Announcing Foe Foundry

After nearly two years of off-and-on development, I’m thrilled to finally unveil Foe Foundry, a free toolkit for Game Masters who want to create monsters that are powerful, flavorful, and easy to run. If you’ve ever struggled with the limitations of the Monster Manual or D&D Beyond, this project was made for you.

Why I Built Foe Foundry

I’m a passionate GM and longtime player who loves crafting monsters and encounters. But over time, I found myself increasingly frustrated with the state of official tools and resources. Searching for the right monster became a chore. Customizing existing creatures was tedious. Lore and encounter hooks felt like an afterthought. And too often, monsters were either too boring or too clunky to run smoothly at the table.

Foe Foundry is my love letter to DMs who crave more from their monsters — more creativity, more clarity, and more fun. I wanted to build something that let GMs summon unique, memorable foes with just a few clicks — and I think I’ve done just that.

What is Foe Foundry?

Foe Foundry is a 5E monster builder that gives you the tools to create dynamic, unique monsters that scale automatically to your party’s level. Instead of drowning in fiddly mechanics or weak reflavorings, you’ll be building deadly, flavorful creatures that come to life with just the right amount of crunch.

Each monster is assembled from over 400+ handcrafted powers and slotted into detailed monster templates with variants for different CRs and combat roles. The generator assigns powers and everything from damage to DCs and HP scales instantly.

Every template and power is handcrafted and balanced with care — no AI slop or random junk.

What can Foe Foundry Do?

What makes Foe Foundry different? Here are just a few highlights:

  • Build Unique Monsters Instantly: Create exciting, flavorful Monsters in minutes. You're ready for that session tonight!
  • No More Boring Monsters: Say goodbye to bland statblocks. Foe Foundry has hundreds of handcrafted powers.
  • Flavor AND Firepower: Summon challenging foes that hit hard and ooze flavor. Only some are actually oozes!
  • Find Exactly What You Need (Coming Soon): Discover monsters by theme, vibe, environment, or adventure hook - even when you don't know exactly what you're looking for!
  • Create the Perfect Encounter (Coming Soon): Instantly generate balanced encounters based on terrain, themes, and adventure prompts.

Example Statblocks

Here's a Wight Fell Champion as an example. This is one of many such champions that Foe Foundry can generate.

Wight Fell Champion

Summoned with Foe Foundry

Medium Undead (Wight)

AC 16 (Breastplate) Initiative +0 (10)

HP 165 (22d8 + 66)

Speed 30 ft.

Mod Save
Str 18 +4 +4
Dex 15 +2 +2
Con 16 +3 +6
Mod Save
Int 12 +1 +1
Wis 13 +1 +4
Cha 16 +3 +3

Vulnerabilities Fire

Resistances Necrotic

Immunities Poison; Exhaustion, Poisoned

Senses Darkvision 60 ft., Passive Perception 11

Languages Common

CR 6 (2,300 XP; PB +3)

Traits

Phalanx. The wight gains a +1 bonus to its AC and d20 tests whenever another ally with this trait is within 5 feet.

Unholy Aura. The wight and allies within 30 feet have advantage on saving throws against spells and other magic effects and against features that turn undead. Other creatures of the wight's choice within 30 feet have disadvantage on saving throws against spells and other magic effects.

Actions

Multiattack. The wight makes three Icicle Sword attacks. It may replace one attack with a use of its Heart Freezing Grasp.

Icicle Sword. Melee Weapon Attack: +7 to hit, reach 5ft., one target. Hit 8 (1d8 + 4) slashing damage and 4 (1d8) cold damage.

Heart Freezing Grasp. The wight reaches out to grasp a target within 5 feet. The target must make a DC 15 Constitution save. On a failed save, the target takes 10 (3d6) Cold damage and is Frozen (escape DC 15). The wight gains temporary HP equal to the damage dealt. A Frozen creature is partially encased in ice. It has a movement speed of zero, attacks made against it are at advantage, and it is vulnerable to bludgeoning and thunder damage. A creature may use an action to perform a DC 15 Strength (Athletics) check to break the ice and end the condition. The condition also ends whenever the creature takes any bludgeoning, thunder, or fire damage.

Bonus Actions

Soul-Chilling Command (Recharge 5-6). The wight commands up to 6 friendly undead of lower CR in a soul-chilling voice. Each undead may use its reaction to move up to half its speed and make an attack. If the attack hits, it deals 7 (2d6) additional Cold damage.

Reactions

Stygian Burst (1/day). When the wight takes a critical hit, or when it is reduced to 80 hitpoints or fewer, it releases a burst of deathly cold. Each non-undead creature within 15 feet must make a DC 15 Consitution saving throw. On a failure, the creature takes 22 (5d8) cold damage and is Frozen (escape DC 15). A Frozen creature is partially encased in ice. It has a movement speed of zero, attacks made against it are at advantage, and it is vulnerable to bludgeoning and thunder damage. A creature may use an action to perform a DC 15 Strength (Athletics) check to break the ice and end the condition. The condition also ends whenever the creature takes any bludgeoning, thunder, or fire damage. A creature that is immune to being Restrained cannot be Frozen


Summon your own Wight Fell Champion

Design Principles

Here’s what sets Foe Foundry apart:

  • Fast to run and fast to build — never sacrifice flavor for simplicity.
  • Monsters are dangerous by default — even a basic multiattack should hit hard.
  • Abilities never waste a turn — monsters shouldn't have to sacrificing their turn to do something interesting.
  • Clear roles and behaviors — Foe Foundry monsters all have clear roles and powers themed on those roles
  • Smart procedural generation — every power fits the monster's CR, type, and personality.
  • Interactive Conditions — like Shocked or Frozen, that add tactics without robbing players of agency.

How It Works

  1. Pick a monster template like Ghosts or Manticores.
  2. Choose a variant that fits your desired CR and role.
  3. For humanoids, optionally pick a species to customize it further.
  4. Let Foe Foundry assign scaling powers and flavorful abilities automatically.

You’ll get a fully built monster with lore, tactics, and encounter hooks, ready to drop into your next session.

Foe Foundry vs the Monster Manual

How does Foe Foundry compare to the Monster Manual? Here’s a quick look:

Feature Monster Manual Foe Foundry
Monster Variety Generic statblocks, minor reflavoring. Bespoke statblocks with role + species customization.
Lore and Encounters Sparse lore, no adventure hooks. Every monster has rich lore, tactics, and encounters.
Customization Minimal tools or guidance. Built to be customized — easily swap powers or tweak CR.
CR Scaling No official scaling rules. Powers scale automatically with level and stats.
Design Philosophy Many monsters feel underwhelming. Monsters are both lethal and engaging.

What’s Next?

This is just the beginning. Foe Foundry is live now with dozens of monsters and hundreds of powers, but there’s a lot more coming:

  • Dozens more monster families, waiting to be added
  • Monster and power search tools, so you can find the perfect fit instantly
  • Dynamic monster generation, so you can create creatures on demand
  • Long-term: chat-powered monster builder, Foundry VTT export, and more

I can’t wait to see what you build with Foe Foundry — and I’d love your feedback as the project grows.

Thanks for reading, and thanks for playing.

🧟 Explore the Monster Library

– Cordialgerm

#announcement