Advanced Dungeons & Dragons Monster Cards (1982)

Sets 1, 2, and 4 are in the shop – for now at least – so I took the opportunity to take photos of the cards that caught my eye. Unlike most TSR art commissions, these monster renderings weren’t copied to death in other TSR publications. Some of these are quite good, which makes me wonder why they weren’t used in future Monster Manuals.

Monster cards (and lists of monsters in each set) at the Reference site.

Old post with a photo list of cards.

Monster cards in inventory at the Sales site. (Home page redirect = no stock)

Each set had a monster or two that were not in the Monster Manual. Most of the new creatures are fairly obscure, and never caught on. But some did.

Below are the pics, with artist noted if I see their logo.

MC1 - Centaur
Centaur (Jeff Dee)
MC1 - Displacer Beast
Displacer Beast (Bill Willingham)
MC1 - Grippli
Grippli (Erol Otus). One of those “New” monsters.
MC1 - Kobold
Kobold (Jim Roslof)
MC2 - Gelatinous Cube
Gelatinous Cube (Jeff Dee)
MC2 - Goblin
Goblin (Jim Roslof)
MC2 - Roper
Roper (Erol Otus). I don’t recall seeing a Roper with a low profile; they’re usually depicted vertical, like pillars. I like it!
MC2 - Spectre
Spectre (Bill Willingham). I love how the Moon and his name on the tombstone can be seen through the incorporeal spectre.
MC2 - Thri-Kreen
Thri-Kreen. One of the “New” monsters, and would be seen a lot in later years, particularly in the Dark Sun campaign setting.
MC2 - Type V Demon
Type V Demon (Bill Willingham)
MC4 - Hippocampus
Hippocampus (Erol Otus)
MC4 - Rust Monster
Rust Monster
MC4 - Wind Walker
Wind Walker (Erol Otus)