''Monstrous Compendium: Monsters of Faerûn'' is a supplement for the 3rd edition of ''

Dungeons & Dragons ''Dungeons & Dragons'' (commonly abbreviated as ''D&D'' or ''DnD'') is a fantasy tabletop role-playing game (RPG) originally designed by Gary Gygax and Dave Arneson. The game was first published in 1974 by Tactical Studies Rules, Inc. (TS ...

''.

It features 96 pages of monsters unique to the

Forgotten Realms ''Forgotten Realms'' is a campaign setting for the '' Dungeons & Dragons'' (''D&D'') fantasy role-playing game. Commonly referred to by players and game designers alike as "The Realms", it was created by game designer Ed Greenwood around 1967 as ...

campaign setting A campaign setting is usually a fictional world which serves as a setting for a role-playing game or wargame campaign. A '' campaign'' is a series of individual adventures, and a ''campaign setting'' is the world in which such adventures and c ...

. It was the first 3rd edition book to feature the now-common "in the Realms" section for each monster, offering helpful and concise hints to the Dungeon Master as to how and where to incorporate the creature into the campaign setting.

Publication history

The book was released in 2001. The book was co-authored by

James Wyatt James Wyatt (3 August 1746 – 4 September 1813) was an English architect, a rival of Robert Adam in the neoclassical and neo-Gothic styles. He was elected to the Royal Academy in 1785 and was its president from 1805 to 1806. Early life W ...

and

Rob Heinsoo Rob or ROB may refer to: Places * Rob, Velike Lašče, a settlement in Slovenia * Roberts International Airport (IATA code ROB), in Monrovia, Liberia People * Rob (given name), a given name or nickname, e.g., for Robert(o), Robin/Robyn * Rob ( ...

. Cover art is by Brom and

Henry Higginbotham Henry Higginbotham is a working artist who specializes in non-primitive art, steampunk, sculpture and more. Education Higginbotham has a master's degree in fine arts from the University of Iowa. Works Henry G. Higginbotham has produced interior a ...

, with interior art by

Daren Bader Daren is a hamlet bach in the community of Trefeurig, Ceredigion, Wales, which is 73.2 miles (117.7 km) from Cardiff and 174.5 miles (280.8 km) from London. It is represented in the Senedd by Elin Jones (Plaid Cymru) and is part of th ...

Ed Beard Edward T. "Red" Beard, (c. 1828-November 11, 1873) was a gambler and saloon keeper of the Old West. Biography Beard is the son of the man who first settled Beardstown, Illinois. Originally from Illinois, Beard settled in Virginia, and was for a ...

, Theodor Black,

Carl Critchlow Carl Critchlow is a British fantasy and science fiction comic illustrator. He is best known for his character Thrud the Barbarian, which originally appeared in ''White Dwarf'' magazine, and for his work for the ''Lobster Random'' comics. Car ...

Brian Despain Brian Despain is an artist whose work has appeared in galleries, in video games, on book covers and in role-playing games. Career Despain has worked as a graphic designer, 3D modeler, photo retoucher, and illustrator. He worked for ten years in ...

, Scott Fischer,

Michael Kaluta Michael William Kaluta, sometimes credited as Mike Kaluta or Michael Wm. Kaluta (born August 25, 1947), is an American comics artist and writer best known for his acclaimed 1970s adaptation of the pulp magazine hero ''The Shadow'' with writer De ...

Todd Lockwood Todd Wills Lockwood, (born July 9, 1957 in Boulder, Colorado, United States) is an American artist specializing in fantasy and science fiction illustration. He is best known for his work on the role-playing game ''Dungeons & Dragons'', and for his ...

, David Martin,

Monte Moore Monte Moore (born 1930) is an American former radio and television broadcaster for the Kansas City Athletics and Oakland Athletics baseball teams. Voice of the Athletics An Oklahoma native, with a folksy, down-home style, Moore became the lea ...

, Allan Pollack,

Adam Rex Adam Michael Rex (born May 16, 1973) is an American illustrator and author of children's books from Tucson, Arizona. Career Adam Rex received a Bachelor of Fine Arts from the University of Arizona. He has contributed illustrations to ''Magic: ...

Wayne Reynolds Wayne Reynolds is a British artist whose work has appeared in comics and role-playing games. Early life and education Wayne Reynolds was born in Leeds, UK. He attended art college in Dewsbury and Middlesbrough. Games Wayne Reynolds has continu ...

Richard Sardinha Richard Sardinha is an American artist based in Providence, Rhode Island, whose work has appeared in role-playing games. Works Richard Sardinha has been illustrating books since the 1980s. He provided the art work for ''At Lovecraft's Grave'' (re ...

Brian Snoddy Brian Snoddy is an artist whose work has appeared in role-playing games. Career Brian Snoddy and his friend Matt Wilson formed Privateer Press with writer Matt Staroscik to publish their own d20 supplements. Snoddy and Wilson produced the cove ...

, and

Sam Wood Samuel Grosvenor Wood (July 10, 1883 – September 22, 1949) was an American film director and producer who is best known for having directed such Hollywood hits as '' A Night at the Opera'', '' A Day at the Races'', '' Goodbye, Mr. Chips'', '' ...

Reception

The reviewer from ''

Pyramid A pyramid (from el, πυραμίς ') is a structure whose outer surfaces are triangular and converge to a single step at the top, making the shape roughly a pyramid in the geometric sense. The base of a pyramid can be trilateral, quadrilat ...

'' stated that "''Dungeons and Dragons'' has long had a tradition of making a lot of ''Monster Compendiums'', a showcase of new and exotic monsters to add to the creatures in the ''Monster Manual'', for settings from the ''Forgotten Realms'' to ''Dark Sun''. The first ''Monster Compendium'' made for the Third Edition of ''Dungeons and Dragons'' continues this old tradition, and does it well."

References

Forgotten Realms sourcebooks Role-playing game supplements introduced in 2001 {{ForgottenRealms-stub

Contents

Publication history

Reception

References