Typically of Forsaken Areas: Hill Giants

The various true giants are iconic monsters of Dungeons and Dragons, most having been in the game since those original three booklets way back in 1974. The G, or Giant, series of modules (1978) were some of the most popular adventures ever published for 1st edition Advanced Dungeons and Dragons.

The 2nd edition AD&D designers decided that giants needed a significant boost in order to justify their fearsome reputation, as well as to provide readily available monsters for higher level characters, since demons had been removed from the game. So the true giants were all given additional HD to make them tougher for 2nd edition. This power boost was preserved in the 3e revision.

Back in 2002 Daniel R. Collins wrote a persuasive analysis that suggested 3e giants had too many HD for their type and size, at least when compared to other 3e monsters. I would further argue that, in 3e, where all monsters get ability scores and can readily take character classes, the additional HD are unnecessary and actually limiting. A standard 3e fire giant, for example, has 15 HD and a level adjustment of +4, making it very nearly an epic character right out of the gate. I say better to scale the base HD back to more reasonable levels and thus give DMs and players more opportunities to add classes and templates to these monsters.

Dan did a very nice 1st edition conversion of the true giants for 3e. I built on this work, updating the monsters to 3.5e and adding advanced versions that were comparable to the 3e Monster Manual versions, for those DM who wanted to have their cake and eat it, too.

5e increased the size of all the true giants, moving the hill giant from Large to Huge size. I understand the impulse to make giants really “giant” and it’s not without precedent: the old Cook/Marsh Expert set also boosted the size of giants compared the AD&D versions. But that said, I prefer to keep the giants smaller—if only because my miniatures are all based as Large creatures. Below is a smaller version of the 5e hill giant.

These two hill giant miniatures were an option to the Reaper Bones 4 Kickstarter. Both of these figures were sculpted by Bobby Jackson and consist of the Hill Giant Lowland Warrior and the Hill Giant Lowland Chief. These were a lot of fun to paint.

The following text is Open Game Content.

Hill Giant

This creature appears to be a gigantic, primitive human dressed in rough hides and furs. Its filthy, warty skin is deeply tanned and its shaggy hair is pitch black.

Reckless Brutes of Incredible Strength but Little Wit. Hill giants are never truly accepted into society, yet they do well on its edges and frontiers, forging a strong and profitable existence. Despite their rugged appearance and great size, their basically humanoid shape makes it easy for them to relate with more civilized folk.

Boulder Throwers. Hill giants prefer to fight from high, rocky outcroppings, where they can pelt opponents with rocks and boulders while limiting the risk to themselves.

Towering Bullies. Hill giants love to make overrun attacks against smaller creatures when they first join battle. Thereafter, they stand fast and swing away with their massive clubs.

Skin color among hill giants ranges from light tan to deep ruddy brown. Their hair is brown or black, with eyes the same color. Hill giants wear layers of crudely prepared hides with the fur left on. They seldom wash or repair their garments, preferring to simply add more hides as their old ones wear out.

Adults are about 10-1/2 feet tall and weigh about 1,100 pounds. Hill giants can live to be 200 years old.

3.5e

Hill Giant CR 5

Often CE Large giant

Init -1; Senses low-light vision; Listen +2, Spot +3

Languages Giant

Defense

AC 16, touch 8, flat-footed 16
(-1 size, -1 Dex, +5 natural, +3 hide)

hp 68 (8 HD)

Fort +10, Ref +1, Will +2

Offense

Spd 30 ft in hide armor (6 squares); base speed 40 ft.

Melee* greatclub +10/+5 (2d8+11)
or 2 slams +10 (1d4+7)

Ranged rock +5 (2d6+6)

Space 10 ft; Reach 10 ft

Special Attacks rock throwing (40 ft increment)

*1-point Power Attack

Statistics

Str 23, Dex 8, Con 19, Int 6, Wis 10, Cha 7

Base Atk +6; Grp +16

SQ rock catching

Feats Cleave, Improved Bull Rush, Power Attack

Skills Climb +6, Jump +6, Listen +2, Spot +3

Ecology

Environment temperate hills

Organization solitary, gang (2-5), band (6-9 plus 35% noncombatants), hunting/raiding party (6-9 plus 2-4 dire wolves), or tribe (20-24 plus 1-6 hill giant brutes plus 35% noncombatants plus 12-30 dire wolves, 2-4 ogres, and 12-22 orcs)

Treasure standard

Advancement by character class; Favored Class barbarian

Level Adjustment +4

Special Abilities

Rock Throwing (Ex) Adult hill giants are accomplished rock throwers and receive a +1 racial bonus on attack rolls when throwing rocks. A hill giant can hurl rocks weighing 40 to 50 pounds each (Small objects) up to five range increments of 40 feet.

Rock Catching (Ex) A hill giant can catch Small, Medium, or Large rocks (or projectiles of similar shape). Once per round, a hill giant that would normally be hit by a rock can make a Reflex save to catch it as a free action. The DC is 15 for a Small rock, 20 for a Medium one, and 25 for a Large one. (If the projectile provides a magical bonus on attack rolls, the DC increases by that amount.) The hill giant must be ready for and aware of the attack in order to make a rock catching attempt.

Hill Giants as Characters

Hill giant characters possess the following racial traits.

• +12 Strength, -2 Dexterity, +8 Constitution, -4 Intelligence, -4 Charisma.
• Large size. -1 penalty to Armor Class, -1 penalty on attack rolls, -4 penalty on Hide checks, +4 bonus on grapple checks, lifting and carrying limits double those of Medium characters.
• Space/Reach: 10 feet/10 feet.
• A hill giant’s base land speed is 40 feet.
• Low-light vision.
• Racial Hit Dice: A hill giant begins with eight levels of giant, which provide 8d8 Hit Dice, a base attack bonus of +6, and base saving throw bonuses of Fort +6, Ref +2, and Will +2.
• Racial Skills: A hill giant's giant levels give it skill points equal to 11 x (2 + Int modifier). Its class skills are Climb, Jump, Listen, and Spot.
• Racial Feats: A hill giant's giant levels give it three feats.
• +5 natural armor bonus.
• Natural Weapons: 2 slams (1d4).
• Special Attacks (see above): Rock throwing.
• Special Qualities (see above): Rock catching.
• Weapon and Armor Proficiency: A hill giant is automatically proficient with simple weapons, martial weapons, light and medium armor, and shields.
• Automatic Languages: Giant. Bonus Languages: Common, Draconic, Elven, Goblin, Orc.
• Favored Class: Barbarian.
• Level adjustment: +4.

Advanced Hill Giants

Hill Giant Brute CR 7

Hill giant warrior 4

CE Large giant

Init -1; Senses low-light vision; Listen +2, Spot +3

Languages Giant

Defense

AC 16, touch 8, flat-footed 16

hp 102 (12 HD)

Fort +13, Ref +2, Will +3

Offense

Spd 30 ft (6 squares)

Melee* greatclub +14/+9 (2d8+16)

Ranged rock +9 (2d6+7)

Space 10 ft; Reach 10 ft

Special Atk rock throwing (40 ft increment)

*3-point Power Attack

Statistics

Str 24, Dex 8, Con 19, Int 6, Wis 10, Cha 7

Feats Cleave, Improved Bull Rush, Improved Sunder, Power Attack, Weapon Focus (greatclub)

Skills Climb +9, Jump +9, Listen +2, Spot +3

Base Atk +10; Grp +21

SQ rock catching

Possessions hide armor, greatclub

5e

Hill Giant

Large giant, chaotic evil
Armor Class 14 (natural)
Hit Points 95 (10d10 + 40)
Speed 30 ft.
Str	Dex	Con	Int	Wis	Cha
21 (+5)	8 (-1)	19 (+4)	5 (-3)	9 (-1)	6 (-2)
Skills Perception +2
Senses passive Perception 12
Languages Giant
Challenge 5 (1,800 XP)
Actions
Multiattack. The giant makes two greatclub attacks.
Greatclub. Melee Weapon Attack: +8 to hit, reach 10 ft., one target. Hit: 15 (3d6 + 5) bludgeoning damage.
Rock. Ranged Weapon Attack: +8 to hit, range 60/240 ft., one target. Hit: 21 (3d10 + 5) bludgeoning damage.

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The Type U Armed Packet

I was very happy that a Mongoose Traveller version of the Type U Armed Packet made it into The Deep and the Dark, and not just because this starship fits very well into the Buffer setting covered by the book. The Packet is, of course, a ship design that I’ve been tinkering with for going on five years now. The published version tweaks the math for the latest version of High Guard and sports new art and a two-level deckplan.

As I’ve written before, I think the Type U is a great ship for player characters: it’s got a little armor, some guns, decent maneuverability, and a relatively high jump range. But best of all, its mission—unscheduled passenger service into dangerous systems—is made for gaming. Clients who can afford to charter such a vessel usually arrive at the docks with an adventure in the making.

As far as I can tell, the Armed Packet is first mentioned in the in the Ship Recognition Guide of the 2013 draft of Traveller⁵. The text explains that the Armed Packet provides

unscheduled passenger service for those in a hurry. The crew can be trusted, but these little ships still find themselves jumping in harm’s way.

I’m not sure if Marc Miller or Robert Eaglestone conceived of the Armed Packet, but I suspect the ship was developed to either test or fill out a missing niche in the Traveller⁵ starship mission/modifer codes, a system that goes all the way back to CT High Guard. While the 2013 draft does not provide a detailed ship design, the Quick Ship Profile (UF-CA33) tells us that the Packet is a 300 ton (C) vessel with an airframe hull (A), 3g maneuver (3) and Jump-3 capability (3). The Deep and the Dark version conforms to these general specifications.

For my own Into the Interface campaign, the player characters operate a modified Type U, the I.M.V. Starjammer. So I was pretty excited to sign up for the Traveller RPG Starship Miniatures Kickstarter from 2nd Dynasty, which included a 3D model of the Armed Packet. While I thought at first I might invest in a 3D printer, in the end I opted to have a third party print me resin versions of the ship at both tactical scale (which fits on a 1-inch base) and 1:270 scale.

Painting the larger model really kicked my butt. Going in I was feeling relatively confident about my painting abilities and what I learnt working on this project, to my sorrow, was that model-making and miniature painting are two adjacent hobbies with an overlapping but largely different skill set. As this recent Reddit thread helps explain, the tools and techniques are different. With organic figures or natural materials like stone you are using washes and shading to introduce the illusion of small variations in the surface of the miniature. With inorganic, manufactured materials like a starship hull you are trying to eliminate variations, at least until the weathering stage, to create the illusion of smooth, machined surfaces.

The model was cast in several different pieces and when I started to assemble the parts I realized that some of the resin pieces were warped and didn’t fit very well together. Further, some of the pieces seemed to have poor print quality: some sides had many surface defects, and two of the three turrets had broken gun barrels. At first I thought some of this was just normal for 3D printers but after some more research I think these are just poor quality prints. Even lots of sanding and filing and plastic putty couldn’t completely address all of these flaws. 

I primed the model with Vallejo gray primer in the airbrush, then looked at some Ian Stead artwork of the Type U for reference on color schemes. I had picked up the Vallejo Star Fighter Colors set, which had a pretty good selection of base colors. I started laying down a base coat with the brush but quickly found the coverage looked uneven. I decided to switch over to the airbrush, but needed to do a lot of masking. Too late I realized that Tamiya makes lines of masking tape specifically made for models, which would have made this stage far easier.

With the base coat down, I then gave the entire model a coat of Tamiya Gloss Clear. I then applied Tamiya gray panel liner. It’s a pretty amazing product that quickly fills the gaps and unfortunately spreads into some of the flaws as well. In hindsight I wish I had gone with the black panel liner to create a greater contrast.

I wanted to try my hand at some custom decals to better resemble the Starjammer. The nature of the model is such that it doesn’t have many empty panels where a registration number or even hazard stripes would easily fit. I did find a couple of spots on the wings to place a Starjammer crest. I bought some custom waterslide paper for my aged inkjet printer, which didn’t have great resolution but did the job.

Applying decals is a tricky maneuver, even with the aid of microsol and microset. I probably should have found a spare model to practice on, but I was ok with the results. I definitely didn’t want to press my luck with more decals than the crest. Once dry I hit the whole thing with a layer of Testor Dullcote.

Overall, this project was frustrating and I’m not very satisfied with the results, which look a bit messy to my eye. But I certainly learned a lot and could probably do much better on my second model. My single biggest mistake was probably not appreciating the differences between painting a monster miniature and painting a starship model. My second biggest was not having a better plan for approaching this project: a more efficient workflow would have reduced the need for retouches and would have made the end result smoother.

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Several Photographers May Have Been Eaten Getting This Group Photo

From a gaming perspective, 2023 was a pretty darned good year for me. The Deep and the Dark was published, I ran a few fun games, and I got a lot of painting done.

The one thing I really wanted to do in the last year that didn’t get done was to get my Tomb of Annihilation campaign off the ground. So that will be high on the list for 2024. I miss having a weekly game and if this adventure path plays half as well as it reads, we should be in for a great time.

In the coming year I hope to be working on a follow-up to The Deep and the Dark that focuses more on Aslan space. I’ve got a few idea kicking around that I’m pretty excited about, so we’ll see.

Most of the miniatures in my priority pile have been painted. I’ve got a few Reaper giants left that I’d like to do along with a couple of nice Otherworld figures, and then after that I’m not sure. I have a ton of kobolds that I’d like to do, but I already have a bunch. It might be nice to do some Traveller starships, though probably not at the 1:270 scale. Having a few tactical scale models of common ship types might be helpful as visual aids.

Everest Ascended

A little over six years ago I received my rewards for the Reaper Bones III Kickstarter, including the enormous Ma’al Drakar the Dragon Tyrant. That Kickstarter had a bumper crop of great models, including several Gargantuan and Colossal figures that honestly broke me. I worked away on the smaller miniatures, but Ma’al Drakar and the rest of the titanic models languished in my basement as my painting backlog grew and grew.

Finally, last March I got myself an airbrush in one last, desperate attempt to break through the logjam. And the airbrush really did the trick—I’m still very much a beginner, but for priming and putting down base coats on large miniatures it really can’t be beat and has allowed me to put a massive dent in that logjam. (Just in time for the haul from the Reaper Bones 6 Kickstarter to land!)

Armed with the airbrush I was able to complete Ma’al Drakar over the course of several weeks. Because the work was intermittent I couldn’t say how many total hours that represented, but it was a significant time investment. This was easily the largest model I’ve ever worked on, though it probably wasn’t the most technically challenging—that honor probably goes to Shub-Niggurath and all those infernal goat eyes.

Obviously, I wanted to paint this model up as Tiamat so I looked at lots of Dungeons & Dragons reference art, particularly from Tyranny of Dragons. I assembled the model using poster-tack for priming and base coating, then disassembled everything to more easily work on individual components. The wings and the heads were probably the only components that benefited from this approach: everything else probably could have been permanently assembled right from jump.

I primed the model using Army Painter Uniform Gray from a spray can and then applied a zenithal undercoat. Knowing what I know now, I probably would have skipped the primer and just moved right to the undercoat, but old habits die hard.

At this point I assembled the main body, limbs, tail, and neck sections with superglue. In general, the pieces fit well with relatively few gaps and although the model was made with the original Bones material, I didn't notice a lot of sagging or drooping and I think this is because Julie Guthrie did an excellent job sculpting a balanced, well-supported piece. I used some Vallejo plastic putty for the gaps but was not very happy with the results.

I then put down a base coat of Reaper MSP Red Brick on the body, limbs, wings, and tail, followed by washes of Army Painter Strong Tone. The Red Brick had an alarmingly purplish look when first laid down, but this dissipated after I added highlights of Deep Red and then further highlights of Blood Red. I then blocked out the claws and tail spines with brown, highlighted with yellows and gray.

I then worked on the scales of the necks and heads with a base coat, wash, and then highlights. The washes really helped knock down the brightness of the chromatic colors and helped tie the different pieces together.

I did the eyes and teeth and then attached all the remaining pieces with superglue. The cleanup steps probably took as much time as all the rest of the painting, as there were lots of little details and adjustments to add.

All-in-all, it’s a pretty impressive piece to see in person if only because of the size, but Julie Guthrie really outdid herself with this design. I only wish I had used a much lighter tone on the wings: a leathery, tannish base would have made a better contrast and would have allowed the addition of some veining.

I am fairly pleased with the number of models I was able to complete in 2024. I mostly cleared everything in the priority pile, and even allowed myself to pick up a few new additions for the queue.

Griffon and Wyvern

Griffons and wyverns, classic heraldic monsters, have been staples of Dungeons & Dragons from the very beginning, being first mentioned together in Chainmail (1971), where they are treated like Rocs. Both of these Reaper Bones miniatures, sculpted by Julie Guthrie, were part of the core set of the Bones 4 Kickstarter. Even though I didn’t have a pressing need for either miniature, they looked so darned good they both steadily rose to the top of my priority pile.

In OD&D (1974), griffons are described as 

the most prized of steeds, for they are swift, loyal, and fierce. However, they are fond of horse flesh above all other foods, so the two creatures cannot be mixed …. In their wild state Griffons will attack anyone nearby with little provocation, particularly if their lair is nearby.

(I had forgotten that bit about griffons and horses.) The AD&D 1e Monster Manual (1977) repeats the same information, and includes additional details on capturing and training young griffons. “Fledglings sell for 5,000 gold pieces, eggs for 2,000, on the open market.” The MM also mentions that grey elves use griffons as guards and mounts, while storm giants “dwelling on cloud islands or mountain peaks” may have 1-4 griffons.

The 1e Dungeon Master’s Guide has an entire section on “Flying Mounts” which largely seems written to throw cold water on the whole idea of PCs getting their own griffon mounts, emphasizing their “nasty and bad-tempered” natures: “Imagine the confusing tumult of giant wings, the rush of air, the sudden changes in altitude, and you will realize why an inexperienced rider absolutely cannot handle a flying mount.” That actually sounds like a really fun session to me!

The Julie Guthrie griffon is a fantastically dynamic figure that looks like it could spring off its base and soar into the air. It reminds me very strongly of an old John D. Batten illustration of “Jack With His Invisible Coat,” from English Fairy Tales (1902). The illustration shows two fierce griffons guarding the winding road to a giant’s castle.

To prepare for this miniature I looked at lots of references for golden eagles. I skipped priming and went straight to the airbrush for a zenithal undercoat of Reaper Pure Black and Pure White.

I continue to experiment with using the Army Painter Quickshade line, particularly with figures that have lots of fine detail, such as eagle feathers.  It took multiple rounds of Quickshade layers followed by dry brushing to get this griffon where I wanted it.

Wyverns are described in OD&D as

relatives of Dragons, but they are smaller and have but two legs. A Wyvern hasn’t the fearsome breath of a true Dragon, but they are equipped with a poisonous sting in their tail and poison enough to use it repeatedly.

Similar information is contained in the 1e MM. I had it in my head that wyvern poison was one of the more potent in the game, but I don’t see in the 1e MM where wyvern poison is any more virulent than medusa, giant spider, or purple worm poison. Wyvern poison is certainly one of the worst in 3e, doing 2d6 Con intial damage and 2d6 Con secondary damage.

The Guthrie wyvern, like the griffon, has a very dynamic pose, its head cocked at the end of its sinuous, snaky neck. I primarily relied on the illustration in the 5e Monster Manual (2014) for a reference, which has a wyvern with a muted, pale red coloration. After putting down a zenithal undercoat I then put a base coat of Reaper Yellowed Bone. I then used several layers of Army Painter Quickshade to add a red tone to the figure. Overall, I was happy that I was able to approximate the colors in the illustration from the 5e MM without slipping into a hot pink.

Wyverns and Griffons in the Great Dungeon

Both of these monsters are not uncommon in the wild interior of the North. Wyverns and griffons both nest in the Majestic Mountains, and can be found in the cloud islands that periodically drift over the region. Wyverns are also found in the deepest, trackless forests of the North.

Charnel Ghouls

The Eaters of the Dead, a band of ghouls and ghasts, are among the more formidable factions within the Great Dungeon of the North. Their leaders are intelligent, highly civilized ghouls from the Distant West and patterned on the true ghouls of Wolfgang Baur’s classic 2e adventure Kingdom of the Ghouls, which was in turn influenced by the works of Clark Ashton Smith and H.P. Lovecraft.

A tribute to Baur’s take on ghouls was incorporated into the Golarion setting of the Pathfinder game. The Darklands, the Underdark of Golarion, contains a dread Ghoul Court which recalls Baur’s White Kingdom. Wizkids produced a couple of pre-painted ghoul miniatures as part of the Pathfinder Battles Rusty Dragon Inn set: A ghoul cultist and a ghoul champion. These sculpts were reissued in a single blister pack of unpainted Ghouls as part of the Pathfinder Deep Cuts Wave 7 release. I snapped these up thinking they would work pretty well for leaders of the Eaters of the Dead.

I tackled these figures by starting with a zenithal undercoat, then used Reaper Ghoul Flesh and Imperial Purple for the base coats. My Army Painter Regiment and Insane Detail brushes got some pretty good workouts as I finished these miniatures off.

Conceptually, civilized ghouls overlap somewhat with vampires. To distinguish the two, I think of vampires as cursed, wretched creatures clinging to the remnants of their lost humanity, hating their damned condition and fearing to die the true death. Even cultists of Orcus are terrified of death, perhaps because they know all-too-well what torments await them in the Abyss.

Ghouls, in contrast, are eerie post-humanist creatures who actually embrace their undead state: they consider themselves to be transcendent, blessed to have surpassed their mortal flesh. They view humanity with alien detachment and callousness. Ghouls neither fear nor fetishize death: as worshippers of the mysterious Charnel God, true death represents just one more transformation for them into blissful oblivion.

These two miniatures are useful for representing leaders of the Eaters of the Dead faction. Charnel Captains are military commanders of ghoul forces. Charnel Priests are clerics of Mordiggian, philosopher-advisors to ghoul communities. Both captains and priests are usually accompanied by lesser ghouls or ghasts. The sacrificial altar they are posed with was from the “Mythos Expansion” of the Reaper Bones 3 Kickerstarter. This model is another Kevin Williams sculpture.

In the Great Dungeon, areas controlled by the ghouls are filled with the faint scent of musty cinnamon and the muffled ringing of chimes. This curious detail is a shout-out to the Ssú of the Empire of the Petal Throne setting. “The Enemies of Man” are creatures so feared within Tékumel that new PCs quickly learn to flee at first whiff of cinnamon or the sound of bells.

The following text is Open Game Content.

3.5e

These stat blocks use an abbreviated format that omits extraneous or redundant elements. Listen and Spot skills, for example, are detailed on the Senses line and not repeated on the Skills line; Feats that are “always on” like Improved Initiative or Toughness are incorporated into the stat block and not listed on the Feat line.

The Charnel Captain was created by applying the elite ability score array to a standard ghoul and adding 4 levels of fighter.

Charnel Captain CR 5

CE Medium undead

Init +4; Senses darkvision 60 ft.; Listen +3, Spot +8

Language Common

Defense

AC 21, touch 14, flat-footed 16

hp 40 (6 HD)

Fort +5, Ref +6, Will +8

Immune undead traits; Resist turn resistance +2

Offense

Spd 30 ft.; Balance +8, Climb +8, Jump +8

Melee bite +9 (1d6+4 plus paralysis), 2 claws +8 (1d3+4 plus paralysis)

Ranged mwk composite shortbow +9 (1d6+4/x3)

Special Attacks ghoul fever (DC 13)

Statistics

Str 18, Dex 18, Con –, Int 12, Wis 16, Cha 15

Base Atk +5; Grp +9

Feats Dodge, Mobility, Spring Attack

Skills Hide +8, Intimidate +9, Move Silently +8

Combat Gear oil of greater magic fang (+3), potion of displacement; Other Gear +1 chain shirt, cloak of resistance +1, masterwork composite shortbow (18 Str) with 40 arrows

Special Abilities

Ghoul Fever (Su) Disease—bite, Fortitude DC 13, incubation period 1 day, damage 1d3 Con and 1d3 Dex.

Paralysis (Ex) DC 13 Fortitude, paralysis 1d4+1 rounds. Elves have immunity to this paralysis.

The Charnel Priest was created by applying the elite ability score array to a standard ghoul and adding 5 levels of cleric. Clerics of the Charnel God (favored weapon: dagger) have access to the Death, Evil, and Knowledge domains.

Charnel Priest CR 5

CE Medium undead

Init +2; Senses darkvision 60 ft.; Listen +5, Spot +10

Language Common

Defense

AC 20, touch 12, flat-footed 18

hp 41 (7 HD)

Fort +4, Ref +3, Will +12

Immune undead traits; Resist turn resistance +2

Offense

Spd 20 ft.; Balance +4, Climb +4, Jump -2

Melee bite +6 (1d6+2 plus paralysis), 2 claws +4 (1d3+1 plus paralysis)

Special Attacks death touch 1/day (+6 melee touch), ghoul fever (DC 14), rebuke undead 6/day (+3, 2d6+8, 5th)

Spells Prepared (CL 5th, 6th for evil spells)

3rd—animate dead^D, bestow curse (+6 melee touch, DC 18), deeper darkness

2nd—death knell^D (DC 17), hold person (DC 17), shatter (DC 17), silence

1st—bane (DC 16), cause fear^D (DC 16), death watch, divine favor, doom (DC 16), shield of faith

0—detect magic, guidance, read magic, resistance, virtue

^D Domain spell; Domains death, evil

Statistics

Str 15, Dex 14, Con –, Int 14, Wis 20, Cha 16

Base Atk +4; Grp +6

Skills Concentration +10 (+14 casting defensively), Hide +6, Knowledge (arcana) +7, Knowledge (religion) +7, Move Silently +6, Spellcraft +9

SQ spontaneous casting (inflict spells)

Combat Gear oil of darkness, scroll of divine power, scroll of mass inflict moderate wounds; Other Gear +1 breastplate, holy symbol (dagger), funeral-purple robes, silver skull-like mask

Special Abilities

Death Touch (Su) Once per day the ghoul priest may use a death touch against a living creature (+6 melee touch). If successful, roll 5d6; if this is greater than the creature’s current hit points, it dies (no save).

Ghoul Fever (Su) Disease—bite, Fortitude DC 14, incubation period 1 day, damage 1d3 Con and 1d3 Dex.

Paralysis (Ex) DC 14 Fortitude, paralysis 1d4+1 rounds. Elves have immunity to this paralysis.

5e

Ghoul Captain

Medium undead, chaotic evil
Armor Class 15 (studded leather)
Hit Points 78 (12d8 + 24)
Speed 30 ft.
Str	Dex	Con	Int	Wis	Cha
16 (+3)	16 (+3)	15 (+2)	12 (+1)	13 (+1)	11 (+0)
Senses darkvision 60 ft.; passive Perception 13
Languages Common
Challenge 4 (1,100 XP)
Damage Resistances necrotic
Damage Immunities poison
Condition Immunities charmed, exhaustion, poisoned
Actions
Multiattack. The charnel captain makes either three melee attacks—one with its bite and two with its claws—or three ranged attacks with its longbow.
Bite. Melee Weapon Attack: +5 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 10 (2d6 + 3) piercing damage.
Claws. Melee Weapon Attack: +5 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 7 (1d8 + 3) slashing damage. If the target is a creature other than an elf or undead, it must succeed on a DC 10 Constitution saving throw or be paralyzed for 1 minute. The target can repeat the saving throw at the end of each of its turns, ending the effect on itself on a success.
Longbow. Ranged Weapon Attack: +5 to hit, range 150/600 ft., one target. Hit: 7 (1d8 + 3) piercing damage.

Charnel Priest

Medium undead, chaotic evil
Armor Class 16 (breastplate)
Hit Points 75 (10d8 + 30)
Speed 30 ft.
Str	Dex	Con	Int	Wis	Cha
15 (+2)	14 (+2)	16 (+3)	14 (+2)	16 (+3)	12 (+1)
Damage Immunities. necrotic, poison.
Condition Immunities. charmed, exhaustion, poisoned.
Senses darkvision 60 ft., passive Perception 13
Languages Common
Challenge 4 (1,100 XP)
Spellcasting: The ghoul priest is a 5th-level spellcaster. Its spellcasting ability is Wisdom (spell save DC 15, +7 to hit with spell attacks). The priest has the following cleric spells prepared:
Cantrips (at will)—guidance, sacred flame, thaumaturgy 1st level (4 slots)—bane, inflict wounds, shield of faith 2nd level (3 slots)—hold person, silence 3rd level (2 slots)—animate dead, bestow curse
Actions
Multiattack. The charnel priest makes three melee attacks: one with its bite and two with its claws.
Bite. Melee Weapon Attack: +4 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 9 (2d6 + 2) piercing damage.
Claws. Melee Weapon Attack: +4 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 7 (2d4 + 2) slashing damage. If the target is a creature other than an elf or undead, it must succeed on a DC 10 Constitution saving throw or be paralyzed for 1 minute. The target can repeat the saving throw at the end of each of its turns, ending the effect on itself on a success
Channel Negative Energy The charnel priest magically unleashes negative energy. Living creatures within 60 feet of the charnel priest, including ones behind barriers and around corners, can’t regain hit points until the end of the charnel priest’s next turn.

OPEN GAME LICENSE Version 1.0a

The following text is the property of Wizards of the Coast, Inc. and is Copyright 2000 Wizards of the Coast, Inc (“Wizards”). All Rights Reserved.

1. Definitions: (a) “Contributors” means the copyright and/or trademark owners who have contributed Open Game Content; (b) “Derivative Material” means copyrighted material including derivative works and translations (including into other computer languages), potation, modification, correction, addition, extension, upgrade, improvement, compilation, abridgment or other form in which an existing work may be recast, transformed or adapted; (c) “Distribute” means to reproduce, license, rent, lease, sell, broadcast, publicly display, transmit or otherwise distribute; (d) “Open Game Content” means the game mechanic and includes the methods, procedures, processes and routines to the extent such content does not embody the Product Identity and is an enhancement over the prior art and any additional content clearly identified as Open Game Content by the Contributor, and means any work covered by this License, including translations and derivative works under copyright law, but specifically excludes Product Identity. (e) “Product Identity” means product and product line names, logos and identifying marks including trade dress; artifacts, creatures, characters, stories, storylines, plots, thematic elements, dialogue, incidents, language, artwork, symbols, designs, depictions, likenesses, formats, poses, concepts, themes and graphic, photographic and other visual or audio representations; names and descriptions of characters, spells, enchantments, personalities, teams, personas, likenesses and special abilities; places, locations, environments, creatures, equipment, magical or supernatural abilities or effects, logos, symbols, or graphic designs; and any other trademark or registered trademark clearly identified as Product identity by the owner of the Product Identity, and which specifically excludes the Open Game Content; (f ) “Trademark” means the logos, names, mark, sign, motto, designs that are used by a Contributor to identify itself or its products or the associated products contributed to the Open Game License by the Contributor (g) “Use”, “Used” or “Using” means to use, Distribute, copy, edit, format, modify, translate and otherwise create Derivative Material of Open Game Content. (h) “You” or “Your” means the licensee in terms of this agreement.
2. The License: This License applies to any Open Game Content that contains a notice indicating that the Open Game Content may only be Used under and in terms of this License. You must affix such a notice to any Open Game Content that you Use. No terms may be added to or subtracted from this License except as described by the License itself. No other terms or conditions may be applied to any Open Game Content distributed using this License.
3. Offer and Acceptance: By Using the Open Game Content You indicate Your acceptance of the terms of this License.
4. Grant and Consideration: In consideration for agreeing to use this License, the Contributors grant You a perpetual, worldwide, royalty-free, non-exclusive license with the exact terms of this License to Use, the Open Game Content.
5. Representation of Authority to Contribute: If You are contributing original material as Open Game Content, You represent that Your Contributions are Your original creation and/or You have sufficient rights to grant the rights conveyed by this License.
6. Notice of License Copyright: You must update the COPYRIGHT NOTICE portion of this License to include the exact text of the COPYRIGHT NOTICE of any Open Game Content You are copying, modifying or distributing, and You must add the title, the copyright date, and the copyright holder’s name to the COPYRIGHT NOTICE of any original Open Game Content you Distribute.
7. Use of Product Identity: You agree not to Use any Product Identity, including as an indication as to compatibility, except as expressly licensed in another, independent Agreement with the owner of each element of that Product Identity. You agree not to indicate compatibility or co-adaptability with any Trademark or Registered Trademark in conjunction with a work containing Open Game Content except as expressly licensed in another, independent Agreement with the owner of such Trademark or Registered Trademark. The use of any Product Identity in Open Game Content does not constitute a challenge to the ownership of that Product Identity. The owner of any Product Identity used in Open Game Content shall retain all rights, title and interest in and to that Product Identity.
8. Identification: If you distribute Open Game Content You must clearly indicate which portions of the work that you are distributing are Open Game Content.
9. Updating the License: Wizards or its designated Agents may publish updated versions of this License. You may use any authorized version of this License to copy, modify and distribute any Open Game Content originally distributed under any version of this License.
10. Copy of this License: You MUST include a copy of this License with every copy of the Open Game Content You distribute.
11. Use of Contributor Credits: You may not market or advertise the Open Game Content using the name of any Contributor unless You have written permission from the Contributor to do so.
12. Inability to Comply: If it is impossible for You to comply with any of the terms of this License with respect to some or all of the Open Game Content due to statute, judicial order, or governmental regulation then You may not Use any Open Game Material so affected.
13. Termination: This License will terminate automatically if You fail to comply with all terms herein and fail to cure such breach within 30 days of becoming aware of the breach. All sublicenses shall survive the termination of this License.
14. Reformation: If any provision of this License is held to be unenforceable, such provision shall be reformed only to the extent necessary to make it enforceable.
15. COPYRIGHT NOTICE
    
    • Open Game License v 1.0a, Copyright 2000, Wizards of the Coast, Inc.
    • System Reference Document, Copyright 2000-2003, Wizards of the Coast, Inc.; Authors Jonathan Tweet, Monte Cook, Skip Williams, Rich Baker, Andy Collins, David Noonan, Rich Redman, Bruce R. Cordell, John D. Rateliff, Thomas Reid, James Wyatt, based on original material by E. Gary Gygax and Dave Arneson.
    • System Reference Document 5.1, Copyright 2016, Wizards of the Coast, Inc.; Authors Mike Mearls, Jeremy Crawford, Chris Perkins, Rodney Thompson, Peter Lee, James Wyatt, Robert J. Schwalb, Bruce R. Cordell, Chris Sims, and Steve Townshend, based on original material by E. Gary Gygax and Dave Arneson.
    • Charnel Ghouls, Copyright 2023, R. Dorman.

Undead Gnolls

There is a great resemblance between gnolls and hyenas. Gnolls have greenish gray skins, darker near the muzzle, with reddish gray to dull yellow mane. Eyes are dull black and nails are amber colored. Their armor is of horn, metal plates, and leather; like their fur capes and vests, it is shabby, and the latter are moth-eaten and dingy, being brown, black or grayish pelts.—1e Monster Manual (1977).

Gnolls are arguably the most distinctive of the evil humanoids from early Dungeons and Dragons. While kobolds, goblins, hobgoblins, orcs, and bugbears all seem to spring from common Northern European/Tolkien roots, hyena-headed, demon-worshiping gnolls seem to originate from someplace altogether different. 

While many of the classic humanoid monsters are first described in Chainmail (1972), gnolls debut in Dungeons and Dragons Book II: Monsters and Treasures (1974): 

A cross between Gnomes and Trolls (… perhaps, Lord Sunsany [sic] did not really make it all that clear) with +2 morale. Otherwise they are similar to Hobgoblins, although the Gnoll king and his bodyguard of from 1–4 will fight as Trolls but lack regenerative power.

Note that none of the distinctive features of the gnolls as described in the 1e Monster Manual can be found here. A Greg Bell illustration of a “Gnoll,” on page 10 just looks like a generic, pointed-eared humanoid.

Lord Dunsany, the Anglo-Irish writer, is listed as “Inspirational and Educational Material” in Appendix N of the 1e Dungeon Master’s Guide (1979). “Gnoles” are mentioned in his enigmatic short story “How Nuth Would Have Practiced his Art upon the Gnoles” from The Book of Wonder (1912): 

No track led up to the sinister gloom of the trees, either of men or cattle; not even a poacher had been there snaring elves for over a hundred years. You did not trespass in the dells of the gnoles.

Though [spoiler alert] gnoles are never actually seen in Dunsany’s story, they appear to be some manner of forest-dwelling bogeymen. Although I’ve never been sure how influential Dunsany really was on him, Gygax seemed to have had a special fondness for gnolls. They appear in the “Example of the Referee Moderating a Dungeon Expedition” from OD&D Book III, The Underworld and Wilderness Adventures. The party encounters a room with “a half-dozen gnolls,” but although Gygax describes the physical dimensions of the room and its contents in great detail, he doesn’t actually describe what a gnoll looks like. 

Gygax also developed a new gnoll card to the Dungeon! Boardgame. He mentions gnolls in his short story “The Search for the Gnome Cache,” from The Dragon 3 (October 1976). Writing under the pseudonym “Garrison Ernst,” Gygax portrays them much like the bogeymen of Dunsany:

Yer ain’t heard ‘bout that terribul country? Why, airs most slimey great beastswhatlives in the waters o’Nyrn, an’ the hills above the lake are cursed too! Ain’t no folks lives there—only bad things like gnolls.

Enter Yeenoghu

So where did the familiar hyena-headed gnolls of the 1e Monster Manual come from? I can’t find a direct source, but here’s a promising but extremely obscure lead: Strategic Preview Sub-titled TSR Jobbies #5 (Summer 1976), a TSR in-house newsletter produced in vanishingly small numbers. As detailed by Frank Mentzer over at Dragonsfoot, this newsletter featured the very first appearance of Yeenoghu, and most of the information closely mirrors the description from the 1e Monster Manual:

Yeenoghu resembles a human in general form, except that his head is a hyena’s, his chest canine in form, his hands paw-like, and his feet are pawed.

The Strategic Preview entry differs mainly on one point, but it’s a doozy: Yeenoghu is described as “The Demon Lord of Orcs.”

So at some point between Strategic Preview 5 and the publication of the Monster Manual one year later, someone decided to connect Yeenoghu with gnolls, and to have gnolls resemble their hyena-headed demonic patron.

So who did it? Gygax is the presumptive answer, but as Mentzer pointed out in a followup post, “Throughout the 4 Strategic Previews, there is no mention of authors, artists, or copyrights. [Determining an author for] the writing is trickier, and this entry is not written in HighGax.”

I have sometimes wondered if Yeenoghu might actually be the creation of Rob Kuntz. I don’t have anything to support that idea beyond “feel.” The name Yeenoghu, the exoticism of his appearance, the connection to ghouls all feel inspired by the pulp writer Clark Ashton Smith. And while Gygax supposedly hadn’t read him, Kuntz is a well known fan of CAS.

Earlier this year James Maliszewski posted a nice Grognardia entry on Clark Ashton Smith’s short story "The Tomb-Spawn," which describes monsters that might be a direct inspiration for the hyena-headed gnoll: the Ghorii.

The story is part of CAS’s Zothique cycle of weird fiction. While it’s not entirely clear whether the Ghorii are a tribe of bestial humans or inhuman monsters, they certainly sound gnollish in nature:

Into this waste, which was seemingly unpeopled and void of life, the caravan went warily. Urging their camels to a swift trot in the narrow, deep-walled ravines, the merchants made ready their spears and claymores and scanned the barren ridges with anxious eyes. For here, in hidden caves, there lurked a wild and half-bestial people, known as the Ghorii. Akin to the ghouls and jackals, they were eaters of carrion; and also they were anthropophagi, subsisting by preference on the bodies of travelers, and drinking their blood in lieu of water or wine. They were dreaded by all who had occasion to journey between Yoros and Tasuun.

* * * * *

[The] gully swarmed and seethed with the hideous earth-brown bodies of the Ghorii, who appeared instantaneously on all sides, leaping wolfishly from the rocky slopes or flinging themselves like panthers from the high ledges.

These ghoulish apparitions were unspeakably ferocious and agile. Uttering no sound, other than a sort of hoarse coughing and spitting, and armed only with their double rows of pointed teeth and their sickle-like talons, they poured over the caravan in a climbing wave.

Whether created by Gygax or Kuntz, the 1e Monster Manual firmly established the look of gnolls, their connection to ghouls and their demonic patron, Yeenoghu.

Amongst the ranks of demon princes, Yeenoghu is one of the most powerful and most feared. There will normally be 66 gnolls of the strongest sort … in attendance upon Yeenoghu, and if he is alone he can summon from 6–66 in one turn. As this demon prince also receives homage from the King of Ghouls, he can similarly summon from 6–16 ghouls if he so desires.

Fourth Edition introduced the witherling in the Monster Manual 2 (2009), a form of undead gnoll. The concept makes a lot of sense, but I find the design and artwork a bit underwhelming. Fifth edition brought the witherlings back in Volo’s Guide to Monsters (2016), and the artwork really sold this monster to me. When WizKids introduced witherling miniatures as part of Wave 15 of their Nolzur’s Marvelous Miniatures line, I knew I had to get these.

These were really fun miniatures to paint. I sprayed a zentihal undercoat of black which helped establish shading; in retrospect I should have done a second coat of white on top of this. 

I then used several washes of different Army Painter Quickshade tones, which helped create a pallid, desiccated look that reasonably matched the artwork in Volo’s. Using washes also helped preserve the fine details of the skeletal areas, which sometimes get lost with chalky white paints.

I was fairly happy with how these miniatures came out and look forward to using these in an upcoming game.

Undead Gnolls in the Great Dungeon

The gnolls of the Great Dungeon venerate the foul demon lord Yughooragh, who also “commands the service of hyenas, ghouls, ghasts, and trolls.” As a sign of his power, he grants many gnoll shaman the ability to create and command undead gnolls, which assume a variety of horrid forms. Slain shamans or chieftains especially favored by Yughooragh are sometimes called back from the Abyss as ghoul-kissed gnolls.

For 5e games, I would simply use Witherlings as described in Volo’s. But in a 3e game I would make use of the many undead templates available. Green Ronin’s Advanced Bestiary provides a handy Dread Ghoul template which suits our purposes quite well. The following text is Open Game Content.

Undead Gnolls

Ghoul-Kissed Gnoll CR 2

CE Medium undead (augmented humanoid, gnoll)

Init +2; Senses darkvision 60 ft., scent; Listen +4, Spot +5

Languages Gnoll

Defense

AC 15, touch 12, flat-footed 13

hp 13 (2 HD)

Fort +3, Ref +1, Will +2

Special Defenses turn resistance +2

Offense

Spd 30 ft., climb 30 ft.

Melee bite +4 (1d6+3 plus paralysis), 2 claws +2 (1d3+1 plus paralysis)

Special Attacks command ghouls, create spawn

Statistics

Str 17, Dex 14, Con –, Int 10, Wis 15, Cha 10

Base Atk +1; Grp +5

Feats Multiattack, Track ^B

Skills Climb +11, Survival +10

Special Abilities

Command Ghouls (Su) A ghoul-kissed gnoll can automatically command all normal ghouls within 30 feet as a free action. Normal ghouls never attack a ghoul-kissed gnoll unless compelled.

Create Spawn (Su) In most cases, ghoul-kissed gnolls feast on the bodies of the fallen. However, any creature killed by a ghoul-kissed gnoll that lies undisturbed until the next midnight rises as a dread ghoul at that time. The new dread ghoul is not under the control of its creator. A protection from evil or gentle repose spell cast on the corpse prevents this.

Paralysis (Ex) A creature damaged by a ghoul-kissed gnoll’s natural attack must succeed on a DC 11 Fortitude save or be paralyzed for 1d4+1 rounds.

Scent (Ex) A ghoul-kissed gnoll can detect approaching enemies and sniff out hidden foes by sense of smell alone.

Skills A ghoul-kissed gnoll can always choose to take 10 on Climb checks, even if rushed or threatened.

Undead Traits Immune to mind-affecting effects, poison, sleep, paralysis, stunning, disease, death effects, and any effect that requires a Fortitude save unless it also works on objects or is harmless. Not subject to critical hits, nonlethal damage, ability damage to its physical ability scores, ability drain, energy drain, fatigue, exhaustion, or death from massive damage.

Skeletal Gnoll CR 1

CE Medium undead

Init +5; Senses darkvision 60 ft.; Listen +0, Spot +0

Defense

AC 18, touch 11, flat-footed 17

hp 13 (2 HD)

Fort +0, Ref +1, Will +3

Immune cold; DR 5/bludgeoning

Offense

Spd 30 ft.

Melee morningstar +3 (1d8+2)

Statistics

Str 15, Dex 12, Con –, Int –, Wis 10, Cha 1

Base Atk +1; Grp +3

Gear leather armor, heavy wooden shield, morningstar

Special Abilities

Undead Traits Immune to mind-affecting effects, poison, sleep, paralysis, stunning, disease, death effects, and any effect that requires a Fortitude save unless it also works on objects or is harmless. Not subject to critical hits, nonlethal damage, ability damage to its physical ability scores, ability drain, energy drain, fatigue, exhaustion, or death from massive damage.

Zombified Gnoll CR 1

CE Medium undead

Init -1; Senses darkvision 60 ft.; Listen +0, Spot +0

Defense

AC 16, touch 9, flat-footed 16

hp 29 (4 HD); DR 5/slashing

Fort +1, Ref +0, Will +4

Defensive Abilities undead traits

Offense

Spd 30 ft.

Melee morningstar +5 (1d8+3)

Statistics

Str 17, Dex 8, Con –, Int –, Wis 10, Cha 1

Base Atk +2; Grp +5

Gear leather armor, heavy wooden shield, morningstar

SQ single actions only

Special Abilities

Single Actions Only (Ex) Zombified gnolls have poor reflexes and can perform only a single move action or attack action each round. A zombified gnoll can move up to its speed and attack in the same round, but only if it attempts a charge.

Undead Traits Immune to mind-affecting effects, poison, sleep, paralysis, stunning, disease, death effects, and any effect that requires a Fortitude save unless it also works on objects or is harmless. Not subject to critical hits, nonlethal damage, ability damage to its physical ability scores, ability drain, energy drain, fatigue, exhaustion, or death from massive damage.

OPEN GAME LICENSE Version 1.0a

The following text is the property of Wizards of the Coast, Inc. and is Copyright 2000 Wizards of the Coast, Inc (“Wizards”). All Rights Reserved.

1. Definitions: (a) “Contributors” means the copyright and/or trademark owners who have contributed Open Game Content; (b) “Derivative Material” means copyrighted material including derivative works and translations (including into other computer languages), potation, modification, correction, addition, extension, upgrade, improvement, compilation, abridgment or other form in which an existing work may be recast, transformed or adapted; (c) “Distribute” means to reproduce, license, rent, lease, sell, broadcast, publicly display, transmit or otherwise distribute; (d) “Open Game Content” means the game mechanic and includes the methods, procedures, processes and routines to the extent such content does not embody the Product Identity and is an enhancement over the prior art and any additional content clearly identified as Open Game Content by the Contributor, and means any work covered by this License, including translations and derivative works under copyright law, but specifically excludes Product Identity. (e) “Product Identity” means product and product line names, logos and identifying marks including trade dress; artifacts, creatures, characters, stories, storylines, plots, thematic elements, dialogue, incidents, language, artwork, symbols, designs, depictions, likenesses, formats, poses, concepts, themes and graphic, photographic and other visual or audio representations; names and descriptions of characters, spells, enchantments, personalities, teams, personas, likenesses and special abilities; places, locations, environments, creatures, equipment, magical or supernatural abilities or effects, logos, symbols, or graphic designs; and any other trademark or registered trademark clearly identified as Product identity by the owner of the Product Identity, and which specifically excludes the Open Game Content; (f ) “Trademark” means the logos, names, mark, sign, motto, designs that are used by a Contributor to identify itself or its products or the associated products contributed to the Open Game License by the Contributor (g) “Use”, “Used” or “Using” means to use, Distribute, copy, edit, format, modify, translate and otherwise create Derivative Material of Open Game Content. (h) “You” or “Your” means the licensee in terms of this agreement.
2. The License: This License applies to any Open Game Content that contains a notice indicating that the Open Game Content may only be Used under and in terms of this License. You must affix such a notice to any Open Game Content that you Use. No terms may be added to or subtracted from this License except as described by the License itself. No other terms or conditions may be applied to any Open Game Content distributed using this License.
3. Offer and Acceptance: By Using the Open Game Content You indicate Your acceptance of the terms of this License.
4. Grant and Consideration: In consideration for agreeing to use this License, the Contributors grant You a perpetual, worldwide, royalty-free, non-exclusive license with the exact terms of this License to Use, the Open Game Content.
5. Representation of Authority to Contribute: If You are contributing original material as Open Game Content, You represent that Your Contributions are Your original creation and/or You have sufficient rights to grant the rights conveyed by this License.
6. Notice of License Copyright: You must update the COPYRIGHT NOTICE portion of this License to include the exact text of the COPYRIGHT NOTICE of any Open Game Content You are copying, modifying or distributing, and You must add the title, the copyright date, and the copyright holder’s name to the COPYRIGHT NOTICE of any original Open Game Content you Distribute.
7. Use of Product Identity: You agree not to Use any Product Identity, including as an indication as to compatibility, except as expressly licensed in another, independent Agreement with the owner of each element of that Product Identity. You agree not to indicate compatibility or co-adaptability with any Trademark or Registered Trademark in conjunction with a work containing Open Game Content except as expressly licensed in another, independent Agreement with the owner of such Trademark or Registered Trademark. The use of any Product Identity in Open Game Content does not constitute a challenge to the ownership of that Product Identity. The owner of any Product Identity used in Open Game Content shall retain all rights, title and interest in and to that Product Identity.
8. Identification: If you distribute Open Game Content You must clearly indicate which portions of the work that you are distributing are Open Game Content.
9. Updating the License: Wizards or its designated Agents may publish updated versions of this License. You may use any authorized version of this License to copy, modify and distribute any Open Game Content originally distributed under any version of this License.
10. Copy of this License: You MUST include a copy of this License with every copy of the Open Game Content You distribute.
11. Use of Contributor Credits: You may not market or advertise the Open Game Content using the name of any Contributor unless You have written permission from the Contributor to do so.
12. Inability to Comply: If it is impossible for You to comply with any of the terms of this License with respect to some or all of the Open Game Content due to statute, judicial order, or governmental regulation then You may not Use any Open Game Material so affected.
13. Termination: This License will terminate automatically if You fail to comply with all terms herein and fail to cure such breach within 30 days of becoming aware of the breach. All sublicenses shall survive the termination of this License.
14. Reformation: If any provision of this License is held to be unenforceable, such provision shall be reformed only to the extent necessary to make it enforceable.
15. COPYRIGHT NOTICE
    
    • Open Game License v 1.0a, Copyright 2000, Wizards of the Coast, Inc.
    • System Reference Document, Copyright 2000-2003, Wizards of the Coast, Inc.; Authors Jonathan Tweet, Monte Cook, Skip Williams, Rich Baker, Andy Collins, David Noonan, Rich Redman, Bruce R. Cordell, John D. Rateliff, Thomas Reid, James Wyatt, based on original material by E. Gary Gygax and Dave Arneson.
    • System Reference Document 5.1, Copyright 2016, Wizards of the Coast, Inc.; Authors Mike Mearls, Jeremy Crawford, Chris Perkins, Rodney Thompson, Peter Lee, James Wyatt, Robert J. Schwalb, Bruce R. Cordell, Chris Sims, and Steve Townshend, based on original material by E. Gary Gygax and Dave Arneson.
    • Advanced Bestiary, Copyright 2004, Green Ronin Publishing, LLC; Author Matthew Sernett.
    • Undead Gnolls, Copyright 2023, R. Dorman.