Random World Redux: Once Again, Monsters

From 2018 to 2019 I worked on a setting I dubbed the Random World. It started off as a bit of a random experiment, using a randomly generated fantasy setting map and drawing inspiration from the scattering of meaningless name of locales. Over time it evolved as some more concepts were bolted on and expanded. While the so-called Random World is dead as a project, the key ideas of how monsters were to be handled, designed and presented remained in my head and to this day remain my favorite take on the classic monsters of the Monster Manual (and similar books). While definitely not the most original, it is perhaps the take I am most personally happy in terms of my own presentation of these concepts. This is a re-affirmation, expansion and refresh of these previously outlined ideas as well as some new concepts added since.

The Great Unknown and Dark

Art by Alexander Solomin

Greatly detailed setting mythologies were not what I thought about for the random world and this has not changed for any spiritual successor. This successor to the so-called Random World retain the usual flair of basic assumptions one expect of the original Dungeons & Dragons: that the world is a vast place, full of wilderness, monsters, ruins and that civilization exist as scant oasis of civilization. The presence of ruins and long lost artifacts more or less imply an almost post apocalyptic sense, that the world was once this great place which has fallen and/or decayed. Mankind's grip on the world has slipped, allowing the dark and primordial powers to slowly overtake the land.

These powers have many names and are ascribed to many mythologies and folklore but such definition does not truly matter. They are the things in the darkness, the fallen angels, the gods (false, forgotten, old or otherwise) and inscrutable fae. It is the collective host of all powers which range from indifferent to Man to completely anthetical to its nature and civilization. They are creatures of myth and legend and the monsters from beyond this world just as much as they can be restless spirits of ancestral graves and sacred sites. At best, these powers can be appeased or cajoled but never truly tamed. These are powers which Druids and Warlocks make pacts with and while they aren't inherently evil, they are still something which Man see with fear or awe. It is not the power of kind protector gods or ancestral spirits, for that is a different power, a slice of the immortal things which Man has shaped and been shaped by but it is not the same. Not completely, anyway.

Many monsters of this newly conceptualized successor to the Random World are truly unique. While there are some species of monsters which breed true, a capital-M Monster is often a terrifying, semi unique being, some creature of darkness or the wilderness which lurks at the bottom of the lake or hidden in the mist. These creatures are not truly alive (but functionally and mechanically may as well be, obviously). They are twisted things, born of a mimicry of the natural world. The head of a lion, the legs of a crocodile and the wings of a bat while a human head may exist at the tip of its tale as it wail in terror, trying to lure people to it thinking it is someone in danger. Others are moss monsters or rocky terrors, elemental forces given life. These creatures are not truly alive, not truly thinking. They are akin to an interface which unknowable powers exert their will upon the world. Thus, the needs and methods of feeding of a monster might make no sense in a naturalist way of thinking. They are the chimera of myth or the bogeyman stalking in the dark. Consider them, in a sense, closer to the Japanese yokai than some of the monsters of classic Tabletop Fantasy.

Goblins

Art by Gonzalo Kenny

The 'goblin' family is one of the three major 'families' of humanoid monsters of this unnamed, conceptual world. Goblinkind consist of a myriad of strange and bizarre creatures which appear to be vaguely humanoid and akin to people, but only just barely. They embody a side of that-which-is-not-human by being creatures of deceit, trickery, magic and the dark and foul places of the world. Goblins range from spirit-like creatures incarnated in a physical form to the classical, stunted humanoid we would recognize as a traditional goblinoid. Their ranks are further bolstered by all manner of creatures, monsters, bogeymen, pixies, tricksters, witches and hags and more which may appear human or be able to fake humanity but clearly are not and never were. Their realm are deep, dark primordial forests, abandoned ruins, dark caves, giant fungus-realms and strange locations which exist aside from our world, intersecting with it but not truly of it.

Of the supernatural beings, Goblin-kind are generally the weakest in terms of raw physical power and more often than not lacking in size, even if exceptions do exist. As with other supernatural beings their form is a mimicry of the world, even if the form of humans is one which they nearly always incorporate on some level, as most if not all goblins are humanoid. Among the most mortal of goblin-kind are creatures which are almost human, but not quite: perhaps descended of some disgusting admixture of human and inhuman blood or, perhaps, descendant of ancient people who chose not civilization and humanity but rather stayed in the dark and primordial world. These creatures are what one could recognize as akin to Gnomes and Dwarves, as well as Halflings (even if these categories may not exist, they are used as an example). They are short, stunted creatures which produce offspring, age and die but not in a way truly like us human. These creatures do form communities here and there but, as a general rule, tend to dislike outsiders. These are, naturally, the forest home of strange bearded gnomes who cultivate mushrooms or the hidden under city of Dwarves, who mine ever deeper into the earth with every passing day.

Art by Christophe Young

One thing which is not known to humans except perhaps those who have lived amongst goblins or to sages is that while it initially appear that attractive goblins are better innate spellcaster it is actually the opposite: better spellcasters are simply better at reshaping their own nature to reflect their own decadence and egocentric needs to command attention. As such, many ethereal and beautiful 'fae lords' are little more than disgusting goblins under a veneer of beauty. These creatures often oversee courts of lesser goblin-creatures or even other, less understood beings. Others eschew such veneer of beauty and revel in their goblin nature, becoming grotesquely obese goblin kings or wicked hags. While they may act refine or completely insane or even stupid, these creatures are invariably gifted with great and terrible power, as well as a level of intelligence or persuasion few mortals can ever compare to. Never assume their form to be true. Never assume their words to be true. Never assume you have outsmarted 'that dumb goblin'. In fact, when it come to goblins assume very little.

Trolls

Art by Greg Rutkowski

The opposite side of the goblins are the trolls, which include the rank of all manners of hideous brutes, troll, ogres, giants and more. Where goblins are physically lacking but generally tricksters, the trolls are large and powerful but no less magical. Indeed, the magical nature of trolls manifest in the form of their boundless power, strength, durability and even, yes in some cases, regeneration. Where goblins are the shadows in the woods, the vermin in the earth and moonlit magic the trolls are an ancient, mighty and oak or an unbreakable stone. They are creatures of the raging storm and howling winter winds. Troll-kind too stride across the untamed wilderness but they are not subtle creatures. They are wild, powerful, sometimes (but not always!) dim witted and most important of all they are untamed and free. Troll-kind tend to be more solitary, with each troll claiming a territory where it just wander around breaking stuff, eating cattle or maybe just sleeping until they forget to wake up, becoming boulders until accidentally awakened.

Trolls with particularly strong magical abilities do exist and they are called Troll Wyrd. Creatures of chaos, Troll Wyrd tend to be physically bizarre even by troll standard, exhibiting bold colors or truly outrageous mutations. They can be as dumb as a rock or gifted with a truly stunning intellect but generally are plagued by being completely and utterly insane by mortal standards. The magic of troll wyrd is invariably flashy and destructive, with focus on vivid and iconic spell effects such as creating fire, lighting bolts, polymorphing others or stranger effects such as rains of explosive frogs. A few others have more subtle, but no less destructive magic as they have been known to warp fate in some spectacular ways such as making arrows bounce off their skin by sheer accident and then, somehow, spin backward and fly into the eye of whoever shot the arrow! In spite of the danger they represent, many Magic User seek out particularly infamous or gifted Troll Wyrd, as they can sometime become known as eccentric hermits which are privy to secret or bizarre forms of magic no one has ever heard of.

Art by Markus Neidel

The link between human and troll-kind are creatures one would recognize as Ogres. These creatures are flesh and blood and mortal, but they share the unnatural vitality, size and appetite of their troll ancestors. Ogres tend to be much more 'human' than goblin-kind and perhaps a little too human. Ogres have a fairly nasty tendency to exhibit the worst qualities of humanity given unnatural power and appetite to grow. They tend to be particularly greedy, always hungry, prone to intense acts of violence and generally driven by raw hedonistic desire. This can make ogres decent mercenaries, however, since they can be easily controlled by giving them food, wine or women. Of course, control usually only last as long as one is able to keep the ogre content and the creature will generally either get bored, tired or fly into a rage if one cannot give the goods. The wyrds of ogre-kind are what is known as an Ogre Mage and everything previously outlined on the matter of wyrd applies. Approach with caution and expect the worst.

Orcs

Artist Unknown

While they may outwardly resemble goblins or trolls, in truth orcs are neither. Their creation is some lost myth (or not) and whatever version may survive is likely not the complete truth. It speak of ambitious, power hungry would-be demiurges who sought to create life and conquer all realms. Through some dark pacts with forgotten entities, they acquired the knowledge to create life itself so they may raise great armies to conquer all the known world. These creatures would be soldiers and workers, born and bred only to toil or to pillage for their dark master. Through a fusion of dark magic, blood, filth and more the orcs were born, cast from a mold of mud and bile.

Physically, most orcs are shorter than human (but not as short as goblin-kind) and are invariably hideous parodies of humanity whose small stature and twisted form belies surprising physical strength. The form they take and what deformities plague them vary from orc to orc but they common features include missing body parts or over exaggerated body parts, warty or slimy skin and a mouth full of crooked teeth. Some group of orcs may display common physical traits which physically mark them as member of a specific group but some groups may consist of entirely different orcish types. They have no parent, no children and no true biological sex and are instead born in 'batches' where orcs emerge from the same flesh-pit or slime field, fully grown as adults and ready to serve their dark master. These creatures, being a parody of life and humanity, lack a true soul; while they are intelligent, orcs lack the ability to develop anything beyond a facsimile of a particularly crass, violent and/or cowardly nature. Whatever inhabit the mind of an orc is not a true soul or conscience but some twisted thing perhaps ripped from the ether and infused into a puppet of filth and violence.

Many modern orc infestations were born of the hubris of lords of old who too sought to conquer but were constantly met with the limitations of a standing army. In their desire for power, many wicked individuals turned to magic to find a solution: first perhaps employing court or battle wizard or making pacts with fae. Yet the simplest solution is simply to create soldiers. Orcs are warriors devoid of conscience. Unfortunately for the world, many of them survived the wars they waged and, worse, in some parts of the world managed to go into hiding and slowly find ways to make more of their kind. A rare few orcs manage to acquire a soul by consuming it, fusing the true powers of a soul with their alien orc un-nature. Orcish soul-eaters are monsters who stand above their peer as black knights or would-be dark lords, eager to consume the flesh and soul of particularly strong or special individuals so they are able to fill their gullet with soul-stuff, enhancing their power and intellect.

Art by Anato Finnstark

Finally, even fouler are rumors of Orc-Men. Since orcs are sexless being, it seem somewhat ridiculous to think 'half orcs' could exist. Instead, Orc-Men are vile sorcerers and warlocks who seek to extend their natural lifespan by becoming more like the near-immortal orcs, slowly replacing more and more of their flesh and nature with the stuff of orc slime vats and flesh pits. While it is true the process can greatly extend one's lifespan, the cost of such a process is too much. Damnation is inevitable as humanity is slowly peeled and rots away. While in theory many of these Orc-Men could become great lords among the orcs, many of them eventually lose their identity and nature and degenerate, becoming no different than the baseline orcs.