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The Grim & Deliberate Beast Blog

Edited by Alec Wilson

Monster Profiles

Over 400 pages of original new tools, tactics, monster art, and lore you can add to your campaigns right now.

Need narrative seeds and depth for your monsters?  Random encounters become legendary campaign pieces with our Monster Profiles and Narrative Monster A.I.

New material you won’t find anywhere else.  Full-color monster art, Culture & Psychology, Weaponry, Special Units, Special Abilities, Tactics, and Grudges for the 50 most-played D&D monsters.  Danger and depth for your RPG campaigns.

The Horde

Reinforcements for the Horde!

Aberrations & Odd Beasts

Reinforcements for Aberrations & Odd Beasts!

The Undead

Reinforcements for the Undead!

Giants & Giant-Kin

Reinforcements for Giants & Giant-Kin!

Winged & Flying Beasts

Reinforcements for Winged & Flying Beasts!

Heroic Beasts

Reinforcements for Heroic Beasts!

Cerebral Beasts

Riddles for Cerebral Beasts!

Gargantuan Beasts

Reinforcements for Gargantuan Beasts!

 

Fantasy artists!  Want to submit art for one of our projects?  We’re always interested to see artwork from talented artists.  Email us to share your portfolio, and we’ll send you a description of the art we need right now.

Fantasy writers!  Want to submit a Monster Profile?  Check out our ‘writing needed’ monsters to see the artwork and read what’s already been written, then find our blank template here.

Combat Insults

A OneMillionNerds original.

Why are your monsters always so polite?  Spice up the battle with our Combat Insults and watch your table erupt.

Playing a Dwarf?
  • See our d20-rollable chart of 1,860,480 Insulting Dwarven Battle Cries here.

 

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Extremely Brutal Critical Hit & Death Blow Tables

One of the largest collections of original, narrative critical hit and death blow results you’ll find anywhere.

Did a Hero just land an epic blow?  480 unique and savage results await you.

Many, but not all, of these brutal narrative results are beneficial for the Heroes.  Read them aloud, your players will clamor for them.  Used judicially, these tables will last hundreds of combats.

Note:  Our critical hit and death blow tables work best for humanoid foes.

 

Tricks & Traps

A malevolent grimoire of original new traps, organized by environment and lethality.

Our weird new traps have narrative threads you can read aloud.  Thieves rejoice!

 

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Make your random encounters legendary.

Dusk has fallen.  The party moves quietly along the forest path, your bellies still warm from supper at the Headless Orc Inn.  More an outpost than an Inn, you’ll admit, but still the finest meal you’ve had in weeks, and likely the last for nights to come.

Up ahead, Alma Greenbottle, the Halfling Ranger, stoops low to collect a pinch of duff from the forest floor.  She gives it a sniff and her body stiffens.

“Ogres,” she says, her voice a whisper.  “Within the hour.  And more than three, for certain.”

“Yar!  Ogres!” shouts Grimsbeard, his voice rumbling through the darkness like a Harkenhold welcome horn.  “I’ll smash them grub-fingered water-drinkers with me great-grand-uncle’s forge hammer!”  A dear friend to be sure, but the Dwarven Barbarian has never been known for his discretion.

Before you can shush him, a shrill note rings out.  It is too close for comfort.

Suddenly, the glow of pitch torches bounces between the trunks of trees, and the stomp of heavy boots fills the night.  A squad of Ogres rushes out from the forest in 2×2 formation, howling as they come.

But these aren’t just any Ogres…

They’re Ogres in The Grim & Deliberate Beast.

Immediately, the DM displays beautiful, original monster art to set the mood, then uses the flipside of the Monster A.I. Card to roll for:

  • Monster Aggression Level
  • General Intelligence
  • Weaponry
  • Specialized Units
  • Special Abilities

In addition, the DM has at their fingertips:

  • The G&DB Narrative A.I. System:  Instant, d100-rollable combat blueprints that change as combat unfolds
  • Ogre Culture & Psychology
  • Qualities
  • Grudges
  • Special Tactics
  • Combat Insults
  • Extremely brutal Critical Hit & Death Blow Tables by Body Location and Weapon Type
  • A grimoire of original new tricks and traps organized by lethality and environment
  • Reinforcements Tables for 7 categories of monsters

 

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Welcome to The Grim & Deliberate Beast!

A major new supplement for Dungeons & Dragons, Pathfinder, Warhammer, and all fantasy RPGs.  Narrative A.I. for the 50 most-played monsters, plus a trove of new d100-rollable tools, monster profiles, tactics, art, and lore for your campaign.

Whether you’re a brand new party of first-level characters brawling with Goblins and Kobolds, or a group of grizzled, high-level veterans battling Dragons, Liches, and Mind Flayers, The Grim & Deliberate Beast adds danger and depth, transforming your random encounters into full-fledged campaign pieces.

 

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What’s in the Set?

  • Boutique Monster A.I. Cards.  50 full-color, oversized 4×6 Monster A.I. Cards printed on premium heavyweight cardstock.
  • Bloodlust Custom Dice.  Wake up the room!  Cursed Dice, High-Variance Dice, and Doubles Dice from our custom molds.
  • The Tome of Lore.  All our original content in one place.  Over 300 pages.  The full A.I. system.  Instant combat narratives, and much, much more.

 

What’s in the blog?

  • Monster Profiles.  Over 200 pages of original, new material you can add to your campaigns right now:  Monster art, culture and psychology, tactics, special abilities, weaponry, special units, and grudges.
  • Fine Monster Art.  Over a dozen talented artists created gorgeous, full-color monster art for each monster.
  • Reinforcements Tables.  Your monsters have friends!  Roll on our Reinforcements Tables to see who arrives.
  • Combat Insults.  Why are your monsters always so polite?  Hurl these insults at your players to spice up combat.
  • Extremely Brutal Critical Hit & Death Blow Tables.  By Weapon Type and Body Location.
  • Tricks & Traps.  A grimoire of new traps organized by Lethality and Environment.
  • Fear and a New Philosophy of Combat.  FAQ + philosophy for your campaign.

 

Who’s it for?

DMs of all skill levels who want:

  • Danger and depth in their random encounters.

  • A tactical plan and a narrative structure for their monsters before combat starts.

  • Narrative threads for monster behavioral change that add excitement, fresh thinking, and surprise.

Players who enjoy:

  • Fear, and the comradery it brings.

  • Deadlier, more diverse combat.

  • Learning monster tactics and adding new tricks to their own combat playbooks.

  • Reading unique content about monster psychology, culture, and special abilities.

 

Fear and a New Philosophy of Combat

 

 

 

 

Our Mission:  We believe in good times.  Bloodlust Dice, OneMillionNerds, Black Flail, and Dubious Merit Games do not and shall not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion (creed), gender, gender expression, age, national origin (ancestry), disability, marital status, sexual orientation, or military status, in any of our activities. We strive for an inclusive culture in the gaming community, and in the world.  Let’s be kind to each other.  May your game nights be raucous, frequent, and full of joy.

Questions?  Submissions?

Email:  onemillionnerds@gmail.com

 

All images and writing © 2021 Dubious Merit Games