Nimble Design Jam II: Monsters!

Announcing the 2nd Nimble Design Jam! Last time was adventures and we got a TON of fantastic ones. This time, we’re going for MONSTERS! You can choose: 

• A classic monster group (e.g., vampires, beasts, dinos, undead, fae, magic users)
• A specific ancestry (e.g., dwarves, dragonborn, elves, humans)
• A biome specific monster group (e.g., underwater, flying, volcano)
• You could expand upon an already existing monster group (e.g, kobolds, bandits).
• Or you can even pick an obscure monster or invent your own new monster group!

Submission Guidelines

Content: A monster group written specifically for this Design Jam and the Nimble system. Writing only, no layout or art is required.

What should be included? First, make sure you re-read the Monsters section in the GM Guide (pgs. 24–61), and follow the monster design tables for the numbers. The Creator’s Kit has been updated with additional info and I’ve also included a couple of exemplars so you know exactly what we’re going for! 

Download Monster Design Exemplar Pack »
Download updated Creator’s Kit »

Lore/Flavor. What is this monster group all about? Even if it’s a common fantasy monster, do you have an interesting twist to add? Less well-known monsters may need a bit more information for the GM. (~500 words, don’t fret too much about hitting the word count exactly, all winning entries will be edited down for space)

Running the Monster. Premade encounters, names, what they might say in combat, anything else useful for the GM. 

Stat blocks.

• 5–12 monsters.
• 1–2 Thematic Group Abilities (e.g., ALL goblins have  the "haha, missed me!" ability—It’s what makes them “goblins”). It should be simple enough to remember and execute. Not overly taxing on the action economy (for example on death, when missed, when initiative is rolled— and NOT every time it is attacked, whenever it moves, or anything else that happens so frequently/regularly that the ability would become annoying to perform).
• Weaknesses. Not all monsters will have a literal weakness (e.g. treants vulnerable to fire damage), but all should have some tactics or situation that they’re not as good at.
• Tactics. Premade groups of monsters for particular levels or situations and how they interact with each other.

Extras. If you’d like to include anything that is NOT in the exemplars or listed here, if it would be helpful to you as a GM, please include it! Some ideas: Quest hooks, what legendary monsters say at different points in combat (see pg. 97 of the GM Guide), Special/Powerful Loot (see pg. 68 of the GM Guide)

Note. If you’re only good at lore and not mechanics, or the other way around, feel free to still submit an entry with what you’re good at! Depending on how many entries I receive we may do “writing winners” and “design winners” 

5e compatibility. If a monster you’re developing also exists in 5e, try to make the base monster an equivalent power level (other monsters you design can be whatever you like). For example the 5e Bugbear is a CR 1, and in Nimble it is a monster level 2 (see the monster Builder chart of pg 30 of the GMG). 

Format: Submit a Google Doc link, via the Google Forms link below.

 

Why Participate?

Prizes:

• 1st Place: $250 USD, Free Nimble Boxed Set,  and a Nimble Design Jam Winner’s Badge.
• 2nd Place: $200 USD, Free Nimble Book Set, and a Nimble Design Jam Winner’s Badge.
• 3rd Place: $200 USD A Nimble Design Jam Winner’s Badge.

Credit: If your work is published in a future Nimble product, you’ll receive full writer/designer credit.

Free Feedback & Grow the Nimble Community: Submissions will receive constructive feedback either in writing or during a live review stream (time-permitting, depending on how many submissions are received!). Share your work with the Nimble community and work on your craft.

Deadline & Judging:

Early Feedback. Last time people found the early feedback of their adventures pretty helpful, so I’ll be doing that again. Roughly each week, so if you’d like feedback before the final submission deadline please submit early!

Final Deadline: 11:59 PDT, Saturday June 28th.

The judging panel will include myself and a handful of others in the community. We will evaluate entries based on the following Scoring Rubric:

Scoring Rubric

• Monster Lore. 10 points.
• Running the Monsters. 10 points
• Regular Monster Stat Blocks. 20 points
  • Are the monsters mechanically unique? (5 points)
  • Do the stat blocks capture the monster flavor/fantasy? (5 points)
  • Are they fun & easy to run at a glance? (5 points)
  • Good mix of different kinds of monsters & strategies? (5 points)
• Legendary Monster Statblock(s). 10 points.
  • 1–3 unique legendary monsters
  • Are the monsters mechanically unique? (5 points)
  • Are they fun & easy to run at a glance? (5 points)

(Max Score 50 points)

How to Enter. Send in your submission via this Google form link. (update:ender\d)

Terms and Conditions

• Your work must be your own, new, not previously published, and may not use AI.
• Your submission must be original and not infringe on existing copyrights.
• You retain all rights to your work. If chosen for publication, you will be compensated upon execution of a simple publication agreement.
• You may be requested to make changes based upon feedback prior to publishing.
• If published, the work will be included under the Nimble Creator’s License for others in the community to build off of.
• Physical prizes are expected to ship in Q3 2025. If you live in a place with prohibitively expensive shipping (or you’d rather not receive any physical goods), other arrangements may be made (you can cover shipping, or a rate increase of 10% can be applied instead).

Let’s Create Together!

I’m excited to see your creations and this Design Jam is your chance to shine. Have questions? Drop me a line at evan@nimblerpg.com, or join us on the Design Jam channel on the Nimble Discord server.

Thanks for being part of it, I can’t wait to see your monsters!