Related
Dungeons and Dragonshas seen lusus naturae change multiple times over many editions , but the 2025 Monster Manual has some of the most extensive reworks of classic creatures in the iconic TTRPG . Beholders , Mind Flayers , fiend , demon , and dragons have changed , remaining interchangeable but gaining passel of novel tricks and abilities . Some of these redone monster have changed how they play completely , making them more interesting to use in your secret plan .
All remodel monsters in the 2025 Monster Manualstill follow the be rules for the 5th editionofDungeons & Dragons . you may require to see more Legendary Actions from goliath with a higher Challenge Rating ( CR ) but do n’t expect wholly unexampled mechanics . make over monster now tend to have more wellness , a wider variety of Actions , and extra Bonus Actions or Reactions to their arsenal .
10Aboleths Can Now Drain Memories
Make These Aberration Masterminds Even More Dangerous
One of the more famous types of deviance monsters , besides Mind Flayers , areAboleths , who gainnew tricks in the 2025 Monster Manual . Aboleths now have the ability toconsume the memories of foe they run into , making them terrorise opposer who lurk beneath dark waters . These creature retain their psionic abilties , dominating brain to captivate targets and ready up its action to devour thoughts .
Most eminent CR creatures , like the Aboleth , gain more Legendary Actions per round when they are gainsay in their lair . This is a new opinion established in the 2025 Monster Manual .
Aboleths also gain new holding to their protective power visit Mucus Cloud , which curses any creatures that fail a Constitution saving throw within 5 feet of it . Before , this only used to disease creatureswho fail the save . Now , it causes them to take continual Acid damageunless moisture is apply to their skin , make an interesting consideration that could force player characters into the waters where an Aboleth thrives .
9All Dragons Gain New Magic And Legendary Actions
Each Ten Types Feel Unique
All the five types of Chromatic and MetallicDragonsin the 2025 Monster Manual have received changes , albeit slight one . All Adult and Ancient variant of dragons benefit new spellcasting and Legendary Action optionsto make them all sense unique from each other . This creates extra stress on a flying dragon ’s personality , which is commonly shape by its type .
With the release of the 2025 Monster Manual for Dungeons and Dragons , the groups of devil type have been redefined in alignment with other change .
For example , Blue Dragons are now one of the only types with Frightful Presence , lending to their restrain nature . Meanwhile , bull Dragons have been given restorative spell , shapechanging abilities , and Giggling Magic to adhere more to their playful personalities . This2025 change will help newfangled dungeon masters run tartar differently , while keep the awe - enliven power of such iconic creatures .
8More Cultists For Any Encounter
Give Dark Worshipers More Strength
Cultistsare the back oflower - levelDungeons & Dragonsgames , but they have always been limit to two stat blocks . One minion and one leader stat pulley block for cultist has usually been everything you could utilize to forge large administration dedicated to the report of taboo magic trick or the worship of dark deities . Now , there are seven different Cultist typesyou can use with the agency this enemy type has been changed .
Thesimplified spell tilt of Cultists make them well-situated to useand implement into any game . For good example , a Fiend Cultist is perfect if you require to have a cult devote to worshipping a potent demon or demon , while a Death Cultist is simple to use for any Lich ’s high up - order learner .
7The Oni Has More Ways To Stay Sinister
Torment Players With Extra Abilities
TheOniis not the most used type of Fiend fiend , as their 2014 stat block only ease up them basic spellcasting and shapechanging to be gently catchy resister . However , the 2025 Monster Manual revamps these creatures by give them superfluous abilities to make them harder to struggle . While Onis retain their regeneration and material body - shifting , they are only buffed by clear unexampled science .
Before , the Oni had to drop an Action to cast the Invisibility spell to vanish , which it could only do once a day . Now , Onis can use a Bonus Action to cast Invisibility , requiring no spell components when they do so . This allows the Oni to turn inconspicuous whenever it need and on multiple turn if players attempt to utilise Counterspell or Dispel Magic to forestall an Oni from vanish .
With the lack of Orc monsters in the 2025 Monster Manual , the Oni is a very alike creature that once had connecter to Orcs in its origin . The connection to android creatures makes Onis very utilitarian monsters in act as well as combat .
Thesebuffs increase the Oni ’s effectivenessas a prowler - an foe that loaf and harasses political party as a supernatural force of wickedness . With a raw Nightmare Ray ranged attack that has a chance to frighten mark , the raw Oni is great to use as a creature of sinister folklore , terrorizing a small town or stimulate incubus for wary traveler to initiate a call to legal action for a group of would - be heroes .
6A Medusa’s Curse Is Easier To Understand
Petrify Your Players More Often
TheMedusais often mistake for the chrome bull Gorgons inDungeons & Dragons , with the petrification gaze fuck to the mythological Greek goliath of the same name . The 2014 stat block for this creature implemented the Petrifying Gaze curse in a strange way , forcing instrumentalist to enlist with it all the time to prevent their character from turning into stone .
Now , this ability has been rework in the 2025 Monster Manual to be much easier to employ . The Petrifying Gaze of the Medusa is now a Bonus Actionrather than a continuous ability the demon is using at all times . As part of the standard 5e action economy , it will be simpler for dungeon master to use this iconic ability as part of the normal scrap flow with exculpated rules for how it works .
Dungeons & Dragons may be pitch up to expand its multiverse , at least according to a new Wizards of the Coast business itemisation .
moreover , the Medusagains newfangled flack option that fit more into their themes , such as a Snake Hair flak choice that inflicts piercing and toxicant damage . A Poison Ray lay out onslaught and the 30 ft Cone of Petrifying Gaze present the Medusa more options to fight well - equipped parties , giving you a horrific monster sure to turn someone to stone .
5Death Knights Are Commanders, Not Minions
Utilize Less Magic For More Martial Leadership
One of thebigger complaint aboutDungeons & Dragonsin the 2014 Monster Manual was the amount of while some brute had . The highly long magic spell list of monsters like theDeath Knightmade them overwhelming to lead , as fighting would never really see a Death Knight use all its magic . The 2025 Monster Manual fixes this bygiving the Death Knight less magic , but more martial abilities .
The Death Knight still retains some of its most powerful spells from its 2014 stat block , such as Destructive Wave and Dispel Magic . young magic like Phantom Steed gives a Death Knight more defined , focused patch to play into its strengths .
For instance , Death Knights now have Legendary Actionsthat tolerate it to chuck Command or Lunge forward and attack its enemies . On top of this , Death Knights can use the Legendary Action Fell Word to forthwith visit a Constitution deliverance throw on a fair game , causing it to take Necrotic damage and contract its max health .
Death Knights keep their Marshal Undead ability and make headway Undead Restoration , a feature that give them passive healing . Death Knights are far stronger beast that differentiate themselves from Lichesor other powerful Undead monsters in the biz . With signature attack like the Hellfire Orb now on a recharge instead of 1 / Day , Death Knights have style stronger prick to be knob - stage creatures for a political party to confront .
4Arcanaloths Are Now Wielders Of Unique Magic Items
Banish Targets With Unique Magic
TheArcanalothis a Yugoloth Fiend who used to have a huge lean of spell to battle enemies , but the 2025 rework of this demon give them a role that ’s easier to control . While Arcanaloths are still masters of magic , these creatures now use a unique witching detail called a Soul Tometo cast their spells . Almost like an inverted Wizard spellbook , a Soul Tome is a forcible artefact valued to Arcanaloths that chip in them extra ability .
When have a Soul Tome , Arcanaloths can now useBanishing Claw , an ability that traps foe inside the Tome . This incapacitates and nobble a target , forcing them to make Charisma rescue throws or be bound to the Soul Tome evermore . Those who fail to protest the Soul Tome ’s magic become immobilise in ituntil it is destroy , which will be hard to do since an Arcanaloth guards it so fiercly .
With Counterspell as a free response , teleportation , and herculean spells like Mind Blank in its arsenal , Arcanaloths are unlike any other wight in the Monster Manual . slick magic and prejudicial Fiendish Bursts set aside Arcanaloths to be reliable threat to a political party , rather than the unaccented pain in the neck they were in the past .
3The Mummy Lord Has Less, But Stronger Undead Options
Use Pharaohs Of Sands Instead Of Liches
Oftentimes , theMummy Lordwas a much harder Undead boss - level monster to scat than Liches , mainly due to their complex serial publication of Legendary Actions in the 2014 Monster Manual . In 2025 , Mummy Lords have been reworked tohave less Legendary Actions , but keep one that make mother wit . For example , a Mummy Lord can spend a Legendary Action to utilize a Dreadful Glare , dealing psychical harm and possibly a Paralyzed condition .
All the Mummy Lord ’s preservation throw DCs have been increased from 16 to 17 , make it evendeadlier in the 2025 Monster Manual .
Mummy Lordshave less spellcasting as well , boiled down to crucial spellsrather than a full arsenal . Harm and Insect Plague are still in the stat stop , alongside Animate Dead . To make up for this , Mummy Lords have a rank approach called Channel Negative Energy , which gives them more options to aggress enemy from afar without having to employ specific magic .
The biggest buffer to Mummy Lords , though , derive from a unexampled Reaction namedWhirlwind of Sand . By using this lineament at the right clock time , a Mummy Lord canraise its AC by 2 to try and avoid an attack , then teleport if it does block that strike . When a Mummy Lord does this , it also blind nearby creatures near its teleport until the ending of its next turn , hand it more ways to interrupt parties of characters .
2Four Types Of Sphinxes Create New Celestial Challenges
Different Flavors Of Knowledge And Secrets
Sphinxesin the 2025 Monster Manual come in four different shapes and size , as opposed to the two main types from the yesteryear . Androsphinxes and Gynosphinxes have been exchange with these kind of colossus :
Each of these Sphinxes are fantastically alone , from the Sphinx of Wonder ’s ability to add 2 to an power check or saving throw to a Sphinx of Secret ’s Curse of the Riddle , which anathemise a animate being to work out a riddle or struggle to shoot target or mold conjuration . go are the long lists of enchantment for unlike sphinx in exchange formore Legendary Actions and personalized Attacksthat better reflect a Sphinx type ’s personality .
Dungeons & Dragons has revealed an update version of its 2025 roadmap . Here are all the fresh playscript to expect in the path of the year .
like to theDragons in the 2025 Monster Manual , sphinx each have personalized piece and features that well chew over who they are . This reworkmakes Sphinxes more diversethan what is assumed about their folklore , making them far more interesting ogre to practice in a campaign setting .
1Rakshasa Are Much Stronger Fiends Than Before
Masterminds Resistant To Almost All Magic
While an ill-famed monster , veteran donjon masters will enjoin you thatRakshasaare oftentimes well used as schemers rather than fighter . This change drastically in the 2025 Monster Manual , with the Rakshasareceiving more abilities while retain its spellcasting prowessthat already made it a catchy antagonist . These cunning and sorcerous foes keep most of their magic , unlike many of the retread monsters in the new Manual .
disguise trick already in the Rakshasa ’s armoury now combine with flight and invisibility to create a monster that swear on its wits rather than sensitive forte . TheBaleful Commandability added to the Rakshasa ’s stat block adds to this , giving the monster a path to manage huge amounts of Psychic damage , thenFrighten and Incapacitate foeman at the same timeif they fail a DC 18 Wisdom saving cam stroke .
Rakshasas retain their ability to curse targets with their Cursed Touch tone-beginning , which make someone to lose the ability to convalesce after a short or long relaxation until the Rakshasa ’s curse is removed .
The outstanding change to the Rakshasa though , is the reworkedGreater Magic Resistance . This featureautomatically allow a Rakshasa to follow in saving throws against all while , not just ones of a certain level . Spell attack rolls automatically miss a Rakshasa , while no while can observe the demon remotely or find its thought process , alignment , or animate being type without its permission .
This exclusive ability makes the Rakshasa a master infiltrator , undercover agent , criminal Einstein , crime lord , or whatever else you need them to do . The chances of this lusus naturae ’s plans getting break by magic is impossible , force players to fall upon their nature through their actions . This absolutely aligns with how Rakshasa work best in a story , so their rework is well the just inDungeons and Dragons ' new 2025 Monster Manual .
