Its finally that time of year again… Halloween Season! The weather has finally been released from the clutches of summer heat and the chill has returned to the air. With the arrival of fall and the night arriving early we tend to spend much more inside.
Rustling of leaves and the cold silence that lingers outdoors can set the perfect backdrop for your next DND setting. Winds will howl, creatures will stir, and your brave players must arise to the occasion. Will there be a monster lurking in the darkness, causing a heart-wrenching pause as you wait for the attack? What curses will you desperately try to lift before the affects drain into your very soul?
What better way to spend the Halloween season than bringing together your players for a night to battle against the forces of evil?
How to Run A Good Halloween One-Shot?
When it comes to scaring and keeping your players on the edge of their seats, its all in the ambience. We recommend you taking some time before the game starts to not only plan your game, but to get some simple supplies/music ready.
The music can be such as ambient noises of forests, caves, or anything else you feel like will give the players the chills. If you want to up the ante, dim your lights and place battery operated candles around the table.
Now, one of the most important features of a Halloween one-shot will be the monsters. When choosing a creature to fight your players, there are a few different ways to go about it. If you want it to be light-hearted, then I would recommend the usual vampire, mummy, goblin route. If you are wanting the game to be more of surprise, building the intensity until you meet them, I would say go with a monster you feel like is daunting and one that you probably have not run before.
What monsters in Dungeons and Dragons 5e fit this description?
Hauntingly Dreadful Monsters
There are a few different ways to go about this. We will be providing a list of monsters to choose from, of course. But, if you are willing to go the extra mile, find out what your players are scared of and try and implement these creatures into your game.
Without further ado, here is our list of monsters to include in your Halloween one-shot.
Death Tyrant (Monster Manual Pg. 29)
Challenge Rating: 15
The Death Tyrant comes right after the Beholder for good reason. Beholder in Dungeons and Dragons 5e have been menaces since the beginning of the games history. Ruthless creatures that tortured players and caused many TPKs, with their eyes observing without remorse.
Now, imagine that, but an undead variant of the creature that is somehow stronger.
“A cluster of tiny lights descended from a dark crevice in the ceiling. These motes cast an eerie glow on the great, alien skull that hung beneath them”
– Jastus Mollowquill
It states that Elder Orbs or Beholder Mages are capable of transforming a Beholder into a Death Tyrant. It also states that if anything goes wrong in the process, they will go into a rogue state and can not be commanded – even by spells. Of course, there are other ways to achieve this as well.
The Death Tyrant, just like the Beholder, are very paranoid creatures. The way one would become a Death Tyrant stems from that paranoia. Similar to lichs, in life they would obsess over death, but that obsession helps turn these horrid creatures into immortal horrid creatures.
If you want to read more about liches and how expensive it is to become one, check out our article – Liches: How to Live an Esoteric Life Forever with Phylacteries.
With skin sloshing of their floating structure and slithering off onto the ground, it is not hard to image why these might be fun for your next Halloween game.
Special Powers
Some things to look out for though, we recommend you staying out of sight of a Death Tyrant. In total, you will have to hopefully evade 10 different eye rays that the monster has at its disposal. Most of them will be a 17 roll to save from whatever they throw (can you throw a eye ray?) your way.
Night Hag (Monster Manual Pg. 178)
Challenge Rating: 5-7
If you were hoping for at least one good-looking creature to sway your characters, you have found it! Well, at least maybe in their youth. Night Hags are described as being from Feywild, where they were then banished to Hades where they withered and degenerated into fiends.
Being a soulmonger, they try and take advantage of a person while they are sleeping. Going into an ethereal state, they can swaddle their victims as they sleep. They then visit every night until said person finally acts out their evil deeds that were implanted. Being filled with doubts and fears, once acted upon the hag can put the corrupted soul into her soul bag (which is an item Night Hags carry).
Continuing to visit, the Night Hag will not leave until the person expires in their sleep. Only those with true sight can see the ethereal form swaddling their pray.
“Sly and subversive, night hags want to see the virtuous
turn to villainy: love turned into obsession, kindness
turned to hate, devotion to disregard, and generosity
to selfishness”– Monster Manual Pg. 178
This is reminiscent of a Freddy Kruger type villain. I would implore you to find which one of your friends are most scared of that film series, and take advantage of their fear.
Covens
While the challenger rating of a Night Hag is 5, if they are apart of a coven, then this raises to a rating of 7. Covens usually come in pairs of three (for if there is an argument the third can decide for them), while any more and there seems to be chaos. All of the Night hags will be similar in power, but also yearning for more. Be sure to watch out for their innate spellcasting, their long claws, and of course their nightmare haunting (while they are in the ethereal plane).
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Shadow (Monster Manual Pg. 269)
Challenge Rating: 1/2
Noting more than a vague outline in the darkness, the Shadow Monster is sure to keep your players on edge. A soundless, undead creature that lurks in what every being fears – the dark and unknown. Not only is their very existence daunting, but their creation is sure to leave a bad taste in your mouth and visions of horror for many years to come.
The Shadow, as mentioned before, is a undead creature that does not have the need for any living necessities. This includes air, food or sleep. This means that as long as there is darkness, the shadow has no plans on stopping their hunt. When debuting this monster as a Dungeon Master, make sure to take advantage of their Dark Disposition ability.
Dark Disposition is an ability granted to the Shadows. From the darkness they reach out and consume any living creature it can get their hands on. While it can feed on any living being, they are characteristically attracted to beings that are untainted by evil. Once drained of their strength and form, the victims shadow will darken and begin to move on its own accord. And thus, a new Shadow has been born from the death of another.
If, for some miracle, the victim is brought back to life the Shadow will sense this. It has been known to hunt down their creature just as the Shadow who slain it did. This does not create another shadow though, and the original shadow of the victim will not return until the undead beast is destroyed.
Verdict
Having a monster like the Shadow be in your Halloween game can cause so much chaos. Imagine your party one by one being picked off until only the shadows of your party haunt and hunt you down. Another option could be investigating a town full of the shadows of the residents that once lived there.
Conclusion
As mentioned above, there are always an abundance of the mundane. While vampires, mummies, and ghoulish creatures of the night might be scary, they can be redundant.
While the world of meta is usually discouraged, too many television shows and movies have been released that really emphasis how to kill such creatures. Leading to a game that might be fun, but not give you the chills.
For your next Halloween session, make sure to try out some of these monsters straight form the monster manual!
If you liked reading about these monsters, try checking out Behirs: The Most Underrated Monster in Dungeons and Dragons and sign up for our newsletter to get free NPCs and Dungeon Rooms!
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