Monster: Manual Original

Check the hit point table for "Ogre." If the line says "Level 4 to 7," you likely have a first edition. Also, look for the "wrinkled" dragon artwork on page 35. Genuine original printings have a specific ink bleed there.

, marking the first ever hardcover core book for any D&D edition monster manual original

Wizards of the Coast (now Hasbro) currently produces a beautiful Monster Manual for 5th Edition. It has full art, lore paragraphs, plot hooks, and lair actions. It is objectively a better reference book . Check the hit point table for "Ogre