bad bards diffusing court records

Courtier

Backgrounds Sword Coast Adventurer's Guide

gain access to the records and inner workings of any noble court or government you encounter. You know who the movers and shakers are, whom to go to for the favors you seek, and what the current

In your earlier days, you were a personage of some significance in a noble court or a bureaucratic organization. You might or might not come from an upper-class family; your talents, rather than the

Skabatha Nightshade

Monsters The Wild Beyond the Witchlight

. Personality Trait. “When dealing with outsiders, I present myself as a kindly old grandmother.” Ideal. “Children are better off working for me than picking up lots of bad habits

returned, the hags used this power to trap Iggwilv and her court in temporal stasis. The hags then carved up Iggwilv’s domain, splitting it between them. The sisters couldn’t agree on which

Bard Legacy

Classes Basic Rules (2014)

from Experience True bards are not common in the world. Not every minstrel singing in a tavern or jester cavorting in a royal court is a bard. Discovering the magic hidden in music requires hard study

of song, speech, and the magic they contain. Bards say that the multiverse was spoken into existence, that the words of the gods gave it shape, and that echoes of these primordial Words of Creation

Feature: Court Functionary

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Sword Coast Adventurer’s Guide

Feature: Court Functionary Your knowledge of how bureaucracies function lets you gain access to the records and inner workings of any noble court or government you encounter. You know who the movers

Learning from Experience

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Basic Rules (2014)

Learning from Experience True bards are not common in the world. Not every minstrel singing in a tavern or jester cavorting in a royal court is a bard. Discovering the magic hidden in music requires

hard study and some measure of natural talent that most troubadours and jongleurs lack. It can be hard to spot the difference between these performers and true bards, though. A bard’s life is spent

Learning from Experience

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Player's Handbook (2014)

Learning from Experience True bards are not common in the world. Not every minstrel singing in a tavern or jester cavorting in a royal court is a bard. Discovering the magic hidden in music requires

hard study and some measure of natural talent that most troubadours and jongleurs lack. It can be hard to spot the difference between these performers and true bards, though. A bard’s life is spent

Areas of the Courthouse

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Waterdeep: Dragon Heist

records rooms (area H2) at all hours. Behind a desk sits a court clerk (commoner). Uncomfortable wood benches line the walls. A copper plaque mounted above each bench says, in Common, “Please have a

space hold boxes of papers dated by month and year. These papers are records of court proceedings and depositions. H3. Clerks’ Office Two desks pushed together in the middle of the room hold quills

Court of Whispers

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->The Radiant Citadel

Court of Whispers The denizens of the Court of Whispers barter for current knowledge. Heralds, criers, bards, and griots buy and sell information from the fifteen founding civilizations active in the

Citadel, as well as other lands. Skilled scouts and spies can also be hired for short-term reconnaissance or long-term infiltration. The Court is a mixed outdoor-indoor space with quiet alcoves and

Court of Whispers

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Journeys through the Radiant Citadel

Court of Whispers The denizens of the Court of Whispers barter for current knowledge. Heralds, criers, bards, and griots buy and sell information from the fifteen founding civilizations active in the

Citadel, as well as other lands. Skilled scouts and spies can also be hired for short-term reconnaissance or long-term infiltration. The Court is a mixed outdoor-indoor space with quiet alcoves and

Orc Legacy

Species Volo's Guide to Monsters

everywhere in the world around them, and the priests of a tribe are entrusted with the responsibility of identifying these signs and omens — both good and bad — and deciding how the tribe should

ward off diseases if they are worn. Don’t stand inside a ring of stones, mushrooms, or any other kind of circle. Seeing a shooting star before a battle is bad luck. To ward it off, you must

Lords' Alliance

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Basic Rules (2014)

agents include sophisticated bards, zealous paladins, talented mages, and grizzled warriors. They are chosen primarily for their loyalty and are experts in observation, stealth, innuendo, and combat

’ Alliance fights the things that the shopkeeper in his bed has never even heard of. We remove threats before the town mayor even knows about it. We make bad things go away. That’s what we’re good at.” Rameel Jos

Orc Culture and Beliefs

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Volo's Guide to Monsters

around them, and the priests of a tribe are entrusted with the responsibility of identifying these signs and omens — both good and bad — and deciding how the tribe should react to them. As a race, orcs

stones, mushrooms, or any other kind of circle. Seeing a shooting star before a battle is bad luck. To ward it off, you must swallow a stone. A tribute of elf ears brings favor from Gruumsh. If you bury

D6. His Royal Majesty Gullop XIX

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->The Wild Beyond the Witchlight

lap—Bavlorna’s Big Book of Bad Blood—in which the hag’s displeasure with her enemies is spelled out in detail. He procured the book from a darkling merchant (see area B10), who stole it from Bavlorna

of the Soggy Court are allowed to speak with Bavlorna (a falsehood he knows to be untrue), and he invites the characters to join the group. If they accept, he instructs them to proceed to the palace

Gala at the Cerulean Lyceum

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Journeys through the Radiant Citadel

filled with Janyans enraptured by the low-toned, hypnotic music of a group of bards. Xoese-Addae leads the characters to a private audience suite overlooking the quad, occupied by a single Janyan wearing

fine, billowing robes—this is Zisatta. Zisatta Zisatta The aloof Zisatta is a member of the High Court and commands Janya’s security forces, called the Billowing Patrol for their sable robes that

Easthaven Town Hall (T1-T10)

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Icewind Dale: Rime of the Frostmaiden

demonic figurehead is a haunting figure, but not all is what it seems T7. Chair Storage Stacked neatly against the walls of this room are dozens of wooden chairs used for town meetings. T8. Records Room

This room contains records for the town, stored in boxes that lean haphazardly against the walls. T9. Event Venue This room is used for parties and other special events. It contains wooden tables and

Guilds and Groups

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Eberron: Rising from the Last War

security for lodgers and their possessions than you’d find at an inn. An adventurer’s guild is an excellent source of information. By studying records and working with other guild members, you can

city of Sharn, which is both the cultural heart of Breland and a nexus for intrigue and diplomacy. Bards have much to gain from the company of other bards, as they exchange news, stories, and songs

M7. Oracular Library

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->The Wild Beyond the Witchlight

and are initially indifferent toward them. That indifference turns to hostility if the characters attack the elders. Tales from the Gloaming Court, Vol. 3. Characters who examine the bookshelves spot

frog to croak the book’s title in Elvish. This book is volume 3 of an eleven-book series titled Tales from the Gloaming Court. Endelyn stole this book and its companion (in area M17) from her sister

Halflings

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Mordenkainen's Tome of Foes

Scholars, wizards, druids, and bards of other races have different ideas about how halflings escape peril, suggesting that by virtue of something in their nature, they occupy a special place in the

off bad luck or to bring good fortune. Villages or even families might have superstitions observed by no one else, such as the following: For a safe journey through a forest, leave a few seeds or a

17. Arcturia's Court

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Waterdeep: Dungeon of the Mad Mage

17. Arcturia’s Court Characters who listen at the doors to this room hear harp music beyond. The room has a vaulted ceiling 20 feet high and contains the following: Arcturia. Arcturia — a gaunt

butterfly swarm is an instrument of the bards (Anstruth harp). The yellow sapphires carried by the animal-headed guards fit into the pillars in area 8. Each gemstone is worth 1,000 gp.

Eastern Flanaess

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Dungeon Master’s Guide

House of Naelax—is rumored to have fiendish advisers as well as a noble court infested with evil. Ruling from the Malachite Throne in Rauxes, Ivid commands an unmatched army currently embroiled in two

Kingdom, ruled by a cousin of the overking; its court is rife with debauchery and intrigue Ahlissa Herzogin Seprenna Calyn (human) South province of the Great Kingdom, ruled by a cousin of the

Ascendant Factions

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Planescape: Adventures in the Multiverse->Sigil and the Outlands

entirely. Sinkers have strong allies in both the Bleak Cabal and the Heralds of Dust. Fated Who Take All They Can and More Factol: Duke Rowan Darkwood Headquarters: Hall of Records Aligned Plane: Ysgard

Sigil. Secure in the Hall of Records, the Fated cement their role as the tax collectors of the Cage. Their ruthless debt collection efforts and aggressive foreclosures earn them a heaping share of

Castle Ward

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Waterdeep: Dragon Heist

lavishly decorated, with many halls used by government officials, guildmasters, and nobles for meetings and court proceedings. If you have reason to be invited (not compelled, I should hope!) to meet with

parted ways. Mirt kept on with a life of adventure, while Durnan built the tavern called the Yawning Portal over the Well and now, almost two centuries later, charges coin to descend into it. Not a bad

Greenfast Locations

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Candlekeep Mysteries

floor that can be rented out by the day or tenday. Old Fargo’s Suspicions. Old Fargo has long distrusted Lord Viallis, instinctively seeing him as a bad sort, but he keeps his thoughts to himself unless

doubles as an office. The place is filled with business records and correspondence, all of which concern Lord Viallis’s business and none of which appear suspicious or out of the ordinary. If the characters

Lady's Ward

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Planescape: Adventures in the Multiverse->Sigil and the Outlands

, they plead with the characters to represent them in court. 5 When the coast is clear, a shady-looking Doomguard rot blade (see Morte’s Planar Parade) opens their long overcoat in front of the characters

, which include current and past Harmonium patrol routes, active members and their ranks, and official arrest records. Recruiting the Harmonium. With an official writ from Factol Sarin, the factol of an

Lower Palace Locations

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->The Wild Beyond the Witchlight

tower and the staircases suspended above it. P13. Court of Storms The double door on the stone balcony between this area and area P22 is sealed with a lion crown lock (see “Crown Locks” earlier in the

part of the Court of Storms (area P13) and leads to one of the turrets of the central tower (area P48g on the upper level). P14b. The spiral staircase ascends 30 feet to area P14f. To the northwest

Alignment

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Basic Rules (2014)

townsfolk. Chaotic Neutral. (CN) creatures follow their whims, holding their personal freedom above all else. Many rogues and bards are chaotic neutral. Lawful Evil. (LE) creatures methodically take

boastfulness and has a fear of heights resulting from a bad fall during her career as a thief. Artemis Entreri is always prepared for the worst and moves with a quick, precise confidence. Consider their

Locations in Phandalin

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Acquisitions Incorporated

Phandalin” above), Linene works tirelessly to keep the coster operational through good times and bad. Most of the goods in the Player’s Handbook can be purchased here. Linene can special order items

for mining activity in the area, as well as the authority for maintaining public records. A two-story building, the exchange bears a newly painted sign depicting two crossed pickaxes above a lump of

Screaming Devilkin

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Mordenkainen's Fiendish Folio Volume 1

believe that their appearance derives from the primal fear inspired by fiendish creatures, while bards assert that panic, being such a repulsive emotion, is embodied by an equally ugly creature

creatures in the court of a cruel noble or foul necromancer. Should a minor bandit chief or low-ranking acolyte of evil gain the service of these creatures, take care. When the devilkin take notice of such

Life as a Halfling

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Mordenkainen's Tome of Foes

storytelling has another outlet, in the form of gatherings in which an elder holds court or several tale-tellers try to outdo one another as they pass on their experiences. Witnessing a halfling

. Halfling settlements survive wars because halflings are so irritating. Why conquer something you want nothing to do with? Bad Apples Although most halflings are energetic and jovial, as with any

Upper City Gazetteer

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Baldur's Gate: Descent into Avernus

patriars, traveling nobles, famed bards, and socially ambitious Lower City residents hoping to rub shoulders with the elite. The inn is unfussy, but conducts its service with flawless technique and the

laws and ordinances, summaries of judicial decisions and trial outcomes, deed records, guild charters, census tallies, and family genealogies for all the noble houses and sufficiently important

Upper City Gazetteer

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Baldur’s Gate Gazetteer

patriars, traveling nobles, famed bards, and socially ambitious Lower City residents hoping to rub shoulders with the elite. The inn is unfussy, but conducts its service with flawless technique and the

laws and ordinances, summaries of judicial decisions and trial outcomes, deed records, guild charters, census tallies, and family genealogies for all the noble houses and sufficiently important

Lottie's Palace

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Acquisitions Incorporated

character can collect 10 gp worth of gems, to a total of 1,000 gp for the entire pool. 7. Office Lottie’s books are here — both those she likes to read and her financial records for the gambling hall. A

that Lottie keeps two sets of records — one that she discloses to her investors showing lower profits, and one she keeps to herself with the true profits. If used carefully, this information could

City Celebrations

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Waterdeep: Dragon Heist

. Although some of the dancing is wanton and performed for show, large-scale ring dances in the street for all ages are also popular. All the dancing ends at dusk, after which bards and minstrels perform at

, on his statue in the City of the Dead, and atop the altars of the House of Wonder. Bards perform songs in honor of the wizard all over the city. The Open Lord visits taverns and inns throughout

Wedding Itinerary

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Acquisitions Incorporated

the vault’s keys. Any character who has read the vault records (found in Ironbeard’s quarters or Lady Kira and Lord Zardak’s quarters) has advantage on checks to open a vault door. Vault Walls

some point during the day. Rizwin knows the location, as does Ironbeard, Lady Kira, and Lord Zardak. The contents of all vaults are also noted in the vault records, a copy of which is kept in Ironbeard’s

Example Complex Traps

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Xanathar's Guide to Everything

threat) The court jester devised a deadly trap to foil anyone who sought to steal his magic fool’s cap. The jester’s tomb is located at the end of a 10-foot-wide, 150-foot-long hallway that descends

. Heavily damaging a statue is a bad idea, for doing so leaves the gas vents open. Reducing a statue to 0 hit points (AC 17; 20 hp; resistance to fire, piercing, and slashing damage; immune to poison

D&D Beyond

Search Results