I have a campaign coming up and one of my players wants to play a druid / barbarian who eats what he kills because he reveres the tarasque as the ultimate devourer and seeks to emulate that. I haven't any qualms about his character concept, other than "ew", but I'd like to come up with some appropriate saving throws, or benefits even, for this behaviour. I'm a new DM, and I couldn't find anything specific in the rules for eating this stuff, so I am looking for advice that could help me template some realistic consequences.
I need help adjudicating what happens when you eat a specific creature type, or monsters with certain aspects.
For example – undead beings, demons…could you even eat an elemental?? Could he be poisoned by eating a creature with a poison gland?
What rules apply to this sort of consumption?
Best Answer
Ignore the numbers
Adding benefits into the game will discourage other players, especially ones with conventional character ideas, because this guy is getting bonuses for nothing. Soon you will have the entire party hunting down basilisks to eat because they give +2 to saves or whatever. The concept of monster-eating barbarian will become less unique because it becomes something the entire party does.
On the other hand, penalizing the player for this character concept will discourage that player from being creative in the future. The best case scenario is that the character stops eating monsters. The worst case is that the party gets tired of the barbarian eating things that make him less effective, and you start getting arguments and "this is what my guy would do" issues.
Rewards for roleplaying should not be mechanical
What are the benefits of eating random creatures in the real world? Fry them up with some onions, and they taste mighty delicious. Or like chicken.
This guy goes around 1) worshipping something that every normal person is terrified of, and 2) killing and eating things ordinary people would balk at. Have NPCs recognize that! Gourmands might seek out the barbarian to share tales of strange foods eaten, and send him on quests to obtain choice delicacies. Priests might lecture him about moderation and temperance. He might discover that certain monsters are incredibly delicious, leading to over-hunting by wannabe cooks, and rapid extinction. Let his concept make an impact on the world around him, not on his character sheet.