Hook Horror: That’s Just a Dark Crystal Monster!

Y’all remember the Dark Crystal movies, right? At least the old one, with Jim Henson? Or that Netflix reboot that happened a few years ago? I can’t be the only one.

Anyways, here’s a D&D monster.

Lore: Hunting With the Family

Residing in the Underdark, a hook horror is an aggressive predator. In the caverns in which they reside, one can always hear their claws scratching and scraping the walls. Coincidentally, that is eerily similar to how they communicate, as they hit their exoskeleton rhythmically or let out clacking noises in a complex language. These sounds carry on for miles through the darkness of their domain.

Omnivorous, these creatures will ambush anything that wanders into their hunting grounds. They’ll use their claws to climb walls, whether to set up an ambush or to flee a deadly foe. Pack hunters by nature, they’ll work together to bring down the largest and most powerful foe. These packs, broken into familial clans, are ruled by the eldest female and her mate, who will be put in charge of hunting. At the center of their nests, in the most well-defended place, they keep their eggs.

It isn’t the deepest lore, but it isn’t totally empty. At minimum, it’s a bit of flavor to use to setup an encounter. With a little imagination, it can become a fairly interesting side quest. Maybe the party needs to brave a hook horror nest to steal the highly valued eggs? Or perhaps they need to aide a scholar who wants to decipher their language? It’s not much, but you can make it work!

Design: See What I Mean?

You cannot tell me this doesn’t look like something out of Dark Crystal. Unless you can. but I’ll stand by what I said, even if you do!

I love this design! It’s simple, yes; it’s a weird bird thing with claw arms. But it’s fun! And creepy, too! Imagine a whole pack of these things coming at you from a dark tunnel, clicking and scraping! That shit’s scary, dude!

This design checks off all my boxes. You know what it’s about at a single glance. It’s simple, yet creative and visually interesting. This is definitely the strongest aspect of this monster.

Because the stats sure ain’t doing anything for me.

Stats: Claws, and… That’s It

There is literally nothing to talk about here. It can swing its hook arms twice. No special abilities or spells to make it stand out. Just ‘hit it until it dies’.

But hey! With Echolocation and Keen Hearing, you can’t sneak up on it! I guess that’s something.

Placement

This was a surprisingly strong entry. The lore isn’t much, but it has potential. It’s design is surprisingly great and really fun! My only real problem is with the straight-forward and forgettable stats. Sorry, but monsters where you just hit it until it does don’t do much for me.

With all that in mind, let’s put the Hook Horror on the Best of the Bestiary!

1. Beholder
2. Death Tyrant
3. Dragon Turtle
4. Green Dragons
5. Red Dragons
6. Blue Dragons
7. Black Dragons
8. White Dragons
9. Silver Dragons
10. Couatl
11. Behir
12. Aboleth
13. Sea Hag
14. Bronze Dragons
15. Brass Dragons
16. Copper Dragons
17. Gold Dragons
18. Chuul
19. Gibbering Mouther
20. Chimera
21. Death Knight
22. Fomorian
23. Bone Devil
24. Dracolich
25. Faerie Dragon
26. Hobgoblins
27. Night Hag
28. Green Hag
29. Ankheg
30. Hook Horror <——————–
31. Storm Giant
32. Hill Giant
33. Empyrean
34. Efreeti
35. Grimlock
36. Dao
37. Cloud Giant
38. Drow (all four of ’em)
39. Shadow Demon
40. Marilith
41. Drider
42. Aarackockra
43. Azer
44. Demilich
45. Spectator
46. Marid
47. Harpy
48. Half-Dragon
49. Cambion
50. Fire Giant
51. Animated Armor
52. Banshee
53. Basilisk
54. Yochlol
55. Bulette
56. Cloaker
57. Darkmantle
58. Doppelganger
59. Ghoul and Ghast
60. Ettin
61. Pit Fiend
62. Erinyes
63. Chain Devil
64. Bearded Devil
65. Barbed Devil
66. Spined Devil
67. Ice Devil
68. Djinni
69. Nalfeshnee
70. Glabrezu
71. Chasme
72. Grell
73. Barlgura
74. Horned Devil
75. Balor
76. Shadow Dragon
77. Vrock
78. Dretch
79. Gnolls (all three)
80. Goristro
81. Hezrou
82. Manes
83. Frost Giant
84. Duergar
85. Quasit
86. Dryad
87. Flumph
88. Goblin
89. Githyanki
90. Planetar
91. Imp
92. Clay Golem
93. Flameskull
94. Displacer Beast
95. Carrion Crawler
96. Githzerai
97. Grick
98. Rug of Smothering
99. Bugbear Chief
100. Bugbear
101. Flesh Golem
102. Vine Blight
103. Twig Blight
104. Needle Blight
105. Bullywug
106. Hellhound
107. Ettercap
108. Gas Spore
109. Cockatrice
110. Lemure
111. Homonculus
112. Solar
113. Deva
114. Gorgon
115. Hippogriff
116. Griffon
117. Cyclops
118. Centaur
119. Ghost
120. Fire Elemental
121. Water Elemental
122. Air Elemental
123. Stone Giant
124. Deep Gnome
125. Dinosaurs (All six of them)
126. Iron Golem
127. Stone Golem
128. Earth Elemental
129. Galeb Duhr
130. Helmed Horror
131. Flying Sword
132. Crawling Claw
133. Violet Fungus
134. Shrieker
135. Gargoyle