The 10 Best Monsters For A Cave In Dungeons & Dragons

Caves are a much more prominent setting in Dungeons & Dragons than you might expect, especially as you and your party dive in to explore or to clear it out for local towns. Surprisingly, a lot of monsters like to make caves their home, and part of that reason is because it’s much easier to corner prey in a cave.

Being cornered in a cave forces parties to get creative and think of ways out, whether it’s taking down the monster that’s cornered them or befriending it is anybody’s guess. There’s a lot you can do with caves and even more monsters that you can use in them.

Updated on March 26 2025, by Tallis Spalding: With the release of the updated 2025 Monster Manual, some information has changed, while other monsters received slightly more expanded lore or stat blocks. With all three core rulebooks out, players and dungeon masters can easily get to work crafting adventures and, in some cases, exploring caves for any mysterious loot, challenging enemies, or missing people the party has been charted to find. As such, it’s worth taking a look at what monsters might fit best in as cave monsters with this updated setting and rules.

14

Stone Giant

Challenge Rating 7

Given that Stone Giants live in mountains and caves, it only makes sense that you’d find them hiding out or setting up their homes while exploring. The chances of a Stone Giant being immediately antagonistic are low, so long as you remain respectful and don’t interfere in their affairs.

Should your party choose to be a pest, there’s little doubt that a Stone Giant could easily crush everything and everyone in their path with their 23 Strength Score, so playing nice is probably for the best, should your party value their lives.

13

Roper

Challenge Rating 5

Ropers are going to be more common the closer that you come to the Underdark. Easily mistaken for rock formations and stalagmites or stalactites, you can stumble across a Roper and not even realize you’re in danger until it’s too late.

These are creatures that wait for their prey to come to them, and they’ll definitely keep your party on guard as they venture into the unexplored depths of a cave. Perhaps you could even offer your party a few warnings with bones strewn about or the cave feeling uncannily full of life despite its empty appearance.

12

Peryton

Challenge Rating 2

Every predator bird has its chosen prey, and for the Peryton, that chosen prey are humans and elves. This stag-headed avian is, frankly, terrifying to look at and can easily catch your party off guard, given that its shadow looks like a humanoid – tricking them into possibly preparing for a fight with a human-like creature rather than its monstrous self.

In order to show off this feature of the Peryton, they work excellently in caves since it’s more than likely that your party will be using a light source to look around.

11

Kobolds

Challenge Rating 1/8 to 1/4

Kobolds are tricksters and little scamps who work in pacts to stay safe as they venture through just about any terrain. Setting up camp in a cave works perfectly for these groups because it not only provides the safety that they may crave but also gives them a space to set up their workshops and put their ingenuity to work so they can protect themselves and their group.

Plus, a cave works as a great place for them to set up traps so they can lure in their prey or potential predators. If you want to populate your campaign or one shot quickly and easily, Kobolds are a great monster to use.

10

Behirs

Challenge Rating 11

Although the name is similar to Bears, the only thing that Behirs and Bears have in common is that they dwell in caves. Behirs are much more dangerous, using their bodies to constrict prey and swallow them whole.

They can even deal a dangerously high amount of damage at 12d10, with a challenge rating of 11; This definitely isn’t a creature that you would want your party to run across while cave diving. They have a +7 to stealth, which means there’s a good chance they’ll catch your party off guard regardless of their huge size category.

9

Giant Spiders And Driders

Challenge Rating 1 to 6

Drow and spiders are a classic combination and this is even more true when you throw a Drider and Giant Spiders into the mix. In traditional Dungeons & Dragons lore, Driders are Drow who have managed to displease Lolth in some way and, as such, have been mutated into a horrifying half-spider half-drow form.

They’re often found on the outskirts of Drow society, which means that if you find one of these monsters in a cave there’s a good chance that your party is on the brink of entering the Underdark. Go ahead and throw in some Giant Spiders for a bit more creep factor, too – all of you Arachnophobic players are certain to love that.

8

Basilisk

Challenge Rating 3

Basilisks are perfect cave monsters and can provide an even better atmosphere thanks to their Petrifying Gaze ability. They only have a challenge rating of three, but that’s perfectly reasonable, given that they’re rarely found alone.

The main threatening point of Basilisks is their ability to Petrify their targets, but given that you only need to make a DC 12 Constitution save you’ll probably be all right. The real terror of these creatures comes from walking into a cave and seeing never-ending statues.

It’s worth noting, though, that you’ll probably see the Basilisk before it sees you.

7

Cloakers

Challenge Rating 8

Cloakers are exceptionally stealthy creatures lingering in the areas of caves that you may rarely think to look at – the roof. Even if you’re familiar with Cloakers, they’re almost indistinguishable from lumps of leather when they’re motionless, and in the dark, it’s going to be very hard to see that dark leather.

Considering that bright light tends to nullify some of its abilities, it’s unlikely that you’ll find these creatures close to the entrances of caves, so you’ll need to have your party head pretty far in before they’ll become a genuine threat.

6

Fomorians

Challenge Rating 8

Fomorians are probably going to be the closest thing you’ll get to an official Cave Giant or Cave Troll in Dungeons & Dragons 5e. They’re giant adjacent creatures who have been deformed by a curse, which has led them to live apart from other giants.

Fomorians can only see with Darkvision and are generally found underground and in mountains. Like many other cave-dwelling creatures, they’re more than likely to end up around the Underdark. With a CR of 8, these aren’t the most dangerous giants to find, but they’re certainly not a walk in the park.

5

Troglodytes

Challenge Rating 1/4

Make sure that you don’t reek when you enter a cave, lest you run into a Troglodyte. These creatures function mainly off of scent and their Darkvision, living further away from established societies.

They will hunt down weaker parties and drag them back into their lair to feast, so if you see one, there’s probably more waiting. If you can befriend them, however, jump at the opportunity because Troglodytes are incredibly loyal to their friends, treating them like their own family members. It’s rare to befriend them, but it’s not an impossible feat.

4

Dragons

Challenge Rating 17+

Dragons might be a slightly more traditional option, but they’re a completely fair one to take. The environment in which their cave is found can vary depending on the type, but most dragons, if not all dragons, have typically made their lair in a cave of some sort.

Be careful of the age of the dragon, however, because if you’re a Dungeon Master trying to plan out an encounter for a low-level party, the last thing that you want to do is throw an Ancient Dragon at them. A low-leveled party against an ancient dragon is an almost guaranteed TPK if they end up in a fight and can’t leave.

3

Mimics

Challenge Rating 2

Everybody knows and loves mimics because although they might seem a little bit silly, considering they have such a low CR, they can catch a party off guard and be rather terrifying if they’re done right. Plus, if you surround a Mimic with other types of loot, then a player may not be fully aware that the treasure chest they’re reaching for is a Mimic, which makes them a fun surprise encounter for first-time Dungeon Masters to run.

Even better is that a Mimic doesn’t have to be a treasure chest, though they can only take the form of an object. They can be a piece of jewelry, a door, a chair, or anything that you would consider an object.

2

Earth Elementals

Challenge Rating 5

What better place for an Earth Elemental than an area that is entirely surrounded by earth like a cave? Caves give Earth Elementals a really good way to show off their Earth Glide ability, where they can burrow and move through nonmagical raw stone and earth with ease.

Plus, considering that they have such low stealth, this gives them a slight advantage if you’re trying to surprise your party while they’re exploring a cave. They don’t have a big move set but there is a chance they could cause a cave-in if things get too intense, so keep that in mind.

1

Gelatinous Cubes And Oozes

Challenge Rating 2

Gelatinous Cubes are a traditional Dungeons & Dragons monster, but that doesn’t mean that they’re not good, especially if you combine them with the various ooze monsters that Wizards of the Coast has introduced to the game.

These enemies are goopy and generally have a low CR, but together they can present a genuine challenge for a party to work through in the spur of the moment. Gelatinous Cubes also work great for cave settings because it’s much easier to corner A prey to Engulf them in a cave than it is out in the wild where they could run in almost any direction.