Making a beastiary for a game I'm making, need some ideas for cool critters...

...

...

Use some bugs for inspiration.
Or please use Pre-historic creatures that are not dinosaurs

...

...

...

I'm going to tell you something i started doing with my fantasy games and it enriches the game a lot...And then i might dump some monster lately.

I grew tired of red dragons, wyverns, and gryphons, but they were staples of the genre and In a way, I was not really tired of them, just tired of working them into a fauna.

So I started doing with my animals tiny variants that aren't status relevant most of times but made the world much more interesting, just by adding them there.

Grypphons for example, were a major group, with several subspecies. The only ride-able was variant was the browncoat grypphon, which had a hawk like pattern to it's feather and was overal brown. It was a loner forest type grypphon. But humanity had been breeding them for a while, so the Tame Browncoat was actually bigger and more apt at flight than the wild one, because those traits were deliberately picked by breeds. The browncoat is a loner that mates for life and the way to get a rider to like him is to have the grypphon accept it as it's 'mate'. Which no, doesn't require actual mating. But once they bond with a rider, they bond for life.

That's different than the Snow Grypphon, or mountain grypphon, smaller, grey and white scales, with a longer neck and beak. And in the southern parts of the world you had the Spotted grypphon and the Maned grypphon.

Dragon's weren't divided by color. Instead we also went with species. Most of between grey and dark green, but the largest dragon species was the Horn Longmuzzle, also known as Spear dragon for the narrow aspect of it's muzzle. The smaller variant of dragon was the Navaroni Dragon. That's because it was only found in the southern beaches of the world, in the kingdom of Navaroni.

...

EELCAT

Avatar: The Last Airbender is chock full of crazy critters. I'm watching it for the first time through and I don't think I've seen a regular animal yet. Found a quick list of creatures here
www buzzfeed com/donnad/beginners-guide-to-the-outrageous-animals-of-avatar-the-last?utm_term=.limb4K4lD3#.ka3rOBO96z
But I think there are even more.

There's only two regular animals in the whole show if I remember correctly.

There's the Earth King's bear. But thas it.

...

There's a bear. Just... a normal asian bear.

There's even a scene where they wonder about that and suggests a bunch of bear hybrids, but conclude that it's just a bear.

Stranglegoose
void spider
Weirdcat
House Bear
Boneworm

Shafter: Basically a Wheat Golemn

Look at this thing. Just… look at it. Bask in its oddness. Now understand that this thing does not know how to fucking die. This son of a bitch is known to shrug off temperatures as low as 1.5 Kelvin (-457 °F/-272 °C), as high as 453.7 K (357 °F/181 °C), 570,000 rads of radiation (10,000-20,000 rads is a lethal dose for a human), decades, even centuries without water, losing 97% to 99% of the water in its body (a human will keel over and die after losing only 10% on average), almost 6,500 atmospheres worth of pressure (the bottom of the Marianas Trench, the with the highest known on earth has a pressure of "only" 1,071 atmospheres at its deepest point), and of course, the GOD DAMN VACUUM OF SPACE. NOT EVEN A HARD VACUUM WILL KILL IT!
Now, be glad these things are only half a millimeter long. Imagine if they were bigger. Ladies and gentlemen, fellow fa/tg/uys, I present to you the Tardigrade

yes yes, we all know what a water bear is

DO YOU BLEED?

this is the thing of nightmares.

This as well. I've considered rating fearless as 'gooseblooded' or something goose related. The things just horrify creatures multiple times their size. Goose hydra is obviously elder god pet -tier.

I like this.

This too.

First time I've seen a gator dragon done that wasn't a stick figure. Looks bretty good.

My go-to on making up a fantasy creature:

1. Pick a random animal from Earth.

2. Give it giant fangs.

3. Make it bigger.

4. Give it glowing eyes.

Done. This formula works for every kind of animal, without fail.

Unfortunately, a lot of people prescribe to this formula and so everything it produces leads to being called 'dire ' and it's boring as fuck.

Somehow this thing always made me think of a hybrid between a varanid, a big cat, and a mandrill.

That's why you just look up the german word of it and mix it with a random name relating to the animal.

Dire wolf? No, this is a Wulfang. Totally different.

>Stheno
A relative of the lamia and medusa, the Stheno takes the shape of a giant beautiful woman but with the body of a wingless dragon instead of legs. Pale, sullen, and ofttimes beautiful, the Stheno is a volatile creature. Usually preferring to live alone in high mountain passes, abandoned mines, or other desolate places of the world, they infrequently come into conflict with humans. They are creatures of a deeply conflicted nature. Their female half seeks companionship and friendly contact, where their dragon half seeks solitude and despises the artifice of humans. While usually they keep far enough away for them to not be of an issue for all but unwary Travellers, they can be extremely dangerous when roused in anger. Whether it be by some perceived encroachment upon their territory, the coaxing of an evil entity, or simply a bout of violent depression brought on by loneliness. They are massive but swift foes, and both parts of their body possess monstrous claws. Far more dangerous though is their ability to place a gaes upon any who look into their eyes, usually shrouded behind low locks of raven hair. Those who fall under their spell are enraptured by the creature in a cloying, almost worshipping way. The Stheno may delight in the attention for a short time, but inevitably tires of the ingenuine attention and tears her admirer apart. The Stheno also possesses some amount of natural magical ability, inherited from it's apparently draconic heritage. While usually volatile and aggressive, a Stheno can be calmed by shows of genuine congeniality and promises to visit it again. Such promises are not to be taken lightly however, as the rage of a spurned Stheno is explosive. If one does make good on such promises, the creature can often make a stout ally. They will go to great lengths to safe guard any who have shown them kindness.

>there's always that one guy in the group that is fascinated with german sounding words
>it's you

Like this?

No, that has scales instead of fur. While common, clearly a completely different creature and not at all a komodo panther.

Well i've always found that giving the animals something that sets them apart from their regular counterparts beyond size helps keep them from becoming just another dire animal. In addition to being better armored, that creature could have metallic teeth and chromatophores that give it active camo for all we know. Even if it were only the size of your average leopard or jaguar I don't think a party would make light of something like that. Especially if you had it favor the jaguar's skull bite method of killing prey.

ahh Dougal Dixon, his neo dinosaurs were an interesting look at what if, even more novel now comparing what he knew at the time with what we know now

>tfw learning german

Nah, I'm being facetious. I do think that straying too far from Earth animals can cause confusion, though. If everything is super detailed and complicated and new, it can stress players out and what to expect.

You know what you're up against, whether it's a wolf, dire wolf, or wulfang, you know?

some madman spliced a Paras with a Joltik!

>The Bunyip
A common sight in more southerly climes, the Bunyip is a lake or pond dwelling pack hunting creature with a highly territorial streak but a lax disposition. Rarely seen, except on the rare occasions they can be seen basking on sandbanks under the full moon, many foolhardy folk ply a bunyip's waters without care for what may be lurking just unseen. However, fish without proper offerings or even simply build a camp on the banks, and you might incur a whole pack of bunyips wrath. Despite their odd appearance bunyips have a startling great intelligence, and can frequently out maneuver or trap their prey. They speak a language of low croakings, bayings, and barking amongst one and other, and the sound of it echoing across foggy moonlit billabongs is not for the feint of heart.

Whoops, meant to delete that first few words.

Oh well.

>Androphagii

A fearful construct of the bloodthirsty empires of old, the Androphagii was part ritual animal, part sacrificial implement, and part gladiatorial combatant. A hulking mass of alabaster muscle, clad in obsidian trappings unique to each culture, the Androphagii was ultimately powered by masses of twisting serpents that lived within the outer shell of it's body. Usually constructed from the flayed skin of the mightiest warriors upon their death or willing sacrifice, the beasts feed solely upon human flesh and blood. After mangling their foes with whatever great stone weapon they bring to bear, they crudely stuff the remains into a hole in their bellies, from which coils of snakes constantly spill. While the sorcerer priests who constructed them are long dead, they still patrol their ritual sites and ruined cities. Their flesh is as hard as stone, so one must the weak snakes that live inside. It is unknown how such a distinct design proliferated all over the world, but some scholars posit that all the civilizations actually worshiped the same dark deity, simply with different names and trappings.

Ponder, pls go.

>White Wendigo

There exist in this world two kinds of what the Northern tribes call Wendigo, cannibal monsters closer to beasts than men, white wendigo and black wendigo. White wendigo are the more pitiful of the two kinds, the results of those unlucky settlements or groups of travelers who run out of food in the cold northern winters. Driven to eat the dead or dying for extended periods, they inevitably turn to killing the weakest among their own to stave off ravening hunger. This act pushes them over the edge, and they begin to degenerate. First, the corners of their mouth crack and bleed as though from frostbite, then their hair falls from their heads, their teeth turn to fangs, and finally their eyes become bestial pools of ink. They descend into mindless slavering beasts, caring not for the cold or wind they discard all trappings of humanity. They roam the cold wastes in bands of ten or twenty, snarling and howling like feral dogs. They fight amongst each other for every scrap, but pull down their prey as a group. They do not prefer to eat their prey alive, but never wait till they die to feast.

>Black Wendigo

Black wendigo are far rarer, but also far more dangerous than their white brethren. They maintain their human intelligence, some even claim it is enhanced, but are not lacking in savagery. They are the result those who turn to cannibalism alone and without any moral justifications. When a band is lost deep in the woods, or perhaps snowed in a lonely cabin, there is always the possibility of one turning on another. Cabin fever it has been called, but it tells of a far more insidious taint. The black wendigo is ultimately not something anyone can become, there is an unseen essence that lurks in the hearts of a few. The urge to kill and feast upon their fellow man. Without warning they pounce, hacking what had once been friends apart and greedily taking their flesh. Some dark force makes the transformation swift and painless. While they eat their first meal as a wendigo their hair falls from their bodies, their skin turns ashen black, their statures grow, and finally a great rack of horns grows from the top of their head. The black wendigo cannot be identified by sight however, as it can shapeshift, one among their many other magical abilties. Usually the disguise themselves as trappers, guides, or lonely hermits with welcoming cottages. They lure their prey into the deepest woods, and when night falls they feast upon all but the most cunning and dangerous prey.

>Fire Drakes

Great sieges beasts originally reared a thousand years ago, they have since slipped their chains and live wild in volcanic regions across the world. Colossal, bred from the stock of southern terror lizards and imbued with raw elemental flame, a fire drake can easily lay waste to an unprotected village on it's own. They often do, as their ancient instincts draw them to tear down walls and swallow forges whole. Indeed, the beasts literally live on heat and flame, drawing them to volcanoes and other geothermal hotspots. Mercifully rare, thanks to an engineered low birth rate, they are never the less a grave problem for any who wish to make use of the fertile soils found around volcanoes, or harvest the rare materials that can be found within.

And I guess I'm done with the shitty OC monsters for now.

I find that the best way to fluff out creatures is to add like three or so subtypes. So, let's say you have gryphons. Instead of just that, you've got greater and lesser gryphons. Within lesser gryphons, you have like, chicken headed gryphons and owl gryphons and then even smaller ones with like budgie heads. Maybe a sister species where the front feet are also paws instead of claws. Nothing evolves on its own

...

Find an ecological niche that is made by there being giant flying firebreathing alpha predators.

Fill that niche using as little magic as possible.

You now have a new creature that adds immersion.

Bonus points for making creatures that use magic to fill old niches better than the earth beasts. Establishing a calorie counter for how magic costs the organism helps immensely.

That's how I ended up with squirrels that shoot rainbow sparks when they want to mate.

I like your stuff.

...

well shit, I have a biology degree and a shitton of crazy creatures in a folder metaphorically collecting dust.

...

...

You could just like, take an animal and give it a semi random magical ability. Like, mimics are a thing, so why not:
>minor tree mimic
A small creature that usually takes the shape similar to a squirrel with six limbs ending in harsh claws, though it has not been determined if this is its "truest" form. Usually most active during dawn and dusk, it scours the forest floors looking for fruit, nuts, and berries, and will often take these back to its nest or store them nearby for later.
If this creature is spotted by a predator, it will climb into a fruit-bearing tree and alter it's form to look like that tree's natural fruit. They are usually found near apples and pear trees, as these fruit are closest to their size, though anecdotal evidence has placed them hiding amongst things as large as melons.
This shape altering ability is also used to attract mates. Species in the northern regions are known to walk around females during day time, giving themselves the biggest and brightest form they can. Species in the southern regions take a much more violent route, taking on the form of delicious fruit and hiding amongst that fruit or on the forest floor. When another creature comes up to eat it, they spring up, becoming large, spikey, and as deadly as they can to attack their foe. The larger the animal killed, the higher up the social order they climb.

Ooh, a biology degree? What books would you recommend I get for creature design? I have the Princeton encyclopedia of mammals, national geographic encyclopedia of birds, a fairly recent book of dinosaurs (pic related), and Terryl Whitlatch's Science of Creature Design. I also have both illustrated art books of Monster Hunter, which are great for flipping through for inspiration.

Alright here's another one then. I've used this in a couple games, and could never come up with a good name. I'll give it a couple options that I've used.

>Boggart, Orc, Thyrs, Wildmen

Long ages ago, before man good shape metal or till fields or even put roofs over their heads, the boggart was a terror in the night. It hunted man, slit eyes glowing in woods at the edge of whatever meager camp our ancestors could build. They were like men in shape, but hairy and the faces of beasts. They made crude tools and stole upon our forebears in the dark. Dragging them screaming to be eaten in fetid lairs. They were strong and could see in the dark, and so posed a great threat. As the years ground on though, man began mastering the world around him. Fields became farms, wolves became dogs, and towns were built. The boggarts had no such mastery of the world. They scraped at rocks and continued hunting man but soon enough man could hunt them back. With torches and steel, they chased the boggarts from their fields back into the woods. Now the boggarts are relegated to fairy tales to scare children, and the occasional attack on a shepherd's flock at the edge of a forest. They are always chased away, but they still eke out a living in the woodlands of the world. Preying on travelers at night or lost children.

Ahhhhhh Whitlatch, I had that book when I was yougner!
Highly depends how realistic you're being, but assuming generic fantasy world #37, you can largely throw away the strict connection of ecology-physiology and just limit yourself to making the animal with loose allometric laws (no godzillas), and then design the habitat it lives in as befitting the story.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Allometry

Don't stick spikes and horns everywhere. Your apex predators will likely be the biggest.

Inside Nature's Giants was a fantastic show that shows the insides of nature's larger creatures. I recommend the racehorse and big cat episodes (i think most are still up on youtube).
channel4.com/programmes/inside-natures-giants/episode-guide

creativebloq.com/3d/how-design-better-creatures-41411337

In addition, dragons are pretty cool, but to more realistically explain how they're usually portrayed, you would need dragon bone to be made with enormously high tensile strength, dragon muscle to be made with substantially tougher and more elastic material, and portray their flight path as gliders (think a bomber carpet bombing an area instead of a fighter strafing), and possibly some strange blood. Realistic dragonfire isn't that much of a stretch.

...

...

One creature design I would love to see more of in fiction is something like an organic blimp.

suptg.thisisnotatrueending.com/archive/17057731/

suptg.thisisnotatrueending.com/archive/18350298/

suptg.thisisnotatrueending.com/archive/18442709/

suptg.thisisnotatrueending.com/archive/23348526/

suptg.thisisnotatrueending.com/archive/28965839/

suptg.thisisnotatrueending.com/archive/33071790/

suptg.thisisnotatrueending.com/archive/38388096/

suptg.thisisnotatrueending.com/archive/41729483/

warosu.org/tg/thread/30685000

Google "keith thompson leviathan"

...

...

Reverse manticore.

Actually, just take any classic Chimera and reverse the parts.

This is awesome, thank you.

So it has a man ass?

That's a Woolly Thoctar you nigger

I've always been a fan of taking Pokemon to their natural conclusions. If your PCs are already fans and you don't want to get caught, just troll the net for some fake ones for inspiration.

Followup question: When you say you're looking for ideas to put in a bestiary, do you mean only creatures that could feasibly be (un)natural, or do you also want sentient creatures, like extraplanar beings and shit?

yes

These would make awesome mounts.

Anyone got a dire/fantasy moose?

>Gradior Fuzz
Gradiors are extremely large segmented crawlers. Known for devastating vegetation by the hectare, they concentrate chemicals from their diet into an extremely high pH adhesive, trapping and killing adventurers fooled by their soft and ponderous appearance.

At the end of its mating season, a Gradior settles in the center of its desolation and cocoons itself for reproduction. Inside, it splits itself up into baby Gadiors that eat each other and what remains of their parent until they are strong enough to burst out of the cocoon and devour everything in their path.

While the cocoon itself only rates about as highly as standard silks, the hide left behind by the adult Gradior is highly prized. If given enough time for the reproduction cycle to complete, leftover viscera will have caused the hide to mature into a fuzzy pelt. This pelt is luxurious to the touch, extremely durable, and resistant to many standard sources of stains and damage.

As the process requires the spread of ecosystem destroying creatures, most governments ban the sale and creation of Gradior Fuzz, but this has only raised demand and prices sky high.

Preferably nonsapient and not too alien looking.

As unnatural as vampires are, the abomination that is the Dhampir is one of the most horrible of unnatural existences, being the result of the combination of mixing natural and unnatural blood and an ancient curse. In ancient times, a paladin of hades and a vampire fell in love. They wished to have children together and postponed the vampirism of the human in the couple in order to do so since vampires cannot have literal children. Hades, appalled by the abomination that would have been created, has cursed all vampires in response and when the creature was born, it ripped its way out of its mothers womb and then tore apart its father.

Despite having an undead parent, the Dhampir is a completely living creature that does not need dark magic to sustain it. Being a creation of Hades, it has an instinctive revulsion towards the undead, driving it to tear those apart wherever it sees them. A Dhampir stands 4-5 meters tall and resembles a mix between a man and a bat. They display no intelligence and aside from a drive to destroy undead they have no behaviors different from a typical omnivorous creature. The Dhampir is omnivorous but has a preference for meat, subsisting on hunting and only devouring shrubs and grasses to aid in digestion. Servants of Hades have been known to capture and tame Dhampirs, using its innate savagery to purge undead taint from lands. A few very foolish vampires have attempted to breed and tame Dhampirs, fewer still surviving to decide that it is not worth the effort.

Giant Jeweled Crabs. They live at the heads of mountain streams, living mostly sedentary lives passively collecting minerals to continue to grow its jewels and snapping up whatever animals get close. Once every ten years they migrate to the ocean to reproduce, diving deep down to mate then die. During this time many people try to take down the crabs for their jewels and meat, but the crabs are tough enough that very few go down.

A year later the shores are covered in young jewel crabs. Despite being much easier to kill the jewels on the young crabs are typically only semi-precious and not worth the effort. From there they make their way to the mountain streams where the cycle begins again.

Not necessarily the idea of golems, but what they're made of. I like it when GMs try to use stones and minerals that people wouldn't think of normally. And have special powers to match the quality of the mineral in real life.

Actually these were both Placoderms.

Man, that Pompagoon has shit hair.

...

haha, I called mine Varga

>They based them on the new, lego-looking pokémon art style.
What a waste of talent and creativity.

Anyone got the pic of the anglerfish type monster with the human hand lure?

> take two or three animals and mix and match parts.
if you do this, do ONLY this

That face. He's so smug.

>Pick a creature
Seal.
>Give it fangs
Er, done.
>Make it bigger
Okay
>Give it glowing eyes
Uh... I've made a normal sized walrus with glowing eyes.

...

youtube.com/watch?v=D41SBcq1wYk

...

Carnivorous alpaca?

...

...

Negroid zebras

...

I'm trying to think of a call for this things, and all I can come up with is "BEEEEEEGH"

...

...