Viola! A simple template for creating home-brewed “giant” beasts that are statistically in line with those found in the Monster Manual.
Score Change Per Size Increase
| Speed(s) | AC | Avg. HP | STR | DEX | CON | INT | WIS | CHA | Atk. | Avg. DR |
| +5 | +1 | +21 | +4 | +1 | +2 | +1 | +0 | +1 | +1 | +4 |
In fact, as you can see in the table below, if we use our template to create the giant beasts found in the Monster Manual* and then compare our home-brews with the official versions, we find the average difference in scores to be less than 1 point.
(Absolute) Average Score Difference
| Speed(s) | AC | Avg. HP | STR | DEX | CON | INT | WIS | CHA | Atk. | Avg. DR |
| 0.3 | 0.3 | 0.2 | 0.3 | 0.5 | 0.2 | 0.3 | 0.3 | 0.2 | 0.4 | 0.4 |
As an example, if we use our template to make the tiny raven (MM, pg. 335) two sizes larger the result is the following medium raven:
Giant Raven (#1)
| Size | LS | FS | AC | Avg. HP | STR | DEX | CON | INT | WIS | CHA | Atk. | Avg. DR |
| Med. | 20 | 60 | 14 | 43 | 10 (0) | 16 (+3) | 12 (0) | 4 (-3) | 12 (+1) | 8 (-1) | +6 | 9 |
Of course, some adjustment may be necessary. For instance the raven’s average hit points seem a little on the high side. This observation is born out when we compare our scores with the Monster Manual’s five flying giants.**
Monster Manual Flying Giants
| LS | FS | AC | Avg. HP | STR | DEX | CON | INT | WIS | CHA | Atk. | Avg. DR |
| 5-10 | 50-80 | 10-13 | 13-26 | 10-16 | 10-17 | 10-15 | 1-8 | 10-14 | 3-10 | 3-5 | 5-8 |
However, the excess HP is not actually due to the raven’s flying ability. Closer inspection of the Monster Manual’s giants shows a significant jump in HP and Avg. DR as we move from large to huge.
So, rather than using a single template, we propose two templates, one for large or smaller giant beasts and a second for huge or larger. We will use Template A to grow from tiny through large and switch to Template B to grow from large through gargantuan.
Template A: Score Change Per Size Increase (Tiny-Large)
| Speed(s) | AC | Avg. HP | STR | DEX | CON | INT | WIS | CHA | Atk. | Avg. DR |
| +5 | +0 | +9 | +4 | +1 | +1 | +1 | +0 | +1 | +1 | +3 |
Templet B: Score Change Per Size Increase (Large-Gargantuan)
| Speed(s) | AC | Avg. HP | STR | DEX | CON | INT | WIS | CHA | Atk. | Avg. DR |
| +5 | +2 | +65 | +5 | +0 | +3 | +1 | +0 | +1 | +3 | +10 |
Thus, our medium raven (Template A x2) will have the more modest scores shown below.
Giant Raven (#2)
| Size | LS | FS | AC | Avg. HP | STR | DEX | CON | INT | WIS | CHA | Atk. | Avg. DR |
| Med. | 20 | 60 | 12 | 19 | 10 | 16 | 10 | 4 | 12 | 8 | +6 | 7 |
On the other hand, a huge raven (Template A x3, Template B x1) will have more intimidating scores that are in line with the Monster Manual’s huge giants.
Giant Raven (#3)
| Size | LS | FS | AC | Avg. HP | STR | DEX | CON | INT | WIS | CHA | Atk. | Avg. DR |
| Huge | 30 | 70 | 14 | 93 | 19 | 17 | 14 | 6 | 12 | 10 | +10 | 20 |
Simply apply these two templates to create giant beasts of your own.
* Ape, Badger, Bat, Boar, Constrictor Snake, Crab, Crocodile, Eagle, Elk, Frog, Goat, Hyena, Lizard, Octopus, Owl, Poisonous Snake, Rat, Scorpion, Seahorse, Spider, Vulture & Weasle
** Bat, Eagle, Owl, Vulture & Wasp
Attack of Opportunity 