Something is rising
from the Deaf Layers
Fifty creatures that exist in no other bestiary, from level 1 to level 20. Each one is presented twice: a page of out-of-combat lore, then its ready-to-play stat block.
From CR 1/8 to CR 20, enough to populate a whole campaign. 5e and 3.5 editions included, in the Complete Bundle.
A digger's first reflex before an unknown creature is not to draw. It is to wonder which Cycle it came out of.
What waits for you down there
Three creatures from the book, in motion. None of them behaves like a dungeon monster: each one wants something, and it is not always your death.
What remembers
It has seen you before. You have not seen it.
What watches
The shaft was never a shaft.
What grows
Green, warm, and paying attention.
Sorted by nature,
never by ferocity
In Sylkaen, what a creature is matters more than how dangerous it is. The book is split into three families, and each one is met differently.
The Sediments
Beasts, mechanisms and non-living Vestiges brought up from the physical world, tier after tier, from the Footings down to the Bottomless. They follow a logic of depth.
The Strata
Silence, Time, Possibilities, Memories, Metamorphoses. They obey no depth but the law of their own Stratum, and surface wherever a Door or a Scar opens.
The Living Vestiges
Organisms that keep existing by the rules of a vanished Cycle, indifferent to the present world. Less opponents than ecosystems that refuse to die.
You read the first page.
You keep the second one open.
The lore page
Habitat, origin, ecology, habits, history. What the world knows about the creature, and what it keeps quiet. To read before the session, to understand what you are facing.
The stat block
AC, hit points, ability scores, CR, following SRD 5.2.1 conventions, plus table advice. To keep open when the dice come out.
Every creature comes from somewhere
Its anchor, a Sediment tier, a Cycle, a Stratum, is not decorative: it tells you where you meet it and what its presence means. Burrowers fleeing a mound are information before they are an encounter.
Combat is not always the answer
Many Vestige creatures follow a rule: an instruction, a rhythm, a sentence to finish. Working it out is worth the victory, and the book asks you to award the same experience to the party that figured it out.
Seven of them
Frequently asked questions about the Bestiary
What does a creature entry contain?
Every creature has a complete two-part entry: a page of out-of-combat lore (habitat, origin, ecology, habits, history) and a ready-to-play stat block following SRD 5.2.1 conventions, with its table advice. Nothing to convert, nothing to improvise: the entry goes straight to the table as it is.
How many creatures, and for which levels?
Fifty original creatures, from level 1 to level 20 (CR 1/8 to CR 20), enough to populate a whole campaign without ever recycling a generic monster. They fall into three families by origin: the Sediments, the Strata and the Living Vestiges.
Why is the book not sorted by danger level?
Because in Sylkaen, what a creature is matters more than how fierce it is. A creature's anchor, a Sediment tier, a Cycle, a Stratum, tells you where you meet it, how it behaves and what its presence means. Burrowers fleeing a mound are information before they are an encounter.
Does the Bestiary work with 5e and 3.5?
Yes: the Complete Bundle includes both editions of the Bestiary, one on 5e rules (SRD 5.2.1), the other on 3.5 rules (SRD 3.5). You play with the edition that matches your table, with no conversion needed.
Can I buy the Bestiary on its own?
No. The Monstrous Bestiary is part of the Complete Bundle with the Player's Book and the Game Master's Book, for €19.99. That is the only way to get it, and the Bundle includes the 5e and 3.5 editions of all three books.