The party is soon approached by Lotus, a lithe tabaxi scout captain with panther-like features. Lotus, typically responsible for imparting martial training to the villagers, brings the party an important message, a missive from the guardian naga herself. In it, Safar bids them to keep careful watch over her tower and the Solant Mote, her most prized possession, while she is away. As soon as she…

Boggarts in Lorwyn are born into communal warrens where laws and hierarchies are considered suggestions. The oldest and most powerful boggarts, known as “aunties,” serve as respected leaders who keep the peace. Lorwyn boggarts value sharing knowledge and past experiences with their communities. Many are willing to brave great dangers in pursuit of new experiences, and adventurers are common.…

Lorwyn kithkin live in pastoral villages called clachans and welcome outsiders into their communities. These kithkin collect their cultural heritage in a tome called the Book of Kith and Kin. They also often entertain many superstitions, particularly related to Lorwyn’s incarnations of nature.

The horns of Lorwyn elves are stubby like a goat’s or curved like a ram’s, but always ridged. Their pointed ears are long and slender. In Lorwyn, elves value beauty above all, though what any given elf deems beautiful can seem arbitrary. Some Lorwyn elves assume authority over the land’s other peoples, using their fallen empire to support their claims. These elves blame the fall of their empire…

The preceding example of play shows how one Dungeon Master might run an encounter, but no two DMs run the game in exactly the same way—and that’s how it should be! You’ll be most successful as a DM if you choose a play style that works best for you and your players. The Rule of Fun D&D; is a game, and everyone should have fun playing it. Everyone shares equal responsibility in moving the game…

From a distance, will-o’-wisps look like lanterns bobbing in the dark. Through the windows of abandoned structures or around the bends of treacherous paths, these spirits tempt the curious into peril. Once their prey is vulnerable, will-o’-wisps feed on the life force of those they lay low. Roll on or choose a result from the Will-o’-Wisp Ambushes table to inspire how a will-o’-wisp imperils its…

Type: Martial Melee Weapon Cost: 300 GP Weight: 2 lbs Damage: 1d4 Bludgeoning Properties: Light, Thrown (range 20/60), Returning Mastery of Advanced Weapons requires military training and skill. To use any of the special properties or the Weapon Mastery properties of the Returning Club, you must take the Advanced Weapon Proficiency feat. This weapon has the following Mastery Property. To use this…

Lorwyn and Shadowmoor are perfect places to set games that highlight whimsy or delve into shadowy themes. The adventures in this chapter, which highlight sabotaged inventions and chaotic disruptions, are just two such options. This chapter presents details about the Aeghith, a community gathering place in the village of Burrenton (in Lorwyn), as well as example adventure outlines set there.

Various class features, spells, and other abilities let you take an additional action on your turn called a Bonus Action. The Cunning Action feature, for example, allows a Rogue to take a Bonus Action. You can take a Bonus Action only when a special ability, a spell, or another feature of the game states that you can do something as a Bonus Action. You otherwise don’t have a Bonus Action to take.…

Camouflaged as rock formations, ropers are aberrant ambushers that lurk in wait for smaller creatures. These bizarre subterranean hunters extend their rubbery tentacles to explore and prod their surroundings, often reaching beyond their fields of vision. Should they encounter prey, these limbs ensnare victims and drag them close to ropers’ toothy maws. If these tentacles are severed, ropers…

Weapon (morningstar), uncommon You have a +1 bonus to attack and damage rolls made with this magic weapon. Proficiency with a Morningstar allows you to add your proficiency bonus to the attack roll for any attack you make with it. This weapon has the following mastery property. To use this property, you must have a feature that lets you use it. Sap. If you hit a creature with this weapon, that…

Weapon (greatclub), uncommon You have a +1 bonus to attack and damage rolls made with this magic weapon. Proficiency with a Greatclub allows you to add your proficiency bonus to the attack roll for any attack you make with it. This weapon has the following mastery property. To use this property, you must have a feature that lets you use it. Push. If you hit a creature with this weapon, you can…

One of the best ways to learn how to run a D&D; game is to observe other DMs in action. Another DM can give you a solid foundation for understanding the role—as well as inspire you with cool things you can do in your games. You can use these questions to help you reflect on a game you observe: Beginning the Session. How did the DM start the session? Was there a recap? Body Language. What gestures…

While adventuring in the Dragonlance setting, the siblings Caramon Majere, Raistlin Majere, and Kitiara uth Matar provoke the rage of a wyvern Imagination is a key ingredient of Dungeons & Dragons, a cooperative game in which the characters that you roleplay embark on adventures together in fantasy worlds filled with monsters and magic. In D&D;, the action takes place in the imaginations of the…

Adventures set in Barovia involve oppressive, gothic menace; suspicion; and the legendary threat of Strahd von Zarovich. Use this section to develop horror adventures in this domain.

Chapter 1: Running the Realms Chapter 1

If there are parts of the game you prefer not to handle yourself, assign them to players who enjoy them. If you don’t want to break your narrative stride by looking up a rule, designate another player to be the rulebook reference expert. If you don’t like tracking Initiative, ask another player to do so.

Magic Items for Starting Characters If you’re starting a campaign for characters above level 1, the Player’s Handbook offers suggestions for how many magic items such characters should start with and the rarity of those items. Consider these approaches to determining the items each character receives: DM Choice: Choose items for each character using your own judgment. Player Choice: Let the…

Wondrous Item, common When you roll a 1 on a saving throw or ability check, you can use this preserved rabbit foot’s magic to reroll the die. You must use the new roll, and the foot disintegrates.

Rod, rare (requires attunement) This wooden rod is carved in the likeness of five ancient rocs. Motes of their spirits flow through it and allow you to channel some of their lingering power. This rod has 5 charges and regains 1d4 + 1 expended charges daily at dawn. While holding the rod, you can take a Reaction while falling, or a Magic action otherwise, and expend 1 charge to cause two handles…

General Feat (Prerequisite: Level 4+) You gain the following benefits. Ability Score Increase. Increase your Constitution score by 1, to a maximum of 20. Defy Death. You have Advantage on Death Saving Throws. Speedy Recovery. As a Bonus Action, you can expend one of your Hit Point Dice, roll the die, and regain a number of Hit Points equal to the roll. Notes: +1 Constitution, Defy Death, Speedy…

Weapon (greatclub), very rare You have a +3 bonus to attack and damage rolls made with this magic weapon. Proficiency with a Greatclub allows you to add your proficiency bonus to the attack roll for any attack you make with it. This weapon has the following mastery property. To use this property, you must have a feature that lets you use it. Push. If you hit a creature with this weapon, you can…

Birds of prey of fantastic scale, rocs hunt over vast territories and can snatch whole elephants, whales, or wagons in their talons. They then carry their prey back to their remote nests, journeys that can take days and cover hundreds of miles. Rocs nest amid remote heights. Their nests are typically littered with treasure and uneaten prey. Roll on or choose an option from the Roc Nest Remnants…

Dragonmarked houses and others are heading to the Western Frontier. House Orien is extending the lightning rail toward Graywall. But this is no story of Brelish colonialism. Breland isn’t expanding across this frontier—it’s being driven away from it. Throughout the history of Galifar, the people of the Barrens were divided. The medusas of Cazhaak Draal, the changelings of Lost, and the tieflings…

Wondrous Item, uncommon This stone has a hole drilled through its center, through which runs a leather thong. One end of the stone has the rune for “person” etched into, and the other bears the rune for “gold.” The stone has 3 charges and regains 1d3 expended charges daily at dawn. As a Magic action, you can spend 1 charge and whisper “person” or “gold” and dangle the stone from the thong. When…

Chapter 1

Adventure for Level 6 Characters Situation. A discovery beneath the Blood of the Vine tavern in the village of Barovia has unleashed sinister magic, transforming the owners. Hook. Disguised as a human, Urwin Martikov (Medium Wereraven; see chapter 5) of the Blue Water Inn in Vallaki hires the characters to investigate why the Blood of the Vine tavern in the village of Barovia has closed,…