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The Ogre Zombie (Monster Manual, pg. 316) has a morningstar listed as its weapon for attack actions.

However, the damage is listed as bludgeoning damage as opposed to piercing damage (PHB, pg. 149).

It this mentioned in any errata anywhere, or is there any other reason why these morningstars behave differently?

As an extra note, I've always assumed that, if it makes narrative sense, a DM can swap out some weapons for others, so I could have an Ogre Zombie with a Warhammer if I wanted, but generally AFAIK the "default" weapons that creatures have is usually consistent with the PHB weapons...

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Your extra note is detailed in the DMG on p273.

If a monster wields a manufactured weapon, you can replace that weapon with a different one. For example, you could replace a hobgoblin's longsword with a halberd. Don't forget to change the damage and the attack's reach where appropriate

As for the piercing vs bludgeoning this is likely a typo that has not yet made it into the errata. Could have been a copy of the Ogre then modified as detailed in the DMG but that detail was missed when they changed the weapon out. This is speculation of course as until official word is passed that is all we have to rely on.

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  • \$\begingroup\$ Ah, thank you for confirming that my "assumption" is, in fact, something they've officially said. Also that's some sound speculation, since the zombie ogre would have almost definitely started as a copy of the ogre that they then tweaked. +1 \$\endgroup\$
    – NathanS
    Dec 7, 2017 at 14:10
  • \$\begingroup\$ Generally, I'd think a Morning Star more of a Bludgeoning weapon (like a mace) than Piercing...though, I can see why, PHB might classify it as such if it was spiked or flanged \$\endgroup\$
    – David Fass
    Jun 5, 2019 at 15:15

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