Mimic (Dungeons & Dragons)
| Mimic | |
|---|---|
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| Characteristics | |
| Type | Aberration (3rd edition) |
| Image | Wizards.com image |
| Stats | Open Game License stats |
| Publication history | |
| First appearance | Monster Manual (1977) |
In the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game, the mimic is a type of fictional monster. It is portrayed as being able to change its shape to disguise its body as an inanimate object, commonly a chest. The mimic has a powerful adhesive that holds fast to creatures who touch the creature, allowing the mimic to beat the creature with its powerful pseudopods. The mimic was introduced in the first edition Advanced Dungeons & Dragons game's original Monster Manual. The mimic subsequently appeared in the game's second edition and third edition. Several variants of the creature have been introduced, with a variety of abilities and sizes.
The mimic made its first appearance in the original Monster Manual (1977), by Gary Gygax. This book described mimics as "subterranean creatures which cannot stand the light of the sun. They are able to perfectly mimic stone or wood." According to the book, mimics thus pose as items such as stonework, doors, or chests; when a character or creature touches the disguised mimic, the mimic can lash out with a bludgeoning pseudopod. A mimic excretes an adhesive glue to hold fast whatever touches it. The book states that all mimics move about constantly in search of prey. Mimics are described as neutral in alignment.
The Monster Manual mentions that there are two types of mimic encountered in the game. The slightly smaller version is more intelligent, and is generally friendly if offered food, usually telling a player character about what it has seen nearby. These creatures have their own language and can usually speak several other tongues. The book described the larger variety of mimic as a carnivorous creature called a "killer mimic". This creature does not speak, and will attack anything which is nearby. The Monster Manual was reviewed by Don Turnbull in the British magazine White Dwarf #8 (August/September 1978). As part of his review, Turnbull comments on several new monsters introduced in the book, referring to the mimic as a thing which adventurers from his Greenlands dungeon "are not going to be best placed to meet". Published first edition Advanced Dungeons and Dragons adventures which included killer mimics as adversaries that the players encounter included "The Ruins of Andril", published in Dragon #81.
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