Right, so I'm gearing up to run the Encounters adventure in a few weeks at my local shop, and I'm getting all my affairs in order. It seems that there are only five monster stat blocks included with the Hoard of the Dragon Queen adventure download and none of them are the Kobolds (and Winged Kobolds aka “Urd”), Cultists, Guards, Acolytes, Giant lizards, Commoners, Swarms of Rats, Stirges, Troglodytes, Berserkers, Roper, or the Adult Blue Dragon that the adventure says I'm going to need to use against my players.
Do I have to wait for, and buy, a Monster Manual beofre I get around to running Wizard's Encounters program for them? I can't seem to find stat blocks for these guys in the basic rules document or any other PDF that I can get from the WotC site.
Does anyone know if I'm missing something?
From what I have read, the basic rules are going to be updated tomorrow, when the PHB comes out, and will include all the monsters we need. You will have to download the free update. Mike Mearls had hinted it might be a separate pdf, instead of an updated basic rules pdf. I wouldn't be surprised if it is late though, as the AL guide came out a couple of days after they said it would. All the guys at WotC are really busy right now.
Seems good. (Though also seems like a thing that should have been mentioned in the information for people ruinning the event as well.)
I agree. This sort of information should have been posted more prominently. I only know because I follow all these guys on twitter and facebook.
On p. 3 of the document, under the title "Preparing the Adventure" it says:
The Hoard of the Dragon Queen monster
supplement will be available for download on August 8,
2014, at DungeonsandDragons.com.
To bad they didn't think to put these stats in the HotDQ Retail module. A $30 price tag for an unfinished product. Shame on you WotC.
DMBobo wrote:
Has there been any updates for the Monster Appendix for Hoard of the Dragon Queen. I got ahold of my copy and I am hoping to start to plan out the adventure a bit.
The supplement is up here http://dnd.wizards.com/products/tabletop-games/rpg-products/hoard-dragon-queen
Which has just monsters for HotDQ. The update to basic rules with all basic monsters is still to come.
HerronTsure wrote:
AaronOfBarbaria wrote:
I get the feeling that no response would make you happy, but consider that Wizards was working on finalizing the monsters while they had to finalize the layout of the adventure. They could hold HotDQ back for longer, and increase the page count and cost (or remove content), but isn't this better? Even if you don't see it as better, isn't it a reasonable approach (even if there are other reasonable approaches)?
AaronOfBarbaria wrote:
Damn.. Why is it that we have to do all this damn searching just to find out where things are on this stupid web site?? There is hardly any organization here at all. There are to many web sites to go to find a single thing and even then it is not done easily.
WotC really NEEDS to consolidate all this information IN ONE SINGLE place and redo these dang forums so that they are more organized and more esily searched. Also as a company come on to the forums much much more and have an actual presence more then once in a great great while. 
Alphastream1 wrote:
I suggest everyone step back a bit. This thread has ceased to be helpful, and rather is rapidly slipping into trolling. Please try to post only legitimate questions, helpful advice, or the like.
Greg Marks
DnDAL Associate Resource Manager
WotC has admitted that HotDQ module was finished before the monster portion was and they decided to release the module anyway and follow it up with the supplement. So it was indeed a mistake. WotC should have printed on their books "Internet required to play" 
Thank you AaronOfBarbaria for proving my point with flying colors. Well done!
DMBobo wrote:
I can forgive WotC for not having monster stat in the HotDQ, because they released them as a free pdf.
I am so new to this that its all fresh and interesting. I have the starter kit, been driving 120 miles for each campaign of Mines of Phandelver, PHB, Hoards, downloading and printing ($40.00 for an ink cartrigde). I'm in of course. WotC good one.
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