Mimic: Dark Souls PTSD

Sometimes a chest is just a chest, but don’t bet on it.

X the Mystic’s 3rd rule of dungeons survival

After years of playing From Software games, just saying the word mimic is enough to increase my heartrate. So this should be fun.

Lore: When the Loot Swings Back

Shapeshifting predators, mimics often reside within dungeons in the form of chests or doors, as those are what most often lure in prey. They can change their skin to resemble wood, stone, or even metal, to the point where they are almost indistinguishable from the real thing. When the trap is sprung, they secrete a vile adhesive to trap their victim. Not all mimics are hunters, however; some are intelligent enough to hold conversation, and these will let travelers pass without incident in exchange for information or food.

While not good for the basis of a quest, be it a mainline story or a sidequest, this can make for a fun encounter. You could go simple and just have the mimic lure in and attack the party. Or you could turn it into a fun little NPC to give the players a bit of advice partway through a dungeon. It ain’t much, but it’s fun!

Design: An Old Classic

Remember that monster book from Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban? Yeah, it’s basically that, but it’s a chest.

It isn’t the most original design of the lot. Mimics are a staple of fantasy, after all. What you see here is pretty much exactly what you expect. It’s like a cuter version of what you might find in one of the Dark Souls games.

What it lacks in originality, it more than makes up for in quality. I love how gross the creature looks, like its whole body is made of clay that it’s shaped into the form you see before you. You can even see the bottom of the chest lifting, hinting at some kind of feet to help this little bastard move and attack you. And the way its face melts the wooden disguise, all of it is just perfect.

Overall, this is a mid design. Not original, but certainly well-executed. Now it all boils down to…

Stats: Hungry Little Trap

Wow. This really is a Dark Souls monster!

The mimic itself isn’t particularly durable. Its immune to acid damage and you can’t knock it prone, sure. But its AC is fairly low and its HP is mid at best. Actually killing it won’t be all that hard.

Neither of its two attacks do all that much damage. The bite attack has a bit of added acid damage, but it still isn’t especially dangerous. Its Pseudopod attack, however, does have the added effect of Adhesive.

We’ll get to that in a bit. First, let’s talk about Shapechanger. This does exactly what you’d think for a mimic. Then there’s False Appearance, which makes it impossible to detect when its sitting still; not a useful ability during combat, but it can help it prepare an ambush. Finally, the Grappler ability gives it advantage on attack rolls targeted at enemies it has grappled.

Now, let’s talk about Adhesive. While in object form, the mimic sticks to anything it touches. Anyone who gets touched by this is grappled and have disadvantage on the escape roll. In order for this to activate, the target must be hit by the Pseudopod attack. Once they’re grappled, however, they are left extremely vulnerable to its bite attack.

This combination is fairly dangerous for an early game party. It’s fairly easy to escape, sure, but if you’re unlucky (like me) it could be devastating. Aside from that, however, the fight is your typical D&D slugfest: hit it ’till it dies.

Placement

For such a beloved monster, the mimic is fairly disappointing. Its lore makes for a fun little encounter, but nothing more. Its design is well-executed, if unoriginal. Its stats are fine, but far from exceptional. It is a mid-tier monster in every sense.

With all that in mind, let’s put the Mimic 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. Lamia
15. Bronze Dragons
16. Brass Dragons
17. Copper Dragons
18. Gold Dragons
19. Chuul
20. Kuo-Toa
21. Gibbering Mouther
22. Kraken
23. Intellect Devourer
24. Chimera
25. Death Knight
26. Fomorian
27. Bone Devil
28. Dracolich
29. Faerie Dragon
30. Lich
31. Magmin
32. Kobold
33. Kenku
34. Hobgoblins
35. Night Hag
36. Green Hag
37. Ankheg
38. Hook Horror
39. Storm Giant
40. Hill Giant
41. Empyrean
42. Efreeti
43. Grimlock
44. Dao
45. Cloud Giant
46. Manticore
47. Drow (all four of ’em)
48. Shadow Demon
49. Marilith
50. Drider
51. Aarackockra
52. Azer
53. Demilich
54. Spectator
55. Hydra
56. Marid
57. Harpy
58. Werejackal
59. Half-Dragon
60. Cambion
61. Fire Giant
62. Animated Armor
63. Banshee
64. Basilisk
65. Yochlol
66. Bulette
67. Cloaker
68. Darkmantle
69. Doppelganger
70. Ghoul and Ghast
71. Ettin
72. Medusa
73. Pit Fiend
74. Erinyes
75. Chain Devil
76. Bearded Devil
77. Barbed Devil
78. Spined Devil
79. Ice Devil
80. Mimic <———————-
81. Djinni
82. Merrow
83. Nalfeshnee
84. Glabrezu
85. Chasme
86. Grell
87. Barlgura
88. Horned Devil
89. Balor
90. Shadow Dragon
91. Werebear
92. Lizardfolk
93. Vrock
94. Dretch
95. Gnolls (all three)
96. Goristro
97. Hezrou
98. Manes
99. Frost Giant
100. Weretiger
101. Werewolf
102. Duergar
103. Quasit
104. Dryad
105. Flumph
106. Goblin
107. Wereboar
108. Wererat
109. Githyanki
110. Planetar
111. Imp
112. Clay Golem
113. Flameskull
114. Displacer Beast
115. Carrion Crawler
116. Githzerai
117. Grick
118. Invisible Stalker
119. Rug of Smothering
120. Bugbear Chief
121. Bugbear
122. Flesh Golem
123. Vine Blight
124. Twig Blight
125. Needle Blight
126. Mephits (all six of ’em)
127. Bullywug
128. Hellhound
129. Ettercap
130. Gas Spore
131. Cockatrice
132. Lemure
133. Homonculus
134. Merfolk
135. Solar
136. Deva
137. Gorgon
138. Hippogriff
139. Griffon
140. Cyclops
141. Centaur
142. Ghost
143. Fire Elemental
144. Water Elemental
145. Air Elemental
146. Stone Giant
147. Deep Gnome
148. Dinosaurs (All six of them)
149. Iron Golem
150. Stone Golem
151. Earth Elemental
152. Galeb Duhr
153. Helmed Horror
154. Flying Sword
155. Crawling Claw
156. Violet Fungus
157. Shrieker
158. Gargoyle