powerful of a spellcaster they are. Normally, a spellcaster would be able to cast spells as if they were 1.5 times their CR spellcaster, but if they are combined with another class, you should change that so that they cast spells as if they were a spellcaster equal to their CR. For example, a CR 6 spellcaster would cast spells as if they were 9th-level, but if they are a hybrid spellcaster, then they would only cast spells as if they were 6th-level. This changes it so that the magic they use isn’t their main abilities, but rather provides boosts to their own natural abilities.
Artillery + Spellcaster
This type of monster relies on their spells to lob onto their enemies, casting spells like fireball or cone of cold as they have a long range. This helps them stay in the back, only moving up occasionally to get a clear view, unloading their spell, before running back again. Then again, this type of hybrid role could rely on shooting a longbow and just uses spells like a ranger, using ensnaring strike to keep their enemies back.
Controller/Leader + Soldier/Brute
Easily flavored as a general or the commander of a unit, this combination allows the monster to be on the front lines, near everyone where they can effectively control the battlefield or provide bonuses to their allies.
Skirmisher + Spellcaster
These types of skirmishers can use spells, like misty step to jump out of combat easily, allowing them to avoid getting hit and having a pretty reliable means of movement.
Leader + Spellcaster
This monster could be set up as a bard, giving them spells to help their allies while having other abilities that are nonmagical so that they can’t be shut down with counterspell over and over.
Things To Keep In Mind
At the end of all this, the important thing to remember about any monster design is that there should always be a give and take. No single monster should have high defenses and high offense. There should be ways to exploit the weaknesses of monsters, like how a brute has horrible Armor Class while a spellcaster has powerful attacks and damage, but very weak Hit Points and Armor Class. There should always be a way to overcome a monster that, while it might require some tactics, isn’t almost impossible to accomplish.
If you create a monster and you decide that their weakness is going to be Charisma saving throws while making everything else great, that is a very hard weakness to target, making that monster that much harder to fight. Be smart about what weaknesses a monster has and make sure to keep it thematic. It wouldn’t make sense for a brute’s weakness to be Constitution saving throws, but that would make sense for spellcasters, just as it wouldn’t make sense to give a brute a high Wisdom saving throw as that is not on theme for that monster role.
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