Parties adopting monster companions is a tale as old as time. And here are five monsters that might mage for great ‘unexpected friends.’
Parties of adventurers have been befriending ferocious and/or weird monsters about as long as there have been adventurers. It’s a fantasy trope that predates D&D – and recorded history, going back to the days when humans first befriended wolves.
But coming back to D&D for a moment, even the early days of the game were rife with stories of parties that had befriended a xorn or an otyugh and named it Stinky or whatever. There’s just something universal about it. So with that in mind, here are five increasingly weird monsters that make surprisingly fun companions.
Bulette Pup
Thanks to Baldur’s Gate 3, a whole new generation of players got to experience the sheer joy and terror of a bulette leaping out from its tunnel like some kind of land shark. And in 5.5E, there are now stats for a Bulette Pup.
Just a hungry little guy that needs to have space to tunnel around and eat the occasional chicken or whatever else happens to be underfoot. You can play them like big weird dogs, or hungry monsters, but there’s just a lot of personality to a bulette up close.
Giant Owl
Now you might think, “a bird? That’s not less weird than a bulette.” But Giant Owls (and actually all giant versions of normal birds in D&D) aren’t just big versions of beasts. Giant Owls are celestials, and they have a surprisingly high intelligence. They might even be smarter than some of the party.
Pair that with a fly speed, keen senses, and the ability to express an opinion with its piercing eyes or a well-placed hoot (because giant owls understand speech, even if they can’t speak themselves), and you’ve got all the makings of a great party companion.
Smoke Mephit
Not every party companion needs to be strictly good or neutral. If you’ve played with Shovel, you know how fun it can be to have an evil little gremlin around. And Smoke Mephits are truly wonderful evil little gremlins.
Really, any Mephit is perfect. They’re all so spiteful and arrogant and fun to play. But what makes Smoke Mephits especially fun is that they love to mislead creatures and then mock them for being gullible. They’re also incredibly self-important but don’t quite understand how to sound imposing. So you end up with names like Seamusxanthuszenus. A great foil foot any party, but especially one of goody two-shoes.
Mimic
Now we’re talking. Hey, a similar concept it worked for Twoflower in Sir Terry Pratchett’s Discworld, albeit it was The Luggage, which was no mere Mimic. But the point is, there’s plenty of room to have a hungry monster on the side of the players, as long as it (mostly) eats their enemies instead of fellow party members.
Sure, the occasional time where you have to pull the mage out of the maw of the mimic is fine. Even more fun, you can imagine all the different things the party mimic can be disguised as. A fun game of accidentally laying on/reaching for one of your items that you didn’t realize was Chompy ensues.
Nothic
Not every evil party companion has to be a complete gremlin. Nothics are a great example of this. These beings were perhaps once scholars who sought forbidden knowledge a little too closely and were cursed into the form you see above. An otherworldly body topped with a single, unblinking eye.
What I love about Nothics as potential companions for a party is their hunger for secrets. One of their abilities is to gaze at someone and immediately learn a secret about them. It’s such a perfect, weird little companion for any party, especially if you, on occasion, would like to creep your players out.
What are some of the weirdest monsters that have ever been your party’s companion?
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Source: Bell of Lost Souls
