Ogre

Large giant, chaotic evil

Armor Class
11
hide armor
Hit Points
59
7d10 + 21
Speed
40 ft.
  • STR +4
  • DEX -1
  • CON +3
  • INT -3
  • WIS -2
  • CHA -2
Senses
darkvision 60 ft., passive Perception 8
Languages
Common, Giant
Challenge 2 450 XP · Proficiency +2

Actions

Greatclub

Melee Weapon Attack: +6 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 13 (2d8 + 4) bludgeoning damage.

Javelin

Melee or Ranged Weapon Attack: +6 to hit, reach 5 ft. or range 30/120 ft., one target. Hit: 11 (2d6 + 4) piercing damage.

How to run it

13 damage a swing at +6 against a party with 20-odd hit points is a two-round character. The ogre is not complicated: it walks up and hits the nearest thing very hard, and its javelin means it is not helpless at range either.

It is also stupid, with Intelligence 5 and Wisdom 7. Ogres are trickable, bribeable with food, and easily lured. A party that fights an ogre head-on is doing it the hard way, and letting them find the easy way is more fun than punishing them for not.

Building the encounter

One ogre is a fair fight for a party of four at level 2 and a speed bump at level 4. Three ogres at level 4 is a real encounter.

AC 11 means the party will hit it constantly, which feels good, while it will drop someone if it connects twice. That combination makes it an ideal first big monster for a new group.

What to pair it with

Goblins or kobolds using the ogre as cover, which is the classic arrangement and works because the small creatures are unthreatening until the party is distracted.

An ogre chained up and used as a weapon by someone smarter is the most interesting version, because it gives the party a choice about whether the ogre is really the enemy.

Reskins

A big, slow, dim brute with a club. This reskins into almost anything large: a troll without regeneration, an animated statue, a bear-sized construct, a giant of any lesser kind.

The low Intelligence is the part worth keeping. An ogre that can be outwitted is more useful at the table than one that cannot.

Commonly played wrong

The ogre has darkvision 60 and passive Perception 8, which is genuinely terrible. Ogres are easy to sneak past, and parties should be rewarded for trying.

Its javelin is a melee or ranged attack for 11 damage, which many DMs never use. An ogre that throws javelins at a retreating party is behaving correctly and is far more dangerous than one that lumbers after them.

Compared to others at this CR

At CR 2 the ogre is the simplest creature available and one of the most useful. The mimic controls, the ghoul paralyses, the ogre just hits.

Against the same party the ogre does more damage per round than either, and threatens nothing beyond that. It is the right call whenever you want the fight to be about the numbers rather than about a mechanic.

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