Ogre (Warrior, Glutton, Boss)

The description given in the bestiary for the Ogre is decidedly unflattering. Brutish, violent, incestuous, and filthy, they are perhaps the most damningly painted sentient creatures in the book that aren't evil planar outsiders. That's not to say there is nothing to be said for ogres, as they have been a staple of fantasy gaming and literature for a long time; one could argue that ogre-like beings can be traced back well before the origin of the word (from Wikipedia, derived from the French spelling of Orcus).

I think then that the three ogres present in the first bestiary are quite representative of the primal fears that we associate with the creature: large, violent, prone to trying to eat you. Definitely appropriate for sharing a name with the Etruscan God of the Underworld—we'll definitely be coming back to that soon.

The Warrior, Glutton, and Boss are all very simple with a few things to differentiate them beyond the basics such as the level difference—something that is definitely indicative of their relative lack of subtlety or tactics. The glutton, which can attempt to both bite and swallow its enemies, is definitely the most evocative and unsettling. I can't really think of many more gruesome images than trying to cut your way out after being Swallowed Whole by one. The boss can use Bellowing Command to quicken ogre allies, making the weaker ogre warrior more of a threat. On the part of tactics, I think that it's entirely reasonable to say that the ogres won't have much in the way of them. Should you find a combat that you set up to be too difficult, it's not entirely unreasonable to say that without the strong leadership of a Boss, the other less powerful ogres will fall into troublesome quarrels, allowing for a more attainable win.

However you use the ogre, consider also how you might both play into and subvert tropes of the brutish ogre. A cunning but reasonable adversary, a gentle but frightening countenance, or a largely peaceful but defensive ogre clan can all serve up some interesting narrative opportunity in lieu of outright to-the-death combat.

- Reece

Hook 1 (Max) - Off the Hook

The Meathook is a well-known butchery; the chow is of the best quality and people come from far and wide to get even the smallest taste of it. A local noble—now advanced in age—wishes for one final meal procured from The Meathook's owner: a wyvern steak he ate many years ago. The man is willing to compensate anyone willing to deliver the goods or, better yet, convince the butcher to come to his keep and cook this very special dish for him.

The shop is set up in a peculiar place deep within a dark wood far off any well-trodden track. The sight it represents would not bring to mind a world-famous craftsman either, as it is more reminiscent of a falling apart shack than a high-demand culinary eatery.

All of this, however, pales in comparison to the butcher himself, who is definitely not what people might expect.

Hook 2 (Reece) - Caught Between Two Worlds

Normally, the Woodstrider Giant Clan and the Hukari Ogre Warband stay far from each other as past clashes have resulted in devastating losses for both groups. This usually would not be a problem, as the Nagandi Run—a vast and untamed wilderness in the newly colonized continent of Ukandar—is an enormous expanse of ancient forests, hilly grasslands, and forgotten swamps. When the High Elven Kingdom of Sheila'nagari and the human Republic of Kith both settled on opposite sides of The Run, territory became both more important and more scarce. For their part, the Kithians tried to enforce their laws upon the Hukari, namely the preventing of bloodsport and dueling. For their part, the High Elves thought the nomadic lifestyle the Woodstriders led to be uncivil. Their solution was to attempt to forcibly settle the clan, something they were more than resistant to.

As the Woodstriders and the Hukari are each pressed into the ever-shrinking inner wilds of The Run, they are put at odds with each other and the colonial powers that are much larger than they. Other peoples that call The Run home look to both giants and ogres alike, hoping that they might overcome their differences and push the invaders back. The much smaller population of wood elves, hillock halflings, and the human Deekma nation all wonder, can it be done?

Hook 3 (Liam) - The Unsatiable

Gluttony, habitual greed, the desire to consume all that surrounds, the docks of Tarrae embody the very essence of this ravenous nature. Petty boardwalk gangs clash, devouring each other, ownership of the port never settling as individuals instinctively consume and be consumed. Such is the life of Tarrae, for its appetite is never satisfied.

However, this perpetual feeding frenzy has been thrown into disarray, an invasive species into the delicate ecosystem, its hunger more ravenous, more ferocious, more gluttonous. It seeks to devour all that inhabit Tarrae be it money, power, courtesans, or flesh itself. A title spoken only in whispers. An individual that encapsulates the essence of Tarrae itself. The Ogre.

Hill Giant

The Hill Giant. Another, uh. Another big person. Hill Giants are probably what most of us think of regarding giants; big people who regularly perform raids against smaller people, so this should be pretty run-of-the-mill.

The quintessential giant, hill giants have a basic stat block. Like the Frost Giant, everything they can do is a single action. However, given a below-average intelligence modifier and canon implications that they have no trouble betraying their own kind, hill giants should probably not be presented the organized manner other giants might be. This might mean that your hill giants are easier to trick or mollify with treasure and promises than others of their kin.

Outside of the implications of raiding your settlements, what else changes about society due to the existence of giants? The hill giant is the lowest level giant other than the cave and wood giants and is probably the most likely to encounter, depending on your setting. Do they have their own settlement, as they do in The Silver Chair? Is it more Jack and the Beanstalk style? Maybe there's something that entraps each type of giant to their respective biome. Here again, you have my permission to take time to indulge in worldbuilding a bit to figure out how this (very large) piece of the puzzle fits into your world.

- TJ

Hook 1 (Max) - Run to the Hills

While traversing the area of Greyhills, take special heed, for the road is fit for travel—unless you like rocks being thrown your way.

A group of hill giants has found its way here and they are enjoying the spoils of their labor. That labor is actually quite complex for their kind; there is a certain spot along the road where the left side rises to a small cliff, while the right is a steep incline. When a group of unaware travelers finds themselves there, three giants upon the ridge start lobbing rocks and stones their way, obstructing the road both ahead and behind.

The first instinct of many people is to run down the incline—this is exactly what the giants want—there are several big pit traps there, concealed by sticks and turf. Even if anyone makes it past them, the bottom of the incline holds their final trap—a cave where a fourth giant lies in wait.

The coordination is unusual for the short-sighted hill giants. Could it be, perhaps, that some other party is coordinating—and profiting—from these attacks?

Hook 2 (Nemanja) - Leaving The Business

Himbaud is a hill giant, known as some of the best muscle money can buy in the magi-mob-controlled city of Orksbreath. He is also, apparently, looking to get out of the business; he is in too deep, owes too much, and is repeatedly given more dubious and questionable missions to carry out.

To that end, he has reached out to a group of private investigators with a substantial sum of money and enough accumulated evidence to bring down down the city's entire ruling class down, should they manage to sneak him out of the city. It goes without saying that getting to the safety of the Outer Land while trying to hide a 12-foot tall brute that has a nasty habit of getting very, very drunk all while the city's top assassins prowl the streets looking for him is anything but a simple task...

Hook 3 (TJ) - A Small Problem

Efforts have been made to integrate the giants of the High Hills into Renthra society. Between the armistice and settlement accords, it would seem negotiations are going well. The trade agreements, however, have ground to a halt. The giants have major issues with what the Renthra government has proposed.

The giants insist they need the right to mint their own coins. Not only do they control a good number of mines within the High Hills, they also complain that the Renthra currency is "too damned small." The Renthra guilds are up in arms about the giant's coinage proposal. While there are many political conversations about the governmental control of the minting process—how it provides security in trade, how those employed in the minting process are at risk, devaluation of already existing currency, and many other economic implications about this portion of the agreement—one practical question is of utmost importance to the merchants. 

How do you trade with coins that are the size of dinner plates?

Frost Giant

Frost Giants, like their other giant kin, are just- Really large people.

Sort of.

Generally, they're portrayed as large, tribal, and often barbaric peoples who serve as a Viking or Nord stand-in. This, in my opinion, doesn't do them justice. The most notable thing about the Frost Giant is how many of it skills and abilities can be activated with just a single action. This design choice could lead to some of the most dangerous encounters you could make. Why? **Because any creature can Ready a single action as a two-action activity.** These are intelligent creatures, you should run them as such.

A group of frost giants stumbling across travelling, frost-bitten players could easily make short work of them. Use their plethora of single-action activities to turn the battlefield into a living (icy) hell for your players:

• A player goes to move and ends up adjacent to an ally? That triggers the **ONE ACTION, 15 FOOT CONE** Chill Breath one of the Giants had Readied.
• Try to move away from an ally? That triggers the Throw Rock another giant had saved for just this moment.
• All bunched up or have the giant surrounded? Guess who has a Wide Swing action all Ready to go?

Frost Giants are an opportunity to give your players a chilling reminder that some things are more prepared to take them out than others.

Hook 1 (Nemanja) - The River Beyond The Wall
Should anyone somehow evade or defeat the dozens of frost drakes that guard the ascent to the Land Beyond The Wall, they will find a tribe of unusually civilized Frost Giants. The citizens of this great society all talk in riddles and wear ridiculously long fur togas. Outsiders are taken to lavish feasts and festivities and treated with amicability. Should the outsiders try following the massive river that is born at the very base of the wall, the giants change disposition completely, becoming sadistically violent in an instant.

Hook 2 (Max) - The Cripple
The Cripple, despite his crass moniker provided by the locals, is a fearsome and famed mercenary in these lands. He takes on the most dangerous and lucrative contracts, hoping to gather power and experience to defeat the giant who long ago robbed him of his arm and eye, reclaiming his birthright as the clan leader.

His years on the road have taught him a thing or two. Fighting dirty and pressing any advantage you might posses are things you learn living the mercenary's life. Hence, he's always prepared with a plethora of useful tools, traps and gadgets at his disposal.

Hook 3 (Reece) - The Mithral Lands
The Frostguard Giant Clan and The Dwarven Mithral Mining Co. have been at odds for nearly a hundred years. Skirmishes with The Company in addition to fouling water and dying wildlife have greatly reduced the clan's numbers. Desparate, a single druid among the clan breaks tradition and seeks aid from outsiders. An agreement seems impossible given the incompatibility between the march of progress and the old ways. Helping the giants take back their tundra seems a mortal duty to some; though those who want to help are not only putting themselves at odds with The Company, but all those who rely on them for profit.

And Power. 

Fire Giant

 The emphasis of both law and militarism for the fire giant can be leveraged in a few interesting ways, both mechanically and narratively. As Lawful Evil creatures, they can serve as temporary allies to players against more immediate enemies that threaten the strict interests of the Fire Giant societies. The Fire Giant isn't flashy, as it has many of the same abilities as the other Giants, but it is powerful and thematic, with its flaming stroke that serves as a go-to ability capable of quickly turning a fight against the ill prepared, even if the Fire Giant is outnumbered.

 

Hook 1 (Reece) - Hell Guardian
Deep in the bowels of Mount Gedar lays one of few gateways into the Pits of Hell. The Pact, forged between The Devil Lords of Moch'Mordrin and the Blazing Blade Fire Giant clan, grants access to rare infernal metals not found on the material plane. In exchange, the Fire Giants guard the Hell Gate from unwanted interlopers who might enter, and unlucky souls seeking to escape damnation. A statue lined hallway can provide an interesting challenge for players to surmount as the Fire Giant line attack can easily thrash poorly positioned PCs. In light of outright combat, bargaining with the Devils and the Fire Giants could prove fruitful, as their master craftsmen could provide powerful and exotic treasure.

Hook 2 (Max) - Ghargal The Lonely
According to the local huntsman, there has been very little game in the woods surrounding town as of late. Many travelers and patrols have noted seeing bursts of distant flame in the dark of night. Local or not, the rumors have people afraid of some unspeakable horror lurking deep within the forest; each whisper birthing new life into a creature of nightmare.

The truth, however, is far more prosaic. Gharghal, the lone fire giant serving as source for the commotion, was left to die by his raiding party after being mortally wounded. Not one to give up easily, he unearthed a cave where he could rest and recover. Hungry and alone, his expertise as the party's scout paid dividends. Gharghal set up numerous traps to catch prey, allowing him to survive. At this point he has regained most of his strength and is determined to get his revenge.

The area immediately surrounding the giant's base of operations is laid with rudimentary, albeit effective traps. These can potentially hinder the party's approach. Should the situation become dire, Gharghal can always withdraw to his abode, where he has a great number of trinkets gathered from his raids on the locals

Hook 3 (TJ) - Smithy Squabble
There are growing tensions in the mountain town of Duern-Dwennan. The dwarven patriarch has been long renown as a teacher for legendary craftsman the world over. The pride and joy of his forge, his anvil, has been passed down for generations and is essential to his craft. The local cadre of fire giants, however, have entrenched themselves outside the walls of Duern-Dwennan, demanding that the anvil be returned to them as it is one of their most holy relics. Inquisitive and discerning eyes might be able to find some truth in the giants' claim that the anvil was created from the breastbone of their ancestor, Mul'Garr Ore-Eater. As to who has rightful claim to the anvil? It needs to be decided soon, as the confrontation rapidly careens toward war over the matter.

Hook 4 (Nemanja) - Brazen and The Bold
Brazenholme is a famous tavern notable for two big reasons.

First, it is the last sign of civilization before the massive swath of wilderness known only as the Desolace.

Second, the tavern's owner is a brash young fire giant who occasionally challenges patrons to a fight. Should the patron win, they get to drink and eat for free for a year and a day. Should the barkeep win however, the defeated must give him a piece of their armor, in addition to owing him a favour.

Why do this? He has been secretly planning to one day call each and every one of them together to form a makeshift raiding party that may reclaim his ancestral home in the Desolace from the duergar who now claim it as their own.

Ettin

 Ettins, eh? A great example of how a simple stat block with one neat ability can make for a really, really memorable encounter. The ettin's heads acting on different turns in the initiative is a really neat touch, though, and will make your players rethink their tactical approach as the creature gets to adapt and react to their actions at twice the rate of any other.

Blognaag and Thrognaag are an especially loquacious ettin with a highly specific MO. Standing vigil at the twin doors that lead into the famed Jotunhard dungeons, Blognaag and Thrognaag will greet any potential visitors by explaining to them how one only speaks the truth while the other one always lies, and how one door leads to great treasures while the other leads to certain death. In truth, the whole mystical schtick is a ruse itself - the ettin is a manipulative liar but perfectly capable of telling the truth if need arises, and both doors lead to a deep pit ending in spikes, and the cunning ettin merely enjoys playing others' intelligence on themselves, coming in to finish off the "nerds" and take their treasure after the deadly fall.

Deep in the vaults of the Sorceruos Constructs penitentiary, the most feared artifact is hidden. The murderer's coin is a simple enough object - a small piece of gold, with an alien deity on it's face. However, when no-one is looking at it, the coin has the tendency to teleport itself into random people's pockets, and whoever but touches it with bare skin, dies instantly. So far, the only way to contain it has been to have four ettins, working in tireless shifts to just stand and stare at the coin. However, as the ettins grow restless from the lack of action, a more permanent solution must be found.

Krook and Pnook are two ettin heads in a heavy predicament. When Krook sat on Pnook's favourite chair (an old throne from a raid years past), Pnook decided the offense was grave enough to warrant murdering Krook. Ever since then, he has been sabotaging Krook's every effort and attacking him at every point - whereas poor Krook is seeking help from the same villagers he had raided for years, feeling Pnook manages to find him whereever he tries to run or hide.

Cyclops

 Cyclopes come to us in two versions - the large, not too smart regular cyclopes, and the larger, dumber, more brutal great cyclopes. The exact correlation between the two is left vague - and that is where your writing comes into play.

Nubonga the cyclops is a reluctant ally of the Merry Mercenary Company of Marsholm. While he is prone to violent outbursts at a slightest perceived offense, the one-eyed giant's deep knowledge of the threads of fate makes him a very valuable asset. However, when the mercenaries return to his cavernous dwelling after several months of exploration, they find him mutated, almost doubled in size, and more maddened than ever. Before jumping at them with murderous intents, the giant manages to mutter "moon... spawn... help... me".

For years, local have avoided the Three Crowns hilltop. While the cyclopes that dwell there were brutal and aggressive, they rarely wandered beyond their ruined city's crumbled walls. For the past few days, however, loud sounds have been coming from that direction. Anyone who dares investigate will find out that the cyclopes have, after decades or even centuries of passivity, started rebuilding. What that means for the surrounding kingdoms of men and elves remains to be seen.

On the faraway, technologically advanced planet of Dezcordia, every sentient is implanted with a chip. Those chips record and store every bit of the implantee's knowledge. A group of archeologists - although some would call them grave robbers, or even thugs - are looking for information on pre-purge societies. It just so happens that the only good source of such information is the only living being who was alive at the time - a great Cyclops called Ugryt. Unfortunately, Ugryt is locked away in a solitary prison-satelite complex, guarded with several layers of counter-measures.

Cloud giant

There's just something so folktale-ish about cloud giants. These aren't creatures that just randomly exist in the world, these are creatures multiple surrounding villages have wildly differing local legends about. They aren't an "appropriately leveled challenge for the player characters to face", they are a story unfolding itself as you witness it. Their divergent alignments also hint at yet even greater mysteries in the background.

A standoff of (literally) gigantic proportions is taking place at the mouth of Durgil's deeps. Two delegations of previously unseen giants have set up camps, and appear to be constantly arguing and bickering. So far, no physical violence has erupted, but if it does, the nearby townships are sure to be the one to suffer. 

If the local mayor's emissaries manage to sneak past the giants and their random bursts of magic, and delve deep into the treacherous caves, what awaits them at the very bottom is another giant, chained to a monolith. The prisoner looks much like his arguing kin above, but appears ancient beyond measure. At his feet, a plaque stands, an engraving in ancient valhallan on it. "The last one who did not choose a side", the text says.

The old giant, if awakened, pleads his finders "not to let the childer find him, for it shall start the war anew".

In the lands of Ledenya, the brothers who dwell above are treated as deities. The two cloud giants - one kind, benevolent and gregarious, the other cruel, sadistic and petty, come and go with the seasons. As summer draws to a close, Dvoryak's castle, a thing of white and gold sitting on soft clouds, sails beyond the horizon, as Kuryak's castle, with its sharp edges and tall spires appears, riding on a storm.
One winter, though, Dvoryak's castle crashes from the skies. With the last remnants of life, the benevolent giant awakens the seed of greatness within four youths of the tribe, and urges them to find a new home for their people, beyond the Shardspire mountains - but time is short, and they must go before Kuryak comes for them.

For ages, it has been common belief that some cloud giants are good and some evil. The truth, however, is that they go through two psychological and physiological phases in their life. Juveniles tend to be more physically imposing, highly territorial and yearn for violence. As they mature, they settle down, become builders, develop the need for humanoid contact, and essentially reinvent their entire personalities.
A group of mercenaries is shocked when a giant, who nearly murdered them early in their careers by trying to feed them to his pet hydra, congratulates them on their latest escapade and calls them for a feast in their honour. While the patriarch himself is bound to be civil, some of his teenage sons might also be present...