Updated10February2015(addedlinktoMonsterTraitsandActions)

Similartomypreviousconversiondocument(Nextto5E),Icreatedthebelowguidelinesby
comparingthe5EversionsofmonstersfromtheMonsterManualwiththeir3.5counterparts.

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

Attheendofthisdocument,Ihavealsoincludedguidelinesforadjustingthebelowguidelinesto
workfor3.5smajorcousins,3EandPathfinder.

YouwillneedaccesstoatleasttheD&DBasicRulesandtheMonsterManualtomakefulluseof
this.TheDungeonMastersGuide,whilenotstrictlyrequired,ishighlyrecommendedforits
monstercreationguidelines(pages273283).

ThankstothepeopleinthisENWorldthreadforgeneralhelp,andCarsonMcNattandGreg
LeceafortheirinputonLanguages.

ChallengeRating

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

UsetheCRofasimilar5Ecreature.
UsetheCREstimatorinAppendix1toconvertitsD&D3.5CR.

Whenyouarefinishedconvertingyourmonsterto5E,youmaywishtoadjustthisinitialCRfora
betterfit.ThebestwaytodothisistousetherulesfordeterminingCRintheDMG,butifyoure
pressedfortime,youcanjustcompareittosimilar5Ecreaturesonceagain.

Size

Therearesixcreaturesizesin5E:Tiny,Small,Medium,Large,Huge,andGargantuan.

AnycreaturessmallerthanTiny(i.e.FineorDiminutive)shouldbetreatedasTinycreatures,and
anylargerthanGargantuan(i.e.Colossal)shouldbetreatedasGargantuancreatures.Whether
youactuallywanttorescalethemtothosesizesisuptoyou.

Type

5Ekeepsmostofthe3.5creaturetypes.Theexceptionsarethefollowing:
AnimalandVerminwerefoldedintoBeast.
MagicalBeastandMonstrousHumanoidwerefoldedintoMonstrosity.
Outsiderhasbeensplitup.
Elementalplanes:ProbablyElemental.
Predominantlychaoticplanes:ProbablyAberration.
Predominantlylawfulplanes:ProbablyConstruct.
Goodplanes:Celestial.
Evilplanes:Fiend.

Furtherdetailson5EscreaturetypesaredetailedintheBasicRulesPDF.
Specialrulesforcreaturetypes(suchassensesorimmunities)aredescribedinthe5Estatblock,
ratherthanbeingsomethingyoureexpectedtomemorizesoifyouwanttokeepthosequalities,
makesureyouincludenotesonsuchtraitsalongwithyourconversion,forreference.(Ahandy
guidetothe3.5typescanbefoundhere.)

Note,however,thatnocreatureappearstobeimmunetoc
riticalhitsorsneakattacks,and
manyoftheotherdefaultspecialqualitiesseemtobeabsentin5E.Checksimilarmonstersin5E
beforeyouaddtoomanyofthe3.5rules.

Tags

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

Shapechangersdonotappeartohavethefixedrulesseenin3.5,andappeartochange
dependingonthespecificcreaturelookattheDoppelganger,Imp,Quasit,Vampire,andYuanTi
Malisonforseveralexamples.Wealsohavenewrulesforincorporeal(seeWraith),whichisno
longerasubtypeortagatall.Itislikelynewruleswillbeestablishedforotherformersubtypesas
well,butwedonthavethemyet.

Alignment

Generally,keepthisthesame.However,creaturesin5Emayalsobeu
naligned,meaningthey
operateoninstinct,soyoumaywanttochangeneutraltounalignedforsomecreatures.

ArmorClass

ItseasiesttorecalculateACfromscratch,basedontheirDexteritybonusandanyarmorworn.
(MakesuretochecktherulesfordeterminingACintheBasicRulesPDF.)

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

Dragonsdefinitelyappeartohavestrongernaturalarmor,butwithonlyoneexample,Icantgive
youagoodmethod.Shavingafewpointsoffoftheir3.5naturalarmor,thenaddingittotheirnew
AC,wouldprobablywork.

HitDice

In5E,thetypeofhitdieisdeterminedbyacreaturessize.T
inycreaturesused4hitdice.Small
creaturesused6hitdice.Mediumcreaturesused8hitdice.Largecreaturesused10hitdice.
Hugecreaturesused12hitdice.Gargantuancreaturesused20hitdice.

Tinyc reaturesshouldkeepthesamenumberofhitdiceastheyhadin3.5.

SmallorMediumcreaturesshouldaddonehitdie.Forexample,1d6shouldbecome2d6.

Largecreaturesshouldaddtwohitdice.Forexample,3d10shouldbecome5d10.

HugeandGargantuancreaturesshouldbetreatedthesameasLargecreaturesatthistime.

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).Sotheiraveragehitpoints
are4.5times3,roundeddown:13.ThenyoumultiplytheirConbonusbytheirHD,foratotalof
+6.13+6=19.

Twoexceptions:
Oozesshouldprobablykeeptheircurrenthitdice.
Dragonschangedalotbetween3.5and5E,andsimplytreatingthemliketheothermonsterswill
createaweakerdragonthanitshouldbe.Butuntilwehavemoreexamples,Icanonlyadvise
treatingthemlikeothercreaturesoftheirsize.

Speed

Speedcanprettymuchbeusedasis.Dragonsseemtohavehadtheirflightspeedcutdownby
morethanhalf,soyoumaywanttohalveanyotherespeciallyhighflightspeeds.

AbilityScores

Thesecanbeusedasis.Most5Emonstershaveatleastminorabilityadjustmentsfromtheir3.5
counterparts,butthedifferencesareprettysmall,soyoushouldntsweatit.

Notethat5Edoesnotallowcreaturestohavenonexistentabilityscores.Myrecommendations
forreplacingamissingscore:
Strengthshouldprobablybebelow10forcreatureswithoutit.Thesingleexamplewe
haveofsuch,thewraith,hasaStrengthof6.
Constitutionneverseemstobelowerthan10.Youcanprobablygetawaywitha
Constitutionscoreanywherefrom10to15or16,basedonyourguessastohowtough
thecreatureshouldbe.
Intelligenceshouldalsobebelow10forcreatureswithoutit.Creaturesworkingon
instinctusuallyhaveatleast2Intelligence.

IhavenoguidelinestoofferonD
exterity,Wisdom,orCharisma.Iwouldprobablyaimforat
leastascoreof2insuchcases.

SavingThrows

Youcanignorethe3.5savebonuses,as5Eusessavesassociatedwitheachofthesixability
scores.Soassumemostcreaturesjustusetheirabilitybonusforsaves.

Somemonstersapplytheirproficiencybonustotheirsavestheyounggreendragonhasa+3
tofoursaves,andthezombiehasa+2toone.Youmaywishtodothesameforyourconverted
creature,ifitseemsappropriate.(Forexample,ifthecreaturehadthefeatsGreatFortitude,Iron
Will,orLightningReflexes.)

Inmostcases,though,youshouldprobablypassongivingyourcreatureproficiency,asitsmuch
easierwithoutit.

Skills

Formanycreatures,particularlymoreinstinctdrivenones,youwontneedtogivethemanyskills.
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
planes),Spellcraft

MagicalAptitude

Arcana(Intelligence)

Knowledge(history,local,
nobilityandroyalty)

History(Intelligence)

GatherInformation,Search

Investigator

Investigation(Intelligence)

Knowledge(geography,
nature)

Nature(Intelligence)

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
Craft,DecipherScript,
DisableDevice,EscapeArtist,
Forgery,Knowledge(other
fields),OpenLock,
Profession,SpeakLanguage,
UseMagicDevice,UseRope

No5Eskillequivalent.Many
ofthesearenowgeneric
abilitychecks,exclusiveclass
features,orbackground
elements.

Ifacreaturehasproficiencyinaskill,theirbonuswiththatskillisequaltotherelevantability
bonus,plustheirproficiencybonus.

Example:AmonsterhasaDexterityof15(+2bonus)andproficiencyinStealth.Thismeansthat
theyshouldhavea+4bonuswithStealth(Dexterity)checks.Iftheyareamorepowerfulcreature,
theymayhavea+5bonusinstead.

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

Vulnerabilities,Resistances,Immunities

Vulnerabilities,resistances(suchasdamagereduction),andimmunitiesaresomethingyoueither
haveornotin5E.Sowhenyouimportthesefrom3.5,yousimplylistthemundertheappropriate
category:DamageVulnerabilities,DamageResistances,orDamageImmunities.

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

bludgeoning,piercing,andslashingfrom(magicalornonmagicalor[blank])weapons(thatarent
silveredoradamantineoretc.or[blank])

YoushouldalsonoteC
onditionImmunities,whichmayoverlapwithresistancesordamage
immunities.Forexample,acreatureimmunetopoisondamageshouldalsonotethattheyare
immunetothepoisonedcondition.

Youshouldalsomakesuretolistanyvulnerabilities,resistances,orimmunitiesthatwereinnateto
acreaturetypein3.5intheappropriatesections,withthefollowingexceptions.

Theinnateimmunitiesofundeadin5Eare:

DamageImmunities:poison
ConditionImmunities:poisoned

Onlyaddotherimmunitiestoanundeadcreatureiftheyareseparatefromitsundeadnature.

Incorporealcreaturesshouldprobablyhavethefollowingresistancesandimmunities:

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

Magicresistance(spellresistance)hasbeensimplified,andisnowlistedasatraitseethe
flameskullforanexample.

Senses

Thereareonlyfoursensesestablishedin5Eatthispoint:blindsight,darkvision,tremorsense,
andtruesight.3.5slowlightvisionappearstohavebeenfoldedintodarkvision.Anyother
sensesshouldbeusedasis.

Also,allcreatureshaveapassivePerceptionscore.Thisisequalto10plustheirtotalbonusto
Perception(Wisdom)checks.

Languages

Generally,thesestaythesame.Therewereafewchanges,however:
DwarvenisnowcalledDwarvish.Likewise,ElvenisnowElvish,andGnomeisnow
Gnomish.
MindflayersandbeholdersnowspeakDeepSpeechyoumaydecideothermonsters
shouldspeakitaswell.

Traits

Mostofthe3.5SpecialQualitiesnotdescribedearlierinthestatblockshouldbedescribedhere,
alongwithspecialcreaturetyperules(likeShapechanger).Whenpossible,youshouldreplace
any3.5traitswiththeir5Eequivalents,asdescribedintheMonsterManual.Whenthisisnot
possible,trytousetheManualscreaturesasexamplestofollow,orsimplyusethe3.5rulesasis.

AlistoftheknownTraitsin5Ecanbefoundhere.

Afewfurthernotes:

Fasthealingdoesnotappeartobepartofthe5Erules.

Spellcastingismorecomplicatedtoconvertthantheothers.Inadditiontobeingusedfor3.5
monsterswithspellcastingclasslevels,listsofspelllikeabilitiesfrom3.5alsotendtobe
translatedasaSpellcastingtrait.(Theexceptionisanyspelllikeabilitiesthatseemtobesignature
powers,inwhichcasetheyreusuallylistedasInnateSpellcastingorbrokenoutastheirown
trait,action,orreaction.)

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

ActionswithanAttackRoll

Theseareconvertedfrom3.5AttacksorSpecialAttacks.Youneedtoconvertthreethingsto
maketheseinto5Eactionsthetohitbonus,thedamageinflictedbyelementsoftheattack,and
anysavingthrowsrequired.

AlistoftheknownActionsin5Ecanbefoundhere.

ToHit

LikeAC,thisshouldprobablyberecalculatedfromscratch.Ingeneral,thetohitforanactionis
basedontheproficiencybonus.Thisiscombinedwiththerelevantabilitybonus(usually
StrengthorDexterity).

Notethatmostnaturalattacks(claw,bite,etc.)appeartobef inesseattacks,meaningtheycan
useeitherStrengthorDexteritywithattackrolls.Unlessyouthinkyourcreatureshouldbeaweak
meleecombatant,youshouldchoosethehighestofeitherStrengthorDexterityfortohitwith
naturalattacks.

UnusualattackslikethewraithsLifeDrainappeartoeitherhaveahigherbonus,orareusing
somethingotherthanStrengthorDexterity.Idonthaveanyspecificrecommendationsforthis
rightnow,butfeelfreetoexperimentwithotherabilityscores(likeConstitutionorCharisma)ifthat
seemsappropriate.Youreprobablysaferavoidingthat,however.

Damage

Forattacksthatuseaweapon,refertothedamagelistedintheBasicRulesPDF.Ifthecreature
islarge,increasetheweaponsdamagediebyo
ne(i.e.1d6becomes2d6).Ifthecreatureis
huge,increasetheweaponsdamagediebyt wo(i.e.1d6becomes3d6).

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

Fornaturalattacksbytinyorsmallcreatures,youshouldprobablyleavethedamagedicealone.
However,theminimumdamagedieappearstobe1d4,soanyweakerattacksshouldprobably
upgradetothat.(Thesamegoesfordamagedicebelow1d4forothercreatures.)

Fornaturalattacksbymediumorlargercreatures,usethefollowingtable:

3.5DamageDice

5EDamageDice

1d4

1d6(or2d4)

1d6

1d8(or2d6)

1d8

1d10(or2d8)

1d10

1d12(or2d10)

1d12

2d8(or2d12)

Ifanattackinflictsmorethanonedieofdamage,increasethe5Edamagediebythatnumber.For
example,2d4shouldbecome2d6(or3d4).

Somecreaturesstrongestnaturalattacksseemtoaddbothonedieofdamageandincreasethe
dietypebyoneforexample,1d6becoming2d8.Thisshouldbeusedcarefully,however,and
shouldntbeusedonmorethanoneattack.

DontforgettoaddthemonstersStrengthbonustomeleedamageandDexteritybonustoranged
damage.YoucancalculateaveragedamagethroughthemethodaboveunderH
itDice.

Somecreaturesinflictadditionaldamageonahit,suchasacidorpoisonconvertthisthesame
astheabove.

Othertypesofdamagingattacks(liketheflameskullsfireray)seemtobetreatedmuchlikethe
strongestnaturalattacksabove,buttherearentmanyexamplesyet.Still,thatguidelinemay
workfornow.D
ragonbreathweaponsareupgradedmuchmorethanthat,butuntilwehave
moredragons,Imreluctanttorecommendanyguidelinesthere.

SavingThrowsforActions

Ingeneral,FortitudesavesshouldbeconvertedtoConstitutionsaves,Reflexsavesshouldbe
convertedtoDexteritysaves,andWillsavesshouldbeconvertedtoW
isdomsaves.

TheaverageDifficultyClass(DC)forsavesislowerin5Ethantheywerein3.5.Theusualway
tocalculatethisin5Eis8+proficiencybonus+theabilitybonusofthecreaturefortherelevant
save.Forexample,aCR2creaturewithConstitution13(+1bonus)thatinflictsaConstitution
saveeffectshouldrequireaDCof11(8+2+1).

TheDMGalsoincludestypicalDCsforcreaturesofagivenCRyoumayusethisinstead.

Also,actionsthatdrainedConstitutionin3.5appeartoinflicthitpointdamageinstead.The
numberofConpointsdrainedshouldbeturnedintothesamenumberofhitpointsofdamage(i.e.
1d4Conbecomes1d4damage),thenconvertedusingtheguidelinesunderActionswithan
AttackRollabove.IfanattackinflictedbothhitpointandConstitutiondamage,combinethose
togetherasbestyoucanbeforeconvertingthetotaldamage.

Recharge

Someactionsalsohavearecharge,whichisexplainedintheMonsterManual.

Rechargeseemstobelimitedtostrongeffectsthat,in3.5,couldonlybeusedalimitednumberof
timesperday,orrequiredanumberofroundsbetweenuses.

MyrecommendationistouseRecharge56formostlimiteduseactions,andkeepXperday
forespeciallystrongattacksthatshouldonlybeusedonceinabattle.

ActionswithoutanAttackRoll

Many5Ecreaturessuchasthedoppelganger,flameskull,grick,nothic,owlbear,andyoung
greendragonhaveMultiattack,allowingthemtotakemorethanoneactionperturn.Ifyour3.5
monstercouldattackmorethanonce,youshouldconsidergivingthemMultiattackin5E.Notethat
mostcreaturescanonlymaketwoattackstheonlyexceptionistheyounggreendragon,which
canmakethree.

Therearealsoafewcreaturesthatcantakeactionsnotrequiringanattackrollorsavingthrow.If
yourmonstercoulddothisin3.5,youcanprobablyusethemverbatimin5E.

Reactions

Anyspecialqualityorattackin3.5thatrequiredsomesortoftriggershouldbeaReaction.
Otherwise,treatitjustthesameasanyotherAction.

AlistoftheknownReactionsin5Ecanbefoundhere.

FinalNotes

Everythingnotmentionedaboveshouldprobablybedroppedin5E.Ofcourse,ifyoufeelitsvery
importanttothecreaturesconcept,feelfreetoportitoveranyway.

Also,ingeneral,5Emonstersseemtohaveslightlyfewerattackchoicesthanmanyoftheir3.5
counterparts,soyoushouldfeelfreetodropanymonsterabilitiesthatdontseemessentialtoits
concept.(Thiswillalsospeedyourconversionup,ofcourse.)

Appendix1:CREstimator

ThebelowconversionfollowsaverybroadcomparisonoftheChallengeRatingsforthesame
creaturesin3.5and5E.Itsnotperfect,butitworksasaroughstartingpoint.

5ECR

3.5CR

orless

or

+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:BeastandShapechanger.Creaturesofthe
formertypeshouldbecomeBeastsin5E,ofcourse,whileanyShapechangershould
probablybecomeaMonstrosity(unlessyoudecidetheybetterfitunderanothertype).
Damagereductionin3Ewasbrokendownbyweaponbonus(+1,+2,etc.).Thisshouldall
befoldedintoaresistancetononmagicalweaponsin5E.

Also,3Ehassomenotableskillsthatweredroppedormergedin3.5:

3ESkill

5ESkillProficiency

PickPocket

SleightofHand(Dexterity)

ReadLips

Perception(Wisdom)

IntuitDirection,WildernessLore

Survival(Wisdom)

Innuendo

Deception(Charisma)

Alchemy,AnimalEmpathy,Scry

No5Eskillequivalent.Manyofthesearenow
genericabilitychecks,exclusiveclassfeatures,
orbackgroundelements.

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

Appendix3:Pathfinder

ConvertingfromPathfinderwillgenerallybethesameasconvertingfrom3.5,evenmoresothan
3E.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