Ogre mage | |
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Characteristics | |
Type | Giant |
In the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game, the ogre mage is a type of giant.
The ogre mage (also known as the Japanese ogre) was introduced to the game in its first supplement, Greyhawk (1975). They are described as being far more powerful than their Western cousins.
The ogre mage (Japanese ogre) appeared in the first edition in the original Monster Manual (1977), as the Ogre Magi.
The ogre mage appeared in second edition Advanced Dungeons & Dragons in Monstrous Compendium Volume Two (1989), and is reprinted in the Monstrous Manual (1993). The ogre mage is detailed as playable character races in The Complete Book of Humanoids (1993).
The ogre mage appeared in third edition Dungeons & Dragons in the Monster Manual (2000), and in the revised 3.5 Monster Manual (2003). Savage Species (2003) presented the ogre mage as both a race and a playable class. The ogre mage is further detailed in Dragon #349 (November 2006), in "The Ecology of the Ogre Mage," which also introduced the cereborg, the ogre umbramage, and the unique advanced ogre mage Muaj-Ruhlor.
The ogre mage is a blue-skinned humanoid, more intelligent than the mundane ogre, and possesses some innate magical abilities, such as invisibility and shapeshifting. An ogre mage is a little taller than a standard ogre, averaging ten feet.
In 4th Edition, ogre mages are actually members of a separate but similarly appearing race, the oni of Japanese folklore, who combine their own brute strength with wicked cunning and shapeshifting abilities. They possess the ability to disguise themselves as other humanoids. They are far more intelligent than ogres, and usually possess at least some magical skill.