When I convert kitchen sink fantasy games into GURPS, I always emphasize the need to slow down and deeply consider the implications of the information presented. Many games provide 'lists with little thought' to fulfill specific criteria and offer content. However, the detailed and immersive game content truly excites and makes us eager to explore.
I am always careful around games with huge lists. They tend to prioritize quantity over quality, and they have ruined many of my games.
Let's take the archetypical 'giant ant' as a prime example. Most games would present a stat block and move on. However, a more thorough exploration of this creature, delving into its ability to crawl on walls, burrow, and carry its body weight many times, can significantly enrich our understanding and appreciation of the game world. This kind of in-depth exploration is what keeps us engaged and intrigued.
Okay, that is good to know, and while some games will tell you, "The referee is free to add that," they are.
But feeling required to give hundreds of monsters in a game means a lot will be lost. What happens when giant ants create a nest in a community? How fast do they multiply? Will they haul away every animal, crop, and person as food for the hive? How fast do they spread underground? Do they burrow into the basements and root cellars first? Is there a queen and an egg chamber? Can fire drive them away? What happens when you flood a nest?
All the above information mentioned takes a little thought to work through, but many games just rush right past that and move on to the next monster in the 'A' section. This rush can lead to a lack of depth and immersion in the game. Please slow down and consider the implications of game elements, as this can make us feel more thoughtful and reflective. In some fantasy worlds, the giant ant (especially like the above) is more of a monster suited for horror or even 'monster movie' games. I may not want that in a lighthearted fantasy game.
Some games assume that "everything is in every world."
Again, slowing down on lycanthropy can give you some fantastic games. Reading up on the myth of lycanthropes, we can go well beyond the "werewolf in the room protecting the chest of silver and healing potions" and get into mysteries, which person the werewolf is, and lots of social roleplay exploring the concepts of "monsters who live among us" and the suspicion and paranoia that can cause in a community. When the full moon approaches, a sense of dread and fear takes over the community as doors and windows are barred shut. When players are in the barred tavern and hear the first screams, what do they do?
Again, I may not even want lycanthropy in some worlds. The concept does not fit well if I don't wish to have those themes in my world or feel they would be distracting.
The lycanthrope entry should give sample adventures and hooks like the above. Instead, many games rush to the next monster, moving on without giving me anything to spark my imagination.
Orcs are another great example, and also a topical one. Assuming they are just another "marshmallow shape in the character options box" does them a great disservice. Can we give them a culture? Why do so many worship Orcus? What happens when they are added to a world? Do they have massive armies that take over land? Do they have so much infighting between tribes and factions that it constantly sabotages their efforts? What magics do they know, and did they come up with unique ones?
Again, a great referee will create an excellent culture for them, show them respect, and give their kin a specific "gravity" to make them essential players. They don't have to be evil in every world, but just because they aren't, it doesn't mean they are just "another anybody in a fantasy clip art picture." They have a culture, a history, and a place in the world. Slowing down and giving them a place in the world gives them the respect they deserve.
What weapons would lizard people use? Long spears that could get caught in underwater vegetation, or short blades that they could use in underwater combat easily? What sort of missile weapons do they like? Blowguns? Slings? Do they cover themselves in mud as camouflage? How does an ambush work? I know they won't be showing up to a fight in full plate with English longbows, and they will adjust how they fight to the swampy environments they prefer to live in. Can they be trade partners? What gods do they worship? Do they raise alligators and other swamp animals for defense and food?
Slow down! Imagine. Take your time.
Make them live in the world.
Show them respect.
This is why I am careful around "games with lots of lists." They put me in a TLDR mode, where too much information is fire-hosed at me, and I don't care about any of it. Some games go, "Yeah, we have gem dragons; here are the stats," and never explain why they are here, what they are, where they come from, or what they represent in a fantasy context. They can't answer why they are essential to a fantasy world other than as a novelty in a list of other novelty monsters where only a few are compelling.
Some games hide efforts to control your world through copyrighted and trademarked content. Sure, some of these things are fun, but I stick more to the classic, public-domain, open-source monster lists than games run by big corporations. I like to write about my games, share, and write novels about them someday. I must be careful around copyrighted content to ensure "what I create is mine."
I am a big fan of gamers owning their own ideas so they can build on them and eventually monetize them. Copyrighted fantasy IP prevents that or creates a lot of work in replacing things.
Some games overload you with too many options, which should be better thought out. Yes, you can pick and choose, but there is a point of overload when a game has over a thousand monsters, many with nonsensical vanity variants, like "lava gnomes."
The concept of a "monster" reflects humankind's mortal failings. A dragon's horde represents the sin of greed and the power of the rich; the lands around him are likely impoverished. Old-style orcs were wrath, brutality, and the insanity of war. The giant ants represent uncontrolled nature and the failure to plan and defend communities from those ravages. Fighting these things should connect on a deeper level.
You aren't fighting monsters; you are fighting the weaknesses of humankind.
The mayor ignored the ants in the woods. The town's crops are ravaged, and starvation will occur during the winter. Was it caused by pride? Greed? Envy? Or just hiding the problem and pretending it didn't exist? A human failure caused this situation.
The characters can now step in and be the heroes the town needs them to be.
Games with enormous lists and little inspiration and thought could be better. They check boxes and don't deliver inspired choices. GURPS does a great job in its sourcebooks slowing down and providing inspiration on narrow subjects, which is why I love the game. Our few books on monsters are great (GURPS Dragons and a few others). When I run a fantasy game, I carefully go into the same detail on a subject to make it come alive and give it the respect it deserves.
We don't have "GURPS Orcs" or "GURPS Slimes" guides, but if I include a monster, I like to think the creations that I put in my game came from a book like that. A great moment happens in games when the players realize, "Hey, wait, there is a lot more here" about a monster. Their eyes are open wide, and they know they are playing something special. Are the orcs not just doing things like the orcs of other games? Do the slimes have a science to them? What?
A condensed list does not put me in that mindset. Yes, this is the job of a great referee.
But when I convert something into GURPS, I pull it from one of these lists and feel there are many missed opportunities to make monsters special and unique.
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