tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4607464045429311026.post8437136014260131632..comments2024-03-26T00:09:13.941-07:00Comments on Dungeon of Signs: Umber Hulks - Five VariationsUnknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger6125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4607464045429311026.post-26908273046628153322013-08-19T10:20:43.586-07:002013-08-19T10:20:43.586-07:00I had that lil' plastic guy in maroon as a kid...I had that lil' plastic guy in maroon as a kid (along with a bulette and the tubby blue dragon) - I never made the connection and always figured he was just a Godzilla knock off.Gus Lhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14872819206286105195noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4607464045429311026.post-78443973865121000732013-08-19T06:55:01.227-07:002013-08-19T06:55:01.227-07:00When I was a kid, I had two of the infamous "...When I was a kid, I had two of the infamous "dinosaurs" bags long before I knew what D&D was & I had one of what I assume where the inspiration for the Umber Hulk. I haven't had the toys since sometime back in the '80s but I did find a couple of pictures on flickr. http://www.flickr.com/photos/79869872@N04/8525243761 and http://www.flickr.com/photos/7379963@N04/2653918244. Mphs.Stevehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05823146612703544448noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4607464045429311026.post-79598766739052328352013-08-18T03:46:22.934-07:002013-08-18T03:46:22.934-07:00By the way, is anyone making a first-edition-style...By the way, is anyone making a first-edition-style umber hulk mini these days? I love the monster but I don't really care for the 3E version's appearance. <br /><br />Xorn and Umber Hulks were what brought me to this game in 1979. Seeing those two seriously weird entries in the MM convinced me that I had to try this thing. ("weird" by 1979 standards, largely just by not being part of any real-world myth, monster lore, or monster movie canon. Same thing as drew me to HPL just a year or two before that.)ScrivenerBhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04861652415900436411noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4607464045429311026.post-80400393702825638962013-08-17T20:46:33.149-07:002013-08-17T20:46:33.149-07:00This is why I like thinking up monster variations....This is why I like thinking up monster variations. when it's one's own creative beastie one has a tendency to see how it fits in the world and think up all kinds of ambiance for what was simply a stack of HD and No. Atks. before.Gus Lhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14872819206286105195noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4607464045429311026.post-22933254210628250442013-08-16T19:50:25.470-07:002013-08-16T19:50:25.470-07:00My idea was always that they are some sort of quas...My idea was always that they are some sort of quasi-elemental creature. Here's the thing, they tunnel through solid rock. Well now wait, even if you're strong and tough enough to tear solid rock, once you start tunneling you'll soon find yourself unable to move, since the volume of the torn apart stone is necessarily greater than the volume of it when it was a solid mass. Since it all has to fit in the tunnel you're making...well, it won't. <br /><br />Basically, to tunnel you have to have some means of disposing of the rubble. A lone umber hulk does not. Well, not if all it does is tear the stone apart. But if it's some sort of quasi-elemental creature then it becomes entirely possible that it's transmuting some or all of the rock it tears apart. Transmutes it into air, specifically. <br /><br />This both neatly explains the tunneling and provides that elusive link to the underworld ecosystem--umber hulk tunneling is a source of fresh air in the depths. We'll assume the transmutation is by weight rather than volumme to make sure it's a useful amount of air being produced. <br /><br />ScrivenerBhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04861652415900436411noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4607464045429311026.post-58145335047869745892013-08-16T11:59:44.208-07:002013-08-16T11:59:44.208-07:00Ideas to add to these. Rust Hulk as dungeon progen...Ideas to add to these. Rust Hulk as dungeon progenitor. Mine Mort seeking forever to collapse over more and more mortals, increasing it's size and danger by incorporating their risen remains (use grappling and drowning mechanics for being buried alive).Necropraxishttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12716340801054739658noreply@blogger.com