D&D 5E What are some good monsters to inhabit junglemotes?

[Delandel]

I'm building a homebrew in the jungles of Chult for my PCs of level 4-5. I found this interesting nugget of info in the 4E Forgotten Realms Campaign Setting:

"Junglemotes are common in Chult. Some are populated with creatures alien and awful in aspect—entities not native to Chult, or at least absent since before the time Abeir and Toril went their separate ways."

Floating chunks of earth could be cool. Some small, possibly holding pteranodon nest. Others large enough to house multiple creatures, or large structures. Good for things that can fly, or possibly accessible with hanging vines or nearby treetops.

Alien creatures though? What could that be? Any ideas?

 

[Paraxis]

To me in D&D "Alien" = aberration by default, so I would start there. Motes make me think of Will-o'-wisps so I would add some of them. I think Chuul and Grell would be good.

This site here lets you filter monsters by type and CR, I find it very useful.
http://asmor.com/5e/monsters/#/main

I think flying creatures is a cool place to start too, if you want to take the game 3D you could let the players find some magic fruit that basically works like potions of fly.

In jungles I like to use evil druids for some reason as bad guys, the imagery of vines + entangle spells and wild shape to make quick escapes for hit and run tactics appeals to me

 

[transtemporal]

"Junglemotes are common in Chult. Some are populated with creatures alien and awful in aspect—entities not native to Chult, or at least absent since before the time Abeir and Toril went their separate ways."

I remember back in earlier editions Quetzecoatl (sp?), Tabaxi and "jungle dwarves" were running around Chult. But anything that flies would be appropriate. Grell, flumphs, beholders.

What were those 4 armed apes called? Girallon?

 

[doctorhook]

Couatls and flying snakes!

 

[rjfTrebor]

things with tentacles and fangs. I think i read a FR novel that had aberrations in a jungle and it was pretty cool.

 

[MarkB]

How about a big mote housing an ancient alien ziggurat-temple containing undead aberrations.

 

[Rhenny]

You can have one mote with a Mind Flayer and its thralls and other minions (enslaved deep dwarves or deep gnomes) harvesting some rare material (i.e., mithril).

 

[Delandel]

To me in D&D "Alien" = aberration by default, so I would start there. Motes make me think of Will-o'-wisps so I would add some of them. I think Chuul and Grell would be good.

This site here lets you filter monsters by type and CR, I find it very useful.
http://asmor.com/5e/monsters/#/main

This is fantastic. I want to add a Grell though it may need to be accompanied with something else, as CR 3 is too easy for 4x lvl 4's and two of them is way too hard, awkward.

Will-o'-wisp is stirring my imagination. I love that evocative artwork and the seed that MM throws out. I can see two wisps approaching a PC at night, pleading for "help," getting the person to follow them.. into quicksand! Then they gleefully feed on the suffering PC as it drowns. Yay!

In jungles I like to use evil druids for some reason as bad guys, the imagery of vines + entangle spells and wild shape to make quick escapes for hit and run tactics appeals to me

Definitely doing this as well. It would tie in well with my main storyline. The yuan-ti are excavating crystallized blue fire from the Spellplague crisis. Exposure to this errant magic leads to spellscars, mutations, insanity. A once good druid has been tainted by the blue fire and has been driven insane, attacking the PCs.

I remember back in earlier editions Quetzecoatl (sp?), Tabaxi and "jungle dwarves" were running around Chult. But anything that flies would be appropriate. Grell, flumphs, beholders.

The first three will be making appearances. Certainly adding Grell, I find flumphs silly, and the PCs will also encounter a spectator.

What were those 4 armed apes called? Girallon?

Yeah. Badass but unfortunately no 5e stats yet.

Couatls and flying snakes!

Couatl for sure!

things with tentacles and fangs. I think i read a FR novel that had aberrations in a jungle and it was pretty cool.

I searched for aberrations and I'm thinking a gibbering mouther living in a pit of quicksand would be fun!

How about a big mote housing an ancient alien ziggurat-temple containing undead aberrations.

I like it!

You can have one mote with a Mind Flayer and its thralls and other minions (enslaved deep dwarves or deep gnomes) harvesting some rare material (i.e., mithril).

Might be too big for what I want but I like it.

 

[Olgar Shiverstone]

Urds (winged kobolds).

 

[Hand of Evil]

Insects and spiders, giant sized, you can find them in the back of the MM.

But a quick list from the MM, not "alien" but you just have to increase numbers for CR:

Ankhel - Blights - Carrion Crawlers - Chuul - Cockatrice - Couatl - Dinosaurs - Displacer Beast - Green (young) Dragon - Dryads - Ettercaps - Ettin - Goblins - Hydra - Lizardfolk - Mimics - Otyugh - Shambling Mounds - Stirge - Troll - Wil-o-Wisp - Yuan-ti