Monster Phases — Advanced Old School Revival

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Phases are actions that get automatically triggered when a monster has a certain status effect. A phase always specifies a condition and an ability that triggers on that condition. For example:

Rage (Bloodied). The monster enters a berserker rage, which lasts for the duration of the scene. While enraged, if damage would kill the monster, the monster makes an escalating Mighty check (TN 11) to remain conscious. While berserk, the monster will not stop attacking its foes, even if its life is in danger, and the berserker rage will only end when the final foe falls. Enraged monsters have disadvantage on Deft and defense checks.

Or, an example from the Undead monster type:

Resurrects (Dying). On the round after the monster is dying, it recovers half its total HP, rounded up, and becomes conscious again. Only if the monster is dealt damage that it is vulnerable to while dying will the monster die permanently.

Monsters can have multiple phases, with each phase triggered by a different condition.

For GMs, phases are a way to make boss fights more interesting, by introducing unpredictable behavior into the monster's design.

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