Review – Lost Omens: Monsters of Myth (Pathfinder)

Monsters of Myth features long-form write-ups of 20 monsters from the Lost Omens campaign setting. These creatures are legendary in that there are legends about them, but they aren’t all epic – Monsters of Myth is not exclusively limited to adversaries for high level adventurers. It’s not even limited to adversaries.

Each of the 20 presented creature gets a six-page write-up (if you do the math you’ll notice that this is a relatively slim book). For most of the entries this is three pages of background, a page of advice on using the creature for parties of different levels, and then two pages of stats. For most of the entries, that’s not a two page stat block. It might also include an item or, frequently, a stat block for something like a spawn or other hanger-on of the creature. These tend to tie in with the advice on how to involve the creature in a lower-level campaign, which frequently involves dealing with followers or exploring the outskirts of a lair (when the creature is lower level the advice tends to be about looking into how the entity came to be or some broader organization or phenomenon). Indeed, some of the entries don’t have standard mechanics for the creature at all, because that stat block already appeared in a Bestiary. The Krampus entry, for example, has a worshipper, a variant, and an item. The kaiju entry has a couple pages of environmental hazards that characters may or may not be able to survive. As noted above, some of the creatures aren’t really adversaries, even if they do have a stat block. So, sure, you can kill the last saumen kar if you want, but the main mechanics in that entry are the pactbound initiate archetype. There are multiple other creatures who may be allies in the right circumstnaces. Kuwrsys, on the other hand, is a foe, but may be a lesser threat than the Tagas Labyrinth in which it is imprisoned.

Making maximal use of Monsters of Myth means weaving the creatures into the background of your campaign. Yeah, you could just have an NPC send the characters off on a mission to kill the thing, but then you’re leaving out a lot of the content here. If it’s an adversary, you’ll want to lay out rumors and make the early hunt and exploration more of a part of the quest while the characters are getting up to the right level to defeat that threat. Or lay out bread crumbs about how this legendary creature may not be a situation best handled with the sharp end of a sword. Ultimately, Monsters of Myth will be of most use to a GM who wants to weave their own longer stories, but wants a little inspiration along the way.

Promotional consideration was provided in the form of a review copy. Strange Assembly may earn commissions from affiliate links in this article.

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