The various true giant races are among the iconic monsters of Dungeons and Dragons, most having been in the game since those original three booklets way back in 1974. The G, or Giant, series of modules (1978) were some of the most popular adventures ever published for 1st edition Advanced Dungeons and Dragons. The 2nd edition AD&D designers decided that giants needed a significant boost in order to justify their fearsome reputation, as well as to provide readily available monsters for higher level characters, since demons had been removed from the game. So the true giants were all given additional HD to make them tougher for 2nd edition. This power boost was preserved in the 3e revision.
Daniel R. Collins provides a pretty persuasive analysis that 3e giants have too many HD for their type and size, at least when compared to other 3e monsters. I would further argue that, in 3e, where all monsters get ability scores and can readily take character classes, the additional HD are unnecessary and actually limiting. A standard 3e fire giant, for example, has 15 HD and a level adjustment of +4, making it very nearly an epic character right out of the gate. I say better to scale the base HD back to more reasonable levels and thus give DMs and players more opportunities to add classes and templates to these monsters.
Dan did a very nice 1st edition conversion of the true giants for 3e. I've built on this work, updating the monsters to 3.5e and adding advanced versions that are comparable to the 3e Monster Manual versions, for those DM who want to have their cake and eat it, too. The following text is Open Game Content:
Usually NG or NE Huge giant (air)
Init +1; Senses low-light vision, scent; Listen +10, Spot +10
Languages Giant, Common
AC 18, touch 9, flat-footed 17
(-2 size, +1 Dex, +5 natural, +4 chain shirt)
hp 126 (12 HD)
Fort +14, Ref +5, Will +5
Spd 50 ft (10 squares)
Melee gargantuan morningstar +17/+12 (4d6+15) or
2 slams +17 (1d6+10)
Ranged rock +9 (2d8+10)
Space 15 ft; Reach 15 ft
Base Atk +9; Grp +27
Atk Options Awesome Blow, Cleave, Improved Bull Rush, Power Attack
Special Atk oversized weapon, rock throwing (50 ft increment)
Spell-Like Abilities (CL 15th):
1/day—fog cloud
3/day—levitate (self plus 2,000 pounds), obscuring mist
Abilities Str 31, Dex 13, Con 23, Int 12, Wis 12, Cha 13
SQ rock catching
Feats Alertness, Awesome Blow, Cleave, Improved Bull Rush, Power Attack
Skills Climb +13, Craft (any) +6, Diplomacy +8, Intimidate +15, Listen +10, Perform (stringed instrument) +6, Sense Motive +6, Spot +10
Environment temperate mountains
Organization solitary, gang (2-4), family (2-4 plus 35% noncombatants plus 1 sorcerer or cleric of 4th-7th level plus 2-5 griffons or 2-8 dire lions), or band (5-7 plus 1-2 captains plus 1 sorcerer or cleric of 4th-7th level plus 2-5 griffons or 2-8 dire lions)
Treasure standard coins; double goods; standard items
Advancement By character class
Level Adjustment +5
Oversized Weapon (Ex) A cloud giant wields a great, two-handed morningstar (big enough for Gargantuan creatures) without penalty.
Rock Catching (Ex) A cloud giant can catch Small, Medium, or Large rocks (or projectiles of similar shape). Once per round, a cloud giant that would normally be hit by a rock can make a Reflex save to catch it as a free action. The DC is 15 for a Small rock, 20 for a Medium one, and 25 for a Large one. (If the projectile provides a magical bonus on attack rolls, the DC increases by that amount.) The cloud giant must be ready for and aware of the attack in order to make a rock catching attempt.
Rock Throwing (Ex) Adult cloud giants are accomplished rock throwers and receive a +1 racial bonus on attack rolls when throwing rocks. A cloud giant can hurl rocks weighing of 60 to 80 pounds (Medium objects) up to five range increments of 50 feet.
Cloud giant warrior 5
NG or NE Huge giant (air)
Init +1; Senses low-light vision, scent; Listen +10, Spot +10
Languages Giant, Common
AC 18, touch 9, flat-footed 17
(-2 size, +1 Dex, +5 natural,
+4 chain shirt)
hp 138 (17 HD)
Fort +19, Ref +6, Will +8
Spd 50 ft (10 squares)
Melee* gargantuan morningstar +20/+15/+10 (4d6+19)
Ranged rock +14 (2d8+10)
Space 15 ft; Reach 15 ft
Base Atk +14; Grp +32
Atk Options Awesome Blow, Cleave, Improved Bull Rush
Special Atk oversized weapon, rock throwing (50 ft increment)
Spell-Like Abilities (CL 15th):
1/day—fog cloud
3/day—levitate (self plus 2,000 pounds), obscuring mist
*2-point Power Attack
Abilities Str 31, Dex 13, Con 24, Int 12, Wis 12, Cha 13
SQ rock catching
Feats Alertness, Awesome Blow, Cleave, Improved Bull Rush, Iron Will, Power Attack
Skills Climb +18, Craft (any) +6, Diplomacy +8, Intimidate +20, Jump +23, Listen +10, Perform (stringed instrument) +6, Sense Motive +6, Spot +10
Possessions chain shirt, gargantuan morningstar
Cloud giants' skin ranges in color from milky white to light sky blue. Their hair is silvery white or brass, and their eyes are iridescent blue. Adult males are about 18 feet tall and weigh about 5,000 pounds. Females are slightly shorter and lighter. Cloud giants can live to be 400 years old.
Cloud giants dress in the finest clothing available and wear jewelry. To many, appearance indicates station: The better the clothes and the finer the jewelry, the more important the wearer. They also appreciate music, and most can play one or more instruments (the harp is a favorite).
Cloud giants fight in well-organized units, using carefully developed battle plans. They prefer to fight from a position above their opponents. A favorite tactic is to circle the enemies, barraging them with rocks while the giants with magical abilities confound them with spells.
Most cloud giant groups include a sorcerer or a cleric. Good-aligned clerics have access to two of the following domains: Good, Healing, Strength, or Sun. Evil-aligned clerics have access to two of the following domains: Death, Evil, or Trickery.