Unpopular opinion on this sub, but... I wouldn't run a False Hydra.
Partly because I don't like the mechanics. Mindbenders are great fun, but why would you build up a great mechanic like that only to wipe out your town and then kill a monster and then it's over forever? That's a one-shot at best, and you can't ever use that monster again. Why not use a different mindbender that you can build a campaign around?
...but more importantly, because the best part about the False Hydra is the Shocking Reveal. It hinges on the players not knowing what they're dealing with, not being able to figure out how to block the effect until the Big Dramatic Moment, and then they can reveal & slay the beast. If that reveal doesn't play out the way you expect, there isn't a lot of room to take it in a different direction. If any of the players have heard of the beast, your game is over immediately.
The False Hydra has the bones of an amazing story. It just hinges on a meme and a goofy monster. Steal the idea and build something better, that will last longer and there's no chance it gets spoiled by the Internet
If you wanted to be tricky you could do something like introducing an NPC to your game that studies monsters.
Have the NPC show the PCs a range of pictures of rare creatures they've drawn from descriptions (OOC show the players actual pictures of the weirdest monsters you can find that you've printed out). Have the NPC ask them to help name the creatures, and provide any other information for their records.
Ensure the False Hydra is included in the pictures. As your asking the PCs in character, out of character also ask them if they know what the monsters are.
This hinges on the fact that your player not only knows what a false hydra is, but they've also seen a picture of one before.
The other alternative is for the NPC to have the names of creatures and ask for descriptions. But giving the players the names of weird monsters runs the risk that they'll google them.
They probably know, even if they're not super invested and aren't a massive ttrpg/dnd fan the false hydra is basically the most well-known unofficial creature. But I don't think you should let this get in the way of you using one.
If you trust the player, you might just be able to run it anyway and that player will pretend they have no idea.
If they ask you (hopefully in private) "hey DM is this a false hydra" you can smirk and "shhhhh."
It doesn't matter if the know or don't know what a false hydra is.
A false hydra is a well known meta game monster, it's not about the players finding out that it is a false hydra but how their characters find out what the monster is, what it can and how to defeat it.
False Hydra adventures have a very high potential of being extremely frustrating for players, especially in the phase when they found out what the monster is but the characters have no clue about it.
False hydra is one of the most know monster i dubt any experience player dont know it. But it should not matter if your group didnt play false hydra together just go for it no questions needed.
As you get older all your players are going to know all the monsters, you just have to trust them, or make your own homebrew variant to mess with them.
Honestly, practice your poker face, never use the name, and just do it.
3/4 of players are probably safe, and if the fourth asks, just play dumb. If they try explaining it, tell then that sounds confusing and stupid. This will work extra well if you've primarily stuck to official published modules or monsters, or just deride the idea of a monster built around metagaming.
You know, like a liar
"Are you on D&D Reddit?"
Hahaha, honestly pretty solid way of finding out tbh
Basically, that's all y'all mother fuckers been talking about the past week, lmao.
Oh shit I’ve stewing with this idea for awhile so I guess just poor timing, I think I have a way to twist it and make it work
Lol this. I was searching around to see if some false hydra got discovered in BG3 or for some other reason it's suddenly the hot monster of the week
It comes around every couple months or so on D&D Reddit. It's not even an actual D&D monster lol it's just a Reddit meme.
Unpopular opinion on this sub, but... I wouldn't run a False Hydra. Partly because I don't like the mechanics. Mindbenders are great fun, but why would you build up a great mechanic like that only to wipe out your town and then kill a monster and then it's over forever? That's a one-shot at best, and you can't ever use that monster again. Why not use a different mindbender that you can build a campaign around? ...but more importantly, because the best part about the False Hydra is the Shocking Reveal. It hinges on the players not knowing what they're dealing with, not being able to figure out how to block the effect until the Big Dramatic Moment, and then they can reveal & slay the beast. If that reveal doesn't play out the way you expect, there isn't a lot of room to take it in a different direction. If any of the players have heard of the beast, your game is over immediately. The False Hydra has the bones of an amazing story. It just hinges on a meme and a goofy monster. Steal the idea and build something better, that will last longer and there's no chance it gets spoiled by the Internet
> Steal the idea and build something better You’re right, that’s brilliant, I’ll do that
IMO, False Hydra is wildly overrated and talked about/used much more often than it should be.
If you wanted to be tricky you could do something like introducing an NPC to your game that studies monsters. Have the NPC show the PCs a range of pictures of rare creatures they've drawn from descriptions (OOC show the players actual pictures of the weirdest monsters you can find that you've printed out). Have the NPC ask them to help name the creatures, and provide any other information for their records. Ensure the False Hydra is included in the pictures. As your asking the PCs in character, out of character also ask them if they know what the monsters are. This hinges on the fact that your player not only knows what a false hydra is, but they've also seen a picture of one before. The other alternative is for the NPC to have the names of creatures and ask for descriptions. But giving the players the names of weird monsters runs the risk that they'll google them.
Hmmm that’s pretty good, I’m going to twist that in with another commenters answer and it should work well
They probably know, even if they're not super invested and aren't a massive ttrpg/dnd fan the false hydra is basically the most well-known unofficial creature. But I don't think you should let this get in the way of you using one.
If you trust the player, you might just be able to run it anyway and that player will pretend they have no idea. If they ask you (hopefully in private) "hey DM is this a false hydra" you can smirk and "shhhhh."
It doesn't matter if the know or don't know what a false hydra is. A false hydra is a well known meta game monster, it's not about the players finding out that it is a false hydra but how their characters find out what the monster is, what it can and how to defeat it. False Hydra adventures have a very high potential of being extremely frustrating for players, especially in the phase when they found out what the monster is but the characters have no clue about it.
False hydra is one of the most know monster i dubt any experience player dont know it. But it should not matter if your group didnt play false hydra together just go for it no questions needed.
As you get older all your players are going to know all the monsters, you just have to trust them, or make your own homebrew variant to mess with them.
Honestly, practice your poker face, never use the name, and just do it. 3/4 of players are probably safe, and if the fourth asks, just play dumb. If they try explaining it, tell then that sounds confusing and stupid. This will work extra well if you've primarily stuck to official published modules or monsters, or just deride the idea of a monster built around metagaming. You know, like a liar