Updated10February2015(addedlinktoMonsterTraitsandActions)

Similartomypreviousconversiondocument(Nextto5E),Icreatedthebelowguidelinesby
comparingthe5Eversionsofmonstersfromthe MonsterManual withtheir3.5counterparts.

Andlikemypreviousdocument,Ihavetoincludetwowarnings:
1. Ifyoutesttheseguidelinesonthe3.5versionsofthemonstersyourself,the5Eversions
willlikelybeslightlyoff.ThisispartlybecauseWizardschangedsomemonstersinother
ways(liketheDoppelganger)andpartlybecauseIwasgoingforanapproximation,soit
wouldbeeasytouse.
2. Iamfallible,andImayhavemadesomemistakes.Ifyoufindanyglaringerrors,please
letmeknow.

Attheendofthisdocument,Ihavealsoincludedguidelinesforadjustingthebelowguidelinesto
workfor3.5smajorcousins,3EandPathfinder.

Youwillneedaccesstoatleastthe
D&DBasicRules MonsterManual
andthe tomakefulluse
ofthis.The DungeonMastersGuide, whilenotstrictlyrequired,ishighlyrecommendedforits
monstercreationguidelines(pages273283).

Thankstothepeoplein
thisENWorldthread forgeneralhelp,andCarsonMcNattandGreg
LeceafortheirinputonLanguages.

ChallengeRating

Beforeyougetstarted,youshouldchooseaninitialChallengeRatingforthecreature.Thisisan
estimateofthemonstersCR,whichyoucanusetoguidetherestofyourconversion.Thereare
twowaystodothis:

UsetheCRofasimilar5Ecreature.
UsetheCREstimatorinAppendix1toconvertitsD&D3.5CR.

Whenyouarefinishedconvertingyourmonsterto5E,youmaywishtoadjustthisinitialCRfor
abetterfit.ThebestwaytodothisistousetherulesfordeterminingCRintheDMG,butif
yourepressedfortime,youcanjustcompareittosimilar5Ecreaturesonceagain.

Size

Therearesixcreaturesizesin5E: Tiny ,
Small
,
Medium ,
Large ,
Huge ,and
Gargantuan .

Anycreaturessmallerthan Tiny(i.e.FineorDiminutive)shouldbetreatedasTiny
creatures,
andanylargerthanGargantuan (i.e.Colossal)shouldbetreatedasGargantuancreatures.
Whetheryouactuallywanttorescalethemtothosesizesisuptoyou.

Type

5Ekeepsmostofthe3.5creaturetypes.Theexceptionsarethefollowing:
Animal and
Vermin werefoldedinto Beast.
MagicalBeast and
MonstrousHumanoid werefoldedinto Monstrosity.
Outsider hasbeensplitup.
Elementalplanes:Probably Elemental .
Predominantlychaoticplanes:Probably Aberration .
Predominantlylawfulplanes:Probably Construct .
Goodplanes: Celestial .
Evilplanes: Fiend.

Furtherdetailson5EscreaturetypesaredetailedintheBasicRulesPDF.
Specialrulesforcreaturetypes(suchassensesorimmunities)aredescribedinthe5Estat
block,ratherthanbeingsomethingyoureexpectedtomemorizesoifyouwanttokeepthose
qualities,makesureyouincludenotesonsuchtraitsalongwithyourconversion,forreference.
(Ahandyguidetothe3.5typescanbefound here.)

Note,however,thatnocreatureappearstobeimmuneto criticalhits or
sneakattacks ,and
manyoftheotherdefaultspecialqualitiesseemtobeabsentin5E.Checksimilarmonstersin
5Ebeforeyouaddtoomanyofthe3.5rules.

Tags

Thesehavereplacedthe3.5creaturesubtypes,butunlikesubtypes,tagsonlyappeartobe
descriptive.(Therearealsofewerofthem.)Aswithcreaturetypes,anygamerulesassociated
witha3.5subtypeshouldbeexplainedinthe5Estatblock.

Shapechangers donotappeartohavethefixedrulesseenin3.5,andappeartochange
dependingonthespecificcreaturelookattheDoppelganger,Imp,Quasit,Vampire,and
YuanTiMalisonforseveralexamples.Wealsohavenewrulesfor incorporeal(seeWraith),
whichisnolongerasubtypeortagatall.Itislikelynewruleswillbeestablishedforotherformer
subtypesaswell,butwedonthavethemyet.
Alignment

Generally,keepthisthesame.However,creaturesin5Emayalsobe unaligned
,meaningthey
operateoninstinct,soyoumaywanttochange neutral
tounalignedforsomecreatures.

ArmorClass

ItseasiesttorecalculateACfromscratch,basedontheirDexteritybonusandanyarmorworn.
(MakesuretochecktherulesfordeterminingACintheBasicRulesPDF.)

Ifacreaturehadnaturalarmorbefore,givethema+2bonustotheirnewAC.OthertypesofAC
adjustmentsfrom3.5,mostnotablysizeadjustments,nolongerappeartobeafactor.

Dragons definitelyappeartohavestrongernaturalarmor,butwithonlyoneexample,Icant
giveyouagoodmethod.Shavingafewpointsoffoftheir3.5naturalarmor,thenaddingitto
theirnewAC,wouldprobablywork.

HitDice

In5E,thetypeofhitdieisdeterminedbyacreaturessize. Tiny
creaturesused4hitdice.
Small creaturesused6hitdice.
Medium creaturesused8hitdice.Large creaturesused10hit
dice.Huge creaturesused12hitdice.
Gargantuan creaturesused20hitdice.

Tiny creaturesshouldkeepthesamenumberofhitdiceastheyhadin3.5.

Small or
Medium creaturesshouldaddone hitdie.Forexample,1d6shouldbecome2d6.

Large creaturesshouldadd two

hitdice.Forexample,3d10shouldbecome5d10.

Huge and Gargantuan creaturesshouldbetreatedthesameas Largecreaturesatthistime.

Averagehitpointsforcreaturesshouldberecalculatedasfollows:
Xd4MultiplyXby2.5(rounddown),thenaddtheirConstitutionbonus,timesX.
Xd6MultiplyXby3.5(rounddown),thenaddtheirConstitutionbonus,timesX.
Xd8MultiplyXby4.5(rounddown),thenaddtheirConstitutionbonus,timesX.
Xd10MultiplyXby5.5(rounddown),thenaddtheirConstitutionbonus,timesX.
Xd12MultiplyXby6.5(rounddown),thenaddtheirConstitutionbonus,timesX.
Xd20MultiplyXby10.5(rounddown),thenaddtheirConstitutionbonus,timesX.

Example:Amonsterhas3d8HDandaConstitutionof14(+2bonus).Sotheiraveragehit
pointsare4.5times3,roundeddown:13.ThenyoumultiplytheirConbonusbytheirHD,fora
totalof+6.13+6=19.

Twoexceptions:
Oozes shouldprobablykeeptheircurrenthitdice.
Dragons changedalotbetween3.5and5E,andsimplytreatingthemliketheothermonsters
willcreateaweakerdragonthanitshouldbe.Butuntilwehavemoreexamples,Icanonly
advisetreatingthemlikeothercreaturesoftheirsize.

Speed

Speedcanprettymuchbeusedasis. Dragons seemtohavehadtheirflightspeedcutdownby

morethanhalf,soyoumaywanttohalveanyotherespeciallyhighflightspeeds.

AbilityScores

Thesecanbeusedasis.Most5Emonstershaveatleastminorabilityadjustmentsfromtheir
3.5counterparts,butthedifferencesareprettysmall,soyoushouldntsweatit.

Notethat5Edoesnotallowcreaturestohavenonexistentabilityscores.Myrecommendations
forreplacingamissingscore:
Strength shouldprobablybebelow10forcreatureswithoutit.Thesingleexamplewe
haveofsuch,thewraith,hasaStrengthof6.
Constitution neverseemstobelowerthan10.Youcanprobablygetawaywitha
Constitutionscoreanywherefrom10to15or16,basedonyourguessastohowtough
thecreatureshouldbe.
Intelligence shouldalsobebelow10forcreatureswithoutit.Creaturesworkingon
instinctusuallyhaveatleast2Intelligence.

IhavenoguidelinestoofferonDexterity ,
Wisdom ,or
Charisma .Iwouldprobablyaimforat
leastascoreof2insuchcases.

SavingThrows

Youcanignorethe3.5savebonuses,as5Eusessavesassociatedwitheachofthesixability
scores.Soassumemostcreaturesjustusetheirabilitybonusforsaves.

Somemonstersapplytheir proficiencybonus totheirsavestheyounggreendragonhasa

+3tofoursaves,andthezombiehasa+2toone.Youmaywishtodothesameforyour
convertedcreature,ifitseemsappropriate.(Forexample,ifthecreaturehadthefeatsGreat
Fortitude,IronWill,orLightningReflexes.)

Inmostcases,though,youshouldprobablypassongivingyourcreatureproficiency,asits
mucheasierwithoutit.

Skills

Formanycreatures,particularlymoreinstinctdrivenones,youwontneedtogivethemany
skills.Ifacreaturedoeshaveskills,itwillusuallyhaveproficiencywithonlyafew,generallythe
equivalentsoftheonestheyhadhigherranksinduring3.5.

Ifyouwanttotranslateacreaturesmorenotableskillsorfeatsintoequivalent5Eskill
proficiencies,theycanbetranslatedasfollows:

3.5Skill 3.5Feat 5ESkillProficiency

Climb,Swim Athletic Athletics(Strength)

Balance,Jump,Tumble Acrobatic,Agile Acrobatics(Dexterity)

SleightofHand DeftHands,NimbleFingers SleightofHand(Dexterity)

Hide,MoveSilently Stealthy Stealth(Dexterity)

Knowledge(arcana,the MagicalAptitude Arcana(Intelligence)

planes),Spellcraft

Knowledge(history,local, History(Intelligence)
nobilityandroyalty)

GatherInformation,Search Investigator Investigation(Intelligence)

Knowledge(geography, Nature(Intelligence)
nature)

Knowledge(religion) Religion(Intelligence)

HandleAnimal,Ride AnimalHandling AnimalHandling(Wisdom)

SenseMotive Negotiator Insight(Wisdom)

Heal SelfSufficient Medicine(Wisdom)

Listen,Spot Alertness Perception(Wisdom)

Survival SelfSufficient,Track Survival(Wisdom)

Bluff,Disguise Deceitful Deception(Charisma)

Intimidate Persuasive Intimidation(Charisma)

Perform Performance(Charisma)

Diplomacy Negotiator,Persuasive Persuasion(Charisma)

 Appraise,Concentration, Diligent No5Eskillequivalent.Many
Craft,DecipherScript, ofthesearenowgeneric
DisableDevice,Escape abilitychecks,exclusive
Artist,Forgery,Knowledge classfeatures,orbackground
(otherfields),OpenLock, elements.
Profession,SpeakLanguage,
UseMagicDevice,UseRope

Ifacreaturehasproficiencyinaskill,theirbonuswiththatskillisequaltotherelevantability
bonus,plustheir
proficiencybonus .

Example:AmonsterhasaDexterityof15(+2bonus)andproficiencyinStealth.Thismeans
thattheyshouldhavea+4bonuswithStealth(Dexterity)checks.Iftheyareamorepowerful
creature,theymayhavea+5bonusinstead.

Somecreaturesseemtohaveahigherproficiencyinoneskillthantheothers,typicallydouble
theirnormalproficiencybonus(+4or+6).Forexample,doppelgangershavea+4onDeception
(Charisma)checks.Youmaywishtodothesamewithacreaturessignatureskill.

Vulnerabilities,Resistances,Immunities

Vulnerabilities,resistances(suchasdamagereduction),andimmunitiesaresomethingyou
eitherhaveornotin5E.Sowhenyouimportthesefrom3.5,yousimplylistthemunderthe
appropriatecategory: DamageVulnerabilities ,
DamageResistances ,or
Damage
Immunities .

Inthecaseof3.5damagereductionthatcanbebypassedbycertaintypesofweapon(suchas
DR5/silver),theyareusuallydescribedasfollowsunderResistances:

bludgeoning,piercing,andslashingfrom(magicalornonmagicalor[blank])weapons(that
arentsilveredoradamantineoretc.or[blank])

Youshouldalsonote ConditionImmunities ,whichmayoverlapwithresistancesordamage

immunities.Forexample,acreatureimmuneto poison
damageshouldalsonotethattheyare
immunetothe poisoned condition.

Youshouldalsomakesuretolistanyvulnerabilities,resistances,orimmunitiesthatwereinnate
toacreaturetypein3.5intheappropriatesections,withthefollowingexceptions.

Theinnateimmunitiesof undead in5Eare:

DamageImmunities:poison
ConditionImmunities:poisoned

Onlyaddotherimmunitiestoanundeadcreatureiftheyareseparatefromitsundeadnature.

Incorporeal
creaturesshouldprobablyhavethefollowingresistancesandimmunities:

DamageResistances:acid,cold,fire,lightning,thunderbludgeoning,piercing,andslashing
fromnonmagicalweapons
DamageImmunities:poison
ConditionImmunities:grappled,paralyzed,petrified,poisoned,prone,restrained

Magicresistance (
spellresistance )hasbeensimplified,andisnowlistedasatraitseethe
flameskullforanexample.


Senses

Thereareonlyfoursensesestablishedin5Eatthispoint: blindsight ,
darkvision
,
tremorsense ,andtruesight
.3.5s
lowlightvision appearstohavebeenfoldedinto
darkvision.Anyothersensesshouldbeusedasis.

Also,allcreatureshaveapassivePerceptionscore.Thisisequalto10plustheirtotalbonusto
Perception(Wisdom)checks.

Languages

Generally,thesestaythesame.Therewereafewchanges,however:
Dwarven isnowcalledDwarvish .Likewise,
Elven
isnowElvish,and
Gnome isnow
Gnomish .
Mindflayersandbeholdersnowspeak DeepSpeech youmaydecideothermonsters
shouldspeakitaswell.


Traits

Mostofthe3.5SpecialQualities notdescribedearlierinthestatblockshouldbedescribed
here,alongwithspecialcreaturetyperules(like
Shapechanger ).Whenpossible,youshould
replaceany3.5traitswiththeir5Eequivalents,asdescribedinthe MonsterManual.Whenthis
Manual
isnotpossible,trytousethe screaturesasexamplestofollow,orsimplyusethe3.5
rulesasis.

AlistoftheknownTraitsin5Ecanbefound
here
.

Afewfurthernotes:

Fasthealing doesnotappeartobepartofthe5Erules.

Spellcasting ismorecomplicatedtoconvertthantheothers.Inadditiontobeingusedfor3.5
monsterswithspellcastingclasslevels,listsof spelllikeabilities
from3.5alsotendtobe
translatedasaSpellcastingtrait.(Theexceptionisanyspelllikeabilitiesthatseemtobe
signaturepowers,inwhichcasetheyreusuallylistedas InnateSpellcasting orbrokenoutas
theirowntrait,action,orreaction.)

ThecasterlevelforSpellcastingshouldprobablystaythesame(unlessitsabove20,inwhich
casegowith20).However,keepinmindthatyouwillneedtofollowtherulesforspellcastingin
5E,whichdifferfromtheonesin3.5refertotheBasicRulesformoredetails.(ForInnate
Spellcasting,thespellcastingabilityistypicallyWisdomorCharisma.)

ActionswithanAttackRoll

Theseareconvertedfrom3.5 Attacksor
SpecialAttacks .Youneedtoconvertthreethingsto
maketheseinto5Eactionsthetohitbonus,thedamageinflictedbyelementsoftheattack,
andanysavingthrowsrequired.

AlistoftheknownActionsin5Ecanbefound
here
.


ToHit

LikeAC,thisshouldprobablyberecalculatedfromscratch.Ingeneral,thetohitforanaction
isbasedontheproficiencybonus .Thisiscombinedwiththerelevantabilitybonus(usually
StrengthorDexterity).

Notethatmostnaturalattacks(claw,bite,etc.)appeartobefinesseattacks,meaningtheycan
useeitherStrengthorDexteritywithattackrolls.Unlessyouthinkyourcreatureshouldbea
weakmeleecombatant,youshouldchoosethehighestofeitherStrengthorDexterityfortohit
withnaturalattacks.

UnusualattackslikethewraithsLifeDrainappeartoeitherhaveahigherbonus,orareusing
somethingotherthanStrengthorDexterity.Idonthaveanyspecificrecommendationsforthis
rightnow,butfeelfreetoexperimentwithotherabilityscores(likeConstitutionorCharisma)if
thatseemsappropriate.Youreprobablysaferavoidingthat,however.


Damage

Forattacksthatusea weapon ,refertothedamagelistedintheBasicRulesPDF.Ifthe

creatureislarge
,increasetheweaponsdamagedieby one (i.e.1d6becomes2d6).Ifthe
creatureishuge,increasetheweaponsdamagedieby two (i.e.1d6becomes3d6).

Someespeciallyhugecreatures,and gargantuancreatures,mayincreasethedamagedieby
three
(i.e.1d6becomes4d6),butyoumaybesaferstickingwithaddingtwo.

Fornaturalattacksby tiny
or
smallcreatures,youshouldprobablyleavethedamagedice
alone.However,theminimumdamagedieappearstobe1d4,soanyweakerattacksshould
probablyupgradetothat.(Thesamegoesfordamagedicebelow1d4forothercreatures.)

Fornaturalattacksby medium orlargercreatures,usethefollowingtable:

3.5DamageDice 5EDamageDice

1d4 1d6(or2d4)

1d6 1d8(or2d6)

1d8 1d10(or2d8)

1d10 1d12(or2d10)

1d12 2d8(or2d12)

Ifanattackinflictsmorethanonedieofdamage,increasethe5Edamagediebythatnumber.
Forexample,2d4shouldbecome2d6(or3d4).

Somecreaturesstrongestnaturalattacksseemtoaddbothonedieofdamageandincrease
thedietypebyoneforexample,1d6becoming2d8.Thisshouldbeusedcarefully,however,
andshouldntbeusedonmorethanoneattack.

DontforgettoaddthemonstersStrengthbonustomeleedamageandDexteritybonusto
rangeddamage.Youcancalculateaveragedamagethroughthemethodaboveunder HitDice
.

Somecreaturesinflictadditionaldamageonahit,suchasacidorpoisonconvertthisthesame
astheabove.

Othertypesofdamagingattacks(liketheflameskullsfireray)seemtobetreatedmuchlikethe
strongestnaturalattacksabove,buttherearentmanyexamplesyet.Still,thatguidelinemay
workfornow.Dragon breathweaponsareupgradedmuchmorethanthat,butuntilwehave
moredragons,Imreluctanttorecommendanyguidelinesthere.
SavingThrowsforActions

Ingeneral,
Fortitudesavesshouldbeconvertedto Constitutionsaves,
Reflexsavesshould
beconvertedto Dexteritysaves,and Will
savesshouldbeconvertedto Wisdom saves.

Theaverage DifficultyClass (DC)forsavesislowerin5Ethantheywerein3.5.Theusual

waytocalculatethisin5Eis8+proficiencybonus+theabilitybonusofthecreatureforthe
relevantsave.Forexample,aCR2creaturewithConstitution13(+1bonus)thatinflictsa
ConstitutionsaveeffectshouldrequireaDCof11(8+2+1).

TheDMGalsoincludestypicalDCsforcreaturesofagivenCRyoumayusethisinstead.

Also,actionsthatdrainedConstitutionin3.5appeartoinflicthitpointdamageinstead.The
numberofConpointsdrainedshouldbeturnedintothesamenumberofhitpointsofdamage
(i.e.1d4Conbecomes1d4damage),thenconvertedusingtheguidelinesunder Actionswith
anAttackRoll above.IfanattackinflictedbothhitpointandConstitutiondamage,combine
thosetogetherasbestyoucanbeforeconvertingthetotaldamage.

Recharge

Someactionsalsohavea recharge MonsterManual.

,whichisexplainedinthe

Rechargeseemstobelimitedtostrongeffectsthat,in3.5,couldonlybeusedalimitednumber
oftimesperday,orrequiredanumberofroundsbetweenuses.

MyrecommendationistouseRecharge56formostlimiteduseactions,andkeepXperday
forespeciallystrongattacksthatshouldonlybeusedonceinabattle.

ActionswithoutanAttackRoll

Many5Ecreaturessuchasthedoppelganger,flameskull,grick,nothic,owlbear,andyoung
greendragonhave Multiattack ,allowingthemtotakemorethanoneactionperturn.Ifyour
3.5monstercouldattackmorethanonce,youshouldconsidergivingthemMultiattackin5E.
Notethatmostcreaturescanonlymaketwoattackstheonlyexceptionistheyounggreen
dragon,whichcanmakethree.

Therearealsoafewcreaturesthatcantakeactionsnotrequiringanattackrollorsavingthrow.
Ifyourmonstercoulddothisin3.5,youcanprobablyusethemverbatimin5E.

Reactions

Anyspecialqualityorattackin3.5thatrequiredsomesortoftriggershouldbeaReaction.
Otherwise,treatitjustthesameasanyotherAction.

AlistoftheknownReactionsin5Ecanbefound
here
.

FinalNotes

Everythingnotmentionedaboveshouldprobablybedroppedin5E.Ofcourse,ifyoufeelits
veryimportanttothecreaturesconcept,feelfreetoportitoveranyway.

Also,ingeneral,5Emonstersseemtohaveslightlyfewerattackchoicesthanmanyoftheir3.5
counterparts,soyoushouldfeelfreetodropanymonsterabilitiesthatdontseemessentialto
itsconcept.(Thiswillalsospeedyourconversionup,ofcourse.)

Appendix1:CREstimator

ThebelowconversionfollowsaverybroadcomparisonoftheChallengeRatingsforthesame
creaturesin3.5and5E.Itsnotperfect,butitworksasaroughstartingpoint.

5ECR 3.5CR

0 orless

or

1 2

2 3

3 4

+1 +1

Basically,yousubtractonefromthe3.5CR.Foramountslessthan1,rounditdowntothe
nearest5ECR,thenreduceitbyonestep.(Forexample,(3.5)reducesto(5E),andthen
dropsoneCRdown(0).)

Appendix2:3E

Converting3Ecreatureswillgenerallybethesameas3.5.Thereareonlytwonotable
differences:
3Ehastwocreaturetypesdroppedin3.5: Beastand
Shapechanger .Creaturesofthe
formertypeshouldbecome Beasts in5E,ofcourse,whileanyShapechangershould
probablybecomea Monstrosity (unlessyoudecidetheybetterfitunderanothertype).
Damagereductionin3Ewasbrokendownbyweaponbonus(+1,+2,etc.).Thisshould
allbefoldedintoaresistancetononmagicalweaponsin5E.

Also,3Ehassomenotableskillsthatweredroppedormergedin3.5:

3ESkill 5ESkillProficiency

PickPocket SleightofHand(Dexterity)

ReadLips Perception(Wisdom)

IntuitDirection,WildernessLore Survival(Wisdom)

Innuendo Deception(Charisma)

Alchemy,AnimalEmpathy,Scry No5Eskillequivalent.Manyofthesearenow
genericabilitychecks,exclusiveclass
features,orbackgroundelements.

Ifyouwantmoredetailsonthedifferencesbetween3Eand3.5,checkouttheofficialguidelines
fromWizardsoftheCoasthere:http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/dnd/20030718a

Appendix3:Pathfinder

ConvertingfromPathfinderwillgenerallybethesameasconvertingfrom3.5,evenmoreso
than3E.Mostadjustmentsareminor,anddonotchangeanyoftheguidelinesusedfor3.5.

PathfinderdidrestoreflatXPawardsformonsters,butitalsoretained3.5sChallengeRating
system,sothatconversionshouldbethesame.

Lastly,Pathfinderdidconsolidatesomeof3.5sskills,whichcanbeconvertedasfollows:

PathfinderSkill 5ESkillProficiency

Acrobatics Acrobatics(Dexterity)

Stealth Stealth(Dexterity)

Perception Perception(Wisdom)

Linguistics No5Eskillequivalent.Thisisusuallya
backgroundelement.

Ifyouwantmoredetailsonthechangesbetween3.5andPathfinder,youcanfindtheofficial
conversionguidelineshere:
http://paizo.com/products/btpy89m6?PathfinderRoleplayingGameConversionGuide