The Villains the DMG Forgot

The 2024 Dungeon Master’s Guide makes big strides in teaching new DMs how to run adventures, but quietly removes a fan-favorite feature: the villain creation tables. Tools that once helped GMs create flavorful D&D villains, evil factions, and Big Bads are nowhere to be found in the new edition.

This is fine for new DMs if the assumption is that they're running a pre-written module or adventure, where the main villain, or "Big Bad Evil Guy" (BBEG), is already defined. But what about DMs who want to craft their own epic antagonist, faction, or campaign-worthy threat? The new DMG doesn't give you much.

Luckily there's room for the community to create tools to share with DMs!

Foe Foundry's Villain Toolkit

Foe Foundry's lets you summon unforgettable monsters instantly. But an epic statblock for your villain is only half the equation.

I built Creating Awesome Villains to give you the tools the DMG forgot:

  • 20 villain archetypes with threats for every tier of play, ranging from an Ancient Dragon Alliance to Misguided Zealouts
  • 20 Themed monster groups to spice up your villainous faction
  • 20 villainous goals to keep your campaign moving forward
  • Villain Ideals, Bonds, Flaws, and Personalities for interesting and unique motivations
  • Spicy Twists to shake things up

Whether you're running a sandbox, prepping for a one-shot, or building a campaign arc around a single enemy, these tables make it easy and fun to summon your own BBEG. With over 200 mix-and-match options across themes, goals, and personality you'll never run into the same villain twice!

An epic villain strides forth ready to conquery the world

Summon your own Awesome Villains

Let's Try It Out

Let's create a Tier 1 threat for our campaign using these tables.

Rolling Up a Threat

Let's start by rolling on the tables:

Element Roll Choice
Threat 2 Invasion: Pillaging Horde
Monsters 3 Webbed: Giant Spider, Ettercap, or Phase Spider
Ways To Use 2 Unwilling Allies
Villain Goal 9 Erect dread monoliths of absolute power
Ideals 6 Nationalism
Bonds 35 Entitlement - "I deserve to be the strongest/richest/wisest/most powerful"
Flaws 2 If I want something, I have to do it myself. Everyone else is incompetent
Personality 7 Haughty; overly elaborate gestures; smells strongly of cinnamon
Relation to PCs 7 The villain was once responsible for protecting the PC, or vice versa
Spicy Twist 2 Villain is actually trying to stop an even worse threat (15) Cursed Kingdom
Name 20,2 Halisera Drogo - The Iron Fist
Sidekick 4 Shield Guardian butler that projects the villain's voice

Halisera Drogo the Iron Fist - a unique villain created with Foe Foundry

Interpreting the Rolls

Right off the bat I'm interested by the fact that we have a lawful villain whose ideal is nationalism and is leading an invasion of a pillaging horde of unwitting spiders. Halisera Drogo is very interested in uniting her people into a single, powerful kingdom. And she wants to do this because of an ancient curse affecting the region that she believes can only be broken by a leader powerful enough to unite all the fractured clans of the region together.

Since she's connected to the PCs, I think it makes sense for Halisera to be a local strong-woman. Perhaps she was the leader of a mercenary company the PCs were part of formerly.

She's famous for Lawbearer Gauntlets, powerful magical items that allow her to bind foes she has defeated to her will. Hence her nickname "The Iron Fist". She grew tired of the constant petty squabling of the clans and the fact that no one was making any progress towards breaking the ancient curse laid on the continent and decided everyone else is incompetent and she'll have to take matters into her own hand.

To do this, she has bound an army of Phase Spiders to her will through the power of her Lawbearer Gauntlets and she is planning on invading each of the clans, defeating their chieftan and binding him to her will, and erecting a dread Oathstone in the center of town that binds the clansmen to her will.

Only then will she be powerful enough to break the ancient curse that drains the vitality from the land...

Given that this is a Tier 1 villain, I'm thinking her forces can consist of:

Final Product: Ironbound Horde

The Duchy of Florenza has long been afflicted by an ancient curse that dooms its scattered clans to interminable conflict. Generation after generation of petty wars have weakened the land and its people.

That is, until a local strongwoman began her meteoric rise to power. Halisera Drogo the "Iron Fist", wielding the magical Lawbearer Gauntlets, has decided that only she is capable of ending this ancient curse. And the only way to do so is to conquer each and every one of the clans and force them to submit to her rule. Using an army of enslaved Phase Spiders that she has bound to her, she has begun conquering neighboring clans. In the center of each town that she conquers, she erects a dread Oathstone and forces the inhabitants to magically swear allegiance to her. So far, she has conquered almost half of the Duchy. Who remains with the power or will to resist her tyrannical rule?

Enter the PCs, former mercenaries serving under Halisera. How will they deal with their former mentor?

Example Statblocks

Here are example statblocks, pulled from the Foe Foundry Monster Generator, ready to drop in to your campaign.

Halisera Drogo, the Iron Fist

A Berserker Commander is perfect for our main villain.

Berserker Commander

Summoned with Foe Foundry

Medium Humanoid (Human, Berserker)

AC 17 (Berserker's Rage) Initiative +6 (16)

HP 136 (16d8 + 64)

Speed 30 ft.

Mod Save
Str 20 +5 +8
Dex 16 +3 +3
Con 18 +4 +7
Mod Save
Int 11 +0 +0
Wis 10 +0 +0
Cha 11 +0 +0

Skills Athletics +8, Perception +3

Senses Passive Perception 13

Languages Common

CR 8 (3,900 XP; PB +3)

Traits

Seal of Silence. When the berserker succeeeds on a saving throw against a spell cast by a creature it can see, the caster of the spell makes a DC 16 Constitution saving throw. On a failure, the caster is magically unable to speak or cast spells with a vocal component until the end of the caster's next turn.

Actions

Multiattack. The berserker makes three Greataxe attacks.

Greataxe. Melee Weapon Attack: +8 to hit, reach 5ft., one target. Hit 11 (1d12 + 5) slashing damage and 7 (2d6) fire damage.

Reckless Flurry (Recharge 5-6). The berserker makes a reckless flurry of 5 Greataxe attacks. Attacks against the berserker have advantage until the end of the berserker's next turn.

Bonus Actions

Overrun (1/day). Immediately after the berserker hits an enemy with an attack, it may move up to half its movement without triggering opportunity attacks. If it ends its movement next to another creature, it may make an attack against that creature.

Reactions

Spellbreaker. If a hostile creature begins casting a spell within reach of the berserker then it may make a melee attack against the caster. If the attack hits, the caster must make a Concentration check against the damage of the attack. On a failure, the spell casting fails.

Summon your own Berserker Commander

Troops

Line Infantry

Summoned with Foe Foundry

Medium Humanoid (Human, Warrior)

AC 15 (Chain Shirt, Shield) Initiative +0 (10)

HP 9 (2d8)

Speed 30 ft.

Mod Save
Str 12 +1 +1
Dex 10 +0 +0
Con 10 +0 +0
Mod Save
Int 8 -1 -1
Wis 11 +0 +0
Cha 8 -1 -1

Skills Athletics +3

Senses Passive Perception 10

Languages Common

CR 1/8 (25 XP; PB +2)

Traits

Scurry and Scatter. When the warrior is hit by an attack or fails a save, all other the warrior within 20 feet may use their reaction to move up to half their movement speed without provoking opportunity attacks.

Actions

Spear. Melee Weapon Attack: +3 to hit, reach 10ft., one target. Hit 5 (1d8 + 1) piercing damage.

Shortbow. Ranged Weapon Attack: +3 to hit, range 80/320ft., one target. Hit 4 (1d6 + 1) piercing damage.

Bonus Actions

Bait and Switch (1/day). The warrior switches places with a friendly creature within 5 feet, without triggering attacks of Opportunity. Until the end of its next turn, the friendly creature gains a +1 bonus to its AC.

Shock Infantry

Summoned with Foe Foundry

Medium Humanoid (Human, Warrior)

AC 13 (Chain Shirt) Initiative +0 (10)

HP 9 (2d8)

Speed 30 ft.

Mod Save
Str 12 +1 +1
Dex 10 +0 +0
Con 10 +0 +0
Mod Save
Int 8 -1 -1
Wis 11 +0 +0
Cha 8 -1 -1

Skills Athletics +3

Senses Passive Perception 10

Languages Common

CR 1/8 (25 XP; PB +2)

Actions

Greatsword. Melee Weapon Attack: +3 to hit, reach 5ft., one target. Hit 8 (2d6 + 1) slashing damage.

Shortbow. Ranged Weapon Attack: +3 to hit, range 80/320ft., one target. Hit 4 (1d6 + 1) piercing damage.

Overpowering Strike (Recharge 5-6). The warrior makes an overpowering strike against a creature within 5 feet. The target must make a DC 11 Strength saving throw. On a failure, it takes 6 (1d12) slashing damage and is knocked Prone. On a success, it instead takes half damage.

Line Infantry Veteran

Summoned with Foe Foundry

Medium Humanoid (Human, Warrior)

AC 18 (Plate Armor) Initiative +3 (13)

HP 65 (10d8 + 20)

Speed 30 ft.

Mod Save
Str 18 +4 +6
Dex 12 +1 +1
Con 14 +2 +2
Mod Save
Int 8 -1 -1
Wis 13 +1 +1
Cha 8 -1 -1

Skills Athletics +6, Perception +3

Senses Passive Perception 13

Languages Common

CR 3 (700 XP; PB +2)

Traits

Armor Master. The warrior reduces the amount of bludgeoning, piercing, and slashing damage it receives by 2.

Actions

Multiattack. The warrior makes two Polearm or Crossbow attacks.

Polearm. Melee Weapon Attack: +6 to hit, reach 10ft., one target. Hit 9 (1d10 + 4) slashing damage.

Crossbow. Ranged Weapon Attack: +6 to hit, range 100/400ft., one target. Hit 9 (1d10 + 4) piercing damage.

Bonus Actions

Smoke Bomb (1/day). The warrior throws a smoke bomb at a point they can see within 30 feet. A thick obscuring cloud of smoke billows forth and fills a 10 ft radius sphere. The smoke lasts for 4 (1d4 + 2) rounds and can be dispersed with a light wind.

Reactions

Interception. If a friendly creature within 15 ft becomes the target of an attack, the warrior can move up to 15 ft and intercept the attack. The attack targets the warrior instead of the original target.

Shock Infantry Veteran

Summoned with Foe Foundry

Medium Humanoid (Human, Warrior)

AC 17 (Splint Armor) Initiative +3 (13)

HP 65 (10d8 + 20)

Speed 30 ft.

Mod Save
Str 18 +4 +6
Dex 12 +1 +1
Con 14 +2 +2
Mod Save
Int 8 -1 -1
Wis 13 +1 +1
Cha 8 -1 -1

Skills Athletics +6, Perception +3

Senses Passive Perception 13

Languages Common

CR 3 (700 XP; PB +2)

Traits

Brutal Critical. The warrior scores a critical hit on an unmodified attack roll of 19-20. Additionally, a critical hit from the warrior deals an additional 14 (4d6) bludgeoning damage (do not apply crit modifier to this damage), and the creature dies if this attack reduces its hit points to 0.

Actions

Multiattack. The warrior makes two Maul or Crossbow attacks.

Maul. Melee Weapon Attack: +6 to hit, reach 5ft., one target. Hit 10 (1d12 + 4) bludgeoning damage.

Crossbow. Ranged Weapon Attack: +6 to hit, range 100/400ft., one target. Hit 9 (1d10 + 4) piercing damage.

Bonus Actions

Potion of Healing (1/day). The warrior consumes a Potion of Healing and regains 7 (2d4 + 2) hitpoints.

Reactions

Coordinated Strike. Whenever an ally within 5 feet misses an attack and the warrior is within 5 feet of the target, the warrior can use their reaction to make an attack against the target. This ability can only trigger once per round for each such group of allies with this trait.

I hope this inspires you to create many fun and memorable villains for your campaign! Looking for your own unforgettable villain?

Use the Foe Foundry: Awesome Villains Toolkit to rolle one up in seconds

Your next Big Bad is waiting.

– Cordialgerm

#villains