101 Monster Feats
101 Monster Feats is an epic fantasy supplement from the 101 Series for Pathfinder Roleplaying Game published by Rite Publishing and written by Steven D. Russell.
By Aaron T. Huss
101 Monster Feats is the next entry into the options category for creating characters (this one happens to be monsters) within Pathfinder. It allows a GM to have more options during character creation or new feats to use for creating unique and alternate versions of existing bestiary. This is a great tool for any Game Master looking to add more flavor and depth to their encounters or if they’re simply looking to create their own bestiary.
CONTENT
101 Monster Feats is a collection of 101 bonus feats to make monsters a little different. This list of feats ranges from breath weapon combat feats to demoralizing intimidation. Many of the feats are unique along with a collection of 29 “greater” or “improved” feats. While the unique feats are great additions to the game, the “greater” and “improved” feats are great ways to enhance a recurring foe to symbolize their growth from past defeats. There are also some very interesting feat concepts such as the disease pandemic and the living phylactery. There’s definitely a good amount of flavor in this supplement.
OVERALL
I am a big fan of options. I think it makes for much more interesting games when players are faced with bestiary that is a little more flavorful and avoids becoming dull or redundant. Supplements such as 101 Monster Feats help make those encounters more interesting or at the very least, different. Instead of simply running into the same foe you’ve met a dozen times, now they have their own tricks and have learned from their previous mistakes… just like the PCs!
RATINGS
Publication Quality: 9 out of 10
101 Monster Feats follows the standard, high-quality publication template that other Rite Publishing products utilize. It is very easy to read and the 101 feats are listed in alphabetical order. There is not table of contents but the PDF is fully bookmarked making it very easy to navigate (which is actually easier considering it’s a PDF format). There is an assortment of illustrations, although for this type of supplement they are not necessary, but do add a nice visual appeal. The true quality comes from how well the feats are presented and how easy they are to understand.
Mechanics: 9 out of 10
There is a definite variety of feats being presented here, and all have their place. They appear to be well-balanced and Rite Publishing has gone as far as meshing some of the feats together (giving additional value to those presented). There is a large number of new feats along with a collection of “greater” and “improved” versions of other feats. All-in-all, it creates a great collection of options for creating different bestiary, especially if you want to take existing ones and make them a little stronger.
Value Add: 9 out of 10
The basis of this value add only considers Game Masters who wish to do more than just use the standard bestiary guides and templates. What 101 Monster Feats does is provide more tools for the GM to use to make their game unique or more difficult. In addition, you can take recurring monsters and add “greater” or “improved” versions of feats to show that they too have grown stronger as the days go by. The one and only thing I found that slightly hinders the value is the ultimate variety. A lot of these feats seem to be designed for use with more prominent monsters and I would like to have seen more variety. However, there is still a large amount of variety for use with numerous types of monsters.
Overall: 9 out of 10
For any Game Master creating their own bestiary, 101 Monster Feats is a very valuable took to add to your kit. It’s concise, easy to use, and flavorful. Using this is bound to keep your players on their toes.
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