The common ogre stands nine to ten feet tall, smells like a dung heap, and avoids direct confrontations. The merrow resembles the land-bound cousins but breath water and swim like fish. Finally we have the ogre mage, a creature somehow related to the common ogre but remarkably different; although they share a similar physical appearance the ogre mage represents a much greater threat than an ogre.

The earliest depictions of ogres show them as large, degenerate human beings. They may also possess animalistic qualities, twisted human features or even radical deformities like useless limbs or extra eyes. Although later stories and sightings elaborate on these original themes, they remain true to them.

Evil and unpleasant, Ogres present a fascinatingly complex enigma. Large, powerful, yet innately cowardly, Ogres represent all that is bad in humans themselves.