They Changed the Sylph! [Archive] - Wizards Community

They Changed the Sylph! [Archive] - Wizards Community

Post/Author/DateTime Post
DrOfDemonology
03-15-07, 06:55 AM I've had the Monster Manual II for a little while now, but had never given every critter in a close look. I was reading the description of the sylph, and wondered what it was that seemed odd. Then I realised.

They've listed her as Small!

WHY? Okay, the sylph may not be as iconic as the mind flayer or red dragon, but she's been a D&D classic since the very first Monster Manual. And from that book, and in every revision since, the sylph has always been Medium (man-sized), described as 4 to 5 feet tall.

I'm not looking for a fight over this, but this to me is just wrong. You don't change a classic. Personally, I'm switching them to Medium and be done with it, but it puzzles the heck out of me why the game designers would do this.
Forgember
03-15-07, 08:03 AM I feel the same way about them changing Green Dragons to Lawful Evil. They where always Neutral Evil, the cunning trapsters who hid deep in their forest homes and only attacked when they had a trick up their sleev..err scales.
YabaTheWhat
03-15-07, 08:10 AM It seems like they made the sylph into an Outsider version of the pixie. Unlike the actual pixie, sylphs are playable as sorcerers (the favored class for both races).
runestar
03-15-07, 08:15 AM Yeah, take a sylph, advance her to max HD, take the eldritch knight prc (since sylphs automatically get martial weapon prof)...:)

Definitely one of the few ECL monsters worth playing.:)
Finfreeze
03-15-07, 08:28 AM I'd rather just go straight outsider HD.
okaynowa
03-15-07, 08:28 AM Perhaps they made the airy sylph Small because it's classical earthen counterpart, the gnome, is also Small. There's a Small salamander... although there's also a Medium and Large version. I believe there was a human-sized undine in the AD&D Monster Manual II, but I may be thinking of the siren (and all I can picture is the water weird). The shift to Small may merely have been to emphasize the sylph's delicacy.
runestar
03-15-07, 08:30 AM I'd rather just go straight outsider HD.
Yeah, but you are only allowed to advance her up to 8 HD. After that, its class lvs. So your choice basically boils down to more sorc lvs, or a spellcasting prc, or eldritch knight.

I don't think the sylph can cut it as a pure spellcaster with that LA of +5, so I guess its gish all the way.:)
Finfreeze
03-15-07, 08:48 AM The advancement line shows how tough a creature can get, in terms of extra Hit Dice. (This is not an absolute limit, but exceptions are extremely rare.)

So it should be perfectly fine for a PC sylph to advance past the guidelines.

Post/Author/DateTime	Post
DrOfDemonology 03-15-07, 06:55 AM	I've had the Monster Manual II for a little while now, but had never given every critter in a close look. I was reading the description of the sylph, and wondered what it was that seemed odd. Then I realised. They've listed her as Small! WHY? Okay, the sylph may not be as iconic as the mind flayer or red dragon, but she's been a D&D classic since the very first Monster Manual. And from that book, and in every revision since, the sylph has always been Medium (man-sized), described as 4 to 5 feet tall. I'm not looking for a fight over this, but this to me is just wrong. You don't change a classic. Personally, I'm switching them to Medium and be done with it, but it puzzles the heck out of me why the game designers would do this.
Forgember 03-15-07, 08:03 AM	I feel the same way about them changing Green Dragons to Lawful Evil. They where always Neutral Evil, the cunning trapsters who hid deep in their forest homes and only attacked when they had a trick up their sleev..err scales.
YabaTheWhat 03-15-07, 08:10 AM	It seems like they made the sylph into an Outsider version of the pixie. Unlike the actual pixie, sylphs are playable as sorcerers (the favored class for both races).
runestar 03-15-07, 08:15 AM	Yeah, take a sylph, advance her to max HD, take the eldritch knight prc (since sylphs automatically get martial weapon prof)...:) Definitely one of the few ECL monsters worth playing.:)
Finfreeze 03-15-07, 08:28 AM	I'd rather just go straight outsider HD.
okaynowa 03-15-07, 08:28 AM	Perhaps they made the airy sylph Small because it's classical earthen counterpart, the gnome, is also Small. There's a Small salamander... although there's also a Medium and Large version. I believe there was a human-sized undine in the AD&D Monster Manual II, but I may be thinking of the siren (and all I can picture is the water weird). The shift to Small may merely have been to emphasize the sylph's delicacy.
runestar 03-15-07, 08:30 AM	I'd rather just go straight outsider HD. Yeah, but you are only allowed to advance her up to 8 HD. After that, its class lvs. So your choice basically boils down to more sorc lvs, or a spellcasting prc, or eldritch knight. I don't think the sylph can cut it as a pure spellcaster with that LA of +5, so I guess its gish all the way.:)
Finfreeze 03-15-07, 08:48 AM	The advancement line shows how tough a creature can get, in terms of extra Hit Dice. (This is not an absolute limit, but exceptions are extremely rare.) So it should be perfectly fine for a PC sylph to advance past the guidelines.