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Monstrous Manual (2e) $9.99 $5.99
Average Rating:4.7 / 5
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Monstrous Manual (2e)
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Monstrous Manual (2e)
Publisher: Wizards of the Coast
by jacob k. [Verified Purchaser]
Date Added: 11/29/2023 04:37:23

I have the original 3 ring binder with only the first stack of monsters that it came with. I never got around to getting the other packs to fill the binder. I'm happy to see all of them in this clear, easy to read, excellent bound reprint from drivethroughrpg. Another book I'd love to have a copy in hard cover.



Rating:
[5 of 5 Stars!]
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Monstrous Manual (2e)
Publisher: Wizards of the Coast
by Geoffrey [Verified Purchaser]
Date Added: 11/28/2023 00:57:55

Got my copy today, only 2 weeks from the UK to AUS, very happy to have this tome in my hands again.



Rating:
[5 of 5 Stars!]
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Monstrous Manual (2e)
Publisher: Wizards of the Coast
by Marco F. [Verified Purchaser]
Date Added: 03/23/2023 09:27:36

I just recieved my softcover book. I will say, I am amazed at the quality. This is not what I expected whatsoever. I cannot believe the price I got it at as well! I HIGHLY recommen that you get the softcover + the pdf if you are looking to purchase this. This was amazing, wow! Thank you so very much!



Rating:
[5 of 5 Stars!]
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Monstrous Manual (2e)
Publisher: Wizards of the Coast
by Cosimo F. [Verified Purchaser]
Date Added: 01/11/2023 09:56:28

Probably the best collection of monsters you can buy in 1 book, only wish it was available in hard cover.



Rating:
[5 of 5 Stars!]
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Monstrous Manual (2e)
Publisher: Wizards of the Coast
by Aaron B. [Verified Purchaser]
Date Added: 12/13/2022 20:22:35

This is my first PoD purchase and I’m a little turned off by it so far. The pdf gets 5 stars, but the physical book gets more like 2.5 stars since it arrived with some damage. There are small tears in the bottom of many of the pages and one of the corners is slightly bent. I’d upload pictures if I knew how. It’s not horrible, but it sure doesn’t look like a brand new book. The shipping box appeared to be undamaged and the book was tightly packed, so it makes me wonder if the book was somehow damaged prior to shipping. I would advise holding off on purchasing a print on demand version of a book this big until it has a hardcover option.

A minor gripe, but I also feel like the paper quality could have been a bit nicer.

On the plus side, the scan was decent. The pictures could have been a little darker, but the print is fine overall.



Rating:
[3 of 5 Stars!]
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Monstrous Manual (2e)
Publisher: Wizards of the Coast
by Kevin S. [Verified Purchaser]
Date Added: 12/10/2022 15:47:33

Update: Customer Service was great involving the damaged product.

The Book itself: Print quality is good and clean and the art clear and enjoyable (and in color). Binding looks sturdy (minus the damage). My guess is that if there were a hardcover version for purchase, it would be durable enough to have not been damaged in the first place.



Rating:
[4 of 5 Stars!]
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Monstrous Manual (2e)
Publisher: Wizards of the Coast
by Richard L. [Verified Purchaser]
Date Added: 05/19/2021 12:52:41

The quality of the softcover is really good. The covers are bound really well and are sturdy. The interior paper is thick and holds up pretty well. It's a fantastic reprint of the 1995 2nd Edition of the Monstrous Manual. For the price, you really can't beat buying the Monstrous Manual for AD&D 2E. When AD&D 2E came out, the old Monstrous Compendiums were a nightmare and the MM was a wonderful replacement. Most of the interior art for the monsters are color, so that's an improvement over the old black and white.

My only complaint is that the package it came in was easily opened from the bottom.



Rating:
[5 of 5 Stars!]
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Monstrous Manual (2e)
Publisher: Wizards of the Coast
by John M. [Verified Purchaser]
Date Added: 04/03/2021 16:28:26

A fantastic softcover repackaging of the old hardbound Monstrous Manual, it brings back a whole lot of great memories while offering a lower cost solution than trying to find an original copy out in the wild. Very pleased to have this as part of my collection.



Rating:
[5 of 5 Stars!]
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Monstrous Manual (2e)
Publisher: Wizards of the Coast
by Reuben C. [Verified Purchaser]
Date Added: 03/19/2021 18:03:55

2nd edition has always been my favorite,
I may be biased because it was the advanced version I started with, but I think it's more than that.
It has fantastic art work and it felt ironed out than 1st edition. Proficencies added just enough complexity with out going overboard, unlike the feats and skills of later editions. The revised edition books felt like a step back as far as presentation, the page layout was very bland, and the artwork wasn't as good.
I am quite happy to have a physical copy that I can cart around and not worry about beating up. Both the DMG and PHB are the "revised" edition, which I general consider a worse product. The Monsterious Manual however, keeps the original layout and artwork of the monsterous compendiums, but the art is new. Even though the artwork is new it is not out of place with the original layout. I would certainly recommend it as a purchase.

-1 star for not having a hardcover option,



Rating:
[4 of 5 Stars!]
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Monstrous Manual (2e)
Publisher: Wizards of the Coast
by Edward C. O. [Verified Purchaser]
Date Added: 03/13/2021 12:40:34

i will be talking about the physical printed book.

this is a hefty book for a soft cover printing. lots of monsters and the scans aren't noticeable on paper so this is a great book for your 2e adventures.

there are some page wrapping due to some of the ink on the paper, which is to be expected.

a must for your 2e games.



Rating:
[5 of 5 Stars!]
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Monstrous Manual (2e)
Publisher: Wizards of the Coast
by Billie V. [Verified Purchaser]
Date Added: 06/04/2019 12:09:37

I still remember the winter of '94, when our long suffering DM allowed me to borrow and read his white cover Monstrous Compendium. I remember how the paper was so delicate it threatened to tear as I turned the pages, the strange sweet smell of the print, the glossy full color pictures. Possibilities dripped from every page. It was hard getting AD&D books in those days, there was a limited window to obtain the books before the print run ended, and then you just had to hope you'd trip over a copy on a shopping trip to some larger, more important city, marked down and forgotten in a bargain bin beneath dusty old copies of TORG. To have one, to hold it... it felt like pure, raw potential for adventure.

That reverence, that glee, came rushing back as my Monstrous Manual arrived by post. The smell was different - that odd sweet smell was gone, replaced by the soft sour smell of paper. The page size seemed different too, at least from how I remember it. But it never felt this thick, this heavy, even in the clunky old binder... I was reminded of a regional phonebook as I hefted it and felt the weight.

Visually, the book is beautiful. Other reviews speak of the blacks not quite being black enough, but I can tell you that as of June 2019 that problem is resolved. Black lines are bold and strong, colors pop, text is easy to read and despite a few editing quirks (the Dracolich entry describes rules regarding a "host" before explaining exactly what a host is one section later, for example) I've yet to find a single typographical error. The entire thing feels like it was made by someone who loved the game and wanted it to shine. The leather style cover is beautiful, although strangely devoid of the details a person might expect (no Wizards logo, no blurb on the back).

In terms of cost, this may well represent the best value for money out of any 2nd edition AD&D book on this site. I checked other titles and similar costings apply to books literally half as big or smaller, and usually with black and white artwork. Purchasing an original, second-hand copy of a Monstrous Manual, or worse, an intact Monstrous Compendium, is too rich for my blood - the cost of this item, the cheap rates of shipping, make it available to even the most hard-done Dungeon Master.

If I had to nitpick about faults - which I do, it's a review - I would say firstly that I'm a little crestfallen this title isn't offered in Hardback. It's a strange decision not to do so, as the Players Handbook and Dungeon Master's Guide are both available in such a format. I certainly would have paid the extra $5 for it, and looking at the Discussion section, so would a lot of customers.

Secondly, there was a blank sheet included in the book in case an imaginative DM might invent a monster - a conceit that dates back to this book's early days as a three ring binder that a DM might add to as needed. The problem is that this page is no longer loose leaf, and is securely fastened to the binding. In order to photocopy it, I would have to bend the book so savagely it's spine would be broken... or take to my new book with a razor. I shall do neither, and so this page is wasted.

Finally, there were a series of Encounter Tables in the original Monstrous Compendium series, showing a series of simple dice rolls to determine what, if any, random monsters a party might enocunter whilst travelling through a desert, a forest or the open sea. A DM would simply look up the biome their players are travelling through, make some checks, look up the monster and roll for surprise. It seems strange to me, that the decision was made to keep the Monster Summoning tables in the back of the book as an Appendix but not those random encounter tables. Now, I fully acknowledge there is nothing stopping me from compiling my own tables using 60% Common monsters, 25% Uncommon, 10% Rare and 5% Very Rare as ratios, but many time-strapped DM's were helped out by having pre-prepared tables they could pick up as needed, and as DM's we buy resources like this to save us time.

Overall, though, I have no regrets purchasing this. I would go so far as to say this book is a must-have if you're planning to try out 2nd Edition AD&D.

Keep up the good work, Wizards of the Coast.



Rating:
[5 of 5 Stars!]
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Monstrous Manual (2e)
Publisher: Wizards of the Coast
by Andrew M. [Verified Purchaser]
Date Added: 11/01/2018 14:19:16

Just got my PoD copy of this book and it is beautiful!.

The pages are matte and the color printing/contrast is somewhat subdued compared to a more expensive printing process but the text is pin-sharp and it's 380+ pages of sheer nostalgic monstrous bliss!

I missed out on the WotC reprints so I'm thrilled to see this as PoD - my money's waiting to buy the PHB and DMG as soon as they're available (hopefully soon?).

Yeah, it would've been better still as a hardback but the softback version is awesome (the cover printing is terrific btw - really vibrant).

Five stars DriveThruRPG and WotC - more please!



Rating:
[5 of 5 Stars!]
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Monstrous Manual (2e)
Publisher: Wizards of the Coast
by ken d. [Verified Purchaser]
Date Added: 10/26/2006 00:00:00

This is probably the biggest monster valur for the buck. Almost 400 pages of great info. Every DM needs one!<br><br> <b>LIKED</b>: Extensive library of creatures for one low price. Best monster info value past or present!<br><br><b>DISLIKED</b>: The scan is light. It's definately readable, but should be MUCH darker. A rescan is definately in order!<br><br><b>QUALITY</b>: Acceptable<br><br><b>VALUE</b>: Satisfied<br>



Rating:
[4 of 5 Stars!]
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Monstrous Manual (2e)
Publisher: Wizards of the Coast
by Daniel F. [Verified Purchaser]
Date Added: 05/26/2006 00:00:00

Had a copy of this book originally, this replacement is well worth the price.<br><br><b>QUALITY</b>: Very Good<br><br><b>VALUE</b>: Satisfied<br>



Rating:
[5 of 5 Stars!]
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Monstrous Manual (2e)
Publisher: Wizards of the Coast
by Gidget L. [Verified Purchaser]
Date Added: 03/10/2006 00:00:00

The 2nd edition AD&D Monsters Manual is just as good as I remember it. <br><br> <b>LIKED</b>: Again I liked the price, availability, and PDF format.<br><br><b>DISLIKED</b>: I couldn't find anything to dislike.<br><br><b>QUALITY</b>: Very Good<br><br><b>VALUE</b>: Very Satisfied<br>



Rating:
[5 of 5 Stars!]
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