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Monstrous Compendium Vol. 1: Spelljammer Creatures
Frozen Sick
D&D Beyond Basic Rules
Basic Rules (2014)
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Hello all! I have used this concept before (and still have a group ongoing), but... after playing through it twice, across the multiverse the events are playing out again in a completely new way.
Premise: You start play at level 1. Choose point buy or standard array for stats. All official classes, sub-classes, and species are available. 2024 rules (I will be sharing content).
Now, here's where things get interesting... every character starts with a single LEGENDARY magic item at level 1. This item will be chosen from a list below. The catch is that your item is CURSED. Each item's curse is listed along with the item:
Growing Darkness: The curses grow stronger with their bearers. At fifth, ninth, thirteenth, and seventeenth level the curse grows in power. The damage die increases. At fifth it becomes 2d8/2d6, at ninth 3d8/3d6, at thirteenth 4d8/4d6, and at seventeenth 5d8/5d6. Curses cannot reduce a character below 1 HP until level 3.
Restrictions: Items cannot be removed or discarded; attempts to do so result in taking 2d6 psychic damage and the item re-appearing in the character’s inventory. The damage increases to 4d6 at level five, 6d6 at level nine, 8d6 at level thirteen, and 10d6 at level seventeen.
Levelling will be milestone. I'm planning for a group of 4-5 players. The overall style will be dungeon crawling mixed with RP.
If you're interested, please provide me with the following:
Character Name
Class
Species
Your item selection
A short backstory, which ends with you meeting a mysterious stranger who gives you this legendary item of power.
Applications will be open until 4/20 at 5:00 EST. All experience levels welcome.
You were warned... yet you chose power anyway
Unhappy that the market got rid of individual purchases for one-off subclasses, magic items, and monsters?
Provide feedback!
Name: Thorgath Thunderfist
Species: Goliath
Class: Pugilist
Item: Belt of Storm Giant Stength
Backstory: Thorgath grew up with his mountain clan, as competetive as any other of his kin, if not even moreso. While he always excelled in the brawling competitons, he was less successful when it came to his one true passion. He was so fascinated by the possibilities of dragon chess and he played at any chance he got. There was only one small problem. Even for a goliath, Thorgath was dumb as a rock...
After ending last in yet another clan chess tournament, the ridiculed and not so bright goliath left the clan, and vowed to return only when he had truly mastered the game he was so passionate about. He left for the wilderness, mostly playing himself, but also the occasional traveller he encountered that didn't dare to do otherwise. He made his living as a wilderness guide for those who would in turn teach him more about the game, although he didn't shy away from a good old brawl whenever he would rest and restock at some roadside inn.
One fateful day a mysterious stranger met the young goliath on the road and effortlessly beat him in his favourite game. The mysterious stranger told him to not ever give up on his dream, but when chasing it he would do so carrying a belt that proved his ecxellence in one thing, the fine art of brawling.
Thorgath Thunderfist
Character Name: Dullin Zazalaar
Class Wizard
Species Human
Your item selection
Robe of magi
A short backstory
Dullin's family spent much of their lives running from danger, traveling far from their homeland to settle into the sword coast. There, they carved out a humble living as laborers in the small yet thriving town of Phandelin. Dullin always wanted more than the lonely frontier life. At a young age she stumbled upon the home of an old hedge wizard on the outskirts of town. Other kids called her a witch, a hag, and warned her not to talk to the wizard. Dullin was captivated though, eager to know about the magic she had heard of in stories.
Later that same year she 'hag' had a great display from the local harvest festival, dazzling a crowd with illusions interwoven with pyrotechnics. Dullin was mesmerized, and couldn't help but knock on the wizard's door the next day, practically begging them for guidance. Her teen years where spent as an apprentice, helping an aging old practitioner for a glimpse of what magic had to offer.
The hedge wizard was ultimately only able to teach her the basics before passing away. Dullin was mortified. The few spells they learned where parlor tricks at best, and their dreams of leaving fell apart. Where would she go that a third rate wizard with fourth rate spells was needed?
Then the mysterious figure appeared, offering them a bargin. They claimed to know Dullin's teacher, and wanted to offer Dullin something to help them out. Dullin felt the power the second she put it on.
Not all wanderers are lost, but I sure am.
Character Name: Brynja Oathkeeper
Class: Paladin
Species: Dwarf
Your item selection: Armor of Invulnerability
A short backstory:
Brynja Oathkeeper was the third daughter of the Oathkeeper family, a family of stone masons who dug the tunnels that made up the dwarven settlement. Her older sisters had gotten married into other families,, so it was up to Brynja to help her parents with the digging. One day she was helping dad dig an expansion for the school when she broke through into an chamber. That in itself wasn't a problem, but the chamber was filled with giant centipedes.
Normally this wouldn't' be a problem, but this break through had happened in a school full of kids. So the centipedes had to be contained, or it would be a disaster. There were only the two of them there, and Brynja was the one at the choke point, so she called to her dad, "Go get help, I'll hold them off!"
A giant centipede is not much of a threat to a trained warrior. But even a trained warrior might have problems with a swarm. But Brynja was an unarmed civilian with no combat training. The only thing on her side was that the opening was still small enough that only one at a time could get through. So she swung her hammer with all her might, determined that no centipede would get past her.
When relief arrived, Brynja was still fighting, with centipede corpses piled around her. Suffering from multiple bites, she had been hanging on to consciousness from shear stubbornness. once the warriors arrived, she collapsed.
When Brynja awoke, still groggy from fatigue, blood loss, and the after effects of centipede poison, she found herself in an unfamiliar room. A deep voice called out to her, "You did well." Her eyes refused to focus properly, so she could see of the speaker was a mysterious blur. "I give you a boon. Go forth and save others. Keep thy oath. Wear the armor aways." Then consciousness faded out again.
When Brynja woke again, she was in her room. Clear headed and fully awake this time, she would have dismissed the remembered voice as a dream, but she was wearing armor. Not just any armor, but fancy golden armor with blue gems inset in it. By her bed was a matching shield and warhammer. Brynja realized that she wasn't just a stone cutter any more. She was something more...
Link to character sheet: https://www.dndbeyond.com/characters/164512333/EFQpQg
I'm using a custom background, and swapped the starting weapon from sword to hammer to match the image.
Name: Lene Sorrel
Class: Cleric
Species: Halfling
Item: Armor +3
Backstory:
Lenel Sorrel grew up on the streets and alleys of the city. This was not always the case as when she was younger, she lived in a hovel with her Nan a laundress and her Pa a foot soldier who was often assigned Picket Duty. Money was rather unreliable and delayed but it was enough to stay afloat. That all changed when Pa was maimed in battle. He was just discarded like scraps from a meal. He would have died if Nan was not there. Pa wounds did not heal right and left him near crippled. Soon after they lost their home and they were on the streets. With a grim future ahead of them Lene had to grow up fast. She balled up her courage and knocked on the door of her uncle's home. He was truly a very disagreeable man but with some pleading he took in Nan but not Lene or her Pa. Nan started to argue but Lene pleaded with her eyes to shush her.
Lene and her Pa slept on the steps of the nearby Temple as it tended to be safer and a potential source for food through Alms. She was in awe how the clerics could knit back flesh and bone. Her first thought was of her Pa and asked if the clerics can heal him. Unfortunately, she was told that was hard to accomplish and costed more coin than she has ever seen in her life. With her heart heavy she trudged on doing what she needed to not only survive but to ensure her Pa was safe. One night while in prayer a mysterious stranger approached her with a bargain that if she donned this fluted armor her Pa will get the healing he needed. The streets taught her to be wary, but she had to take this chance as it was getting harder to find work and the Alms have not been distributed for some days now. Was that a grin she saw on the mysterious stranger she was not sure. The next day the head cleric reacted strangely upon seeing Lene with the armor. As if being compelled they offered to heal her Pa. It took several lengthy castings, but Pa was made whole. In addition, she was offered to join the clergy. She agreed dumbfounded.
In time she discovered the armor could not leave her side and she offered fervent prayers in hopes that the mysterious stranger was divine sent though deep in her heart she worries the stranger came from the Hells. As soon as she attained rank of cleric she took to the roads in hopes of helping those deemed worthy and in hopes of escaping the gaze of those that dwell in the Hells.
Name: Balthathar
Class: Warlock (Fiend Patron)
Species: Elf
Item: Vorpal Sword (glaive)
Backstory:
Who am I?
Why am I here?
These were the questions that haunted Balthathar.
He spent most of his life in a temple of an elven goddess, his face hidden behind a mask.
Then, one day, the answer came. It came with fire and blood.
The temple was attacked—dark elf assassins, swift and merciless. And at that moment, Balthathar finally understood.
He was the child of a drow maiden and a wood elf ranger. An abomination in the eyes of the Spider Queen. A mistake that should never have been born.
A blade flashed toward his heart—and then, a stranger stepped between them. A single offering. A sword. Old. Rusted.
Balthathar didn’t hesitate. He took it—and swung.
The blade moved as if it were alive. One strike. The drow’s head fell.
Silence.
Then—a voice.
“Congratulations, child. You have earned the blade. Power… and its curse.”
Balthathar’s grip tightened.
“I was cursed from the moment I was born.”
A soft, delighted laugh echoed in his mind.
“Perfect.”
A pause.
“I am the Red Queen.”
The voice was warm and terrible.
“We are going to be very good friends.”
My character sheet:
https://www.dndbeyond.com/characters/164525038/builder/home/basic
Character Name
Dhamila
Class
Rogue (probably advancing as Arcane Trickster)
Species
Tieflings (Chthonic)
Your item selection
Ring of Invisibility
A short backstory, which ends with you meeting a mysterious stranger who gives you this legendary item of power.
Ever since Dhamila's mother, betraying the Carceri security forces, managed a daring escape from that Outer Plane with the prisoner she had fallen in love with, the family, having reached the Prime Material Plane, had always lived by their wits—and had even tried to keep a low profile to avoid potential searches or revenge.
Dhamila grew up admiring the "art of making do" and the adventurous life that was the family standard. Upon reaching adulthood, she left her family so as not to overburden their ever-meager resources and enthusiastically embraced the life of uncertainty that had always been the only way she had ever known.
So, naturally, one day, when she met a mysterious stranger who offered her a magical ring of truly legendary power, she didn't weigh the costs and benefits too much... A curse? What problem could that be, for her, accustomed to facing one problem after another? Of course he accepted the very powerful ring!
Character Name: Liselle Blacyl
Class: Sorcerer (Spellfire)
Species: Human
Your item selection: Ring of Invisibility
A short backstory, which ends with you meeting a mysterious stranger who gives you this legendary item of power.
For as long as she could remember, Liselle Blacyl had been cursed by a terrible fate. She possessed a singular ability: the power to manipulate the raw energy of the Weave. With little more than the power of intuition she could summon forth blue-white gouts of fire to scorch her enemies or silvery streams of radiance to provide succor to her allies. This quirk of her birth made her a target from a tender age, and she was eventually captured by one of the Red Wizards of Thay (or perhaps some other evil and shadowy organization of similar stature assuming this story does not occur in Toril). Within the clutches of one of the zulkir she was forced to develop her powers with the spellfire until she could command it with competence, though to what end she was never made aware. Truthfully, it made little difference to her; as far as she could tell, she was a combination of an experiment and a centerpiece, both an investment in a future where her power might be of use to her handler and a source of bragging rights for having someone of such singular ability at heel.
Of course, the Red Wizards are famously prone to internal division, and with such a valuable prize on the table, it was only a matter of time before Liselle became enmeshed in the game of politics played among the zulkir. Nearly a decade after she had fallen into their clutch - around the same time that using the spellfire no longer fatigued her the way it had as a younger woman - she was placed under the strictest confinement, never allowed to leave her room. Nominally, it was for her own protection, but she knew the truth of the matter: it was a protection of the power she wielded, and what the zulkir could use that power for. As a result of this, plus the decade of her life taken from her, she grew to resent her own power, not to mention her helplessness to use that power towards her own liberation.
And then, something very peculiar happened. In the middle of the night, a mysterious stranger appeared at the door of her room, and asked if she wanted to escape. Liselle was certain that it was a trap, but the stranger was quite insistent that they could free her from her imprisoners, if only she put on the ring the stranger offered. However, the stranger also warned that wearing the ring would come with a terrible price, bearing a curse of its own. Liselle agonized over this decision for a long time; although she was no stranger to feeling cursed, and although she longed to escape her captivity, it was hard to decide if her freedom was worth whatever new and potentially more terrible fate this ring might invite. Finally, though, she decided that freedom would at least give her the opportunity to change her own fate, and she accepted the ring.
As she made her escape, she pondered who her mysterious benefactor was, and what purpose they had in giving her such a powerful magical artifact - cursed though it may have supposedly been - to help facilitate her escape. Was it a rival zulkir? A member of the Cult of the Dragon, helping her escape so that their organization could capture her? Some other unknown entity that had a use for her powers? Truth be told, it was hard to entertain such thoughts when her first priority was escaping the Thayan clutches. Of course, such escape attempts are made markedly easier when one possesses a magic ring that makes one invisible.
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Character Name - Mud
Class - Monk
Species - dwarf
Your item selection- belt of storm giant
A short backstory,:
Mud was in a monastery having been found as an abandoned toddler age orphan. The abbot of the monastery quickly took in the orphan and cared for him and enrolled him in the monastery educational programs. Mud was a favorite of the Abbot and got away with being prankster. As the Abbot was older, he eventually passed away.
A new Abbot took over and was an outsider to this monastery. The new Abbot was a cruel administer, but very well connected politically. The Abbot stayed aloof to this location and kept to themselves. Only making the rare appearance to glad hand visiting important individuals and events. The Abbot also was seen when needed to dole out punishments. The Abbot unlike the previous beloved Abbot was a stranger to all at this location. A complete mystery to the students and staff alike.
The Abbot unilaterally decided that Mud should be kicked out. Mud however was able to survive this regime change. In one public event, Mud was brought up to the stage, publicly humiliated and renamed Mud. Ergo is current name.
Upon graduation, all new graduates were expected to learn about life outside the monastery and then return in the future when the individual felt the time has come to return. The Abbot summoned Mud to his office before Mud left on his journey. Without touching the item, the Abbot pointed to the Belt, saying , "this Belt is for you, put it on and leave immediately." The abbot said no more and Mud was as ignorant about the Abbot as well as to what he was given.
Character Name:Vlad
Class:Fighter (Subclass if he lives long enough is going to be cavalier
Species:Human
Your item selection: vorpal glaive
A short backstory, which ends with you meeting a mysterious stranger who gives you this legendary item of power.
Vlad always dreamed of adventure for as long as he could remember but he never thought that it would actually happen. It all started on one night during a thunderstorm while Vlad was corralling his animals into the barn. He saw a mysterious stranger by the tree's as he got close to the stranger it became more apparent they were on deaths door gasping for their fleeting attempts at life before Vlad could even say anything to the stranger they fainted. Vlad took pity upon him and carried him to his cottage where he tended to his wounds as best as he could before passing out from over exertion.
The next morning Vlad woke up and went to the room where he left the stranger but as he opened the door he saw the mysterious stranger had vanished. Worried for the strangers health Vlad looked all over but he couldn't even find the smallest of clues as to where that mysterious stranger as he entered his home sighing he noticed a strange glaive in the corner of his house. Curious he decided to hold it as he touched the glaives pole he felt power surge from inside of him and in that moment he decided to set out to find the mysterious stranger that left the glaive behind and return it if possible. (what he didn't know at the time was that the glaive was cursed)
Hey DM is it fine if I get a riding horse? I have the gold for it
I have a few questions about the curses first does it ignore THP and secondly can it be reduced in any way?
Here's my character sheet
https://www.dndbeyond.com/characters/161295917/U4u7gw
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Character Name: Abishai Embergall
Class: Artificer
Species: Red Dragonborn
Your item selection: Ring of Spell Turning
A short backstory, which ends with you meeting a mysterious stranger who gives you this legendary item of power.
Abishai worked as an apprentice under the tutelage of Professor Thaddeus Wyrmwright, an elderly human arcanomechanist whose traveling workshop wagon was a miracle of whirring brass and humming arcane coils. Under the professor's mentorship, Abishai learned to fuse draconic instinct with arcane engineering. Years passed and the professor was dying. In his days, Thaddeus revealed a secret to Abishai.
Decades earlier, Thaddeus had helped dismantle a cabal of spell-thieves who's sinister plot was thwarted just in time. As a reward, and burden, Thaddeus had been entrusted with a legendary artifact, the Ring of Spell Turning. Pressing the ring into Abishai's hand he said, "I hope you never have to use it, but may it protect you if you do."
Now Abishai travels not just as a tinkerer or inventor, but as the heir to a legacy of arcane responsibility. He seeks knowledge, challenges, and the truth behind the cabal that his mentor once mentioned as he lay dying upon the bed.
DM for Dragons of Icespire Peak Pbp.
Holy crap, I got a TON of applications a lot faster than I was expecting... I may have to close recruiting early.
I'm thinking I'll leave this open until tomorrow at 5, then I'll begin the difficult task of selecting characters.
Unhappy that the market got rid of individual purchases for one-off subclasses, magic items, and monsters?
Provide feedback!
The character sheet for Balthathar is not public. The DM won't be able to see it.
Character name: Yuki Natsuki
Class: Fighter/Sorcerer
Species: Variant Aasimar
Item: Vorpal Greatsword
Backstory:
Searing pain is all I felt as the blade split me in two, but I still felt whole for some reason. When the pain subsided I looked over and saw myself, but not myself, her hair was raven black and her clothes black, gold eyes. I look at myself, white hair, light blue clothes. I look at my attacker, but nothing but a blur, and a glowing sword. They slash the air between us and a rift opens, they walk over to me, grab me and toss me through the rift.
As I land on the other side, I look around and see an old man. He speaks, "You're a long way from home miss, take this." He pulls out a Greatsword and tosses it towards me. "It will give you the strength you need to fight."
I pick myself up and pick up the sword, I feel the energy surge into my body.
I'm ready to get my power back!
https://www.dndbeyond.com/characters/164487413/ibsLXF
The race your using is 2014 not 2024 we are using 2024 rules
also you didn't pick a background as far as I can tell but otherwise it seems fine
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https://www.dndbeyond.com/characters/164487413/uprOlv
I have made adjustments to my character.
Thanks! Somehow I made same mistake again.
Looks good 👍 and also you don't need to post the link again it automatically updates when changed so we can see the up to date version of your sheet
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I'm guessing your going for a polearm master war caster Eldritch blast build?
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