D&D Monster Spotlight: Be Beary Wary of the Owlbear
An insane wizard mixed a giant owl with a bear. Now, the D&D Owlbear can make you a pile of gold or the world’s coolest pet owner.
First Edition D&D Owlbear
1E starts the Owlbear description at an eleven. They’re described as “horrible” and “probably the result of a genetic experiment by some insane wizard.” To me, they don’t seem that much weirder than anything else in the Monster Manual.
True to their name, the D&D Owlbear’s attacks combine a mixture of the sharpest parts of both owls and bears with great claws and a giant beak. They also seem to be just a smidgen platypus as they lay eggs.
In an encounter, there is a one-in-four chance that you’ll find between a few eggs, which are worth a lot of gold. But having an Owlbear imprint on you, giving you the most terrifying pet in the world? Priceless.
Second Edition
Aside from their claws and beaks, the Owlbear can pull you in for an owlBEAR hug! This will squeeze the unlucky recipient for between two and sixteen points of damage per round.
An Armor Class of eighteen make the hug ineffective, and an adventurer can attempt to break free from the hug with the same move they would make for bending bars or lifting gates.
Sadly, the second edition lets us know that you can still buy or sell an Owlbear egg or hatchling for a princely sum. But these little pups are impossible to domesticate. There go my dreams of riding an imprinted Owlbear into battle.
Third Edition
He just wants to give you a hug!
Adult Owlbears live in mated pairs, which isn’t all that surprising at all, but they hunt in packs… Which is terrifying.
While they can’t be domesticated, some professionals can train an Owlbear. Occasionally you can coax the beast into strategic locations to act as free-roaming guard beasts. D&D Owlbears will also attack anything larger than a mouse. This seems like more of an offensive attack versus hunting or protecting. Rat and rabbit-sized creatures probably wouldn’t satiate an Owlbear’s hunger. Look at this thing!
Fourth Edition
Now in classic and new Winterclaw flavors, the fourth edition Owlbear is even more vicious and terrifying for your adventuring pleasure! Winterclaw Owlbears are “huge” creatures to the standard Owlbear’s “large”. And don’t forget the Frost Wail that will immobilize a target.
Satyrs will sometimes charm D&D Owlbears to act as guard beasts and are not uncommon to find in encounter groups with an Owlbear. Just in case you thought Satyrs were cool and all fun and mischievous games.
Fifth Edition D&D Owlbear
Fifth Edition D&D Owlbears are more manageable foes– but they’re still far from pushovers. They now hunt at night as opposed to whenever they feel like it and hunt alone or in a mated pair as opposed to in packs.
They can also be tamed and trained…. sort of. Like any apex predator, Owlbears will always be dangerous. But if bribed with enough food and patience, they’ll sometimes become effective guard beasts or even mounts.
There’s no specific word on whether they imprint after hatching, but the intelligence of 3 says that they have that bird brain. Ehh? Ehhhhh????
Honor Among Thieves
By now you’ve probably seen the trailer for the upcoming film Dungeons and Dragons: Honor Among Thieves. And you’ve also probably heard about the great Owlbear controversy. Basically, Doric, the Tiefling Druid played by Sophia Lillis, Wild-Shapes into an Owlbear, obliterates some enemies, and changes back. It’s a cool-looking trailer clip, but is this true to D&D? Can druids use Wild-Shape to become Owlbears seeing as they’re “monstrosities” and not “beasts”? A rules lawyer may say “no,” but the DM whose top priority is making the game fun for everyone at the table may say, “eh, sure. Let’s see how this plays out.” Either way, we’re looking forward to seeing how it plays out Honor Among Thieves comes to theaters next March.
Have you encountered an Owlbear in your adventures? Were they a guard beast or a free-roaming threat? Would you let a druid Wild-Shape into an Owlbear? Let us know in the comments!
Happy Adventuring!
