Where some classic monsters came from.

[Legacy_kamal_]

               

http://diterlizzi.co...bulettes-oh-my/

 

So, where did the concept images for creatures like the rust monster come from, anyway? One of TSR's former illustrators talks about where some of the monsters came from.

               
               

               
            

[Legacy_Gruftlord]

               

Lol, wow. That's an awesome article.

               
               

               
            

[Legacy_Tchos]

               

Well, that explains some of the anatomically odd illustrations, and sheds a lot of light on that horrible and thankfully abandoned pronunciation guide for "bulette" -- it was some guy who didn't understand French pronunciation rules trying to change the word "bullet" so that it didn't sound like "bullet".

               
               

               
            

[Legacy_Sheldomar]

               

Nice find. It really shows how the originators of D&D just let their imaginations go wild, not fettered by some idea of how a fantasy world "should" be. Early Greyhawk was very much a free-for-all in many ways, and that's how we played it back in the 70's and early 80's. It never took itself too seriously, and that's one of the reasons I prefer that world to the Forgotten Realms. Anything could happen in the lands of Oerth (which Gygax pronounced "Oith" - like one of the Bowery Boys...)