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
andthe
MonsterManual
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,
andanylargerthan
Gargantuan
(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
creaturesshouldadd
one
hitdie.Forexample,1d6shouldbecome2d6.

Large
creaturesshouldadd
two
hitdice.Forexample,3d10shouldbecome5d10.

Huge
and
Gargantuan
creaturesshouldbetreatedthesameas
Large
creaturesatthistime.

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.

Ihavenoguidelinestoofferon
Dexterity
,
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
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,Escape
Artist,Forgery,Knowledge
(otherfields),OpenLock,
Profession,SpeakLanguage,
UseMagicDevice,UseRope

No5Eskillequivalent.Many
ofthesearenowgeneric
abilitychecks,exclusive
classfeatures,orbackground
elements.

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
creatures

shouldprobablyhavethefollowingresistancesandimmunities:

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
,and
truesight
.3.5s
lowlightvision
appearstohavebeenfoldedinto
darkvision.Anyothersensesshouldbeusedasis.

Also,allcreatureshaveapassivePerceptionscore.Thisisequalto10plustheirtotalbonusto
Perception(Wisdom)checks.

Languages

Generally,thesestaythesame.Therewereafewchanges,however:
Dwarven
isnowcalled
Dwarvish
.Likewise,
Elven
isnow
Elvish
,and
Gnome
isnow
Gnomish
.
Mindflayersandbeholdersnowspeak
DeepSpeech
youmaydecideothermonsters
shouldspeakitaswell.


Traits

Mostofthe3.5
SpecialQualities
notdescribedearlierinthestatblockshouldbedescribed
here,alongwithspecialcreaturetyperules(like
Shapechanger
).Whenpossible,youshould
replaceany3.5traitswiththeir5Eequivalents,asdescribedinthe
MonsterManual.
Whenthis
isnotpossible,trytousethe
Manual
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
Attacks
or
SpecialAttacks
.Youneedtoconvertthreethingsto
maketheseinto5Eactionsthetohitbonus,thedamageinflictedbyelementsoftheattack,
andanysavingthrowsrequired.

AlistoftheknownActionsin5Ecanbefound

here
.


ToHit

LikeAC,thisshouldprobablyberecalculatedfromscratch.Ingeneral,thetohitforanaction
isbasedonthe
proficiencybonus
.Thisiscombinedwiththerelevantabilitybonus(usually
StrengthorDexterity).

Notethatmostnaturalattacks(claw,bite,etc.)appeartobe
finesse
attacks,meaningtheycan
useeitherStrengthorDexteritywithattackrolls.Unlessyouthinkyourcreatureshouldbea
weakmeleecombatant,youshouldchoosethehighestofeitherStrengthorDexterityfortohit
withnaturalattacks.

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


Damage

Forattacksthatusea
weapon
,refertothedamagelistedintheBasicRulesPDF.Ifthe
creatureis
large
,increasetheweaponsdamagedieby
one
(i.e.1d6becomes2d6).Ifthe
creatureis
huge
,increasetheweaponsdamagedieby
two
(i.e.1d6becomes3d6).

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

Fornaturalattacksby
tiny
or
small
creatures,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,
Fortitude
savesshouldbeconvertedto
Constitution
saves,
Reflex
savesshould
beconvertedto
Dexterity
saves,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
,whichisexplainedinthe
MonsterManual.

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

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:
Beast
and
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